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Date Night - P1

“If you’re going to try doing it yourself, at least grab something to write everything down.” Princess Iron Fan sighs as her husband turns up the volume on their cooking show. The couple sits together on the sofa in their bedroom, sharing a blanket as they relax for the evening. Usually she would retire before her husband, but tonight she was in the mood to be together. She’d likely fall asleep during his little baking show, but he always makes for a perfect pillow.

The Demon Bull King huffs at the idea he wouldn’t be able to remember such a simple recipe. “I don’t need that.”

“You’re going to forget a step, love.” He grumbles at his wife’s incessance over taking notes. But maybe he could, just in case.

“…Do you have any paper in here? I don’t feel like getting up.” Before he can even finish the sentence, a gentle wind sets a notepad onto his lap, a pen dropping after it. Iron Fan leans into the bull demon and as he’s done countless times before, he moves his arm to let her rest on him.

Notepad in one hand and pen in the other, the Demon Bull King hums in content. Finally. With the holes in the walls from Monkey King’s successor and his friends fixed, and the damage left by the Lady Bone Demon in the surrounding areas dealt with, he and Princess Iron Fan can finally–

“Hey bud!” An all-too familiar and annoying voice booms, following the sound of their bedroom door breaking off its hinges and dropping to the ground. “I’ve been knocking outside for the past… hah… the past twelve minutes!”

The Demon Bull King turns his head to face the Monkey King as he waltzes in, and while Princess Iron Fan hasn’t moved to look at him, her glare is sharp enough to slice the dough being made on the TV. The bull demon growls, what business does this ape have intruding on their home like this?! “Simian–”

“By the way, those clone guys are terrible hosts. Also, you might want to take a look at them. They’re a little, uh, broken? WhoAA–” Monkey King barely has a moment to move before his old brother charges at him, his hand pinning Wukong to the wall.

The Monkey King grunts, the wall cracking behind him. “How dare you intrude upon our home!” He hadn’t minded hosting the boy and his friends, but Sun Wukong barging in like this is crossing a line.

Demon Bull King holds up his fist to swing, and Wukong raises his arms up in defence “Hey, I wouldn’t be here if this wasn’t important!”

“Really?” He laughs. “What’s so important that the great Monkey King would resort to seeking help from us?”

“I don’t need your help! I just, uh…” Wukong snaps before trailing off and for a moment his old brother lowers his fist, it isn’t often he sees the Monkey King with that kind of worry in his eyes. “…Dove asked me on a date.”

Ah. That would explain it.

The head of the demon bull family remembered his son mentioning something about Wukong and his reincarnated companion. After learning about her past, he’s noticed her in their home now and again to visit Red Son and Princess Iron Fan, at first to learn more about her old self but he’s noticed how friendly his wife has become with her. His son has mentioned that she and the Great Sage were growing closer again once he told her of their past, but then… “Why are you here?”

The question makes the Monkey King laugh “About that–” Before he can explain, the sound of ambulance sirens ring from outside and Wukong’s eyes widen. “She found me?!”

“How did she get here so quickly?” Demon Bull King questions as he sets Wukong down while his wife gets up to stand with them.

“Why did she take an ambulance?” Princess Iron Fan frowns. With her fan, she uses a gust of wind to set the door upright– a temporary fix.

The Monkey King looks away with a nervous smile, scratching the back of his head with a chuckle. “I didn’t exactly give her an answer.”

The husband and wife give Wukong the same deadpan look. “You ran?”

“Wha– noooooo!” He looks offended but only for a moment. “Just… delayed my answer.”

The Bull King crosses his arms, he doesn’t have the patience for this. “Then I suggest you give it now.”

“Huh?!” With how their relationship ended the first time, he honestly thinks the woman would be better off without the simian. After she helped their family in her last life, he would hope the best for her in this life.

However, if she’s the one who wants to court Sun Wukong, then he won’t help his old brother run from his feelings. “You want to be with her again, don’t you?”

The question makes the Monkey King frown. “It’s not about what I want.” It’s easy to read the guilt in his expression. The Demon Bull King remembers how he was then, after she died. It’s never easy losing a loved one, Princess Iron Fan was in distress for days after learning about her husband’s fight with the Monkey King those centuries ago.

Maybe that’s why it made it so easy for her to confront the sage now. “I know, it’s not about what you want at all.” She steps forward, ignoring Wukong’s side eye. “It’s about what she wants. Monkey King, she knows what happened in her last life and is still taking the chance to be with you. Whether or not that’s a smart decision, she is choosing you.”

The Monkey King’s brow furrows as she speaks, taking in the matriarch’s words in silence. “If you don’t want to be with her, then tell her that. If you do want to be with her, don’t take that choice away in the name of ‘safety’.”

Wukong looks down, silent as he digests the words. His fists clench and just as he raises his head to speak, the door falls over for the second time that night. However the person on the other side widens her eyes in surprise, clearly not expecting it to drop from her angry knocking.

“Oh my gosh, I didn’t mean to do that! Sorry, Red Son said Monkey King was here and–” Her apologetic expression shifts when she sees the sage. She casts a glare over him, the king stepping back as he sees the look on her face. “Wukong!”

“Heyyyyyyyyy.” He waves with a smile, only because he has no clue what else to say. Her glare hardens at his casual response and his faux-grin drops. The sage knows he can’t keep avoiding her, he shouldn’t have run at all! Now he has to try and fix this however he can.

He turns to the heads of the demon bull family. “Uh, can we have some privacy?”

“This is our bedroom, Wukong.”

“Oh, right. Haha…”

The Monkey King looks back to the woman who chased him down, her irritated expression never leaving his person, and gestures over to the hall. With a sigh, she turns to leave, Wukong silently following after her.

With both uninvited guests gone, Princess Iron Fan sets their door back in place as best she can. “…I’ll get Red Son to fix it in the morning.” Her husband snorts at the sight of their broken door, annoyed but trying his best to return to a more peaceful state of mind. “I can rewind the show if you’d like.”

“Thank you, love.” With any luck, he may actually be able to sit through the whole show without any more interruptions.

As the couple settles back into their spots on their sofa, Sun Wukong follows Dove out to the front of the bull family’s home. She turns to face him with crossed arms in front of her ambulance, waiting for his explanation while he struggles to find the words.

What does he even start with? He should apologize for running, right? He hadn’t even been thinking when he jumped onto his cloud– it was pure instinct! He hadn’t expected her to ask him out– and so bluntly! It took him completely off guard. After he’d been so cold to her when they first met and trying so hard to push her away, Sun Wukong thought she would never want him like that again, the way they were in her last life…

“Look,” She finally sighs, her head dropping as he takes too long to go first, “I got the idea, okay?”

His eyes go wide at her words. The disappointment she tries hiding in her voice, it makes his heart sink. “I was just curious, after how you were during that whole amnesia-day and… hah.” She smiles to herself, seemingly flustered by the way her cheeks start to dust pink. “I didn’t think it would scare you enough to run but– just a no would be fine next time.”

“No!”

“You didn’t have to say it now.”

Shoot! “No, that’s not what I meant.” The Monkey King reaches out for her hand, leaving her confused as he holds it tight. “I’d love to go on a date with you. Are… Are you sure you want to go on a date with me?”

His answer makes her blink in surprise, but she’s quick to recover as she digests his question. “I’m the one asking you out. Yes, I’m sure.” She has to wonder how that would even be a question for him?

There’s not a doubt in her eyes, and the resolve in her words is enough to twist his heart. How long did it take for her to return his feelings on their pilgrimage? And Dove in this new life— she’s ready to chase him down to ask him out?!

Wukong can’t help the smile that creeps its way onto his face. Damn, didn’t he promise himself to not get mixed up in her life again? It’s like he can’t help himself when it comes to breaking rules, even his own.

Unable to hide his smile now, the sage shakes his head and takes her hands into his own. “Okay then, on one condition. I’m planning the date.”

The paramedic laughs, her head slightly tilting in an amused confusion. “But I’m the one asking you out. Shouldn’t that be my job?”

“Do you already have something planned?”

“…Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I’d make it this far.”

The Monkey King grins. “Okay, then let me sweep you off your feet for this. You can plan the next one.”

The suggestion leaves her surprised, the blush over her face growing more noticeable. “What makes you think you’re getting a second date before the first one’s even started?”

“I… uh, I mean…” Wukong pauses. He was barely able to say yes to this date, he shouldn’t be getting ahead of himself.

Thankfully, she just gives him a playful smile. “Fine, then. If this one goes well, maybe I’ll plan the second one.”

Wow, they’re doing this. Neither party can hide the excitement they try suppressing. This is happening. Sun Wukong is going on a date with someone he was sure he’d lost centuries ago. No matter what, he has to make this perfect.

~~~~

You want to drop the minute you shut the door to your apartment. Your knees feel weak, ready to give out after asking the Monkey King out. The fact that he tried running didn’t help settle your nerves either.

He did carry your ambulance through the desert after Red Son brought you there to take care of the runaway monkey, so you’ll cut him some slack for that. You text Red Son a quick thanks for summoning you to their home so quickly, though he probably just wanted to get Wukong out of there as soon as he could.

Setting your phone down on your counter, you run over the events of the last hour again and can’t help the smile that spreads over your face the moment you’re alone. Damn, since when did that bundle of nerves in your gut feel good? You guess you could call them butterflies. Of course you thought you'd be happy if he said yes, but actually hearing it… ugh, stupid butterflies.

And he wants to plan it? Part of you feels bad shirking that responsibility to him since this was your idea. Still, you’re curious about what he has planned. It’s a weight off your shoulders, where could you even take him that would be impressive enough for the Monkey King? What kind of place will he be taking you?

There’s this stirring excitement in your chest now, your mind drifting to think of what he might have planned. Sun Wukong must know a thousand different things you could do. What if he wants to do something you used to like doing together? It’s not like you just asked him out because of your past, though it is something you’d like to know more about. If anything, it was more about Sun Wukong.

Your view of the Monkey King has shifted so much since the day MK found his staff. Back then, you enjoyed listening to your friend ramble about his hero. You would even consider yourself a bit of a fan, too. Then when you finally met the Great Sage… he was a prick! Sometimes? His hot-and-cold demeanour towards you was infuriating. At times, he’d act as though he wanted nothing to do with you, only to then go out of his way to interfere with your work or hanging out with the others. 

But even then, the way he looked at you… like there was always something he wanted to say. There was a pain you didn’t understand and it seemed like he didn’t want you to. You had grown used to him constantly pushing you out until that day where he forgot everything.

Seeing his walls down was whiplash enough, but for him to be that affectionate?! That whole day was chaotic and confusing, but when you think back to those quiet moments, the sweet words and playful teasing… it was nice. When he finally told you everything and apologized for how he’d been acting towards you, he changed all over again! 

It was kind of awkward at first, but you’ve been warming up to each other. You’ll tag along with MK now and then to see him— with the excuse of wanting to see his monkey subjects, of course. It’s kind of become a bit of a routine these days. The monkeys join you in watching the two spar, you and Wukong talk and catch up a bit while MK does his stretches and if he forgets to leave with you, Wukong offers to fly you back to the mainland. He still looks at you in the same way but with what you know now, it feels different. Just when you think you’re figuring him out, the Monkey King throws you for a loop. It drives you crazy and makes you all the more curious as to who he really is. You want to know him— really know him.

So why not give a date a shot?

~~~~

It’s early in the morning when the Monkie Kid peeks into the home of his teacher. Usually when they have training, Monkey King meets him on the peak of Flower Fruit, but today he didn’t show up. He never misses training— unless he’s on ‘vacation’ to find something powerful enough to defeat a past enemy— but it’s been a while since that happened. “Monkey King?”

He doesn’t get an answer as he steps into Water Curtain Cave, not even the monkeys that usually run around are present. “Hello? Is anyone home?” MK would’ve sworn the place was empty if it wasn’t for the distant sound of crashing and a frustrated shout from further into the cave.

When MK finally finds him deep in the tunnels of his home, he finds him surrounded by his subjects. The small monkeys sit around their king as he rummages through piles of clothes while mumbling to himself. What is he doing? Doesn’t he wear the same thing everyday? MK didn’t even know he had this many clothes. “Uh, Monkey King?”

The teacher’s head shoots up at his name, and he turns to face his pupil with a surprised smile. “Oh, hey bud! What’re you doing here?”

“We have training today, remember?” Did he really forget?

The look on Monkey King’s face is answer enough. “Shoot, that was today? Sorry, MK, can we reschedule? Something came up and now I need to find something to wear…” He begins searching through his pile as he talks, and MK frowns. It’s not like Monkey King ever goes anywhere…

OHMYGOSHWAIT “You said yes?!”

Monkey King turns around to look back at MK, but now he’s the one that’s confused. “How did you know?”

“She was hyping herself up to a bowl of noodles on her lunch break.” She never even noticed MK looming over her booth, too caught up in her nerves to see the knowing grin on her friend’s face.

“She did that?” Monkey King snorts at the mental image. He’s only laughing for a moment before shaking his head. “Ugh, I can’t find anything to wear. Can you help me out, bud? I swear I used to have a dress shirt or something.”

He goes back to searching through his mess while MK joins him, the two sorting through the clothes for anything he could use. MK always thought his teacher had a thing for their paramedic friend. While exploring Water Curtain Cave, he’d noticed murals deep in the cave of a woman that resembled her. Obviously, he didn’t know about their past life or anything then, he just assumed Monkey King was too shy to tell her how he felt and expressed it in art instead. 

He also hadn’t thought about how old those murals were, either. “Sooooo, where’re you guys going?” MK looks back at his teacher with a smirk that makes Monkey King roll his eyes, but he still smiles at the question.

Monkey King shrugs a bit as he sorts through his clothes, and MK tries not to say anything about his face getting a little red. “Oh nothing, just got us a reservation at one of the nicest restaurants in town… according to their reviews.”

Monkey King? Dinner at a fancy restaurant? “Really? I thought you’d need to get a reservation, like, wayyyyy in advance.”

“I’ve got my ways, heh.” He grins holding up another shirt that he quickly tosses over his head.

“Is that it?”

Monkey King pauses before looking back at his student. There’s a hesitant confusion on his face that worries the boy. The longer the silence lasts, the more the worry grows. After a moment, Monkey King laughs. “Nooooooo, pfft ‘is that it’ of course I have something else planned! Because I should totally have more planned… right?”