Work Text:
Cub doubted Mumbo's intention when asking him out to dinner was a date, but to Cub, it was. Mumbo had asked him to try out a new restaurant tomorrow. There's no way he'd decline an offer like that. It also happened to be the day before Valentines day and he may have come across a bouquet of beautiful, red and white flowers at the store earlier with a gift in the middle for Mumbo. He also happened to get his nice dress shirt dry cleaned just in time. Even if this wasn't necessarily meant as a date, he was sure going to treat it like one.
Mumbo, being the autistic man he was, didn't realize he'd practically asked Cub on a date until Grian pointed it out. He hadn't thought of it like that, but he might as well make the best of it.
"Mumbo, you asked Cub on a date and you didn't realize it? You invited him to the grand opening of a new, fancy restaurant on the day before Valentines day. How could that not be a date, you spoon?" Grian laughed out at the flushed man.
"I-I just wanted to try out a new restaurant... I mean, i-it's not like I mind it being a date, I just didn't mean it like that." Mumbo stuttered out as he paced back and fourth in the small living room, his hands over his face. Questions flooded his mind, making him overthink everything so much more. Did Cub think of this as romantic or platonic? What should he wear? Should he bring something? "Void, I haven't been on a date since freshmen year of college. Do I bring flowers, o-or chocolates? How am I supposed to dress?" Mumbo rambled.
"Scar and I will help you. He'll be ecstatic you're finally doing something with those good looks." Grian smiled out with a hint of teasing in his tone. He walked up to Mumbo and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. He wrapped his wings around Mumbo and hugged him tightly from behind. Grian knew exactly how anxious and confused Mumbo got in these sorts of situations. That's part of the reason Mumbo'd been single for so long. He couldn't put love and affection into words, instead letting his action show it. That turned away a lot of people, but maybe being with a fellow autistic person could work out. Cub and Mumbo had always gotten one another on a level higher than everyone else around them.
"That'd be nice, Gri. I wouldn't want to pressure you into changing your plan, though. I know you and Scar took the weekend off to spend time with one another..." Mumbo murmured into his hands. The couple had planned on relaxing at home and watching movies.
"It's no worries, Mumby. We love spending time with you." Grian insisted. He knew just how much his words meant to Mumbo. "Now, why don't we go into your room and find you something nice to wear?I'll bet you've got some awesome suits and vests in there!"
February 13th came quicker than Mumbo could process. In the blink of an eye, he was suddenly getting ready for the newly dubbed double date. He had on a nice vest and a pair of simple, but elegant dress pants. They were ones that Cub made him a while back as a Christmas present. The vest was lined with red silk and has his initials embroidered on the waist. It was honestly some of Cub's finest work. At Grian's suggestion, he came bearing a gift as well. It was some peppermint fudge Scar had made the night before. Cub always loved anything Scar made, so it was a safe choice.
"Void, I don't think I've been this sweaty since my first lecture at the college." Mumbo nervously chuckled out as he wiped his hands on his pants.
"You'll do great, Mumbo. I think Cub will love spending time with us. Besides, you don't need to be nervous, Grian and I will be there. It's a double date." Scar ensured as he got himself situated in his wheelchair. His hands brushed down all the wrinkles in his dress shirt, then he ruffled his hair. "Does my hair look good, or do I look stupid?" Scar asked as he grabbed the hairspray and sprayed a bit on the back of his head.
"You look lovely, Scar. How do I look?" Mumbo asked back anxiously. He didn't know why he was so nervous. He and Cub went way back and had gone to places together before. He could only guess that actually labeling it a date made his brain go into overdrive.
"You look great, dude." Grian chirped out as he walked into the bathroom. "Everything will turn out just fine, I promise." Grian assured as he hugged Mumbo tightly from behind. "Besides, Cub's had a massive thing for you for like years and years. He won't reject you or something silly."
Mumbo blushed a bit and let out a heavy breath. "Thanks you two... You're the best friends I could ask for really." All his mind could think about was what could go wrong, but Grian and Scar really helped ease his tension. "Now, let's get going before we're late for our reservation. I paid a lot of money for it."
The three of them arrived at the packed restaurant just as Cub also pulled up. Grian helped Scar out of the car while Mumbo walked over towards Cub with the fudge bars in his shaky hands. He quickly held out the container for Cub and squeezed his eyes shut tightly, a little afraid Cub would reject it for some reason. To his surprise, Cub not only took the Tupperware, but he also hastily shoved something into Mumbo's hands, radiating the same energy he did. It was a medium sized bouquet of red and white flowers.
"Y-You didn't have to get me anything." He muttered with pinks cheeks, "But thank you, they're gorgeous."
"Of course I had to get you something, Mumbo. You invited me out, its the polite thing to do." Cub chuckled out, trying to seem nonchalant, but was failing a bit. Mumbo didn't notice thankfully. The two of them were so caught up in their awkward conversation that they hadn't noticed Scar and Grian were already out of the car and waiting at the entrance.
"Stop flirting and get in here, you two! We can't get the table because the reservation is under your name!" Grian yelled from across the parking lot, leaving them both sputtering. Their heads snapped over to the door where the shouting, immediately realizing just how long they'd been small talking. They exchanged glanced before quickly running over, yelling a quick apology before they all walked into the restaurant.
The inside of the restaurant was warm and welcoming compared to the chilly February weather outside. Nearly every table was full of couples on romantic dinners for the holiday over fancy wine and candles. Technically speaking, they were no different. All the walls and were decorated with tacky hearts and a banner that read 'Happy Valentines day!'. It was perfect.
Mumbo confirmed the reservation, then the hostess led the group to the back of the restaurant where a table was waiting with a little reserved sign on it. The hostess handed them menus and took the sign from the table. The table was right next to a blooming fish tank full of different tropical fish. Cub and Mumbo slid into a booth next to one another while Scar pulled up on the other side next to Grian.
"Wow, you chose an expensive place to eat, Mumbo! The dishes look wonderful, but an appetizer is 15$." Grian exclaimed as he looked over the menu. He expected something like olive garden, not some super expensive seafood place. He almost felt under dressed for the occasion.
"Didn't realize it'd be so expensive. Looks like I'm going to have to take out a loan to eat here!" Mumbo laughed out as he studied the leather wrapped menu in his hands. It was a new restaurant, but he definitely should have looked on the website at the prices before booking the table. "Good thing I brought more cash than I thought I'd need for all of us," he remarked
"You don't have to pay for Grian and I, Mumbo. I've got plenty to cover the two of us." Scar insisted as he put down the menu, having decided on a smoked salmon meal. Grian and Cub made small talk about work and what sounded tasty to eat. Mumbo sat there fidgeting nervously with his shirt button, rolling it between his fingers to help soothe his anxious hands.
After a few minutes of small talk, the waitress came back to their table to take their drink and meal orders. Mumbo and Cub both got hot coffees while Scar got wine and Grian got ice water. Then they stated their food orders and gave the waitress back the menus. Cub kept glancing at Mumbo, his heart beating out of his chest. His hands traced over the small box that held the tie he'd spent hours agonizing over. He was trying to wait for the perfect moment to give it to Mumbo.
Grian noticed the two men's nerves and decided it was best to carry the conversations to help ease the tension. Cub had yet to date anyone by himself sense him and Scar decided to open their relationship. Mumbo wasn't much better in his utter singleness, either. His eyes barely left his lap and his face was eternally flustered.
"So, Cub, how's work been?" Grian asked as he shook his head with a chuckle. They were so awkward. Cub practically lit up the room at the opportunity to talk about work.
"Oh, y'know, just lots of sewing and tailoring. The HHF has been working me to the bone, but that's the usual. Feels like Hotguy needs a new part of his suit or repairs every other week!" Cub ranted out while stimming a bit with his hands. "And don't even get me started about Inferno. He got stabbed in the shoulder the other week and ruined his entire brand new costume. I had more than a few choice words for him."
Scar laughed heartily at Cub's ranting. He was trying to keep a straight face as Cub talked about his hero persona, but it was hard. Mumbo didn't seem to notice, though. It always felt weird when Cub talked about his work for the HHF like the two heroes he works closest to were right in front of him. Mumbo was the only one at the table who didn't know about their hero identities. Cub was open about his work with the heroes, doing most of their costuming and tech gear, but that never stopped Cub from doing a bit of other work on the side.
"How did Inferno even get hurt?" Mumbo asked curiously as the waitress came back and set their drinks down on the table. Cub gave Mumbo a little eyebrow raise, but it didn't alarm Grian or Scar at all. They just saw it as Cub being Cub. "Hope he's doing well, a knife to the shoulder is nasty work." He sighed out, knowing he was the one who did it. He never really cared about what happened to heroes after his fights to be honest. What they do is their business as long as his stays his.
"I don't know too many details, I think they're still investigating it. I suspect it the The Conductor because of the smell on the suit, but only Inferno and Hotguy know what happened." Cub sighed out as he took a long sip of his coffee. At least this place had free coffee refills.
"You could just ask Hotguy tomorrow at work, he's known to have a big mouth." Grian snickered out, making everyone laugh hard. Scar unfortunately a very loud mouth when it came to secrets, so whatever happened last week would get spilled.
"I'm still so jealous you get to work with heroes all day, it's so cool!" Mumbo hooted as he look at Cub with a big grin. Mumbo was a bit of a Hotguy fanboy, which always made Cub so confused. Mumbo fights him on the regular, so why is he still such a big fan of him? It never made sense to him, but to each of their own.
Mumbo's fanboying was cut short by their food arriving at the table. Scar and Grian ordered a smoked salmon platter to share, Mumbo got a baked trout with lemon cream sauce, and Cub got a delicious looking plate of oysters. The four men quickly dug into their seafood dishes, their mouths already watering at the scent alone.
"This food is delicious! Scar, try one of these oysters." Cub exclaimed as he slurped up an oyster from its shell. He excitedly handed one over the table to his partner. Scar gladly accepted the oyster, surprised by just how tasty they were. Cub also handed one over to Grian and Mumbo who accepted gratefully. Everyone gleefully ate their seafood dishes and chatted. The atmosphere around them became less and less tense as the night went on. Scar and Mumbo chattered on and on about architecture and redstone while Cub made oogly eyes at them. Grian kept snickering at him and kicking him under the table. Cub's eyes narrowed at Grian before he playfully kicked him back in the shin.
“You two are such children.” Scar sighed out, his hand grasping Grian’s tightly, reprimanding him for acting like a fool in public. Grian huffed a bit, but gripped his hand back.
“Boys, we are in public, act nice.” Mumbo lectured, a bit embarrassed of being in such a fancy restaurant while Grian and Cub were playing footsie.
“Yeah, Gri, act nice.” Cub snickered out, earning him another kick to the shin. Mumbo smacked Cub’s arm lightly. Cub saw the stern look Mumbo gave him and blushed. He averted his eyes down to the table to avoid him. That look was kinda hot. “Sorry, I’ll stop.”
“Thank you, Cub. Now, do we want to order dessert or anything?” Mumbo asked, looking around the table at everyone. Cub eagerly nodded while grabbing the little dessert menu from the middle of the table, while Grian and Scar looked unsure.
“I think Scar and I should head home. It’s getting late and we need to feed Jellie soon. You two can stay and get dessert, though.” Grian stated as he sucked down the rest of his water and began stacking the dirty plates. As Grian cleaned up, Scar grabbed his wallet and put down a few twentys to cover their half of the bill and a tip.
"Oh, uhh sure I guess. I kinda want to try the mango pie with the ice cream." Cub stated as he looked over the dessert menu with Mumbo.
"Well, I think I'll get the mint milkshake. It looks absolutely delicious." Mumbo smiled out as he pointed to picture matching the dessert. It did look very tasty.
Somehow, while Cub and Mumbo had their noses buried in the menu, Grian and Scar snuck out. Mumbo knew why. It was because the two wanted Mumbo and Cub to have some alone tie by themselves. Scar had noticed Cub's nerves about the gift through the night and thought that some privacy would give Cub the courage to gift it.
"I-I umm have something for you.." Cub finally blurted out as he grabbed the little box from beside him and shakily put it onto the table in front of Mumbo. Mumbo stared at the gift, a little astonished that Cub had gotten him yet another gift. He really didn't expect this.
Mumbo grabbed the small box carefully and opened it. Hid eyes widened at the sight of the gift. It was a beautiful deep red tie with his initials embroidered on the inside. This was the nice fabric that Cub always saved for the special clients. "Oh Cub, it's beautiful." He cooed out as he picked it up out if the box. "Thank you, I love it!"
Cub's face warmed as he watched Mumbo take off the tie he was currently wearing an put on the new one. He was very proud of this piece, even if it was quite simple to make. He'd actually hand sewn a good portion of it, so it was really a one of a kind piece. It took a while, but Mumbo was worth the effort. "I'm glad you like it. I spent a lot of time hand sewing it. I-I even used the embroidery to put your initials on it."
Mumbo flipped the tie over and ran his fingers along the small initials. He almost wanted to cry because of how thoughtful the gift was.
"Shit, don't cry, don't cry." Cub sputtered out as he waved his hands in front of Mumbo. He knew it was a good cry, but seeing Mumbo cry wasn't fun.
"It's a good cry, Cub. It's beautiful. I love it so much, I can assure you that." Mumbo spoke with a choke as he leaned over and pulled Cub into a tight hug. He couldn't stop the tears of joy from flowing from his eyes. Cub blushed at the contact, but after a moment, he hugged back.
Their cute, fluffy moment was interrupted by the waitress bringing the desserts onto the table. Mumbo reluctantly let go to grab a fork and grab the piece of pie from the waitress. Cub took a deep whiff of the mango pie, his mouth watering at the scent alone. Cub grabbed his fork enthusiastically and sunk it into the pie with Mumbo following behind. The both ate the big bite of pie and moaned at the rich flavors. They both quickly finished their bites before sinking their forks into it again and again until the pie was gone.
"That pie was absolutely lovely. I'm cuffed to bits with that." Mumbo smiled out as e wiped his mouth with a napkin. Then, he reached over and grabbed a straw for the milkshake. Cub also grabbed his straw and happily stuck it into the puff of whipped cream. Cub stuck his finger into the whit whipped cream and playfully booped Mumbo's nose.
Mumbo giggled and wiped the cream off of his nose, then he did the same back to Cub. Cub became flustered at Mumbo's unexpected playfulness and looked away a little. This was a side of Mumbo he'd never really seen. The atmosphere between them was so relaxed and casual now.
"You're so playful, Mumbo. What has gotten into you?" Cub teasingly asked as he wiped the whipped cream off his nose and licked it off his thumb. That did something primal to Mumbo. He blushed hard and looked down at the milkshake.
"Just finally got a date with someone I really like." Mumbo mumbled out, embarrassed. This was his first date i so many years. He wasn't unattractive or anything, just incredibly socially awkward. Not many people could handle him. "I want this to meaningful and not just a one time thing."
"You asking me on the second date?" Cub snickered as he slurped on the milkshake, oogling Mumbo's red face.
"Maybe... If you're up for it, we could go on a second date. Get some ice cream maybe? It's supposed to be uncharacteristically for February, but that just means all the good spots are opening up." Mumbo rambled on before Cub leaned over and pressed a kiss to his lips. Mumbo's eyes widened before he leaned in and kissed back. It wasn't anything serious, but it was better than anything Mumbo had gotten in years.
"You wanna go back to my place, Mumbo?" Cub asked, wrapping his arms around the taller's neck. He nodded quickly and helped Cub finish the milkshake while Cub clinged. Then he quickly rummaged in his wallet for some money to cover the bill and the tip.
"Lead the way, Cub~"