A World Away

18. Date (official one)

It had been two days since Rhys met the duo.. formally. It had been two days since Az had held a conversation with Eve which lasted more than a few sentences. He was getting annoyed; he wanted to talk to her. And so, Az left his paperwork and went to search for her.

He found her sitting on the ledge, facing the Sidra.

Mike was leaning beside her eating ice cream while she contently lay her head on his shoulder. ".... One Direction or Imagine Dragons?" Mike asked between bites. "Umm... umm... will you kill me if I say both?" "Yes," Mike replied making Eve scowl at his side profile.

Az cleared his throat from behind, making the duo turn towards him. Eve gave him a bright smile which he gladly returned. "What's up Azzie?" Mike asked. "Never call me that," he said, now giving Mike a deadpanned look. Eve snorted. "Why not? Azzie suits you. It's cute," she winked at him making him blush.

"I was just taking a break and saw you both," Az replied, choosing to ignore Eve's comment. 

It was at that moment that Serena 2.0 swayed her way towards the duo and the handsome Spymaster.

"Hello, are they bothering you?" She asked Az.

"No, we aren't. Although, you are bothering us,  Serena 2.0," Eve replied. She gave her a withering glare. Az and Mike just watched in amusement. "He can speak for himself, Evie. And my name is not Serena," she was near fuming. Eve chuckled; she was so easy to rile up. "And we do not care."

Serena 2.0 looked at Az for help but he simply let his shadows encase him. She let out an exasperated huff and left, fire practically seething from her ears. "Was that really necessary?" he asked as he watched her go. Eve shrugged, hopping down from the railing.

"Where to now?" she asked linking her arms with the two boys. She couldn't help but be gleeful when Az did not retract his arm from hers.

"I am off to Bri's. See you two lovebirds later," Mike said promptly and left before Eve could retort.

"So, what do you want to do?" Eve asked. "We could just walk? I also wanted to talk to you," Az said and Eve hummed in agreement.

"I- We kissed a few days back," Eve stated after the silence got too much, hoping Az would say something. She had made the first move when she told him she liked him, now it was his. "We did, and- and I am wondering where do we stand now."

Eve kept quiet. Az exhaled and continued when he saw that Eve wasn't going to help him at the moment. "I am not great at relationships."

"Neither am I," Eve confessed. "But, I do like you, a lot," Az said, blushing a bit. Eve finally smiled and Az felt some weight lift off his chest.

"That's great cuz I do too. We could- we could always start with a date? Keep things casual ... and if things go well...." Eve trailed off. Az nodded, "sounds like a plan. Tonight?" Eve nodded brightly.

Az felt ecstatic.... Until Rhys called him. He sighed. "Got to go," he said to Eve. She waved him off and without thinking twice, he gave her a chaste kiss on her cheeks and went back into his world of shadows. Eve was left blinking at the space he had just been.

******

"I KNEW IT!" Mike exclaimed when Eve came to him, asking for help. She needed help with make-up and Mike knew it better than her. "Just do it," she sighed, handing him the brush even if she was bursting with excitement from inside. "There, purrfect," Mike said after a few minutes. Eve examined herself and smiled- perfect indeed. "Thanks," she hugged Mike and left with a 'swipe him off his feet' from Mike.

Eve found Az waiting near their usual spot at the balcony. He was wearing almost all black (no surprise there) except a blue t-shirt. His Siphons glittered on each hand.

"Hey," he said as he sensed her coming. His heart beat stepped up as he took her all in- that dress fit her amazingly well. "You look fabulous." Her cheeks tinged a bit as she returned his small smile. "You don't look bad either." Az chuckled slightly.

"So, can I ask where are we going?" Eve teased the Spymaster.

"If you must," Az said in mock annoyance. Eve shook her head. "We are going to a play and then whatever you want to do after that," he informed her. "Sounds good," Az sighed internally in relief.

"Just don't drop me into the Sidra again," Eve warned him as he took her into his arms for the night. Az may or may not have almost dropped her a few times out of spite which led to some cursing from Eve's side making him chuckle in amusement.

******

"Did you like it?" Az asked as they made their way towards the exit. The play had been around two hours and boy had Eve suffered through it. Az had found the play ... boring to say the least- not that Eve knew it.

"Yes, it was nice," Eve replied and silently cringed- the play had sucked so much that she couldn't even bring herself to lie about it properly and she prided herself over her quick thinking and excuses. Az frowned, "liar."

He had asked Mor for some suggestions and had hoped Eve would like it but apparently not. It was not like he had enjoyed it either; the protagonist had spent half of the time crying and complaining about, but he had hoped against hope that Eve might enjoy it.

"I am sorry," Eve cried out, "it was torture," her face scrunched up making Az chuckle. "Agreed, I am never buying tickets to a play ever again," he said. Eve's pure relief was visible on her face as she said, "Thank you! God, if I ever see that again, I might just poke my eyes out. I would've slept if it wasn't for your company- the only redeeming factor in there."

"It was boring and half the people were sleeping." Az snorted.

They spent the rest of the time in a nearby café with Eve's roasting the play and Az getting more and more amused by her remarks. By the end of it, Eve was ecstatic... according to her, the date went pretty well.

"Sleepy?" Az asked as they landed back on the House's balcony. "Are you?" Eve asked. Az shook his head and leaned down a bit. He looked into her eyes for permission which she gave and the very next moment he kissed her with such adoration that Eve melted then and there.

"Tonight, was amazing," he said, their foreheads touching. Eve hummed in agreement, her hands in his hair.

"Goodnight, Az," she said after a few moments of silence. "Night, Eve," he finally let go of her waist. She gave him one last smile and left, leaving Az a grinning fool. 

Just a filler chap for our lovely (soon to be.... mostly) couple... Happy reading :)

XOXO,

the amazing author