Finn didn't have the energy for 'I told you so's or Beatus rolling his eyes at him. He kept tight-lipped about his non-date with Harv, thankful Shad steered their conversation away from the benefit dinner. It didn't change the fact Finn's heart wasn't in practice. Each sour note rubbed Beatus the wrong way until he ended practice early.
He was thankful, at least, that he would have company at the event. Still too stubborn to retire his vaporwave inspired vest and slacks, he wore the outfit he'd picked out with his ex. It wasn't the clothes fault he couldn't debut it in a better mood.
The plan was simple. Pick Harv up from the dorms, but in a friend way. Use his guest to avoid any conversation with his grandparents 'friends'. Leave as early as possible.
He hadn't factored in how nice his car was compared to the other students. His aunt all but forced him behind the wheel when he got his learner's permit, the chrome cadillac was his consolation prize. People were staring when Harv slipped into the passenger's seat. Finn tapped the steering wheel waiting for slow students to get out of his way.
"It'll be a bit of a walk." Finn peeled out onto the street. "I don't want the valet holding my car hostage if we want to leave."
"You okay?" Harv asked. Finn glanced to check if Harv was mad at him, but he just seemed concerned. Blue was a good color on him.
"I'm fine." These things were hit or miss. Either it'd be a pleasant evening with good food, or his grandfather would accidently say something very rude and very 1942. "You look nice." He tried to think of something else to say, but was distracted by the road.
"...Thanks..." Harv shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "You're very... colorful today." It was hardly a complement, but Finn appreciated the attempt. "So what's this benefit for?"
"Kids or cancer." Finn said. "Maybe kid cancer. They all start to bleed together after a while." Traffic was backed up near the roundabout of his family home. He took a sharp left and parked next to the back garden wall. "What?"
"I've just never heard of someone so against charity." Harv said with an eyebrow raised.
"What? No, charity is great, this is a spectacle." Finn led the way toward the house. "By all means, please enjoy yourself. It's meant to be enjoyed." He waited for Harv to catch up as they got closer to the line. There were people dressed as ghost busters greeting the people who came to donate. "Afraid I'll have to hold my tongue until we're out of ear shot." Finn whispered to Harv. He flashed a large grin to people who knew his family, far too photogenic to be anything genuine.
The foyer was lined with tables. A number of baskets were neatly arranged for people to peruse with pads of paper next to them. Harv felt under dressed watching a gaggle of six year olds in black ties and suits run past.
"There you are." A woman in an eggplant ball gown approached them. She took one look at Harv and bit her lip. "Who's this?"
"This is Harv." Finn held out his hand. "I did exactly as you said. I brought a 'normal' guest."
"We'll talk about this later." She said. Finn rolled his eyes, and motioned for her to hand her something. "Don't go over a thousand without asking first." She said and gave him a blue card. Finn sarcastically saluted, and waited until she went to greet another guest to pull Harv to a far corner of the room.
"Don't mind my aunt, she's always like that." Finn said. At least she was sober. "Dinner isn't for another hour, so if you see something you'd like to bid on, go nuts."
"Finn, I can't afford chicken nuggets right now." Harv glanced over his shoulder to see if anyone overheard. Finn held up the blue card and fanned it to show the other. "...one of those is for me?"
"Yep." Finn said.
"She wants a stranger to bid on things, with her money?" Harv asked slowly.
"Yep." Finn handed Harv one of the cards. "My cousins all get one too." It was all a part of gran's master plan to get people to donate as much as possible. Draw people in with a lavish party, have her grandchildren artificially inflate the silent auction with insincere bids, and pat everyone on the back for doing such a good job. "If we don't win anything, she'll just donate it anyway. All you have to do is write down your card and how high you're willing to go." Harv played with the card.
"People here have a lot of money to play around with." Harv said. Finn nodded, hard to disagree surrounded by people in luxury. "What's the lowest something has gone for?"
"I don't know..." Finn thought. "Maybe sixty dollars, why?" Harv tried to hide a mischievous smile.
"Wanna bid fifty dollars on everything?" He could care less about the stuff in the room, and he'd feel guilty if he actually bought something with someone else's money. Encouraging other people to donate, however, was another story. Finn's blank stare was making him a little self conscious.
"But you wouldn't win anything." Finn tilted his head to the side.
"Yeah, that's the point." Harv walked backwards toward the nearest table. "And I bet I can bid on more of them than you." He turned around, and scribbled the number from his card on the nearest bid sheet.
"Hey!" Finn covered his mouth. A few couples were glaring at him. He scrambled to find a pen, his competitive side getting the better of him. They rushed as politely as they could around the room, Harv nearly lost his card in the process. With one item left, Finn slid in, his handwriting near illegible as he scribbled on the paper. He tossed the pen on the counter with triumph. "I won." He whispered.
"Really?" Harv circled around to start counting signatures. "You sure?"
"Of course I'm sure!" Finn followed close behind.
"I didn't see you at any of the center tables." Harv teased. Finn wanted to kiss that stupid smug grin off of Harv's face. His heart was racing. He had all this pent up energy and nowhere to put it. "Finn?"
"Tables should be open now." He was more curt than intended. For just a second, he needed to get away from all these people. It was making him cagey.
This was not the place to realize what kind of 'like' that girl had wanted Finn to have for her. Or that he hadn't 'liked' any of his past girlfriends. Finding people pretty and finding people attractive were two different things apparently. There was literally no time to unpack all of that with Harv staring at him and his face feeling like it was on fire.
"Yeah, you look like you could use a seat." Harv gestured behind him with his thumb. "I'm going to count though." Thank god, he really needed a moment to himself.
Finn burst into the vast dining hall. A few elderly people were already seated to enjoy quiet conversation before the final bids were tallied. The settings were gorgeous, as they always were, with the Ashenburough table next the main stage. In the centerpiece, a red beta circled around flower stems, vainly making bubbles for a mate that would never come. It calmed Finn down, even if it was easier for his grandparents to spot him here.
"You were right." Harv said. He took a chair next to Finn, eyeing him curiously for a reaction. "I could have sworn I got close to half the hall, but apparently not."
"Told ya." Finn grinned a little. Harv leaned forward to get a better look at the fish.
"Hey little guy." Harv waved a finger at the glass. The fish flared it's fins, and danced. "Even the centerpieces are over the top."
"Yeah, people like to take them home," Finn said, "so Gran tries to make them as postable as possible." Harv sat up a little, there was a vase with a fish on every table.
"What happens if they don't them take home?" Finn's silence made Harv anxious. "Finn, what happens to the other fish?"
"I mute every party planning chat gran shoves me in." Finn didn't meet Harv's gaze. "Usually, we throw out the leftover centerpieces." The table shook as Harv chased after Finn's line of sight.
"You can't do that, they're living creatures." Harv said.
"There's, like, twelve people to a table. I'm sure that won't happen."
He could smell his grandmother's perfume from across the room. His family descended on the table like a wave. Finn effortlessly stayed afloat, when they greeted him in sporadic succession, but he felt for Harv. His guest was helpless in the face of multiple overly familiar people who lacked a sense of boundaries.
"It's so good to see you bring a friend to one of our functions." His gran said with pride. Finn held his tongue, feeling the word 'friend' as more of a command than an observation. His aunt Marigoldl had been Senna's 'friend' for close to fifteen years. "Are you a musician as well?"
"Ah- no." Harv said. "I'm a majoring in Animal Care and Behavior."
"So, like a zookeeper?" Finn's grandfather shook his head. "They force you to go to school to do that nowadays?"
"I was looking more into animal rescue, actually." Harv said. Servers brought around salads with multicolored carrots. He took the opportunity to eat before they could ask how much that would make.
"See, now that's a real job." Finn's grandfather pointed a fork at the young blond. "You could get one of those too, y'know." Finn rolled his eyes, stabbing each carrot pointedly.
"Musician is a job." He wasn't making a lot of money at the moment, but he did a paid gig two weeks ago. His stuff online had a small dedicated fanbase, he just hadn't made anything original yet. There was still time before he had to settle joining the family business.
The main course followed, kind of dry for Finn's taste, but Harv seemed to enjoy it. On the mainstage, they were announcing the winner of each auction. Gift cards and small baskets were handed out one at a time, as the scope of the items raised. Finn tried to catch Harv's attention. After the auction, his grandparents would have to make a speech, and it would be the perfect opportunity to slip away.
"Lot number 47; a live performance by the famous bagpiper Stevon." The announcer cheered. "With a winning bid of $800 goes to Viola Ashenburough." Finn gagged on his chicken.
"Who bid on that?" Gran asked. Everyone was equally confused, looking for the culprit. "Was there a mistake?"
"The card." Harv looked down at his plate in horror. "I dropped my card, I thought I picked it back up again. I must have picked up the wrong one." Finn erupted into laughter. He could barely get his family to show up to one of his performances, what would they do with a bagpiper? "I'm so sorry." Finn's grandfather shook his head and went to collect the voucher.
"It's fine dear. This is to open a new hospital wing after all." Gran smiled warmly. "I don't suppose you'd have a use for-" Harv shook his head. "We'll have to think on that one. Maybe the university students would enjoy it?"
Finn texted Harv from under the table, just barely able to catch his breath again. He elbowed the man gently and tried to communicate through eye movement. First at Harv then at the phone in his lap and back again. It took a few times for Harv to pick up on the hint. He skimmed the text and then nodded at Finn. As soon as they could they would bail.
With everyone still inside the gala, the traffic was light. It was easier to relax without all the guests looking at him. The sun had set behind the rows of houses and bathed the sky in pinks and oranges. The trees lining the sidewalk made fractured shadows on the pavement. They had smuggled the fish from their table out in the open vase. Its bubble nest bobbed and swiveled with each footstep.
"Sorry about my family," Finn said, "they usually avoid the people I bring around. I wasn't expecting an interrogation." He wasn't good at asking people about themselves like his elders, so used to those questions being used to intimidate rather than inquire.
"Oh?" Harv kicked at the stray seeds on the ground. "They didn't seem that bad." They slowed as they approached the car.
"There's a coffee shop close by." Finn said with the elegance of a bag of flower. "We could go. I think the fish would be fine in the car." Harv nodded, noting how Finn fumbled with his keys when he said yes. Maybe his friends were right. Finn did seem in an awful hurry to get out of his family function, but wasn't ready to say goodbye yet. It was definitely worth investigating. He set the fish in the passenger's seat, a seatbelt snug across the vase, before Finn locked the car.