Maybe nothing would ever come of this, maybe he was just making another in a string of big mistakes but his father always said You miss 100% of the shots you never take. So he was doing this and he was glad it was with someone he didn’t have to worry about, someone whose thoughts could remain quiet. He told Nobu to meet him in front of the food truck Stripchezze and found him there when he arrived. Marsh settled on a dead weather t-shirt and a nice pair of jeans. The mini-golf would be a physical activity and he didn’t want to be uncomfortable.
When he finally saw him he smiled and walked up to the much shorter man. “Hey, you made it.” He said with a smile, running his fingers through his hair as he peered around the busy area. “You want to grab some food first?” He asked, pointing to the food truck behind them. Nobu didn’t know about the mini golf but he hoped he’d like it.
The days leading up to the date had been… interesting. Nobu had reached out to friends as soon as he committed to a date, hoping they could enlighten him on exactly what it entailed. What was the difference between going out romantically as opposed to just going out? He didn’t think there was much of a difference but there was obviously something. He just had to figure out what.
“Hello,” he greeted with a wave, smiling brightly. He was sporting a simple button-down top and a pair of jeans, both newly acquired just for the date at his friend’s insistence. “Always!” He practically bounced on his toes with delight. “I have seen this truck around but never eaten here. Have you? It looks good.”
He smirked over at it, raising a brow and nodding. “Tried it yesterday. It’s pretty damn good.” He had tried the Mac and Cheese egg rolls and they were both interesting and delicious. He wasn’t sure what to expect tonight, Nobu seemed a little confused when he called but he felt like explaining that it was romantic helped him understand. Hopefully.
He walked with Nobu to stand in line to see what he might try this time. The TCB-BLT sounded good today and his last meal here was extremely satisfying. “Are you a fan of cheese?” He asked Nobu because that was really the whole schtick.
“Excellent!” The positive review only heightened his excitement. Nobu had been eying the truck for a while, sometimes staring at the giant curtain of mac and cheese longingly on his poorer days, and couldn't wait to finally give it a try. He squinted, reading the menu from their spot in line. Everything looked so good; he couldn't decide.
“Um, yeah,” he answered, seemingly taken aback by the question. Did he like cheese? Phht. Did wild bears shit in the woods? The answer was yes. “Of course I do. Cheese is amazing. I do not know how anyone could not.” Well, he could, but why did he care? More cheese for him. “Ohh I can't decide! It all looks good! What are you getting?”
He pointed to the item on the menu, leaning down to tell him what it was he was getting. “TCB-BLT.” He shrugged with a smile. “I ain’t really been to most of these food trucks but I have a friend who likes them a lot.” He’d run into Ro while he was checking out the location for their date.
“I tried to pick out something for today that would be sort of out-of-the-ordinary and I think I found something that could be fun.” He hadn’t played mini-golf since he was a kid and he was actually looking forward to it.
"Hmm..." Nobu considered his options. He could order the same thing as Marsh... or he could get a completely different dish and then steal a bite of the BLT. The choice was a no brainer.
And they were up. "Me So Cheesy. With a Coke," he announced. He attempted to see into the service window while Marsh gave his order and paid but he couldn't see much due to his height. Bummer.
With order placed, the two wandered to the side to wait. "Fun and out-of-the-ordinary?" His smile widened. "Like me!" He let out a laugh, entirely too amused with himself for making such a lame statement. "What is it?"
A chuckle came out of Marsh’s lips, with a raised eyebrow. He was out of the ordinary but in a way that appealed to Marsh. “You ever done mini-golf?” He asked Nobu. He knew he’d been here for a little bit but he wasn’t sure if he’d had mini-golf wherever he’d been before here. This would be his first time playing it in Nevada.
“I was a semi-professional as a kid.” He teased, grabbing both plates as it came out of the window and ushering the food over to a nearby picnic table. “Almost made it to the Olympics.” It was silly and an obvious lie but Nobu put him in the mood to be silly.
He immediately began to eat his BLT, thankful it was just as good as the egg rolls.
“Yep! Been to a few back home. Not here though.” He'd never gotten the chance to explore the city's mini-golf scene, if there even was such a thing. His whole face lit up when the food was up and he followed Marsh to the picnic table with all the energy of a hungry puppy. “Ohh, a semi-professional? And to the Olympics!” He exclaimed, his eyes glinting with amusement. “Very impressive. I will have to watch out then.”
Nobu chomped into his sandwich. “Mmm,” he nodded approvingly, pleased with the taste. His gaze moved to Marsh's sandwich; it looked pretty darn appetizing. “Can I have a bite?” He asked, his eyes widening to give his best puppy dog eyes.
Nobu’s retort made him chuckle. “Yeah, could have had a gold medal but turns out I just wasn’t cut out for the professional athlete life.”
At the question about his sandwich Marsh gladly handed Nobu the slice in his hand for him to try. It was just as good if not better than what he’d had just a few days prior. “It’s good, isn’t it?” He replied, smiling as he watched Nobu’s appreciation of it.
This was easy, this feeling like he didn’t have to worry about what was happening inside of the other man’s head. “You know, I got a little magic in me myself. See the line over there?” He pointed toward the line for the food truck, proving it was too hard to hear what people were ordering. “That man right there is ordering the Hot Streak sandwich.” At least the pictures of the food were visible so that Nobu could confirm that he was right.
“Such a shame,” he said with an exaggerated sigh, shaking his head. A chuckle followed, unable to keep up the act of disappointment for long.
Success! If he had his tail it would be wagging something fierce. Nobu took the slice gleefully, taking a large bite. “Very good,” he concurred, his words muffled by the food. About as good as the meal that he had ordered that lay waiting for him to devour it. Sneaking one last bite that resulted in the slice becoming half its original size, he handed it back to Marsh. Any longer in his hands and it’d be gone.
“Oh? What kind of magic?” This intrigued him greatly. He had assumed Marsh had no magical abilities but maybe he was wrong. Or he was just teasing like before. He turned in his seat, making no attempt to be discreet as he peered over. “Really? How do you know?”
He raised a brow and shook his head. “A magician never reveals his tricks.” Of all people Nobu should understand that. He nodded his head toward the man picking up his order and looked back at Nobu. “Well, what do you know?” He added as the man walked away with a sandwich that looked like the one on the board.
If he looked back on this day he couldn’t say how or why the words left his mouth. Maybe he was testing his boundaries, maybe he just really wanted someone to know, or maybe he just wanted to distract Nobu from the truth. “Maybe I can read minds.” Like it was nothing, blasé. Only ones that knew was his family and they barely believed him.
Nobu chuckled. “Fair enough,” he conceded. Marsh wasn’t wrong; a magician should never reveal his secrets but it didn’t stop him from wanting to know. He continued watching the stranger intently, letting out a gasp when he saw his order handed to him.
“Whaa? No way!” He exclaimed, turning back in his seat to stare wide eyed at his date. “You can read minds? Really? That is so cool!” So Marsh did know magic! Or he had good hearing. Which was possible but Nobu had heightened senses and he didn’t manage to catch the man’s order. It could have also been planned with the stranger though he couldn’t figure out why he would set-up a bit like that. No, he was pretty sure it was magic. Probably. “Quick! What am I thinking right now?”
Had he gotten away with it? Was he finally out to someone? If he’d been his own therapist he’d call that a breakthrough. “Well, to be perfectly honest I don’t speak Japanese Nobu.” He admitted but then the familiar word bled through. It was something he knew at least.
“But hello to you too.” He finally said, finishing off the rest of his sandwich. He was impressed with this place and he’d have to eat there again whenever he was back in Vegas.
“I haven’t told anyone about that, least not outside of my family and the therapists I went to as a child.” It wasn’t his darkest skeleton, that one he might never tell but this was something at least.
Konnichiwa. That had been the word he was thinking. Nobu practically leapt out of his seat, both hands on the table as he leaned forward, grinning from ear to ear. “You really can! Wow, that is awesome!” His loud exclamation caused a few nearby customers to look over at the two men. “Ah, sorry,” he apologized, settling himself back into his seat. He was no less excited, though, just dialing it back for Marsh's sake. The fact he had never told anyone about his magic outside of those few people made it kinda obvious he didn't want Nobu to shout it out to the world. “And you said you didn't do magic,” he teased, poking the other man's arm. “You had me fooled!”
He shrugged his shoulders and tossed the paper his sandwich was in into the trash. “I wouldn’t call it magic per se.” he looked over at Nobu and grabbed his trash to dispose of as well. “My mind is like a satellite, it can pick up on signals that other people don’t know they’re emitting.” He put his hand out for Nobu now to help him up.
“Enough about me though, why don’t we go and play and little mini-golf.” He never really liked talking about himself, maybe that was why he became a therapist.
Noting Marsh finishing off the last of his sandwich, Nobu took a brief break from his impressed flailing to shove the last of his own into his mouth. This made his cheek puff out comically, not unlike a chipmunk, as he chewed.
He nodded when the other man clarified the type of ability he possessed. "I see, I see." So not magic but psychic in nature. He had to wonder what gave him that ability if not magic. Was he a human with special abilities or something a bit more otherworldly like him? He wanted to ask but Marsh was already off the topic. Maybe another time.
"To mini-golf!" He walked along happily beside his companion, anxious to see what kind of mini-golf experience Marsh had found for them.
The whole bare honesty he’d just given Nobu was causing his heart to speed up. He’d never felt so alive in his life and it was almost entirely an accident. Or rather it was truth he was trying to masquerade as a lie. He knew Nobu wouldn’t be disappointed by the mini-golf, the minute he’d stepped inside a few days ago he could tell it was right up his alley.
“Now I haven’t actually played this mini-golf here but a friend of mine recommended it and I had a look around a few days ago.” It reminded him of his early teenage years when black lights were extremely popular.
They walked for a while until they reached the door. He pulled open the door and signaled Nobu to walk through first. Everything was dark with the exception of brightly lit black light paintings all over the walls. A group of people waiting to get married stood off to the side. It seemed like most places in Vegas doubled as wedding chapels.
Nobu spied the sign for the establishment as they approached. “Ohh KISS. Nice!“ Considering the band’s penchant for flare, the place was bound decked out, but he didn’t anticipate the glory that was the blacklight smorgasbord of giant themed props they walked into. “Wooah this is nuts!” He scanned the area with wide eyes, gaze darting from one brightly lit thing to another until it landed on the cartoonishly large platform shoe that sat at the entrance to the first hole. “That is so cool!” He exclaimed, pointing at the shoe so Marsh knew what he was referring to because there was a lot that could be considered cool. He didn’t know what it was about the shoe he liked so much, perhaps the sheer ridiculousness of its shape and size, but he loved it and literally wanted to be it someday.
The mini golf had been fun, more fun than he’d had in a very long time. Nobu wasn’t bad by any means but Marsh dumbed down his ability a bit to let Nobu win because his excitement over absolutely everything was infectious. He was finding himself excited just by the sheer energy of Nobu.
Each subsequent glowing shoe they passed Nobu posed for a picture and Marsh gladly obliged. By the time they got to the last hole Marsh gladly took a picture with him, as evidence of the time they had. When it was all over they agreed to grab some dessert from a nearby ice cream truck.
“I think I want a chocolate cone, how about you?” He asked Nobu as they walked through the exit of the casino.
“Mmm yes. Definitely.” He licked his lips, mouth watering at the thought of ice cream. Nobu had mellowed out considerably after expelling quite a bit of energy during their golf game. Usually the promise of food had him hurrying to get to his destination so he could consume the yummy goodness, but instead he simply walked leisurely beside his companion. “Though maybe not chocolate. Strawberry? Oh, but they might have mint chocolate chip. I like that too.”
Now onto the busy sidewalk, Nobu slowly wrapped his hand around Marsh’s, keeping his eyes straight ahead. The gesture was partly so they didn’t lose one another in the crowd but mostly to help solidify their outing as a date. Hand holding was something couples did on dates after all. That was what he was made to believe anyway.
“There should be a truck around here somewhere,” he stated, scanning the area as best he could from his vantage point.
He pointed up ahead and before he knew it Nobu’s hand was in his. He smiled softly and walked with him to the close-by ice cream truck. He used to run after trucks like this when he was a kid anytime they played the music along his street. “Mint chocolate chip is good too, long as it’s got chocolate in it I’m happy.” He gave Nobu’s hand a squeeze, careful not to squeeze too hard and then they came up to the front of the line to order their ice creams.
“I’ll take a chocolate ice cream on a cone.” He said to the food truck worker, glad to see a happy smile on their face as they served them. Good service could be rare in Vegas which is why many people sought out Lucky’s in Searchlight.
“So a chocolate fan, huh? Good to know!” The squeeze of his hand caused Nobu to glance at their joined hands and he gently squeezed back in response. He was quickly determining he quite liked holding hands. Marsh's hand was large and warm; it was comforting how it encompassed his own smaller hand. Like an embrace.
“Mint chocolate chip please! Double scoop!” The server was quick to fulfill their order and within minutes both men were the proud new owners of their very own ice cream cones. Nobu licked at the ice cream happily as he walked from the truck, his hand continuing to hold Marsh's. “Mmm this is good,” he declared, smiling up at the other man. “You should taste it. You try mine, I try yours?”
“Sure.” He replied and found a bench nearby where they could easily exchange ice creams without too much mess. He sat down alongside Nobu, releasing hands only so they could exchange ice creams for a bit. He took a bite out of the mint-chocolate chip followed by an appreciative ‘mmm’ as the taste melted on his tongue.
“That’s good.” He concurred, carefully trying to switch off the ice creams again with Nobu. “You know, I’ve had a really great time tonight. ” He admitted, a feeling creeping over him like maybe it was done already. He knew it should be, he’d made too many mistakes lately and he didn’t want to do that with Nobu.
“I mean it, I haven’t had this much fun in a very long time.” He guessed that was why he was so boring.
“Me too,” he agreed with a smile. Nobu licked at his newly returned cone; the chocolate ice cream had been good but he was happy to switch back. There was just something delicious about mint ice cream. His brows rose at Marsh's admittance, genuinely surprised. It also made him a bit sad for his friend. Everyone should have fun like this as often as possible; it made life interesting.
“Really? Well we will have to make sure you have even more fun next time to make up for time lost then.” Because there would be a next time for sure. Nobu wasn't lying when he said he had a great time. Maybe he hadn't quite figured out the whole date thing yet but he enjoyed their time together and wanted to continue seeing him.
“Oh! Did your truck get fixed up?” He asked, suddenly remembering he had planned to ask him about the vehicle. Last he had heard the starter was giving him trouble and he had to take it into the shop.
The starter going out wasn’t a big deal but he had to save up over the last couple of weeks. Not to mention he had to spend money on this date. He never used to have these problems, found he was living comfortably on his salary but a bartenders salary wasn’t as comfortable. “I’m going to bring it in tomorrow I think. Took a cab here.” He wasn’t a huge fan of cabs but he wouldn’t have missed this date for the world.
He happily ate his ice cream and before long it was gone. He hadn’t realized how hungry he’d still been. “So we can do this again?” He asked Nobu. A confirmation of a second date.
“A cab? Oof.” He didn’t often use cabs due to the expense - also he had perfectly good legs so the need wasn’t necessarily there - so he could imagine how much this round trip would cost Marsh. “That’s rough. Hopefully they can get it running soon.” He would have offered to let him stay the night so he had a chance to find another, cheaper way back but he didn’t think anyone as large as Marsh would fit in his little crawl space. Or any human sized person, for that matter.
“Well, yeah. I did say that, right?” Nobu was honestly asking. He thought he had made it clear that he wanted to see him again but maybe he hadn’t. His eyes met his and he flashed him a big smile. “Yes, let’s do this again,” he confirmed, saying it directly so there were no doubts.
A smile came to Marsh’s face along with a slight blush. It was odd that a man of almost 40 could still do such a thing but he did. “Good I’m glad.” He replied and he did it he realized his leg was beginning to hurt him. He took his anti-inflammatory medication from his pocket and popped one into his mouth, trying to appear like there was nothing wrong.
These days the leg always hurt at inconvenient times and maybe that was his body telling him not to exert himself so much. “Cause I think I really like you.” He added. Marsh was a man of few words so when he did use them he tended to mean them.
Nobu's heartbeat increased a hair when he noticed the other man blushing. Why was that? The corners of his lips lifted a bit more. It was nice to see that little hint of color on his cheeks. Cute, even. “I really like you too,” he returned. Tilting his head upwards, he pressed his lips against Marsh's warm cheeks for but a moment. He wasn't sure exactly why he felt it was a good time to do that but it seemed an appropriate response to the other's soft words.
The kiss on the cheek was unexpected but he wasn’t about to let it end like that. He turned his head to Nobu and placed a hooked finger beneath his chin to lift it. He leaned into press a kiss to Nobu’s lips, a soft gesture without too much heat but more than just a peck on the cheek. Marsh’s heartbeat was racing too now, having taken a big step on their date.
“That’s better.” He said once he pulled back from the kiss. That’s all he would let happen for now. His lips tasted like mint chocolate chip and Marsh just couldn’t help how wide his smile got.
His cheeks burned hot, almost unbearably so, and his heart started to race when their lips touched. A strange sensation took over his stomach, like butterflies were fluttering about. What was this feeling? He was confused, but also… happy. He liked it, those soft lips against his, the hint of chocolate lingering there for him to taste. It was likely for the best that their kiss ended so quickly considering his body’s unfamiliar reaction, but he couldn’t help the slight disappointment that it stopped so soon.
“Better. Y-yeah,” he stuttered, his cheeks as red as an apple. For once, he was at a loss for words, and was honestly feeling a bit flustered. Still, he couldn’t help but smile especially when he spied Marsh’s. That wide smile looked good on him. He ran a hand through his hair, his gaze shifting to the comings and goings around them. "Lots of people out tonight, huh?" It was all he could muster for words.
A chuckle came from Marsh’s lips at the comment. “Did I render you speechless?” He asked, satisfied in knowing that he still had it despite his sordid and oftentimes scattered relationship history. “Turns out I haven’t lost my touch.” He chuckled. He should be getting home soon, he told Ronnie he’d be back by now and he didn’t want to leave his friend with his crazy dog.
He sighed and returned his gaze to Nobu. “I have to get home.” He said sadly, offering a small smile.
A gasp escaped his lips, turning his gaze back to Marsh. Him? Speechless? Never! "You did not!" Nobu pouted, nudging Marsh with his shoulder. "You only wish! Not going to happen!" Nevermind that it already had. He let out soft huff, crossing his arms. "Really now! So rude."
Nobu's pouting came to an end when Marsh announced he should be leaving. "Aw, okay," he said, a little disappointed. "It is getting a bit late." He could have gone for several more hours but the evening had to end eventually. Not to mention his stomach was still turning and his heart racing; it was probably a good thing he was headed home.
"You'll say hi to Rudy for me?" He offered him a smile. "If he even remembers me," he added with a bit of a chuckle. Last time he saw the pup in person was when he first met Marsh.
He smirked at that, happy that Nobu remembered his dog. At this point in his life Rudy was the most important thing but with time he hoped that would change. “Just uh, give me a minute?” He stood up and walked away, trying his best to hide his signature limp, to call his cab their location. It would still take a while for it to get here so they could at least enjoy their time for a little bit.
When the call was over he returned to Nobu and sat, placing an arm around him. It was a subtle gesture but enough to show his interest. There was something so nice about not being able to really read the thoughts in his head, to have that language barrier because so often it resulted in him hearing something he didn’t want to hear. “Sorry about that. Cabs take so long here.” He looked down at Nobu again, even sitting the man was an entire foot shorter than him so he couldn’t see him until he looked down.
“I’ll say hi to Rudy, he likes new people and he definitely liked you.” So much that the normally well trained dog went against his training to say hi to him when they first met.
Nobu watched him step away, noting the limp. This wasn't the first time he had seen Marsh limping; he had been when they first met. Did he always have a limp? He couldn't recall noticing it at the party or for most of their outing so likely not. An old injury of some sort acting up? That was the most probable and explained the pill he had gulped down earlier.
The blush on his cheeks that had managed to subside with the man's brief absence returned when Marsh's arm wrapped around his shoulders, albeit not nearly as bright as before. “No worries,” he assured with a smile, ignoring the heat in his cheeks. “Yeah, they do. Lots of people using them I guess. How long do they think it'll be?” It would be good to have an idea how much longer they had before they had to say goodbye.
“You think?” Rudy had taken an interest in him, that's for sure. He wasn't sure if it was necessarily because the dog liked him though. Animals were more attuned to his less-than-human nature for some reason and Rudy likely found the scent of a critter on him intriguing. “I like him too. I would like to see him again sometime.”
Marsh thought on this sentiment for a moment, checking his phone to see if he got any alerts from the cab company. “Well let’s make it sooner rather than later. Why don’t you come over next weekend? We can relax at my house, listen to some music, maybe scrounge up something to eat.” He’d have to do some grocery shopping before but he could probably figure out something from the internet.
“If you’re up for it I mean.” He corrected himself. Was it too desperate to set up a second date when they weren’t even done with their first one. Marsh hadn’t dated, not really. He tried a few times when he was younger but he’d always eventually hear something he didn’t want to.
Nobu considered the offer. This had been the second Saturday in a row he hadn't worked the strip at all and he was sure to feel the pinch soon. He could only mooch off of Penny for so long before even he, a serial moocher, felt like an inconvenience. Still, he really wanted to hang out again. “If you turn 'maybe' into 'definitely' scrounge up something to eat then yeah, let's do it,” he answered with a playful nudge. “Next Sunday?” It seemed like a good compromise; perform on the busier days, relax on the last.
“Sunday it is.” He had to work late Saturday next weekend so it worked out better for him. Weekends always brought in the best tips at Lucky’s. His phone lit up in his hand as it notified him the cab was there. Faster than he expected but he supposed all good things must come to an end.
“Cabs here.” He said quietly and looked down at Nobu again. Maybe this was something that could work out, maybe he didn’t have to live his life alone. He leaned down, pulling Nobu forward by his shoulder and placed a chaste kiss to his lips. “See you on Sunday.” He said softly before letting go of Nobu and standing up to leave.
Another touch of their lips, another odd flutter of his heart. “Yeah, see you Sunday,” he returned softly, an unusual tone for the normally loud and boisterous tanuki. Nobu stood along with his companion, remaining at the bench as Marsh took the few steps to the cab. “Sayōnara!” He called out, waving the other man goodbye, continuing to do so until the taxi had left his sight.
And then he just stood there staring ahead, his head whirling. So much had happened just in that short amount of time and he was at a complete loss. Was this normal? These foreign feelings he was experiencing? Was this what a date was supposed to do? Create a torrent of weird feelings? Or was there something wrong with him?
He tugged his phone out of his back pocket and dialed. “Hey, Penny-chan. I think I might be broken.”