When you said you looked a mess, I whispered underneath my breath.

But you heard it, darling, you look perfect tonight.

-

A few more months passed in our lives seemingly without incident. Nothing happened that hadn't already been planned in the months prior, which gave us a sense of comfort in a sort. That being said, it could have gone better.

The time following the start of our relationship had passed by insanely quick, partially because of just how fast we fell back into a pattern we thought we had long forgotten. More recently, Mitch and I, and the rest of the band for that matter, had been stuck on the road for nearly a month and a half. As nice as it was to be back touring, at the end of each day, all I wanted was some alone time with Mitch. I learned fairly quickly that he felt the same way. However, before tour started, we agreed to remain silent on what had recently occurred between us. It was a mutual decision, but we didn't initially realize how rough it would be. So of course, the worst part of being surrounded by the crew and band was being unable to be affectionate with one another. We always had been, but it felt worse now that we couldn't really be touchy when we really wanted to.

So once we finally arrived back in LA, we planned a date, our first official one. I made a reservation at a higher end restaurant the day prior because, as usual, I really wanted to spoil him. He had also made plans that day to hang out and talk about wedding plans with Kirstin, but he was still very willing to go have dinner with me.

As night and the time for the reservation approached, I got dressed up and was soon leaving the house. I arrived at the restaurant a few minutes before I was set to be seated, but as my name was called, I could feel myself start to grow anxious. I checked my phone once I was at a table, but no texts were waiting for me. I began to wonder if he even truly did want to go on a date with me. This would have been one horrible way to find out that he didn't. Maybe he was starting to rethink what had been going on in between us, which again would have been one hell of a way to find out. However, as all these things ran through my head, I didn't let my mind wander to one scenario in particular. While I probably could have handled being stood up by him, I don't think I would have been able to deal with any more serious reason.

A waitress came by a minute or so later, and after pretending to miss her judged glance to the other chair, she asked if I was ready to order. I declined, not wanting to waste any money if I was truly going to be left alone. As she turned her back, I looked to my phone once again in search of any updates. The only one I got was the time glaring back at me, saying that 20 minutes had passed since we agreed to be here. At that point, I truly began debating on whether or not to leave. Once I thought I had decided, I checked my phone one last time. As it was about to fade back to black, a text popped up. A minute later, a second one popped up, quickly followed by a third. I unlocked my phone then, only to have mixed feelings as I read them.

If you're still at the restaurant, please don't leave
I'm so so sorry
Please Scott

While I was happy he was finally acknowledging me, I'd be lying if I said I was completely fine at the moment. A million thoughts clouded my mind, but I was completely unable to create an answer. I sat there for awhile, still baffled, before hearing a quiet, yet far too familiar voice. I looked up to see Mitch headed my way. It was easy for me to tell that he was very tired and just as worried. I stood up as he approached the table, opening my arms for him. He didn't hesitate practically throwing himself into my embrace. I didn't know what happened on his half of the story these past few hours, but at least he was here with me once again.

"I'm sorry," he muttered against my chest. I pulled back a bit to look at him. He reluctantly did the same.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah I am."

"Do you wanna still have our date? You look exhausted. We can go home if you'd like."

"No," he immediately said. "It was my idea as much as it was yours." I nodded my head.

"Let's sit down then, yeah?" He nodded his head before following my suggestion.

The waitress came back right then, almost as if she had been watching us specifically. She immediately asked for both of our orders. I was tempted to tell her to back off, but Mitch threw out one of the first things his eyes landed on before I could utter anything. I ordered as well, then jumped back into conversation as soon as she was gone.

"What happened?" His eyes quickly moved up to meet mine and I could just as quickly sense how tense he was. "If you're willing to say," I corrected myself.

"I suppose I owe you an explanation."

"You don't need to defend yourself. I'm sure if you could have been here on time you would've been. But I would like to know." I watched as he slowly nodded his head.

"It was just a long...weird day." I raised an eyebrow, prompting him to go on. "Well you know I went over to Kit's. I was there until just a little bit ago. We actually started to get a lot of good ideas. But..." he trailed off for a moment.

"It felt so weird to be talking about wedding plans. With our best friend from high school. Like, we used to talk about this stuff all the time, yet now that it's happening it's hard to believe." Just like that, I immediately understood what he meant by a weird day. It wasn't that there was some extraordinary circumstances surrounding his day; it was the fact that the day's events put him in a mood.

"And then I couldn't help but think about us... and just how weird of a concept that is. I mean, you're my best friend, but we're perfect for each other, and... I don't know." I couldn't help but smile. Mitch didn't get like this often, much less than I did, but I treasured every time that he did.

Our waitress, who I was beginning to think had a thing for bad timing, came back then with two dishes. She unceremoniously put them on the table before quickly turning around.

"By the time I temporarily snapped out of that," Mitch continued, bring me back to the present. "I realized I needed to get my ass here. But I happened to just catch the tail end of rush hour. I didn't even have a chance to run home and change. I knew this restaurant was fancy, so I feel a bit underdressed." Only then did I really pay attention to his outfit, a simple hoodie and a dark pair of jeans. As he took his first bites, I simply smiled, noting that as casual as the outfit was was, it probably cost more than half of the others in this restaurant.

"Don't worry about," I said, plenty loud enough for him to hear. "You look perfect," I muttered as an afterthought. He looked up from his dish.

"What?"

"What?"

"What'd you say?"

"Nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." He gave me a small smile before continuing to eat.

"But I really am sorry," he spoke up again after a couple moments had passed. "I feel horrible about it." I could tell that he did. From the moment he walked in and with every word he spoke, his tone just being slightly off, I could tell.

"I promise its okay. I'm just glad you're here." I wasn't sure if he believed me or not, but I sure hoped he did. A quick nod of his head was all I got in reply, but I knew better than to push it.

"So wedding plans," I started off, hoping to steer the rest of our night into a more positive direction. "You gonna let me in on them?" He smiled again, one that was much more genuine than the previous, then began recapping the things that had already been decided upon.

From that point on, the night seemed to go faster. I wasn't sure if it was that we were talking about more lighthearted things now or simply the fact that we were reunited; but before I knew it, we were standing outside of the restaurant, still smiling and still completely engrossed in one another.

"You drove here, right?" He asked.

"Mhm. Parked about a block away. You okay with walking?"

"I'm not that much of a queen." I smirked at the comment, but at the same time, if he didn't want to walk I would have found other arrangements. I grabbed his hand and intertwined our fingers as we started walking to the car. Unlike how we were in the restaurant, we remained fairly silent. It wasn't uncomfortable though, silence never was with him. Somehow, it bothered me even less as I thought about how we'd be belting out songs within a few minutes. I loosened my grip on his hand as the car came into sight; however, he still held onto mine.

"Scotty?" He asked as we slowed down and eventually stopped. I glanced down at the boy to see his brown eyes already looking at me.

"You thought I looked perfect?" I bit my lip before chuckling to myself. Of course I couldn't get anything past him.

"Look," I said, quietly correcting him. "You look perfect." He opened his mouth to say something, but he shook his head before anything could fall out.

"Thank you," he eventually spoke, a sentence random enough to get me to furrow my eyebrows.

"For what?"

"For just..." he trailed off. "For just being you."

"Are you trying to make me sentimental too?"

"I wouldn't be opposed to it..." I smirked before turning to the car, then opening the passenger side door for him.

"Tell you what," I said. "We go home, get some ice cream and get into bed, and then I'll get as sentimental as you want."

"Have I ever told you that you're perfect?"

"I think so." He smirked. "So is that a yes? For the rest of the night?"

"Take me home and you'll find out," he said, then swiftly slid into the seat. I had to stifle a laugh as I closed the door, and as I walked around the car, I began wondering just what I had gotten myself into.