A long overdue request fic for Euryphaessa Gray :)
Requested during the 1st week of March via FFN app, and I saw it late on August because I'm an idiot who never checks the apps on her phone TT_TT:
hi there! can i also request for CC and Lelouch's first date and first romantic night in "The Chaining Booth"?
The First Date
"I refuse!"
"Lelouch, please." Milly practically begged, and would have gone down on her knees for the chance to plan such a delightful excursion.
"Why do you want to do it? It's a date. Not a party." Where did she even overhear this?
"On my authority as President of the Student Council, I hereby declare that your friends have the right to help you plan the perfect first date for your new girlfriend."
"Since when is the school allowed to meddle with my private life?" Lelouch noted with a hint of derision, sulking under his breath as he evaded yet another one of Milly's attempts to grab him and tousle the top of his hair.
"This is not for school, silly. It's what friends do!" Milly's enthusiastic nod and proclamation put Lelouch on-edge more than anything else. "Besides, you two hinged because of me!"
Brief flashes of the eventful Chaining Booth event passed through his mind's eye. His and C.C.'s first kiss… The teasing, the faux wedding… The string of events that led to the constant hand-holding, more kissing, and the official label.
Milly's cheerful giggle morphed into a joyous cackle so jarring, it stunned Lelouch to the point of being too slow to actually reach out and stop her as she ran out of the classroom and barrelled down the Academy hallways, straight towards the Student Council room where most of their peers where already were. Good gods, please no… This really couldn't be happening. Cursing his lack of physical speed and his tendency to tire ridiculously easily, the Student Council vice president hopelessly ran after the blonde he was fortunate — and unfortunate — enough to call his friend.
He barely counted the number of students he'd shouted passing greetings to, and when he reached the Student Council room with its automatically sliding glass doors, the threshold hissed open just as Suzaku chirped out a greeting.
"Oh there you are! Sure Lelouch, we'd love to help."
At the head of the table was a grinning Milly with hands perched on her hips, grinning at him enthusiastically.
"Call it a Student Council favor." She winked at him. "We're sponsoring your date, and that means all-expense paid dinners, surprises, chocolates, flowers, the whole thing."
She would have thrown confetti and colored party powder if she had them. And right underneath her expressive excitement, the rest of the Council looked on with varying degrees of expressions on their faces. Lelouch couldn't blame them. They weren't even supposed to be in on it, for goodness' sakes! Besides, he truthfully doubted that they cared. Only Milly was enthusiastic about Lelouch's personal life enough to tease him about it. Shirley was red-faced, Kallen looked smug and that was never a good thing, Nina was buried in her science textbook doing homework and completely content to ignore Milly's announcement of the latest scheme and agenda, and Rivalz had that ear-splitting grin that spelled out all sorts of lovely trouble for Lelouch.
His personal life at school, forever paraded around for the rest of the student body to ogle. To what end would this madness come to?
=OoOoO=
Midday period breaks for club activities saw Lelouch, Suzaku, and Milly together in the clubroom. Suzaku had arrived first with the intention to feed Arthur, and Lelouch eventually walked in smirking at his phone while declaring that he had Milly's paperwork to take care of. And speaking of, where was everybody else? Not a full thirty minutes later (just as Suzaku and Lelouch had settled into comfortable and quiet working rhythms), Milly barged in with a handful of brochures and one considerable menu book. Lelouch groaned.
Good gods...
When Milly started bombarding him with a list of possible first date locations, the menu, the songs, and the other romantic treats, Lelouch thought he'd zoned out and he was planning a wedding instead of what should have been a trivial first date. Honestly, who took the time to painstakingly pick out a three-course meal for a first date?
Or at least… That's what Lelouch would say out loud.
"You'd think she was planning a wedding instead of a simple date."
Beside him, Suzaku rolled his eyes and elbowed his friend. "You say that, but we both know you'd do exactly what Milly is doing." The dirty look Lelouch gave him afterwards said everything, and Suzaku had to smirk. "I know you too well."
"Unfortunately— AGH! What was that for?!"
Groaning, Lelouch had buried his face into his hands but was immediately startled when something dull but soft hit his head twice. Peeking up, he glowered at Milly's reprimanding face and at the rolled up magazine clutched in one hand. He made a mental note to never disclose plans with any of his friends in the future — especially plans that involved his personal life. The secret always leaked somehow… But at least it was only ever disclosed in the Student Council, and Lelouch truthfully admitted that the Student Council were his closest group of friends, barring Suzaku who was practically his brother — or twin, at this point.
"Pay attention! Do you, or do you not, want a perfect first date that goes into a scrapbook? Pick the date and let's decide on lunch, dinner, or brunch."
As much as he wanted to go on-board with the planning (because, as Suzaku said, planning things for special people was something he genuinely enjoyed), Lelouch could barely dedicate the required amount of energy. Served him right for sneaking out again last night to gamble on his chess games, skip homeroom to cram for a quiz on the next period, and subsequently miss sleep all together. Caffeine was all that was keeping him upright at this moment, and the stress of planning a perfect first date for C.C. was not helping.
"Dinner would be a good idea." Suzaku offered, selecting one of the menus that came with the location brochures Milly had put together. "You can never go wrong with candlelight tables and sunset backdrops."
"Learned from experience?" Milly teased. The very implication caused heat to rise to Suzaku's tanned cheeks. His first date with Euphy wasn't as grandiose as this one was going to be, but it was memorable for them both.
A nice dinner at a four-star restaurant in the city heralded the beginning of the entire thing, followed by an impromptu trip to the amusement park close by. He'd won Euphy so many stuffed toys that day and the delight on her face was something Suzaku honestly found cute without telling her. Once in a while, she would send him pictures in the morning of her cuddling the white teddy bear half her size that he'd won for her.
Suzaku blinked and returned to the present with Milly's commandeering of Lelouch's first date, and Lelouch's sleep-deprived sulking.
He gave their president a sheepish smile and shrugged. "A romantic date is a romantic date."
Milly took one look at Lelouch's drooping eyelids and sighed. "Considering how tired you are all the time, maybe lunch would keep you awake long enough to actually finish the date. So do we go for cozy settings and serve the meals homestyle, or do we book you a fancy place?"
Lelouch narrowed his eyes. And have the rest of the Council eavesdrop with the perfect excuse of cooking, no thanks. Dates were private, and it would stay that way. "Book a restaurant."
Milly actually looked a little disappointed, and Lelouch resisted the urge to smirk. "A restaurant it is then."
=OoOoO=
An empty house was rare, but seeing C.C. flitting about the kitchen was even rarer. As far as he was aware, his father and mother were still busy at their respective offices, and Rolo and Nunnally were still occupied with extracurricular activities happening in Ashford Middle School. He and C.C. had headed straight for his house after class in a bid to escape the busy campus atmosphere and to just hang out. They'd made it official only yesterday, in this very same kitchen — where he'd kissed her and made a promise. But that had nothing to do with the delicious smell of chocolate chip cookie dough and the bits of flour coating the kitchen countertops. C.C. wanted to fulfill her whims and bake salted chocolate chip cookies, and he let her… Because why not?
The twins loved cookies, and he doubted his parents would oppose the idea of coming home to a wealth of sweet and savory desserts.
"You need sleep." C.C. commented, watching Lelouch as he laid his head on his arms and stared back at her with the strangest expression on his face.
"Tell me about it." Lelouch groaned and closed his eyes, half-tempted to doze right then and there on the kitchen counters. It had been a long day.
Shaking her head, C.C. smirked and canned the joke she'd been about to spew. It involved some things that would make him fluster, but she doubted he was in the proper mood to deal with her brand of teasing. As much as she enjoyed Lelouch's tendency to overreact to the smallest things, she figured he deserved a break. Milly must have run him ragged today, and the Ashford Academy learning system wasn't all that merciful either. Instead, she concentrated on her batch of cookies. And after sliding the baking tray full of dough balls into the oven, she washed her hands, dried them, and walked around the massive kitchen island and towards the sleepy grunt that had replaced her boyfriend.
Her boyfriend… It still felt surreal that he had that label now. That their romantic relationship had that label. Part of her dismissed the thought as nothing more than a teenager's fancy, but the other part was just ridiculously happy. How often does one have a mutual crush? And then turn that mutual crush into an actual relationship — no matter how juvenile it was in the eyes of the older people?
Stifling her titters behind a hand, C.C. hopped up on the kitchen island and swung her legs back and forth. Reaching over, she placed a hand on the back of his head and toyed with the silky black locks. He stirred a little at the contact and peeked at her with one violet eye.
"I think you'd be comfier on the couch."
The drone of the television masked the silence that would have reigned. On the upside, it wasn't an uncomfortable silence by any means. It was actually the opposite. Lelouch was dozing off beside her, head tilted upwards and resting on the back of the couch while his arms stayed folded in front of him. Shrugging off her Ashford Academy jacket, she lounged beside him in only her knee-high socks, school-issued skirt, and the long sleeved white undershirt. Even in sleep, Lelouch looked sufficiently tired. Aside from school, what was he even up to night after night to the point of exhaustion?
Tugging on his arm, he groaned drowsily but still moved according to her coaxing. Pulling him closer, she let him rest his head on her shoulder. Comforting silence trickled by as Lelouch stayed still snuggled up to her, eyes closed, and C.C. engrossed with the current channel on TV. So she started the tiniest bit when he spoke.
Not as asleep as she'd thought after all…
"Are you excited?" He muttered into her shoulder, hiding his face so she wouldn't see the sudden sheepishness.
"For Saturday?"
"Mhm..."
C.C. smirked and toyed with his limp fingers. "Well, I don't know the details of the date, so how can I be excited for something I have no knowledge of?"
Lelouch snorted. "The prospect of spending alone time with me doesn't sound exciting to you?"
C.C. stifled her cackle. "How conceited can you be?" She pushed him off gently. "If I'd known I'd be dating such a guy, I would have—"
"You would have what?" He smirked, catching the hand that reached for his hair to tousle it. With one arm on the back of the sofa he leaned closer and nuzzled her nose. Her breath hitched as his heart raced.
He was waiting for an answer that would never come. Still, something had to be said about her leaning in with heavily lidded eyes. He indulged in her request and leaned closer — enough to tease her with a brush of their lips before pulling away just as the alarm for the cookies went off.
"Let's save it for Saturday."
The answering pout made him smile.
=OoOoO=
Apparently, Lelouch's ideas for a first date constituted meeting up at sunrise and getting lost in the middle of an unfamiliar part of the city. They had his car, but he parked it in one place and insisted they walk around together and just take in the new scenery.
"This is your idea for an eclectic date, isn't it?" C.C. poked his arm.
Lelouch rolled his eyes and held her hand tighter as they took a right on one street and came across a quaint farmer's market just beginning to open up for a day of trade. "It's this or a boring brunch at a restaurant."
"You know me well enough that a date at Pizza Hut will always be—"
"Nope, we're not going there."
C.C. pretended to whine, swinging their intertwined hands between them, following Lelouch as he headed for a stall selling fresh fruits and what looked like a batch of cookies baking in an oven-toaster. "Are you telling me Pizza Hut is boring?"
Lelouch ignored her momentarily in favor of trading cash for some apples, carrots, and sugarcubes.
"Stop putting words in my mouth. And besides, where would the fun be if we just went to the same place as always?"
To his credit, the district was beautiful. C.C. could definitely recall coming here with her parents once or twice, but never enough to actually explore and experience the place for herself. Lelouch convinced her that he just guessed right, but she suspected he'd asked her mother or Kallen. The streets were an homage to a small coastal Europian town, and they later found out that it was the case because it was close to the coast. Going straight along the main road would take them to the beachfront.
Giving into their curiosities, they popped into different shops. She had a go at trying on new clothes and smiled everytime she came out of the dressing room with something surprising that colored Lelouch's cheeks red. He surprised her with an impulse purchase for a bracelet he'd noticed she'd been eyeing, and then they had a simple lunch outside of a cozy cafe that specialized in delicious pastries.
In spite of what she was probably making him believe, C.C. was having fun. He hadn't asked her, but she figured maybe he didn't need to, and she didn't have to say anything either. They'd shared laughs, bought some ice cream, traded stories, and through it all, both were glad for the absence of awkwardness. They eventually wandered into an aquarium where Lelouch had spent time watching his new girlfriend lose herself in the magic of enclosed marine life.
It wasn't much of a surprise, considering C.C. had always lingered around the fish tank the twins kept in their home.
"This makes me want to live in a coastal area one day." C.C. commented while she stayed glued to the massive tank occupied with stingrays and medium-sized yellow fishes. Then out of the blue, she turned to him and said, "Do you think we'll be together three or five years from now?"
"That's a hell of a long time. But you can never tell the future, C.C." A contemplative expression crossed her face, and he reached for her hand with a knowing smirk. "But I'm willing to if you want to."
She cocked an eyebrow and turned to him with that mischievous glint in her eye. "Oh we're moving in together already? You move so fast."
"You know that you started it." He rolled his eyes, completely unbothered.
Lelouch released her hand and moved to stand behind her instead, winding slender arms around her waist, placing his chin on her shoulder, while they continued to watch aquatic marine life behind the glass. C.C. stilled for a moment at his sudden approach, but she eventually relaxed against him and did her best to resist the shiver that threatened to snake down her spine when his lips brushed her ear. Fingers tucked stray strands of hair behind her ear as they gently swayed to the sound of bubbles, water, and the classic low buzz of any public setting.
But in spite of it all, C.C. smiled — snuggling closer to his warmth, inwardly glad for their comfortable silence, for Milly's chaining booth, and for that single moment in time when she'd said 'yes.'
=OoOoO=
The first date she'd planned was no Love Island-level outing, but it would have to do. The menu Lelouch had selected was filling and practical, and...he didn't do much else. Or at least, he didn't disclose all of his plans to Milly. And if he was going to be that way, then he was just giving her the license to take the romantic clichés up a notch. So romantic music was prepared, scattered rose petals littered the ground, and she sent Rivalz out to act as chauffeur for Lelouch and his date. Everyone didn't have to come, but if they wanted to, they were welcome. Milly was admittedly just too invested into this gig to back out or shy away now.
So their booked restaurant may have been a little fuller than usual, but all that mattered was the private room they had sectioned off, right? A little pricey (and Suzaku, Rivalz, and Kallen had been admittedly worried), but it was nothing Milly couldn't manage. How difficult could pulling strings with her parents be?
When their guests of honor arrived, it was to delightful cheers and surprised gasps. And while Lelouch hadn't been all that happy about Milly's intervention to what he deemed to be a "milestone", even he couldn't hide the smile on his face when C.C. was beside him, their hands intertwined.
Milly didn't have the complete heart to tell them that they looked so adorable and absolutely in love. Whatever the couple had been up to before coming here, probably did most of the work.
So when they finally left them alone to enjoy their candlelit dinner Milly and the rest of the council that tagged along left behind, she couldn't resist taking one last peek, just in time to see Lelouch being gentlemanly as always before kissing his new girlfriend square on the lips.
As much as she'd nagged him about this, there was no denying that Lelouch and C.C. deserved this.
Ah, young love...
