(no subject)

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry groans, but he figures he can't put this off any longer. He's been sobered from his musical madness since early evening yesterday, and though he knows he needs to apologize, this morning is the first time he's been brave enough to try.

Sitting up in bed, Barry leaves the sheets where they are, turning on his video recorder on his phone still in the safe confines of his blanket tent. "Um, hey," he says, staring at the screen with haunted eyes. "So, I know yesterday was kind of...a lot?" Barry swallows. "I saw on the news that a bunch of people had some kind of tainted chocolate intoxication, I can only assume I was one of them because I would never - "

Barry draws a deep breath. "I would never sing and dance like that willingly. I mean, unless you really wanted me to, then of course I'd try, but I'm getting the feeling you don't really...have that inclination. So I'm sorry for forcing it on you. And."

Barry hits pause, running his hand through his hair while he waits out the heat in his cheeks, but it doesn't seem like his blush is fading any time soon. "I'd still really like to go out tonight," he says, hitting record again. "If you don't, I won't blame you like, at all, but I promise not to sing at you, or to you, or to anyone ever, possibly ever again. So."

Barry stares into the camera. "Text me if you're still up for it. Um. Bye."

Drawing a breath, Barry sends the video to Derek and resumes hiding in bed.

Comments

[triskehale]

Derek is still having trouble processing the whole flash mob thing. Word about the tainted chocolates got out, so Derek knows that this isn't normal Barry Allen behavior, but he was still thinking about Derek enough for him to the subject of his fixation, and that's kind of nice. The flash mob itself was sort of (incredibly) embarrassing and ridiculous but there's a very small part of him that enjoyed the attention. Maybe not attention shown in that particular way, but just in general.

See, lots of trouble processing.

He isn't exactly sure where they stand the next morning until he gets the video message from Barry. Derek watches it, feeling his expression soften into one of amused fondness. The video ends, and if Derek watches it two more times, there's no one to call him out on it.

He thinks about sending a video back but it makes him feel too ridiculous, so he texts instead.

So are you saying that when it comes to Darrow's tricks you prefer stampeding animals over tainted love chocolates? He sends it, smiling to himself before typing out a second message and sending that one too.

Yes, I still want to go out with you. Just let me know when.

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry's heart leaps and his stomach flips at the first blip of his phone, reading the message with one eye before he sits up straight, feeling some of the tension in his body unwind. A second text follows the first and Barry lies back in his bed again, this time with a wide smile.

Seven okay? he texts back. I can meet you in front of your apartment, chocolateless and tuneless, I promise ;) ;) ;)

[triskehale]

It's obvious that Barry feels bad about what happened the day before, understandably so, but Derek wants him to know that it's okay. Sure, it was embarrassing, but there was no harm done. Barry isn't the first person to have their will bent due to one the city's tricks, and he won't be the last.

Think about how much worse it could have been if you didn't have such a nice voice.

Seven is good for me. I'm looking forward to it. :)

Jesus. He used an emoticon. This nervous flutter starts up in his belly and he sets his phone down so he can scrub his hands over his face. The last time that he did anything like this was back in high school, when he would text girls to confirm their plans to go to the movies so they could make out in the back row. But that didn't count. It was before Paige, before the fire, before his entire life changed. With Stiles, they had already known each other for so long and so well that it was just a matter of shifting their existing relationship into something else.

This thing with Barry? It's something completely new and Derek finds himself thrown by the normalcy of it all. He really has no idea what he's doing, but he's definitely looking forward to giving it a shot, nerves and all.

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry beams down at his phone, and though he's promised not to, he hums to himself as he gets washed and dressed. He might still have a date tonight, but yesterday he used all the money he had to impress said date, and now Barry's strapped. But he has an idea.

Four hours later, Barry's completed the routes of every paper boy in the city, a crisp Hamilton from each in his pocket and a swing in his step. He cleans up again and labors for a while over his clothing, eventually settling on a nice pair of jeans and a button up, a blazer but no tie, and drags a peacoat on over all of it. He tries for a while with his hair, too, but eventually Barry lets it settle where it likes. Somehow, he's already running late, but Barry runs across town with seconds to spare, stamping out the sparks on the bottoms of his feet before he presses the buzzer for Derek's place.

"Hey," he says into the comm. "It's me!"

[triskehale]

Derek does his best to stay busy for the rest of the day. He straightens up his apartment and goes for a long run before coming home to get ready. Kate helped him with his clothes, so at least he doesn't have to think too hard about that. He showers and gets dressed in a nice pair of jeans and a pale green button down that she said brought out his eyes, rolling the sleeves up to elbows.

He's just finishing his hair when the buzzer goes off, and Derek feels a small zing of anticipatory nerves shoot through him as he answers. "Be right down!"

Showing up empty handed didn't seem right, so Derek had stopped by the drug store earlier to find something. The clearance Valentine's Day section gave him an idea, and he holds the purchase behind his back as he steps out of the lobby.

Barry is standing there beaming at him, and all Derek can do for a moment is blink. He clears his throat and heads over, smirking warmly as he pulls the stuffed wolf out from behind his back and holds it out. There's a big red heart between its paws reading I'm howling for you! and Derek does his best to maintain an innocent expression. "This is for you. Keeping with the theme and all."

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry nearly vibrates when Derek appears in the lobby, a pleasant buzz of nerves in his belly that he hasn't felt since asking Patty out, and for a moment he almost misses that Derek's holding something out to him. He tears his eyes away from Derek's own - are they greener today? They seem greener - and reaches for the stuffed toy, laughing aloud when he reads the heart. He holds it next to his face and mimics the wolf's decidedly unfierce expression, laughing again as he holds it to his chest.

"I guess I deserve that and more," he says, pushing playfully at Derek's shoulder. "But this is adorable and I'm keeping it forever. You hungry?"

[triskehale]

Barry accepts Derek's gentle teasing graciously, and Derek is glad for it. He hopes that will be the end of Barry being embarrassed over his actions the previous day, and Derek laughs softly as Barry clutches the stuffed wolf like he'll never let it go.

"Always," he says easily. Barry just looks so happy, and smells so excited. Derek just can't believe that he's the cause of it all, and he can't resist leaning forward to brush a soft kiss against Barry's cheekbone. His scent is a little dizzying, almost intoxicating, and it's with great effort that Derek pulls back to give him a smile that's both content and a little nervous, almost shy. "Where are we going?"

[thescarletspeedster]

"Food Diner," says Barry with a wide smile, and he can't quite resist touching his cheek before he whips his hand away. "That's really its name, and kudos to them for descriptiveness, I guess, but what they lack in creativity they also lack in sense, because the food is crazy good and not expensive at all. Like, you know when you order a diner steak you usually have a death wish, or at least a severe disappointment wish? That's totally not true here."

Barry holds up his fingers, his thumb and forefinger more than two inches apart. "That's how thick my last T-bone there was." He grins and shakes his head. "I love that crazy place."

He nods his head to indicate that they start walking, still clutching the stuffed wolf to him. "It's not fancy, but I actually really like the ambiance. Nothing on the jukebox is younger than 1965, and all the servers still wear cool uniforms. It's old school."

[triskehale]

"I've heard of it, but I've never been," Derek tells him, watching as Barry reaches up to touch his cheek like he might be able to feel Derek's kiss there. Barry rambles on about the diner and Derek just listens, nodding along and finding himself charmed. Anyone who gets that excited about steak is a winner in Derek's book.

"It sounds fun." They start walking and Derek wants to reach out and touch him, or maybe hold his hand. He feels a little like a nervous high schooler again, and while it's always easy to be around Barry, he also really doesn't want to ruin it. So he sways in and bumps their shoulders together playfully, turning to smile at him. "Sounds like the place where we'll have to share a milkshake. You know, one glass and two straws."

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry looks up from his ramble, startled and pleased for the bump to his shoulder, and nods. "I could definitely share a milkshake with you," he says. "Or three or four." Even as cheap as Food Diner is, they can both put an impressive amount of food away, and Barry's more grateful than ever that he found so many paperboys willing to give up their routes today for a few hours of freedom.

"Did you have diners like that where you're from?" Barry pauses. "Sorry, I guess I don't actually know where you're from. Where's home?"

[triskehale]

"We can have as many as you want," Derek assures him, giving in to the urge to reach out and press a hand to his lower back for a moment, just wanted to extend that contact.

When Barry asks where he's from, Derek blinks in surprise. For all that they've been through, and all the personal details that they've shared, he can't believe that they skipped something so simple. They still have a lot to learn about each other, and Derek is looking forward to it.

"Beacon Hills. It's a small town on the coast of California, north of San Francisco," Derek tells him, feeling a small longing for home. "I lived in Manhattan for a few years, but Beacon Hills will always be home. What about you?"

[thescarletspeedster]

"Central City," says Barry, smiling in sad recognition for the brief yearning in Derek's face. "One of the bigger towns in the Midwest, not like Metropolis, of course, but it's home." He squeezes the wolf for a moment, clearly thinking about it. "The winter's don't suck as much there as here," he adds with an amused huff.

"Is Beacon Hills near Coast City?" he asks. "I used to run there for pizza."

[triskehale]

"I've never heard of Coast City, but wait. You ran from the Midwest to the coast for pizza?" Derek chuckles a little and shakes his head in amusement. "Of course you did. Where were you when I was in California and craving Gray's Papaya?"

He doesn't often miss New York, not when so much of his time there was spent in grief and pain, but there were definitely highlights. Laura liked the city, liked all the people, except on the days closest to the full moon. Derek felt pretty irritable himself during those times, and he can only imagine how hard a full moon in Manhattan would be for an alpha. Sometimes even Darrow is too much, and he's glad that he has the woods to escape to.

"Yeah, I'm a little over the snow," Derek says as they walk. He wishes that either one of them didn't run so hot just so he would have an excuse to press closer.

But before he knows it, they're at the diner and Derek darts forward to open the door for Barry, gesturing him inside. "After you."

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry grins and ducks his head, murmuring, "Thank you," as he steps into the comparative heat of the diner. He's not used to someone else opening the door for him. The few guys he'd dated in college hadn't exactly been out for romance, and he hadn't minded at the time, but this is...nice.

It smells good inside, and Barry's reminded of the waffles they'd shared after Semele's. It's one of his fondest memories in Darrow, and the chance to repeat it now fills him with warmth. "I'd return the favor," he says, sliding into the closest open booth, "but, no chairs."

[triskehale]

"You'll have to owe me one," Derek says with a smile, sliding easily into the booth. He's glad that Barry picked a place that's casual, only because it gives Derek one less thing to worry about. Here he can just focus on Barry and not handling himself properly in a fancy place.

Barry settles in and sets the stuffed wolf on the the table, resting his hand on it in a way that he doesn't even seem to be aware of, and Derek can't help but to smile at the sight. He had bought the thing mostly as a joke, a way to break the ice after the awkwardness of the day before, but Barry already seems so fond of it.

"I don't even think that I need to see the menu," Derek says even as he pulls it over. "Not with the look you had in your eye when you talked about that steak."

[thescarletspeedster]

"God, that steak," Barry groans at once, grinning as he sits back. "Two steaks, three eggs, a baked potato, a waffle, a slice of apple pie, coconut cream if they have it - "

" - endless coffee, french fries, and keep another steak primed and ready just in case," the server joins in as she reaches the table. Barry beams up at her and shrugs. "I might come here a lot. Derek?"

Barry eyes him across the table, stroking at his wolf. "You should for sure leave room for pie, if that even needs to be said."

[triskehale]

Derek grins as the waitress joins in, and he can't even tear his gaze away from him to look up at her. It's nice to share a meal with someone who can eat just as much as he does, but if they keep dating they may have to take out a loan just to pay for food.

He blinks when he realizes that he's already thinking of this like it's going to be a regular thing, and while it makes him happy, it also makes him nervous. Usually when he starts taking a good thing for granted, it gets taken away from him. The last thing he wants is to be pessimistic, so he does his best to stoke the little flare of hope in his chest rather than wash it out with negativity.

"I'll have the same, but make both pieces of pie Dutch Apple a la mode if you have it, please." Derek finally looks up at the waitress and hands her the menu, chuckling softly at the look on her face.

"Have you finally met your match?" She asks of Barry, and Derek just smiles.

"Oh, and a chocolate shake," Derek adds, letting his gaze settle back on Barry as their feet press together under the table. "Two straws."

[thescarletspeedster]

Barry's eyes widen when he feels Derek's foot under the table, and he moves his own, bracketing Derek's foot in with a shy smile. "At eating, anyway," he tells the server, winking at Derek. "I'm still best at other things."

He sits back without releasing Derek's foot an inch, pleased at having teased him. "So, chocolate. Is that your favorite kind of shake?"

[triskehale]

"Definitely not the best at being humble," Derek says with a laugh, biting his lip when Barry gently clutches Derek's foot between his own. Barry's wink lingers in his mind and Derek files it away, committing the sight to memory.

"I do have a soft spot for chocolate," Derek admits. He sits up a bit, resting his elbows on the table and leaning in a bit closer, almost like he's trying to get a better look. He gets distracted by the dusting of small brown moles along Barry's jaw and wonders what it might be like to trace them with light sweeps of his fingers. "Brownies, chocolate cake, anything like that."

He chuckles a little and shakes his head at a memory, looking up at Barry in amusement. "A friend once asked how I don't get sick eating all that chocolate. I had to remind her that I'm not actually a canine. I'm just shaped like one sometimes."

[thescarletspeedster]

Derek is looking at him so intently, not at his eyes but just below, and Barry's cheeks warm. Whatever has his attention, he hopes that Derek likes what he sees, and Barry finds that he likes it, too. It's rare that he's the focus of anyone, let alone someone like Derek.

"I'll remember that," says Barry, wondering if it's too late to get Derek chocolates for Valentine's. Though, now that he thinks about it, he's not sure he could ever look at a box of chocolates without cringing again. "Speaking of - " Barry lowers his voice, "Canine things. The full moon's coming up. Will you not be around for a bit?"

[triskehale]

Derek raises an eyebrow at the mention of canine things, and then huffs out an amused laugh. It's a fair question, and Derek shakes his head a little.

"I'm not forced to shift by the moon, not like some of the wolves here," Derek tells him, keeping his voice low. The server comes by to drop off their coffees, and Derek gives her a grateful nod before reaching for the sugar. Once she's gone, he turns his attention back to Barry. "I'm in total control."

He's about to say that they could spend time together, even during the full moon, but he thinks about how he's usually either irritable or horny when the moon is full, and his cheeks go ruddy. "But I can get a little, uh-- keyed up. So I usually spend the night out in the woods, or at least by myself."

[thescarletspeedster]

"I can only imagine," says Barry, wondering at the sudden mottling in Derek's cheeks. He's too self-assured to be ashamed, but Barry reaches over to squeeze his hand, anyway. "If it's steam you need to work off, I'm happy to come out and run with you," he offers, remembering how happy Derek had seemed playing around in the snow. He knows it's not the same, but he'd still like to see Derek in wolf form like that again.

"I promise I'm a lot faster than a rabbit," he adds slyly.

[triskehale]

Derek lets out a choked sort of laugh at Barry's offer, fairly certain that he has absolutely no idea how it sounds in response to the thoughts inside of Derek's head. He looks down at Barry's hand in his own for a moment, hesitating before he takes a chance and threads their fingers together. The contact feels like a comfort, like a balm on one of Derek's many wounds, and he smiles.

"I don't suppose that you'd have to worry about what I'd do if I caught you," Derek says, doing his best to keep his thoughts gentlemanly. It's just that the thought of running out there with Barry under the full moon is such a good one, and not just because of those lingering ungentlemanly thoughts. It would just be nice to be out there with someone who gets him, someone who cares about him. He suddenly wants that so badly that he aches.

"I may have to take you up on that someday," Derek tells him, letting the pad of his thumb glide across the back of Barry's hand. "Frustrating as it might be, I think I'd like chasing after you all night."

[thescarletspeedster]

"I don't know," says Barry, watching Derek's thumb sweep over his skin, mesmerized. Without meaning to, he squeezes Derek's foot between his own, a pleasant shiver running through him. "I'm fast, but I see like a normal human in the dark, no advanced sense of smell to speak of. You may get one up on me yet."

The thought is actually kind of...exciting, if Barry's honest. He's a hard man to catch, and he's never had reason to enjoy it at home - all of the people knocking him around there had been super villains, after all, but when it's Derek bringing him to the ground...Barry shakes himself.

"Well, if you do need anything," he says, "You can text me, it won't take me any time at all to run out there. I mean, if you have your phone. You might not have your phone or, you know." Barry trails off. "Thumbs."

[triskehale]

"I suppose even the fastest man alive can trip over a tree root," Derek jokes, but his voice comes out sort of low and breathless. Barry squeezes Derek's foot and then his heart, already so familiar to Derek by now, gets a little faster. His scent goes the slightest bit warm and Derek wants so badly to know what he's thinking. "Maybe I will catch you." And then he laughs, eyes full of mirth as he meets Barry's gaze. "Will you still be dressed in red?"

Derek's smile softens at Barry's offer and he knows, without a doubt, that if he called Barry, he would be there. Trust like that doesn't come easily to Derek but somehow Barry has already began to earn it. "Thanks, Barry. I'll remember that."