Hey hey! How's the new year going so far? Hopefully, you're all well. Here we have the first update of the year, moving closer to the end of the story, and they're making some progress /eye emoji/
Enjoy!
xii
Knowing that Noodle was younger than him, Stu was half expecting her to take him to a club or something of the like, and while he did not mind those places, he would rather not go to one tonight. He wanted to properly talk to and get to know her, and the loud music buzzing in his ears coupled with a sure migraine that would morph from the faint pulsing in his brain would not help his case. So he was very much pleased when she led him to a bistro not too far from her apartment building. The space was bathed in an orangeish glow from the overhead lights and a few lit candles composing the perfect atmosphere for his overly sensitive eyes. She had a table for two reserved for them under her name and together they sat in a more secluded area of the small restaurant.
It was just a matter of seconds until they were approached by an elderly attendant who passed each of them a menu. "Ah, Madame Niccals. Such an honor to have you here with us tonight."
Noodle smiled up at the man from where she sat. "I thought we were supposed to be on first name basis by now, Richard."
"Old habits die hard, my dear." He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and directed his gaze to Stu. "And you've finally brought along a handsome young man with you."
"Yes, yes." She snickered slightly at the singer's flushed face. "Quite handsome, isn't he? He's my date." Patting his hand gently from across the table, she flashed him a grin before sitting back once more.
Richard nodded his head and twisted his lips, making his mustache move along. "Would you like to see the wine chart?"
"Actually, bring us your finest bottle, please." Noodle absentmindedly traced her fingertips over Stu's knuckles. "We'll be staying here for a while."
Once the attendant was gone, Stu gave her a smile and opened the menu, looking through the dishes listed there calmly. Judging by the description, most of them seemed delicious, so he would have a hard time trying to pick just one. Peeking at her from over the booklet when she started speaking, Noodle mentioned choosing an appetizer first so the night would last longer. He liked the sound of that, so Stu flipped a few pages back and began reading the names in his head.
"Hmm..." He jerked back when he noticed her staring at him and flushed instantly. He did not mean to make any sounds. "I jus'... Really like mozzarella sticks."
Noodle giggled slightly and placed down the closed menu. "We can order some, alright."
Richard returned in that moment with a bottle of wine that he corked open on the spot, and filled the tall glasses on the table with the crimson liquid. He smiled at the young woman's praise and annotated the order of their appetizer, mentioning that they could call him anytime if they wanted to order something more before leaving the couple alone. Noodle sipped the wine, her gaze on the singer's face as his eyes examined the interior of the building curiously. It was decorated with the basics a restaurant should have, except maybe for a vase of flowers by the entrance and a painting or two on the wall. Its simplicity made him wonder that maybe he should throw some things out and transform his apartment into something as organized and easy on the eyes as this.
The chances of that happening were low, though.
When he looked back at her, Noodle was just placing her cellphone back into her handbag with a slight exasperated expression on her face and a soft smile on her lips at the same time. He had no doubts that her dad had just sent her a message inquiring on her whereabouts or something of the like. Stu had to admit that he would have done the same thing if he had a daughter as lovely as her going out with a man like himself... Or any man, really.
That brought him back to a topic he had been debating in his head ever since the shooting for the music video, and from much back as well, for he had wondered something similar a few times before that. Noodle was lovely and great and so smart. Whatever had she seen in someone such as himself? Despite the oddity of his appearance, he did not think he looked that bad in all honesty, but in his worst days when he was so drugged on painkillers that he could not even form a coherent sentence he had absolutely nothing to offer. And she was not even aware that he had many problems because of the accidents. Would she change her mind if she knew?
Feeling a sudden bolt of bravery, Stu cleared his throat and shifted to get more comfortable, drawing her eyes to his face. They would talk about that now, but he would have to approach the topic subtly. "What exactly did yeh see in me?"
Subtly being the key word.
By the time Noodle had recovered from the shock and regarded him with a funny look, Stu had already kicked himself mentally about five times and was ready to get up and leave to save himself from more humiliation. "I don't think you're asking me this because you're insecure or don't feel confident about yourself as a whole." She started, her fingertip running along the rim of her glass. "Whatever your reason is, well, I took an instant liking to you. You were so sweet."
"I... Really?" So she thought he was nice from the start just like he had. Good.
Noodle nodded. "Yes, that, and once I heard your singing, I just... I couldn't believe what I was hearing!" She laughed lightly with her face hidden in her palms and then brushed her fringe aside. "Your voice was unbelievable and I fell in love with it. I listened to the songs all night long and had them stuck in my head for the next days. I was like 'oooh no, I can't be crushing on him', but then we ran into each other in the elevator and..." Noodle sighed, her gaze was soft and her smile was lovely, and his heart skipped a beat at the sight. "And you were so happy that I liked your songs and I just knew."
The tips of her ears were pink. Her blush did not show on her face because of her makeup, but the tiny bit of it he could see was enough to set his insides on fire. He was speechless to say the least, fishing around his brain for words to say that would sound as beautiful as hers, but found nothing. All he could think of was Russel telling him to ask her out and all the times he had ignored any possible signs his heart was giving him that he liked her a bit too much, but never dared describe it as love.
"Fanks," he said finally, and then added as he reached for her from where he sat. "For complimentin' me voice, I mean." Noodle giggled lightly and gently placed her hands on his upturned palms. "I'm bad at romance in the beginnin'. Russ would insist that I was infatuated wif yeh and whatnot, but I wouldn' listen."
She rose her eyebrows. "You told him about me?"
"I told him 'bout the interview an' tha' I liked tha sound of your laugh." Stu explained, his thumb running circles on the back of her hand. "He said I never comment on 'ose little fings unless I really like tha person. I, o' course, said 'e was bein' stupid an' didn' listen."
Noodle laughed and touched a palm to her face self-consciously. "I'm glad I listened to his advice and invited you to go to my house, then."
Stu felt his mouth falling open. "I can'... I can' believe tha little shit was playin' matchmaker all alon'."
"You don't know the half of it," she said with a snicker. "He got me cornered that day when he arrived, could read me like an open book. I told him to keep his mouth shut or else."
The singer looked down at their hands with a grin, his shoulders shaking from the laughing. "And... Yer dad?"
Noodle sighed lightly again and tilted her head to the side. "That day on the rooftop, my dad asked me why I was always so pissed when he was rude towards you. I can't say I made a mistake, but I told him that I liked you. Really liked you. He threw a fit." She shook her head at the memory, holding his gaze evenly. "He wasn't mad because you're older or because your hair is blue or whatever reason one could come up with. He was mad because I actually liked someone."
He nodded his head in understanding. "An' he couldn' stand tha thought o' losin' 'is baby girl to some other guy."
"Exactly." She traced circles on his palm as she spoke. "He has other kids from other marriages, but I'm really the only daughter he has, so... Sorry he was being a jerk to you."
"No worries." Stu assured her with a smile. "I understand."
Another attendant interrupted them that moment when he placed their appetizer on the center of their table and left with a smile. They did not talk much about that anymore, and instead focused on other topics such as their favorite movies and tv shows. Noodle enjoyed tv series about cops, terrorists, crime and such, and named a few of her favorite ones for him to watch. He told her about his love for zombie movies and everything horror, making her quirk an eyebrow and promise to watch one of his favorites with him.
Stu ordered himself a dish of chicken that had Noodle asking about his vegetarian status. "I jus' don' eat red meat," he explained, and so she ordered one with salmon so they could split. Slowly, they drank most of the bottle of wine before the main dishes were served, and afterwards he watched as she helped herself to some dessert. Watched as in ogling, because he could not stop staring at her tongue as she licked the ice cream that accompanied her petit gateau off her lips. Damn, was it enticing. He could only hope that she had not noticed him almost drooling at the sight.
The night ended much too soon for the both of them. They walked back to her building, the chill night air giving him the perfect opportunity to wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her close, just to keep her warm, he told himself. Noodle was more than happy to press herself to his side as they walked, and kept such close proximity as they waited for the elevator. Stu would gladly accompany her to her very doorstep if that meant he could spend some more time with her. Needless to say, he was a bit saddened when the doors opened and revealed the small lobby of her floor.
Instead of peeling herself away from him right away, Noodle simply moved until her chest was tightly pressed to his, her arms woven around his waist as she looked up at him. He ran the back of two fingers along the side of her face, gazing down at her softly and debating if he should take an extra step and kiss her. He wanted to do that so much, feel her lips on his, taste her. Slowly, Stu lowered his face to hers, keeping eye contact until her eyelids fluttered and fell shut, her lips parting in anticipation. He paused for a second to take it in, commit this to memory, and advanced, gently brushing his mouth over hers at first.
He heard as her breath hitched, and she hummed in contentment as she stood on her tiptoes to apply more pressure to their kiss. With her arms now wrapped around his neck, she walked backwards until she was trapped between his body and the wall, a noise of approval resounding in her throat when he grabbed her hips firmly and pressed her against the structure. Noodle opened her mouth when he traced his tongue on the seam of her lips, her own hungrily seeking for his. She tugged at his hair with a whine, releasing his blue locks so her hands could grab a hold of the end of her dress and tug it upwards. Stu was ready to lift her up when her phone started ringing, mercilessly forcing them apart to stare at each other.
Noodle blindly searched for her phone, gaze flickering away from his face to see who was calling her. No one other than her dad. With a sigh, she pressed the device to her forehead and closed her eyes tightly, her knuckles now white. "It's okay, love." He assured her, even if he did want to keep going.
She looked up at him with a sullen smile. "I'm sorry." Reaching up, she placed a chaste kiss on his lips. "I should get inside before he – Oh, here it is." Her ringtone reached their ears halfway through her sentence, and they sighed in unison. "Call me once you get home, okay?"
Stu let his lips linger on her forehead and replied. "Okay. Talk to yeh soon."
"Bye." Noodle gave him a happier smile than the last and stood by the door of her apartment until the metallic doors of the lift closed and she had no other option than to go back inside.
