They walked down the sidewalk hand-in-hand, as had long become comfortable for them. People had either stopped giving a shit about their public displays of affection, or the couple had simply stopped noticing any rustled homophobes lying in wait to find something to be upset about. And they no longer gripped at each other tighter, trying to be less conspicuous whenever someone walked by; it was a much more peaceful walk than it would have been at this same time two years ago.

The sun had, in its usual fashion, begun its descent, cooling down the warm earth with its departure. As the two wandered through the park on a shortcut, they watched as occasional groups of people filtered through, chatting amongst themselves before disappearing out of view. Crickets and cicadas chirped around them, providing a calming soundtrack to cool their pre-date nerves. It seemed that no matter how many dates they went on, each time felt like the first time, and they hoped that this feeling would last as long as possible.

As they approached the facade of the restaurant, Benji paused their stride. He furrowed his brow. Something felt... off.

"What's wrong?" Victor asked, searching Benji's face.

"Mm... you know that feeling you get when... uh, it's hard to explain. But basically I feel like something bad is gonna happen if we go in there," Benji said, his tone serious.

Frowning, Victor held Benji's hand with both of his own. "Do you wanna go somewhere else, B?"

Benji glanced inside the restaurant, eyes scanning the current inhabitants. While the place wasn't packed, there were enough people to give an air of exclusivity. Nothing out of the ordinary seemed to be going on - some were busy enjoying their meals or chatting with their seat mates and having a laugh. Benji scratched the back of his head, feeling silly.

"I don't know what I'm so worried about," Benji sighed, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "I think I'm just on edge because of all that's happening and it's making me worry about nothing."

"It's okay," Victor reassured him. "Sometimes I have weird feelings about things that also turn out to be just my brain being a dumbass. Like remember that time when I tried scallops for the first time and I thought they were gonna poison me?"

Grinning, Benji rolled his eyes. "I was so proud of you for that, though. And you did a great job not dying."

"Aww, thanks, babe," Victor said, kissing Benji on the cheek. He looked at Benji with warm, understanding eyes that sparkled like little pools reflecting starlight. "So what do you wanna do? We can go here or find another place if it'll be more comfortable for you."

"It's okay, I'm okay," Benji breathed, squeezing Victor's hand and smiling softly. "Thanks for putting up with me."

"Of course. I care about you, you're not burdening me or anything, all right?"

Wrapping his arms around Victor's back, Benji pressed himself against his boyfriend's chest, holding onto him. Victor returned the hug, engulfing Benji, resting his large hands on the back of each of the other boy's shoulders. They swayed a bit as Victor kissed Benji's forehead for good measure.

"All right let's do this. I've been thinking about this food all day," Benji said, untangling himself from the pile of limbs and grabbing Victor by the wrist to lead him inside.

When they entered the restaurant, they were struck by the sleek and polished yet simple decor. There were a handful of plain, square walnut wood tables with soft black leather armchairs of either two or four per table set up in an open floor plan. The walls were made of dark brown stucco with labyrinthine black screens to separate the kitchen from the rest of the establishment. Finally, the ceiling was composed of cherry wood arranged together like a puzzle, with small, dim ceiling lights leaving the area only partially illuminated. Soft wind instrumental music played in the background, giving a relaxing ambiance.

Despite the spontaneity of their date, Victor had still called ahead to make a reservation (he never could be too sure that they would have availability). The host guided them to their table, which was by the window and felt a bit more secluded from the rest of the tables and thus was cozier, but it still gave them a good view of everything else.

They sat down and ordered some water along with some green tea as a means of soothing Benji's nerves. When they opened the menu to examine their food options, Victor felt himself go pale.

"Is that... a four with a dot before the zero?" Victor asked, holding the menu up to his face and blinking a few times. "Like... four dollars?"

"Uhh, no, I'm pretty sure that says 'forty'," Benji replied, the ghost of a smile on his lips. "But we don't have to get that, we can get something else."

"No, no, no, no," Victor responded quickly, waving his hands in front of him. "Don't look at the prices, it's on me!"

Benji narrowed his eyes at Victor as he closed his menu, deciding on a bento which included several foods he had never tried before, and set it aside. He didn't choose the most expensive option but nor did he choose the cheapest item, either, because he knew Victor's pride wouldn't allow for him to skimp on it.

Victor furrowed his brows, deciding on something a bit cheaper - a bowl of tonkotsu - because he couldn't, in good conscience, bring himself to spend all that money on a meal.

After they gave their orders, Victor took one of the little porcelain teacups and tapped it gently against the side of Benji's. "I wanted to make a toast to you, B. Congrats on making it into the school of your dreams. You're gonna do great things."

Cheeks reddening, Benji mumbled a "thank you" and sipped from his cup as Victor did the same. He leaned across the table to kiss him when he froze in place, eyes focusing on something behind Victor's head.

"Don't turn around," Benji whispered, trying to duck behind Victor inconspicuously. He swallowed, Adam's apple bobbing, as his expression fell, eyebrows knitting together, face pale.

Stare boring into Benji, Victor grabbed his boyfriend's hand, and Benji squeezed it, hard. Trusting Benji and trying not to be obvious, Victor turned his head ever so slightly to the side, following Benji's gaze through the corner of his eye to across the restaurant.

A few tables away, the face of someone who Benji thought he would never see again came into view. It was his ex, Derek, who was with a guy who looked like a dollar store knock-off version of Benji. He had the same soft, brown hair, a kind face, and looked like he worked out; the similarities were too obvious to ignore. And when Benji saw them, he wanted to slip back out the door, never to be seen again. But for now he stayed put.

Despite his efforts, Benji's attempt to hide had not gone unnoticed. From across the room, Derek smirked as he leaned down to kiss who Benji assumed to be his boyfriend, his eyes staying open as he stared across the room in Benji's direction, as if he had x-ray vision and could see directly through Victor's back.

After they had broken up, Benji had done the mature thing and not only blocked Derek on all social media accounts and forms of contact, but had also gone out of his way to avoid him if he could. This meant leaving the Sticky Beaks and changing his work schedule so he wouldn't have to see him. Luckily, Derek had been at university and so he didn't frequent the area anymore aside from for the summer holidays. But now that he had graduated (or at least he should have if he had passed all his classes each semester), he was back in Atlanta again.

It had been easier to get over Derek than it was to forget about their relationship. Benji didn't love Derek anymore; hell, he didn't think he ever did. At least, not in the way he loved Victor. But being with Derek was better than being alone with his thoughts, though, of course. Not seeing Derek had been a blessing and a curse, because he always expected that he would wake up from this dream where he was with Victor and be confronted with Derek's presence once again. He always expected to see his ex around and even after all those years of being cut off from him completely, seeing him now in the flesh made Benji feel like he was being stabbed in the heart with an icicle. He hadn't asked for this; he didn't do anything to deserve this. Why was this perfectly good day being ruined for no good reason? Hell, he hadn't done anything wrong!

Before Benji could even react, Derek had his hands in his pockets, swaggering over to their table like he was some big-shot businessman trying to get him to buy into the next latest nonsense craze. Benji donned a tight-lipped smile, because it was the only thing he could do to keep himself from crying. He blinked a few times, trying to keep himself together.

"Is that who I think it is?" Derek said as he approached their table, slowing his stride. "How are you guys doing? Didn't expect to see you in here given the... you know."

Derek made a vague motion with his hands before settling them on his hips. Benji raised an eyebrow as he glanced toward Victor, who gave his boyfriend the same look in return. Was he seriously trying to act like nothing had happened?

"Uhh, hey Derek," Benji said, his voice flat. He really didn't want to be there. "Long time no see."

"Y'know, I didn't think ya'll were gonna last more than a couple of weeks, to be honest," Derek continued, pulling up a chair and sitting at the table with them, invading their space. He grabbed one of the appetizers on the table and ate it without a care. "I'm over it now obviously but I almost failed my finals because of ya'll's nonsense."

Gritting his teeth and squeezing Victor's hand even harder, knuckles turning white, Benji could feel his face heating up. He didn't know why he was getting so worked up over this. It was in the past.

"Doesn't sound like you're over it, Derek," Victor replied, eyebrows furrowed. "And can you please stop eating our food?"

Pausing mid-chew, Derek ignored Victor and turned back to Benji again. "Still don't know what you see in this dumbass. That's not a man, that's a toddler. Anyway... have fun in London."

Benji felt like he had been roundhouse kicked in the chest, the air leaving his lungs immediately. Not only was he pissed off that Derek had insulted his boyfriend, but now he felt himself on the verge of panic. He'd only told Victor about his college acceptance, and the only other people who knew were Simon and Isabel, and no one would have told Derek about this. Victor also took notice, his body instantly tensing at the realization. Derek's week attempt at insulting Victor was entirely lost upon this far more significant revelation.

As Derek tried to get up and walk away, Benji, seeing red, clamped his hand down on Derek's arm in an attempt to hold him in place.

"How do you know about that?" Benji asked, voice quiet, shaking slightly but calm.

Smirking wider, Derek shrugged him off. "I have my sources. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a dinner to enjoy with my boyfriend."

Without thinking, Victor's body moved before he could think as he rose from his seat, blocking Derek's path. They stood eye to eye, although Derek had a few more pounds on Victor. But Victor worked out; he could take him.

"My boyfriend asked you a question," Victor said, looking at Benji, whose eyes darted between the two. "Sounds like you've been stalking him this whole time, which I'm sure you know is illegal ."

"You know what else is illegal?" Derek challenged, crossing his arms over his chest. "Trespassing."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Benji asked. Other diners in the establishment had paused and were looking on, distressed.

"My father owns this restaurant," Derek replied, his grimey, sludgy smile growing larger as realization dawned upon Victor and Benji. "And if I wasn't as nice a guy as I am, I could have you two escorted out of here by the police. They're very good people, y'know. Get a bad rap in the news lately for just doing their jobs. Such a shame."

Victor glanced to Benji again, and this time, Benji nodded, giving his boyfriend his blessing because honestly, he didn't want to be there anymore.

After pulling out a stack of twenty dollar bills and setting it down on the table, Victor motioned with his chin for Benji to wait for him outside. Victor really hated that he had to do this, but sometimes it had to be done. He wanted to pay the tip for their food, at least.

Derek raised an eyebrow but said nothing as Benji left.

"I'm gonna ask you again. How did you find out Benji is going to London?"

When Derek didn't answer, Victor made a move toward him, and Derek immediately raised his hands to protect himself, closing his eyes. "Okay, okay. I'll tell you! Just don't hit me."

"Fine," Victor said, lowering his fist.

"I bugged his phone. You happy?"

Victor saw red, his fist moving on instinct this time and connecting with Derek's jaw with a sickening crack. Derek doubled over, his hands flying directly to his face as blood poured from his mouth.

" Shit!" Victor cursed, wiping his shaking hand in one of the cloth napkins before bolting out the door and grabbing Benji by the arm.

They ran as quickly as their legs would carry them, and luckily, there were no sounds of anyone actually coming after them. If Derek decided to press charges, he would have to contend with some serious stalking and wiretapping allegations that, thanks to the handy dandy record function on his cellphone, Victor now had proof of.

Once they were back at Victor's apartment once again, they stumbled inside to see that luckily, the house was quiet. Victor wasn't in the mood to explain that he and Benji had once again run from the cops.

Since they hadn't been able to have a proper meal, Victor heated up the leftover spaghetti and meatballs for him and Benji, and brought it to his room for them to eat in peace. They all but inhaled their food.

"Thank you for today," Benji said as he set aside their plates on Victor's nightstand. "I know that it's probably not how you were expecting our fancy dinner to go, but I appreciate you trying to stand up for me. Even if it... uhh... might get complicated later on."

Shaking his head and clenching and unclenching his fist, Victor kissed Benji, soft and slow. "It's a shame Derek had to ruin things for us. Now we can't go back there ever again. And honestly I wasn't even trying to punch him. It just sorta happened."

Chuckling, Benji leaned against Victor and rested his head on his boyfriend's shoulder. He draped an arm around Victor's neck. "I still wanna know how he was able to listen in on my conversations, though."

"He bugged your phone," Victor replied quickly. "You should probably get a new one since you've had the same one for like three years."

Benji paled, sifting up straighter. He pulled his phone from his pocket and tossed it on the bed. "How the hell did he do that?"

"Can I have a look?"

When Benji nodded in assent, Victor took apart Benji's phone, digging through all the nooks and crannies until he found it: a tiny, round chip next to the SIM card.

"We should probably hold onto it," Benji said, eyeing the device as if it were made of lava. As much as he wanted to be rid of it, evidence was essential because Derek couldn't be trusted.

Sighing, Victor placed the device into a little ziploc bag and stored it in his nightstand. They could figure out what to do with it in the morning.

"I may need your help putting this thing back together," Victor admitted, looking over the pile of plastic and metal that he had created on his bed. Benji shook his head and laughed as he assisted, and in a few minutes, they had succeeded in their quest of putting Benji's phone back together.

They had been sitting on Victor's bed still in their date clothes, becoming suddenly aware of that fact now that they were no longer distracted by their ravenous hunger or the search for the bug.

Examining Benji through hooded eyes, Victor tilted his head to the side as he began unbuttoning his shirt. Benji scooted closer to him, swatting his hand away and helping him instead. Their faces were mere inches from one another, only a few air molecules between them. Victor's eyes traveled down to his lips as Benji slipped his hand inside his boyfriend's shirt, feeling the taut muscles of his chest.

Benji kissed Victor hard as the other boy wrapped his arms around Benji's back, slipping a hand up the back of Benji's shirt, too, before migrating to the front to undo the buttons. They peeled each other's shirts off, tossing them in a random corner of the room to be recovered at a later date.

Shoving Victor down backward on the bed, Benji sat on top of his boyfriend's hips as Victor grinned, crossing his hands behind his head. They kissed like that, tongues and lips and teeth and skin knocking and rubbing together, until Benji, pulling off Victor's pants, decided he wanted to thank his boyfriend properly.