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The restaurant is way fancier than anything Sakura had imagined. There are crystals hanging from the ceiling. The silverware doesn’t look like silverware but goldware if that’s even an actual thing. He could feel the judgement of the other patrons of this place just pinning him to his chair. WHICH WAS MADE OF WHAT?! LEATHER FROM AN ENDANGERED ANIMAL?! Probably not, but it’s fancier than anything Sakura could imagine. His glass was always full, and they hadn’t even been at their table for more than what? Ten minutes? Granted, Sakura was chugging his water, trying to keep his mouth from drying up. He hasn’t felt this uncomfortable in a while. He had grown accustomed to people not looking at him like he’s some spectacle, so maybe that’s on him for forgetting there are people outside of Makochi.
“What’s wrong, Sakura-kun?” Suo asks, tilting his head as he takes a sip of his water.
“Why you askin’ if something’s wrong?” Sakura mumbles.
He looks around again. More people are filling empty tables. The sheets over the tables are softer than the blankets on his futon at home. He had never been to a place where they covered the tables with this shit. What was the point? And the patches of cloth that Suo told him were supposed to be napkins you put in your lap ? The fuck ?
He felt so out of place. The stares didn’t help, neither did the whispers of annoyance or disgust wafting from tables closer by. Again, Sakura knows how to ignore them, but it isn’t making this first date with Suo an easy one.
When Suo asked him to dress up for the dinner, Sakura was expecting maybe a similar diner or something like they’ve been to before. Something that wasn’t…whatever the hell this kind of place was. It wasn’t like he owned anything that fancy either! He bought one button-down shirt for Umemiya’s graduation three years ago. The thing could still fit him, but barely since he’s bulked up since their first year at Furin. He made it work. He didn’t have the nicest of pants either, so he was in dark denim jeans that he thought were fancy enough considering his usual baggy clothes and shit.
But when Suo drove up to pick him up dressed in what looked like an incredibly expensive suit, probably imported from China or whatever since he seems to like that type of stuff. His hair was slicked back and off to the side. His eyepatch had golden thread weaved into the stitching. Sakura didn’t even know he had a fancy eyepatch! Since when was that a thing?! And the car had been different too. Ever since he was able to drive, he drove a relatively simple car. It wasn’t anything too flashy. It played music and had heated seats, but that was as fancy as it was.
…BUT THIS CAR?! Wherever the fuck his parents get the money for this crap is insane. Sakura didn’t even know cars could have so many different types of functions! So many buttons and for what?!
“Well, you’ve been fidgeting since they sat us down.” Suo tilts his head in the other direction and claps his hands in his lap.
Sakura rolls his eyes and flushes. “I’m fine.”
Obviously a lie. Sakura is shit at lying, especially lying to Suo. The fucking guy just can’t turn off his stupid reading people abilities.
Suo sighs and looks out at the people in the restaurant. Whatever eyes were looking at Sakura have now gone to either looking at menus or the food in front of them.
Everyone was dressed up and Sakura just sits there feeling like an idiot.
“Do you want to leave?”
Sakura looks up at Suo, who is currently pulling out his wallet.
Sakura shakes his head. “What? No–I mean you picked this place. Ya wanted to come here, so–”
“That’s not what I asked, Sakura-kun,” Suo sighs, a smile tugging at his lips. “Do you want to leave?”
Yes. Yes, Sakura wanted to leave and scrub the privilege and glares off of his skin as soon as possible, but he couldn’t say that to Suo. He couldn’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like to get a table at this place, let alone how much it cost for a reservation. Do people need to pay to reserve spots? Is that thing for a place like this?
“No, we can stay.” Sakura’s voice is low as the waiter comes around.
“Good evening, sirs, I apologize for the wait. Here, allow me to refill your water.” The man leans with a dripping ice cold silver looking thing.
“Ya don’t gotta apologize for me being thirsty,” Sakura grumbles but watches as the man pours him more water.
“Of course, sir, forgive me.”
“Ya don’t gotta apologize for that either!” Sakura’s voice escalated. Why was everyone apologizing for stupid shit? That didn’t make sense!
“Actually,” Suo waves gently at the man. “Please provide us with the check.”
“Huh?” Sakura looks up at his boyfriend.
Wow.
That’s right.
Boyfriend.
First date and he feels like he’s already ruining it.
“Oh, is something wrong, sir?” The waiter gives him a nervous look.
“No, no, I just realized we have something else planned and we have to leave early.” Suo grins.
Bullshit.
Liar.
Suo is making them leave because he thinks that’s what Sakura wants!
…Which it is…
BUT STILL!
The man standing in front of them simply nods and leaves. “As you wish, sir.”
Sakura kicks Suo from under the table, making the waters splash in their glasses.
“Well that wasn’t very kind, Sakura-kun,” Suo continues to smile teasingly.
“I said I wanted to stay.” He hisses back through gritted teeth.
“And I know you’re lying,” Suo holds up his pointer finger. “In retrospect, I should have known this would be a little too much for you.”
“HUH?!” Sakura’s voice escalates again. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”
“It means,” Suo uses a quieter, steady tone, his way of trying to calm Sakura down, “that this was a jerk move on my part.”
Sakura has the words since in for a moment. “What do ya mean by that?”
“I was trying to impress you, Sakura-kun,” Suo chuckles softly, bringing his hand up to his lips and closing his eye. “I thought this would be a treat, a way to show you how I could spoil you.”
“SPOIL ME?!” It felt like the skin on Sakura’s face was going to melt off.
“But, I should have known I didn’t have to go to such lengths.” Suo shrugs and smiles politely as he hands the waiter a credit card. “Thank you.”
The man just bows and goes to process the card.
Sakura, all the while, has his arms now crossed over his chest, hunched over. He hardly touched whatever appetizer Suo ordered them. Some dish he had never heard of before. It smelled amazing, but Sakura was too afraid to touch it, as if he would taint it somehow.
“So,” Suo’s voice brings Sakura’s eyes back to him. “Where would you like to go instead?”
“I never said I wanted to leave,” his voice is a low grumble.
“My house it is then,” Suo decides for them.
Sakura arches an eyebrow. “Why there?”
“Well, it’s a place you’re familiar with. I know you like snuggling on the couch, even though you deny it,” the eyepatched boy winks, “and I can make you the most delicious dinner from scratch.”
Sakura’s eyebrow doesn’t drop yet. “Will your parents be there?”
Suo shakes his head. “No, as usual they are off galavanting somewhere. They told me but I can’t remember.”
More lies, but Sakura has learned to just accept that’s a part of Suo’s life he’ll have to wait for him to be comfortable to talk about.
Not that he was one to talk.
“Fine…I guess that would be okay…”
“Oh my sweet, sweet Sakura-kun,” Suo laughs. “You really are such a tsundere.”
“AM NOT!” Sakura bursts, getting a few heads to turn. “Oh whatever, just…shut up so we can go.” He tugs at his shirt. “I wanna get out of these stupid clothes.”
“That’s right, don’t worry, I have clothes you can change into when we get to my home.”
Once the card has been processed, it doesn’t take them long to get back to Suo’s place.
The house is large, huge actually. Floor-length windows, massive ceilings, more rooms than Sakura could count. Suo’s family estate was ridiculous. Hindsight being twenty-twenty, Sakura supposes he shouldn’t have been surprised that Suo would try taking him to such a fancy place to eat.
Whatever.
“Okay, you go into my room and change. I’ll make you a nice dinner, okay?” Suo locks the door behind them.
“Ain’t you gonna eat, too?” Sakura doesn’t move from the front door until Suo responds.
“Yes, Sakura-kun, I promise I’ll eat something with you.”
The two of them had been through a lot, Sakura being the first Suo opened up to about his relationship (or lack there of) with food. With time and effort and trust, Suo started eating more. Suo was the first person Sakura gave the unfiltered edition of his foster-care history, bouncing from home to home, abusive guardian to abusive guardian.
There was still more hidden under both of their surfaces, but they were working on it.
Regardless, after Suo ensured he would eat too, Sakura nods and leaves. Suo’s room is large, bigger than Sakura’s whole apartment. His bed was massive, smooth with cool sheets to the touch. His dressers were made of real wood with fancy gloss. It was just overall very nice. Sakura used to feel out of place here, but Suo slowly made him feel more and more comfortable.
So he snags one of Suo’s old t-shirts he never wears. It’s been designated as one of Sakura’s emergency shirts even before they confessed their feelings for each other. He strips off his jeans and slips on some sweatpants that are a little snug on him, but he doesn’t mind. They smell like Suo, and that’s become more and more of a grounding thing for him as time has gone on.
When he comes out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, he is welcomed with the smell of freshly made omurice with various sauces to choose from along with some colorful teacakes from one of Suo’s favorite bakeries.
“Ta dahhhh!” Suo does a cute jazz hands routine that makes Sakura blush. “All for you, and yes, I have a plate for me right here.”
Sakura walks over and sits down next to Suo. The food just looks so good and amazing and sweet and warm and like home.
Suo was his home.
…Fuck, what does that mean?
“Ya didn’t have to do this…” Sakura begins to eat his food.
“Yes, I know, but I wanted to.” Suo grins as he eats as well.
The two talk and talk before moving into the massive movie room in the back of the house. They curl up next to each other, Sakura slowly sinking down with his head in Suo’s lap. It feels nice. Suo is warm and comfortable and caring and nurturing and just…fuck, he really is perfect, isn’t he?
“Why are you blushing, Sakura-kun?” Suo cards his fingers through Sakura’s hair, lightly scratching at his scalp. “No romance has even happened yet.”
“Shut up,” Sakura tries to grumble but it basically comes out as a purr because of how nice Suo’s fingers feel in his hair. Goosebumps ripple all over his body as he curls deeper into Suo. A few minutes pass by when Sakura sighs, deciding to answer Suo’s question. “I…I just really like this…and you…”
Suo pauses the movie. “Is that so?” He could hear the smile in his tone.
“Yeah…That’s why I was blushin’...” Sakura cocks his head on Suo’s lap. “Now turn the movie back on. I wanna see what happens next.”
Naturally, instead of obeying Sakura’s request, Suo makes him work for it. “First tell me that this was a lovely first date.”
“What? Why?” Sakura flicks his eyes up at Suo, not moving his head.
Suo continues to lightly scratch Sakura’s scalp, making it hard for Sakura to keep a stern face. “I just want to hear it.”
“Ugh,” the other boy groans but it turns into a subtle moan of appreciation for how well Suo is taking care of him right now. “This…was a good first date.”
“I said lovely first date.” Suo corrects.
Normally Sakura would fight him on it, but right now he is too comfortable and he doesn’t want to risk Suo taking his nimble fingers away from his head.
“Fine, yes, this was a lovely first date…” The blush burns more this time but at least the words were said. “There, ya happy now?”
His boyfriend merely hums and nods before using his free hand to turn back on the movie. “Yes, very much so. Thank you, Sakura-kun.”
Sakura wasn’t sure what to say in response to that. He didn’t understand why Suo was thanking him. What did he do? It didn’t make sense, but granted, not a lot of things made sense to Sakura when he came to these types of relationships.
But that was fine. It’s something he’ll learn with Suo by his side.
Yeah. Ya know what? This was a good date.
Actually, it was a love first date.