CHAPTER TWENTY - A FIRST REAL DATE - PART 1

"You know what I just realized?" Dabi started before popping a piece of freshly soy-sauce dipped salmon sushi into his mouth, "This is like our first real date."

Beside him, Shigaraki tilted his head, considering Dabi's statement over a steaming hot bowl of miso soup.

"What about the takoyaki after your birthday party?" Shigaraki contended before blowing over the surface of his soup. He took a sip and then lowered the bowl back down to the table. "I think that was technically our first date."

"Hmm." Dabi grinned impishly, recalling the morning after his birthday party. Before they had gone out for takoyaki, he and Shigaraki had shared their first mutual intimate experience - albeit a somewhat blind and clumsy synchronous hanjob beneath the covers, it had still been pretty special.

"What?" Shigaraki asked, his brow pulling together as Dabi stared at him.

"Just thinking about that day." Dabi said, quickly becoming hot under the collar at the recollection.

"Tch." Shigaraki rolled his eyes. He knew exactly where Dabi's mind was going and wasn't prepared to get into that over lunch in a public restaurant. However, Dabi didn't seem to agree and not a moment later, his hand fell down onto his thigh, beneath the table top, and Shigaraki almost lost his chopsticks, startled by the touch.

Dabi chuckled. "That wasn't a real date." He said, leaning in. He kissed Shigaraki's temple and then returned to the platter of sushi before them, picking out another piece. "It was a good day, but not a date."

"Okay. Whatever you say." Shigaraki snorted and then crammed a large maki roll into his mouth. "So, what are we doing next on our first real date?" Shigaraki chaffed, a big emphasis on the word real.

"Had enough of the bath houses?"

"Definitely." Shigaraki nodded his head adamantly. "I swear I still smell like a walking cup of coffee." He scrunched his nose.

Dabi chuckled.

At the time, bathing in the coffee themed bath had been kind of nice, especially first thing in the morning - it was an excellent wake-up, but after a while, the sight and smell of the water turned sickly - it was just too much. They had showered afterwards, of course, but the smell of freshly ground coffee beans was ingrained in his brain now. The red wine bath that followed was equally exhausting to the senses, though, thankfully, the smell had washed right away.

"You smell great."

"You say that only because you really like coffee."

"No." Dabi chuckled softly again, "Because you smell like you. But with a hint of minty… wood."

"Minty wood?" Shigaraki arched a brow.

"Yeah. That's what the shampoo at the hotel smells like." Dabi grinned and once again leaned in - only this time instead of a kiss he nuzzled against Shigaraki's recently washed, and oh so soft and fluffy, blue-grey hair. He breathed him in, luxuriating in the scent, before pulling back and giving his instantly perturbed boyfriend a little space.

"Anyways," Dabi began, "Next, we are going to the arcade."

Shigaraki jerked his chin over to Dabi, perking up, though still leery. "Really?"

"Yeah." Dabi refilled his boyfriends empty cup with green tea and then topped up his own. "It's one of the largest arcades in Japan. Apparently, they call it an indoor amusement park."

"I thought you didn't like video games?"

"No, but you do."

Shigaraki stared at Dabi, silent for a moment before he shifted his gaze away. Pieces of a puzzle were coming together for Shigaraki, and it finally made sense why Dabi had chosen the Komorebi Resort & Spa to stay at - it wasn't because Dabi wanted to stay in a ridiculously fancy hotel, well not entirely anyway.

Dabi smiled, watching Shigaraki mull over their planned day. "Surprised?"

"Extremely."

"I told you that I put some thought into this vacation, didn't I?"

"You did."

"The baths were for me though." Dabi joked.

The corner of Shigaraki's mouth kicked up into an amused grin, and he found himself impetuously sliding over the bench seat, towards Dabi. When their thighs brushed, Shigaraki lifted his hand and swept Dabi's jaw, turning his boyfriends head and drawing him into an impulsive kiss. He wasn't exactly sure why, but he had this overwhelming urge to makeout with him.

Dabi was a little shell-shocked by the abrupt kiss but was still receptive, moving his lips concurrently and matching Shigaraki's leisurely pace, however, his eyes remained open and vigilant. This was so unlike Shigaraki, to initiate any kind of affection, and especially in public. It made Dabi somewhat anxious, knowing that Shigaraki could snap-to and react negatively, as was in his nature. But at the same time, the sudden kiss roused Dabi - he was excited. And he wanted to completely give in to the feeling but thought one of them should remain watchful.

A moment later, Shigaraki pulled back, his cheeks flushed a faint pink, and he looked quickly to his left and right - making sure the kiss hadn't drawn any unwanted attention. Thankfully, the booth had provided enough cover to avoid any scrutiny and Shigaraki seemed satisfied with the results. Without a word, he returned to their lunch, dipping another piece of sushi into a shallow dish of soy sauce.

Dabi was flabbergasted.

"Can we take a little detour to the hotel before we hit the arcade?"

"Not a chance." Shigaraki grinned knowingly and quickly popped the sushi into his mouth.

"Well, fuck." Dabi chuckled and then blew out a long breath, repositioning himself on the bench with a slight wriggle.

The rest of their lunch was consumed with much lighter content and chatter. They paid their bill and then left the restaurant happy and with full bellies. Dabi took Shigaraki's hand without any hesitancy and immediately had them moving down the sidewalk. He had his phone out, head down, and checking the address and directions of the arcade. It wasn't far - a ten-minute walk and extremely hard to miss. The animated and flashing signs lit up the building like a christmas tree full of twinkling LED lights.

"Jesus fucking Christ!" Dabi exclaimed, looking up at the building as they approached the entrance. "They should have a disclaimer on the outside. Warning: Potential seizures."

Shigaraki snorted. "It's a little much."

Inside the building, they exchanged some cash for tokens and then surveyed the vast floor of various games, which was one of several - not sure where to start. The blinding neon's and deafening noise was mind-boggling and kind of disorientating - all the old-school arcade mixed with newer games, there was… a lot. They checked the directory for guidance and Shigaraki knew exactly where he wanted to go. The second floor was strictly shoot-em up, raining bullet hell type arcade games - right up his alley.

Dabi, who knew nothing about gaming, allowed Shigaraki full control of the decision-making when it came to where and what they would be doing next. His boyfriend knew better. So, they headed straight for the second floor, taking the stairs.

"I thought shooting zombies and aliens for an hour would get old fast, but it's actually pretty fun. Satisfying even." Dab said, pointing the plastic gun at the screen and shooting with determination.

Shigaraki grinned and turned to look at his boyfriend, at how focused he was, and then returned his eyes back to the screen. They were both trying to best each other, but in a cool and casual kind of way. Shigaraki was currently beating him in points, and Dabi playfully swatted at Shigaraki's gun, pushing it away so he would miss his targets and points - laughing when Shigaraki returned the favour.

When the game was over, they each put down the artificial guns and Dabi shook his head with a feigned look of disappointment. "You won. Again. I need practice." He swung an arm over Shigaraki's shoulders and smacked a kiss against his cheek. They started walking - looking for a new amusement.

"Tomura," Dabi smiled mischievously, pointing to a particular game filled with over-stuffed plushies. They were all pro-hero toys and low and behold - Dabi could see the head of Endeavour sticking up out of the pile. "I need that."

Shigaraki arched a brow at his boyfriend, only breaking eye contact to look distrustfully at the metallic claw inside the machine and then the soft-toy Dabi was pointing at. "You're kidding."

"Nope." He grinned and then ushered his boyfriend over to the claw machine. He fished around in his pocket, pulling out a token and then inserting it into the little slot.

Shigaraki crossed his arms over his chest, amused - watching as the lights behind the windows suddenly came to life and ear splitting monotonous music began to loop. Dabi angled the joystick, successfully grasping the head of little Endeavour when the claw lowered on the first try. The claw then made its way back to the front window to drop the prize.

"Sweet." Dabi said retrieving the plushie of his Father.

Shigaraki chuckled under his breath. "What are you going to do with that?"

"I don't know. Put a curse on it. Maybe turn it into a voodoo doll."

Shigaraki shook his head, chuckled under his breath and then scanned the area around them for another game they could play together. They had been playing all the games Shigaraki liked, there had to be something more fitting for Dabi. His eyes stopped suddenly on at a row of enclosed pods - racing simulators. It was pretty perfect actually - Dabi would go for it.

Shigaraki walked towards them and Dabi followed along willingly, his Endeavour plushie stuffed under his arm. They stopped at the console and Dabi grinned. The overhead title read "OutRun 2" and was lit up in red and purple, while white LED's positioned behind it blinked in time to a classic kitschy racing tune.

"Get in." Shigaraki said, hopping into one of the two joining seats.

'Sir, I am going to need to see a licence."

Shigaraki scoffed and Dabi sat down in the empty place next to him, ready to race.

As soon as the onscreen announcer counted down to one and the race started, both boys diverted their concentration to the task at hand. Shigaraki had the upper hand at first, being more skilled in the area of computer games but Dabi quickly caught up, swerving in all the right places and dodging any obstacles. About halfway into the race Dabi took the lead with a taunting, but cheerful, sound of delight.

A few more rounds later and the boys were tied for wins and loses. They both flexed their fingers - knuckles tired from gripping joysticks and steering wheels for the past couple of hours. They decided to call it day - at the arcade anyway.

"This was fun." Dabi grinned.

"Yeah."

"Who knew video games could be so entertaining for so many hours."

"Ah, me." Shigaraki laughed softly.

"You're right." Dabi spun smoothly in his faux car seat and scooted to the edge. He leaned over the token collector that separated him from his boyfriend and slid his hand to the back of Shigaraki's neck, smiling as he moved in for a kiss. It started out slow, in what was supposed to be a relaxed and languid kiss, but quickly turned ardent as they abstractedly came together - ignorant of their surroundings.

A strangled moan from Dabi caused Shigaraki to eventually break away, and he swiped at his mouth with the back of his hand. He wasn't sure what had gotten into him recently, but he felt more susceptible and accepting of Dabi's advances. And Dabi seemed very aware of it, taking full advantage of the assent.

"Are you ready to go?" Dabi whispered, his voice laced with a longing - one that could only come from frustration and a kiss that was cut too short. He was horny, and not afraid to demonstrate it to his boyfriend. His hands were clingy, desperately trying to keep Shigaraki against him.

"I am." Shigaraki flicked his eyes downwards - a brief glance at Dabi's growing desire before he shifted back up to meet Dabi's gaze. "This and right in front of your Dad." He joked.

"Funny." Dabi breathed, tossing the plushie Endeavour aside.

"So, you're just going to get up and walk around like that huh?" Shigaraki teased, "You know, this is a kid friendly establishment." The sound of children laughing and then a horde of tiny footsteps shuffled quickly past the two boys, as if to prove a point. Shigaraki grinned.

"Shut up." Dabi groaned."I just need… a minute."

**To be continued - Part 2 - Coming Soon!**