Chapter Four
(A/N: Part two of Friendly Date is here! The chapter came together longer than expected; mainly because school is a ball buster which keeps me from writing more to this story. If there are suggestions of what you readers would like, please tell me (either pm or in the comments)! I'll eventually get stumped where I want to go next, and some ideas here and there would be greatly appreciated. :) This chapter will most likely wrap up the date with no spicy ending…It's a slow burner for now. As for chapter five, it may take a while as well and I'm sorry in advance. No more rambling, onto the story!)
Momentarily standing in front of a family-friendly deli named 'Joe's Creations,' Yuri, Otabek, and Vera entered the building with an inviting smell of fresh meat and baked bread. They left the park a while ago, using Yuri's car to reach their next destination instead of traveling on foot. The young beta girl had an empty stomach—growling for food to digest. During the car ride, her stomach growled oddly, causing the adults to chuckle and comment how much of an appetite Vera worked up when she played on the playground.
"I want the biggest turkey and chicken sandwich they have! Don't forget the tomatoes, mayonnaise, and olives that have to be on it." Vera explained to her papa, her hand in his. Otabek stood next to Yuri, gazing at the large menu the place had. "I know, I know. I wouldn't forget." Yuri replied as he used his free hand to rub his daughter's head. There were many varieties of sandwiches, the Russian wouldn't have been surprised if the owner intended to make a spinoff of Subway. He decided to go light with a chicken and fruit salad; he wasn't in the mood to eat a sandwich—or the mess the meal sometimes brought.
Before the trio could order, the employee who would take their order—a young woman with red-brunette colored hair and green eyes—brightened up from her neutral facial expression when she looked up and caught eyes of Otabek. "Well hey there, fella; long time no see." She began with a hearty chuckle. She waved her hand a bit in her face before the Kazakh could speak, "Let me guess, the usual ham-sweet bacon deluxe with ranch dressing and pickles on the side?" She asked, her nose scrunched up from remembering whether or not she was right. A low chuckle, the dark-haired man hummed. "Right again, Stacey. I brought some friends with me this time, though." He replied with his hand directing the female's attention to Yuri and Vera.
"Hey hey, it's about time our Otabek brought some buddies with him." She said with a teasing tone. "I'm Stacy, a friend of Otabek from college." She added, nodding with a little grin. "And hello cutie, you look adorable with that shirt." She pointed out Vera's lilac blouse.
"Thank you; papa picked it out for me," Vera said, a proud smile as she looked up to Yuri. He smiled fondly at the little girl before he focused on Stacy. "That's Vera—a sweet girl indeed." He mentioned while stealing a glance to her. "I'm Yuri, a new friend of Otabek's." He added, finally taking notice of the young woman's outstretched hand to shake; which, he gladly accepted.
"I'd love to get to know y'all a little better when I'm not working and all. Soon, maybe; what can I get for you?" She asked, ready to take the two's order. First ordering Vera's meal before his, Yuri instinctively reached into his pocket to dig his wallet out as the total came up to $19.11.
"It's on me, don't worry about it." Otabek intervened, his hand gently grasped Yuri's to stop. The younger man quickly looked up and wiggled his hand free with a small scoff. "I can pay; I'm capable of that." He said, the words came a little harsher than what they would have liked to be. "I didn't mean it in that way; I know you're capable." The alpha replied, retreating his hand to his side, his brows knitted of a frown. "I asked you to meet up in the first place—at least let me treat you?" He asked as one of his brows rose. Past a moment of thought and a sigh of defeat, Yuri reluctantly nodded. "Sure, alright."
The small misconception didn't escalate into anything further as it was fast to dissolve. Yuri felt a little awkward and somewhat stupid from his attitude. He remembered when his ex used to treat him; always paying for things and treating the omega like a child. Always dominant in an argument or situation, Yuri despised those certain types of alphas who thought they were superior above all else. Now, Otabek clearly wasn't one of those alphas and would most likely never treat anyone below a human being. Truthfully, Yuri wasn't sure what got into him to become defensive over a small thing such as paying the bill. He only assumed there was still some wound on his heart and mind from the unknown alpha that was once in his life. Never again would he be treated less than scum—a mere object. Heavens know he'd conquer heaven and hell to prevent Vera from making the same stupid and reckless move he made years ago.
Sitting down at a four-chaired table, Yuri and Vera sat opposite of Otabek with their meals. The omega wasn't pleased to see his daughter's order from the adult menu; the sandwich looked almost as big as her head! Before he let her chow down, he cut the sandwich in half in case she got full from one half. He started to dig into his salad as Otabek tilted his head down in silence for a few moments. The Russian stared at the teacher for the time, whipping his head into a different direction when the male finished whatever he was doing. He chose not to ask, for now at least, and thought of a friendly topic to converse upon.
"So, what were you like in college? I didn't expect we'd run into a college buddy." Yuri began, taking a forkful of lettuce and onion into his mouth; chewing while Otabek answered. "We met in freshman year and she was actually majoring in engineering while I majored in child education." He stated, taking a reasonable bite into his sandwich. "Mph, I wasn't a popular guy back then. I was surprisingly shy and tried to keep my main focus on my studies." The Kazakh explained, earning a snicker from Yuri. "You, the cool Otabek, shy?" He asked, brow raised in disbelief. "C'mon—that's hard to imagine. I imagine you with the tough guys and maybe some ladies by your side." He retorted.
"I would show you old pictures but they're all in this big green album back at my place. I was sort of a nerd in high school and that slowly faded as I progressed in college." The alpha went to say through a mouthful of bread, ham, and bacon. "Mister Otabek!" Vera chimed in, already half done with her first portion of sandwich, "do you like papa?" She asked, her mouth was suddenly nestled against the sandwich Yuri pressed angst her to keep quiet. The Russian chuckled nervously, cheeks more than ruby red. "I'm sorry; I'm not sure where that came from." He said, quietly telling his daughter to eat while he so tried to recollect himself. Otabek, on the other hand, was snickering against his cupped hand, head shaking. "Curiosity can strike a kid's mind at the most random times." He replied through his chuckle. "And to answer your question, Vera," the man eyed the little girl with a playful smile, "of course I like your papa; we're friends after all." He said, naturally shrugging and taking yet another mouthful of meaty deliciousness into his mouth.
Friends. Right. Obviously. There was no way Otabek was interested in Yuri in that way. They were friends, buddies, ol' pals. Possibly nothing more than that; and the thought disheartened the omega mother. He was head-over-heels with the teacher, making him feel it necessary to win the man over no matter what. Vera seems to enjoy his company, and so does he. It works for everyone and there should be any consequences if he were to get together with the alpha. Wishful thinking, though.
The group left the deli restaurant soon after finishing their meals. Glancing at his phone as the three approached Yuri's car, the male noticed the time to be around two o'clock. "Vera and I need to go shopping. Do you want me to drop you off somewhere?" He asked, hoisting the girl into the back seat, placing her into the kiddy car-seat. Ensuring she was buckled in, the blonde closed the door with a smile and turned his gaze over to the other. "No, thank you, though. I should be jogging home; gotta work off that bread and bacon fat I just ate." Otabek replied with a smile. Both men shared the best awkward five-second silence known to man. Yuri being the one to speak first. "Well, see you around. I enjoyed today, really." He said, holding his hand out to shake. As badly as he wanted to hug the Kazakh, he couldn't overstep that bro boundary. "Same here; we should do something like this again soon." The brown-haired male replied, extending his hand to meet the omega in a comfortable handshake.
Yuri slid into his car while Otabek jogged off with a final wave. Both elated from the little 'date,' excited for another similar event to come up again. Although they didn't fully realize it now, but this would commence their hearts to slowly yearn for the other. As emotions come to play and some rivalry shows up, what's a little love without something or someone to stir the pot?