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Laura had said that she’d help him plan his next date with Stiles and she’d taken her responsibility very seriously. She’d interviewed the rest of the pack to come up with a few different suitable date options, reviewed all the ideas carefully and then presented her top three suggestions for Derek to choose from, complete with a chart and an illustrative poster that she’d made in school. To say that Derek was impressed was an understatement.
After lengthy discussions they both decided that a fun, relaxed date would do the trick. And a picnic in the park seemed to be just the right thing to do. It would be just the two of them, hanging out together with no other people around that could mess up their date and, since they would bring their own food, they were guaranteed to like it and wouldn’t have to rely on a restaurant. It was a beautiful idea. A picnic in the park. What could possibly go wrong?
::
Derek had a certain skip in his step when he got in the car and went to pick up Stiles for their date. It had been thoroughly planned down to the every little last detail, he’d even bought three packets of Reese’s to bring with him so that there would be no repetition of last time’s vending machine debacle. He was ready.
So was Stiles, apparently, as he waited on the front porch as Derek pulled up outside his house. Derek felt his heart beat a little faster as the other man pushed himself to his feet and walked towards the car.
“Hi” Stiles grinned as he ducked into the car. “Hi, sweetie” he continued and scooped Laura into a hug when she launched herself at him.
“Seatbelts” Derek reminded them sternly and both of them settled down in the backseat of the car. He tried to tell himself that he was being petty and childish but he still felt a bit jealous that Stiles chose to sit with Laura instead of him.
Only a couple of minutes later Derek left Laura with the Sheriff, received a subtle warning not to let this date end at the hospital as well and then it was only him and Stiles. Suddenly Derek felt very nervous for some reason and he couldn’t really figure out why. Yes, he wanted to impress Stiles and make the date memorable but it was still Stiles. He knew the other man well and they really got along together, nowadays anyway, even if that hadn’t been the case when they first got to know each other. With that in mind, and the knowledge that he had a solid plan, as well as several back up-plans, he really shouldn’t be nervous.
::
It was planned out to be perfect, a romantic picnic in the botanic garden where the cherry trees had just started to blossom and covered the grass with soft, white petals, with only the two of them and the spring sun shining. It was a beautiful idea, really. And it should have worked out, if it wasn’t for the fact that half of Beacon Hills had thought the same.
When Derek and Stiles arrived to the normally calm and secluded botanic garden it was roaring with activity. Teenage couples taking selfies, students working on their tan while doing their homework, elderly couples enjoying a stroll and people hoping to catch a bit of sun on their lunch break. The normally quiet place buzzed with energy and the sheer amount of people meant that instead of finding a cosy corner to sit in, Derek was forced to battle for a spot in the middle of the grass. Next to a couple of teenagers enthusiastically making out and a family with three kids. It wasn’t the calm atmosphere that Derek had hoped for but, still, it was a beautiful idea. And it should have worked out anyway, if it wasn’t for the fact that that the teenagers who were making out were too enthusiastic and actually sent Stiles toppling when they bumped into him, too caught up in the throes of passion to take notice of the surroundings.
When they realized what they’d done they blushed crimson red, apologized profusely and offered to pay for a new pair of shoes since Stiles’ white sneakers were most certainly ruined from the beet root salad that had been spilt over them before quietly leaving. Derek let out a deep sigh and felt his muscles relax when they were gone. The picnic was still a beautiful idea, and it should have worked out anyway, if it wasn’t for the fact that Stiles apparently suffered from hay fever. It was normally not that bad, he explained, but since he hadn’t known that they were going to spend the afternoon outside he hadn’t packed any of his medicines.
Still, they powered on, talked, laughed and munched on the sandwiches and the fruit salad that Laura and Derek had prepared and Stiles was touched to see that Derek had made the special ice tea that he loved so much. They ignored the noisy kids next to them and Derek handed Stiles tissues so that he could blow his nose. They took photos of each other under the cherry trees and Stiles giggled when Derek accidentally drank the flower petals that had fallen into his coffee. Derek felt pleased with himself when they laid down on the blanket together, bellies full and minds content. The picnic was still a beautiful idea, and it should have worked out anyway, if it wasn’t for the fact that the family with the kids also had two dogs. Two very hungry dogs, that managed to sneak into the cooler that Derek had put away in the shadow of a tree and eat all the fudge brownies that were Stiles’ favourite and Derek had bought especially for him.
Derek forced himself to remain calm. No one had yet to visit the hospital and the property damage had so far been limited to a pair of sneakers. The only one that had flirted with Derek was Stiles and there was no imminent situation that required security guards. The picnic was still a beautiful idea and they still had time to make it work and be a wonderful date, if it wasn’t for the fact that chocolate is toxic for dogs.
When the two cake-stealing labs had finally been apprehended it was soon clear that they weren’t feeling very well. When one of them puked over the picnic blanket and the other one over one of the kids the mother started screaming and swearing, the father threatened to have them arrested for poisoning their dogs and all the three children cried.
And after that there was really no way to save this date either. Not even when Derek dug out the Reese’s to give to Stiles on the way home, and realized that the dogs had eaten those as well.