The next week Lana walks into a coffee shop and smiles at Erik who is ordering something. Lana walks over and he kisses her temple before leading them over to a secluded booth. He's carrying a coffee and a Coke while he walks. She follows and sits down across from him.
"Where have you been this past week? I haven't seen you at all."
Erik nods and shrugs.
"Your dad has been sending me on a ton of errands. I barely have time to eat with the amount of work he's making me do."
Lana makes a face and sips her soda.
"What kind of work?"
"Inventory, notices, schedules, stuff like that."
"…sounds like my job."
Erik looks up sharply and shakes his head.
"No I'm sure he's just delegating jobs…"
"He's my dad. He doesn't delegate. He signs papers and gets money."
Erik shrugs and keeps drinking his coffee. Lana watches him but eventually forgets about it.
"Do you want to get dinner tonight?"
"I don't know if I can. I have a lot of work-"
"Dinner at my place? You can work and eat?"
Erik looks at her before smiling and nodding.
"Should I bring anything?"
"Nah I'll buy the pizza and wine."
Erik smirks.
"Pizza and wine?"
"I mean I'm not gonna drink it, but you will. I prefer whiskey."
"You do? You always drink wine when I order it?"
Lana nods sheepishly.
"I drink it because it's there…but I don't really like wine. I like liquor."
"So picky for an 18 year old."
Lana smirks and sticks her tongue out at him before laughing.
"I get to be picky…but what time? 7?"
"Sounds good to me."
He smiles and drinks his coffee.
A few hours later Lana walks into lair with groceries in her hands.
"Guys?"
Donnie pops his head out of the lab and smiles at her before jumping down from the balcony and walking over to her.
"Is it just you?"
"Basically. Raph is asleep, Mikey is at a party, and Leo is meditating."
Lana nods before handing him some bags.
"Wow you got a lot."
"I don't like shopping for food."
Donnie laughs and shakes his head.
"Yes you do."
"Sometimes…I wish Splinter would just let me give you guys money so you can just buy all the pizza you want."
"Splinter isn't the only one who wouldn't let you do it."
"Leo doesn't count."
"I meant all of us."
Lana looks at him before opening the refrigerator.
"What?"
"We have jobs Lana…we can fend for ourselves. We did before we met you."
Lana smirks.
"Depends what you mean…remember when Mikey made his own pizza?"
Donnie shudders before nodding.
"How could I forget? We had to get a new oven. The smell seeped into everything."
Lana smiles and nods.
"So gross. What was it again?"
"Pudding, jelly beans, and pineapple?"
"Yep that was it. Disgusting."
Donnie laughs and nods.
"Luckily he never tried making that again."
"Mostly because I never bought pizza making supplies again."
Lana smirks at him making him laugh.
"What's so funny?"
Lana turns and sees Leo. He smiles at her before grabbing water from the refrigerator. He takes a sip and keeps smiling.
"…remember when Mikey made that pizza?"
Leo's face contorts in disgust.
"How could I forget? The whole lair smelled disgusting."
"Exactly!"
Leo sits down and laughs.
"Remember when he burnt all that popcorn?"
"Oh right! That was bad too."
Lana leans on the counter and shakes her head.
"So many disgusting smells have been made in this kitchen."
"Like the time you destroyed the toaster?"
Leo splutters his water and looks ta her. Lana smirks and glances at Donnie.
"What were you trying to make again? A waffle?"
Leo mutters something making her laugh.
"Yep it was a waffle. I was right."
Donnie chuckles.
"The only nice part of you being gone was that I haven't had to fix the toaster."
Lana chuckles before shaking her head.
"Oh I almost forgot. I can't come down tonight and you guys shouldn't drop by my apartment either."
"What's going on?"
"Date night…"
Leo looks at her briefly before nodding stiffly.
"…so it's getting serious between you two?"
"I wouldn't say serious, but I like him ya."
Leo nods before standing up.
"Well have fun. We won't bother you tonight."
"No that's not what I-"
Leo doesn't wait to hear her finish and walks away. Lana sighs in frustration.
"…maybe you shouldn't have mentioned it was a date?"
Lana looks at him before getting slightly angry.
"I'm not going to lie to spare his feelings. He never did that for me…he shouldn't have asked."
Don shrugs and starts to walk out of the kitchen.
"Be easy on the guy…I know he hurt you but it's not like any of us have had any practice with this girl thing."
Lana sighs angrily before nodding curtly. She grabs her purse before walking back up the stairs and getting into her car.
A few hours later Lana pays for the pizza at the door. She gives him a large tip with a smile before watching him get onto his bike and walk away. She shuts the door and heads back upstairs to put the pizza down. Lana checks her phone and smiles when she sees a text from Mikey. It never hurt to know at least one of her friends wanted her to have a good date. A knock at the door makes her put her phone down and walk over. When she opens it Erik smiles at her with a large stack of papers in his hands.
"Hi."
Lana looks at the stack and quickly lets him in.
"You weren't kidding about you having a lot of work."
Erik sighs and shakes his head. He goes and puts them down on the table in front of the couch. Lana opens the pizza and grabs a glass to make herself a drink. Erik walks over and smiles at her before kissing her forehead.
"Thanks for having me over."
"Thanks for coming over."
He smiles and takes a slice of pizza and a plate before going over to the couch starting his work. Lana watches him before pulling out her whiskey and pouring some into her glass. She mixes it with some Coke before grabbing pizza and walking over to him. She puts her stuff down as she sits to make sure she doesn't spill.
"I have wine if you want it?"
"No I'm okay, thanks though."
Lana shrugs before taking a big gulp of her drink. Erik watches her out of the corner of his eye but doesn't say anything. Lana takes a bite of her pizza and watches him. He's still in the clothes from earlier but his sleeves are rolled up to his elbows showing off his muscular forearms. He's muscular but compared to Raph or Leo he's just pretty muscular. I guess there is a difference between working out for appearance and working out to survive.
"Am I that interesting?"
"Hmm?"
"You're staring at me."
He looks at her with a small smile. His eyes are a nice light blue and the skin around his eyes crinkles when he smiles, just like Leo. Lana sighs and shakes her head before chomping down on her pizza. Erik watches her with some emotion mixed on his face. He goes back to signing the papers before sighing and flipping the binder shut.
"Are you done already?"
"No but I'm here and you're here and you matter more than these documents right now."
Lana smiles slightly at that.
"You can do your work…it doesn't bother me."
Erik smiles.
"No it's fine…so I never asked. Do you have any siblings?"
Lana nods.
"Just one. She's my older sister. She's out in California right now."
Erik smiles.
"Very cool. Are you two close?"
She shrugs.
"I suppose. We talk when we have to…we're really different."
He nods and shrugs.
"That's how my brothers and I are."
"You have brothers?"
"Three of them."
Lana smiles and nods.
"What're they like?"
"The oldest can be bossy but I guess that's what the oldest is supposed to be like. The next one is also bossy and he and my oldest brother fight a lot. The one right above me is the muscle. He doesn't speak very much but he's strong."
"Which one are you?"
"…I'm the youngest. I do my own thing and try to keep the others under control."
Lana nods and tries not to look concerned that he didn't say their names.
"They all sound interesting."
Erik laughs and nods.
"Very interesting. Sometimes it feels like I've been with them far too long…"
"Any sisters?"
"Nope. My mom only got boys."
Lana shrugs.
"There are worse things."
"Like?"
"Single dad with four boys."
Erik nods.
"That could be worse."
"You have no idea…"
Erik looks at her and makes a face. Lana pretends not to notice and finishes her drink.
"Who do you like whiskey more than wine? Is it the flavor or?"
She shrugs.
"It's just always what I liked. It's strong, tastes pretty good, and does the job."
"Does the job?"
Lana smirks at him.
"Yep, does the job."
Erik shakes his head.
"You sound like an alcoholic."
"Alcoholics drink to get drunk-"
"They also drink to forget."
Lana stares at him before getting up with her glass.
"Lana I'm-"
"It's fine I know you didn't mean it."
Lana makes herself another drink and sighs before walking back over. Erik watches her carefully before she starts eating her other slice.
"So are you still enjoying working for your dad?"
"It's not as bad as I thought it would be…I might even sign the contract."
"Contract?"
Lana mentally kicks herself and shrugs.
"Um ya, it's this thing my dad and I have been talking about…don't worry about it."
Erik shrugs with a smile.
"Whatever you say."
Lana smiles and they keep talking for another hour until Erik gets quiet and looks at her.
"Erik?"
"You know you don't talk about yourself a lot."
"Not much to talk about I guess."
Lana shrugs and sips on her drink. Erik sits up and looks at her fully.
"I doubt that. You're really cool. Tell me something about you."
"Like what?"
"Your family, your friends, your ex's, anything!"
Erik laughs and Lana watches him with a small smile.
"My friends?"
Erik nods and gets comfortable.
"Well I have six really good friends…I tell them everything."
"Is Raph one of these friends?"
"Ya, how'd you know that?"
"You mentioned him when we went out to that dinner."
Lana nods.
"Oh right. Ya he's one of my closest friends. He actually saved my life but that's a story for another day. He's great. Very New York. Even has the accent."
"Sounds like a cool guy."
"He is. He really is. His younger brothers Donnie and Mikey are great too. Donnie is so smart. He's basically a genius. He fixes everything his brothers break and he's just one of the nicest guys ever."
"And Mikey?"
"Mikey is one of a kind. He's hysterical and smarter than he lets on. He's talented at anything that involves athleticism. He's like my little brother and he always makes me smile."
"Wow sounds like my kind of guy."
Lana smiles and nods.
"Then there are April and Casey. They're like my adoptive aunt and uncle. They look out for me and I look out for them. April works for my dad and Casey is her boyfriend. I'm just waiting for them to get married."
"Sound like an awesome couple."
"They truly are."
Erik looks at her as she smiles.
"Well that's five out of six. Who's the last friend?"
Lana's eyes drop and she thinks about how to describe him.
"The sixth is Leo. He's the oldest brother of the four brothers."
"Whoa so you just totally skipped over him."
"Ya I guess so…"
"What? Is he like a total jerk?"
Lana looks up at him sharply and shakes her head.
"No he's not…he's a really good guy. He's just a perfectionist in every single way, even if it means forgetting about his friends."
"Sounds like a jerk."
"No."
Erik looks at her and she sighs.
"…he's just hard to understand. He only speaks when he has something important to add and he strives for perfection. It's inspiring really but can be so frustrating. He can be uptight but when you get to know him he'll do anything for you…I've been giving him a lot of shit and he deserves it, but only like half of it."
Erik watches her and frowns.
"…he sounds interesting."
Lana looks up at him and sighs.
"He is."
Erik nods and starts to pack up his papers.
"I should probably get going."
Lana looks surprised but eventually nods.
"Oh okay well let me help you."
"No it's okay it's just this."
Lana watches him and stands when he does.
"Thanks for dinner Lana. I'll see you at work."
Lana nods and walks him to the door.
"Well I guess I'll see you later."
He smiles slightly at her and starts to leave but stops and turns around.
"…that Leo guy, you should be nicer to him. He sounds like a good person…you obviously like him."
Lana goes to deny it but he just smiles at her.
"I'll see you later."
She nods and watches him walk away before shutting the door.