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"Fasta vass!"
Hawke regarded Fenris's behind as the elf stooped over to pick up what he had dropped. Tools, it looked like. Didn't matter. That ass, though? Hawke smirked, crossed his arms against his chest, and leaned against the lamppost outside of Fenris's house.
"Having troubles?" he greeted.
Fenris jerked up. And smacked his head against the underside of his rear view mirror. "Fuck!"
Hawke cringed. "Sorry! Sorry, I shouldn't have startled you, sorry."
"Ugh. Hawke." Fenris was rubbing at the top of his head, hair mussed. "You're already here. I thought you weren't coming until later."
Hawke raised his eyebrows. "It is later."
"Oh." Fenris's nose was still crimped in pain, lines drawn through his forehead. "Perhaps I've been out here longer than I thought."
Hawke kissed the top of Fenris's head, and went arms length to look at him. "You okay?"
"I'm fine."
"Car trouble?" He glanced at Fenris's old '09 Focus. Matte grey. A little banged up from when someone had rear-ended him (Hawke had heard the story) and in need of a wash. "You ever gonna get something new?"
"Your car is older than mine," Fenris muttered. "I like the car. If I need to drive instead of walk, I have this. I need nothing more special."
"You need something that runs."
"You had to smack the hood of your truck last week to get it to stop sputtering."
"My truck is an old hunk of metal that needs parts I can't afford." Hawke glanced lovingly over his shoulder towards the old beat-up pickup parked down the street. "But you know," he added, looking back at Fenris, "I have a little experience with handling car trouble."
He received an arched eyebrow for the comment. "Only a little?"
"Enough to have landed a job as a mechanic, after all. You want me to look? You should get some ice for your head, just in case."
"Are you certain? We were meant to go out...?" Fenris said uncertainly, sliding his phone from his pocket. "We might not have time afterwards."
"Oh, come on. You think it's gonna take me awhile? I'll have it done like that." He snapped his fingers. "Give me a sec." He pulled his jacket off, throwing it into Fenris's car.
"Fuck."
Fenris's laughter was a rumble that sank into Hawke's ears, even though he was wedged under the car. "Having trouble, Hawke?"
"No, I know what the problem is, it just isn't working. At this point, I'm pretty sure you need to get a different part." Hawke shimmied his way out from the undercarriage. "I hate your car."
"Don't talk to her that way. She might hear you."
Hawke scoffed, although he perked up a little as Fenris set a glass of something down next to him. "That does not look like beer."
"No. Tea."
"Tea? I'm fixing a car, Fen, not hosting a ball."
"Just try it."
He had nothing against tea; he liked it, but now he was frustrated and worn out with this dumb car and he wanted a beer. "Fine," he grumbled good-naturedly. He took a drink, and almost spit it out right away. It wasn't bad, it was just- "It's spicy!" He licked his lips. They were tingling a little.
Fenris smiled softly, long fingers wrapped around his own mug. "It's a chai blend. I bought decaf so you could try it."
"Oh. I like it." He sniffed at his mug and took another sip, focusing more on the taste of the various spices this time. "It's very..."
"Aromatic?"
"Yeah. Tea usually makes me sleepy. There's no taste, and it's just kind of hot and steam in the face." Hawke licked his lips again. "This is actually kinda energizing. 's nice."
"I'm glad you like it." Fenris sat down on the curb, stretching his legs out. "It seems our date night turned into a poor attempt to fix my car."
"Ah, it's still a date night." Hawke shrugged. He was about to sit down next to him when he was struck with an idea. "Wait, hang on. I'll make it a date night." He set his tea down and jogged into Fenris's place.
He knew the inside of Fenris's house now like he knew his own mind, and Fenris was generally a creature of habit (albeit a messy one, but then, Hawke was too; no complaints), so finding what he needed only took a couple of minutes. The blanket was the most difficult. It was October and Fenris was prone to being cold even with his heat kicked up, so finding one that wasn't 60" by 80" or plushy fleece was a little more of a challenge.
Carrying it all outside was actually the most challenging of it all. He was Garrett Hawke. He didn't make double trips.
"Oh, no," Fenris breathed.
Hawke didn't know if he smiled or stuck his tongue out. Maybe both.
"Your ideas have left some things to be desired in the past."
"Oh, you wound me. I thought you liked my ideas." He dropped everything that wouldn't break onto the lawn, grabbing the edge of the blanket.
"I do," Fenris said, and if he sounded equal parts warm and hesitant, well. He was right. A few of Hawke's ideas hadn't gone so well. He tended to act first, think later when it came to romantic gestures.
"Good." He spread the blanket out and stepped on a couple of the more stubborn folds to stomp them out, then threw the pillows on top. "It's just a little picnic, Fen. Blankets, pillows, tea, some of these cookie things or whatever they are that you like, um, let me see, where's my phone, I can put on some actual relaxing music instead of listening to your neighbor down there and the thumping bass in whatever he's listening to..."
"Oh." Fenris had already come over to see if he could help, standing by when there was nothing else to do. "That sounds... pleasant," he admitted.
"Yeah. Take a break." Hawke thumped down on the blanket and held out his hands for Fenris, who handed him his tea to sit down first. "You sure you don't need any more ice for your head?"
"I am fine. Really."
"Just let me know if you need something." Hawke stretched and smiled fondly at the elf before flopping back, dropping his head onto a pillow. "Look at the clouds, Fen. They're huge and puffy."
"It's supposed to rain later."
Hawke turned his head. "I say the clouds look nice and you say it's going to rain. What's wrong with you?"
Fenris's grin was nearly hidden as he reached for the tea. After a drink, he then laid down next to Hawke to look up at the sky, too. "Yes, they look nice."
"That one looks like a dog. Like Mabari, even."
Fenris grunted in lieu of response.
"What, you don't see my dog in that cloud?" Hawke gesticulated a little wildly, taking the time to point out where the head, the tail, the nose, two of the paws, and the-
"It's a cloud, Hawke."
"I'm telling you, my dog is in that cloud."
"Your dog is in your apartment," Fenris replied.
"Wow. Spoilsport. You are such a kill joy! How have I ever managed to do anything fun with you?" he teased, bumping into Fenris's shoulder.
"They're clouds. They're beautiful on their own. Why do we look for pictures in them when they're more than enough to begin with?"
"I was kidding, Fen."
"I know." Fenris scooted over until Hawke took the hint and wrapped an arm around him, pulling his head onto his chest. "They're magnificent and all-encompassing. Something nature has created heedless of size or shape. I don't see pictures, I just see... natural beauty."
"So do I," Hawke said softly. He wasn't looking at the clouds anymore.
Fenris did a double take when he realized Hawke was looking at him. "Hawke," he complained, the very tips of his long ears going dusty pink in the dying light. He grabbed his vacated pillow and smacked Hawke around the face with it, leaving it there as Hawke laughed.
"What, I'm not allowed to compliment my boyfriend?" He shoved the pillow away and kissed Fenris's blushing ear.
"You were allowed to fix my car, but that didn't happen."
"I told you, you don't have the right parts."
Fenris only hummed in response to that particular statement, and picked up a different thread of conversation. "This is nice."
"Yeah?"
"Yes."
"The sun'll be down in about a half hour. We can watch the stars, then. There's supposed to be a meteor shower next week." Hawke wiggled a little, eyes locked on the sky.
"Really?"
"Yeah, we should watch it together."
"That sounds nice."
"So it's a date?"
"Yes. A date."
Fenris's fingers were tangled with Hawke's. The elf kissed his knuckles gently and turned back to watching the clouds. Hawke swept a piece of Fenris's hair behind his ear before turning back to the clouds as well.