#he-man

in which adam shows up to take you on a date. {fluff, insecurity, reader is called beautiful/gorgeous. they're both kind of characterized inconsistently. this is my first time publishing a fic and it's for a movie that hasn't even come out yet lol.}

“hi.”

“hi.”

adam looks absolutely adorable. you can't help but look him over as he stands stark still in your doorway all handsome and well-dressed.

“are those for me?” you ask, nodding your head towards the bouquet in his hands. his knuckles are so white around the stem, you're worried they might snap.

“yes! yes, they are,” he stammers, tearing his eyes away from your face with noticable effort. he holds them out and seems to think better of how hard he's been gripping them, loosening his fingers as he extends his arm. “for you. i hope they're alright.”

“they're beautiful,” you tell him. they are, they really are, and taking them from him leaves you feeling giddy. it's not often you have someone pining over you like this, and since you've met him, adam seems to want nothing more than to make you smile.

you do, then, flashing him a pretty grin that he reciprocates tenfold. “they're really pretty, adam, thank you. do you want to step inside while i get these in some water?”

you step back from the door, one hand resting just above the knob while the other holds the bouquet against your chest.

adam accepts the invitation, stepping inside carefully and trailing like a lost puppy when you gesture him to follow behind you.

“these are wonderful,” you say. you can't stop saying it. much to your surprise, when you take off the wrapping, the stems are fine. they've already been trimmed of their lower leaves, ready to be cut and rehomed. “you didn't have to do all of this. these are so nice.”

“of course i had to,” adam says, watching your fingers dance across the stems, careful gaze inspecting each one before you trim it down with a paring knife. “what kind of date would i be if i showed up empty handed?”

“the kind of date i'm used to.” you mean for it to sound breezy, but you're not sure it does. you want to play it cool, but the flowers and adam are both so lovely, and you can't seem to find it in yourself to care. “thank you again. i know i've said it already, but this is just so nice.”

the flowers look even better in the vase, and you're sure adam spent more on them than he'd ever admit to you. he must've gotten them from a florist, there's one only a few blocks away from your apartment and you know they take advantage of their location to jack up prices.

“i meant to say it at the door,” he starts, then stops. “you look - i mean.” he shakes his head. “you look gorgeous. you're so beautiful, i still can't believe you said yes.”

“you're pretty easy on the eyes yourself.” your face feels hot, so you turn your attention back to the flowers. “if anything, i should've been the one who was surprised. someone like you wanting to to talk to me.” you gesture vaguely at yourself. “much less go on a date.”

“someone like me?” adam asks, head tilted. he sounds genuinely puzzled, and you wish you'd been more coy. nerves looked better on him thsn the brazen curiosity; at least you were on equal footing then. you feel silly now under his teasing gaze.

“you know,” you muster. “handsome, and fit. and not full of himself about it. guys like that aren't really the type to be interested in…” your chin dips down to your neck, and you wave a hand dismissively

“in?”

“i don't know how to say it without it sounding all self-pitying”

adam is quiet for a moment, then his hand reaches across kitchen. “how about we get going, and i can spend dinner telling you just how much i like you.”

you look at his hand, offered without expectation, and take it.

his fingers close around yours, and he smiles. his smile is so pretty, you think you'd do anything if it meant he'd keep looking at you like that.

he holds the doors for you, out of your apartment and then again out of the building. your hand is warm in his, and you fall into step behind him as he leads you down the street. it's a pretty night. adam is pretty, too, and he got you pretty flowers, and he thinks you're pretty. you couldn't be happier.

he swings his arm just slightly, creating a new rhythm in tandem with your steps. “i've got us a reservation.”

you look up at him with big eyes. “you made a reservation?”

“i did.”

you look forward again. the street is warm and gold-lit, that particular hour where everything looks a little kinder than it is, and you think about how close you were to canceling tonight. you think about the fourty minutes you spent in the bathroom debating your reflection in the mirror, and the text you must've drafted and deleted a dozen times. Something came up, I'm sorry.

adam's thumb sweeps across your knuckles once, absentminded. he doesn't know about any of that, and you don't think he needs to. he knows that you opened the door, and he seems more than pleased with that.

“thank you for the flowers.” you just can't help yourself. you must seem like a fool.

“thank me as many times as you want,” he says plainly, “but you don't have to. i liked picking them out.”

you believe him when he says it. he sounds so genuine, you have a hard time believing anything else. you tighten your fingers around his hand in silence, letting the sounds of the city comfort you.