Double Date

"And we're done! Wow! I can't believe we finished the assignment with so much time to spare! I'll ask the teacher if it's okay just in case we missed something." Ava was almost jumping with joy as they walked out of the cafe. She, Aiden, Zeke and Yuki, had just finished their group project after meeting up downtown.

"I'm sure it's fine. We got a lot of good information after all," Aiden said. Yuki nodded in agreement. Zeke started walking away and Ava called after him.

"Hey! Where are you going?"

"Home." After his one word answer, Zeke vanished into the flood of people walking the streets.

"Ugh! Seriously, he's so anti-social. Well, I guess I'll get going too. See you at school!" Then, Ava hurried off in the opposite direction. Aiden looked at Yuki and asked,

"Are you heading home too or did you want to go somewhere else? We could go watch a movie if you want."

"I…" Before Yuki could answer, an unexpected person showed up. "Huh? Mikael?! W-what are you doing here?" Mikael had just gotten out of a car parked on the side of the road.

"I came to pick you up. You're still recovering." Just then, another familiar voice was heard.

"...Aiden." Derek emerged from the crowd and walked up to the three of them. Aiden smiled and responded with a mildly surprised tone.

"Derek! Shouldn't you be at work? What are you doing here?"

"I finished early and saw you over here on my way back to the house." Yuki was fidgeting uncomfortably next to Aiden and Mikael. Seeing the interesting situation they were in, a small mischievous smirk appeared on Aiden's face for a split second.

"Perfect timing!" Aiden grinned brightly and hooked his and Yuki's arms. "Yuki and I were talking about going to the movies just before you two showed up. Why don't we all go together?"

"Eh?!" Yuki's mouth fell open in total shock.

"If that's what you want," Derek said. Mikael glanced at Yuki and decided to take advantage of the unexpected opportunity.

"...Alright." Maybe he would be able to close the gap between himself and Yuki a little more if they could spend some time together. Although, for that to work, Mikael would have to make sure not to say anything rude or cold which was easier said than done.

"What?" Yuki was stunned. "You…actually want to go…with us? Ah! Not that you can't or you're not allowed, I just, well, um…I w-was…what I meant was, uh…!" He lost all ability to speak coherently and clenched his fists. Yuki felt like an idiot. He was sure he'd burst into tears at any moment. Then, something happened that he never could have anticipated. Mikael reached up and patted Yuki's head. The action caused Yuki to freeze.

"I get it. Now, let's go," Mikael said. Yuki was speechless so he vigorously nodded his head in response.

"Great! Then, hurry up." Aiden cheerfully spun around, his arm still linked with Yuki's, and strolled down the sidewalk in the direction of the closest movie theater. Both Derek and Mikael silently followed after them.

Once they all arrived at the theater, Aiden suggested that Yuki and Mikael get the tickets while he and Derek got popcorn and drinks.

"W-What movie do you want to watch?" Yuki asked. Aiden shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know. You pick."

"...Okay." Then, they split up into pairs and went to do their respective jobs. While Derek and Aiden were peacefully chatting while standing in line for snacks, Yuki was struggling trying to pick a movie. His anxiety was quite obvious but Mikael had no idea what to do about it. He was likely to just make the situation worse if he tried to say anything. Thankfully, one of the employees stepped in to help.

"Is there a problem?"

"Oh! Uh, no, I'm just…I don't know what movie to pick." Yuki hung his head and hunched his shoulders slightly. The employee simply smiled politely and gave several popular suggestions. In the end, Yuki picked a highly rated horror film. When the two of them went to where they were going to meet with Aiden and Derek, they saw that they were already waiting for them.

"There you are. What movie did you pick?" Aiden asked.

"Sorry it took so long. Um, I picked 'Dead by Morning'. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that's perfect but…" When Yuki heard Aiden pause, he looked up and flinched. All three of them were looking at Yuki.

"W-What?"

"It's nothing. I just didn't know you liked horror movies. It's a bit surprising," Aiden explained. It was clear that Derek and Mikael were thinking the exact same thing. Yuki, with his usual aura of a frightened mouse, was the last person they thought would volunteer to watch a horror movie.

"Oh!" Unexpectedly, Yuki smiled shyly. "I actually really like horror films and scary stories. I think they're exciting and fun. I love it when something pops out at you when you least expect it!" His eyes started sparkling as he spoke, surprising the others even more. Aiden laughed.

"Well that's good then. Shall we go find our seats?" After handing popcorn and drinks to Yuki and Mikael, the four of them went to the area showing the movie. They sat together in the back row with Derek and Mikael on the ends and Aiden and Yuki on the inside next to them.

Soon, the lights dimmed and the pre-movie commercials and advertisements started playing. Since they were early, there were only a few other people in the theater but, as time went on, more and more people began filling the empty seats. Aiden noticed that people were avoiding the area they were in and looked around. He stifled a laugh as he noticed the intimidating aura that both Derek and Mikael were giving off. It was no wonder people were avoiding them like the plague.

"Pfft!" Derek, Yuki, and Mikael looked over at Aiden when he laughed.

"What is it?" Derek asked.

"You know, if the two of you keep glowering at everyone who comes anywhere near us, they might call security. Ha ha! Relax a bit guys." Yuki chuckled as well.

"I…I thought I was the only one who noticed." Not long after that, the movie started. Occasionally, something would cause everyone in the room to jump or scream in unison which seemed to greatly amuse Yuki. Although Derek and Mikael never screamed, they both flinched every now and then.

Around two hours later, the movie was over and they all made their way out of the theater. Yuki was excitedly chatting to Aiden about all his favorite parts of the film. Once they were outside, Aiden checked the time on his phone and saw that it was just after 5 pm.

"Should we go and get dinner together somewhere or shall we call it a day?" Aiden asked no one in particular. To everyone's surprise, it was Mikael who answered.

"Let's eat." Mikael discussed where to go with Derek and when they decided, Mikael took Yuki back to his car while Aiden went with Derek. It wasn't much later when they arrived at a small but elegant restaurant. There weren't a lot of people there either.

The four of them went inside and were led to a table on the second floor near a window that overlooked a small garden and pond. The waiter handed them each a menu and then asked what they all wanted to drink. Once they told him, he left, giving them time to pick what they wanted to order. After a few minutes, the waiter returned with a glass of red wine for Mikael, lemonade for Yuki, water for Derek, and iced tea for Aiden. Then he asked if they were ready to order, which they were.

Throughout the meal, neither Derek nor Mikael spoke much, leaving most of the talking up to Aiden and Yuki. At first, Yuki felt awkward and was really quiet since Mikael was there but, soon enough, he was talking to Aiden like he normally would. Seeing Yuki happy and relaxed for once was like a breath of fresh air for Mikael and he was glad he didn't let go of the opportunity to witness it. He could only hope that it wouldn't be a one time occurrence.

Once they all finished eating, Derek and Mikael couldn't agree on who should pay the bill. Both of them wanted to handle it and neither accepted Yuki's idea of splitting the cost. After what seemed like ages of watching the two argue back and forth, Aiden snuck away and paid the bill himself.

"Problem solved," he said with a bright grin. Neither Derek nor Mikael looked happy with the outcome but it was too late. Aiden confidently strolled out the door, refusing to give either of them a chance to argue with him.

Outside the restaurant, they decided to part ways. Yuki and Aiden hugged while Derek and Mikael just nodded once and briefly shook hands. Aiden then waved as Yuki and Mikael got in their car and drove away. Derek opened the door of his car for Aiden.

"Shall we?" Derek asked.

"Yeah, let's go home."