AN
I'M NOT DEAD! So I lied… Sorry I never posted I was lazy and had writer's block but then when I finally figured out what to do school started back -_- and it has been kicking my ass. I haven't had time to read much less write fan-fiction. But, I'm here now! So, uh… this chapter is just more fluff so enjoy~! I'm not sure when I'll get the next chapter out but hopefully it will be out within a week or two (school is getting in the way).
"Come on Lovi, hurry up!" Antonio called over his shoulder to the lagging Italian.
"Slow down idiot, what are you so excited about it's just a date." Lovino countered as he increased his speed to a light jog to keep up with the over-excited Spaniard pulling him down the road.
"It's not just a date Lovi," Antonio's voice was suddenly serious, "It is our first date and I want it to be perfect." It was the Saturday after Christmas and the first day that Lovino had a day off since. When he had taken Lovino home after the party Antonio had taken advantage of the confined space of a car to ask Lovino to go on a date with him and after turning red and sputtering nonsense for a few moments Lovino had agreed and was promptly hug-attacked. However after that Antonio refused to give Lovino any details about the date and even his showing up on Lovino's doorstep to take him on the date had been a complete surprise.
Now the pair was making their way down the crowded city streets Antonio leading (a mildly irritated) Lovino to an undisclosed location at a hurried pace and was incessantly checking his watch. Suddenly Antonio stopped causing Lovino to bump into him before starting up just as unexpectedly and pulling the small Italian across the road and in front of a closed café.
"What the fuck are we doing here bastard it's closed," Lovino cursed while gesturing wildly at the window showing darkness and closed blinds and sporting a "hey look at that" closed sign in the corner.
"It's mi amigo's café, she said that she would be more than happy to lend it to us for a few hours as long as we are out by three so she could open by four." Antonio spoke as he dug around in his pockets for the keys before diligently opening the door. Both he and Lovino fumbled around the walls for a light-switch with Antonio muttering "I knew it was around here somewhere but I can't find it" and the like under his breath. A loud "AH HAH!" filled the air before he quickly flipped on the light switch to reveal an empty modern style café that had an area cleared of tables for dancing, only one table was set up in the center of the room and on top of it was a vase filled with an array of red carnations and white lilies with two ornately decorated, silver covered dishes and two currently unlit candles. Antonio dashed over to the table and lit the candles before returning to and flipping the light switch back off. Lovino made his way to the dim light source just in time for Antonio to return and pull his seat out for him resulting in a silent scowl.
After Antonio sat in his own seat Lovino cleared his throat and turned his face in a vain effort to hide his blush before whispering in fear of breaking the delicate atmosphere "Antonio this is way too much-"
But before he could finish Antonio cut him off, "No it is not, like I said this is our first date I want for it to be perfect and romantic and this is the best way I could think of to do it."
Lovino held in his comments about the rarity of the Spaniard thinking and instead blushed again, the pale pink being highlighted by the warm glow of the candles. Antonio smiled at the sight before deciding it was time to unmask his creations and removed the covers from the plates to reveal Insalata Caprese as an appetizer and Parmigiana as the main dish.
Lovino shook his head back and forth "Antonio did you really do all this?"
"Si I did it all for you, and there is a special surprise for desert!" by the end of what was originally a slightly serious sounding statement Antonio was his usual cheerful, bubbly self while Lovino's blush deepened at the thoughts that went through his head after the latter half of the sentence.
There wasn't much conversation between the two over dinner but the silence was perfectly comfortable and they were both too busy enjoying the food to really speak a whole lot. After the meal Antonio couldn't contain himself and had to ask, "What did you think Lovi?" excited and nervous to hear the opinions of a chef who had just eaten dishes from his own native region.
"It was good" Lovino looked down sheepishly at his admittance while the blush flooding his cheeks growing brighter when he realised it was there.
"I'm glad you think so," Antonio smiled brightly and they sat there in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Antonio jumped up and exclaimed "Dios Mio I nearly forgot the dessert!" before running from the dining room to the kitchen area leaving behind a stunned, speechless, and now immensely curious Italian.
He returned moments later carrying a ceramic container and placed it in the center of the table causing Lovino's eyes to grow wide. "Is that what I think it is?" he questioned eyeing the dish nervously. In lieu of an answer Antonio just smiled slyly and produced a lighter from his pocket and swiftly setting the food ablaze making the Italian squeak and jump back slightly in surprise (and a little bit of fear that he would never admit to anyone damn it!).
After a short time the flames died down leaving a perfectly caramelized, warm, layer of sugar on top of the smooth cool custard. "I hope you like Crema Catalana," Antonio said with a smile producing two spoons for he and Lovino to share the dessert. The Italian took a cautious bite and his eyes grew when his tongue was overridden with the taste of cinnamon and… lemon? so unlike the calm vanilla of every traditional crème brûlèe he had ever had, and he had to say he rather liked the rich flavours better than the normality normally associated with the dish. He couldn't help the slight moan of satisfaction that released itself upon another bite of the creamy dessert that made the Spaniard get a proud, relieved look. Not to mention the arrogant face he made that said "Oh yeah I know I'm good" after he realised the food was indeed of good quality to the Italian he was trying to impress.
"I'm glad you like it Lovi~!" he smirked putting his own spoon back into his mouth and trying to stifle his grin-smirk combination so he could eat.
Lovino grew a slight blush and averted his eyes mumbling "I never fucking said that, damn bastard…"
Antonio only laughed and said "Well you said it in a rather… different way…"before winking and causing the Italian to blush an even fiercer shade of red willing the candles to blow out so they would be in a darkness that hid his blush instead of the candles that accentuated it. Although he was pretty sure even if it was dark his cheeks were such a bright red that they would glow… much like the nose of a certain reindeer….
Antonio kept smiling as they finished the desert with a few bits and pieces of conversation before Antonio checked his watch and smiled at it only being about two o'clock. Lovino was too busy talking about something while waving his hands wildly and motioning with his fork so he did not notice Antonio stand and turn on music until he was standing a foot in front of the Italian holding his hand out and smiling in a way that would have killed a Victorian era woman. But it had no effect on Lovino. Not at all. Nope. HE IS FUCKING MANLY DAMN IT!
"Care to dance Lovi?" Antonio looked expectant and slightly… nervous? What did he think Lovino would say no? Fuck no Lovino could fucking dance circles around that bastard and he was determined to prove it. Antonio visibly relaxed when Lovino silently took his hand and let him lead him to the dance floor off to their right.
The dancing as well as the music started off slow and sweet with the two standing close mostly just swaying back and forth with Lovino's hands around Antonio's neck and Antonio's loosely around Lovino's waist. At some point in the song the distanced between them decreased and the Italian ended up with his head resting on the Spaniard's chest and they stayed like that… They stayed like that until the songs became more upbeat and challenging resulting in the two mimicking with their steps the fiery passion portrayed in the songs. The dances varied in style and intensity until they ended in a fiery tango with the space between their bodies nonexistent, Lovino dipped down with a leg wrapped tightly around Antonio's waist and Antonio leaning over him their foreheads pressed together both red-faced and panting their bodies glistening with a thin layer of sweat.
They stood there for a moment gazing into each other's eyes caught in the moment, that was up until Antonio smashed his lips against Lovino's pulling him tighter to his body and Lovino constricting his leg tighter until they were about to fall over. By the time they broke apart both their blushes and the rate of their breathing increased as Antonio righted them without letting go and whispered "I think we should go, don't you?" before Lovino could say anything or even nod Antonio had already blown out the candles and was excitedly pulling the Italian towards the exit.
AN
Yeah sorry if this chapter sucks and is short… Yeah only 1 or 2 more chapters to go (depending on how long they are I may combine them into one) … :'( I don't know when I will get the next chapter done and uploaded but I have started it so maybe next week? Hopefully sooner probably later but I'm really going to try to get it up…
Just for anyone curious Insalata Caprese is a Southern Italian dish that is basically a salad built out of tomatoes and mozzarella cheese, I figured that would fit their taste :P and Parmigiana is another dish that originated in south Italy while Crème Brûlèe/ Crema Catalana is a dessert that is often cooked in Spain and is basically similar to crème brûlèe only with either lemon or orange zest and cinnamon… yeah I spent over half an hour just researching food for this and now I'm hungry…