Au: Modern/Real World (still minesonas)
Word Count: 1.5k
Grian was very excited to go shopping ever since his friend Bdubs introduced him to the wonderful world of cute dresses and comfy skirts. The one downside was that he'd have to go alone. Bdubs wanted to go with him, but he and his boyfriend Doc had tickets for a show, and today was the only good day for Grian. But it didn't bother him too much and he headed down to the subway station. Like any other person, while waiting for the train to arrive, he leaned up against the wall and opened his dating app, Spectrum.
'Love is more than pink or blue. It's a Spectrum™' the little title card pop up before fading away to showcase the latest cute guys who Grian may like. At first, none of them really seemed to catch his eye. He then saw a rather dashing man with a very cute mustache. In his picture, he seemed to be wearing a suit, and judging by his tired smile, he was struggling with some contraption. The blondie took a second to skim through his bio, and contemplated saying no, but shrugged and thought, Why not?
A rainbow appeared on his screen, announcing that it was a match, and took him straight to messaging.
Grian: Nice mustache :)
Mumbo: Thanks, made it myself
Mumbo: So you're an architect? That's cool! Do you only design buildings or do you help build them as well?
Grian: A lot of projects I design I end up leading the construction on!
Mumbo: Nice!
A low rumbling in the distance signaled his train was fast approaching. Looking up from his phone, Grian leaned his head forward and looked to his right, trying to spot the train.
Ping! He got a new message from Mumbo.
Mumbo: Looks like our train is here :)
"Wha-" Grian looked to his left and was appalled to see one Mumbo Jumbo smiling at him.
"Hi!" the mustached man grinned. "I'm surprised you didn't notice me," he laughed. Without another thought, the architect reached his hand up and touched the black mustache. Mumbo stared at his hand, his cheeks turning a nice rosy red.
"It's softer than I thought!" Grian stated. Just then, the train came speeding in, only to pull to a stop. Compartment doors opened in front of them and they waited for people to pile out.
"After you," Mumbo gestured his hand towards the door, and the two walked in.
It was a little crowded, and after bickering for a moment, Grian convinced him to sit down while he stood in front of him, holding the pole.
"So where you off to?" Grian asked cheerfully.
"A friend of mine just opened a restaurant today, and I was going to drop by as a surprise," Mumbo explained, scratching his mustache.
"Isn't it a little early for lunch?" the blondie joked, leaning his head against the pole. The man simply shrugged.
"I guess, but why not, right? I got nothing else planned. What about you?" the train reached it's first stop, and the two of them waited as people left and poured in around them.
"I'm just doing some shopping, is all. I was originally gonna go with a friend, but something else came up with him," the shorter male explained as the train continued through the tunnels.
The two continued to chat as the subway train approached its next destination. The person sitting next to Mumbo left, so Grian plopped down in their place. The taller male's phone buzzed from his pocket. As the short blonde talked about how his friend's boyfriend didn't like him too much, he checked the notification. Reading the text from his friend, Mumbo's face quickly dropped.
"Is something wrong?" Grian interrupted himself, feeling concerned.
"Ah, it's nothing, really," the mustached man brushed it off, shoving his phone back in his pocket. The femboy narrowed his eyes and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Mumbo, talk to me," he insisted.
"It's just, my friend Iskall was going to meet me at the restaurant, but he just messaged me that he's sick," Mumbo explained, running a hand through his black hair.
"Wait a minute, you know Iskall? And he's sick?" Grian leaned forward, surprised that Iskall never told him about this handsome friend.
"Well of course I know Iskall, we were high school buddies!" the mustached man placed a comforting hand on Grian's shoulder. "Don't worry, it's just a small cold," he added. The sweater-wearing male relaxed, slumping back into his seat.
"I can't believe he never mentioned you," the blondie laughed, shaking his head.
"Ditto," Mumbo grinned, nudging him.
"If only we met sooner, then maybe we'd already been dating," Grian sighed wistfully, half-joking. Smirking, he glanced at the taller male, who was trying to cover his red face. Scooching closer ever so slightly, he reached for the black-haired man's hand.
The train came to a screeching halt at its next stop, interrupting his plan. Mumbo stood up, brushing his legs as the pink died out of his cheeks. "Well, this is my stop!" he smiled, waving good-bye.
"Wait," without thinking twice, Grian reached for Mumbo, grabbing his sleeve. Red returned to the man in the suit's face when he looked over his shoulder. "Ah, my stop is next, and I was wondering if you wanted to come shopping with me?" the taller male smiled, sitting back down.
"As long as you promise to come to the restaurant with me," he took Grian's hand, lacing their fingers together. The train doors closed and took off once again.
"I think you'd look cute in both of them!" Mumbo protested. Grian huffed as he held a skirt in either hand.
"Stop complimenting me and help me make a choice!" he blushed, half-yelling at his date.
"Why not get them both?"
"I-" the short blonde male slapped himself in the forehead, realizing how stupid he was. "Yeah okay," he muttered. Mumbo shook his head, chuckling. As the two made their way towards the cash register, the smaller male stopped, his eyes sparkling. Handing his skirts to the taller man beside him, he gingerly picked a pale pink dress with little strawberries all over it and held it up.
"That's really pretty!" the mustached one commented. Grian hastily made his way back to the dressing room and threw it on.
Drawing the curtain back, he stepped out, giving a little twirl.
"So how do I look?" he asked, playing with the skirt of the dress.
"I... I'm chuffed to bits," Mumbo breathed, pushing his hair back as he blushed. Smirking, Grian looked at himself in the mirror, still eyeing Mumbo.
"Then I guess I have to buy it now,"
The short blonde swung his shopping back as the two approached a small restaurant.
"And here we are," Mumbo held the door open and the two entered. Most of the tables were packed, soft music circling the air. For a restaurant that just opened, it was already drawing quite the crowd. A server guided them to a booth, Grian sitting with his back to the kitchen. The mustached man leaned over, trying to get a view of the chefs inside. "I think I see him," waving to his friend, the owner smiled and made his way over to them.
"What a surprise! Thanks so much for coming, Mumbo!" Keralis exclaimed, wiping his hands on his apron.
"Of course! Iskall sends his love,"
The chef looked over at Grian, his eyes lighting up. "You're Grian, right? Bubbles told me all about you!"
"Bdubs told me about you as well," the blonde boy grinned, shaking his hand.
"I wish I could stay and chat longer, but I've gotta work," Keralis waved before quickly adding, "Enjoy your date!" he winked as he disappeared into the kitchen.
On the subway ride back, Grian felt so full he was ready to pass out, although that didn't stop him from talking with Mumbo. They shared stories from school, and of mutual friends. When the train reached it's first stop, the sweater-wearing male took his date's hand, once again lacing their fingers together. As the mustached-man launched into another story of him and Iskall making an invention in his garage back in high school, the smaller male felt his eyelids grow heavy. He finally gave in, allowing himself to drift off. Mumbo paused his story and smiled as Grian's head rested on his shoulder. Brushing hair out of his face, he admired his cute, peaceful state. He pulled out his phone, texting Iskall with one hand as the sleeping boy lightly nuzzled his neck.
"This is our stop," Mumbo lightly nudged Grian. "I didn't want to wake you, but we gotta get off,"
Hand in hand, the two exited the subway station. The shorter male tugged Mumbo's arm, pulling him down so he could kiss his cheek. "Let's do this again sometime," he waved as he walked away, giggling at the sight of the taller male's red face. Once his back was turned, he immediately felt a tug on his arm. Turning around Grian was met with a kiss on the top of his head.
"Text me when you get home, okay?" Mumbo mumbled before disappearing into the crowd, leaving a stunned and blushing Grian behind.