#mea.mail

He was finally able to call in for a mini-vacation, just to enjoy the long weekend but unfortunately, the long weekend was not a luxury you could afford. Your company was in dire need of preparations to be made and proofed before the overhaul happening next week.

In the morning, Mark wanted extra cuddle time after your alarm had gone off, but you were in desperate need to get ready so you could finish your work faster; fine.

During your lunch break, Mark took the time to craft up some lovely sandwiches, hoping the two of you could sit and eat it under the sun, but you pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, took your food and ran back to your desk to work; ... fine.

Throughout the rest of the day, Mark did his best to leave you to work but his vying for your attention and touch was obvious as he followed you around the house in between meetings and document printing.

He would rest his chin on your shoulder, watching you work but as still as he tried to be, the presence of someone quite literally watching you work made you uneasy so you shoved him away, telling him to go watch TV or something.

Mark murmured to himself, eyebrows and nose scrunched at the vexing distaste of being ignored and rightfully pushed away, "The audacity, I just want cuddles..."

Leaning upside down on the couch, legs propped straight up against the wall, he idly watched you as you speak on the phone with your courteous "phone voice". The one where you seemed a little too sweet and too innocent, like the ones the baristas at his favourite cafe often used. Usually, your phone voiced amused him, but not today. Today, he was hellbent on being grumpy about everything you did, unless it was cuddling him.

When you had hung up the phone, he sighed in an attempt to get your attention. The pout was forming, you could feel it, but you had to will yourself to ignore him. A few more passive-aggressive huffs later, you waved your hand asking if he would like to just order take-out for dinner.

There were a lot of things Mark wanted to eat for dinner, but he stubbornly decided against giving you a definite answer or suggestion. Instead, he crossed his arms over his chest, eyes closed as he huffed in defiance. Now you were trying to get him out of the house and away from you! This was not fine.

"Mark?"

You called his name once more following a lack of response. Finishing your last page of the day, you sighed. The looming shadow of a clingy boyfriend started to fill the once, supposedly ambient workspace. Even if you weren't done work for the day, you probably would have caved.

You stopped short of the couch, hands are your hips as you stared down at your grumpy boyfriend. His head lulling off the seat of the sofa from the way he had orientated himself.

"Mark," you called out again, this time growing a little impatient with the childish attitude. His eye twitched behind his closed lids at the sound of his name but remained unmoving otherwise. "Fine, I guess I'm only ordering the barbecue rice dinner set for myself tonight."

It was unusual for Mark to not cave at the sound of one of his favourite orders were mentioned. Lee's BBQ was one of Mark's go-to places when he was feeling some savoury with a hint of honey and Lee's always had the best cure for that craving. With a tired huff of your own, you bent over your own body, stretching out your aching muscles and rubbed the soreness out from your shoulders before leaning over Mark with wiggling fingers.

He grimaced at the feeling of your shadow hovering over his body, but not a moment later, a strangle cough mixed with laughter erupted from your boyfriend, filling the room in a cacophony as he started to roll around on the couch. It was a rather futile attempt to escape your dancing fingers, as they raced across various parts of his torso, finding all his weak spots as he writhed.

In between wheezes of your name breathless pleads to stop tickling him, Mark finally caved in, shouting his order amidst falling off the sofa and onto the floor by your feet, gasping for air as he the residual laughter wore off, "P-please, just the usual combo with extra sauce on the side."

You hummed in response, pulling out your phone to call in your orders. Sitting up from the floor, Mark fanned himself, a now brighter smile on his lips as he watched you purse your lips in anticipation.

"Hello, Lee's BBQ are you calling for take-out?"

The familiar sound of Mrs. Lee's voice seemed to finally calm the both of you down, your smile stretching as you hopped on the spot, "Hi, Mrs. Lee, it's [Y/N]! Mark and I will be coming by for our usual? The combo c with extra sauce on the side and the— Yes that's right."

Mark outstretched his arm, pulling you closer to him by your knees as you nodded along as Mrs. Lee confirmed your small order, "Oh and what's the soup of the day?"

Pulling away from the phone you mouthed, "Want the soup?" to which Mark nodded along, whispering a please and thank you as you passed on the order. With your order in the process, you hung up with an ecstatic thank you before plopping onto Mark's lap.

"Foooooood!" Mark hollered happily, hands coming up to squeeze your sides as you rested your head on his shoulder. "Finally, I'm starving."

"Starving for attention too, you lil' baby," you teased, finger poking at his nose blindly in an attempt to irk your boyfriend some more for bothering you with all his needy sighs.

Mark huffed in response, pretending to bite at your finger to deter you, "I wanted cuddles this morning, you left too early. I wanted to eat lunch with you, you ran away back to your desk."

Jerking back from his shoulder, you offered him a pointed look, "I was rushing so I could get done faster."

"I don't care if you finish faster, I much rather spend some time throughout the day with you," Mark pouted, eyebrows crinkling as his lips turned downwards.

With a small flick to his forehead, you chuckled, "Yeah, but I care. I want to be able to enjoy my evenings free from work, otherwise, I'll be working all night."

Your boyfriend pursed his lips before muttering a, you're right, pulling you in for a firm hug and a contented sigh. Toying with the hair at the nape of his neck elicited another sigh, the man physically melting into your touch as he finally got the attention he's been vying for all day.

"We should start heading over to pick up the food," you pointed out, only for Mark to pat your butt softly, head shaking as he silently asked for a few more minutes to lavish in the affection you were giving him.

He's a big baby and I love him 🥺

"Yeah pretty much? I mean like you could touch them but I'm no help here, I'm usually on the receiving end." ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Okay, go for it, go slow, no tongue, maybe touch. Touch? Touch where???

Always carries gum or a container of mints as well as a stick of lip balm because you can never be too prepared.

Also because he read too many horror stories on the subreddit about chapped lips, bad breath and biters

He probably also puckered his lips in the mirror a few times or kissed the back of his hand just to check he's doing it right/looks normal

Starts to worry about consent, "I should ask first, but would that ruin the moment? Will said go for it, but what if they think I'm weird or coming on too fast???"

Not enough mirror practice would help Mark with his anticipation for his first kiss with you. The second date was at the movies since Will was very adamant that going to the movies on the first date was not the best idea. Though Mark wanted to give you a kiss then, he couldn't find a good time that didn't seem to scream pushy so he chalked it up to wait till today.

The two of you were wrapping up your third date of catching the sunset during a picnic on a quaint hill just a little outside the city. You brought your camera and took some photos of Mark basking in the golden hour glow and of the sunset itself.

There were not a lot of people around and the moment seemed ambient enough to instigate a kiss. His hands were getting a little clammy just thinking about it, but you looked so damn good in your outfit today and your hair fluttered so seamlessly in the wind. Not to mention, that orange glow was doing your features a lot of justice, perfectly adding a shadow in the right places of your face.

Your face, the way your lashes sat upon your cheekbones as you closed your eyes towards the setting star. Your lips...

Instinctively, Mark gave a harsh—almost choked—swallow to keep himself from drooling all over his lap at the wondrous sight of you before him. He subtly pulled out a mint while you were occupied with the view of the town below you, popping it into his mouth and quickly slathering on some lip balm. His fingers curled into a fist a few times to test if the clamminess would be too much to touch you with.

Too holed up in his own thoughts about kissing you, Mark was oblivious to you scooting closer to him on the picnic blanket you had brought along. The fabric dipped as you sat closer to Mark, head ducking just enough to peer up at your date.

With a delicate extension of your hand, your warm fingertips lifted Mark's attention from his lap to you, "What's got your mind running?"

His eyes widened at the sight of your own, peering into his soul oh-so-gently with a tinge of worry, your brows creasing in the centre as you tilted your head.

You were much closer than you were a moment ago, and that made him gulp audibly, "I-I was uh..."

A little chortle incited from you as you leaned in just a bit, eyes slit with a teasing glimmer and a smirk that toyed at your lips, "You weren't contemplating a kiss under the setting sun were you?"

Caught in 4K, Mark chuckled nervously, eyes darting off to the side to buy himself some time to free him from this incriminating accusation you had right down to a T, "If I was?"

No you insolent fool, that is not what you wanted to say!

"Then I think we should go for it, I'll give you brownie points for the romantic gesture," you offered him a smooth wink. One that only seemed to have him further engrossed in the idea of your beauty and your intelligence. "Otherwise, just tell me if I'm being too pushy."

This whole time, Mark was worried about being the pushy one, trying to drum up the smoothest way to ease into a kiss without being too straightforward, yet here you were with a bundle of confidence suddenly built up.

Will's voice echoed in the back of his head; just go for it. Start slow, no tongue.

Mark followed your eye movements, the way they flickered between his own and his lips and without another further moment, Mark flashed you his most boyish grin.

"Not at all," he murmured before leaning in to meet you halfway. The short distance elicited a small shiver down his spine that was only soothed when he finally pressed his lips to your own.

The finger you had holding his chin from earlier moved ever so slightly to make room for your thumb, using both to guide him just a centimetre closer, as if you couldn't bear the small gap between the two of you.

Mark shifted his weight so he was comfortably resting against one hand, instinctively placing his free one on the curve of your thigh. The languid movements of your warm lips against one another moved in a synchronized dance, not to any rhythm in particular, just one that matched each others' natural decision.

He could have kept going, he didn't want the kiss to end, but alas, you pulled away for a moment to catch your breath. He felt the warmth emanating from your hands as you brought them up to cup his cheeks, "How utterly romantic, almost feels like you had some practice."

The incessant teasing was back, but Mark was far from annoyed though he found himself unable to contain the flush that tinged his cheeks.

"I could say that same for you," he murmured, trying to hide behind his own hand but you only gave him a shameless laugh in response. You tried to cover your own cackle behind your hand as well, pulling away enough to sober yourself up.

In that very brief moment, Mark started to feel cold from the absence of your hand on his cheek. He caught himself pouting.

Your glossy eyes looked over at your date, with a slight grin, "Having my first kiss definitely beats kissing the back of my hand for practice."

How did I do?

"You stink, phew," Mark quipped, fanning the air in front of him.

Pausing with your arms crossed, you gave your boyfriend the stink eye as you tried to subtly sniff around you, "I ran two blocks in a full suit to get here in time for dinner, but I don't even smell!"

Mark burst into laughter as he watched you twist about, "I was kidding babe, here."

Your boyfriend stood proud, head turned to you while he remained busy stirring sauce contents in the pan. As you attempted to go in for another kiss, mark remained unmoving, refusing to bend down to meet you halfway as he usually did due to your partial height difference.

With an agitated scowl, you tugged the man down by the chest pocket of his apron, planting a firm kiss on his lips with a little more vigour than he had anticipated. Freeing up his arm, he wrapped it around your torso to pull you inclose before you could escape to give you one more proper welcome back kiss to make up for his playful teasing.

"Alright go wash up, dinner's almost ready," Mark grinned, patting your backside as he gently nudged you out of his messy workspace. "LOVE YOU!"

Rolling your eyes, you headed off to your shared bedroom with a sigh, "Yeah, yeah, love you too."

The second rule of your routine was to make sure mundane things around the apartment were accessible to you. Your height put you at the disadvantage of being able to reach everyday items on your own if Mark placed them too high—something he was very guilty of especially when the two of you first moved in. He was used to putting the cereal box on the shelf that was eye-level to him, which in turn, was not eye-level for you.

After scolding him one too many times, Mark finally turned over the habit of his to adjust to your needs. However, from time to time, he would find something to "misplace" just so he could get a kick out of you asking him for him.

Once you caught on to his new form of teasing you, as the independent adult you were, you started to climb the counters and other relatively safe but unsafe surfaces to get what you needed without asking for some aid. It was... your little version of a protest so as not to satisfy him by relying on him for the stupid jar of pasta sauce, or your hairbrush or even that favourite mug of yours.

"Babe, please don't stand on the toilet lid like that," Mark drawled out with an exasperated sigh as he watched you lunge with one foot on the edge of the counter and the other on the closed toilet seat. "You know our toilet lid isn't solid, what if it breaks and you fall in?"

"Then you're paying for the replacement and you can cater to my every need while I'm in a cast and recovering from the trauma of ice cold toilet water," you chided nonchalantly as you definantly leveraged yourself so you could retrieve the mouthwash that Mark had hidden not in medicine cabinet but on top of.

Just as you were about to mentally pat yourself on the shoulder for your just indepenence, you pushed off the counter with your bottle of mouthwash in your clutch, but the sudden shift in weight to your foot on the toilet lid caused the plastic lid to shift with a hollow sounding crack.

Your boyfriend was on you in an instant, hands firm on your hips with wide eyes as he lifted you above the lid in case it were to crack beneath you, "See! This isn't safe!"

"I wouldn't be in these unsafe situations if you just stopped putting things out of reach of my short arms so I could live like a normal person!"

Mark, still holding you, gasped at your rhetoric, "You could just ask me to help you."

"You could just put things where you find them," you snarked back, angrily taking a swig from the mouthwash bottle. As you swished the blue liquid around, Mark started to laugh at the sight. Your eyes slit in suspicion as you quietly watched your boyfriend tremble with laughter. He shifted his stance so he could hover you over the sink as you discarded the mouth wash. "Could you put me down, I'm not Simba from the Lion King."

As he placed you back on your feet, Mark slung his arms over your shoulder, chin resting on your head as his mind started to wander.

Eye narrowed at your boyfriend through the mirror once more as he mumbled to himself, "What are you scheming this time?"

Your boyfriend snapped his attention from the sink to meet your eyes in the reflection, "You are tiny though... we should dress up as guy and the palm-top tiger from that one anime for Halloween!"

Profusely shaking your head, you rejected the idea, "We will do no such thing that reinforces the idea of my height compared you."

Mark whined in defeat as you nudged him, eyes watching his hand as he absentmindedly goes to move the mouthwash back to the wrong shelf, "MARKUS SEBASTIAN GRAYSON!"

"I'M SORRY IT'S MUSCLE MEMORY!"

Your wedding was small. Those of your family you invited, his own family and some friends and teammates all filled the seats at your wedding venue. Your now mother-in-law was in tears, almost sending you into your own little giddy sob, but Mark couldn't let that happen. His usual doting behaviour took over, and he did his best to cheer you up and keep you smiling and laughing all through the night. He also had you calling his name a lot after the reception too...

Now marriage with Mark wasn't too far off from your relationship with him before. As expensive as things for weddings could get, Mark was happy before and he would be happy now. Kissing your wedding band or calling you his [wife/husband] now was just the icing on the cake.

If you two hadn't been living together prior to your marriage, you most certainly were going to now. That meant, finding a proper place to call home and buying furniture.

"Mark, we don't need a random turtle decor piece in our house."

"But it would look good on the coffee table!"

"What coffee table Mark? We still haven't gotten to the living room furniture section yet and we've been in this store for an hour!"

Mark grew to love cooking and little domestic moments with you. He did his best to make dinner at least two to three times a week, especially if work was getting busy for you. His dedicated mornings to training now incorporated time to either cook breakfast before you wake up or to make sure you had some sort of lunch to take with you to work.

Feeling more athletic? Cool, he is totally open to you training with him in the mornings, at least ground training.

Other domestic moments included but were not limited to folding fresh laundry with you in the afternoon and chatting away about frivolous matters. A morning rinse or a shower before bed with you was always nice too. Oh, and you almost always had to kill the bugs, whether you liked it or not, because when it came to critters, it was every person for themselves, and unfortunately, Mark had the upper hand of flying states/countries away at the sight of one.

"I'm InVinCiBLe, I sAvE pEoPLe WhEn I cAn aND I fiGht bAD GuYs tWiCe My siZe, aLien Or HumAn, aHoHo."

"You think you're so funny, huh? You screamed too!"

"YOU LEFT ME IN THE BASEMENT AND SONIC BOOMED OUT OF THE BACKYARD TO PARIS!"

"I brought you back some éclairs though..."

"I could have died, Mark."

"BUT YOU DIDN'T AND NOW YOU'RE [WIFE/HUSBAND] OF THE YEAR! I love you, please accept these delicious pastries as my sincerest apologies. Please?"

The two of you would fall into a little routine of finding one day out of the week where schedules allowed, for a movie night, or a spa day. The two of you often travel too (thanks to his abilities) so you can always get the freshest meals catered to your cravings or a new sight to see when things get dry back wherever the two of you decided to settle.

At least once or twice a month, Will, his teammates and your friends would get together for game nights or a potluck. It was almost always endearingly chaotic between the two of you if you played on separate teams. Mark wanted you to win, but he was also super competitive. You as well, especially when you started to throw out bets like the loser has to mow the lawn next or dish duty for the next week.

Mark was absolutely in love with you, no less than before marriage. If anything, just a tad bit more, and he couldn't wait to see what other chaotic moments he would get with you next.

Also, Mark breaks more things than you can count. First, it was a plate, then the week after it was some collectable drinking glass from a thrift store that neither of you really cared for. But then, things you actually cared for/didn't know were possible to break so early on started to well, break.

"Mark, honey. Why is our blender missing a blade?"

"Um well, you see—wow would you look at the time. I have to go meet Cecil for something."

Or that time...

"Babe, where did our shower curtain and the rod go?"

"Look, funny story, you're gonna get a real laugh out of this one..."

But the best one yet:

"MARKUS SEBASTIAN GRAYSON, YOU BETTER GET ME OUT OF THIS HOLE RIGHT NOW, OR SO HELP ME GO-"

"Oh shit, sorry, I meant to tell you about that."

"You meant to tell me there was a hole in our staircase? I sure hope you would! Why is there a hole in our staircase and why did you put a god damn black towel over it??? It blends in with the stairs!"

Oh and that turtle decor he wanted? He ended up buying it the next time he went to the store (without you), and at that point, you couldn't say no or tell him to return it because it did look good on your coffee table, albeit a little quirky. Mark also has and will continue his habit of picking up souvenirs from his trips, even if it's a fossilized rock from outer space or sand in a bottle from an island on Earth you have yet to visit.

Your eyes sparkle just right, I don't think any rock in outer space could ever compare.

Tears started to brim at your waterline, nose twitching with anticipation at your building sob—Mark grew so worried his brain stopped actively engaging with the thought of you because he was too busy trying to think back to where exactly he messed that one up.

As you brushed your tears with the base of your palm, your boyfriend finally snapped out of his gaze, a flurry of apologies and questions tumbled out him, hands unsure if he would be allowed to pry your hands away to assess you or if he should sit closer and put his arms around you.

"I'm so sorry, [Y/N]. That probably sounded bad, I meant like-like you're one of a kind, super special and unique you know? Not unique as in bad—oh god this is getting so out of hand. Please don't cry, I'm really sorry I won't say it again!"

That only made you sob even more, now trying to hide, shielding Mark from the sight of you bawling your eyes out.

Your boyfriend was now 100% sure he screwed up, settling on pulling you into a hug instead, eyes darting from side to side to find something—anything—he could distract you with.

Finally calming down, Mark pulled away enough to peer down at you with concerned eyes, "I fucked up really badly didn't I?"

You shook your head, the last of your tears dripping down your chin as you feebly wiped at them as you explained through sniffles that you find it really hard and overwhelming to accept compliments because you didn't see yourself in the same way, laced with worries about your own body and skin, never once able to admire yourself in the mirror.

What do you mean you don't think you look good??? Mark was appalled, he wanted to repeat himself until you smiled and agreed but your boyfriend was also TERRIFIED that it would make you cry again.

In hindsight, this may not have been the best course of action but Mark asked you what exactly it was you didn't like about yourself. Carried away in a shy tangent, you listed the things from head to toe you didn't like, your boyfriend patiently listening to every word.

It was unnerving to point out all your flaws, now afraid that he would have more reasons to dump you over your insecurities, but when you looked over at Mark, he had the sweetest, tooth-rotting smile on his face.

You absolutely dreaded for what was to come next, heart pounding as you tried to will yourself not to cry again, except Mark pull you in for a soft kiss on your lips and casually quipped, "You may not be your own type, but certainly are mine. Perspectives vary from person to person, how you see yourself is certainly not how I see you."

???

"Slowly but surely, you will come to love all those things you listed—which by the way—I either never noticed or I simply don't see it the way you do. It'll be hard to convince you otherwise, but I'll never stop complimenting you, even when you finally give in and see yourself differently."

Mark's smile instantly dropped when you started to tear up again, it's kind of a hard cycle to break but Mark has all the patience in the world when it comes to the love of his life.

Even when you brush him off, roll your eyes or bashfully fold into yourself to avoid his words, Mark will slowly but surely incorporate all the positive words in the world's biggest thesaurus to convey just how much he loves and appreciate you for who you are.

When you finally got to meet her out of costume, she introduced herself as Samantha Wilkins and you almost lost your cool, because it the Atom Eve, however, she glossed over that name and made sure you knew her for who she was. A close friend of Mark's, someone he had gone to high school with.

It was great to have someone like Eve around because you finally got to hear about some of your boyfriend's greatest and silliest moments during missions and even from his teenage days.

Will apparently swore some secrecy to Mark as his best friend so there were things that he remained tight-lipped about.

However, as time went on, Mark grew comfortable in spending more time with Samantha out of the suit because the two of you now knew each other.

Unfortunately, that didn't really soothe your inherent worries about the two of them.

You trusted Mark, you knew he wasn't some reckless teenager, at least not anymore. He was an adult very capable of making his own decisions, setting his own boundaries and being respectful of his relationships with people.

But there was just a tiny part of you that worried.

Perhaps it was out of a lingering sense of insecurity, the innate comparisons you would make between yourself and Samantha. She was Atom Eve, she was out there saving the world, helping the planet, making a difference and she was gorgeous and kind.

As you stared at yourself in the mirror, sometimes you couldn't help but wonder why Mark chose you instead, when he spent so many years fighting alongside Samantha.

The feeling made you a little more bitter over time and Mark didn't notice until one day, he had asked you if it would be okay if he went out to Cuba with Samantha for the weekend to check on a lead for the Guardians.

The implication of it being for work made it harder for you to say no, but your response and agreement for him to go came off kind of blunt and a little too passive-aggressive.

"I don't know why you're asking if it's for work, just go."

Mark couldn't help but furrow his brows at your tone, "I thought you were the one who said we should run our schedules by each other so we don't get confused."

You sighed at the reminder, "You're right, sorry."

When you closed the mirrored cabinet, Mark was watching you with a grim look upon his face, "Is everything okay? You've been kind of distant recently."

"It's fine," you brushed him off, sliding past him in the bathroom doorway to make your way over to the bed. You crawled under the covers and instantly closed your eyes.

If I don't look at Mark, he'll drop the subject.

Except he didn't. Instead, your boyfriend followed you under the cover, coming face to face with you with a soft smile, "I don't think it's nothing. Talk to me, [Y/N]."

You took a deep breath, doing your best to keep your composure, but the moment you opened your eyes, searching for Mark in the midst of the darkness from under the comforter, tears started to well up.

"Why don't you date Samantha or someone like Samantha? Why are you dating a normal law-abiding citizen like myself when you could be with someone who has super cool powers, is super caring and kind to everyone and literally helping the planet?"

Frazzled by your outburst and the cracks in your voice, Mark was quick to scoot in closer to you, pulling you as close as he humanly could without crushing you to offer you some physical comfort.

"What are you talking about? Why would I? I love you for you, even if you're just a normie citizen like my mum or Will."

You sniffled, burying your face into the soft fabric of his shirt, "Because you're part Viltrumite. You have super strength, you can float and fly, you have saved the Earth countless times at the side of those who are just like you, like Atom Eve. She understands your lifestyle, you wouldn't have to worry about her and you wouldn't have to ask her if you could go to Cuba for recon."

Mark stopped responding, if anything he kind of stopped working; Mark.exe error noises.

He wasn't sure how to respond to that, what could he possibly do to make you worry less and to soothe your thoughts without saying the wrong thing.

You finished crying, unapologetically wiping your tear-stained face on Mark's cotton sleep shirt, and giving the snottiest sniffle man-kind has ever heard.

"Babe, you know... Even though I am part Viltrumite, and I have all these inherited abilities from my dad, I don't always feel that way. I know to most, I'm this hybrid sitting in a grey area because most people wouldn't accept me for being human while aliens probably wouldn't accept me as one of them because most beings out there don't even have a good relationship with the Viltrumite side of my bloodline. Samantha, Rex, everyone out there with powers allows me the opportunity to be a hero, someone with superpowers without judging me."

He paused, and for a moment you tensed up. Was this it? Did Mark just realize your question held a real thought-provoking possibility that perhaps he did choose the wrong person?

He looked down at you with a soft smile, "But when I'm with Will, my mum and you of all people, I can be the human side of me I have always been. I was raised human, hell I even had a very generic human childhood, for seventeen years and then suddenly I'm not human anymore and that was a really shitty time for me. I also got my ass kicked in a lot but when I'm with you, that normalcy I was raised with, I can have that. I wouldn't choose you over anyone else, because at the end of the day, you still understand the other part of me."

"But you can have that with Samantha too, she's also very human."

"But she is also not you, and I have made my decisions. I made it a long time ago and I don't ever plan to change that. I love you, [Y/N]."

With another round of tearful apologies, you muttered your I love you, too

Once you had calmed down and Mark had finished cheering you up, the two of you took a moment to talk out the feelings some more. Mark promised to spend a bit more time with you and that he would bring you along to more hangouts with Sam and the team.

When that happened, Mark 100% expected you to be more clingy and he was a-okay with that. He would hold your hand whenever he could, and would always save you a seat next to him at the table or on the couch.

Mark gave his physical affirmations with you when people weren't looking, with a peck to the temple, a small poke or a quick hug.

In return, you did your best to spend more time with Samantha, which helped you build more trust and confidence with both yourself and her as a friend.

Sorry if this wasn't to your expectation or it seemed short. There was some fat dialogue from Mark but it felt necessary.

"You're asking me if your casual short-sleeved button-up from is too formal for a first date, to the petting zoo?" Will's eyebrow threatened to twitch in frustration.

Fuck, he's right, "I'll have to change the plan—"

"Stop," his best friend groaned, standing up to walk over to Mark. His fingers reached out and fixed the last button for him. "You look great for a first date, plus it suits the vibes. Your fit screams, I'm a fun and approachable guy who loves cute animals!"

Finally heaving the first relaxing sigh of the evening, Mark turns to look into the full-length mirror once more. His hand fluffed his hair, ensuring the tuffet had just enough product to look presentable.

"You're gonna be late if you don't stop fussing about your appearance," Will sounded from his spot on the bed once more, this time his hand was occupied with his phone as he waved it at Mark.

A string of curses escaped Mark as he tripped over his own two feet to get out the door and down the stairs, "Thank you for the help, Will!"

The brunet replied with something incoherent, probably something along the lines of good luck, don't fuck up as Mark slipped on his shoes. He waved goodbye to his parents and slipped into his car.

To his displeasure, the petting zoo parking lot was a little tighter than he would have liked, which cost him an extra two minutes just to reverse into a good parking spot.

By the time he got to the gates, you were leaning against the fence, idly trying to coax one of the baby goats over so you could pet them.

"[Y/N], I am so sorry, I had to find parking," Mark sheepishly scratched at the back of his neck as he approached your crouched figure.

You turned away from the fence, no baby goat taking up your futile attempt to persuade them over to you, "Hey! No worries, I just got here myself."

The poor flustering mess—Mark—was unsure of what to do with his hands. They felt clammy so he didn't want to offer to hold your hand just yet, were you even supposed to hold hands on the first date again?

He quickly wiped his hands on his jeans and pointed to the entrance, "Shall we go pet some zoos—I mean animals."

His nervousness earned a little chuckle from you, but you were quick to hide it behind the back of your hand with a tiny cough, "Sorry, let's go!"

Mark pushed open the double gate for you, ensuring the both of you were in before you opened the next set of gates. You dropped in a couple of bills into the donation box, thinking it would cover the both of you, but Mark was also pushing in his own donation into the slit.

You smiled at the thought but didn't bother bringing it up. Not like it would be very nice for either of you to ask for the donation back. It was going towards feeding and caring for the animals at the petting zoo anyways.

Once you both were washed up, the two of you made your way to the little stable. There was no denying the farm smell that came from the animals and the petting zoo itself, but neither of you chalked up to say anything. Mark simply walked alongside you as you both gawked at, and attempted to befriend the animals.

"Have you been here before?"

You turned your attention from the horse to your date, and with a small smile you gave him a nod, "Yeah, I come here every once in a while with my family."

Mark smiled at the thought, gently trying to pet the horse in front of him but with an annoyed neigh, the horse dodged his hand, "That's pretty cool, I've never actually been."

"That explains it," you nodded with a little snort. Bemused, Mark stopped trying to pet the horse, watching you as you waved for him to move closer to you. "Once you get the hang of reading their body language, it'll be easier for you to approach them."

The raven-haired boy next to you tilted his head. He watched as you picked up his hand from his side, gently bringing it up to the horse you had been petting, "If you let them sniff your hand first, they have the opportunity to grow accustomed to your scent and choose what they want to do."

Your hand didn't leave Mark's until the mare approved of him, "Now try petting her."

Mark followed your suggestion, his hand gently rubbing at the muzzle. The mare leaned into his touch, big brown orbs blinking with amusement at him as he caught his own reflection in her eyes.

He quickly shifted his attention between you and the horse, entranced by your calm aura and confidence around animals. He has heard horror stories about people getting bit by horses before so he had a minor fear of them, but watching you smile so fondly at the animal, made him calm and confident as well.

Or as confident as he could be until the mare before she gave a light sneeze. The sound startled Mark enough to jump back.

You cackled at his demeanour, returning to quickly pet the horse before nodding your head towards the rest of the stable. He was quick to follow, trying to shake the embarrassment of being the only one to react.

Peering over your shoulder, you sent a grin to Mark, "Is there anything you want to see in particular first? Sorry, I just kind of went to the stables with asking."

"Oh no, no it's fine. I'm good with whatever, we can just make our way around counter-clockwise then," Mark beamed briefly before his smile dropped and he started pointing at the enclosure in front of you. "We're not petting those are we?"

You gave a quick turn to the peacocks in their enclosure, one was preparing to fan its feathers but it didn't quite look like a mating dance, "No, we're not allowed to pet them. Plus he looks kind of mad..."

"Maybe, something not mad and angry?" Mark gave an unsure smile, not wanting to ruin your fun but also not wanting to stay and watch the peacock go berserk behind the enclosure either.

Giving a hum in agreement, the two of you avoided staying any longer, the peacock suddenly giving you both the death glare as Mark gently nudged you out of the area.

The rest of your time spent at the small petting zoo included a lot more laughs and a couple of animal jokes or facts. Mark remained fascinated with you, growing less anxious about the date as he came to realize that you were both in a relaxed environment—even when a baby goat decided to parkour off his back while he was seated on a rock.

Mark was only a tad bit offended, finding himself unable to hold a grudge because it had gotten another round of laughter from you. Instead, he spoke to the goat in a baby voice, asking him to apologize but the baby goat wasn't done messing with your date just yet. Instead, he decided to head-butt Mark in the shin instead.

The two of you also got a chance to feed the rabbits at the far end of the petting zoo, both crouched towards the ground as you handed their evening meals to them by hand.

"Watching them eat is kind of making me hungry," Mark patted at his growling stomach. "Would you like to grab something to eat on our way back? I know of a small restaurant that's only a few minutes from here."

You nodded along as you handed a carrot to a Flemish Giant off to the side, "Sure, I didn't drive though, would you mind giving me a ride home after?"

Mark gave your a quick nod, but once your attention was away from him, he started to panic once more. Shit, did I clean my car?

Before you ask, yes, Will had a lovely dinner with Debbie (and Nolan?) while Mark was out on his date. Will is always welcomed for dinner at the Grayson household, even if Mark isn't home. The first time he found out Will had been sneaking in dinners with his family, he was a tad bit surprised and a little offended because Mark didn't even know his family was free to be having dinner that day.