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Ray pulled up in front of Benton's apartment complex, and looked out the window and up at the rows of windows. No way was he looking forward to walking up six flights just to give Benton's door a knock, not when they'd just be leaving a moment later. To top it all off he was...weirdly nervous. He hadn't been on a date, not one that meant anything,

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"For god's sake, Diefenbaker, you're not going to starve if I don't bring you back any leftovers. No! It would be foolish to spend money on a separate entrée! Who said you were coming along, anyway. This is a date. I--"

Fraser froze at the sound of an engine shutting off outside. He hadn't even chosen a shirt yet! He ran to the window and thrust out his head. "I'll be down in a moment!"

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Ray looked up in surprise and then grinned. "Just let down your hair!" he called back, hands cupped around his mouth.

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A literary reference! Fraser beamed down at him before disappearing from view. A smattering of carefully pressed shirts lay on the bed, and Fraser snapped up the blue one, the sudden lack of time making his decision easy. Once it had been neatly tucked into his jeans, Fraser gave Dief one last look of warning and went bounding down the stairs.

"Hello, Ray," he greeted, marveling at how easy it was to speak around the lump in his throat.

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Jesus, Benton was fast.

Ray opened his mouth but didn't reply right away. "Hi," he said kind of loud. "Uh..." Sheepishly, Ray scratched the back of his head, glanced around and moved two steps away, back to his car. He leaned in, reaching his arm through the open window.

"This is for you," Ray said, straightening up, with a White Trillium in his hand.

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Fraser's lips parted in surprise as he reached out to take it. "Trillium." He cradled the small, white flower in his hands. It was native to Oublié - he'd heard they grew some at the university, too, but he'd not yet ventured there to find out. "Ray, where did you find it?"

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Ray smiled, pleased by the look on Benton's face, the way he held the flower like it was more than just a stem and a couple petals. "Flew to Oublié and picked it for you," he answered.

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Fraser looked up at that, an uncertain smile playing on his lips. "You did?"

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Ray's expression turned a little guilty, he hadn't meant Benton to take him seriously. "Well, no..."

"I would, though," he added, "if you wanted me to."

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Fraser's face broke into a true grin, and he laughed. "Ah. Well, whereever it came from, it's the finest gift I ever received." He reached out and touched Ray's arm. "I'd like to put it in some water before we leave, if I may."

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Ray felt pretty bad for Benton if that flower was really the best present he ever got. If that was true, Ray resolved to make up for it.

"Benton, six flights. Don't worry about it."

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"But Ray..." Fraser looked down at the petals in his hands. "It will die." And he'd like to keep Ray's gift as long as he could. Perhaps even press it afterwards in Death of a Salesman.

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"Uh...how 'bout we put it in a glass of water at the restaurant?" Ray suggested.

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Fraser blinked. "A fine suggestion, Ray." He ducked his head, then, unsure whether he ought to wait for Ray to open the door for him or not. He knew how a male and female courtship was meant to work, but his resources were largely outdated, and this was something else entirely.

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"Okay. Okay, let's go," Ray said, feeling nervous again, 'cause mostly he wanted to kiss Benton but he wasn't sure it was the moment to, or whatever. He turned around and got into the car, letting out a long breath.

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Fraser released a relieved breath also to have that question answered, and followed Ray into the vehicle. After securing himself with the seatbelt, he placed the Trillium on the dash where he could see it. Ray really was an attentive and sensitive man. Gazing at him, Fraser wondered if anyone had ever told him before.

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Ray started up the ROX and pulled into the street. He felt himself being looked at, glanced over at Benton and flushed a little. "So, I was thinking, you like Polish food? 'Cause I know I said pizza, but...I'm not really in the mood for that..."

Mostly pizza was messy and gave him pizza-breath, and a pierogi seemed at least a little more dignified.