The Setup

"Come on, Ant. It will be fun!" Stephen urges his friend, who was concentrating, well at least trying to, on his textbook.

"Stephen, I appreciate what you're trying to do for us, but I'm not really up for another one of yours and Emma's attempt to play matchmaker. Remember the last time?" Ant quirks an eyebrow at his roommate.

"Look, that was a mistake. How were we supposed to know that you didn't like the lasses?" Stephen leans in across the table and takes away the textbook from Ant's grasp, setting it aside. "But that's in the past now, forget about it. This time, I'm sure we did well in picking someone for you."

Ant sighs. "Tell me about him then."

"His name is Declan." Stephen bit his lip as he tried to remember facts about Ant's date. Recalling something else, Stephen snapped his fingers. "Oh, he's from Newcastle as well AND... and, I think you're gonna like this one, he likes that football team you like." Stephen beamed, clearly proud of himself.

"Is that all you know about him?" Stephen nods. "So you think I'd like this guy based on the fact that a) he's from Newcastle, and b) he supports the same football team as me. Those were the only factors you looked at when you were picking a date for us?"

"Yeah," Stephen eagerly nods. "Me and Emma figured that having those things in common is a start."

"Yeah, I'm not going. I'd rather stay home and study, man." Ant got up from his chair and headed to his room.

"Aw come one, Ant. It won't be bad, I promise. Me and Emma will be with the pair of you," Stephen fell to the floor and hugged Ant's legs, keeping him from making an escape. "Please, come with us. Please?"

Ant rolled his eyes at his friend and broke free from his hold. "Fine, I'll go," Ant huffed.

Still lying on the ground, Stephen grinned. "Great 'cause we already told Declan you agreed to the date."

—

Date night soon arrived, which saw Stephen and Ant waiting for Emma and Declan outside the cinema. Ant nervously fidgeted with his hat, contemplating whether he should keep it on or ditch it.

Stephen gently bumped his shoulders with Ant. "Hey, don't be nervous. Just relax, Ant."

"Easier said than done," Ant mutters. "What time are they getting here?"

"Emma texted me a while ago to say they're almost here...in fact, here they are!" Stephen walked over to his girlfriend and gave her a quick peck in the lips. Ant greeted Emma with a quick hug before standing beside Stephen.

"Ant, this is Declan. Declan, Ant." Emma introduced the two to each other.

The shorter teen stepped forward and held out his hand. "You can call me 'Dec.'"

Too nervous to say anything, Ant shyly shook his hand and just flashed him a small smile. He'd be lying if he said he didn't find Dec attractive; Ant felt like he couldn't get tired of staring at the other lad's face. He was soon snapped out of his reverie when Stephen spoke up.

"Um, Ant? You want to let go of Dec's hand now?" Stephen laughed. Emma tried to hide her own giggling by pressing her face against Stephen's arm.

Ant nervously laughed as he quickly dropped Dec's hand. He shoved his hands into his pockets and apologized.

"Aye, it's fine," Dec sweetly smiled at him.

"So boys, what movie are we watching?" Emma asked.

"There's a new horror film out. I reckon we can watch that," Stephen replies. "That's only if everyone's fine with that."

Emma and Ant expressed their approval of the movie choice.

"How about you, Dec?"

"I'm not a big fan of scary movies, but I guess I'll just have to brave through it. If I get too scared, I'll just snuggle up to Ant," Dec winked at Ant.

Not knowing how to respond, Ant just stupidly smiled at Dec. Thankfully, Emma came to Ant's rescue. "Well, now that's settled. Let's get our tickets, eh?"

The couples fell in the ticket line. Just as Ant and Dec paid for their tickets, Stephen suddenly piped up in feigned realization. "Oh guys, I just remembered! Emma and I promised my mum that we'll be over for dinner, so we have to go now. Don't we, Em?"

Smile threatening to show, Emma responded, "Yeah, sorry guys. We have to go. I guess it's just gonna be the two of you now...Enjoy the movie!"

Ant glared at his friends as they made their hasty retreat.

"Just the two of us then." Dec stepped close to Ant and wrapped a hand on his elbow. "Come on, let's get some snacks before the movie starts."

Ant let himself be led inside by Dec. The two quickly got their drinks and popcorn, then made their way to the cinema.

Finding the first few rows already packed, the two made their way to the very last row and sat there.

The previews hadn't started yet, so Dec saw this as an opportunity to make small talk with his date. He was able to coax more than one-word responses from Ant, who was soon at ease with him.

Their conversation soon ended when theater lights were turned off, signalling the start of the movie.

The build up of the movie was slow, the pace only picking up towards the middle of it.

Popcorn long abandoned on the empty seat next to him, Ant found himself gripping his seat's armrest as he watched the suspenseful scene unfold on the screen. He suddenly jumped when he felt something grab at his hand. Ant looked at his date and saw that he had his eyes clamped shut, fear evident on his face.

A bone chilling scream filled the theater, causing Dec to hug Ant's arm, burying his face against it.

With his free arm, Ant pulled Dec into an embrace to try and comfort him. "Shh, it's okay. I'm here."

A small whimper escaped Dec's lips as the horrifying screaming continued in the movie.

"Hey, let's get out of here," Ant whispers.

"No, I don't wanna ruin the movie for you."

"Don't be daft, I don't care about the movie," Ant reassures Dec. "What I care about is getting you out of here, okay?"

With a comforting arm around his waist, Dec was guided out of the theater and into the corridor. He quickly wiped away his tears before giving Ant a watery smile.

"Sorry again-"

Ant cut him off. "Look, as I said already, I don't care about the movie. You were clearly not comfortable watching that movie, so I wasn't gonna make you sit through it."

"Thanks, Ant." Dec launched himself at the taller lad and hugged him tightly.

"You're welcome, Dec," Ant murmured against Dec's shoulder. "Now, I think it's time we find ourselves somewhere else."

Dec stepped away from the hug and flashed Ant the most beautiful smile he's ever seen (well, that was Ant's opinion anyway). In that moment, Ant silently thanked Stephen and Emma in his head for setting him up with this gorgeous lad in front of him. It seems that they got it right this time around.