Waiting for Sunset - Chapter 5 {Peter and Ian}
Title: Waiting for Sunset
Characters: Peter Calighan and Ian Wells
Chapter: 5/?
Rating: T
Warnings: Contains religious aspects!
Summary: Peter is a 14 year old Catholic boy. He has been raised to be the best that he can by two parents who want to see their son grow into a good, Catholic man, marry a good Catholic woman and create good, Catholic babies. Ian is a free spirited young man with the ability to talk to nearly everyone and make even the most laid back people feel awkward. When the two boys meet randomly at a party, Peter's perfect, Catholic world is thrown into disarray as he begins to struggle with the feelings he may have for Ian...and the feelings that Ian definitely has for him.
Author's Note: Alright, this is officially what I'm working on for my NaNoWriMo, and now that I'm in the throes of that, posts will be slightly more regular on this story than they had been!
“I can’t do this.” Peter gulped. He was sitting in the passenger’s seat of Sasha’s car at 6:30 on Friday night. Sasha had told their parents that she was taking Peter out for some brother-sister bonding time and was planning on dropping Peter off, only to pick him up again around 10:30.
“It’s your first date,” Sasha stated. “You’re supposed to be nervous, don’t worry, you’ll be fine! Remember, if things go South, just call me and I’ll come pick you up early.” Sasha turned to look at Peter while she slowed to a halt at a spotlight. “If he tries anything or whatever.”
“Jeez, Sasha. That’s not what I’m worried about! What if I mess up? What if I’m dressed the wrong way?”
“You look fine, Petey.” Sasha glanced over at her brother, who was wearing a pair of jeans that were tighter than his usual, but still loose, black converse and a solid forest green t-shirt. “Trust me.”
“What if I end up not liking him - oh god! What if he ends up not liking me?” Peter gulped. “I’m just gonna call Ian and tell him I’m sick.”
“No, you’re not!” Sasha rolled her eyes. “For the love of God, Peter, it’s a date, not a marriage - if you two don’t hit it off, you don’t have to go out again. Dating is supposed to be fun, Petey.”
“Fun? You call this fun? I feel like I’m about to throw up; do you call that fun?”
“No.” Sasha laughed. “That would be butterflies; by the way, have I mentioned how adorable this whole scenario is?”
“Your little brother is about to puke in your car. That’s NOT adorable.” Peter shook his head. “Not adorable at all.”
“You won’t puke.” Sasha rolled her eyes. “Just remember to breathe, relax and have a good time, ok?”
“Yeah.” Peter closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
“You’ll be just fine,” Sasha assured him. “Just don’t spend so much time worrying - have fun.” Sasha pulled up in front of the movie theater. “Is he here yet?”
“Yeah.” Peter bit his lip as he spotted Ian.
“Which one is he?” Sasha asked, looking around.
“Shaggy, sandy blond hair with the grey jeans and the Rebel Without a Cause shirt.” Peter smiled.
“You mean the one with James Dean’s face on it?” Sasha nodded her approval. “He’s cute, does he have a brother.”
“Yeah, he does, but Sam’s five. I’ll let him know that you’re interested, though.” Peter waved goodbye to his sister, getting out of the car and walking towards Ian. “Hey.”
“Hi!” Ian turned around, smiling when he saw Peter.
“You sound surprised to see me.” Peter tried fruitlessly to raise only his left eyebrow.
“You know, I wasn’t sure you’d show up, what with all of your religious teen angst and stuff.”
“Shut up,” Peter ordered, though he couldn’t suppress a smile.
“So, the movie doesn’t start until 8:15 which gives us a little over an hour to get dinner. I don’t know if you like Chinese, but there’s a great, pretty inexpensive Chinese place just a few blocks from here.”
“That sounds great.” Peter nodded, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black, zip up sweatshirt. “I like Chinese.”
“Me too.” Ian smiled, beginning to walk, tying his own sweatshirt around his waist after only a few seconds.
“Aren’t you cold?” Peter asked, shivering on instinct, pulling his own sweatshirt around him tighter.
“Nah.” Ian shook his head. “My mom tells me that I’ve always been this way - it takes a lot for me to get cold, but she makes me take my jacket everywhere anyways.”
“So you’re a mutant?” Peter joked, hoping that he didn’t sound too stupid.
“Ha, I wish.” Ian laughed. “The jacket comes in handy when my friends get cold and need an extra coat, so I don’t complain. Here, this is the place.”
“Cool.” Peter was surprised with how easily Ian morphed the conversation. They were quickly seated at a table for two, going over the menu.
“You know, I’ve always wished that I could speak Chinese so that I could order in Chinese and shock the waiter - I mean wouldn’t that just be awesome?” Ian looked up at Peter, who hesitated for a second before beginning to laugh. “What?” Ian asked, looking at Peter, confused.
“Nothing.” Peter shook his head as he recomposed himself. “That’s just kind of…an unusual ambition, don’t you think?”
“I guess.” Ian shrugged. “But unusual or not, it would be cool.”
“I’ll give you that.” Peter nodded. Just after Peter finished speaking, the waiter cleared his throat to take his order. Peter ordered the Sweet and Sour chicken while Ian opted for Mongolian Beef, which impressed Peter, because he knew that to be a spicy dish.
“So.” Ian looked at Peter as he took a sip of the complementary Jasmine tea. “Tell me about yourself, you know, aside from your more religious aspects.”
“Um…” Peter thought for a minute. “Well what kind of thing do you want to know?”
“Well like, what kind of music do you listen to? That’s always a good place to start.”
“Oh, uh…” Peter let out a small snort of laughter. “This honestly doesn’t really reflect my personality much, but I like heavier stuff, like metal and deathcore, you know,” he shrugged. “That sort of thing; you?”
“I’m into a lot of stuff. I can’t say that I’m into everything, but I definitely enjoy a pretty wide variety of tunes.”
“For example?” Peter tilted his head to the side inquisitively.
“There’s oldies, Broadway, punk rock, ska, pop…” he shrugged. “A little bit of almost everything - almost.”
“Cool.” Peter nodded. “Maybe you could broaden my musical horizons.”
“Wow.” Ian held back laughter. “That sounded like a bad pickup line, no offense.”
“None taken,” Peter muttered quietly as his ears began to turn red. “So, what about movies?” he asked, eager to switch the subject away from bad pickup lines.
“Hmm…” Ian thought for a moment. “Top five, in no particular order, The Departed, The Big Lebowski, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and High Fidelity.”
“I’ve only seen a couple of them,” Peter mused. “I like Kingdom of Heaven, The Three Musketeers, King Arthur, you know, anything with a decent sword fight or some well done archery.” Peter shrugged, removing his elbows from the table to make room for the food as it arrived.
“So you must be a fan of the Narnia movies, the new ones, I mean, not the BBC ones,” Ian stated before taking a bite of his meal.
“Are you taking a stab at my religious background?” Peter asked jokingly.
“Who, me?” Ian looked around, feigning confusion. “I wouldn’t dare.”
“Sure,” Peter retorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Wow, this is really good,” he announced, swallowing some of his chicken and rice.
“I know, right?” Ian nodded. ‘Though I can’t say that I’ve ever had the sweet and sour chicken.” Ian swallowed another piece of his spicy beef.
“Oh, well do you want to try it?” Peter looked up, pushing his plate towards Ian, reinforcing the verbal offer with a physical one.
“Oh, uh, are you sure?” Ian asked. Peter nodded, watching as Ian slowly reached out his chopsticks, taking the smallest piece of chicken off of the plate. “Damn, you’re right - that is good.” Ian smiled. “Do you want to try mine?”
“Oh, no thanks.” Peter shook his head. “Spicy things irritate me - my throat burns, my eyes water, my nose even turns red sometimes - it’s really unattractive,” Peter admitted, eyes cast downwards at his own plate.
“Nah.” Ian shook his head. “I’ll bet it’s really cute.”
“Oh.” Peter bit at the inside of his cheek. “No, it’s really, really not.” He shook his head, spearing a piece of chicken on his fork before eating it.
“Do you want me to show you how to use chopsticks?” Ian asked, changing the subject again to avoid getting stuck in an awkward moment.
“Oh, yeah, sure.” Peter nodded, feeling slightly unintelligent for not knowing how to use them already. He unwrapped the paper around the utensil as Ian stood up, walking over to Peter’s side of the table.
“Ok, so it’s nowhere near as difficult as it looks.” Ian took the chopsticks. “Just put your hand like you’re holding a pencil, and BAM! Easy.” He handed the chopsticks back to Peter. “You give it a try now.”
“Oh, ok.” Peter frowned as he tried for himself, dropping one of the chopsticks into the bowl of rice. “That…didn’t work as well as I had hoped.”
“It’s ok.” Ian laughed as he picked up the chopstick. “Try this - let me know if you want me to, you know, let go.” Ian tentatively put his hand on top of Peter’s, moving the boy’s fingers into position. “Now just move your fingers like this.” Ian showed Peter, who smiled. “Good, now go for the chicken, that’ll be easier than the rice.” Peter nodded, following Ian’s instructions.
“Don’t worry about it, try again - here.” Ian put his hand back on top of Peter’s, guiding the chopsticks back down, helping Peter pick up the chicken. “There you go - now slowly…good.” Ian smiled as Peter slowly lifted the chicken, taking his hand off of Peter’s. “You’ve got it!” Ian congratulated Peter as he ate the chicken before moving back across the table to his own food.
The rest of the meal went by quickly, the two boys eating and talking. When the check came, Ian was quick to pay before Peter got the chance, suggesting that they head for the movie immediately after so that Peter couldn’t object.
“You didn’t have to pick up the check you know,” Peter stated as they exited the restaurant.
“Yeah, well my fortune cookie advised me that when you ask someone to dinner, it’s polite to pay for their food.” Ian shrugged.
“Really all that mine told me was that a four wheeled investment would be fun for me in the near future.”
“Oh, exciting!” Ian exclaimed. “You should go out tomorrow and buy like…a Hot Wheels car or something; you know, so that we can both say we listened to our fortune cookies.” Ian flashed Peter a joking smile.
“What did yours really say?” Peter asked curiously.
“It said, and I quote, ‘An adventure is just around the corner, keep your mind open.’”
“You know, I think I’ve gotten that one before,” Peter teased. “If I remember correctly, I believe I turned the corner and fell down a flight of stairs the very next day.” Peter looked down shyly, glad that his joke managed to pull a laugh out of Ian.
“Let’s just hope that my adventure is significantly less painful than yours was.” Ian grinned.
“I’ll pray for you,” Peter muttered as they reached the box office. “You’re going to let me pay for the movie tickets, right?” Peter asked, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet.
“No.” Ian grabbed Peter’s wrist gently, stopping the boy’s reach. “I asked you out so this date is on me.” Ian spoke with a determined voice and Peter didn’t have the resolve to fight him, though that was partially due to the fact that he was distracted by Ian’s words. Peter smiled to himself as Ian got the movie tickets; that had been the first time that the word ‘date’ had been used between the two of them as a way to describe the evening and the declaration cleared up one of Peter’s remaining insecurities.
“Thank you.” Peter smiled at Ian as he accepted the ticket.
“You’re welcome.” Ian shrugged. “I’m going to get some popcorn - do you want anything?” he asked, moving to stand in the concession line.
“I’m good.” Peter shook his head, though he waited in line while Ian ordered and paid for a small bag of popcorn.
“Where do you like to sit?” Ian asked as they entered the theater.
“Usually somewhere in the back,” Peter replied. “But I don’t much care,” he added as he saw Ian wrinkle his nose slightly. “What about you?”
“Very center of the very front row,” Ian admitted. “I like to be close to the action.”
“Hmm…compromise - how about we sit in the very center of the middle row?” Peter suggested. Ian agreed, beginning to count seats as Peter counted rows. Before long, they were seated in the perfect center of the theater, popcorn between them as the lights went low, marking the start of the run-of-the-mill action flick that they had agreed upon.
“Take that you mother fucker!” Ian whispered as a nameless masked villain took a severe beating from the hero. Peter snorted with laughter at the statement. The two boys focused on the movie for a good 45 minutes after that, becoming distracted only when their hands touched as they reached into the popcorn bag simultaneously.
“Sorry.” Peter retreated his hand quickly, glad that Ian could not detect his blush in the dark theater
“Well, that was cliché,” Ian whispered, smiling at Peter.
“I guess so.” Peter turned his attention back to the film, his focus leaving again only a couple of minutes later, however, when Ian casually rested his arm around the back of Peter’s chair. Peter looked at Ian, whose eyes were on the movie before looking at the hand hanging off of the chair only a couple of inches from his shoulder. He wasn’t sure what to do at first, but after a few awkward moments, he scooted a little closer to Ian, silently letting the other boy know that he was comfortable with the gesture. Peter couldn’t explain what happened during the next 15 to 20 minutes, but by the time the movie was reaching its climax, Peter’s head was resting on Ian’s shoulder and Ian’s arm had moved from the back of the seat so that it was draped loosely around Peter.
“That was surprisingly good,” Peter stated as the credits rolled, awkwardly pulling away from Ian before the lights came back up.
“Yeah, it was.” Ian nodded, standing and grabbing the empty popcorn bag, tossing it into the waste basket on their way out. “What time is your sister picking you up?” he asked, glancing sideways at Peter as the other boy checked his phone for the time.
“In about five minutes.” Peter sighed. “I should be out front, you know, so that she doesn’t get worried and start calling me.”
“I’ll wait with you,” Ian offered, holding the door open for Peter.
“Thanks.” Peter smiled, welcoming the cold air after the sticky, crowded interior of the movie theater. “How are you getting home?”
“Oh, I bike everywhere.” Ian held up the key to his bike lock.
“Isn’t it a little dangerous to bike in the dark?” Peter asked, concern lacing his voice.
“Don’t worry.” Ian shook his head. “I’ve got lights on my bike and a very, very nerdy reflector vest - you’d have to be blind to miss me, and if you’re a blind driver, well…a biker is not the only thing wrong with that.”
“Fair enough.” Peter nodded.
“So, uh, I had a good time tonight.” Ian fiddled with the hem of his shirt.
“I did too,” Peter said quickly, trying to lessen the awkwardness.
“I’d really like to see you again, Peter,” Ian stated. “What are my odds of getting a second date?” he asked.
“Very, very good.” Peter smiled. “I would love to go out with you again.”
“Great!” Ian’s face broke into a grin. “Next weekend?”
“Yeah.” Peter nodded, sighing as a blue Mini Cooper pulled up. “That’s my sister - we can pin things down a little later in the week?”
“Of course.” Ian nodded.
“Great.” Peter smiled at Ian. “Well, uh, goodnight.” He began walking towards Sasha’s car, kicking a pebble on the ground as he did so.
“Hey, wait up.” Ian jogged up to him just a few feet from the vehicle. Peter turned to face Ian, looking curiously at him. Ian reached out, pushing some of Peter’s hair back and kissing him on the cheek. “Goodnight, Peter,” he whispered before pulling away.
“Goodnight,” Peter said again, biting his lip as he turned and got into Sasha’s car. He was sure of three things as the car began to move: he had had a really good time, he definitely liked Ian, and he could hardly wait for the next weekend.
Characters: Peter Calighan and Ian Wells
Chapter: 5/?
Rating: T
Warnings: Contains religious aspects!
Summary: Peter is a 14 year old Catholic boy. He has been raised to be the best that he can by two parents who want to see their son grow into a good, Catholic man, marry a good Catholic woman and create good, Catholic babies. Ian is a free spirited young man with the ability to talk to nearly everyone and make even the most laid back people feel awkward. When the two boys meet randomly at a party, Peter's perfect, Catholic world is thrown into disarray as he begins to struggle with the feelings he may have for Ian...and the feelings that Ian definitely has for him.
Author's Note: Alright, this is officially what I'm working on for my NaNoWriMo, and now that I'm in the throes of that, posts will be slightly more regular on this story than they had been!
“I can’t do this.” Peter gulped. He was sitting in the passenger’s seat of Sasha’s car at 6:30 on Friday night. Sasha had told their parents that she was taking Peter out for some brother-sister bonding time and was planning on dropping Peter off, only to pick him up again around 10:30.
“It’s your first date,” Sasha stated. “You’re supposed to be nervous, don’t worry, you’ll be fine! Remember, if things go South, just call me and I’ll come pick you up early.” Sasha turned to look at Peter while she slowed to a halt at a spotlight. “If he tries anything or whatever.”
“Jeez, Sasha. That’s not what I’m worried about! What if I mess up? What if I’m dressed the wrong way?”
“You look fine, Petey.” Sasha glanced over at her brother, who was wearing a pair of jeans that were tighter than his usual, but still loose, black converse and a solid forest green t-shirt. “Trust me.”
“What if I end up not liking him - oh god! What if he ends up not liking me?” Peter gulped. “I’m just gonna call Ian and tell him I’m sick.”
“No, you’re not!” Sasha rolled her eyes. “For the love of God, Peter, it’s a date, not a marriage - if you two don’t hit it off, you don’t have to go out again. Dating is supposed to be fun, Petey.”
“Fun? You call this fun? I feel like I’m about to throw up; do you call that fun?”
“No.” Sasha laughed. “That would be butterflies; by the way, have I mentioned how adorable this whole scenario is?”
“Your little brother is about to puke in your car. That’s NOT adorable.” Peter shook his head. “Not adorable at all.”
“You won’t puke.” Sasha rolled her eyes. “Just remember to breathe, relax and have a good time, ok?”
“Yeah.” Peter closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
“You’ll be just fine,” Sasha assured him. “Just don’t spend so much time worrying - have fun.” Sasha pulled up in front of the movie theater. “Is he here yet?”
“Yeah.” Peter bit his lip as he spotted Ian.
“Which one is he?” Sasha asked, looking around.
“Shaggy, sandy blond hair with the grey jeans and the Rebel Without a Cause shirt.” Peter smiled.
“You mean the one with James Dean’s face on it?” Sasha nodded her approval. “He’s cute, does he have a brother.”
“Yeah, he does, but Sam’s five. I’ll let him know that you’re interested, though.” Peter waved goodbye to his sister, getting out of the car and walking towards Ian. “Hey.”
“Hi!” Ian turned around, smiling when he saw Peter.
“You sound surprised to see me.” Peter tried fruitlessly to raise only his left eyebrow.
“You know, I wasn’t sure you’d show up, what with all of your religious teen angst and stuff.”
“Shut up,” Peter ordered, though he couldn’t suppress a smile.
“So, the movie doesn’t start until 8:15 which gives us a little over an hour to get dinner. I don’t know if you like Chinese, but there’s a great, pretty inexpensive Chinese place just a few blocks from here.”
“That sounds great.” Peter nodded, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black, zip up sweatshirt. “I like Chinese.”
“Me too.” Ian smiled, beginning to walk, tying his own sweatshirt around his waist after only a few seconds.
“Aren’t you cold?” Peter asked, shivering on instinct, pulling his own sweatshirt around him tighter.
“Nah.” Ian shook his head. “My mom tells me that I’ve always been this way - it takes a lot for me to get cold, but she makes me take my jacket everywhere anyways.”
“So you’re a mutant?” Peter joked, hoping that he didn’t sound too stupid.
“Ha, I wish.” Ian laughed. “The jacket comes in handy when my friends get cold and need an extra coat, so I don’t complain. Here, this is the place.”
“Cool.” Peter was surprised with how easily Ian morphed the conversation. They were quickly seated at a table for two, going over the menu.
“You know, I’ve always wished that I could speak Chinese so that I could order in Chinese and shock the waiter - I mean wouldn’t that just be awesome?” Ian looked up at Peter, who hesitated for a second before beginning to laugh. “What?” Ian asked, looking at Peter, confused.
“Nothing.” Peter shook his head as he recomposed himself. “That’s just kind of…an unusual ambition, don’t you think?”
“I guess.” Ian shrugged. “But unusual or not, it would be cool.”
“I’ll give you that.” Peter nodded. Just after Peter finished speaking, the waiter cleared his throat to take his order. Peter ordered the Sweet and Sour chicken while Ian opted for Mongolian Beef, which impressed Peter, because he knew that to be a spicy dish.
“So.” Ian looked at Peter as he took a sip of the complementary Jasmine tea. “Tell me about yourself, you know, aside from your more religious aspects.”
“Um…” Peter thought for a minute. “Well what kind of thing do you want to know?”
“Well like, what kind of music do you listen to? That’s always a good place to start.”
“Oh, uh…” Peter let out a small snort of laughter. “This honestly doesn’t really reflect my personality much, but I like heavier stuff, like metal and deathcore, you know,” he shrugged. “That sort of thing; you?”
“I’m into a lot of stuff. I can’t say that I’m into everything, but I definitely enjoy a pretty wide variety of tunes.”
“For example?” Peter tilted his head to the side inquisitively.
“There’s oldies, Broadway, punk rock, ska, pop…” he shrugged. “A little bit of almost everything - almost.”
“Cool.” Peter nodded. “Maybe you could broaden my musical horizons.”
“Wow.” Ian held back laughter. “That sounded like a bad pickup line, no offense.”
“None taken,” Peter muttered quietly as his ears began to turn red. “So, what about movies?” he asked, eager to switch the subject away from bad pickup lines.
“Hmm…” Ian thought for a moment. “Top five, in no particular order, The Departed, The Big Lebowski, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and High Fidelity.”
“I’ve only seen a couple of them,” Peter mused. “I like Kingdom of Heaven, The Three Musketeers, King Arthur, you know, anything with a decent sword fight or some well done archery.” Peter shrugged, removing his elbows from the table to make room for the food as it arrived.
“So you must be a fan of the Narnia movies, the new ones, I mean, not the BBC ones,” Ian stated before taking a bite of his meal.
“Are you taking a stab at my religious background?” Peter asked jokingly.
“Who, me?” Ian looked around, feigning confusion. “I wouldn’t dare.”
“Sure,” Peter retorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Wow, this is really good,” he announced, swallowing some of his chicken and rice.
“I know, right?” Ian nodded. ‘Though I can’t say that I’ve ever had the sweet and sour chicken.” Ian swallowed another piece of his spicy beef.
“Oh, well do you want to try it?” Peter looked up, pushing his plate towards Ian, reinforcing the verbal offer with a physical one.
“Oh, uh, are you sure?” Ian asked. Peter nodded, watching as Ian slowly reached out his chopsticks, taking the smallest piece of chicken off of the plate. “Damn, you’re right - that is good.” Ian smiled. “Do you want to try mine?”
“Oh, no thanks.” Peter shook his head. “Spicy things irritate me - my throat burns, my eyes water, my nose even turns red sometimes - it’s really unattractive,” Peter admitted, eyes cast downwards at his own plate.
“Nah.” Ian shook his head. “I’ll bet it’s really cute.”
“Oh.” Peter bit at the inside of his cheek. “No, it’s really, really not.” He shook his head, spearing a piece of chicken on his fork before eating it.
“Do you want me to show you how to use chopsticks?” Ian asked, changing the subject again to avoid getting stuck in an awkward moment.
“Oh, yeah, sure.” Peter nodded, feeling slightly unintelligent for not knowing how to use them already. He unwrapped the paper around the utensil as Ian stood up, walking over to Peter’s side of the table.
“Ok, so it’s nowhere near as difficult as it looks.” Ian took the chopsticks. “Just put your hand like you’re holding a pencil, and BAM! Easy.” He handed the chopsticks back to Peter. “You give it a try now.”
“Oh, ok.” Peter frowned as he tried for himself, dropping one of the chopsticks into the bowl of rice. “That…didn’t work as well as I had hoped.”
“It’s ok.” Ian laughed as he picked up the chopstick. “Try this - let me know if you want me to, you know, let go.” Ian tentatively put his hand on top of Peter’s, moving the boy’s fingers into position. “Now just move your fingers like this.” Ian showed Peter, who smiled. “Good, now go for the chicken, that’ll be easier than the rice.” Peter nodded, following Ian’s instructions.
“Don’t worry about it, try again - here.” Ian put his hand back on top of Peter’s, guiding the chopsticks back down, helping Peter pick up the chicken. “There you go - now slowly…good.” Ian smiled as Peter slowly lifted the chicken, taking his hand off of Peter’s. “You’ve got it!” Ian congratulated Peter as he ate the chicken before moving back across the table to his own food.
The rest of the meal went by quickly, the two boys eating and talking. When the check came, Ian was quick to pay before Peter got the chance, suggesting that they head for the movie immediately after so that Peter couldn’t object.
“You didn’t have to pick up the check you know,” Peter stated as they exited the restaurant.
“Yeah, well my fortune cookie advised me that when you ask someone to dinner, it’s polite to pay for their food.” Ian shrugged.
“Really all that mine told me was that a four wheeled investment would be fun for me in the near future.”
“Oh, exciting!” Ian exclaimed. “You should go out tomorrow and buy like…a Hot Wheels car or something; you know, so that we can both say we listened to our fortune cookies.” Ian flashed Peter a joking smile.
“What did yours really say?” Peter asked curiously.
“It said, and I quote, ‘An adventure is just around the corner, keep your mind open.’”
“You know, I think I’ve gotten that one before,” Peter teased. “If I remember correctly, I believe I turned the corner and fell down a flight of stairs the very next day.” Peter looked down shyly, glad that his joke managed to pull a laugh out of Ian.
“Let’s just hope that my adventure is significantly less painful than yours was.” Ian grinned.
“I’ll pray for you,” Peter muttered as they reached the box office. “You’re going to let me pay for the movie tickets, right?” Peter asked, reaching into his back pocket for his wallet.
“No.” Ian grabbed Peter’s wrist gently, stopping the boy’s reach. “I asked you out so this date is on me.” Ian spoke with a determined voice and Peter didn’t have the resolve to fight him, though that was partially due to the fact that he was distracted by Ian’s words. Peter smiled to himself as Ian got the movie tickets; that had been the first time that the word ‘date’ had been used between the two of them as a way to describe the evening and the declaration cleared up one of Peter’s remaining insecurities.
“Thank you.” Peter smiled at Ian as he accepted the ticket.
“You’re welcome.” Ian shrugged. “I’m going to get some popcorn - do you want anything?” he asked, moving to stand in the concession line.
“I’m good.” Peter shook his head, though he waited in line while Ian ordered and paid for a small bag of popcorn.
“Where do you like to sit?” Ian asked as they entered the theater.
“Usually somewhere in the back,” Peter replied. “But I don’t much care,” he added as he saw Ian wrinkle his nose slightly. “What about you?”
“Very center of the very front row,” Ian admitted. “I like to be close to the action.”
“Hmm…compromise - how about we sit in the very center of the middle row?” Peter suggested. Ian agreed, beginning to count seats as Peter counted rows. Before long, they were seated in the perfect center of the theater, popcorn between them as the lights went low, marking the start of the run-of-the-mill action flick that they had agreed upon.
“Take that you mother fucker!” Ian whispered as a nameless masked villain took a severe beating from the hero. Peter snorted with laughter at the statement. The two boys focused on the movie for a good 45 minutes after that, becoming distracted only when their hands touched as they reached into the popcorn bag simultaneously.
“Sorry.” Peter retreated his hand quickly, glad that Ian could not detect his blush in the dark theater
“Well, that was cliché,” Ian whispered, smiling at Peter.
“I guess so.” Peter turned his attention back to the film, his focus leaving again only a couple of minutes later, however, when Ian casually rested his arm around the back of Peter’s chair. Peter looked at Ian, whose eyes were on the movie before looking at the hand hanging off of the chair only a couple of inches from his shoulder. He wasn’t sure what to do at first, but after a few awkward moments, he scooted a little closer to Ian, silently letting the other boy know that he was comfortable with the gesture. Peter couldn’t explain what happened during the next 15 to 20 minutes, but by the time the movie was reaching its climax, Peter’s head was resting on Ian’s shoulder and Ian’s arm had moved from the back of the seat so that it was draped loosely around Peter.
“That was surprisingly good,” Peter stated as the credits rolled, awkwardly pulling away from Ian before the lights came back up.
“Yeah, it was.” Ian nodded, standing and grabbing the empty popcorn bag, tossing it into the waste basket on their way out. “What time is your sister picking you up?” he asked, glancing sideways at Peter as the other boy checked his phone for the time.
“In about five minutes.” Peter sighed. “I should be out front, you know, so that she doesn’t get worried and start calling me.”
“I’ll wait with you,” Ian offered, holding the door open for Peter.
“Thanks.” Peter smiled, welcoming the cold air after the sticky, crowded interior of the movie theater. “How are you getting home?”
“Oh, I bike everywhere.” Ian held up the key to his bike lock.
“Isn’t it a little dangerous to bike in the dark?” Peter asked, concern lacing his voice.
“Don’t worry.” Ian shook his head. “I’ve got lights on my bike and a very, very nerdy reflector vest - you’d have to be blind to miss me, and if you’re a blind driver, well…a biker is not the only thing wrong with that.”
“Fair enough.” Peter nodded.
“So, uh, I had a good time tonight.” Ian fiddled with the hem of his shirt.
“I did too,” Peter said quickly, trying to lessen the awkwardness.
“I’d really like to see you again, Peter,” Ian stated. “What are my odds of getting a second date?” he asked.
“Very, very good.” Peter smiled. “I would love to go out with you again.”
“Great!” Ian’s face broke into a grin. “Next weekend?”
“Yeah.” Peter nodded, sighing as a blue Mini Cooper pulled up. “That’s my sister - we can pin things down a little later in the week?”
“Of course.” Ian nodded.
“Great.” Peter smiled at Ian. “Well, uh, goodnight.” He began walking towards Sasha’s car, kicking a pebble on the ground as he did so.
“Hey, wait up.” Ian jogged up to him just a few feet from the vehicle. Peter turned to face Ian, looking curiously at him. Ian reached out, pushing some of Peter’s hair back and kissing him on the cheek. “Goodnight, Peter,” he whispered before pulling away.
“Goodnight,” Peter said again, biting his lip as he turned and got into Sasha’s car. He was sure of three things as the car began to move: he had had a really good time, he definitely liked Ian, and he could hardly wait for the next weekend.