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Onni felt the date was going poorly. The food was great, naturally, and Reynir was great, too, but he was definitely sticking out like a sore thumb. Of course he hadn't had anything remotely formal to wear, and of course they'd chosen to sit outside, where he could feel the gazes of the other passersby on him. Worst of all, he could tell that Reynir wasn't anxious at all. Reynir had already finished his entree, and was alternating between looking at the passersby curiously and sneaking in longing glances at him. He quickly swallowed another piece of the lamb chop.
The last bit had just slipped off of his fork into his mouth when their waiter appeared seemingly from thin air. "You two doing okay?" she asked, picking up the soiled plates with a flourish.
"Yes, everything's been wonderful, ma'am." Reynir replied. Onni tried to agree, but his knowledge of Icelandic seemed to have vanished. He ended up pretending to adjust the napkin on his lap to avoid a confrontation. He could feel the waiter's eyes drilling into his back for a moment, before she placed a pair of leather-backed menus onto the table.
"Great! We offer a selection of desserts. I'll be back in a few minutes if you'd like to order anything." The waiter gave Onni a concerned glance before walking away to wait another table. He examined the menu--it was indeed a selection of desserts. Right now, he wanted to drop the menu and get out of here. Reynir would be so disappointed, though. Maybe if he just found something he liked enough, he'd have an excuse to be quiet for the rest of the meal. The almond cake certainly looked good enough for that distraction.
Onni looked up from the menu to tell Reynir that he'd made his choice, and found his mouth quivering. The space behind his eyes ached. Dammit, what the hell was he doing all this for? A normal person would have just told their date that they weren't feeling good and gotten it over with. He flinched as Reynir leaned in close and looked him over with concerned eyes.
"Are you feeling alright?" Reynir asked.
Onni felt a burst of anger. No, he wasn't alright, any idiot could have seen that! He claimed down a little-Reynir was probably just trying to be polite. Look at those eyes--the boy was clearly worried that he was ruining this date. It would probably be easy to convince him to head back, but Onni had to make it clear that Reynir wasn't the problem."Yes." He set the menu down, sharper than he intended to. Its metal corners clattered against the table, drawing the gaze of a few nearby pedestrians. "I think it might be a good idea to go back to the hotel, though. I'm feeling a bit worn out."
"Really?" Reynir replied, confused. "It's only been a few hours since we got up." He leaned back into a normal sitting position. "I picked this place 'cause I know you've got a bit of a sweet tooth, and Taru told me they had great desserts here. Sure you don't even want to get something to go?"
Onni bristled at the mention of his eating habits. Tuuri was spreading that rumor again. "No, it's fine. There's plenty for dessert at the hotel," he replied before mumbling " and I don't have a sweet tooth." under his breath. Oh no,it hadn't worked. Reynir was looking more nervous than ever. Even through the layers of anxiety, he felt a pang of sympathy when he saw the confusion and gathering tears in Reynir's eyes.
Reynir blinked and shook his head, letting out a low sigh. The expression of confusion was suddenly replaced by certainty when he looked up. "You're nervous because you're not familiar with the city, aren't you? That's why you've been so quiet."
Onni nodded. "I'm sorry. I've had trouble going into new places before, too. Should have told you before we left." He scratched the back of his head idly. "Guess I thought that things would be different this time. We should just go back now." He yelped when Reynir took his hand and squeezed it.
"Things are different, Onni. I'm here for you." Onni stared at Reynir as he mulled the problem over. ""I have an idea. There's this little ice cream place, down a back alley, there's never more than two or three people in there. We can go there, pick up something for you, then head back to the hotel, and maybe tomorrow when you're feeling better we can go someplace quiet, just the two of us. Or I guess we can take Tuuri along, if that'd make you more comfortable..." He trailed off. Onni was still staring, his brow wrinkled slightly, as he called for the check.
"You don't need to buy me ice cream." Onni replied, abashed. Of course he actually wanted the ice cream quite a bit. Truth be told, there was almost no refined sugar in Finland these days. Compared to the lightly honeyed desserts he'd had once or twice a month at Keuruu, Reynir was spoiling him rotten on these dates.
"Of course I don't need to." Reynir replied. The waiter set the check down--he snatched it before Onni could. "But I'd be pretty inconsiderate to take you out to someplace you didn't like and not try to make it up to you." He signed the receipt in his curly handwriting and slipped a few thousand-krónur bills into the leather folder it had come in before standing up. He beckoned Onni with an open hand, and the older man stood up hesitantly.
Onni remained silent for a few moments as they walked away. Eventually they came to a stop at an intersection, waiting for a few carriages to pass. It was Reynir's turn to yelp in surprise when a bulky pair of arms wrapped around him from behind. He blushed as he felt the familiar warmth of Onni's embrace. "Th-there are people around, Onni." he whispered.
"I know." Onni gave Reynir a squeeze.
"Wh-why are you hugging me? Some of these people might know my family!"
"What you're doing for me, I'd say it's pretty sweet , yeah?" Onni flashed a wicked grin as Reynir made a confused noise. "And as you reminded me back there: I do love sweet stuff." Onni chuckled and released Reynir, who was groaning in disgust at the pun. It was only a moment before they were back in each other's arms. That was fine in Onni's books.