Work Text:
"Table for two?" The bubbly host's blonde ponytail bounces as she looks up from whatever is on her podium. When she gets a nod of affirmation, she steps out from behind the podium and grabs two menus from the pocket on the front of it. "Follow me!" She smiles before bouncing off into the din of the busy restaurant.
"Should we be doing this?" Dennis mutters, just loud enough to be heard. "What if someone sees—"
He's cut off when the host stops at the back of the dining room. She holds her arm out to gesture at the booth in front of her. "Here you are!" Her wide, toothy smile doesn't seem to have left her face at all. She lays the menus down on either side of the table and clasps her hands together in front of herself. "Your server will be along soon." She nods once, spins on her heel, and bounces away.
Dennis sits first and takes a glance around the restaurant. He can see almost the entire dining area from their booth, which means the whole dining room can see them. "This spot is way too open. We're definitely going to be seen."
"Relax, Fuckleberry." Trinity scoffs as she slides into the booth seat across from him. "No one is going to think we're together, I'm clearly out of your league."
Dennis scoffs right back. "We both know I'm the catch here. You wish you could pull me."
"You're right, Hucks." She opens the menu in front of her and Dennis can see her eyes skimming the pages as she speaks in monotone. "I'm gagging for it. I don't know how I'm able to keep my hands to myself right now." She frowns and wrinkles her nose.
Dennis can feel himself pulling the same face as he looks down at his own menu. "Gross." His head whips back up when Trinity squawks indignantly. "What? You don't even like men!"
"But gross?" Trinity asks quietly, somehow making her eyes large and round and wet in a matter of seconds.
Dennis throws his hands up. "I don't like women!" It comes out louder than he means it to, making the person at the closest table whip around to look in the direction of their booth. Dennis pulls the hood of his sweater up and pulls the strings so it cinches over his face before putting his forehead on the table. "Kill me now." gets muffled into the fabric of his sweater.
"Did you need another minute?" A voice that isn't Trinity's asks.
Dennis sits back up and loosens his hoodie strings to see a server standing at the end of their table, a notebook and pen in hand. He looks a bit like Frank— the same floppy dark hair and hard jawline— but his eyes aren't as piercing. Dennis can feel his cheeks heat under the server's gaze. He's barely looked at his menu, definitely not ready to order yet. "Uh, yeah, a couple more minutes, please."
The server nods once, his hair flops over one eye when he does. "I'll be back shortly, then."
Trinity holds up a hand to stop him. "Actually, before you go, can I get a beer? A stout if you have one, if not, anything on tap is fine."
The server nods again, scribbling something onto his notepad. He turns to Dennis. "And you? Anything to drink?"
"A water aaaaaaaaand—" Dennis drags the word out as he grabs the drink menu from where it sits on the inside of the table. He hates being put on the spot, so he just goes with the first one his eyes land on. "A blueberry mojito, please."
Another nod from the waiter. "Excellent choice." He slides his notebook into the pocket of the apron that's tied around his waist and smiles at them before striding away.
"A blueberry mojito?" Trinity snorts. "Fancy. Not hard to tell someone's getting their big boy paycheque now."
Dennis sighs. "I panicked, okay?" He picks his menu back up to start looking at dishes to order. "Besides, I bet it's a thousand times better than whatever you're getting." Dennis has never been a big beer drinker. It's heavy and filling and just puts him in a bad mood more than it gives him a buzz. It has been his go-to lately, though, as it's generally pretty cheap compared to cocktails and wine and he's only been getting paid for a couple months. One treat won't break him, thankfully. As much as he and Trinity pick on each other, he's eternally grateful for her helping him get to this point.
That's how he got roped into tonight.
It was a long, busy day at PTMC. Well, every day was busy, but today they got hit with the victims of an enormous multi car pile-up about midday and by the time everybody had been seen and stitched up and stabilized, it was going on 8 o'clock and everyone on staff was dragging. Dennis shuffled across the parking lot with Trinity to her old Subaru hatchback before his roommate said four words that ruined his entire day. Moreso than the one fatality that hung over them all.
Trinity had both hands on the wheel, but didn't start the car yet. She took in a deep breath, and slowly let it out. "Please don't hate me."
Dennis knew what was coming next. After every please don't hate me came Dennis having to leave the apartment so Trinity could hook up with someone. Dennis groaned, he was bone tired and wanted nothing more than to go home and faceplant onto his bed, forgetting the world around him existed until his alarm went off the next morning and his day started all over again. "I will." He told her. "I will hate you." He pressed his palms into his eyes, trying to keep the exhausted tears at bay. "I just really want my bed, Trin. Don't make me walk the park for hours while you get your dick wet." He let his hands drop to his lap so he could look at his roommate. "Today was rough and I'm tired. Can you just cancel tonight?"
Trinity nodded thoughtfully and turned the key in the car ignition. "It's actually a favour for Javadi."
Dennis cocked his head at that like he was a confused puppy. "For Victoria?"
Trinity nodded again. "Yeah, she has a date tonight with some guy she met online and she was really nervous so I mentioned that maybe I could stage a run-in to check up on her." She told him. "You know, accidentally bump into my good friend Victoria while she happens to be on a date and whisk her away if need be."
"How nice of you." Dennis' voice came out flat, but he meant it. "But what does that have to do with me and the emotions I have for you?"
Trinity sighed as she pulled out of the staff parking lot. "They're going out for a late dinner. He's also in med school, so he understands the weird hours, so I kinda told her I'd set up at a table and keep an eye on her. I was hoping you'd come with me so I'm not just sitting by myself like an asshole."
Dennis thought about it for a few minutes before his stomach betrayed him and growled hilariously loudly.
"I'll take that as a yes." Trinity smiled at him. "Which is great cause we're here."
Dennis looked out through the windshield and, sure enough, they were already in the parking lot of a steakhouse.
"The eagle has landed." Trinity hisses, nodding towards the front door of the restaurant where Victoria is standing next to a tall, curly haired boy. "I repeat, the eagle has landed." She unzips her backpack and pulls out two cheap Halloween wigs before shoving one across the table in Dennis' direction. "Put this on."
Dennis slowly reaches out and takes the crumpled wig from her fist. It's a shiny lime green bob with blunt bangs. "Trin, I'm not—"
"Put it on." She hisses again through clenched teeth, pulling on her own dollar store wig. Hers is a sparkly purple mullet. Her own dark strands stick out from underneath the synthetic hair. She finishes the look with a pair of thick-framed plastic glasses with an attached nose.
Dennis can't help the bark of laughter that escapes him when Trinity looks at him. "You're insane. This guy doesn't know who we are or what we look like." He turns the green wig over in his hands anyway before tentatively pulling it on. Paired with his orange hoodie, he feels like he should be working under Willy Wonka.
"When you got dinner at eight, but gotta fish a fat German kid out of the chocolate river at nine." Trinity snorts, making Dennis pull the wig off again. "Come on, Huckleberry, where's your sense of whimsy?" She gives him big wet eyes again.
Dennis groans and pulls the wig back on again. "Happy?" That earns him a grin from his roommate-slash-best friend that he can only categorize as shit-eating. "Where's Javadi?"
Trinity straightens up and looks around the restaurant. "Uh, three o'clock. Your three o'clock."
Dennis whips his head to the right, the plastic hair rotates on his scalp, covering half of his vision. He quickly straightens it and looks for his friend again.
Victoria and her date are sitting at a table in the middle of the dining room. The random boy's back is to the booth containing Dennis and Trinity, meaning Victoria is looking directly at them. Her eyes are wide as she takes in her friends, but she tries to keep her smile friendly as she nods at something her date is saying.
Dennis and Trinity give her a synchronized thumbs-up.
"Hey, are you guys—" Their server appears at the end of their table again, his question dying in his throat as he looks up from the tray of drinks he's carrying and takes in the sight of his customers in their disguises. "Uhhhhh?"
"I'll have the bacon mac and cheese." Trinity smiles at him, completely ignoring the way he's staring at them both for their new appearances.
"Pulled pork burger with fries and a side of Kapow Shrimp, please." Dennis closes his menu and stacks it on top of Trinity's at the end of the table.
Their server— Ethan, Dennis finally gets a glimpse of his name tag— quickly lays their drinks in front of them and tucks the now empty tray under his arm so he can scribble down their orders in his notebook. "Anything to start?"
Dennis and Trinity lock eyes and nod. "Deep friend pickles." They tell him in unison.
"Perfect. I'll uh, I'll get that in for you." He stumbles as he walks away, trying to get another look at the table over his shoulder before he goes.
Trinity giggles into her beer glass. "That poor kid."
Dennis chuckles an agreement before sipping his own drink. Oh, that's dangerous. He's about to take a second sip when pain suddenly blooms in his shin. Trinity kicks him under the table a second time. "What the fuck?" He hisses, mood instantly souring. "Use your words, asshole."
"I was splitting the G, I couldn't stop." She turns her glass so Dennis can see the word Guinness written on the side. The surface of the dark beverage inside perfectly bisects the first letter. "Anyway, did you get a good look at the guy when he came in? I didn't and now we can only see the back of his head."
Dennis shrugs. "Caught a glimpse of him. He's tall, curly hair."
Trinity groans. "I can see that from here. Did you see his face? Does he look creepy?"
"I don't know what you mean by that." Dennis tells her before sipping his drink. "How do I assess if someone looks creepy or not?"
Trinity shrugs. "I don't know, Huckleberry." She groans. "Pale skin, curly black mustache, stovepipe hat—" She gets cut off when a basket of deep fried pickles is suddenly shoved in front of her. "Thank you!" She grins at Ethan.
"Yeah, thanks." Dennis nods once at the server before turning back to Trinity. "You're literally describing Snidely Whiplash. I doubt Victoria is on a date with Snidely Whiplash."
"She could be!" Trinity throws her hands up for emphasis. "I can't see the guy to confirm or deny!"
Dennis risks a glance over at Victoria's table. She's staring at them both with wide eyes, her mouth is drawn into a thin line.
"Maybe we can get her to switch places with him." Trinity suggests. She points at Victoria, points at the back of the guy across from her, and circles her hand in the air. Dennis watches her mouth trade places at their friend.
Victoria's eyes get impossibly wider before her face melts into a soft smile and she says something to her date. The guy sitting across from her shrugs before they both stand up and switch chairs. Now Victoria is back on to them and they can clearly see the guy she's with.
"That's not Snidely Whiplash." Dennis says, unhelpfully, before draining half of his mojito. When he looks at Trinity her nose is scrunched up like she smelled something awful. "You okay?" He punctuates the question by crunching on a pickle.
Trinity just shakes her head. "My gut is not getting a good vibe from this guy."
Dennis can't really make a call on the guy without talking to him, or at least seeing him interact with Victoria a little more, but Trinity's gut doesn't usually lead them astray.
*
They finish their pickles and their drinks without noticing anything concerning about Victoria's date, but when their mains and next round of drinks— another blueberry mojito for Dennis, water for Trinity because she has to drive them home later— get laid on the table, Trinity slaps Dennis' hand. "There."
"Wha—?" Dennis follows the finger that Trinity is now pointing across the room. He watches their friend's table for a moment, trying to see what Trinity is seeing. It takes him a second, but then he notices that Victoria's free hand is resting on the table as she eats her pasta with the other one. Her date reaches out to cover her hand with his own, leading to Victoria snatching hers back again. After a minute, she rests her hand on the table again, and he covers it with his own again, not getting the hint. It happens twice more.
"I'm going to go over there." Trinity is halfway to standing before both her and Dennis' phones both chime.
Victoria
it's okay!
Victoria
I asked him to stop and he said he would
Victoria
stand down
Dennis
……okay
Dennis
but we're not happy about it
Trinity
👊🫥
"He's not even that cute." Dennis hiccups, draining his second mojito. "She can do so much better." He loudly slurps the last drop of rum through his straw, getting mostly air. He's glad he ordered a third right away because he's enjoying the buzz after a hard day and every bite of his burger sobers him up more and more.
"Agreed." Trinity snorts through a mouthful of noodles and cheese. Thankfully she swallows before continuing. "I always pictured her with Mateo."
Dennis' eyebrows fly up into his hairline. "Yes! They'd be so cute together." He starts his third mojito as he turns towards Victoria's table. He hasn't looked over in a while. "What the fuck is he doing?" He watches, stunned, as this guy picks up whatever is on his plate with his fork and holds it out across the table, trying to feed Victoria. "This is weird."
Trinity gasps next to him. "I'm definitely going over there this time." She's about to stand when a figure appears at the end of their table. Much too tall to be their server, Ethan.
Dennis looks up at the person standing next to him. The wig slides back on his head as he tilts it up, but he manages to catch it before it falls. Once it's situated again, he actually looks at the person standing over him. It's Doctor Robby. "Oh, h-hello sir." Dennis can feel his cheeks heat, it's partially the alcohol, but it's definitely the embarrassment of the man he has a giant crush on seeing him in a lime green party wig, sitting across from Trinity in her own party wig and Groucho Marx glasses.
Robby's eyebrows pinch together as he takes in the sight in front of him, clearly not knowing how to process what he's seeing. "Is this what you kids do for fun when you're not working?"
Trinity laughs while Dennis sinks into the soft vinyl of the booth. "We're keeping an eye on Javadi, sir." She tilts her head towards the table in the middle of the dining room. Victoria's date seems to have stopped trying to feed her, so Trinity lets her hackles down again.
Robby waves a hand at her. "Leave the sir at work, please. Outside of PTMC I'm just Robby. Or Michael, but Robby is preferable."
Trinity salutes him with two fingers. "Noted."
"Well, I need to get home." He raises a takeout box in his hand that Dennis didn't notice until that moment. "Have fun with—" He gestures between the two of them. "Whatever this is."
"Join us!" It's out of Trinity's mouth before Dennis can even process the entire interaction that just took place. His brain is sluggish from the mojitos. She flashes him another shit-eating grin.
Robby looks at both of them in their shiny plastic wigs and shakes his head with a smile. "I wouldn't want to impose. You kids have fun."
"Not an imposition at all!" Trinity tells him. "If we have to swoop in and save Victoria it might help to have her boss here."
It's a weak defense, but Robby seems to be considering it. If Dennis didn't know any better— and he definitely doesn't with the alcohol swirling in his system— he'd swear Robby rakes his eyes down Dennis' body and back up before turning to Trinity to accept the invitation. Dennis sits up and slides in further on his side of the booth to let Robby sit next to him.
Trinity's toothy grin just gets wider.
*
Dinner with Robby isn't as awkward as Dennis thought it would be. They don't talk much about work, but the man does regale them with tales from his own time in med school, as well as the story of how he met Doctor Abbot before he ever even knew the acronym PTMC.
He's about to launch into another med school story when Trinity and Dennis' phones chime again.
Victoria
SOS
Victoria
EMERGENCY
Victoria
is that doctor robby?
Dennis
don't worry about it
Dennis
what's up?
Victoria
i'll explain later just help pls
Trinity
🫡
It's easier for Trinity to get up than it is Dennis, so she slips out of the booth and crosses the dining room. Victoria is at the table by herself, so she's easy enough to kidnap. The younger girl digs in her purse and lays a couple crumpled bills on the table as Trinity takes off her wig and glasses and situates both on her friend's head instead. She takes Victoria's hand and leads her back to the booth in the back of the room, motioning for her to slide in first so Trinity can block her with her body. Another layer of protection on top of the wig and glasses.
Dennis pulls off his green bob and stands up to lean across the table and plop it on top of the purple wig for good measure. He feels rough, warm hands on his sides where his sweater had ridden up, keeping him steady. The heat quickly spreads up Dennis' body, over his chest, and blooms across his cheeks. He sits quickly, the hands disappear as fast as they had appeared in the first place.
"Thanks guys." Victoria says quietly. She's facing Trinity, but she's definitely scoping out Robby and Dennis in her periphery. "I'll explain in a minute just—" She cuts herself off when she motions towards the table she just vacated.
Her date is back again. He quickly scans over the patrons of the restaurant, but clearly doesn't notice Victoria sitting behind Trinity. He pockets the cash Victoria left on the table, grabs the jacket that's hanging on the back of his chair, shrugs it on, and walks out of the restaurant.
"He didn't even pay!" Victoria gasps.
"And he took your money." Dennis hisses. "Maybe he really is Snidely Whiplash."
Robby chuckles at that, while Victoria's eyebrows pinch together. "Who?"
Dennis waves her off. "Don't worry about it. What happened tonight?" Victoria groans and Dennis can't help letting a little giggle escape. She looks ridiculous with the large black-framed glasses, fake nose, and stacked wigs. He's also still a little buzzed off of his third mojito. Sue him.
"Well, we met online and we've been talking for a bit. We both have super busy schedules so we haven't been able to get together until tonight and until now he really did seem super normal. I only asked Trinity to keep an eye out because he's still a random guy, no matter how normal he seemed." That earns a chorus of nods from the rest of the table. "Anyway, he kept trying to hold my hand, even when I started pulling it away, you guys saw that, but I told him off for it and he stopped. Then everything was fine again for a while, but then out of nowhere he tried to feed me?" Her mouth contorts in disgust. "And I almost left right then and there. I don't know why I stayed. Anyway, the rest of the meal was uneventful, but when he got up to go to the bathroom he insinuated he was going to bring me home with him instead of taking me back to my own house, hence the SOS."
Dennis' jaw drops and Trinity's eyes widen, but Robby is the one who speaks. "I'm so sorry you went through that, Victoria. I'm glad you thought ahead enough to ask Trinity to keep an eye out."
"Huckleberry's just here for moral support." Trinity chuckles, hooking her thumb towards Dennis on the other side of the booth.
Victoria laughs too. "I'm glad you were both here. It helped settle my nerves. I knew you'd both have my back." She smiles at Trinity and reaches out to put her hand on Dennis'. "And uh, you too, I guess, Doctor Robby." Her head tilts as she addresses him, obviously trying to figure out why the man is sitting here with her friends.
"Outside of work it's just Robby." He tells her.
"Just Robby." Victoria breathes so quietly that Dennis isn't even sure she actually said anything.
Robby pats Dennis' knee twice under the table before sliding out of the booth. "I'll be right back." He tells them plainly before striding away.
"What the fuck is going on?" Victoria hisses quietly.
"I have no fucking idea." Trinity whispers. "I think I'm suddenly third-wheeling Robby and Huckleberry."
Dennis nods and audibly gulps. "I don't want to be presumptuous, but I think you are."
The three of them quietly freak out until Robby appears at the table again a few minutes later. "Everybody's bills are settled."
Trinity's mouth drops open. "Thank you s— Robby."
Robby smiles and the corner of his eyes crinkle. It's Dennis' favourite feature on the man. "No problem. It was an odd night, but I had a good time." He hooks his thumb over his shoulder. "I'm going to head out now. I'll see the three of you bright and early tomorrow morning."
As he starts to walk away, the girls start smacking Dennis across the table. "Fucking go." Trinity hisses, the same time Victoria says "Go walk him out."
Dennis pouts as the girls slap at him. "Ow, fine, okay. Jesus.". He slides out of the booth and catches up to Robby in a couple long strides. The man startles next to him. "Sorry!" Dennis moves to put his hand on Robby's arm, but just lets his hand drop to his side instead. "It's just me. Figured I'd walk you out." The heat rises in his cheeks again.
It earns him another smile. A soft one, just for him. "I appreciate it."
They don't go far. Robby is parked relatively close to the door as he was originally just running in for a takeout order. "This is me." The man says, motioning to the black motorcycle two spaces away from the entrance.
"Oh!" Dennis thought they'd have another minute together at least. "Well, it was nice to see you. Outside of work, I mean."
Robby hums as he swings one leg over his bike. "Same to you."
Dennis' eyes roam over the bike. "No helmet?"
Robby just shrugs. "I'm a careful driver."
The alcohol in Dennis' system lets him be brave. He steps forward and pokes Robby right in the chest. "Michael Robinavitch, if I have to scrape you off the pavement and save your life, I'm going to kill you."
That gets a sharp bark of laughter from the older man. He takes Dennis by the wrist and pulls him closer so he can grab the back of his neck with his free hand. He leans in, then, so their foreheads are touching. "From now on, I promise." It's said quietly, like its a secret between the two of them. When he pulls back again, he stops long enough to press a featherlight kiss to Dennis' forehead before releasing him completely. He starts the motorcycle and pulls out of the small parking lot before Dennis can even process what's going on.
"Let's go, Dennis!" He hears Victoria cheer from behind him. It's mixed with a wolf whistle from Trinity.
Dennis flips them both off without even turning around. He hears Trinity tell Victoria that they'll give her a ride home before they meet Dennis where he stands in the parking lot. The three of them head towards Trinity's Subaru.
It's quiet as they all pile into the car and pull out of the parking lot.
It's Victoria that breaks the silence. "Thanks for tonight, guys. I really appreciate it."
"Anytime!" Trinity tells her. It's sincere, Dennis can tell.
"Good." Victoria nods. "Because I have another date next week."