Title: Look After You
Chapter Fifty-Six: The Date
Author: snarkysweetness
Rating: PG-13
Characters: August, Granny, Emma, Ruby, & Mary Margaret; Emma/August
Summary: August and Emma finally have their first 'real' date.
Warnings: Language.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Author's Notes: This is the first part of the date. I swear I'm trying to be better about updating but I have a lot going on in RL and I am easily distracted. My suggestion is just to review and demand what you want to see more of to kick my butt into gear because that's the easiest way to guilt me into it, TBH. And if anyone cares, the dress she wears is the one from the pilot. Part two is done and should be up in a few days. Much thanks to hunks for looking this over. Enjoy my darlings.
August sat at the counter of the diner and poked at his burger and fries. He attempted to take a bite of a single fry, but got it halfway to his mouth before deciding that he couldn't stomach his now cold food. He threw the fry down and shoved his plate away.
Telling Emma the truth about his vices hadn't been easy, but this morning when he'd woken up in her arms to find her watching him with a big smile, he felt that the weight on his shoulders was much lighter. He still had to tell her the truth about their shared past and the curse, and the more he was able to open up to her about, the fewer lies he had to keep, the better he felt.
He prayed that when he finally laid all of his cards on the table that she'd find it in her heart to forgive him. He really couldn't bear the thought of living without her.
"You know, boy, you're going to need your strength for tonight; don't let a weak stomach keep you from giving your body what it needs."
August glanced up to find Granny watching him.
"What?"
"Your big date tonight; you're not going to woo her if you're fainting from low blood sugar."
"How did you-"
"I know everything that goes on in this town, boy."
He shook his head and took a half-hearted sip of his water. Granny never ceased to amaze him; she was one of the few people in this town who had remained the same. Even back in their land she had always been able to see right through him. She was full of piss and vinegar and it was comforting to have her back in his life.
"Besides, I know a love sick-puppy when I see one."
He glanced up to find her watching him knowingly and opened his mouth in an attempt to argue but she held a hand up.
"Don't lie to me boy. I may not be your mother, but I demand respect from you."
"I wouldn't-"
"Here," she pulled a piece of cherry cream pie, his favorite, out of the refrigerated case. She placed it in front of him and he shook his head, knowing he was too amped up for his date with Emma to eat.
"I can't-"
"Dammit boy, eat. Trust me; it'll be good for you." Granny took his plate from earlier and barked at one of the waitresses to nuke it for him.
August frowned, knowing the old woman would stand there until she was satisfied he'd eaten enough. With a small gulp, he took a tiny bite of the pie. Then another. By the time she returned with a cup of coffee and her own slice of pie, he'd inhaled half of it.
"See, I told you. All you needed was some sugar. Now, tell me…" for the first time, he saw a flicker of vulnerability but it was gone before he could question it. "How is Ruby settling in at the Sheriff's station?"
August glanced over and gave Granny a small smile before reaching over to squeeze her wrinkled hand. She wasn't the only one who could see through people.
"Ruby's doing fine. Emma thinks Ruby's something special and she's really been helping her with this Kathryn Nolan case." He let go of Granny's hand and reached for his coffee so he could take a small sip. "But…"
Granny glanced up and he let out a small sigh.
"I think she misses you. It wouldn't hurt for you to budge a little, you're both pretty stubborn and I think you'd be surprised at how long she'll hold out…"
"Don't sass me, boy. Shut up and eat your pie," she barked. August detected a hint of a smile on her lips. He shook his head and did as he was told.
"Whatever you say, Mrs. Lucas."
"Look at her, she's like a teenager on her first date," Mary Margaret teased as Ruby poured them each another glass of wine.
"It's cute; I've never seen her so flustered before. Now I know she's human."
"Neither of you are helping!" Emma snapped, internally freaking out. She'd been able to hide her anticipation for her date by throwing herself into her work but now that she was trying to find something decent to wear, she was inwardly cursing herself for not taking the time to fuck out of Storybrooke for a quick trip to a Macy's or something. Everything in Merryweather's reminded her of something Granny would wear.
She threw down a black dress and stood with her hand on her hips as she looked over the discarded contents of her closet.
"I have nothing to wear. NOTHING!" She ran a hand through her hair before throwing herself down into a chair.
"You should just wear that," Ruby suggested as she motioned towards the black lace bra and panty set that Emma was currently donning. Emma shot her a dirty look before throwing a high heel in her direction. Ruby ducked and dodged it before laughing.
"You've had too much to drink," Emma scolded before reaching for Mary Margaret's glass and downing it. She needed something to calm her nerves. She shoved the glass back into Mary Margaret's hands before digging through her dresser. Maybe she could find a nice pantsuit or something.
"I don't know why you're so nervous; you've already slept with him." Ruby commented as she finished the rest of her wine.
"I HAVE NOT SLEPT WITH HIM!" Emma snapped. Before they could say anything she sighed. "I mean I've technically slept with him, like in the same bed, but we haven't…ugh, you know what, this is none of your business."
"Seriously?" Ruby asked in disbelief. "I mean, I get that he's like not a douche but-oww!" Ruby shot Mary Margaret a look after being shoved in the ribs. "Does that mean her and Gra-ouch! That hurts!" Emma turned away from them, annoyed. She didn't feel she needed to tell them about her relationships unless she felt like it and she didn't have the stomach for this kind of stress right now.
Tonight needed to be perfect; August was wonderful and he did so much to make sure they were doing this the right way and she didn't want to screw it up.
"The red dress is cute." Mary Margaret suggested as a way to change the subject. Emma gave her a grateful look before glancing to the one she was pointing at. She let out a small sigh.
"Not that one."
"Why not?"
Emma folded a few blouses and shoved them into a drawer before picking up dresses and skirts to put back on their hangers. She didn't think they'd end up back in her bedroom, but just in case…
"I was-nothing, I just don't like that one. The shoes that go with it are hard to walk in and it's too tight." Truth was, it made her think of Henry and she didn't want to be thinking about her kid while out on a date. Plus, the damn thing was impossible to get on and off.
"What she's saying is she wants something August can get into easily," Ruby said with a wink.
Emma rolled her eyes.
"It's…" she sighed and met Mary Margaret's eyes. Mary Margaret gave her one of her 'motherly' looks, the one that made Emma spill her guts, and so instead of telling them the truth she grabbed it with a sigh.
"Fine, but one of you is helping me into the damn thing."
Two hours later, Emma stood in the middle of the loft, trying to figure out what to do with herself. The dress had been tight six months ago when she'd last worn it but with all of August's cooking, she'd put on a few pounds, so sitting wasn't an option, at least not until she'd blown his mind by letting him see her in all of her glory.
Hell, if she had her way, they wouldn't even leave the apartment. But she promised herself that she'd try to behave, for his sake. But he wasn't making her resolve to be good any easier, because when she opened the door followed by his very firm knock, she was left breathless.
"My God…"
He stood in her doorway wearing a pair of gray Dockers and a dress shirt, much to her surprise. Her eyes traveled up and she smiled when, in true August style, the top few buttons were undone, exposing his chest hair. She resisted the urge to lean forward and run her fingers through it and instead continued to look him over.
"You combed your hair," she teased, impressed.
"I always comb my hair. You look nice too, by the way."
Emma smiled and grabbed her purse as she realized that the butterflies that had been in her stomach all day were finally gone.
August had gone all out; the shoes, the clothes, even his hair, and while he knew he looked good, he wasn't sure if Emma would like it. She was used to casual August and he was afraid she wouldn't be into the clean-cut version of him. He stood outside of her door for a full minute before gathering the courage to knock and when she opened the door, all thoughts of his appearance went right out the window.
He sucked in a deep breath while resisting the urge to whistle. She looked…
"Wow," he muttered so quietly he was sure she hadn't heard him.
"My God…you combed your hair?"
"I always comb my hair." He couldn't even bring himself to properly tease her back. She looked amazing. She was already the sexiest woman he'd ever seen but now…
"You look nice too, by the way." She looked better than 'nice' but he'd temporarily forgotten how to use vocabulary. Emma grabbed her things and he led her out the door. He caught himself glancing down at her ass as she passed and he withheld a groan.
"Are you trying to kill me, woman?" He asked as he realized he wasn't going to make it through this date with his sexy siren taunting him in her red dress without addressing the fact that he wanted to tear it off of her.
Emma smirked and glanced back at him saucily.
"The plan was not to make it out of my apartment but since you failed that part of the evening, yes, the intent is now to kill you."
August smirked and grabbed her from behind before kissing her neck.
"Come on; let's get to dinner before one of us ends up naked." He teased before releasing her to open the building's front door for her.
"And that would be an issue why?" Emma asked as she led him down the sidewalk.
He followed before grabbing her hand and smirked. As much as he wanted to get her into bed and put that mouth of hers to use he'd meant what he said about taking things slow and he told her as much.
"Yeah, yeah, I've heard it all before." She reached his bike and he shook his head.
"We're not going on that thing with you looking like that, give me your keys." He was the one taking her out so there was no way he was letting her drive. Besides, if his hands were free in the bug, he wasn't sure that he could continue to be a gentleman with her in that dress.
"No, I can drive," she insisted but he snatched her keys and pressed her into the door of the bug. He let his lips linger near hers for a long moment, until he felt her trembling when he then proceeded to kiss the tip of her nose. She wrinkled it and frowned, clearly not amused with his taunting.
"You don't know where we're going," he reminded her.
"Well then, you can just tell me."
August shook his head.
"Not happening."
Emma gave him her best pout and it was adorable, but he wasn't buying it.
"Are you going to let me feel like a man and take you out to dinner or what?"
Emma sighed and relented.
"Fine, but that kiss better be worth it."
August kissed her forehead and led her to the passenger side.
"I promise it'll be everything you dreamed of."
Emma had to admit, this was the best date she'd ever been on, and she'd been on hundreds of them. August drove them to an adorable Italian restaurant that was much fancier than she'd been expecting. He let her order the wine and pick both of their entrees and she found herself smiling far more than usual.
"What?" She asked with a small blush as she finished a bite of her tiramisu. He'd been staring at her with the same goofy look for the past five minutes and it was starting to make her feel flustered.
August looked down with a smile and poked at his half of their shared desert before glancing up to meet her eyes. The butterflies returned to her stomach and she resisted the urge to duck her head.
"You're just the most beautiful woman in the room."
She felt her cheeks grown even hotter and looked down with a small grin of embarrassment.
"No I'm not."
"You are, maybe even the entire world."
"Okay now you're full of it," she told him, her bullshit meter going off.
August winked and took another bite.
"Only a little," he teased.
She laughed and took the last bite of their treat smugly.
"Wait, you have a little something…" August reached out and brushed his thumb over the corner of her lips. Emma froze and suddenly it wasn't her cheeks that were feeling the heat. He pulled his hand back and licked the mascarpone from her mouth off of his skin and Emma let out a small, shaky breath.
"We should get out of here," she whispered a moment later. The whole date part had been fine, but if she didn't get her hands on him soon, she'd die from it, and she didn't think he wanted her to fly across the table and attack him with her mouth.
August didn't miss a beat, he motioned for the check, and before Emma could finish rushing through a make-out fantasy they were back in the bug and headed back to Storybrooke. She didn't even think to challenge him for possession of the driver's seat.
Emma tapped her fingers on her thighs nervously and jumped lightly in surprise as he reached over to link their fingers together. She glanced over at him with a smile and while he kept his eyes on the road, she could see his eyes light up when she gave his hand a small squeeze. With any luck, the girls would be gone so she could bring him back inside and ruin him properly.
