"Hello?"

"Hey Peter, it's Wade."

"I know," Peter said with a sleepy smile. "I just didn't expect that when I told you to call me tomorrow, you'd call me first thing in the morning."

"I know. I'm sorry. Did I wake you up? I was just excited I guess. I couldn't really sleep last night, I'm not sure why. Probably from eating too many tacos, heh. I made myself wait until it was a normal time for people to be awake. I guess I should've waited another hour."

Peter sat up and looked at the clock on his bedside table. 7:46. He had hoped to get another half hour of sleep, having to get up early today anyway. His boss, J. Jonah Jameson, wanted him in his office at 9 o'clock sharp. On a Saturday. He'd never admit it, but in the back of his mind he almost wished that his boss was calling him in to fire him. As much as he liked his job as a photographer for the newspaper, he really couldn't stand his boss.

Peter yawned before answering, "Yes, you woke me up. But it's fine, I had to get up early anyway. I have a meeting at work in a little over an hour."

"Oh! That's good then, I guess. What kind of a meeting does a photographer have to go to? I mean, I thought you just had to take pictures." Peter had told Wade last night all about his terrible boss, and how he couldn't wait to find a better job.

"My boss called me in to his office. Honestly I'm not sure why." Peter got out of bed and headed for the bathroom.

"Hey Wade, I'm glad you called, but I have to get ready. Is there a specific reason you called, or did you just want to hear my voice?" Peter said cheekily.

He heard Wade breathe out a small laugh before responding. "I uh, well I wanted to know if maybe you wanted to go to coffee again? But if you're too busy today, we could maybe go tomorrow. Or whenever you're not busy I mean, maybe it would be better if you planned… I mean if you want to, go out that is. Not that I'm asking you out or anything. Unless you want me to. I mean, I'm not trying to—"

"I'd love to."

Peter realized at some point last night that he loved it when Wade got nervous and started talking fast. It was a quality about him that most people probably thought was annoying, but Peter thought it was endearing.

"My meeting shouldn't be longer than an hour or two, and then I have some errands to run. You wanna get lunch around noon? There's this little cafe around the corner from the taco place we went to last night. We could go see a movie afterwards, if you're up for it."

"That sounds great! You're talking about Johnny's right? Should I meet you there? Or…"

"I was actually thinking about walking with you from your apartment, if that's alright?"

Wade was silent for a second before Peter heard him hesitantly answer.

"…Sure. Yeah. That would be, uh, nice. Very nice of you. I'll see you then."

Peter wondered why Wade had lost the excitement from his voice that he had moments ago. He could tell Wade was trying to hide whatever sadness that had just washed over him, so he decided to ignore it.

They each said their goodbyes and Peter quickly got undressed and into the shower. As he was washing his face he thought of another face he had seen recently. A face covered with scars. Scars that he originally thought looked like little broken hearts. Scars that he could have sworn changed into tiny hearts under the dim street lamp outside of Wade's apartment building. Scars that he didn't think were ugly or gross, but instead rather beautiful and he wished he could trace each and everyone under his fingers.

He then thought of kissing Wade, what that had felt like. What it was inside that made him reach over and intrude Wade's personal space, he didn't know, but he was so glad that he had, and that Wade had allowed him to. They'd only just met a few hours before but Peter felt like he had known Wade for years. There was a new sort of attraction that he'd never felt for another person before, one that both scared and excited him. He wanted so bad to keep kissing him. He saw the look on Wade's face when he pulled away and knew if he hadn't left when he did, he would never be able to leave whatever new world of pure bliss that he could feel himself being dragged into. He so badly wanted to keep kissing him. To kiss the scars on his cheeks, on his chin, on his nose. To kiss the ones trailing down his neck until—

Peter turned the shower faucet all the way to cold.

"Fuck! Cold, cold, cold!"

He didn't have time to think about such things; he had to be in Jameson's office in 45 minutes.

Ugh. Jameson.

That's certainly a turn off.

Peter quickly got out of the shower, got ready, and left for the bus stop, all the while thinking of little hearts.

As soon as Wade got off the phone with Peter, he started freaking out. He kept thinking of the night before; his date had planned to pick him up, but then never showed up.

What if that's what Peter is doing? What if he's lying and is just going to blow me off too? Why would a guy like him want to go on a date with someone like me? Wait…was it a date? He never said date. It definitely sounds like what a date is, dinner and a movie. Er, lunch and a movie.

He had been pacing back and forth thinking of worst-case scenarios for half an hour before he decided to get ready to keep himself positive. He went to the kitchen to get a cup of much needed coffee before he started getting ready. He had told Peter that he couldn't sleep and didn't know why, but that was a lie. He knew exactly why he couldn't sleep. He didn't want to. He was scared that if he fell asleep that he'd wake up and find out that none of it was real. It was so hard for him to believe that an attractive guy like Peter was actually interested in him. After the phone call however, he knew there was no way he had imagined the whole thing.

Once he finished his coffee, he went to the bathroom to freshen up. He brushed his teeth, gargled mouthwash, and even flossed for the first time in who-knows-when. He washed his face and picked out his best cologne, spraying it more than a teenage boy on prom night.

It took him two hours to figure out exactly what to wear. After going through all the clothes in his closet, he figured he'd go with a dressy-but-casual look. He stepped in front of the mirror to examine himself. He was wearing his nicest pair of dark blue jeans, a black button-up shirt, and a maroon cardigan.

"…I'm changing."

I look like a friggin hipster. There's no way I'm gonna go out like this. Why do i even have these clothes? And why did I actually put them on?

He walked back over to his closet, but before he could get anything off, his phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered hastily, not looking to see who was calling him during such pressing matters.

"Hey."

It was Peter.

Fuck.

"Hey, Pete."

"Hey, uh so my meeting ended earlier than I thought, and I already finished my errands, so I caught a bus to your apartment. I probably should have called you on the way, but I wanted to surprise you...which I guess didn't work because I needed to call you to let you know I'm here." Wade heard Peter clear his throat, obviously feeling awkward about rambling. "Anyway, I'm here. I could just wait down here, or if you want I could meet you at your apartment if you're not ready..."

"No!" Wade responded a bit too quickly. "I mean, I'm ready, I'll just come down to meet you. Right, uh…now. Let me just..." He didn't want to keep Peter waiting, so changing wasn't an option. He sighed to himself before grabbing his wallet, keys, and a big jacket in case he wanted to cover up his atrocity of an outfit. He really hoped Peter was into hipsters.

"Alright I'm coming down now."

"Great," he heard Peter respond before hanging up.

Wade ran down the four flights of stairs instead of taking the elevator. He didn't want to waste any more of Peter's time, or give him a reason to leave before he got down there. Wade let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding when he saw Peter standing outside the building.

"That was fast."

"Hah, yeah I…took the stairs…I—the elevator is really slow here, it's kind of annoying. I wish they'd fix it."

"Yeah?" Peter was smiling.

Well, this is off to a good start. Wade berated himself for sounding stupid, but was cut short by Peter's voice.

"You look nice. I like your cardigan. It goes well with your eyes."

"Uh..."

"Oh that was... Weird. I'm sorry."

"What? No, it was... Nice. I just, well I thought you'd hate it honestly. I was gonna change but -"

"I don't think I could hate anything you'd wear. …I just mean, I wouldn't judge you. I don't care what you're wearing, I wouldn't even care if you wore a dress! Haha!"

Good to know. Wade thought.

"Anyway," Peter continued, trying to sound normal and not like he had just word vomited everywhere. "I mean look what I'm wearing. I probably should have gone home and changed myself, but I couldn't wait to see you."

Only after Peter had mentioned it had Wade actually noticed what he was wearing: a red v neck t-shirt, a pair of skinny khakis and a black beanie. His jacket was draped over what Wade guessed was his work bag, which was slung across his chest.

There was a long moment before Wade said, "You know what I think?"

"Hmm?"

"I think we're acting like teenager girls on a first date. Worrying about what we're wearing, what he thinks of our outfit, if he thinks we look hot. Which, I might add, you do."

"Yeah?" Peter asked with a smirk.

"Oh yeah." Wade said, and wiggled his hairless eyebrows.

Peter couldn't help but laugh and Wade joined in, relieving most of the tension in the air between them.

They arrived at Johnny's cafe and sat across from each other in a small booth.

"Okay," Wade said, picking up his menu. "I've never been here before…What's good?"

"It kinda depends on what you're in the mood for," Peter said, eyeing his own menu.

"I'm sitting across from him," Wade said in a small voice, not looking up from his menu.

I shouldn't have said that… He glanced up and noticed how red Peter's ears and cheeks were getting. He was about to take it back when he noticed the smile creeping up on Peter's face.

"Excuse me, I'm a nice girl and I don't kiss on the first date," Peter replied, pulling his menu up over his nose and batting his eyelashes.

"You're right," Wade lowered his menu and looked at Peter with a smirk. "You kiss the night before the first date."

Peter's eyes grew wide for a split second before he cleared his throat and went back to his menu, his face somehow redder than before.

"Just makes me wonder what you do the night before the second date…"

Wade didn't need to look up to know the look on Peter's face.

Peter gasped and was about to say something back when the waitress appeared to take their order. They made eye contact and Wade winked at Peter, who glared back at him.

"Ugh that was sooo good," Wade moaned as they walked out of the restaurant.

"I know. It's one of my favorite places to eat. We have to go back there again sometime soon."

Wade smiled at the implications that Peter wanted to see him again. And soon. He looked down and saw that Peter's hand was hanging down by his side. He considered it for a moment before reaching down and placing his hand in Peter's. He avoided the other man's gaze, not having the extra courage to look him in the eye to verify his actions. If Peter didn't want to hold his hand, then he could easily pull away.

Wade was waiting for the extra warmth in his hand to leave when instead, he felt a tight squeeze no his hand and then a head on his shoulder. He looked down and they made eye contact and time seemed to slow down.

That's so cheesy.

Wade slowed his walking, hoping to savor this moment in fear that this feeling he had would end abruptly.

"Hey."

Wade looked up at the man beside him. "Hey, what?"

"I'm glad I met you. I mean, I know we've only known each other for, well, not even a full day yet, but I feel like I've known you forever. And I also know that's like the oldest line in the book, so you don't have to tell me how cliché I sound. But I just wanted to say, that I've never connected to a person as much and as quickly as I have with you. You're…really cool."

Wade wasn't sure what to say. Well, he wanted to say "I LOVE YOU AND I HOPE WE GET MARRIED AND HAVE LOTS OF CHILDREN AND MAYBE A FEW PETS AND WE CAN LIVE IN A HOUSE WITH A WHITE PICKET FENCE AND A POOL AND ONE DAY WE'LL RETIRE AND HAVE LOTS OF OLD PEOPLE SEX," but he decided that was too weird right now, especially on a first date.

"I…I'm really cool? How old are you again?"

"Shut up," Peter laughed.

Wade laughed along, and then felt the other man pull on his arm.

"Come on, I wanna get there with enough time in case they sell out of tickets."

Wade let Peter pull him down to the subway and onto a train.

"What movie are we seeing again?" Wade asked as they walked toward the ticket window at the theater.

"Le Bouffon Vert!"

"Isn't that French?"

"Yes, but it's subtitled, and it's supposed to be really scary."

"Ugh, why a scary one?"

"So that way if one of us gets scared, the other will protect him."

"You mean when you get scared, I'll protect you."

They shared a look before Wade stepped up to the window.

"Two for Le Buffon Vert," Wade said in a ridiculous accent that made the cashier giggle.

"That'll be $13.00, sir," the young woman said, handing him the tickets.

"You didn't have to do that, Wade. I have money."

"And so do I. But this is a date. I think. Right?"

"Yes, Wade, it's a date."

"Right! So it's only fair I pay for something."

They took each other's hand and walked into the theater, sitting in their assigned seats.

"This is kind of…awful," Wade whispered a few minutes into the movie.

"I've heard it gets better towards the middle," Peter tried, wincing at the terrible special effects.

"I don't wanna wait that long," Wade replied with a yawn.

"SHH!" someone behind them scolded.

"Sorry," they replied in unison before giggling to themselves.

They had moved the middle arm up so they could lean into each other. Wade tried to keep his eyes open, but the movie and his lack of sleep the night before made it a struggle. It wasn't halfway into the movie when he heard the slow breathing and quiet snoring of Peter on his shoulder that he finally let his eyes fall shut.

"Sirs? U-uh…Sirs? Hello…"

"Five more minutes, mom…" Wade snuggled in closer to the warm body beside him.

"Wade," Peter said with a sleepy laugh. "Wade, the movie's over."

He felt a gentle push on his shoulder as he opened his eyes. He looked over to see a red-haired, freckle-faced, teenage usher that obviously just got this job so he could buy his own Yu-Gi-Oh cards.

"O-Oh…" Wade lifted his head off of Peter's shoulder and stood up, awkwardly trying to avoid eye contact with the usher. He helped Peter to his feet and continued to hold his hand as he almost ran out of the theater.

"Wade." Peter said his name again, pulling him out of the embarrassed haze he was in.

"Sorry," Wade responded, letting go of his grip around Peter's hand. "Sorry for falling asleep on you and not realizing the movie was over…and sorry if I hurt you when I basically dragged you out of the theatre."

Peter frowned and took Wade's hand back in his. "No, it's…" his words trailed off as he saw the embarrassed look on Wade's scarred and red-flushed face. "It's okay. You didn't hurt me, and I don't mind that you fell asleep on me. I mean, I kinda fell asleep on you too, heh." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and looked around for a second.

"Thank you," Wade responded, feeling less like a complete idiot.

"Hey, you're weeAA-"

Peter suddenly let out a loud yawn. His eyes grew wide as he saw other movie-goers looking at him with a weird expression and he looked back at Wade before they both bursted into laughter.

"Someone's tired," Wade said cheekily as they walked outside.

"Hey, you're the one that fell asleep on me in there."

"Only after you fell asleep on me."

"True, you got me," Peter laughed with a hand up in surrender. "Hey, Wade? Can I walk you home?"

"I'd be delighted."

Wade held his elbow out to Peter, who looped his own arm around it. Arm in arm, they walked out of the theater and toward the subway, neither of them talking, just enjoying each other's company.