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Not a Date | Dustin & Quinn

Date: Tuesday, 14th February 2017

Dustin didn’t care what he looked like. He didn’t care what he looked like. So what if he shot a quick glance at the side mirror when he exited Quinn’s car? So what if he had chosen to wear a shirt that came straight out of the washing machine and looked a little nicer? It wasn’t because he cared what he looked like, no. He just figured that you probably shouldn’t turn up in a restaurant in your worst clothes. That was all. Quinn didn’t care what Dustin looked like, either. Because he’d seen him like a thousand times before at school. Shooting the other boy a small glance, he pushed open the door to the entrance of the Thai Tanic, the restaurant Quinn had suggested. Inside, the entire room was filled with warm orange lights and colours. It looked cosy, but he had expected that since he’d been here before. What was new though was the board on the wall that usually suggested today’s specials proclaimed that they had a bunch of “dinner for lovers” specials just for this day. Dustin quickly glanced away, just as a waitress approached them, her smile wide as she greeted them. “Welcome to Thai Tanic and happy Valentine’s Day!” She was still smiling at them. Dustin gulped. Did she think the two of them were a couple? “Do you have a reservation?”

He just didn't want to spend the day alone. That was the real Reason Quinn had asked Dustin to go grab dinner tonight... right? Yeah, definitely. His sister had plans somehow, he was still a little dubious about them, and he didn't want to spend Valentine's Day alone playing video games or doing some more hacking. So why was he so nervous? And why did Dustin actually look really good in that outfit? Quinn had tried to dress a little nicer, just because they were going out to eat, not because he wanted to impress anyone. He tried to push the thoughts aside when he walked into the restaurant, but looking around he could already feel his cheeks heating up in a blush. Maybe this rebel Valentine's day thing wasn't so great an idea. There were couples all at the tables, and it was clear the restaurant was in a mood for the holiday. He'd figured this was safe bet. "Ugh... yeah," he said, looking up at the hostess with a small smile. "It's under Quinn," he said, scratching the back of his head. Biting his lip, he glanced at Dustin and then back to her when she was speaking. "Right this way," she said with a big smile, ushering the two to a table in back. Of course they had to pass all the couples at the tables on their way their, making doe eyes at each other.

Making their way to the table, Dustin had no idea where to look. Everywhere his eyes went, it was like he was disrupting a very important scene in the middle of a rom-com or a romantic drama. Most of the people sat at the table were men and women somewhere in their twenties, thirties or older. He felt just a little bit weird as he followed the waitress to their table, both because he was only sixteen and he felt a little silly having dinner for the first time with someone who wasn’t family, but also because he and Quinn weren’t a couple. Except everyone probably thought they were, right? He wasn’t sure how exactly this protest Valentine’s Dinner was working out, but he figured at long as they supported a small business and didn’t buy any Valentine’s Day candy in the store, they were indeed rebelling against corporate Valentine’s Day. Trying not to let any of his thoughts on his face, he took a seat at a small table for two somewhere in the back of the restaurant, opposite Quinn. Dustin didn’t know where to look, so he just focussed on the waitress who lit the candle in the middle of the table and then handed them their menus. Dustin opened his, glancing down at the selection of dishes, a little lost, then looked back up at Quinn from across the table.

Quinn tried to keep his eyes forward, and not on the couples all around him, but finally when the reached their table took a little sigh of relief. The hard part was over right? They wouldn't actually have to deal with all of those couples and could now just have dinner. Nodding slightly, to himself more than anything else, he took a seat at the table and took the menu from the waitress. He frowned when the candle was lit, but didn't mention anything. Most restaurants did that didn't they? He couldn't remember if this one did it normally. "Ugh, thanks," he said to the server with a small, slightly nervous, smile and glanced at the menu. "Ugh... so what are you thinking of having?" Quinn asked, when the waitress finally left. Though she kept looking back at them as she was walking away with a weird look in her eyes. He shook it off. "I mean, everything I've had here is pretty good," he said, trying his best not to be awkward, and hoping it was working.

Dustin gave him a small, awkward shrug, a little overwhelmed by the big selection of dishes in the menu, all with names he had never heard before even though there was a small English description of the dish underneath every single Thai name. “I was thinking maybe something with rice?” he said, even though in the end it sounded more like a question than a statement. “Do you come here often then?” he asked him, wondering if Quinn did this a lot, going to restaurants with a friend. Or maybe his sister? “The last time I was here is so long ago, I can’t even remember what I had,” he told him, turning the page of his menu, then looking up. “It’s nice though,” he mumbled. For some reason, he had a feeling like people were looking at them. He didn’t know if they were though as he wasn’t brave enough to check, so he kept his eyes on Quinn instead. He looked nice. But he couldn’t say that, could he? It was just a statement, but he had a feeling that would make it weird. “Do you know what you’re having yet?”

Quinn looked at the menu again, curiously. He recognized a few of the things he'd had before. "Not really often," he said with a shrug, glancing around again. It was weird being in here like this. Were people looking? He could have sworn he saw some people turn their heads away as he glanced around the room, but he focused back on Dustin. "A few times with family and stuff. It's good though," he nodded. Maybe he'd just go with the pad thai. That was always a good choice. "Yeah, it is. Kind of... more Valentine's Day-y than I thought," Quinn said with a small laugh, scratching the back of his head. "I think the pad thai," he said, setting down his menu. "Unless there are good specials. I didn't really look at the board," he admitted, watching as the waitress approached again.

Dustin nodded. “Yeah, me too. I mean, I’ve also been here with my family,” he replied. He wondered if Quinn could guess that this was the first time he’d been “out” in a restaurant with someone else. And it wasn’t even a real date. “Yeah, I’ve noticed. Everyone is just so… in love,” he said in a low voice so that the tables closest to them wouldn’t be able to hear him. He didn’t want to accidentally offend anyone. Dustin was about to open his mouth to ask him what the pad thai was, not really wanting to tell Quinn that all the specials on the board had been specials for couples, when the waitress returned, a small paper notebook and pen in her hand. “Are you two ready to order?” she asked. “We’ve also got a few specials just for today that are not on the menu, it’s a three-course or two-course meal for two people with a small selection of Valentine’s Day mains and of course, our ‘Happy Ending’ dessert just for today.” Dustin coughed, looking right down into his menu so the waitress couldn’t see his face. Whose idea had it been to go out to a restaurant today, on this date? Oh right, it had been Quinn’s.

"Yeah, we haven't been here in a bit though," he conceded. He didn't want to tell Dustin that he hadn't really gone out to eat with anyone who wasn't family. Mostly because he rarely talked to people. Quinn smiled softly when Dustin lowered his voice, and then laughed a little bit. "Yeah, they are," he said with a grin, hiding it once the waitress came over. He looked over when she mentioned the specials and immediately felt his face go red. That was definitely a couple's thing, not just friends. "U-ugh," he stammered. "I-I," his face stayed red as he looked at the memo. "Oh, no," he said, scratching the back of his head. "I'll have just the pad thai," he mumbled, glancing up at Dustin quickly and then away again.

Listening to Quinn stammer, Dustin shot a quick glance at their waitress. She looked a little taken aback, maybe confused, by the way that Quinn had reacted to her telling them about the Valentine’s Day special. In the end, Dustin was really glad that the other boy had been the one to reply to her though, because it meant that he didn’t have to say anything about the special to the waitress. He wasn’t sure he would have done a better job at speaking than Quinn. “I’ll, uh…” Dustin stared back down at his menu, flipping through the pages quickly to find one of the dishes that had sounded interesting. “I’ll have the Khao Pad Moo, please.” He glanced up to see the waitress scribble down his order onto her notepad. “What can I get you two to drink?”

At least Dustin wasn't laughing at his stammering, and he could feel his cheeks starting to return to their normal color. Taking a deep breath, he looked up at Dustin again and then the waitress as Dustin ordered. "No, um, I'm good," he said with a small smile. "With water I mean. Water is good," Quinn said, feeling a little better now. The waitress, although certainly a little confused, wrote down the order quickly. "Right," she said, putting on a smile. Quinn breathed out a soft sigh of relief, once more, as she left to put their order in, and looked back at Dustin. "Sorry. I don't really do well with... people," he shrugged with a soft laugh.

Dustin was more than happy when the waitress finally left. For once, she probably thought the two of them were a couple, which just felt really weird. To have her look at Quinn and think that he was his boyfriend when they were both more than single. But also, he felt like she was intruding a little. Because he couldn’t talk to Quinn like he normally did when someone else was standing next to their table, watching. “Uh, nothing to say sorry for,” Dustin mumbled. That was awkward, was one sentence he wanted to say. Thank you for handling that, was another. “Besides, I’m not sure that’s true, like, entirely,” he continued. “You do well with me.”

"Yeah well," Quinn mumbled, and just shrugged, looking around quickly before focusing back on Dustin. He was though. It was just people he was comfortable with that he could talk normally with. It was a result of the years of focus on computers and his, for the most part, seclusion from people in real life outside his family and a few people. "Yeah well, you're different," Quinn said, looking down at the place setting before him and then glancing back up at Quinn. "I just hope we don't really have to deal with that waitress much more," he chuckled, looking around to make sure she wasn't there. It was awkward. "But, let's just pretend it's not Valentine's Day and be normal," Quinn said, sitting up straight a bit and smirking. It was easier to think that when he wasn't looking around and the waitress wasn't there.

Dustin glanced down at the table cloth and smiled faintly. Different was good, right? “I don’t think we do. I mean, we ordered already, she’s going to bring us our food but I think after that she’ll leave us alone, right?” He wanted to ask if maybe she thought it was weird that two guys were having dinner together. But in the end, he wasn’t brave enough to ask that. “Yeah, okay, let’s pretend. And let’s not think about how, like, half of these people in here are probably going to have sex after going home.” He furrowed his eyebrows in slight disgust, then looked right back at Quinn, shooting him a quick smile across the table. “So, anything weird going on lately? Did you get attacked by bigfoot while picking me up? Or did you run into a Basilisk last night, by any chance?”

Quinn shrugged. He supposed that she would leave them alone. That's usually what happened at least, and the restaurant was fairly crowded. "Ew," Quinn said wrinkling his nose but laughing anyway. This was getting easier. "I don't want to think about that, definitely not," Quinn said, feeling himself relax a little bit more. "No, thank God," he said with a slight groan. Other than the memories that were still continuing, but that was starting to become not quite as weird, despite how horrific they were. "After I got those files it seems like things are calming down. Which is great. Maybe the supernatural knows that I know a little more about it now and is content?" Quinn shrugged, taking a sip of his water and glancing back at Dustin. "What about you? Any weird shit going on?"

Dustin was happy to hear Quinn laugh. He had a nice laugh, and besides, this was a sign that things were starting to get less awkward. He didn’t think he could survive a whole dinner with the awkwardness of walking into the restaurant and speaking to the waitress. “Sorry,” Dustin mumbled sheepishly and started playing with his paper napkin, trying to think of any weird stuff that had happened to him recently. “I mean, the better question is, what isn’t going on. A few weeks ago Lea apparently spotted a couple of moving snowmen? And I ran into these weird creatures that looked like half-rat and half-turtle and I keep having these weird dreams.” He sighed before raising an eyebrow at Quinn. “Well, maybe things have been calm, but now you totally jinxed it by saying it. I think we should expect to get attacked by a dragon the second we leave this restaurant.”

"Oh yeah, those Snowmen," Quinn mumbled. He'd seen that too. But it was a while ago. Sometimes it seemed like things happened so much and so long ago, when it was really only a few weeks. "Ew, those sound pretty weird and gross," Quinn chuckled, humming as he tried to picture them. But it wasn't exactly a great image. "Really? What kind of dreams?" he asked, blinking curiously. "Fuck," he laughed. "I should have thought of that and just said shit's been going on," he said. "Maybe it won't be a dragon though. What if it's like, something cute? Like a bunny with horns or something that won't try to kill us?" he asked, glancing up as he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. He groaned slightly, it looked like the waitress was coming back over.

“They were really gross,” Dustin confirmed. “And they were also really dangerous. I really don’t want to see one of those again.” When the other boy asked him about his dreams, Dustin paused, wondering how much he should tell him. “It’s kind of just this face, this person, talking about stuff. I don��t know. And it’s not just dreams, it’s also sort of daydreams? Which isn’t really the right word because I don’t choose to think about this stuff. It feels more like memories, but they can’t be. Because it’s also stuff from my childhood, stuff with my dad, that hasn’t actually happened.” He wasn’t sure this was a good explanation for what had been going on inside his head, but he hoped it was close. “A bunny with horns? That sounds sort of terrifying, actually.” He chuckled, looking at Quinn from across the table. “What if we run into a unicorn though? I mean, it’s possible, we are both virgins and-“ a movement to his left made him glance up, his eyes widening as he realised that the waitress had approached the table and he hadn’t noticed until she was in earshot. Dustin could feel his face turn bright red. All he wanted to do was take back the last sentence he said. Or somehow disappear through the floorboards.

"Okay. Good to know. Run away from creepy rat turtles," he said, making a mental note and smirking. "Daydreams?" Quinn mumbled. That sounded awfully like his own memories, from the creature. Not that he knew any way to get rid of them. "Weird," he mumbled, with a slight huff. "I didn't mean, like, one that could attack. But like, you know, antlers or something. Isn't that some urban legend of something?" Quinn chuckled. "A Unicorn would-," he began, but he also felt his cheeks flare up when the waitress came by with their food. "Here you boys are," she said, seemingly unfazed by Dustin's pronouncement of their lack of sex. "Now, does this cute couple need anything else?" she asked. Quinn stuttered and his face went, if possible, even redder. She was definitely doing this to tease them. There was no way someone would do that if they didn't enjoy torturing people in their restaurant. "W-we're not," he began, before just shaking his head and keeping his eyes straight down at the food on the table in front of him.

Dustin nodded. “Definitely run from the rat turtles. They bite. And apparently they can smell food on you.” He shrugged. “Yeah, daydreams. Like you remember something that never happened, but it’s strangely vivid. So it feels like it did happen.” It was the best explanation he could give. “I’ve never heard of that urban legend!” He watched a plate being set down in front of him, risking a small glance up at the other boy, whose cheeks resembled his own in colour. Shit, he hadn’t meant to make this more awkward. When the next words left the waitresses mouth, Dustin jerked his head towards her, rendered speechless for a small moment. He hadn’t thought his cheeks could turn any darker, but right now it felt like all of the blood in his body was going to his head. He heard Quinn start to correct her, and he wondered if he should say something like that, too, but what would he even say? He didn’t think that the concept of protest valentine’s dinners was very well known in town. “No, thanks, we are good,” Dustin quickly said, forcing a smile before staring down at the food in front of him. For a moment he wished he knew how to do powerful mental magic so he could manipulate her to just go already.

"Great...," Quinn laughed. Why weren't there any nice things around? That'd be a nice change for once. "Yeah, that's what happened to me when the smoke creature touched me," he said with a small frown. He hoped that this would stop happening sooner rather than later. "Really? I can't remember where I heard it but it's definitely a thing. Quinn kept his eyes down as his hands fidgeted in his lap. He could see that the waitress hadn't left yet, despite his silent prayers that she would go. He glanced up and saw her looking down at them with a patronizing look. "Oh, of course, my mistake," she said, as if she didn't believe for a second they weren't a couple. Quinn just let out a soft groan of frustration. She left after a minute though, and Quinn looked up at Dustin, his face still red. At least he wasn't the only one embarrassed. "This... might not have been the best idea,"

Dustin let out a small sigh of relief when the waitress finally left their table. He didn’t think they had done a good job convincing her that they weren’t together. For a brief moment he wondered if it was embarrassing for Quinn that others thought he was his boyfriend. “Yeah,” Dustin let out a small chuckle. “I don’t think many friends go out to eat on this day,” he said. “Especially people our age.” He picked up his fork. The food in front of him looked delicious. One thing that went right at least. “Well- still, being mistaken for your boyfriend is not exactly the worst.” As soon as the words had left his mouth, he immediately regretted them. He hadn’t meant to say that out loud. He lowered his gaze as he picked at his food. “I mean, it’s not an insult or anything,” he tried to clarify, feeling his cheeks flush with colour.

"Yeah... even in a protest dinner," Quinn said with a small smile. He felt a little better now. Picking up his fork as well, Quinn took a bite of his food, grinning. At least the food was good. And he liked spending time with Dustin anyway. "Yeah, I mean, everyone our age out today is probably together," he said. "Oh," Quinn said, the fork halfway to his mouth. He felt a fluttering in his chest at the comment, and he knew that he was grinning widely. "Thanks," he said, biting back a smile as he looked down at his food and took another bite. "Well, same for you," he said once he finished chewing.

“Quinn, I think there might be a slight possibility that we are the only people protest-dining today,” Dustin replied with a smirk, shoving some rice onto his fork before bringing it to his mouth. Fuck, this was delicious. He should come here more often. But with whom? They couldn’t protest silly corporate holidays every day. His cheeks still burning, he risked looking up from his food to observe Quinn’s reaction to what he’d said. Surprisingly, the other boy looked happy. And instead of awkward silence, Quinn was being nice about this. Dustin reached for his glass of water and took a sip from it to hide his smile.

"I think it's a high possibility actually," Quinn replied with a small smile. Quinn continued eating for a moment, before looking back up at Dustin. "So, before we were rudely interrupted by the server," he said with a small grin. "You mentioned something about memories or something? And unicorns? Are they real too? Because I don't know anything about them and it would be pretty cool," Quinn said, getting back into the swing of normal conversation. Well as normal as supernatural conversation could be.

"I wouldn't say that. I mean, some others might have had the same idea as us," Dustin replied as he took another mouthful of his dish, smiling at the other boy mid-chewing. "Unicorns?" He let out a small groan. "Ugh, don't remind me that I just told our waitress we're virgins. But no, I don't think they exist. Or, I don't know. They might." He shrugged. "You're the one with all the files. And yeah, I've had super weird dreams and stuff when I was awake they felt like memories, but they can't be. And then you said something about the smoke monster?" He raised one eyebrow at Quinn in question.

"Maybe," Quinn said doubtfully. "Yeah," he said with a shrug. "Yeah, you did do that. Maybe we should not let everyone know that though. I think that's a good plan," he teased, feeling better about it now. "I didn't get files on everything, just a few files. The guy totally wouldn't let me take everything," he said. Quinn could have gotten them, and could probably go back and get them whenever he wanted, but right now he had what was necessary. "Yeah that's what mine feel like. They suck," he mumbled, taking another bite as he tried to think of things that weren't himself covered in blood. "Yeah, that's what gave me the memories I think,"

"Really? I think we should, like, announce it at school. Be open about it. I bet that would make us really, really cool. Everyone would start inviting us to all the parties. Definitely." Dustin grinned. "Let me know if you find anything about unicorns in them. Which reminds me, I wanna see the other files! I've only read the one about witchcraft, and while that was-" Useful, was what he meant to say. "-interesting, I'd like to know more." He shot a questioning glance at the other boy. "Yeah, why? What are they about?" he asked, reaching for his glass. "What makes you think it was the smoke creature?"

Quinn just laughed and rolled his eyes, knowing that Dustin was actually kidding about that. As much as he didn't like high school or the shitty social structures there, he didn't want to put himself in a worse off position there. "Oh, yeah I can give you them," Quinn said with a small smile. "Just don't show them off to everyone," he nodded. "When I was with Brett the monster touched me. He knew what it was and told me. Plus I got the file on the creature too," he said, taking another few bites of his food.

Dustin smiled. "Yeah? Okay good. I knew I was friends with you for a reason," he teased him. As if hanging out with Quinn had anything to do with those files. Although he'd be bummed out if he chose not to share the rest of them. But mostly because that would mean that somehow, Quinn didn't trust him with them. "Who would I even show them to," he mumbled. "I mean, I don't think anyone would believe me. Or they would ask where I got them from." He looked up at Quinn. For some reason, he had completely ignored the question about the contents of his 'memories'. Maybe they were embarrassing? But he wouldn't laugh at Quinn. Not in a mean way, anyway. "That is one file I am definitely dying to see, " he said, digging the fork into his meal. "I need to know what those things mean. They're weird and I don't like them."

Quinn shrugged. That was probably true. Most people would think those files were just made up, which was a good thing. But he didn't need it getting around to the Scribes that he somehow had gotten their files. Not when Molly already knew it was Q who had gotten them. Quinn didn't answer the question about his memories, and was glad that Dustin didn't pry. "Yeah, I'll send it over when I get home," Quinn said with a smile. "Yeah, they suck," he said simply, taking another large bite of food so he wouldn't have to talk for a moment.

"Thanks." Dustin smiled at him. "I wonder if there's a way to get rid of them. 'Cause they just get weirder and weirder, if you ask me." He wondered what the meaning of them was. For some time, he had thought that maybe they were visions of the future, but that was impossible. He took another bite of his food when Quinn said that they sucked, without elaborating why they did. He didn't ask him why. The memories, or visions, or whatever, felt strangely intimate and personal. Maybe it was the same for Quinn. Sometimes, he asked too many questions, because he was curious, and that scared people away. He didn't want to scare Quinn away. "This is really fucking good," he mumbled once he had swallowed his food. "I don't think I've had anything this good all year."

"Yeah, I dunno. I hope so, that'd be nice. Maybe the Scribes know or something. But there didn't seem to be anything that file so," he frowned, chewing slowly. Quinn ate in silence for a moment, finishing up his dinner and pushing the plate a little further onto the table. "Oh, yeah it really is," he said, grinning happily at Dustin. Looking around quickly, he let out a low groan. "Come on, does she need to come back?" Quinn whined softly, eyes flicking to the waitress and then back down at his empty plate. He just wanted to finish dinner in peace with Dustin.

Dustin nodded, wondering if maybe he should ask Molly about the creature. Maybe she knew something important. "Glad you thought so, too," he said, taking a few more bites of his nearly empty plate. "This place is really nice. A bit packed today, but nice. Except for the-" he stopped his sentence the second he saw her walk into his field of vision, eyes flickering to the two of them as she approached their table. Speaking of the devil. "Everything alright here with you two?" She was smiling. Dustin wished she wasn't. Fuck, this was the person who had heard him talk about his virginity... "Can I get you anything else? Something else to drink? Or to eat? We have a range of desserts, if you are interested. I can personally recommend the Rambutan with ice cream or the orange sorbet. Any dessert can be ordered to be shared to come with two spoons." Dustin tore his gaze away from the smile playing around the corners of her lips as he looked at Quinn in a silent cry for help.

Quinn kept his eyes mostly downcast when she started speaking, though he looked up at Dustin a few times and was able to catch the look of help that was directed towards him. "Ugh, no. I think we're good," he said, glancing up only for a moment at the woman before looking away again. It was weird the way she was looking at them. "Just the check please," he said. "Are you sure? Every other couple is getting a dessert tonight. It's a special day after all," she asked, a smirk on his lips. Quinn just shook his head, his face growing red again and repeated his "No thank you,"

Dustin was more than thankful to hear Quinn's voice, telling the waitress that they were good and didn't want dessert or anything else. Maybe she was just trying to do her job, attempting to get them to spend more money on their meal. But why did she have to keep smiling at them? It really didn't look like the polite, almost bored smiles the waitresses usually gave his family when they went out for dinner. Was it because she thought they were a gay couple? Or because they were teenagers? It maybe had not been the smartest idea to come here on Valentine's Day. Of course she would think they were together. Because two boys couldn't possibly be getting dinner together without being a couple. "Yeah, we're sure," Dustin added. "The food was a lot, but it was nice, so thank you."

The waitress's smile didn't falter, but she nodded and began to take their plates. "Thanks," Quinn said, giving her a small, weak smile. She walked away with the plates and Quinn was able to breathe easy again. "I dunno what it is with her," he mumbled to Dustin, leaning in a bit to whisper so she didn't hear them. "But once we get the check we can get out of here and do something else. Something where people won't keep calling us a couple or anything," he mumbled, though in truth he wasn't minding it as much as he thought he would, it was just embarrassing.

Thank god the waitress had no reason to stay once they had declined dessert, so she finally took their plates and left, probably to get the check. Dustin smiled, eyes flickering to Quinn's face when the other boy leaned forward a little so he could speak in a whisper. "That sounds perfect," Dustin replied with a small grin. He hadn't thought about what they were going to do after dinner. Part of him had thought that Quinn would simply drop him off at home again right away. But he was glad that apparently he wasn't, he liked spending time with Quinn. "Not sure we'll find a place like that though. It is Valentine's Day after all. And we sadly forgot our 'no homo' hoodies at home."

Quinn smiled brightly and nodded. "Okay cool," he said, glad that Dustin was down to do more stuff, even with the rather bad experience at dinner that they had. "Yeah," Quinn said with a hum, thinking about what they could do. There was always the option of going back home to play video games or something, but they always did that. "I dunno, it's not as cold as it had been, maybe we could go walk? It'll be pretty empty outside I bet. The docks are nice?" he asked. The docks were also probably far safer than the parks were at night with all the creatures about in town.

Dustin nodded. He wasn't a big fan of the cold, but thankfully the weather wasn't as bad as it had been in January. And walking around the docks actually sounded nice. It would be good to be able to talk to Quinn without having to constantly feel the eyes of the other guests or the eager waitress on them. "I like that idea," he replied, a small smile on his lips, which promptly vanished as he could see the waitress approach their table again, carrying the check. Dustin reached around until he found the pocket of his coat to take out his wallet. Now that they had decided what to do next, he really couldn't wait to get out into the fresh air.

Quinn nodded happily. If Dustin was happy about it then he was too. He watched as Dustin pulled out his wallet, grabbing his own as well. This wasn't a date so that meant they were splitting it right? The waitress came over again, and this time actually was fairly quick in dropping off the check. Someone at another table had called her over before. "Well that's a relief," Quinn muttered, glancing at the paper and putting down some money for his food, glancing up at Dustin. Wait was he still expected to pay? Since he had been the one to ask Dustin to dinner. But it wasn't a date so... Fuck.

Dustin was very happy the waitress left so soon and didn't stick around to comment on them splitting the bill. Because that was happening, right? Since it wasn't a date. Besides, when it was two guys, who was supposed to pay anyway? With a girl and a boy it was easy, the boy was supposed to pay. Which was maybe a bit outdated. But two guys? Glancing at the piece of paper, Dustin put down the money for his food plus a little bit for a small tip. It wasn't like he wouldn't have paid for Quinn's meal, but the other boy had already put down some money and besides, that would have made it awkward, right? Because this wasn't a date. No matter how many people mistook them for a couple.

Quinn was relieved when Dustin put down money as well. That made things easier and he didn't feel quite as bad or nervous. Or just weird in general about being called a couple so frequently by this waitress. He didn't want to confuse Dustin or lose a friend because of it. "I think we can go pay up front," Quinn said, grabbing the money and leaving the rest for tip. "This way we don't have to deal with her again," he said with a big grin, which was always a good option in his mind. "So if you're ready?" he asked, reaching down to his jacket with a small smile.

Dustin gave him a big nod, putting his wallet back into his coat and got up. "Yeah, I think I'm happy not dealing with her again," he said, a smirk on his lips. "Let's go before she calls us cute again. Can you believe it? 'Cute'. We're not cute." He put on his coat and started buttoning it up. "If we were together we'd be a very sexy and incredibly manly couple. Never cute." With a small chuckle he started making his way towards the front of the restaurant, turning his head to make sure Quinn was following him.

Quinn just nodded, opening his mouth, about to say something about Dustin actually being cute before shutting his mouth and flushing red. He hid his face as he pulled on his jacket, standing up and making his way over to the front of the restaurant. He chuckled as Quinn continued talking, hurrying up a bit behind Dustin. When they reached the front, he handed the hostess the money and nodded to the door. "Let's get out of here," he said with a grin. He sent one final glance back into the restaurant as he opened the door, spotting the waitress rushing between tables. "Let's make sure she's not here if we come back,"

"Yeah, let's do that," Dustin agreed, turning his head towards the waitress before walking out the door. He was instantly hit with the cold, but after living through the January of hell this wasn't too bad. "I hope that if I ever come back here with my family she won't be the one serving us," he mumbled. "Or that she wouldn't remember me. It would just be incredibly awkward if she did." He turned towards Quinn with a smile. "So we're going to the docks, right?"

Quinn was glad that, although cold, it wasn't quite as bad as it had been. Certainly not like when he and Dustin had been Christmas shopping. "I bet she does though. Which is the worst part," Quinn groaned. They weren't exactly subtle were they? Two guys on Valentine's Day who kept stuttering and blushing. Not great. "Yup, that way," he said, pointing towards the river. Fortunately it wasn't particularly far away. Quinn stuffed his hands into his pockets to keep a little warmer and began his way towards the docks.

"I guess I'll just have to keep my family from coming here again though. So I can save my parents from having a heart attack when she comes up to us being like 'Oh hello, nice to see you again! Where did you leave that cute boyfriend of yours?'" Dustin had to smirk as he tried to imitate the waitresses voice, walking alongside Quinn as the neared the river, pulling down the sleeves of his jumper a little so he could shield his fingers from the cold wind of the river. "Soo..." he started, glancing at the other boy. "How have you been? With everything, I mean. Now that you've had a little time to get used to the fact that the world isn't what it appears to be."

"Oh, yeah, wouldn't want that," Quinn said with a small chuckle, mostly at Dustin's imitation of his voice. Dustin shuffled a bit as they approached the water, it being a bit cooler there. "Ugh... you know," he shrugged, looking over the water for a moment. He thought he'd seen something and wondered if it had been something supernatural or just a fish. "I mean, I've gotten a little used to it but it's still weird you know? That you live in a town so long and don't realize it? It was right there and just... for some reason," he shrugged, sighing softly as he walked over to a bench and plopped down, resting his hand on the cool wood and tapping it lightly. "It'll be nice if things just settle down,"

Dustin looked at Quinn's profile for a moment as he looked out onto the river, nodding along to his words. Everything he'd seen in the last couple of months had been with no doubt weird. More than weird. He watched him sit down on a wooden bench, slowly stepping closer before sitting down right next to him, making sure to avoid the wet patch of wood on the end of the bench. "I mean, I've lived knowing something's up a little while longer." That was an understatement right there. "And you keep finding new things, new creatures, and it's weird and scary sometimes. But I'm, just, so sure that things will settle down if you want that. And not everything strange out there is out there to attack you. I mean, it's not all evil snowmen and weird demons, it's not..."

When Dustin sat down next to him, Quinn suddenly became aware of how close they were together. Part of the bench was wet, true, but his arm was pressing lightly against Dustin's and his hand was close to his. He suddenly felt heat rise to his cheeks when he realized how warm Dustin felt against him. "Ugh, yeah, I'm sure. And just really hope that things will be nicer soon," he said, looking out onto the dock and trying to focus on that, instead of how much he liked being this close to Dustin.

For a moment, looking at the other boy, Dustin wondered if maybe he should reveal the truth to him, to tell him that his whole family was somehow involved in it all and about what amazing things he could do. Quinn deserved to see some nice things for a change. But in the end, he didn't say it. Quinn wanted things to settle down, which probably didn't include finding out that his friend was a warlock and had been keeping it from him. Dustin rubbed his hand against his thigh for warmth, trying to ignore how the motion made his arm brush against Quinn's. "Yeah, but things are nice now, aren't they?" he asked, then bit down on his lip, tearing his gaze away from Quinn towards the river. Shit. Maybe this had been an awkward thing to say.

And there it was again. Dustin's arm rubbing against him. Even through their several layers Quinn was feeling odd about it. It was nice to have, they'd never really touched much before, except for that night they had been drinking. He'd liked it then too. Part of Quinn really wanted more of that contact. He shook is off though, despite the image of him reaching out to take Dustin's hand. Maybe it'd help keep them warm? He shook his head and focused on the river out in front of him. "Yeah, no. This is really nice," he said with a small smile. "Like, really nice," he laughed.

Dustin smiled when he heard Quinn's reply, leaning a little closer against him, arm pressing against arm through the hundreds of fabrics they were wearing to protect themselves against the cold. He suddenly didn't know what to say. Why didn't he know what to say? He always knew what to say. There was literally zero reason for him to feel nervous around his friend, but yet he did. He turned his head to look at him for a second before looking back out towards the river, eyes focussing on the birds flying low across the water. "Yeah?" he asked.

It was quiet, and the silence wasn't terrible. Maybe a little awkward. He felt like he should say something, but he wasn't sure what. What Quinn did know was that he was hyper aware of their arms pressing together, and how close his own hand was to Dustin's. He wasn't quite sure what caused him to do it, but he shifted a bit, the side of his hand pressing against Dustin's. "Yeah," he said simply, still looking out, but more than a few times glancing over to look at Dustin.

Suddenly, there was something warm brushing against his hand. Taking in a small breath, Dustin cast a quick glance down towards his hand before looking away again. Quinn was close enough that their hands were touching, just a little. This was an accident, right? It was probably an accident, Quinn had probably just shifted a little, causing their hands to touch. Maybe he wasn't even aware of it. But what if it wasn't an accident? Dustin knew that he should probably pull his hand away, or shift a little enough to create a little space between them. But for some reason, he was reluctant to do so. This felt nice, sitting close to Quinn on the bench, even though he could swear his heart was going just a little bit too fast for him simply sitting on a bench, not moving. Dustin didn't move his hand away. He pressed his hand right against Quinn's, very lightly. If this was an accident, Quinn could pull away now.

Quinn felt like he was breathing far too heavily right now. He also felt like his heart was pounding out of his chest. Why was he so nervous? And why did it feel so good to just have their hands touching like this? But what if Dustin didn't like it? He'd pull away right? Then he would know and it'd be easier. But instead of pulling away, he felt Dustin's hand press against his again. Flushing just a little, which he could blame on the chill in the air, Quinn smiled. That definitely wasn't an accident right? Still, he was nervous. Quinn shifted his pinky just a bit, enough to brush against Dustin's hand and then rest atop Dustin's pinky. This was the make it or break it moment.

Dustin didn't look at their hands as he felt one of Quinn's fingers move against his pinky, continuing to look out at the river as he felt it rest on top of his even though he was dying to see the expression on Quinn's face at this exact moment. You didn't just put your finger on top of your friend's on accident, right? Brushing against each other, that could happen on accident. But not this. Pulling his bottom lip in between his teeth, Dustin started moving his pinky, brushing lighly against Quinn's hand in return. A part of his brain was telling him to stop this, what was he doing, he needed to move away, he couldn't lead Quinn on. But the bigger part of his brain simply didn't listen as he moved his pinky slowly along the top of Quinn's pinky, brushing against one of his knuckles.

It felt like forever while he waited for Dustin to respond. He had half a mind to just pull away and pretend it didn't happen. Hell, part of him wanted to run off. But then Quinn's mind calmed again when he felt Dustin touch his hand back. He couldn't keep the wide smile from growing across his face as he felt Dustin's finger brush against his. "Um," he said, not really sure what he was going to say. Instead he moved his and a bit more, letting his fingers wrap around Dustin's hand and blushing red as he looked over at Dustin.

At the sound of Quinn's voice, Dustin turned his head, suddenly feeling brave enough to look at him. He let out the breath he didn't notice he'd been holding when he saw that the other boy was smiling widely. And then he moved his hand a little, but instead of moving it away there was suddenly even more contact. This counted as holding hands, did it not? Almost instinctly, Dustin moved his own hand so it fit better with Quinn's fingers, and fuck, he was holding Quinn's hand, was he not? He wasn't supposed to hold his hand, but fuck, there was no way he was letting go. "Hi," he said quietly, trying to fight his smile, but that wasn't really working.

As Dustin's hand shifted in his, for a moment Quinn though that the other boy was going to pull away and he was going to make a fool of himself. But instead their hands were close together and he was grinning even more. He didn't know why this was happening, or even really how, but Quinn liked it. "Hey," Quinn said, smiling just as wide, and glad to see that Dustin was as well. Was it weird that, maybe he wanted to lean in and kiss him? Not on the lips, on the cheek or something. Dustin just looked very cute right now.

Dustin was really, really glad that this was happening in February and not in another time of the year because at least he didn't have to worry about his hand suddenly getting sweaty. It was still so cold, the wind was freezing across the back of his hand, but Quinn's hand was a nice source of warmth. After returning Quinn's gaze for a while, smiling, he eventually turned his head to look back at the river, the tip of his index finger brushing carefully across the back of Quinn's hand. This wasn't a real date, no it wasn't, they were friends, but in this moment he couldn't help but feel like it was. Actually, if he was completely honest with himself, he was sort of hoping that maybe it was. Which was completely irrational and not-good, but he couldn't do anything against how nice it felt to hold Quinn's hand.

#touchofchatzy #chatzy #quinn #not a date

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