Chapter Text
When Saturday rolled around, the weather was none too ideal. It was significantly rainier than had been indicated by the forecast the previous afternoon. If there was one thing that could be expected of British weather, it was that it was unpredictable, sunny one moment and raining the next. Thankfully it wasn't all that bad, just a light drizzle (though that didn't mean that it wouldn't get any worse as the day progressed).
Edwin dressed accordingly in a button-down and a dark green sweater vest, dark trousers and his usual pair of boots. He was just thinking about how he wanted to look good, but not like he was trying too hard, when it struck him; since when had he held any concern for such things? He shook his head to rid himself of such useless thoughts and grabbed his coat and umbrella before heading out.
Thankfully it wasn't windy outside, or the umbrella would be useless. He preferred them over raincoats, if only for the sound of the pitter-patter of raindrops against the clear plastic.
When he finally arrived outside of Thomas' block of flats, he didn't even have to text him that he was there. Thomas was already standing outside, safely tucked under the canopy of the entrance that stuck out over the doorway. The moment that he saw Edwin, he perked up and waved.
He was wearing a purple raincoat over a black sweater and cuffed light-wash denim jeans with that same pair of black combat boots that he seemed to favour. He had on a simple gold chain necklace and a single dangling earring that matched. It was so effortless, and yet, Edwin could tell that he had thought about it the way that he always did.
Edwin smiled up at him and watched as he bounded down the front steps only to jump the last one and land directly in front of him with a cheeky grin.
Good heavens, he was beautiful.
“Hey~” he said, clearly unbothered by the less than ideal weather conditions.
“Good morning, Thomas.” Edwin greeted in return, his own spirits lifted by the other's presence. “Ready to peruse the skeletons?”
“You bet your fantastic ass, I am.” Thomas winked and Edwin flushed, unable to respond to such a statement with anything ineligible.
Thomas just smiled even more broadly and looped his arm through Edwin's, leaning against his shoulder so that he fit under the umbrella as well.
It didn't take them long to get to the station and then it was a short train ride into central London to get to the museum. Luckily, they had managed to snag a couple of seats and Thomas had shared his ear buds with Edwin to pass the time. He was pleasantly surprised to find that he had a liking for Bowie.
Once they were inside, they were instantly hit with the magnitude of the place, the large escalator going up the middle of the lobby through a giant meteor. They really didn't pull any stops when it came to organising their displays. Thomas immediately looked to Edwin with an excited look on his face, and he knew that they would be lost to prehistoric reptiles for the vast majority of their date. Not that it was something that bothered him, though, on the contrary; he loved the enthusiasm.
Edwin allowed himself to be practically dragged over to the escalator and enjoyed the experience of going up through the space scene, past bits of meteor and fire until they got up through the centre of the main structure.
There was so much to explore and so many different routes to take through the exhibits that they would never be able to cover it in a single day, but that didn't mean that they weren't going to do their absolute level best.
They did, in fact, spend an inordinate amount of time looking at the dinosaurs and making a point to read every single one of the little plaques that were dotted around the area by each different thing. It was unbelievably fun to go through the place with someone who seemed just as eager to take in everything that it had to offer. They even ended up playing along with the interactive parts like the shutter games and the colourful little wooden doors in one of the walls that each hid a different dinosaur fact behind it.
Edwin wasn't usually one to have his phone out during social outings, but he couldn't suppress the urge to chronicle some of their date with candid photographs of Thomas looking up at the hanging dinosaur skeletons in wonderment or excitedly looking at the crystal and gemstone displays in the geology section.
Once Thomas noticed that this was happening, however, he grabbed the phone from Edwin's hand and switched it to the front camera before pressing himself close to Edwin's side and snapping a few selfies. He did this again with his own phone, smacking a kiss against Edwin's cheek for one of them, an action which left Edwin thoroughly flustered for a good long while.
As they continued on through the different exhibits, it was easy to lose track of time, whiling away the hours between space photography and skeletons and the coolest rocks either of them had ever seen.
“Okay, okay, one stop at the dinosaur gift shop and then we can move on, I promise.” Thomas said, gesturing to the small shop with the glaringly obvious ' Jurassic Park ' signage.
“Alright, I won't deny that it intrigues me as well.” Edwin agreed, following Thomas through the archway.
Inside was a vast array of merchandise for the museum, and wall-to-wall displays of dinosaur-themed gifts that ranged from figures, to books, to key chains, to plushies, to little statues made of stone.
“Look at this!” Thomas turned to Edwin, brandishing a green metal ruler that was topped with the head of a triceratops.
Edwin hid his chuckle behind his hand and picked up one of the little stone statues, just big enough to use as a paperweight. “I think this might be what Niko was referencing.” he said.
“You should get her one.” Thomas suggested, “that way she won't feel too left out.”
Edwin smiled warmly at that. It meant a great deal to him that Thomas got along well with Niko, and that the two of them seemed to enjoy each other's company so far. It was thoughtful of him to suggest bringing her a souvenir. “I think I shall.” Edwin replied.
They looked around for a while, pointing out interesting trinkets to each other as they went. In the end, they left with matching metal key chains that had dinosaurs etched into them with the museum logo (a keepsake for both of them to remember the day by, as Thomas had put it), one of the museum t-shirts for Thomas and a little stone diplodocus to take back for Niko.
It was as they were leaving the gift shop that Edwin realised what time it was, getting well into the late afternoon.
“Good heavens, there's only a couple of hours to spare before I am to be meeting my friends for a movie night.” he said, suddenly worried about getting back on time.
“Time flies, right?” Thomas smiled, though he seemed a little disappointed that this was going to mean the end of their date.
Edwin could definitely empathise with that feeling.
“Why don't you come with me?” Edwin said, suddenly. “There will be takeaway, Niko will be there and you could meet Charles and Crystal as well.”
Thomas blinked at him a couple of times, taken aback by the offer. “Are you sure I won't be intruding?” he asked.
“Of course not!” Edwin answered, offended by the mere notion that Thomas wouldn't be welcome in this part of his life. “I will text them about it now.”
I would like to bring Thomas along with me to the movie night.
-Edwin
OMG YAY! Yes! Bring him!
- Niko
Seriously? Haven't you only been on two dates?
- Charles
Be nice! Thomas is really cool!
- Niko
Three dates, actually. We are just leaving the Natural History Museum.
- Edwin
Oooh~ Third date, you know what that means!
- Crystal's
????
- Edwin
Crystal, leave him alone, he doesn't know what that means!!
- Charles
What does that mean?
- Edwin
DO NOT tell him!!
- Charles
I'm gonna tell him!
- Crystal
DO NOT!!!
- Charles
DMing him as we speak
- Crystal
What are you on about? This is ridiculous.
- Edwin
Guys stop! This is about Thomas coming to movie night, which I 100% approve of!
- Niko
Thank you, Niko.
- Edwin
I don't want him there.
- Charles
Why not? You better have a real reason this time.
- Crystal
I just don't! He's shifty!
- Charles
He is not shifty, Charles. He is perfectly nice and he is my boyfriend. You will have to learn to let go of your preconceived notions and accept him eventually because he is a part of my life.
- Edwin
Thomas is really nice and he really likes Edwin! Just give him a chance!
- Niko
“What are they saying? They don't want me there, huh?” Thomas said, watching as Edwin's face became more and more irritated.
Edwin sighed and looked up from his phone. “It is just Charles. He has been my best friend for a very long time and he is a bit… overprotective.” he explained with a wince. “The girls seem to approve though.”
“That's good?” Thomas replied like it was a question.
“There was also some implication about third dates that has gone completely over my head and no one is explaining it.” Edwin frowned.
“Oh!” Thomas giggled. “It's nothing crazy. There's this old idea that people put out – or have sex – on the third date. It's pretty antiquated, honestly. I don't know anyone who actually uses that as a rule.” he shrugged.
“Oh...” Edwin could feel his face turning red as his mind was rapidly filled with a very specific set of imagined things.
“They're just teasing you. In reality, there's no real timeline for that. It's different for everyone.” Thomas tried to reassure him, not knowing the kind of thoughts that were currently swimming around Edwin's head.
Thomas told me what three dates means. Do grow up.
- Edwin
hahahahahaha
- Crystal
He better not be expecting anything!
- Charles
He is not expecting anything. I am bringing him with me to movie night and you are going to be civil about it.
- Edwin
Yay!
- Niko
Yes! Bring him!
- Crystal
Fine.
- Charles
Edwin put his phone back into his pocket and turned to Thomas. “Ready to brave the rain?” he asked.
“As long as I can get under your umbrella again.” Thomas gently knocked into Edwin's side as they walked towards the exit.
It was something that Edwin might have considered irritating or an invasion of space from someone else, but he found that he really didn't mind when it came to Thomas. If anything, he actually enjoyed that he wasn't shy about initiating physical affection or contact. It had always been something that Edwin struggled with, initiating things, but something about Thomas had him wanting to accept what was being offered, and wanting to draw closer to Thomas on his own as well.
As they stepped out of the door, Edwin put up his umbrella and leaned it so that it was covering more of Thomas than himself as his boyfriend once again tucked against his side. The brisk walk to the train station was spent with Edwin fighting the dumb smile from his face and enjoying the warmth that seeped through his coat and into his skin where Thomas leaned into him.
-----
When they arrived at Crystal, Charles, and Niko's shared flat, it was ten minutes later than when Edwin would usually arrive for movie nights. Usually, getting held up would bother Edwin (he liked to be punctual), but Thomas hadn't wanted to show up empty-handed, and so they had stopped at a Tesco on the way and bought several large sharing bags of gummy sweets and chocolate.
Edwin barely had the chance to knock before Niko was enthusiastically swinging the door open and greeting them with an excited grin.
“Hi! You're here! Thomas is here, too! Come in!” she exclaimed as she waved them both inside.
“Hello, Niko.” Edwin greeted her back warmly as he stepped inside. “I trust that preparations for the evening's activities are well under way?”
“Of course!” she replied, “Charles is setting up the DVD player and Crystal is microwaving popcorn. I've been organising the snacks into bowls.”
“Well, we got some extras.” Thomas smiled as he followed Edwin inside and passed the bag over to Niko. “Hope they're ones you guys will like.”
“Ooooh! There's Starbursts and Twirl Bites in here!” Niko exclaimed. “Twirls are Charles' favourites.” she said the last part in a stage whisper and then giggled brightly, bouncing into the kitchen with the bag in hand.
From the hallway, Edwin and Thomas could hear Crystal very clearly digging through the bag and triumphantly retrieving the jumbo pack of Rowntree's Randoms with a resounding “Oh, hell yeah!”. They shared a humorous look and Edwin really hoped that it would ease some of Thomas' nervousness about meeting the rest of his friends.
“Well, that went over well.” Edwin smiled.
“Glad I had you giving me advice on what to choose.” Thomas replied with a smile of his own.
“Let's wait in the lounge, shall we?” Edwin suggested, leading Thomas down the hall and over to the living room door, which had been left wide open. It was directly opposite to the entrance to the kitchen.
“Hi Thomas!” Crystal called from behind the counter. Upon looking over, they could see that she had already dug into the bag of Randoms and was pulling out all of the ones that were shaped like crocodiles.
“Hey! Crystal, right? I think I've seen you around.” Thomas said, stepping out from behind Edwin.
“Yeah, I've been to a couple of your parties with Niko and Charles before.” She leaned against the counter as she spoke. “Didn't get to say more than a cursory hi to you, though, you're a man in-demand.” she joked.
“Well, it's nice to meet you all more officially, then,” Thomas responded easily. “To think, I could have met this gorgeous man sooner if I'd only spoken to you for longer one of those nights.” he nudged Edwin with a grin, playing up the act of woe over his missed opportunity.
It paid off the moment that Edwin brought his hand up to cover his mouth as he chuckled quietly. “Really, Thomas. I think that the way that we met was just fine.”
“Yeah, never been so glad to get knocked on my ass and send someone's dissertation flying across the street.” Thomas laughed and Edwin's heart swooped pleasantly at the sound.
“Gross! You two are so gooey!” Crystal complained.
She was distracted from saying more though, when the microwave went off behind her and the smell of fresh popcorn wafted through the apartment as she opened the door. Not one of them could prevent themselves from salivating at the scent.
“Alright, I do believe that is our cue to make our way into the lounge.” Edwin gestured to the right and Thomas stepped inside the room in front of him.
The room was small and cozy, to be expected from a student flat. There was a wide four-seater sofa against the wall to the left of the room, facing the TV with a little wooden coffee table in between. The table was resting on top of a cute oval-shaped rug that was covered in little stripy cats. One of Niko's additions to the place, no doubt.
“Good evening, Charles.” Edwin greeted his best friend with a warm smile. “Having fun?”
Charles was not, in fact, having fun. He was hunched over their old DVD play trying to figure out why it wasn't connecting to the television. He let out a heavy sigh and put it down on the floor.
“Mate, I am having the opposite of fun. DVD player won't connect to the TV properly, will it? I've been at it for at least fifteen minutes and it's driving me up the bloody wall.” Charles dropped his arms to his sides in defeat and huffed.
“Is it on the right extension?” Thomas asked, peering around Edwin, curiously.
“What are you on about?” Charles asked.
“Is the channel switched to the extension that matched the HDMI port on the back of the TV?” he elaborated, moving closer to get a better look. “Maybe it's on the wrong one.”
“No one asked for your opinion.” Charles mumbled.
“There's a lot of cables back here, I'd almost forgotten what it was like before the invention of streaming services.” Thomas joked, pointedly ignoring Charles' remark.
“You can pry the physical media from my cold dead hands.” Edwin walked over to the sofa and grabbed the remote. He pointed it at the telly and brought up the menu. “Which one is it plugged into?”
Thomas walked around Charles and leaned over to get a view of the back of the TV, where all of the cables were plugged in. “Extension four, I think.”
Edwin tried it. “That does not seem to be the correct channel.” Edwin frowned, flicking through the different extension channels before landing back on four again.
“Well, I could have told you that, couldn't I?” Charles picked up the DVD player and put it back on the lowest shelf under the TV stand, attempting to switch it off and on again.
Meanwhile, Thomas pushed a cable into place and suddenly, extension four lit up with a DVD menu screen. He was so, so tempted to be smug, but instead just smiled politely as he walked back to Edwin's side and plopped himself down on the arm of the chair.
“It seems that the issue has been solved.” Edwin said, “Do we have a selection picked out for tonight?”
Charles glared at Thomas from where he was still seated on the floor and Edwin really, really hoped that he would at least try to remain civil. He wanted his friends to like Thomas. He wanted Charles to like Thomas because his opinion was important to Edwin. He just didn't understand where the animosity was coming from.
Never mind. He would simply get Charles used to Thomas' presence via exposure therapy. Edwin would bring his boyfriend along to as many group activities as possible until Charles got used to him. Thomas was good for Edwin; he was nice and fun, and bright, and Edwin knew that Charles would appreciate him if only he would let himself see beyond Thomas' past.
“Yeah, Niko wanted to watch The Cat Returns again and it's her turn to choose the movies, so,” Charles offered a half-shrug and got to his feet just as Crystal came into the room, carrying a large mixing bowl full of popcorn.
“Snacks are ready!” Niko announced as she followed Crystal into the room and they placed their selection on the coffee table.
Niko hurried over to the DVD player and put the disk into the tray before shuffling back to the sofa to snag her usual seat, closest to the door. She liked it because it meant that she got one of the sofa's arm rests all to herself, something that she could hardly be faulted for. Thomas had managed to snag the other side, which meant that Edwin, Crystal and Charles would be relegated to squishing in between them.
Edwin, of course, sat closest to Thomas and Charles sank down on his other side, with Crystal between him and Niko. It was a bit of a tight fit, and it looked like there might be a complaint, but before anyone could say anything, Thomas twisted himself slightly and draped his legs across Edwin's lap, allowing Edwin a little more space. Upon realising what he was trying to do, Edwin shuffled closer and put one arm behind Thomas so that the position would be a little more comfortable.
Thomas offered him a little grin and Edwin could see the subtle blush that had arisen on his boyfriend's cheeks. “This okay?” Thomas asked quietly.
“Of course,” Edwin replied, “it was good thinking.”
“Ugh! You guys are gonna be so insufferable, aren't you?” Crystal teased them with a grin.
“Probably!” Thomas replied cheerfully.
Charles rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest, sulkily. Niko just giggled from her end seat and pressed play on the remote. Edwin really wanted to scold him, but he didn't want to cause a disruption. No matter, he could always give Charles a talking to at a later date should he choose to continue with his poor attitude. It was almost humorous to see him so sulky.
Rather than make a fuss, Edwin leaned back into the sofa and relaxed, giving his best effort to concentrate on the whimsical animated movie on the screen and not the warm – almost comforting - pressure of Thomas practically snuggling up against his side. It was nice.
Edwin brought his free hand up to rest on one of Thomas' knees and relaxed further into it, letting himself simply enjoy the presence of his boyfriend and his friends around him, as the Baron and his two trusty companions do their utmost to rescue their new human friend from turning into a cat.
Once the movie has ended, they go about ordering some pizza for dinner and chat while they wait for it to arrive. When it does, it's Charles that gets up to collect it from the delivery guy. Crystal is the one to lean forward and shift the snacks over to the side to make space.
Edwin offers to fetch glasses from the cupboard for their drinks and then returns to his previous position directly after placing the five cups on the table. He was far too comfortable to give up his spot and Thomas certainly didn't seem to mind.
Niko put on her next movie choice (Whisper of the Heart), and they settled in with the pizza and drinks. Edwin was pleasantly surprised by the reappearance of the Baron in this movie as well, though this time he was a statue with sparkling eyes and the subject of the main character's fantasy story.
By the end of the film, all of them were full up and starting to get tired. Thomas was visibly getting sleepy and Edwin found himself with the sudden urge to wrap him up in blankets. The thought struck him with another that followed instantaneously: ' What would it be like to fall asleep next to Thomas?' and then, 'What would it be like to wake up with him, in his arms?'. Edwin quickly shook the thoughts from his mind, sure that he could examine them further at a more opportune time.
“Would you like for me to walk you home?” Edwin asked Thomas, in a whisper. “I wouldn't feel right about having you go alone when you're this tired.”
“I certainly wouldn't mind it.” Thomas answered with a sleepy smile. “My knight in shining armour, how chivalrous~”
“Edwin's just a good person, that's all.” Charles commented, refusing to look at them directly while they were all cuddled up together.
Nevertheless, Thomas' expression softened as he replied; “Yeah, he really is.”
“Oh my fuck! Enough of the sappiness! Just go home already!” Crystal jeered with another wide grin on her face. It was clear that she was going to have all the fun in the world teasing them over their relationship.
“Please, Crystal, like you and Charles were any better when the two of you first got together.” Edwin retorted.
“Oi! We were not that bad!” Charles protested.
“Yeah, we were.” Crystal smirked and tried not to laugh at the way Edwin's eyebrows had shot up in disbelief at Charles' denial. Their honeymoon period had lasted over seven months and they were barely any better now.
“You so were! You couldn't keep your hands off of each other! It was so romantic!” Niko gushed, her smile as bright as ever.
“Alright, fine. I concede.” Charles held up his hands as he turned a bright red and Crystal leaned across to smack a kiss against his cheek. The expression on his face was so lovestruck and silly that it only proved Edwin's point.
Edwin was the first to get up from the sofa – reluctant as he was to get out from underneath Thomas' legs – and offered his boyfriend a hand. Thomas took it, of course and instead of letting Edwin's hand go when he was up, simply turned and laced their fingers together.
Just like that, Edwin was feeling sappy. Sure, he had had boyfriends before in the past, but none of them had filled him with such excitement or quite so many mushy feelings. He had never thought himself a particularly affectionate person outwardly, but Thomas was causing all sorts of unfamiliar urges to fly up towards the surface of his mind.
They bid their goodbyes and Niko pulled them both into a hug before waving to them as they left.
Blessedly, it had stopped raining outside and they were free to take a more leisurely pace down the darkened street, lit only by the intermittent street lamps that were dotted along the edge of the pavements. The only sound that accompanied them was the distant music of a house party a couple of streets over and the quiet thudding of their own footsteps.
“Did you have a good time?” Edwin asked just as Thomas had begun to subtly swing their joined hands back and forth between them. “I do hope that you didn't find Charles too off-putting. He can be quite stubborn when he wants to be.”
“I'm sure I'll win him over eventually.” Thomas winked. “I'm irresistible.”
“You certainly have your abundant charms.” Edwin smiled, taking note of how pretty his boyfriend looked under the warm light of the street lamps.
“I certainly do!” Thomas agreed, chuckling slightly before moving closer to Edwin so that their shoulders brushed together. “Do you know why he doesn't like me?” his tone took a more insecure tinge, not knowing what he could have done wrong to cause someone he had never really met properly to dislike him.
“I think that he thinks you are promiscuous due to what he has heard about your history.” Edwin replied honestly. He didn't think that it would do either of them any good if he were to sugar-coat his response or beat around the bush.
“Ah.” Thomas said, suddenly understanding. “He doesn't think I'm serious about you.”
“Rest assured that I, and the girls, have already told him that his line of thinking is antiquated and ridiculous. Just because you have had short relationships and one-night-stands in the past does not mean that our relationship should be any less sincere.” Edwin rushed to reassure him, giving his hand a light squeeze.
“Damn right!” Just like that, Thomas' smile was right back on his face where it belonged. “It's true I had a lot of hook-ups before I met you and my past relationships haven't exactly ended well, but that doesn't mean I'm not serious about you. We haven't been together for very long, but this might be the most fun I've had in a relationship. I like being with you, Edwin, and I want to keep being with you for as long as you want me, too.”
It was a lot for Edwin to digest, but it was undeniable that he felt the exact same way. He liked being with Thomas, he felt free and uninhibited in a way that he hadn't experienced in his previous relationships, and he most definitely wanted to spend as long of a time with Thomas as the other man would want him for.
“I like being with you, too.” Edwin said, just above a whisper. “I'll have you for as long as you'll have me.”
“Better get used to me then.” Thomas replied in a low tone, expression that of a man completely taken. “I might just decide to never let you go.”
“You shan't catch me complaining.” Edwin quickly kissed Thomas' cheek.
The two of them happily walked the rest of the way with matching giddy smiles.