Work Text:
Ding.
With a sharp chime from his holocaster, Calem woke up to a notification. He sleepily sat up in his bed before taking the holocaster and setting it in his lap. The text on the hologram displayed a message from Serena.
Come over to my place in 30 minutes. I'll be waiting.
Calem gave a pleased sigh. She was always so stern through text. Her real personality shined through when they were in person. He then noticed Serena sent the message fifteen minutes ago and scrambled to get ready.
He threw on one of his standard outfits: a zipped jacket with leather pants. His shoes always stayed the same no matter what he wore. Serena had essentially forced him to come along with her to Boutique Couture, despite his concerns of not being stylish enough. He picked up a few outfits along the way, at least, so it wasn't entirely pointless.
He assumed Serena had something planned in terms of food, so he didn't bother to eat anything. He hurried downstairs and straight to the door, grabbing his bag and heading outside.
---
Serena was already waiting outside her home, checking the time on her holocaster every now and then. She wore one of her best outfits, a stylish blouse with a long, puffy skirt. She took both ends of the bow tied around her collar and tugged it a little tighter.
Truthfully, she wasn't nervous. Calem was always reliable, albeit a little late at times. She was more anxious about what she had planned for the day. She and Calem had never gone anywhere publicly on a date. They had always kept mostly to themselves about the subject. When their friends got nosy, they told them what they wanted to know, but that was the end of it.
Before Serena could overthink any longer, Calem arrived at her doorstep.
"Hello, Serena." He gave a slight smile. "I hope I'm not too late."
Serena checked the clock again. "One minute late. One day you'll get here earlier."
He chuckled. "Right, right... So, what did you want me to come over for?"
"I thought we should go on a real date. We're heading to Lumiose." She paused for a moment. "If that's alright with you, of course."
"Oh, that's perfectly fine! I suppose I should let you lead the way, then. You've always been one to plan things out thoroughly."
"Well, I wouldn't say I planned it out that much..." A twinge of red appeared on her cheeks. "But I did take many things into consideration."
"Alright, if you say so." He chuckled again. "Let's get going."
Serena nodded as she took his hand in her own and led them to Lumiose City together.
---
While the walk from Vaniville to Lumiose wasn't nearly as bad as some other routes he'd been through on his journeys, without breakfast, it felt like hiking up a mountain. Once they got there, Serena quickly guided him to a café—Soleil, to be specific.
After so much walking, Calem felt a bit faint. He sat down and held his head in his hands, hoping to stabilize himself. Serena quickly ordered him a coffee along with a dessert: a small slice of cake. Afterwards, she sat down across from him at the table and let out a sigh in the process.
"Calem, I'm--"
"No, no. It's okay, Serena." He lifted his head up to smile at her. "It's my fault for waking up too late. I'll be fine."
"Are you sure? I just messaged you out of the blue, we should've planned this out beforehand." Serena looked down.
"But you wanted it to be a surprise, right?"
"Well, yes, but..."
Serena trailed off, and their waiter had arrived with their order. They set down the cup and the plate, and gave a small wave as they turned around and walked off, and Calem gave a wave back. He immediately started taking bites out of the cake. He was starving, after all.
Serena appeared to be lost in thought while he ate, although he couldn't distinguish any clear emotion from her face. That's when he realized she didn't order anything for herself. Calem took his fork and cut about half of what was left the cake slice.
"Serena, do you want a piece?" He had already stuck his fork into the slice, holding it up to her.
She immediately turned to face him, "Hm? Oh, no. It's for you, not me."
"But you didn't order anything. Just open your mouth and say 'aah' to me." He smirked slightly, knowing what reaction this would usher out of her.
For a second, Serena looked at the area around her; almost as if she was making sure no one was watching. Then, after confirming no one was, she leaned forward and held her mouth open, a slight blush forming on her face.
Calem stuck the fork into her mouth and she bit down. He slipped it back out afterwards. She chewed for a little while before swallowing.
"It's nice. Do you like it as well?"
"I do, it's pretty good." He stuck the fork in the final piece of the cake and took a bite. He chewed for a little while before talking again. "The restaurants serve better cakes than this, but it's not like it's bad."
Serena watched his movements in awe, her face turning bright red in the process. She opened her mouth to say something, only to close it again.
Calem looked at her, slightly confused. "What? Did I say something?"
Serena vigorously shook her head, "No, no, it's fine. Let's get going now."
He obliged, finishing up his coffee in a single sip and leaving the bill behind. Serena was already at the door. She must've planned everything to the hour. That, or she was simply feeling embarrassed from him using a fork after her. Regardless, Calem took her hand and they set off.
---
After Serena calmed down from the café, she took Calem to various places around Lumiose. The art gallery, the boutique again; they even managed to stop by the galette stand at the right time.
Calem sat down on a bench, placing all of their bags down beside him. Serena sat next to the bags, tugging at her collar. They had done a considerable amount of walking; neither wanted to use the taxi on what would be an intimate date—if they weren't intensely sweating.
Serena looked over to Calem as he also tugged at his v-neck. Despite how exhausted they both were, he looked just as handsome as ever. Calem looked over to her, only for their eyes to meet. Serena immediately looked away.
"So..." He interrupted his sentence to take a breath. "Where are we headed to now...?"
"We should probably stop for today," Serena sighed. "We're both tired."
Calem thought for a moment. "Yes, it has been a long day... Would you like to come over to my place for the night?"
"Would that really be okay?" She leaned forward to look more closely at him.
"Of course, you're my girlfriend, after all," He chuckled in response. "My mom already knows about you too, no worries."
"Well, then, I'd be happy to." She smiled back at him.
The two hurried to gather their collection of bags as Serena finally called a taxi. With that, they were off to Vaniville.
---
The two stepped into the house, greeting Calem's mother before heading upstairs to his room. One could say it was quaint, it was very clear what his favorite color was just from a glance. He set down their bags before going to sit on his bed, taking off his shoes. Serena stood at the top of the stairs and looked around.
"So, this is your room?" She smiled. "It's cute."
He smiled back. "Well, I was going for more 'cool' than cute...but thank you."
Serena started to walk closer to him, only to stop and realize something. "Oh, wait. Calem, where's your bathroom?"
"Just under the stairs. Why?"
"I need to take a shower." She started to go downstairs, only to turn back around. "Do you have any spare clothes?"
"Oh, yes, hold on..." He stood up and rummaged through his dresser drawers, picking out a simple t-shirt and shorts. "Is this okay?"
"Yes, anything's fine." She took the clothes from him. "Thank you. I'll be back soon."
With that, she went downstairs. Calem sat back on the bed. He took the neckline of his shirt and held it up to his nose, sniffing slightly. Maybe he needed a shower too.
---
Serena came out of the bathroom, still drying her hair with a towel when Calem entered. She went upstairs and sat on his bed, waiting. Soon enough, he came up, changed into an outfit similar to what she was wearing currently. He sat down beside her.
Serena was first to speak up. "Did you enjoy today?"
"Are you kidding? Of course I did!" Calem took her hands and held onto them. "It was great. Thank you."
Serena smiled as her face grew redder. "You're always so enthusiastic. I thought we did too much today, especially on such short notice."
"I suppose so, but it doesn't matter to me. You had fun, and so did I." He smiled back. "It was a great first date, Serena."
Serena smiled again as she moved one of her hands to his cheek, turning his head towards hers. She started to lean forward, only for Calem to suddenly pull her in closer, pressing both their bodies and their lips against each other. Serena put her hands on his shoulders while Calem gently held her waist.
It wasn't anything new, they kissed quite often, but it felt different this time. It felt fulfilling after such a long day of what was essentially sightseeing. As Calem drew back, Serena savored the feeling on her lips.
"Are you feeling tired? Should we sleep now?" Calem asked, keeping his face close. So close that they could feel each other's breath.
"Sure. I don't mind." While Serena answered truthfully, her actions didn't abide by her words. She leaned back in for another kiss.
Calem slightly chuckled into her mouth as he held onto her waist tightly, suddenly leaning backwards to have her fall back with him. Serena giggled slightly, kissing him again before rolling off of him and onto her back.
"Let's get under the covers now." Serena turned to look at him, his cheeks going rosy.
"Of course," he smiled in response.
The two moved to slip under the blankets. Serena moved a couple pillows to make herself more comfortable. They were soon laying down face to face. Calem took her waist again and pulled her close against him.
"Thank you, again. For today."
"You don't need to thank me so much, you're my boyfriend," she giggled slightly.
Calem smiled, and began to slowly pepper her face with kisses, from her forehead to her chin. Serena closed her eyes as he did so, smiling back at him. Once he was done, she rested her head against his chest.
"I love you, Calem."
"I love you too, Serena."
And with that, the two fell asleep, intertwined in each other's embrace.