KevEdd One-Shots Book

Making a Scene

Author: Mesita
Summary: For their six-month anniversary, Kevin takes Edd out for a nice dinner. They quickly learn that not being "out" in public is not as easy as they thought. (TW: homophobic slurs)

"A steakhouse, Kevin?" Edd said, his voice a little condescending.

Kevin's eyes shifted from Edd to the neon steakhouse sign and again. "You don't like steak?" He'd spent three days finding a place good enough to take Edd for their six-month anniversary. He knew that most people didn't bother with such small anniversaries, but Kevin's six months were big. Anything that had to do with Edd was a big deal.

"Not to sound particularly frugal, but... isn't it a bit expensive?" Edd sounded so unsure - a rarity these days. Kevin suspected that maybe Edd was just as nervous as he. It wasn't often they went out publicly as boyfriends. Kevin mostly just hated the staring.

"That was the point," Kevin deadpanned. "The expense weeds out the dickheads. Come on." He deliberately took hold of Edd's hand and marched straight to the front door.

A pretty employee held the door open for them and belted out her scripted welcome with an even more scripted smile. Kevin tried to pretend that her eyes falling to their clasped hands didn't bother him. He was here to have a lovely dinner with his boyfriend, goddamnit, and everyone else could go to hell.

Once inside, the hostess led them to a booth and took their drink orders. Kevin smiled silently to himself. So far, so good. He'd called ahead of time to make sure they would be seated quickly. The last thing he wanted to deal with was a bored Edd while they waited amongst screaming babies and funny-smelling older people.

Kevin watched Edd unfold his napkin and re-position it on his lap - and then take a paper napkin so that he could place his silverware on that. A long time ago, such nuances would have pissed Kevin off, but now he found them distinctly-Double-D, and he wouldn't trade them for anything. He'd even gone so far as to hold his hand out for Edd to give him a dollop of antibacterial hand sanitizer to use before he handled his menu. It was the little things.

"You know what you want?" Kevin eyed the menu.

"I'm looking for the perfect food-to-cost ratio," Edd explained coolly.

Kevin knew better than to ask if Edd could calculate all of that in his head. He didn't mind. He was getting a steak and a baked potato, and no one could stop him. "Get whatever you want. It's on me. Happy Anniversary."

Edd's eyes flicked upward, and his tooth gap appeared through his grin. "Happy Anniversary, Kevin," he echoed. His hand reached across the table, and Kevin took it immediately.

Kevin forgot they weren't the only people in the restaurant. He and Edd had been out a few times before, but most of their hand-holding occurred under the table, where they felt more comfortable. This time, they didn't even hide their hands behind a menu. It was exciting, in a way.

When the entire world didn't implode on itself just because two boys held hands at a restaurant, it made Kevin feel a bit more daring. If Edd was up for it, Kevin wanted to show Edd just how good a time he could be. Kevin had taken girls out on dates before, but the dates were completely different from what Kevin had with Edd. He hadn't been ready to date a guy in the open, and neither had Edd, so they took it slow. It was torture. Kevin wanted to wrap his arms around Edd's waist and tug him close, but they'd had to keep their distance.

But not anymore.

After they'd ordered and the waitress left, Kevin couldn't stand the distance between himself and his boyfriend. Despite the norm, most couples sat across from each other; Kevin hurried out of his seat and motioned Edd to move over.