Chapter Text
“Okay, that's enough for today. Clearly, you’re head isn’t in the right space.”
Aris was annoyed with Thomas today, and Thomas understands. He hasn’t been himself recently. Ever since Sonya’s vision, he’s been living on edge. He’s constantly nervous and texting Newt every hour making sure he’s okay. But apparently, Sonya’s visions could be taking place at anytime. A day later, a month later, they could even happen hundreds of years later. Newt assured him that everything will be okay, but Thomas was still nervous for them.
But on a positive note, tonight was their first date. That was another reason that Thomas wasn’t able to focus on his water bending lesson with Aris today. All he thought about was what to wear to impress Newt, how not to act like an idiot in front of him, and hoping that the date would turn out to be okay.
Since Thomas didn’t explore Glade City that much, the others were a tremendous help in planning the perfect date. Alby and Sonya practically knew Newt inside out, and Minho and Brenda knew the best places to go. Harriet even suggested taking a walk in the park afterwards before they came home.
Tonight was going to be a good night. At least, Thomas is hoping. He’s praying that Sonya’s vision wasn’t happening tonight. To be on the safe side, Harriet and the others were all hanging out together and if something happens, she’ll teleport everyone to Thomas and Newt. Can’t be too careful right?
And Thomas was doing pretty well with air bending and water bending, despite the fact that he wasn’t doing his best today. “Sorry, Aris. My mind is all over the place.”
“Relax, Thomas. It’s just a date. It’ll be great,” Aris said.
Yeah. It would be great.
Newt was finishing up getting dressed for his date tonight. It was colder now, being that it was December, but it wasn’t too bad. He put on dark skinny jeans, a pair of vans, a white button down and a black sweater over it. Thomas said dress casual, and Newt was doing his best to look good without seeming like he was trying. Hopefully it works.
While giving his hair one last check in the mirror, there was a knock on his door. But he was supposed to meet Thomas at his place, right? He walked over and opened the door to find a dark haired person, but not the one he had a date with tonight. It was his date’s best friend. “Teresa?”
“Hey Newt,” she greeted.
“What are you doing here?”
“Aren’t you going to ask me in?”
“Oh, yeah. Sorry.”
He moved aside to let her in and shut the door. He watched as she analyzed his small two room apartment. He had a living room/kitchen/bedroom and a bathroom. Even though these were more secure rooms, Ava didn’t want these to feel like a prison, so she turned it into a small flat. Newt was glad it wasn’t just a bed and a desk like a college dorm room. A part of him wishes he didn’t live alone anymore, but it was definitely safer to live in solitude. No chance of hurting anyone, even if he did wear his braces.
“So what’s up?” Newt asked.
“Well, you’re going on a date with my best friend tonight,” Teresa said in a tone that sent shivers down his spine. “You and I,” she gestured to them using her hand, “we’re going to have a nice little chat.”
Newt gulped.
“How do I look?”
“With your eyes, dumbass.”
Minho’s comment earned him an elbow to the ribs from Brenda. Thomas had spent the last hour figuring out what to wear tonight, and no matter what he tried on, he felt like it wasn’t good enough for Newt. But after the girls trying to match shirts with pants and shoes - Thomas has never been undressed in front of so many people before - the girls were at peace with what was the perfect ‘Thomas’ look. Turns out, it was a white v-neck tee with a dark red flannel, khaki pants, and nice pair of sneakers. Brenda even styled his hair to look a bit messy.
“You look perfect Thomas,” Harriet complimented.
“Thanks guys.”
“Now time for the talk,” Sonya said in a serious tone.
“The talk?”
“You know, if you hurt Newt, we’ll all kill you,” Brenda said.
Oh, the talk. Thomas’s nerves started going crazy as Sonya, Harriet, Brenda, Minho, and Alby circled around Thomas. If Thomas didn’t know them, it would feel like he was about to be murdered.
Each of them said something about how Newt deserved all the happiness in the world, how he didn’t deserve to have his heartbroken. Sonya gave a very detailed explanation of what she would do to Thomas if he ever hurt her brother, but he assured her it would never come to that. Thomas wholeheartedly agreed with all of his friends. It warmed his heart to see that they cared so much about their friend.
Everyone but Minho had spoken, so Thomas was waiting for the Asian to say something.
“Ditto to everything they just said.”
Thomas didn’t expect anything different. But despite his sarcasm, Thomas knew that Minho cared deeply about the blonde, and would probably murder Thomas if he ever hurt him. Which he wouldn't do, therefore he would not be killed.
“Also,” Minho said while grabbing a plastic bag from underneath his bed. “Here. Just in case.”
Thomas was confused but took a look inside the bag. “Oh, Minho! What the hell?!”
Inside the bag were a box of condoms and lube. Even though it’s Minho, he didn’t expect that.
“Just in case you guys have sex! I want you to be safe!”
“It’s our first date! I’m not planning to have sex with him!”
“So you’re saying you don’t want to have sex with him? Why not?”
“What?! Minho - ”
Thomas’s phone interrupted his train of thought. He reached into his pocket and saw a text from Newt saying he was outside. Thomas threw the bag onto his bed and ran out of the bedroom, grabbing his jacket on the way. He was running so fast that he almost tripped going down the stairs.
When he opened the door, he couldn’t help but stare at how gorgeous Newt looked. Yeah, he knew Newt was beautiful, but tonight he just looked…
“Wow,” Thomas breathed out, still panting from sprinting to the door.
Newt smiled and blushed a little. “I’ll take that as a compliment?”
“Yeah. You look...you look amazing Newt.”
“So do you Tommy,” Newt said, reaching out to take Thomas’s hand. “Shall we go?”
Alby and Sonya told Thomas that The Homestead was Newt’s favorite restaurant in Glade City. The blonde didn’t adventure out into the city too often - Thomas knew Newt was still scared of his powers - but when he did, this was always a stop on his journey. It was no five-star restaurant, but it was definitely good for a date. They were seated at a comfy booth, the light a bit dim making it seem a bit more romantic.
“Well, Tommy. You’ve got a good taste in restaurants.”
“A little birdie may have told me that you love coming here,” Thomas teased.
“Really?” Newt smirked. “Well, a little birdie may have threatened to castrate me about breaking your heart.”
“What?”
“Teresa. She gave me the whole ‘if you hurt him I’ll end you’ talk. That was one of the bloody scariest moments of my life.”
“Everyone at the house gave me the same talk too,” Thomas mused. He decided to leave out the part where Minho did... that thing . That was a story for another time.
The rest of the time at the restaurant was spent laughing and telling stories, Thomas recalling the one time he almost set his house on fire when he put his plastic food toys in the oven. Thomas would never get tired of hearing Newt’s laugh or watching him throw his head back like a little kid.
Afterwards, Thomas took Harriet’s advice and walked through the park with Newt, holding his hand as they did so. As corny as it sounded, their hands seamlessly fit together, like two puzzle pieces. Thomas held hands with his ex-girlfriend, but nothing compared to this. Everything in the past felt wrong compared to Newt. Newt felt right. Newt felt like home.
Thomas brought Newt over to the patch of grass near the pond and went to lie on his back, the blonde following the same motion. They were looking up at the stars, holding hands, and talking about anything and everything. Sometimes they were silent for a few moments, but it was a comfortable silence. Just being together was enough for Thomas.
“So you never really told me what your parents said to you,” Newt said, turning his head to face Thomas.
He didn’t. And it wasn’t that he didn’t want to, but the time never came up. “Uh, yeah. Guess not.”
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
“I do,” Thomas said, turning to face Newt. He wanted Newt to know everything about him.
Thomas then recounted the story his family told him - although it felt like they left out a lot. When his parents were in the Hero Legion, the Exemplar at the time wasn’t the most focused leader. During an attack on Detroit, he made a wrong decision, and the entire city was left in ruins. A dispute broke out in between the heroes, calling for the Exemplar to stand down from his role. But one hero in the legion was so angered by the Exemplar’s actions that he murdered him. Apparently, that hero had a family in Detroit, and they were killed because of the Exemplar’s incompetence. That man fled, and has not been seen since. The rest of them attempted to pick up the pieces, but it was never the same. That’s why Mary and Vince - and apparently Ava - left the legion. It wasn’t what it used to be.
They also mentioned how the gem in Thomas’s medallion was the Infinity gem. When an Exemplar dies, their soul goes into the gem, and Thomas uses it to go into the Exemplar State. He has no idea what that involves, but Ava said they can’t focus on that until he’s mastered the elements.
“So why couldn’t they just tell you all that?” Newt asked. “There’s nothing in that story would hurt you.”
“I know,” Thomas admitted. “Which is why I think it’s not the full story.”
There had to be more, Thomas was sure of it. But he wasn’t going to think about that tonight. Tonight was his date with Newt. All he wanted to do was focus on the blonde in front of him. So he changed the subject and talked about Newt’s life. They discussed how it was growing up with Sonya, how Sonya met Harriet, how Minho somehow managed to win Brenda over, and so much more. They may have also kissed a few times in between their exchanging of stories.
Thomas walked Newt home, all the way to his door. It was such a great night, and he couldn’t wait to have more great nights with Newt. He feels like they have gotten to know each other a lot better. Yet, ever since he met the blonde, it felt like they’ve known each other forever. It was weird, but definitely welcoming.
“So,” Thomas said while scratching the back of his neck. “I really had a great time Newt.”
“Me too Tommy,” Newt replied with a nervous smile.
“You sure you want to be my boyfriend? Because once you say yes, there’s no turning back,” he teased.
“I’m damn sure,” Newt answered confidently.
As per tradition, Thomas leaned in to give Newt a goodnight kiss. It was soft and delicate, their lips moving perfectly in sync with one another. Euphoria was washing over him. He felt so safe and comforted in their embrace. The butterflies were going crazy in his stomach. It was like he had been color blind his whole life and the world had exploded into technicolor.
In that moment, in those few seconds of bliss and ecstasy, Thomas knew in his heart that this was right.