Who: Nina and Gabe When: Early May Where: Gabe’s place What: Date night Rating/Warnings: Low/None Status: Complete
Nina loved date night, it was something she looked forward to each week. They saw each other when they could of course, but they made sure to spend at least one night having a proper date. This time Gabe had cooked and Nina had brought over a movie and dessert. They were just finishing their meal, having caught up with the days events for both of them and then they would move onto snuggling and watching the movie. That was Nina’s favourite part of the dates they spent at one of their homes, the snuggling time. She loved being in Gabe’s arms.
Gabe was busy at the sink, washing their dishes. With the drought California had, running a dishwasher was something he rarely did. Plus, living alone, he didn’t have many dishes to wash. But now that he was seeing Nina, he’d almost considered buying a whole new set, just so she wouldn’t have to see his embarrassing hodge podge of mismatched tableware. A plate from the 80s from his aunt. Some random plate he’d bought at a discount store. Some plates that were Rocco’s he’d never given back.
“You want coffee?” he asked, as he placed another dish into the drying rack. “I just bought a bunch of K-Cups”. He’d broken down and gotten a machine though he still preferred his French Press. But it was easier using the Keurig, he had to admit.
He enjoyed date night as much as Nina did; it was nice getting back into the game, and every time they had a night like this Gabe couldn’t imagine life without Nina. On days that were date nights, he was always more distracted at work, mentally counting down the hours until they’d be together, and if it was his turn to cook, or find a restaurant, he fussed over how to make it perfect. Tonight’s meal hadn’t been so bad, though he thought he might have overcooked the vegetables a bit.
Nina didn’t mind the mismatched plates, she found it rather sweet actually. The only reason she didn’t have such an eclectic load of crockery was because Audrey had given her an old set when they had received a new lot as a wedding present.
“Coffee would be great” she nodded, it would go well with the vanilla cheesecake she had brought with her for dessert too. Sometimes having a best friend as a baker was really handy.
Audrey had been helping Nina learn to cook better, so that they didn’t always have to go out when it was Nina’s turn. She knew Gabe didn’t mind and he’d be very polite even if what she made was awful. He was really very sweet that way. Especially since he was such a good cook, everything he made truly was lovely.
Gabe was an honest guy, but even he knew better than to criticise a woman’s cooking. Not that he’d had to yet, as so far he’d either cooked, they’d ordered in, or gone out. They’d just never really gotten around to Nina cooking for the two of them. And he wasn’t about to push it either, because he didn’t mind. She was a nurse, and hence on call, and so busy a lot. If anything he enjoyed giving her a break from having to do anything. His own cooking was good only by default of his passion for horticulture; learning how to grow plants well meant growing tasty vegetables and fruits, knowing how to pick them when shopping, and taking advantage of all that effort by cooking good meals with them. Or at least, that’s how he would have explained it.
He dried his hands, tossing the towel over his shoulder and went over to the Keurig. It was already on and ready to go. “Any flavor? Regular, half caf, decaf?” He smirked. He sounded like a barista.
Nina did consider herself lucky that she’d managed not to need to cook yet, and even luckier that Gabe didn’t mind. He didn’t expect her to be a wonderful cook which definitely took the pressure off. And he also understood when she was called into the hospital on her call nights. That was a rare thing, to have someone who was that understanding.
“Half caf?” she requested with a grin, he did sound like he could be working in Starbucks, “Too much caffeine and I’ll be up all night” she said wryly, “Do you want me to do anything?” she offered.
Gabe chuckled as he popped a pod in, placing 'her' mug underneath. He'd gotten her a mug from the botanical garden he worked at so Nina would always have one at his place to call her own. He pushed the button and playfully tossed the dish towel at her. "And how is staying up a bad thing?" He teased. He walked over to her, clad in his "casual date night" attire of jeans and a button down dress shirt. He kissed her lips quickly. Smiling down at her he said "All you gotta do is be you." And he stole another kiss. "What'd you bring?" He meant the movie, he'd seen the cheesecake and nearly inhaled dinner just to get to dessert.
Nina loved that he had gotten her a mug and loved it even more that he’d gotten it from his work. Slowly but surely she was getting little things into his home and that felt really nice. Laughing she caught the tea towel and grinned up at him, “It’s bad if I need to be up in the morning” she told him before kissing him back. “Just me hmm?” she teased, “I think I can do that” Her hand raised to the back of Gabe’s neck as they kissed and she smiled when they parted, “I listened to the child side of me and picked up Paddington” she admitted, “It looks cute”
Gabe's brow furrowed a little in confusion. "What's Paddington?" The guy part of him had hoped for something more action packed like the Avengers or something, but he wasn't about to complain. He'd take a kids flick over a chick flick any day.
The Kuerig hissed that it was done and Gabe went to get his girlfriend's coffee and start his own. He came back with her mug and set out the half and half on the table.
Honestly Nina had been looking for a more action packed film but then had been pulled to the talking teddy. She’d make it up to him next time, maybe she should take him to see the new superhero movie that was coming out soon.
“He’s a character I remember from being a kid. Talking teddy who comes to London from Peru. It’s supposed to be really good” she told him as she added the milk to the coffee.
'Talking teddy' made Gabe think of that movie TED, and he knew for sure that was not a kids film. Then he realized this might be one of those "Brit Speak" moments when Nina was using a British term that he wasn't understanding. "Wait, a stuffed bear or like a bear, bear? Like Yogi Bear?" Gabe was now cutting up the mouth watering cheesecake. He sucked off some remnant of cheesecake he got on a finger before handing Nina her slice on a plate.
“Oh a bear bear. Grrrr bear” she said with a little pretty rubbish imitation of a grizzly bear. “But he can talk and he has a suitcase and eats marmalade sandwiches. It’s much better than how I’m making it sound” she smiled as she took the plate grabbing forks from the kitchen drawer.
Gabe chuckled. "Marmalade sandwiches?" Gabe tried to remember what marmalade even was. "Aight, I'll take your word for it, babe." What the heck kind of kids film was this? Then again Yogi bear was always stealing picnic baskets so he had no leg to stand on when it came to criticising, really. Gabe leaned back against the counter and chowed down on his cheesecake slice, completely forgetting to make himself coffee.
"Oh God, this is amazing." He practically groaned, and closed his eyes a moment. "I haven't had cheesecake this good since Juniors in New York." It was food like this that made him miss home like crazy.
"They're actually quite tasty. I'll make you one sometime" Nina told him with a grin. If she could find it, it had taken a while to locate jam in the supermarket. But she was sure he'd like the film once he saw it.
Taking a bite of her own cake she smiled, "Oh that is good. Izzy has the knack, maybe it's her New York roots that make it extra good" she suggested. Noticing he'd forgotten his own coffee she moved over to the machine and set it up.
“Wait, she’s from New York?” Gabe said in surprise around a piece of cake in his mouth. He watched as Nina went over to make him coffee. “Oh, heh. Thanks, Nina. Totally forgot.” He kept eating, licking every bit of the smooth cake off of the fork when he was done. “Yeah...you’re gonna have to take that when you go. I’ll end up wolfing that baby down before tomorrow.”
“Yep. Born and bred” Nina confirmed with a smile, “It’s okay, I understand cake distraction” she teased him before laughing, “I’ll take it with me” she promised, though she might leave a bit in the fridge and not tell him about it until tomorrow. “I’ll have to tell her how good it was, I’m sure she’ll be pleased”
"Yeah, I don't need to go into a sugar coma." Gabe laughed. He also kept himself in good shape and didn't want to start ruining it with an entire cheesecake. "Yeah please tell her I thought it was amazing and totally a legit New York cheesecake, from one New Yorker to another."
“Definitely not” Nina said, as she moved over to hand Gabe his coffee, “You got it. Don’t be surprised if she starts supplying you with it” she smiled, she imagined Izzy would be very grateful for such sweet words. “Come on let’s take our coffee and watch Paddington” she took his hand and began to lead him into the living room.
Gabe let himself be led into the living room, smiling. He loved this part of date night, being close to Nina and holding her. He liked the way she snuggled into him, and he didn't feel guilty in the least that sometimes he picked long movies for their stay at home dates just so the snuggling lasted longer.
The living room was sparse, a typical bachelor pad save for the assortment of plants dotting the landscape of the room, all strategically placed to catch sunlight at optimal spots, or avoid too much of it.
Gabe set down his mug on the side table next to the couch and went and popped the DVD into the Bluray player. He then sat down next to Nina as the movie loaded. When the menu came up he got his first glimpse of this bear. "Oh I see, he's all CG. Hey, isn't that the guy from Downton Abbey?" Not that he'd have admitted to anyone but Gabe had watched a few episodes with Nina once. It wasn't his cup of tea, pun intended, but he hadn't been bored either.
Nina found Gabe to be a very comfortable person to snuggle with, he was warm and lovely and she felt very safe when he had his arms wrapped around her. In face snuggling was the best part of the day.
She liked his minimal setup, and how all the plants were strategically placed. Not many people would notice but she did, because she knew how important it was to him.
As soon as he sat down she snuggled into him giving him a kiss on the cheek, “Yeah but you kind of forget that so I’ve been told” she guessed they’d see if they did or not. “Yep that’s him” she said amusement in her tone. She hadn’t been overly keen on Downton Abbey but had wanted to see at least a couple of episodes. There were other shows she preferred though.
Gabe grinned when she planted a kiss on his cheek and turned, wrapping an arm around her smaller frame and kissing her on the nose. They settled in and he started the movie. "So this Paddington is a childhood thing? Was he a cartoon or something in England?"
“It is. First it was a book series and then there were a couple of tv shows. One was completely animated then there was another which had a puppet Paddington with everything else in cartoon form” she explained, “I had a stuffed Paddington toy when I was a kid. My foster mum got him for me”
Gabe smiled down at her. "That's cute. You still got him?" Gabe had mostly been raised by his grandmother, who had been somewhere between strict and doting. "I didn't have anything like that. I mean when I was older it was Ninja Turtles and Transformers but all I remember from my younger years is like, Sesame Street and Mister Rogers neighborhood. Sometimes in Spanish." He chuckled. He was bilingual but a bit rusty on some of his Spanish as he rarely used it.
“I do actually. He’s at home in my bedroom” Nina admitted, it had been something she’d taken with her when she’d left the UK. She couldn’t imagine not travelling with him. “I remember Ninja Turtles and Transformers too. They were part of my saturday mornings” she grinned. “See now that is education, I can’t speak any other languages” She could get by in French and German thanks to school but she wouldn’t say she could speak it well.
Gabe hadn't actually been in Nina's bedroom yet, so he had no idea what it looked like or what decorative items were in it. It was endearing she’d brought it with her. He didn’t have anything from his childhood. “Yeah? That’s cute. Nice. I don’t have anything from when I was a kid. Abuela wasn’t the nostalgic type. Plus she drilled into us that donating our stuff to the Salvation Army meant other poor kids could have toys.” It probably explained why Gabe had next to nothing in terms of...stuff. Plants he had a plenty. And an X-Box - recently replaced after he’d been robbed. A DVD collection, sure. But outside of that, he didn’t have too much.
He chuckled and squeezed her a little. “I guess, though I’m a little rusty. I get by.” He smirked and after hearing a line from the film, repeated it in Spanish, mimicking the tone of the actor.
"Thats a pretty noble thing for a kid to do. I've actually held on to a lot of things from my past. Tends to happen when you're a foster kid, you hold onto everything you can if it's yours" Nina said honestly. "Paddington was my first stuffed toy so he's pretty worn and well loved"
Watching the movie she looked at Gabe when he translated into Spanish. "Now that is incredibly sexy" she told him, leaning up to kiss him, even though she was blushing. It had been very very sexy though.
"Oh I wasn't noble at all." Gabe laughed. "I cried a couple times. I'd try to hide a toy under my bed or somewhere but Abuela always found it. Then I got used to it when I was older." He looked down at her when Nina started talking about her past; he knew she'd been through foster homes but had never considered the impact it had on how she viewed possessions and nostalgia. "Never thought of that. Guess that means I'm not going anywhere huh?" He teased, hugging her a little and kissing her forehead. "You'll have to show me Paddington next time I'm over."
Gabe blushed at Nina's compliment and was at a loss for words as she kissed him. "Wh...well I guess I gotta speak it more often." He grinned broadly, running one hand through her soft blonde hair. "Practice makes perfect, right?" He shifted a little so he could really face her and said "Qué guapa eres." And kissed her lips softly, then translating softly "You're so beautiful."
"Aww that's so sad" she said imagining a little Gabe crying as he had to give up a toy. "Yeah you have a girlfriend with possessive issues. Maybe should have warned you about that before I claimed you" she told him with a smile as they hugged, "Paddington will love to meet you"
She liked his blush, it gave him a cute sexy edge. When he spoke in Spanish again she smiled and then blushed as he translated, "Keep that up and I may end up shocking us both and jumping you" she teased. Neither of them were the most forward of people but Nina had known for a while now that she loved him and very much wanted him in her life for a long time.
Gabe felt his face flush more as Nina teased. He laughed with her and settled down again to focus on the movie. He couldn't deny that the temptation to let her pounce was there, but he'd learned from the experience of past relationships that going too fast seemed to cheapen the relationship somehow, and end it faster. It was why he wanted to take his time with Nina; he really was in love with her and didn't want to mess this up. But joking or not, at least he had some inkling that Nina was into him enough that becoming more intimate wasn't off the table.
Becoming intimate was very much on the table as far as Nina was concerned. She was happy to take things slowly, she loved just spending time with Gabe but she did want to make love with him at some point. Their snuggling and kissing sessions were good and they'd continue doing that forever if she had her way but the idea of going to sleep and waking up with him was a very nice thought.
As they continued watching the movie, Gabe realized it was pretty cute and entertaining. He'd have to recommend it to his siblings for his youngest nieces and nephews to watch. And watching Nina react with all the nostalgic joy of watching a beloved childhood icon really come to life was as fun as watching the movie.
"You're adorable, know that?" He chuckled at one point and snuck a kiss behind her ear.
Nina really liked it, she'd been hesitant to begin with as it looked so different with the CGI but it was really very good and lots of fun.
She giggled a little, "Thank you" she said snuggling more, "It's bringing back good memories" she admitted before they returned their attention to the film.