Vigilante: Prompt Fills

Reverse AU: Dinner Date

Matthew thought Eli's glare was cute, even if Michael insisted he was insane.

There was just something about seeing Eli doing his best to look menacing that made Matthew smile. It almost made him forget that Eli was, in fact, a very menacing crime fighter during the night. Or so the news claimed. Matthew thought he looked adorable in his little ninja suit. Not that he would ever tell Eli that much.

Despite what everyone else thought, Matthew wasn't that stupid. He was, however, stupid enough to ask Eli out in the coffee shop.

It was a day like any other, if a bit cold and rainy, and Eli was sitting in his usual spot with a hot cup of coffee in front of him as he scrolled through the headlines displayed on his phone. Matthew smiled as he walked over to the redhead, taking advantage of the lull in business. Behind the counter, Michael wasn't even bothering to pretend he wasn't watching them, happily munching on some chips as he waited for what he no doubt thought would be an entertaining show.

Matthew paid his boss little mind as he stopped in front of Eli with a plate of cookies. The redhead proceeded to ignore him, though Matthew could almost see the glare he'd fixed on his phone intensify. He set the plate down in front of Eli.

"So, about that date you owe me," he started, direct as always.

The effect was immediate. Behind him, he could hear Michael choking on a chip and still managing to laugh even as he struggled for breath. Eli, on the other hand, had gained a very amusing tone of red that made his freckles stand out. Matthew thought it was adorable.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Eli said hurriedly.

"But you promised!" Matthew liked to think he was most definitely not whining.

"I did not!" Now Eli was glaring at Matthew, his phone resting on the table. Matthew stared back at him for a moment before smiling once more.

"Okay then," he said, and almost laughed at the surprise on Eli's face. "Well then, enjoy your cookies." He walked away, leaving Eli to drink his coffee in peace. For a second.

"Oh hey, Michael, I didn't tell you about the last time I ran into Vigilante did I? I found out something really interesting about him." He wasn't surprised when Eli ended up spitting out some of his coffee.

"He's some tragically orphaned pseudo ninja?" Michael joked, voice still raspy. He still looked interested in what Matthew had to say. Matthew glanced over at Eli who looked like he wanted to throw Matthew out the window.

"Nope, but he's actually really short," he finally said.

"Like how short? Normal short or Eli short?" Michael was grinning as he said this and Matthew was sure Eli wanted to throw them both out the window.

"Normal short," Matthew said just as the door opened and a couple of college students walked in. While Michael took their orders, Matthew turned back to Eli.

"So, about our date?" Eli just groaned, seemingly resigned to his fate.

That was how Matthew ended up with sitting in a restaurant with a surly but cute redhead. The place was nice enough, even if it was little more than a burger joint. Still, Matthew was a broke college student and Eli insisted that all he wanted was something deliciously greasy. Matthew was happy to oblige. He wasn't even surprised when Eli proceeded to order a burger about the size of his head.

"You know, this isn't so bad," Eli said around a mouthful of burger.

"Who knew a burger was the way to your heart," Matthew said with a grin. He got a glare from Eli, but there was no real heat behind the look.