Stars Don't Have To Pay

Chapter 8: Instant Noodles

   Why had he agreed to do this? Spending time with a self centered Dane was probably not the best way to spend after work hours. That time was for being at home, even if his home wasn't that great to begin with.  Lukas wasn't sure if he wanted to go through with this. There were far too many questions floating around in his head, none of which Lukas could really answer. He considered making a run for it and acting as if he hadn't shown up to work that day. But right as he was taking his apron off after his shift, completely ready to bolt, Lukas heard a loud beeping sound from outside. He noticed a flashy red car, with an even flashier person inside of it. Lukas thought that maybe if he stood completely still, Mathias would just go away.

  That did not happen.

  Before Lukas knew it, there was a strong grip on his wrist and he was taken inside the car, "You didn't even give me the chance to change." He told Mathias as he got his seatbelt on, "Now I smell like coffee beans."

  "Be glad, then. I think that suits you quite well." Mathias decided. But those sentences were the only words spoken to each other throughout the entire ride.

It was awkward at best, as neither really knew what to say to the other. It wasn't like the two males could relate to one another. Lukas couldn't think of one thing they had in common that they could actually start a conversation about. He couldn't imagine what it would be like once they were actually at Mathias' house. They'd probably be like two teenagers on their first date together. But at least teenagers on dates shared a mutual liking for each other. That was already more than Lukas could say for this.

The car ride was about fifteen minutes long. To Mathias, it felt like a road trip cross country. At least he had an excuse not to talk! He was the one driving! But Lukas was just sitting there like a little ragdoll. How terribly annoying. He swore, the guy was such a stiff! Mathias parked in his driveway, getting out of his car, which was Lukas' sign to get out as well.

 The Norwegian followed Mathias with his hands behind his back, admiring the house. He didn't like Mathias all that much, but it was a nice house. Lukas could only dream of having a place like this one one day. He watched as Mathias opened the door and let him inside, almost instantly finding something to make a comment on, "That's a lot of mirrors you've got there. Why so many?" He pondered out loud, making Mathias chuckle.

  "When you look as good as I do.." He started off, holding Lukas' shoulders as he faced the other and himself at the nearest mirror, "You're going to want to look at yourself." Mathias smiled at his reflection, "There's no reason why a man can't admire himself in his own home." He stated, letting go of Lukas' shoulders to walk off to another part of the house, "Come along, barista boy."

Lukas rolled his eyes at the name, following Mathias begrudgingly. Why did such a lovely home have to have such a self obsessed prick living in it?

Mathias hummed to himself, "What to do, what to do..." What was something that everyone liked? Something that couldn't come in brand name and great value? He tapped his chin, realization hitting him quickly, "I know!" Mathias cried out excitedly, "We can watch a movie. Won't that be fun, instant noodles?" He asked, smiling over at Lukas.

Lukas rose an eyebrow, putting his hand on his hip, "Instant noodles?" He questioned. Barista boy he understood, as that was his job. But this made him curious, also leaving Lukas wondering if he should be offended or not.

"Yeah! You know, the twenty five cent kind. Instant noodles is a name that suits you, because it looks like that's all you eat." Mathias poked Lukas' stomach,  "Eat a steak, or at least a ham sandwich."

Alright, it was certainly decided after what Mathias had said. He should be offended by the nickname. Lukas really wasn't sure if the Dane was trying to be that way, or if he was just so daft that he didn't know what was wrong with his statement. Perhaps the line was so blurred between the two that it was impossible to ever tell what his intentions were, "Yeah, alright. I'll keep that in mind next time I eat food." Lukas said, almost instantly having changed his stance so his arms would cover up his stomach. Mathias remained too touchy for his liking, Lukas noticed. He felt like he was stuck between this circle of completely despising him and being sort of okay with him. God knew what Mathias thought of him. Lukas almost felt like an animal to Mathias. Something new to play around with because it was different. That could just be prodded at without any consideration to the fact that he had his own life.

"Good." Mathias nodded, "I'm more than just a pretty face, ya know. I also give wonderful advice." He said, poking Lukas' nose before pulling Lukas with him to a room. It had a rather large screen and multiple places to be seated. Comfy leather in the back, but a couple of sofas towards the front, which was exactly where he plopped Lukas down, "Stay here, 'kay? I'll be right back." Mathias walked out of the room, coming back with some glasses and booze. He figured that it would help to soothe the tension between the two. Everyone liked some nice drinks. At least, Mathias hoped that Lukas drank. Otherwise it would be pretty awkward.

Mathias sat down onto the couch, presenting Lukas with a glass, in hopes the smaller male would actually accept the offer. He looked at Lukas patiently without a word, wanting Lukas to choose for himself whether or not to take it.

Lukas stared at the glass. He knew he shouldn't be drinking, he had work tomorrow. Ugh. When didn't he have work tomorrow? Though he took the glass from Mathias' hands to his anyway. It would be impolite to refuse, it wasn't as if Lukas didn't drink. Besides, much like Mathias had reasoned, it could help to smooth over the tension a little bit.

Mathias grinned, pouring a second glass himself. He felt glad that Lukas had accepted, "So, what movie should we watch?" He asked, grabbing the remote to scroll past what he could rent for the night. He hoped to watch something funny or lighthearted. Only his closest companions knew that Mathias was a total baby when it came to movies that were sad. That was not something he'd let Lukas see.

"I don't know, I really like the movie Grease." Lukas stated with a small shrug. That was good enough for Mathias. He would rather just play that one than spend a half hour unable to decide what to watch. At least he liked the movie to some extent. Mathias was the first to start up with his drink, Lukas following him after that.

The two continued, unable to actually speak to each other once more. About forty or so minutes into the movie, Lukas leaned against Mathias with a slightly reddened face. Relaxed was one word to describe him at the moment. He let out a small giggle, "Heya, Mathias? I wanna know, what direction do you swing in?"

The Dane looked over at the half emptied bottle. He supposed that he hadn't been monitoring how much either of them had been drinking, "I dunno, all of them?" He shrugged, not really knowing how else to put it. It was information that he didn't really share, but he doubted Lukas had interest in sharing it with the world. Knowing him, Lukas probably didn't even have social media. If he did, it was probably something like Facebook.

Lukas crept closer to him, giggling again. He had his empty glass in his hand, dropping it as he clumsily climbed onto Mathias, "Swing in my direction tonight, then." He said, leaning closer to Mathias.

Things got fuzzy after that for Lukas.

He woke up with a headache, his phone alarm going off. It took Lukas a couple moments to realize where he was. A bed, and certainly not his own.