Who: Hino Rei and Chiba Mamoru What: Going out for dinner When: Jan 24th Where: Olive Garden, because Rei wanted Italian food. Rating: PG-13 for possible innuendos
Rei sat down at the table and waited for him to show up. They’d decided on somewhere between their homes, something decent enough, and would meet there. She ordered herself a drink and began munching on the breadsticks that came with while he took forever. Honestly, and men say that women took a long time to get ready and out.
Okay, he’d been sick, she guessed he had an excuse. She shifted in her seat and began thinking on the day. Thinking on the beginning of the year really. It had been so hectic so far and yet the only thought on her mind was the nagging fear that one of her friends was going to be in trouble. She’d always been kind of psychic but this was pushing it.
When she saw him step in, she stood and waited for him to come over. A waiter came over and poured more tea into her cup by the time he got closer to the table. “Ah. Mamoru-san. You look decent. Even if kind of pale still! You feeling alright? I waited to order till you got here.” She said before reaching a hand out. He could either hug her or shake her hand.
Mamoru hadn’t taken forever, dammit, he’d just gotten caught up in something. It happened when you were (almost) a doctor, after all.
Hugging was definitely more his style, even if some people would probably wonder why a man with a girlfriend would be so free with that kind of thing. Honestly, it was all her fault - you didn’t spend any measure of time around someone quite so bouncy and catch it.
“I feel fine. That cure they came up with really worked wonders...” He didn’t like to think what things would’ve been like without it. He’d seen enough people coming close to dying before he’d, unfortunately, caught it himself. “How about you?”
“Doing good. Therapist put me on a different medicine, one that works better and keeps my metabolism in check. And then this weird thing for when things get too much and I need to mellow out.” She sat down and took another sip of her drink after the hug. “With strict orders to use them only when I NEED them. You know?”
Grabbed the menu finally and began looking over it. “So. Are we splitting the bill? I can pay for you as well. Gotta repay how wonderful you’ve been in helping me somehow.” Smiled his way before brushing her hair behind her ear.
At least she was taking them now. With any luck, that’d mean less... well, terrible moments. Mamoru’d seen enough bad things, honestly, but it always pained him more when he actually knew the person involved. “If you’re that set on paying some of it, I’d say splitting it. I can’t let you do everything.”
It just wouldn’t be right. Especially since this was a friend thing.
“So we get what we want then split it down the middle?” Looked above her menu and smiled. “I’m game for that. I’m really hungry. And it’s only because I haven’t eaten today. Been busy. I have food in my house regularly finally!” Looked back down on the menu and tried to figure out what exactly she wanted because seriously, too many choices.
To keep focused while reading she grabbed a breadstick and began nomming on it. But not after pushing the basket to him. “They come as many as you can eat, so eat as many as you want!” Smiled and saluted with the bread whilst reading down the choices for chicken.
That had to be the first time he’d ever been saluted with bread. Mamoru tried to ignore the strangeness of that thought, just because it’d end up being one of those strangely distracting ones that never left his head. He blamed Usagi entirely. “I’m glad to hear things are going better for you. I was worried.”
And not only because of the whole Sailor Mars thing. It wouldn’t do to have a guardian like her feeling under the weather for whatever reason.
“They really are. Seems meeting you guys is the best thing that’s happened in my life.” Smiled and brushed her hair out of her face before slumping down on her hand with her arm bent, chewing on a mouthful of the bread. What to get, seriously.
“There’s too many choices!” Pushed her lips together. “Maybe I should flip a coin... what’re you getting?” Looked up to him.
One of the best things, really, but he wasn’t about to say that. It might come out as a little weird. Besides, more of it was probably down to Haruka and Michiru’s influence rather than his. Minako’s too, even if the woman was completely insane.
Mamoru could only shrug in response to the question. “Would you believe I’m just as bad at deciding in places like this?”
“We fail so hard...” Rei giggled and grabbed out a penny. She set the menu down flat and spun the penny. When it landed on the shrimp alfredo with broccoli she smiled. “Ah! Good choice!” Set the coin back in her purse. “I’ll add carrots to it as well. Want to use it too?”
She reached for her change purse again just in case he did. When in doubt, rely in round spheres of metal that make your hands smell nasty if you hold them too long.
“Thanks, but... I think I’ll just try my usual way.” Mamoru, instead, was just going to go with the time-honoured tradition of closing your eyes and hoping you ended up hitting something that was, at very least, decent. It was how he and Usagi’d tended to order things, when she was still in the OC!
It’d actually hit something fairly decent for once! Maybe his luck was looking up... “Guess I’m going with the steak toscano. Isn’t often that actually works.”
Well, it tended to work in Usagi’s favour, yes, but rarely his.
“Ooh! Sounds good!” Put her order in for the waiter to take before he took Mamoru’s and was off. “So. How are things in the world of medicine? You go first, I’m still parched so need to drink some more. The berry lemonade is amazing. Seriously. Should get some.” Took a long sip of it and smiled.
This was nice, not often she went out with just friends. Didn’t have too many friends. And If she went out with Haruka and Michiru it got viewed as threesome of all things.
She had to be one of the few people in the world who’d complain about being viewed like that. Haruka and Michiru were rather attractive people, after all. “Other than that epidemic? Things are... pretty normal. If I see one more guy who’s ‘accidentally’ fallen on something and gotten it stuck somewhere inappropriate, though...”
It was a risk of being a doctor, he supposed. He could just really do without it.
Rei’s face was the look of ‘I did not need to know that’ and disgust at the images that were starting off in her head. “That is why I’d never want to be a doctor. Ever. Ew. I don’t know how you manage at all. Gross.” She downed the rest of her drink and raised the glass for some more. It was that good.
And, refills were free! Made it even better! “Is that it?” Tilted her head and leaned in onto the desk to grab one of the breadsticks they just brought out and held it between her lips because she could.
Considering Minako had traumatised Mamoru more times than he could actually count, this was just revenge. Beautiful, beautiful revenge. “You get used to it. You kind of have to, or... well, I don’t know. Go out to live with the Amish, maybe?”
Then again, the Amish probably had their fair share of... weird injuries too. You didn’t live in that sheltered a way and not somehow get some terribleness.
“The Amish kind of scare me... I could never do it.” Ran a hand over her neck and took a sip f the now fully refilled glass. “I may be close to paying off my mortgage on the building for my business. I may even start a renovation of the east wing if things go well enough!.”
Rei thought back to the ideas she’d had and looked at him. “And I’m looking for a bigger apartment. Can’t live in a tiny one bedroom forever, right?”
Was there honestly a person on earth who didn’t find the Amish a little terrifying? Mamoru honestly had to wonder... “I think things are pretty much guaranteed to keep going well for you. Haruka and Michiru managed to work wonders with what you already had, so...”
He didn’t do business, honestly, but even he could see that much. “Would you ever want your girlfriend to live with you? I know she’s probably got her own thing, with the radio show and everything, but it never hurts to ask.”
“Maybe... But I don’t want to rush things. I like how they are now and I just don’t think I’m ready for the next step of living in the same place as her. She deserves me being right mentally. And until I don’t have nightmares or angry flashes... I want to be able to be far from her and alone for now.” Rei ran a hand through her hair. “If that makes sense at all...”
Her hands were shaking a little from the question, not knowing if that was the correct answer or not.
Was there really ever a correct answer to things like that? “I think that makes sense. I know for a fact that she loves you more than anything... mostly because, sometimes, one of the other doctors puts her radio show on - she flails over you constantly.”
Rei blushed and smiled, looking down at her drink. “Really? She talks about me on her radio show? I try and listen, but I’m always busy with work and... You know.” She pushed her hair behind her ear.
Mamoru chuckled. “She does. All the time. She’ll be giving out advice to a caller, and she’ll start off with ‘well, my girlfriend does this’... I think she might actually be the tiniest bit of a fangirl, sometimes.”
Well, probably more than the tiniest bit. This was Aino Minako, fangirl of the century, they were talking about, after all.
“A fangirl of me?” Rei blushed beet red, hiding behind her drink a little. She was trying to wrap her brain around that. That someone love her so much as to talk about her a lot. She couldn’t believe it and it was amazing to say the least.
She looked back up to him and smiled. “I have to tell her you told me that. She’ll freak out a little. I know she will.”
Mamoru chuckled. “Be honest. When doesn’t she freak out a little?”
“Well... I’d say so but that would be inappropriate for dinner table.” Rei paused and thought for a few seconds. “Second thought... Would still freak me out during that.”
Uh. Wow. Even without much detail, that’d almost made Mamoru turn an interesting shade of red - it was only via the things he’d seen as a doctor that he was able to will it down. “Uh... there are probably better places to talk about how your girlfriend can be during... certain times.”
“Which is why I said it was inappropriate to talk about it here.’ Rei responded with a giggle. Honestly, she wasn’t that terrible all the time. She ran a hand through her hair and smiled up to him before taking a drink. Setting the glass down she thought for a second before speaking again. “So.... Anything else you want to know?”
Just most of the time. Clearly. Mamoru thought for a moment, trying to figure out something - anything - that might be important to ask... “I know you said you didn’t remember me, or Endymion, but... can I ask if there’s anything starting to show up from your dreams?”
He’d had that weird glowing rose for ages, after all, and never had anyone to really talk about it with. Not that there was much you could talk about in relation to it.
“Sadly I don’t dream as much as everyone of my friends have... It’s weird.” Rei said before smiling when the food got there. “Ah. Yay!” She exclaimed and had a bunch of cheese put on the pasta before telling the waiter to stop and began eating. She was hungry,
Maybe she’d start dreaming more in time? It was something to hope for, at least... even if it’d be likely that some of the dreams wouldn’t be pleasant at all. “Probably for the best, really. Considering how powerful some of the awakened Senshi are starting to get...”
By which he meant ‘Haruka punched him once. It really, really hurt’.
“Probably.... I’d rather not set fire to my apartment...” Said through mouthful of of food as she ate rather quickly. She hadn’t eaten today, she’d been busy! When she got to a point of decently satiated she smiled. “Have you dreamt of me?”
“A few times.” Sure, he’d not strictly dreamt of her civilian identity, but he’d had enough to put two and two together - especially between the Silver Millennium dreams and that strange one about the alien... thing. “Last time, we were fighting against some... alien. Trying to take revenge on Earth for being alone.”
“Okay then.. Not weird at all!” Rei giggled and went back to eating more. “At least it’s not too weird, right?” Tipped her head. “Not like we fight creepy ladies in skimpy lingerie like some bad porn film, right?”
Uh. Well, there was no answering that in ways that didn’t sound entirely wrong. “I think whoever designed the monsters we fight had a thing for... well, that.”
“How is your food?” Rei asked, being almost completed with her own meal. Last thing she needed to know was what this man thought of at night involving lingerie. Very terrifying ideas.
It wasn’t like he wanted to dream of things like that! It was weird! “It’s actually pretty good. Not often I get a chance to come out and eat...” It was one of those risks that came with being a doctor. Well, almost-doctor.
“If I didn’t know you had a girlfriend I could make a joke about coming out and eating.” She teased. “I can tell you’re straight though, don’t worry.” Giggled and poked at a piece of chicken, debating continuing eating or not.
Honestly, out of the few of them who seemed to be having these dreams, Mamoru was probably the straightest. He rolled his eyes at the bad attempt at a joke... honestly. “Between you and Haruka, I could get a complex...”
“If you didn’t have one already!” She teased and used a breadsticks to get the last of the sauce from her plate. “I want dessert...”
Evil, evil people, the both of them. “If you want it, there’s no reason not to. Aren’t we meant to be treating ourselves a little here?”
“But I need to watch my figure. I’m a dancer after all.” Rubbed the back of her neck whilst eyeing the menu. The cheesecake looked stupidly good. Dammit.
“I think you can watch your figure and get dessert. Take it from me.” Because doctor. It meant a lot, honest!
Rei shrugged and called the waiter over. Ordering the cheesecake for herself. It was given rather quickly and she delved right in. Okay, far too tasty. “You should get one in your girlfriend’s honour. It’s amazing.”
Well... maybe? Usagi would definitely be all over the damn cheesecake. And would probably get seconds. And then some. How she never gained any weight was a medical miracle of some kind. “Alright... I don’t take much convincing, do I?”
“You don’t really. Then again, you’re a guy.” She teased, sticking her tongue at him before downing another bite of it. It was amazing. Pushing the now empty plate away she smiled. “This was nice. We should do it again sometime.”
Mamoru rolled his eyes. Some guys could take a lot of convincing! He usually could, but... today was just an off day or something. “Whenever you want, I can make time for it. It’s nice.”
Heard her phone buzz and gasped. “Shit. I need to go. Turns out there’s something wrong with my lead dancer.” She grabbed her wallet and put $40 down just to be safe. “Give me back the change when you see me next. So... So sorry.” Scrambled to get her jacket on.