Lukas hesitantly picked up his phone after hearing it ring, worried about Mathias' response to his bold text. He took a moment to muster up the courage to read it before finally swiping on the message and looking down. 

Mathias: Tomorrow? How does 7pm sound?

Well that was not nearly as scary as Lukas thought it was going to be. 

Lukas: ok 

Lukas turned his phone off and flung it onto his bed, this time feeling a little giddier than he was willing to admit as he realized he had a date planned. He really could not grasp why he thought texting Mathias was going to go so terribly awry. 

Lukas continued tidying his room with a new spring in his step. For once he was doing something for himself and it was all thanks to Emil pushing him. Albeit he was wildly uncomfortable with the thought of flirting in any capacity and horrifically socially awkward, he was determined to make it work and even hopeful at the thought of getting to know the candymaker more closely. 

-

When Lukas went to work the next morning he was feeling a bit anxious. That overachieving high-schooler kind of anxious. It was that feeling of when you're sitting in the class that you have right before a period where you have a major exam. Almost as if you are trying to prolong the inevitable. Those moments where you're begging your chemistry teacher to draw out their lecture on ionic bonds so you don't have to prove that you know what the Defenestrations of Prague were.  

He hadn't felt this kind of face-warming, throat-closing anxiety since his parents passed and he realized he would be responsible for taking care of his kid brother. The anxiety that persists because you realize there is nothing you can do about what is to come. Lukas wasn't entirely sure why the thought of going on this date was making him sick, but he was grateful he could at least distract himself at work in the meantime. 

His coworkers were just two old women who adored Lukas to death. Every morning they'd catch him up on the town gossip and he'd sit, occasionally giving out casual nods in agreement. Despite being coworkers, they'd pinch his cheeks and ask him if he'd eaten as if he were still a child. It was a comforting feeling, having the two women fuss over him. 

It was like having two mothers watching out for him at all times. Since he didn't have any parental figures of his own around, he didn't mind oversharing every once in a while. Their reactions were always adorable anyway. They knew all about his love for Harry Potter and his fear of wasting his youth raising his younger brother. They also knew about the guilt that came with that position. 

Today wasn't much different. They bounded in, excitedly chattering about their weekends, little satchels of goodies in their arms for the people who came into the office. Ada, the louder of the two, immediately sat down at her desk and began commenting on Lukas' appearance. 

 "You're looking awfuly ill today aren't you sweetheart?" she exclaimed, looking terribly concerned as Helena, the milder of the two, rolled her eyes. 

"He looks the same as usual. Maybe a bit cold. A bit stuffy. Are you feeling alright dear?"

"I'm doing well" Lukas replied in what he thought was a normal manner. Ada and Helena immediately shot looks in each others directions before leaning  in to talk to him further. They both furrowed their brows, looking awfully inquisitive for such a lukewarm response to their questions. 

"Well there must be something going on" Ada began, "You've been tapping your leg on the ground since we got in here like you just killed a man."

Lukas immediately stopped bouncing his leg. He hadn't even realized he had been doing it. "I'm being serious! I am fine" Lukas reacted defensively, looking away from the pair and back at his computer. He had been put in charge of editing posters to put around town to remind tourists of the implications of litering on the coast. It had become a problem as of late. 

"Is it a boy? I bet its a boy" Ada replied, elbowing Helena in the ribs playfully as she tried to rile Lukas up. Lukas tried not to react but couldn't help but feel his face heating up. He averted eye contact with the two as they crowded in front of his desk. 

"IT IS?" Helena nearly yelled, suddenly raising her voice to match Ada's energy. 

"Did you know that 90% of the litter they find in our region can be directly attributed to summer tourism?" Lukas asked monotonously, desperately trying to change the topic. 

"Oh he's embarrassed" Ada sang, gleefully dancing towards her desk. 

"Must be" Helena replied, grinning as she also left Lukas to blush at his desk in peace. 

"Please though, let it not be a tourist" Ada exclaimed, putting a hand on her chest in dramatic effect as Helena let out a cackle. Lukas lowered his head to his desk as the two ladies logged onto their computers for the day. He wanted to die. When he felt his face cooling down a few minutes later, he lifted his head and nearly screamed as he was faced with Ada standing mere inches from him. 

"You know you can tell us anything riiiight-" she sang, putting on a bit of a pout as he let out an exhausted sigh. He opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by the sound of his phone ringing. The two women perked up as Lukas looked down and saw who was calling him. Who else would it be other than Mathias. 

Lukas stood up to leave the room so he could answer the phone as Ada let out a high pitched squeal. Lukas practically ran outside before answering the phone. 

"Hello?" 

"Hello, this is Mathias. The one you met at the candy store the other day!" Mathias exclaimed, eliciting a slight smirk from the Norwegian. Once again this man was proving himself far less intimidating than he looked. 

"Sorry I don't remember a Mathias..." Lukas began, trying instinctively to mess with him. 

"Oh- really? I texted you the other day and-" the Dane began before pausing, "You're being sarcastic again."

"I'll stop doing that I'm sorry" Lukas replied, suddenly feeling guilty. Sometimes he genuinely could not help himself. He didn't know if it was a defense mechanism or not but he could never resist playfully messing with an oblivious target. 

"No- no- you're funny" the Dane responded, eliciting a cringe from Lukas. This was horifically awkward. "Anyway- just making sure we're still on for tonight? I'm hoping I didn't beg for the closing shift for no reason."

"I'll be there at 7" Lukas said.

"Looking forward to it" Mathias replied smoothly, "Talk to you later."

"Bye" Lukas replied, hanging up the phone with a slight smile on his face. He was genuinely really excited for something for the first time in a while. Despite his curt and icy demeanor, he really did not hate the concept of romance. He was always a bit of a softie when it came to loving people, whether it be platonic or romantic. 

When he walked back into the office, Ada and Helena were practically foaming at the mouth. 

"Where will you be at 7?" Helena inquired. 

"And who was that?" Ada asked.

 "Can we just talk about this later?" Lukas asked, desperately wanting to drop the conversation. 

"Fine" they said in unison, giving him a sneer.  He knew what they meant by "fine" was that he was going to have to tell them absolutely everything and every possible detail of what happened after the fact, but for now, he was safe. He could simply wallow in his anxiousness alone until it was time to go. 

As he sat down at his computer he smiled, hoping the other two didn't notice. For some reason he was feeling really hopeful about this one.

-

Can ya'll believe this shit... me? on here? in 2022? ... I can't. Honestly I am back because I adore writing and I literally remembered I have all these stories on here that I never finished. I don't and haven't even watched this show since I was like 15 but I adore the characters and would never let them go. So imma just keep writing like I did when I was 15. As always:

Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed <3