Chapter Text
I can do this, said the little voice in his head as he fumbled for the hundredth time at his collar to make it looking less crumpled.
He probably should have ironed it. But that includes effort, so...
I can do this I can do this I can –
“Isak, you´re ready?“
Fuck.
I can´t do this.
The thing was, it wasn´t like Isak didn´t want to go out or didn´t want to get laid, thank you. His body literally starved for someone to touch him, kiss him, give it to him hard from –
“Isaaaaak!“
But a blind date?
That was something he never signed up for. It was the very very last thought in the back of his mind, because what was the point of going to a place to meet a stranger you no nothing about? And then you are supposed to have fun with this person – a whole evening long! And how high were the chances that this person would be so nice and lovely and hot that Isak´s first thoughts would be oh ya, I want to sleep with you and maybe get a house and a dog and then we´re gonna adopt children.
Jonas, his best friend, had shushed him and argued as the smartass that he was, that Isak is of course not supposed to marry that guy he would meet, he should just have a little bit fun.
And Magnus and Sana – his other very good friends – had nodded eagerly in agreement.
Isak hated all of them.
Actually, it had been Magnus` idea to get Isak a blinddate.
Who else would come up with such crap?
Isaks first reaction was just laughing. Then, when he was aware Magnus wasn´t joking around, he was going like no. Never gonna happen, leave me alone I want to watch Game of Thrones in my bed. No thanks, Magnus, get your dumb idea out of your head and in your ass.
But Magnus didn´t stop talking about it, until he got Jonas on board – for which Isak still hates him a little bit – so eventually, Isak had agreed – alone to shut Mags the fuck up!
Isak looked in the small mirror in the small bathroom of their small shared apartment and sighed.
Eskild and Linn, his roommates, were out – Eskild for work; he worked at the centre of “children of love“, an organization which fights for kid´s rights in different countries and he often gets the late shift to get emergency calls, and Linn were out with her boyfriend Julian.
Isak didn´t like him, but at least he was nice when he was with Linn.
He gave himself one last look.
He didn´t look too bad: black tight jeans, a dark blue sweater over a checked shirt, whose said collar stuck out at his neck. His hair was slicked and brushed behind his ears, his usually light curls gone.
He looked older than usual. He didn´t know if he liked it.
“For the last time, Isak, if you´re not gonna open the door right now I swear I will...“
“Jeez, calm down Vilde! I´m coming!“
One last look.
He was Isak.
He was still himself.
And he should´nt freak out so much over a fucking blind date. He was gonna survive it.
Probably.
He unlocked the door and stepped outside.
“Wow!“, Vilde said high pitched, as soon as he walked into the light of the corridor. “Yo´re looking hot!“
Isak huffed.
He didn´t want Vilde to be his chauffeur, but she had insisted. Which was kind of nice.
He would thank her later.
Maybe.
“Come on, sweetie, we´re gonna be late!“
I don´t want to, his head sreamed, I want to go back and crawl under my sheets and disappear.
Fuck social life.
He smiled and headed for his shoes. “Sure, Vilde.“
.
Neither of them spoke as they entered the car. Vilde, after tossing a worried look over him, which he ignored, she cleared his throat and turned on some song in the radio. Isak didn´t paid much attention until he realized what it was.
“Noooooo“, he groaned, „turn it off, please!“
“But it´s a nice song...“ Vilde laughed at him and sang the lyrics.
Deeespasiiito, na na na na na na na na na na na na...
“You don´t even know how to sing this shitty song!“
“You just hate it because everybody hears it all day“, Vilde waved his commend away.
“I´m getting out of the car. Goodbye, see you tomorrrow.“
“Isak!“
„Seriously, Vilde, change it.“
“It´s my car, Isak.“
“And my date.“
Vilde sighed deep, but turned the radio channel.
And a thousand times I´ve seen this road,
A thousand times
„I´ve got no roots“, Vilde bellowed excited and laughed at Isak´s expression. „Come on, Isak, sing with me.“
„No, thanks.“
„I´ve changed the sender, come on! Please“
He sighed.
Deep.
„I've got no roots uh uh uh uh“, he sang quietly and then, as he watched Vilde´s happy face about his try, he smiled and sang a little bit louder.
„I've got no roots uh uh uh uh.“
Maybe it calmed him down a little bit.
A little little bit.
.
His smile wasn´t gone until they reached the fancy restaurant in town. It was one of the sort Isak would never go to – not because he didn´t like it, but because of the prices they got. Isak wasn´t a rich student and his job after his classes in uni – he worked at Sturbucks - got him barely the rent for the apartment.
But his blind date had insisted in this, which was a move Isak didn´t like. He didn´t want to be here, between all the fancy rich people in expensive suits, eating cavier and drinking red wine imported from Greece.
„Hey.“
Vilde´s voice broght him back out of his thoughts.
She smiled at him warmly. „Are you okay?“
He opened the mouth to barked at her as usual when someone asked this question the half past year. But then he remembered that she actually cared.
And that she new.
Aboput his crappy, horrible, heartbreaking last year.
So he swallowed and smiled at her. „Yes“, he said a little bit husky. „Thanks for everything, Vilde.“
She reached out and touched her arm. „Call if... well... if I should come and kick his ass.“
He laughed at that.
„Okay.“
They hugged and Isak felt a warm feeling.
Vilde was a nice friend. A pain in the ass, but the heart at the right place.
Then she turned the car and disappeard in the traffic.
Isak took a deep breath.
You can do this, man, you can do this.
It´s just one damn evening. You don´t even have to be nice if you don´t like him.
But before he made his way inside, he checked his phone.
He got a few messages from his friends.
Madhi: You got this bro! Have fun and do whatever you want, it´s okay!
Jonas: Take it easy. If you need me, just call I´ll stay awake the whole night, am at a party anyways. Love ya pal<3
Sana: Have a nice time buddy<33
Eva: Ey, I want the details tomorrow, okay? don´t do anything I wouldn´t do! Btw, big step, proud of you Isak, serr<33
Eskild: My little baby gay! Watch out, don´t let him fuck you without condom, you never know... despite how handsome he might be. And you don´t have to swallow him, don´t let him force you, if he wants, I put a new pepper spray in your jacket, USE IT! So anyways, I´m so proud of you little sunshine, please be safe and remember to have fun. And if I don´t hear anything from you until one am, I´m gonna call the police. Your guru is so fucking proud<3333333
Magnus: If you don´t fuck him I´m so disappointed in you Isak, all my efforts would be for nothing! Kidding, just kidding. I love you, tell me the dirty details tomorrow and let him pay!!
Isak smiled at his phone. His friends were so fucking great.
He just wanted to put his phone back in his pocket, as a new message plopped up.
Vilde: Have fun and remember, if you want to go home instead, I´ll be there in one minute. It´s not a shame at all.<3
He shaked his head. Sometimes Vilde could be scaring attentive.
Isak: Put your phone away, you´re useless for me if you create a car crash and die
Vilde: Love ya too, jerk
Isak: <3
Finally, he shoved his phone back in his pocket and made his way into the restaurant. Before he entered the hall, he felt a small spray can in his jacket pocket on the left side. He smiled warmly and stepped inside.
.
„Can I help you, Sir?“
Oh crap, this kind of restaurant.
„Ehh“, Isak stuttered, looking helpless in the friendly face of the waiter who stands in the hallway to greet the new guests. "I... I´ve got a reservation for eight. Valtersen?“
The waiter nodded, moved his small golden glasses down his nose and looked at the register in his black book.
„Aah, yes, I got your name... please follow me, Sir, your table is outside, right there at the fontain.“
„Fontain“, echoed Isak weakly.
„You are very lucky with the weather, Sir, a few hours ago it was raining. But now the air is clear and fresh, it´s perfect! Oh, where is your accompaniment, by the way? I see your reservation is for two persons...?”
“Oh... he´s on his way”, Isak hurried to say and tried to ignore the knot in his stomach.
The waiter just nodded and led him through tables and people a few stairs down and then outside and Isak´s moth fell open.
“Wow.” He couldn´t suppress it and the waiter laughed. “Yeah, it´s pretty nice, I see it every day, so I forget how beautiful it actually is.”
It was. It really was.
It was a big terrace with a multicolored stone floor. In the centre stood the fountain, which was surrounded by the tables, and the boundary around the place was created by big hedges. Light strings were hanging inside the hedges and in the only big tree, which stood on the right of the fountain. There were also standing tables.
It was a clear night, Isak could see a few stars and the moon threw his light on the terrace and wrapped everything up in a warm dizzy and welcomed atmosphere.
“ Here is yout table, Sir.”
Isak blinked a few times. He spent the last minute with staring, mouth gaping open. He blushed and followed the waiter to a small table directly by the fountain, but with a good look at the huge tree.
“Thank you”, he said and sat down.
The waiter smiled.
“My pleasure. Your waiter for the night is coming in a minute!” He smiled one last time, then he walked away, back inside and Isak sat alone and felt uncomfortable.
He was so nervous he barely could enjoy the place he was. He was surrounded by people and they were all talking, and he was the only one with no company...
He will come, Isak tried to soothe himself. He will come in a few minutes. It´s okay if he´s a little bit late...
But the feeling to be ditched didn´t disappear.
Isak´s heart was drumming in his thorat. His fist clenched around the fancy white napkin on the table. He felt the knots again, but this time he felt also the big lump in his throat and that was even worse because that ment he was going to cry and that was the last thing he wanted, not in public, not again in fucking public because someone was fucking with him –
“Excuse me, Sir, everything okay?”
A deep voice took him out of his swirl of his ugly and hurting thoughts. But he was still hard breathing and his eyes were watery, so he didn´t dare to look up.
“Yes”, he said quiet, “I... could I just have a glass water, please?”
A moment of silemce.
“Are you sure you don´t need something stronger?”
The voice was nice, it was not a mean comment and Isak felt the smile in that voice. He still looked down in his lap. His fist was still clenching the napkin. He let go.
“Yeah, thanks”, he murmured and smiled.
Hopefully, the waiter saw it.
“Of course, Sir”, was the answer and then the waiter disappeard again.
Isak took a deep breath.
Okay. It was okay. It was only... twenty minutes. He stucked in traffic probably.
He looked awkwardly around befor he quickly wiped his tears away.
He was not a baby.
He was an adult, he was going to nail this thing.
Shit, he probably should had ordered some alcohol.
He checked his phone. No new messages. He didn´t want to bother his friends that early. Or worse – to worry them. He sighed and wanted to put his phone in his jacket, but he failed and it slid away and crashed on the floor.
Isak cursed and got on his knees to get his phone back.
“Here´s your water and – oh”, was all he heard befor his head appeared again at the table.
“Oh, thank you”, Isak said and took a big sip from the glass. Then he looked up to the waiter, because he still stood at his table.
And that was a thing he probably shouldn´t have done.
Isak choked on his water, he put the glass down and coughed and tried to get air back in his lungs.
The hand on his back which patted him which force didn´t help at all!
“I was going to offer you a whiskey to help your nerves, but if water alone is enough to kill you, then I shuld probably go away with that stuff as far as possible.”
Isak could only stare.
It was not his fault; his brain had decided apparently to take a break.
The man, who was his waiter, was gorgeous.
He was tall, very tall; Isak was sure he was taller than him and Isak was sticking about the most people in his surroundings. His hair was styled and slicked back, James Dean style, but there was a quiff about his forehead which was stubborn against the way.
Isak´s finger itched to reach out and put the strain back in order.
Or curl it around his finger, he was not quite sure.
He shaked his head a litte.
What was he doing? He just took one look on him. Jeez, Isak, calm down for fucks sake!
He looked up in the waiter´s face – his beautiful, beautiful face, hello cheekbones! – and tried to ignore the blue eyes and the raised eyebrow in question.
Oh crap, he just joked about something and he just stared at him like an idiot.
“Errm...” Isak cleared his throat and smiled akwardly at him, trying to get his pride back.
Probably a lost game.
“Yea, ah, I actually... take it.”
The eyebrows went higher.
Both of them this time.
“You sure? It was last year when I accomplished the first aid measures.”
Isak laughed. “Ey! I just got a little bit water in my lungs, okay?”
“Mmmh. Yeah right.”
“So, could I get it, or...?” he raised his eyebrow. He had game, after all, dammit!
The waiter smirked.
“Sure, Sir”, he said and put a second glass on the table. “Welcome to our restaurant.”
He beamed at Isak and fulled led a little bow in front of him.
“I´m Even, your waiter and I´m looking after you for tonight.”