Prompt: D: Date (Christmas date! How is it asked? Where do they go?) from kairaiimagines "Christmas Alphabet" on Tumblr
Word count: 970
A/N: Sorry for posting so late. I was preparing a presentation and now I'm watching a nature documentation with my family
Concentrated you ran your fingers over the page of the book you were studying. The only sound in the library was that of the heating, fighting to counteract the cold that was seeping through the old walls. Picking up your pen, you scribbled down something into the notebook that was resting next to the book, before turning back to reading.
Gerard's eyes were following your every movement, unless they were watching your face, of course. It had gotten dark outside long ago, and other than you and him only very few people were stuck in the library at this time of day, especially this close to Christmas. The orange light of the reading lamp painted golden reflections on your skin, and bounced off your hair. There was a good reason Gerard was sitting more than an arm's length away from you. Otherwise he probably would have tried catching the glittering reflections by brushing over your skin already. If he was honest, there really was no other reason than your presence for him to still be here. He had studied, a little. And for the last half hour now he had done nothing but stare at you.
He was not sure why you had not yet noticed. Or maybe you had noticed, but did not know how to tell him? Right now Gerard cared very little about that. For the past weeks he had been wondering if he should ask you for a Christmas date. And since he had found out you were not going home to your family this year, just like him, the idea of spending Christmas Eve together had settled into his mind. Sure, friends could spend that Evening together, right? But he wanted to spend it with you as more than friends, and he was not entirely sure how to ask you about it. He was almost certain you would say yes to that suggestion, even if he suggested it as a date, but he had yet to find the courage and the right phrasing.
When you suddenly sat up straight in your chair, it startled Gerard, and he would have almost kicked his book off the table.
"That's it, I'm done," you groaned, slumping into yourself and resting your forehead on your notebook.
"You've finished? Wow," Gerard's eyes widened in amazement.
"Finished? Fuck no," you mumbled against the table, "just... my brain has stopped working for today."
"Oh..." Gerard whispered, tempted to reach out a hand, and pat your head. Instead he pulled back his chair and got up. "Come on, I'll treat you to a cup of coffee."
Tiredly you lifted your head up and checked the clock on the wall behind him.
"It's past 9pm, I won't drink coffee now," you whined, slowly starting to pack your notebook and pen away.
"Hot chocolate then," he offered, "The coffee machine by the uni café also has hot water for tea, and the ladies always leave teabags outside."
You shrugged.
"Hot chocolate, maybe," you agreed hesitantly, and shot the silently cheering Gerard a glance. "How are you so happy all the time?"
Gerard grabbed the book you still had to put back into the shelf.
"I'm not," he answered light-heartedly, "Maybe it's your company."
He winked at you, but you just grinned. Damn, if you only knew...
"I guess, I just don't feel so excited about Christmas this year. And with everyone else being so hyped for it..." you took the book from Gerard's hands after you had swung your backpack over your shoulder, and lead the way to where it had to be put back into the shelf. "You said you're not going home either, didn't you? Do you have any plans for Christmas Eve?"
Could you have given him a better chance to ask the question he had been plaguing himself with for the last weeks?
"Well, not really," he admitted, taking a sideways glance at you. You looked tired, but homey, in a way. "Maybe... I don't know... I was wondering if maybe you'd like to spend Christmas Eve with me?"
Surprised you stopped and looked at him.
"Really," you asked, a smile starting to spread over you face slowly.
"Well, yeah, sure," Gerard nodded, his heart sinking as he realised he would not find the courage to ask you if you would like to take it as a date though.
"Absolutely," you grinned, before all of a sudden heat rose into your cheeks. "Do you... do you mean as friends or..."
You left the sentence hanging in the air unfinished, your heart beating in your throat, as you saw Gerard's wide eyes, a blush dusting over his face.
"I mean, I would really love to take you on a Christmas Eve Date, but if you'd rather wanna keep it platonic-"
"No, no," you interrupted his rambling. "Christmas Eve Date is perfect."
"Yes," Gerard agreed, and he was sure his face was lit up like one of the red Christmas lights in the mall.
Smiling you bit your lip and nodded, before you quietly brought the book back to its place on the shelf.
"So: hot chocolate," you asked on the way out, greeting the young man at the front desk of the library, before you stepped outside into the night.
"Sure," Gerard nodded, and in comfortable silence you walked towards the building with the vending machines, his heart almost leaping into his mouth as his hand accidentally brushed against yours while walking.
Did you think he was too forward now? His worries were dispersed though, when you suddenly wrapped your fingers around his. Curious you looked over to him, as if to check if he was fine with it. When he saw your smile, he could not help but grin and wrapped his fingers tighter around yours, leading you down the street.