old fashioned || karl jacobs x reader

9: talk like that

Suddenly, Alex's time was up with us and it was, unfortunately, time to say our farewells. Though my interaction with him had been decently restricted (due to work and unaligned schedules), I had found him funny and comforting. I saw exactly why Karl had chosen to get close with him. Their sense of humor was entirely similar, so much to the point that they were unknowingly repeating punchlines.

He had only stayed just a little over a week, which had flown by surprisingly fast. I almost felt bad for Karl knowing he was leaving soon just because of how good of friends they were. Surprisingly, though, Karl didn't seem too broken up about it. I'm sure he realized that he would see Alex again and would be able to call him whenever. But he didn't want his friend leaving without one final goodbye. The night before Alex was to leave, Karl suggested that we go out to eat as our last ode to him.

I stood in my bathroom that morning, exactly a day before Alex was to be flown out, brushing my teeth while aimlessly swiping through my phone. Jolting me from the mind-numbing device, a knock came on my ajar door. I looked over and saw Karl in my doorway, a small smile gracing his lips as his greeting. He must've just woken up given his mess of hair and pajamas.

"Hey," he hummed quietly to preserve his peaceful nature, "tonight his Quackity's last night and I wanted to do something nice for him. Are you free?"

Mouth foaming with toothpaste, I drew my toothbrush from my mouth to answer him with no concern for my comprehensibility. "Yeah, what didju have in mind?" I answered through the white foam.

After a split second of processing what I said, his smile grew. "I was thinking dinner, Olive Garden," he suggested.

I rinsed out my mouth and spat the minty froth into the sink. "Olive Garden?" I repeated with a curious quirk on my brow.

"He's never been, so I figured it would be fun," Karl explained, "something wrong with Olive Garden?" Humor lingered in his tone while his smile sparked with a hint of a smirk.

"Hmm, no," I shook my head, wiping my mouth with a hand towel, "Olive Garden sounds good."

"Perfect. Dinner at six, okay?"

"Mhm."

The whole day I felt stupidly excited for the night. I couldn't explain why I was anxiously awaiting the night. Perhaps it was because I hadn't had dinner out in forever (it felt like), or because I was going to have time dedicated to being with them. It had felt like for that whole week (and some change) that we had only been together for extended periods only a few times. Now, I had the opportunity, at likely the worst time, to be with both of them without feeling outcasted or out of place.

I found myself escaping the office at five o'clock sharp, nearly speeding through the town to get home even if I would still have time to kill. I was looking forward to dinner, obviously, but I also dreaded it knowing Alex would be leaving in the morning. I hadn't developed a tight relationship with him yet, but I still appreciated his presence around the house and mingling.

Arriving home, I felt this jolt of energy surge through me. I was upbeat leaving my car and walking through the front door. The main area of the house was empty but the new accumulation of dishes at the sink proved there was life within the home. I slowly paced through the living room, head-turning through every corner while looking for the boys. Meeting the corridor to Karl's side of the house, I saw faced with him walking just to the threshold. He was dressed well in a dark purple turtleneck and black jeans that accentuated his thin legs. A gold, chain bracelet was around his wrist, over the cuff of his sleeve so it wouldn't hide. He wanted it to be seen.

A smile grew on his rosy lips upon the sight of me. "(Y/n)!" He seemed almost surprised to see me, "did you just get home?"

I nodded, bringing my eyes back to his ice blue ones. "Yeah, are we about ready to go?"