[for Mindy]

[so_catholic]

"Oh boy..."

The tie just won't sit straight. Why is he even wearing one? His Ma is nowhere to be seen and it's not like he's at a funeral. Though staring at himself in the bathroom's mirror and failing in the simple task of even straightening his own tie does kind of make him want to throw himself in front of the nearest moving vehicle.

He's wearing it for Mindy, he tells himself, passing the heel of his hand across his forehead to stave off the sweat. Shirt, tie, smart blazer, dark jeans. Nothing too fancy, so she knows there's room for improvement, but nice enough for her to realize he's made an effort.

They have been on hundreds of dates before, he can see that now, but back then, neither of them had acknowledged the time spent together as that. A date. Suddenly they slap a name on what they're doing and Danny finds himself heading straight for the bathroom almost as soon as they'd sat down at their table. He had brought Mindy somewhere a little upmarket because surely that's the way to make this thing they've started, this new aspect of their relationship, official? Judging by the way his stomach is twisted in knots, however, he would much rather be chilling on the couch with her in scrubs, eating dry chicken nuggets and watching whatever crap she'd chosen to torture him with on any given night.

Taking a deep breath, he checks his watch, mentally calculating how long he's been in here. Fingers that are usually so nimble tug at the loop around his neck with renewed speed, undoing it for the third time just so he can retie it again.

Comments

[beyoncepadthai]

It's far from the first time that Mindy's had to seriously consider whether her date has fled out the back, an act she's been guilty of more than once in her years of awful dating experience.

Danny, though, she's really hoping that she's wrong about.

Scanning over a menu she's memorised at this point for the thousandth time, Mindy straightens the hem of her (slightly festive) dress, glancing over her shoulder again. He'd picked the place, so if he's unhappy with his choice she's positive that doesn't fall on her.

Maybe he's just really sweaty. That happens kind of a lot.

She waves down a waiter after a few more moments of waiting, already having finished both Danny's and her bread. If he's expecting her to be ladylike and save herself for a salad, he's wooing the wrong girl.

"More complimentary bread, please, sir."

[so_catholic]

A couple of minutes later Danny admits defeat, returning to the restaurant with an open top button and loosely-tied tie, which he runs a hand self-consciously down when he reaches their table.

"Sorry for the wait," he says, gaze flicking to hers as he pulls his chair out to take his seat. The waiter's arm suddenly appears in front of him with fresh bread and he pulls back, dragging his napkin off the table. "What was wrong with the other bread?"

[beyoncepadthai]

"It was stale," Mindy says unconvincingly, reaching up to brush a crumb from her lip that betrays her attempt to lie. Danny looks super frazzled, bread is so beyond the point right now, anyway.

"Are you okay?" she asks, brows furrowing. She almost wants to give him a reprieve, to say they can call it quits for the night, but every time she sees him she remembers how badly she wants this to work out. "Are you sick, or something?"

[so_catholic]

Which means Mindy ate it, Danny figures with a look. Had he really been gone that long?

"I'm fine," he assures her, stretching his arms over the top of the table, hands settling either side of the supposedly atmospheric candle sitting between him and Mindy. His fingers jitter almost imperceptibly before he busies them with the candle-holder, twisting it around and around. "I'm just, y'know, I wouldn't say I'm nervous or anything but," he swallows, "whatever the step below that is."

[beyoncepadthai]

Pretty much the last thing Mindy's expecting is for Danny to admit he's nervous. It's suddenly crazy obvious based on his movements alone, but he's hardly the kind of guy to own his feelings aloud.

His chronic sweatiness does that for him, anyway.

"Okay, stop," Mindy grabs his hand, resisting the urge to stuff her face with carbs for at least a little while. "You don't need to be nervous. It's just me. I mean, I get it, and I know I look even hotter than usual now that we've made out, but we don't need to make it weird."

[so_catholic]

"No, what? Please, I'm not nervous about you," Danny dismisses with a wave of his free hand, instantly backtracking the moment Mindy draws attention to it. "I'm not nervous full stop," he reminds her, albeit unconvincingly. This, them, it's more important to Danny than he admits even to himself. "We've had dinner together dozens of times in the past."

[beyoncepadthai]

"Probably hundreds," Mindy clarifies, if they count eating cold leftovers or vending machine picnics in the doctors' lounge, which at this point, they probably should. Everything feels like it's been leading up to this moment, an inevitability that they've fought for much too long.

So of course it's super awkward and Danny's super sweaty and Mindy's eaten all of the bread. "You said you were nervous, like, thirty seconds ago. I'm sorry, whatever the step below that is. So what is it? Do you not like this place? The bread wasn't stale, if that's what it is. It was awesome."

[so_catholic]

"This place is fine," Danny insists, hooking his thumb over the hand that is covering his own. "I'm fine, the bread's fine." Or he's sure it would have been had he gotten a chance to have any.

He flicks his eyes to Mindy's, giving her a flash of a smile, before they drop to the open menu he's cradling in an arm. "Let's just order. Don't choose anything really heavy, okay. I wanna take you dancing."

[beyoncepadthai]

Mindy's pretty sure she could eat and stomach an empty plate without it affecting her dancing, she has the digestive fortitude of a Labrador, but she makes a mental note to pass on the enormous steak she was considering.

Pulling back her hand to peruse the menu once more, her eyes practically shine at what Danny says. "Dancing, huh? Are we talking ballroom or bump and grind?"

[so_catholic]

Dancing might actually be the worst idea in the world given that Danny's frustration levels are already at an all-time high and it's barely been two weeks. He shifts a little in his seat, clearing his throat.

"We're not talkin' ballroom," he clarifies in a low tone, though he refuses to use the term bump and grind. He just doesn't intend to leave much room for Jesus.

[beyoncepadthai]

"Whoa, cool," Mindy can't help but grin at the way he says it. It's not going to erase the awkward tension between them immediately, but Mindy loves Danny's dancing and to get to dance with him on a date? That's even better. "We should totally order before your bedtime, then. Oh, man, if I get anything resembling Italian you're going to judge the hell out of it, aren't you?"

[so_catholic]

Contrary to popular belief Danny is actually still young enough to survive a late night or two, particularly if the reason is good enough. He ostensibly lets the bedtime comment slide with a silent 'okay'.

But then.

"The Italian is good here," he assures Mindy, based on absolutely no experience whatsoever. "None of the other women I brought here ever heard me complain."

[beyoncepadthai]

Subtle Mindy is not. The second he makes mention of other girls, she shoots Danny a look that lies somewhere between disgust and hurt. She can't help it. It's a nice place, sure, but he couldn't come up with a new one for their date?

"Good for them," she says, ducking her head to analyse the menu again. They probably ordered salads and didn't touch the bread. "Good for you. You know what else is good for you? Salad. Which salad did your last girlfriend pretend to eat, here?"

[so_catholic]

Danny sits up straighter in his seat. "Oh no." Bad idea.

"Min, I'm kidding," he insists, not having considered what he'd do if she actually believed him. He tries his hardest to keep the amusement from his voice but it's there in his eyes when he leans across the table to lower her menu. "It's just a joke. I've never been here before."

[beyoncepadthai]

Mindy resists the urge to reach across and swat him, figuring that she's banned from more than enough food establishments across the city as it is. She does, however, give him a glare to assure him that she is wholly unamused.

"You are the worst," she tells Danny, though there's not much heat in her voice. She doesn't actually know much about his dating habits in the city, a fact she's happy to stick with.

Apparently sensing their need for more wine, it's mere moments before there's a waitress ready to take their order for drinks and food.

"I will have your second largest steak," Mindy says, practicing some absurd version of self-restraint.

[so_catholic]

Danny orders through a suppressed smile, which he lets out as soon as the waitress has left. The very attractive waitress whom he doesn't give a second glance.

"I'm sorry, hey," he presses up from his chair, one hand braced on the table, the other beckoning Mindy with a finger, "gimme a kiss." There's something about receiving an all too familiar glare on their first official date that puts him at ease. And more than amuses him. "Before you get steak stuck in your teeth."

[beyoncepadthai]

Because she can, Mindy leans across and gives a kiss that's borderline torturous before leaning back in her seat and taking a sip of her wine, smiling brightly. It's not that she's going out of her way to deprive the guy from sex, it's just that she's kind of ruined a lot of relationships by rushing into the physical side of things. She can't risk that with Danny, but she can be a little cruel right now as retribution for his poorly landed jokes about other girls. "Don't hate on my steak. Do you know what it's like growing up Hindu? The worst. I didn't taste Filet mignon until I was, like, nineteen."