Chapter Text
TK sat at the table fidgeting, he couldn't believe he had let Paul talk him into coming here. Sure, he trusted Paul's judgement of character, but he still didn't know how he felt about being set up on a blind date, especially one in a fancy restaurant. The last time TK had even gone to a restaurant was with his ex-boyfriend Alex, and that relationship turned nuclear bad. TK had been out with a few men since Alex, well not so much been out with, as he had hooked up with. It had been a year since TK had last seen Alex, and although some things had gotten better, TK still wasn't over everything that happened.
Finally deciding that he wasn't ready to go through with this date TK stood up to leave, but as he turned towards the door the most handsome man he had ever seen strolled into the building. His dark brown curls bounced as he walked, and his smile lit up the entire room. TK stood frozen in place as this man walked towards him. TK stared at the man, sure he would keep walking, but to his surprise, the man stopped in front of him.
"Hi, are you TK? I'm Carlos." The man offered his hand out in greeting.
"Um, yeah, I'm TK, hi, it's nice to meet you." TK stumbled over his words and barely remembered to return the handshake.
"Nice to meet you too, have you been waiting long? My shift ran long, and I would have texted to tell you I'd be a few minutes late, but I don't have your number yet," Carlos paused, grinning at TK before continuing, "Unfortunately."
"No, I haven't been here long, here let me get your chair." TK stepped behind Carlos' chair blushing, and pulled it out for him, Carlos thanked him as TK returned to his seat. "You mentioned your shift ran long, what do you do for work?"
"I'm a police officer."
"So that's where you met Paul? Out on a call."
"Yeah, we met a couple of years ago. So, what about you, would I be safe in assuming you work with Paul at the firehouse?"
"Yes, that would be correct, I relocated to Austin from New York a few months ago. My dad got offered a job being captain on the 126 and I couldn't resist the opportunity to come with him and get a fresh start."
"Fresh start? Nothing too bad I hope?"
"No, nothing awful, just needed to get out of the city." TK gave a smile he hoped was convincing as he tried to force away the pain he felt while thinking about the last few years of his life in New York.
Carlos didn't quite believe TK's answer but decided to move on and steer the conversation in a different direction, knowing that he shouldn't pry too much on a first date. "So, have you been here before? My family comes here often for birthday celebrations if you need any meal suggestions." Carlos offered as he picked up his menu.
"Thank you. No, I haven't had much of a chance to check out the local restaurants yet, but Paul said this place had good vegan options when he told me where to meet you." TK picked up his menu and began looking at all the different options.
"Vegan? I have to be honest that is not a part of the menu I have explored in great detail. My family owns a cattle farm, so we eat a lot of meat. But maybe I'll try something different tonight." Carlos once again flashed his dazzling smile at TK, who was unable to do anything but blush in return. "Although right now I would be happy to simply have a waiter come over with some water, I'm parched."
Without a second thought, TK gave an upward flick of his wrist and both his and Carlos' water glasses began filling themselves. "Oh shit, sorry!" TK exclaimed when he saw Carlos' face in response, "I don't usually tell people right away, it's just such second nature to use my powers, I didn't even think, I'm so sorry, please don't freak out." TK began rambling, hoping he hadn't managed to scare Carlos off. He wasn't sure he was ready for a relationship, but he definitely wasn't opposed to having a casual fling with the gorgeous man sitting across from him.
Carlos gave a quick chuckle before responding, "No, it's all ok, actually that makes perfect sense, a firefighter with elemental control. I guess I'm safe to tell you that I have powers too then."
"Really? Well with you being a cop, let me guess, bulletproof skin?"
"No, though that would have been helpful when I got shot in the leg a few years ago. But I actually have a mind-reading power, which is also quite helpful in the job." Carlos continued smiling, but his face quickly fell when he saw TK's reaction.
"Mind reading?"
"Well, a kind of..." Carlos started before TK cut him off.
"I have to go, it was nice to meet you, bye." TK grabbed his jacket and ran out the door of the restaurant, leaving Carlos confused and alone at the table.
"Mind-reading, it had to be mind-reading, of all the damn powers out there." TK muttered to himself as he walked back to his house. His ex was a mind reader, and after what he had done, TK knew he would never date one again.