(Archived) Poth Short Stories and One-Shots

The Second Time Around - Chapter 1

Chapter warnings: Alcoholism mention, abuse mention, rape mention, swearing

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"What are we doing here?" Lotus questioned, his eye light shifting anxiously around to the other patrons of a bar and grill restaurant.

"Well, I know it's been a while since we went out on a date and I wanted to surprise you for Valentine's Day," Rurik explained, wrapping his arm around the smaller's shoulder to guide him toward the server's station and announcing to the waiter, "Two people, nonsmoking, and make it a booth."

The scenery looked like your normal restaurant, save for the mood lighting tinged slightly red and the glass cup candles surrounded by rose wreaths set in the center of each table. They were still in Underfell, so most places wouldn't do anything really showy or sappy; just enough to acknowledge the holiday.

For the most part, no one reacted to their entrance other than the wait staff and the noise level was pretty tame for a holiday evening. Stealing a glance at the smaller, Lotus appeared to be calm... but he was also good at hiding his emotions when he needed to. It was difficult to tell what was going through his partner's mind right now, but Rurik hoped they would be able to relax enough to enjoy themselves tonight.

"So that's why you told me not to bother cooking tonight," the hooded monster huffed as they were led through the room, "We could have found something to do at home, you know."

"And when's the last time you went out for something other than errands or work?" The taller pointed out with a knowing look, getting silence in return. Silverware and menus were neatly placed in two spots, and the waiter moved aside for the pair to slide into the booth.

Once the man walked away with a promise to return shortly, he continued, "I was also a complete asshat the last time we went on a date and I wanted to make it up to you; do it right, you know? So I asked my coworkers if they knew any good restaurants that weren't too stuck up." He leaned forward, tapping on the menu with a smirk, "This one apparently has some pretty good spicy dishes too, or so I'm told."

Lotus perked up at the comment, finally expressing interest in the menu at the prospect of spicy food. The taller monster fought the urge to laugh as his companion nonchalantly picked up the laminated paper and stated with a look of indifference, "I suppose we're already here, so we might as well see what they have."

Rurik considered the comment a win in his book. His tolerance for heat was nowhere near Lotus', so they usually didn't make anything with spice in the house for his sake. As such, any opportunity to indulge in their preference was met with enthusiasm.

As the taller picked up his own menu and began browsing through the selections, the waiter returned, "Can I get you both something to drink?" Their gaze fell on Lotus first.

"Unsweetened Ice Tea," the small skeleton said, still looking down the menu.

"Hmm...," Rurik glanced through before deciding, "I'll try a Yuengling; also, a glass of water."

Jotting the drinks down, the waiter asked, "Have you decided what you want or do you need more time?"

Glancing up toward his partner, their red eye light focused on the menu was all the answer he needed, "More time." The waiter gave a nod and left them to decide on their food.

Settling on the bourbon chicken, Rurik said, "I'm ready, you found anything good?"

Lotus mulled over his choices, muttering without looking up, "Hot wings would be too messy and I'm not really feeling the salmon dish, but the cajun chicken alfredo looks interesting... I think I'll go with that."

Rurik glanced around the room, inwardly marveling at Lotus' timing as he spotted the waiter returning with their drinks. Setting down the tea, beer bottle, and water glass, the waiter took their food order and the menus before disappearing once more.

Taking a sip of his drink, he caught sight of his companion staring at him with a hint of unease. Setting down the bottle, he asked, "What's wrong? Did you not want the alfredo after all?"

"I...," the smaller trailed off, their eye light flicking up from the table before dropping back down and mumbling, "it's nothing."

Rurik picked up on the subtle movement, following it to the bottle resting by his hand. Realizing what the upset was about, he reassured his companion, "I'm only having the one beer tonight; everything after that's going to be water."

Lotus pulled his glass close with a guilty expression, "I know, I trust you; it's just stupid nerves getting the better of me."

Rurik frowned at the answer. While he could let it go there, he knew his partner's worries weren't unfounded; his inhibitions flew right out the window whenever he drank too much, leading to many stupid decisions in the past. Back before his change of heart, Lotus would try to avoid him whenever he came home wasted because being caught would usually result in the drunken monster hitting his partner, forcing himself on them, or both.

More concerning was that Lotus looked to be falling back into his old submissive mindset; giving Rurik a pass to do whatever he wanted rather than assuring he wouldn't go too far.

He sighed, chastizing the smaller, "Lotus, taking care of yourself isn't stupid. This is our night, so I want you to be comfortable too. I want you to trust me, but I also need to know you'll stand up for yourself, even if it's me. I won't get mad if you speak up; if anything, it'll actually make me feel a lot better."

"Alright," the skeleton acknowledged, taking a sip of his tea before pointing out, "though it seems like a moot point asking now since you already said you're only having the one bottle."

"True, but I'll say it just to be clear; I'm not going to get drunk and do something that would ruin our date," Rurik proclaimed, getting a faint smile in return. He had to admit the expression looked nice with the dim candlelight flickering against the contours of their skull; much better than the earlier trepidation.

Catching movement out of the corner of their socket, Lotus looked over and his eye light lit up, "That looks like our food."

"Great, time to see if this place lives up to the hype," Rurik grinned, leaning back to await their meal.

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Word Count: 1,090