Willowstream didn't have much in the way of fine dining. There were a few places one could go, but thankfully for Marshal and his limited bank account: Mark and he had decided to keep it as casual as possible, opting for a simple cafe in the middle of town.

His friends did nothing to quell the jittery puddle of nerves he had become. What would he wear? Would he talk too much? Who paid for everything? As the clock ticked closer to date time: he felt suffocated and nauseous like the air had suddenly become too thick for his lungs to process. He was sweating in places he didn't know he could sweat, and had constantly worried at his lip until it was raw.

To his horror: Lilly insisted that she chaperone, and given the circumstances it probably would've been wise to allow her to. Despite Marshal eventually convincing her otherwise, he still half expected to spot her in a wig and sunglasses watching from another table.

The cafe was called "Soft Beans" and this was where Rhys worked when he wasn't with the group or at school, and he felt some small comfort in the knowledge that it was somewhere so familiar. Even more so when Rhys had made sure to switch shifts so that he wasn't in that night, and that he had already alerted the staff to look after Marshal.

They had sat at a window booth. The window tinted ever so slightly so that one could look out, but others couldn't look in. There was the ever present smell of coffee and baked goods that teased at Marshals stomach, another thing that made him incredibly self conscious as he crossed his arms across his waist in an attempt to quash the gurgled protests.

Luckily, he didn't seem to be able to focus much on what he was doing. He was too busy looking at Mark.

Mark had dressed smart casual for the evening. A simple, collared shirt, the colour of the summers sky. Marshals favourite colour. Or at least it was now. Or maybe it was the slightly darker shade that Marks eyes held that had became his favourite? They twinkled with a sublime happiness at the whipped cream he licked off the spoon, and somehow managed to get a dot of it on his nose.

Mark didn't think he had a favourite colour. That was until Marshal had said a non-committal "Blue", and all of a sudden Mark found that, that was his favourite colour too, for it seemed he now saw it everywhere.

Mark seemed to be a messy eater, the whipped cream that had topped his strawberry flavoured milkshake was the tail end of an entire ordeal that involved ketchup, fries, and hitting everywhere but his mouth.

His mouth was something that Marshal couldn't help but become obsessed with whenever attention was brought to it; whether that be by Marks tongue jabbing at the sauce stuck to the corners, or the way Mark absently mindedly rubbed his thumb against the bottom lip when he listened to Marshal speak. The fullness of Marks lips nourished a completely different type of hunger within Marshal. It was a hunger that sat at the back of his throat he thought. His tongue begged for a taste, to explore what wonders those lips held, and his own mouth felt hot and burning for the contact. It made listening very difficult.

When it wasn't his lips that he was obsessed with, it was Marks arms. They looked strong, straining against the fabric of his shirt, his forearms seemed particularly firm as they peeked from the rolled up sleeves. Marshall wondered what it would be like to be held by those arms. He'd bet they were soft, and warm.

All these thoughts had sent Marshal's mind into a flurry of jumbled feelings. There was happiness, a different kind than he normally felt when around his friends. This one seemed a little more selfish than that, like this little piece of time had been cut out just for him. It was special, and golden. The moment that set it as the night he would remember forever had come when he apologised for rambling too much about drawing fruit in class, and how he was certain the teacher had no idea what she was talking about, and Mark simply smiled and told him he never has to apologise to him for talking about something he cares about.

Then there was most definitely, and prominently: Lust. His mind couldn't make up the mechanics, or the details, just that his body demanded it to be so. It wanted to be close to Mark. He'd never wanted that before so strongly with someone within such close proximity. It was a yearning, a need, ignited and nourished. Grown to a point where it was almost all he could think about, and all this brought on by the very real possibility that it could happen. The circumstance that he was on a date: meant that it could happen, and all logical thought that Marshal had; seemed to lead to having sex as something that, at the very least: could be on the table.

"Thank you, for tonight. I had a really good time" Marshal said, as they came to a stop outside the set of steps that would lead to the two bedroom apartment he and his father lived in.

"Me too." Mark said quickly as he stood, rolling on the balls of his feet with his hands stuffed into his pockets.

There was a full silence that filled the space between them, bursting with anticipation. Anxiety or fear or both had Marshal on edge as he tried to look everywhere but at Mark, who seemed to be doing the same.

It seemed that the silence began to swell and overflow at it's edges, bordering into the territory of awkwardness and a ruined night, when suddenly: Their eyes met each other. Sparkling and entwined across the gap between them that suddenly didn't seem so far.

"Marshal..." Mark said, his voice low, husky, barely above a whisper. His own name had Marshal suddenly weak at the knees, as he mustered all of his focus in stopping them from buckling beneath him.

"Yeah?" Marshal replied in the same manner. His heart pounding so violently in his chest, he thought it might burst as he did his best to keep himself from suffocating by taking long, shallow breaths through his nose and letting them escape through a thin gap in his mouth.

Mark swept his tongue along his bottom lip as his eyes darted to Marshals mouth and then back up to his eyes, as a rising heat began to take form across his cheeks, clouding them with a soft red that was just about visible in the yellowed light of the street lamp.

"Can I kiss you?" He whispered, like it was sacred. Like a prayer that he wanted nothing more than to be answered in this moment.

This was it. This was the moment Marshals heart would explode as it felt like it was trying to crawl it's way up into his mouth, so that all he could do was give a very shaky nod of his head.

Mark stepped forward, his height over Marshal more evident now as he leaned forward. Marshal could feel the warm breath tickling at his face as his eyes closed. That brief second of hesitation seemed to last forever as Mark hovered his lips so close to Marshals, the warmth tingled with heat, before finally; their lips met and Marshal melted just a little bit.

It was a small kiss, as they pushed against each other, but it grew into something more as Marshal found Marks hands cupping his face at his jaw, full of a deepening want. Marshal responded by hooking a finger into Marks jeans pockets, pulling him closer as he fully closed the distance.

Marshal couldn't help but let out a small hum, like music was roiling within him and unable to be contained. He marvelled at how perfect their bodies seemed to lock together, how the clothes they wore seemed entirely too much, and how nice it all felt as he felt himself shiver into a puddle of hot mess while he pressed himself closer against Marks strong chest. Breathing was entirely secondary.

A moment of clarity hit Marshal as he stepped away, breaking the kiss, breathless and panting. Wanting more, he looked to the equally out of breath Mark who was grinning wildly with the same intensity that Marshal held.

"Wow..." He breathed

"Yeah... Wow..." Marshal responded with a laugh. There was something that was itching at Marshal in that moment, and not just the need to kiss Mark again. He steeled himself, standing up straight and regaining his composure, Marshal held his hands up as Mark stepped forward to continue the make out session. "Hold on, trust me, I'd love to carry on; but there's something you should know..."

"O...kay?" Mark replied apprehensively, a small look of concern flitted across his face as he was suddenly unsure of what he had just gotten himself into.

"If we're gonna do this" Marshal began, pausing briefly to gesture vaguely at them both "There's some things you've gotta know. First: I tell my friends everything. I quite literally love them and would die for them, and if you're gonna be okay with this, you've got to be okay with the fact that there's a good chance that at least four other people are going to know about us. Second: If/when we have sex, condoms are a must. At least until we're comfortable. I don't know the protocol here, and I don't know if you've had partners before. I haven't. This is entirely too much information, I know. But as you can tell, I am freaking out a little bit. Third and finally: I have an irrational fear of water. I know it's irrational and I'm trying to get better. But it's a really slow process. If it rains, I will have a panic attack without shelter or an umbrella, hoods don't work."

Mark had, had his jaw dropped this entire time, and it took him a few seconds to regain himself afterwards. Which only caused worry to grow within Marshals chest as Mark was silent with what seemed to be an uneasy smile upon his face, one hand on his hip while the other rubs at the back of his head.

"Oh God, I've freaked you out haven't I? It's okay. I understand, it's my own fault. I'll just go and don't have to talk to me ever again if you don't want." Marshal said, tugging at his hair before turning away. However, before he could start the climb up the steps to his home, Mark had a hold of his hand, rooting him to the spot.

Marshal looked at the point of contact. The skin fluttering with static and heat, as if it was the most electrifying touch in the world, and he had a distinct desire to never let it go.

"You think about having sex with me?" Mark grinned

"N-no?" Marshall pathetically lied, as he gave an awkward smile, until he saw the look on Marks face and saw that he was just messing with him. The fucker. "Wait... You're not freaked out?"

"A little? No. Not really. It's not an entirely bad idea to have a session zero, and lay everything out on the table ya know? Let's the other party know what they're getting into."

"Session zero?"

"You know, like in DnD? You have a session zero and basically outline the campaign, the rules, and all that jazz."

"You're such a nerd" Marshal laughed

"Nope. DnD is cool now. So you're the nerd for not liking it." Mark poked, deciding to test if it would be okay if pulled Marshal to him. Which it was, as he pulled the blushing young man into his arms and gave him a squeeze while he took in the scent of his air with a big breath inwards.

Marshal smelled like the ocean, and it was comforting. It reminded him of happier times, of holidays at the beach and ice cream. "So, in the spirit of session zero. Firstly: I've become a bit of a gym nut in the passed year or so, and am there constantly. I have a strict routine I adhere to and I get snappy and irritable if I don't follow it. But I promise whatever time I have out of my schedule and out of school, I'll spend it with you if you'll have me. Which is a lot more time than it sounds I swear. Secondly: My family are probably going to hate you at first. They're nice people genuinely, but they haven't really gotten rid of the over-protective phase, and have a general distaste of everyone in school. Because ya know. I was bullied quite a lot. And thirdly: It'd be my first time too."

And just like that: Marshal was smitten. His openness had been rewarded, and he felt like he might burst with happiness as it filled him up at the seams with a smile that started to ache with how powerful it had formed on his lips.

They shared one, much more restrained, kiss. It still simmered with heat, but with the planted seed of excitement at a brand new adventure. An adventure they would share together.

Marshal couldn't help but giggle slightly as he watched Mark walk away and down the street, giving a small fist pump when he thought no one was watching. Things were going to be okay.

A/N: Was it as adorable and cute as I think it is? Well I love it anyway!

Thanks for reading ^-^