Next Saturday finally arrived, and Mattias was out of bed even before his first alarm. Truly unprecedented.
He spend a little bit of time worrying over outfits. Thankfully his older sister visited him once while he was studying overseas and, appalled by his wardrobe, gifted him a few sets of clothes she referred to as 'presentable'.
He grabbed one of those 'presentable' outfits, nice tailored beige pants paired with a white top, then pulled on a black leather belt and his grey sneakers. He didn't have any fancier shoes, and figured it would be easier to walk around in sneakers.
He fought between letting hair loose or tying it up, before decided that tying it up would look neater. His hair can get a bit frizzy in the wind, and he didn't want Everette to see him looking like an absolute mess.
The spring days were quite warm and the weather was sunny, so Mattias went without his jacket today. He did one last check in the mirror before grabbing his bag to head to the train station.
He opened his phone, triple checking the time and place they had agreed to meet. He felt a little giddy as the train got closer to the pier, almost feeling like humming.
Eventually his stop arrived and he almost skipped his way over to their meeting spot on the boardwalk.
Mattias had arrived maybe 10 minutes early, but even so Everette was already standing there waiting for him. He wasn't wearing a suit this time, instead clad in black pants and a light blue fancy looking top. Mattias caught himself staring a little longer than appropriate.
Mattias tried to not let Everette see how affected he was as he made his way over. "Hi," he said nervously.
Everette gently smiled at seeing Mattias approach. "Hi. Are you all ready?"
"Yep! So what will we be doing today?"
"First let's walk down the boardwalk. It was renovated three years ago, and several new shops have been added along the waterfront."
"Okay!"
Everette smiled to himself hearing Mattias' obedient response.
The two walked down the boardwalk, taking in the sights and smells. The sun was out but the wind was blowing, creating a perfect balance between hot and cold.
While walking, Everette encouraged Mattias to talk about his time in the city so far. Mattias found himself chattering and rambling, opening up under Everette's encouragement. Mattias still didn't know why, but it felt so natural to open up around Everette.
There were a few stalls along the waterfront that sold little trinkets, so Mattias and Everette stopped to have a look around. Mattias bought a quaint bookmark for Everette, with a willow tree and pond design.
"As thanks for helping me out at the family gathering," Mattias said.
Everette carefully pocketed the bookmark. "There is no need to thank me."
They stopped for lunch at a little cafe, sharing a bowl of chips and some nachos.
Mattias subtly observed Everette as he ate. He had no idea how Everette managed to make even eating nachos look elegant. Everette chuckled as he watched Mattias deliberately pile each chip with an even amount of meat, salsa and cheese.
It was all fun and games until Mattias managed to drop his chip, spilling salsa all over his pants. Everette quickly grabbed a napkin and bent over Mattias' lap, ready to help him wipe it up.
Mattias froze as Everette's hand drew closer to his legs. The muscles in his thighs tensed. Thankfully Everette came to his senses a couple of inches from Mattias' thigh, eyes widening in realisation before jerking his hand away.
Everette cleared his throat and passed the napkin to Mattias, trying to pretend nothing happened. "Here you go."
Mattias avoided Everette's eyes. "Yeah, thanks," he said quietly.
Both Mattias and Everette felt quite awkward after that, quickly finishing up their lunch to continue walking.
The two of them eventually stopping at the end of one of the piers leading out to sea. Salty waves crashed against the pylons, and the afternoon sun shone down on them both.
"I haven't gone swimming since I got back to the city," Mattias said suddenly.
"Do you like to go swimming?" Everette asked.
"Yeah I've always loved it. I used to do swimming races as a kid, and even got first place in a couple of competitions. When I went to study overseas I had the opportunity to learn how to swim in the ocean and go scuba diving, which caused me to love it even more. I wonder if I could go scuba diving here."
"That's surprising. You come across as someone who would prefer being indoors," Everette commented.
"You're not wrong. But being able to go swimming is worth having to go outdoors. Do you do any swimming?"
"Not so much." Everette wasn't a very strong swimmer. He didn't like the feeling of being submerged in water, and he didn't like the thought of swimming with a bunch of sea creatures.
"I can take you swimming sometime then! I promise it will be fun!"
With Mattias' sweet smile, creased eyes shining clearly through his glasses, and his silhouette framed against a backdrop of turquoise ocean waves and glittering sunlight, Everette found himself bewitched. There was no way he could say no.
"Okay," he agreed, hoping he wouldn't regret this later.
"Yes!" Mattias exclaimed.
Having reached the end of the pier, they both turned and started walking back the way they came, Mattias excitedly chattering about future plans to take Everette swimming.
Mattias might be a bit dense, but he could tell Everette wasn't super keen to go swimming. He had to plan carefully so Everette would have fun too.
They eventually arrived back at where they first met. Unfortunately Everette couldn't give Mattias a ride home, as he had been asked by his father to find some time to come home that day.
They bade their goodbye rather reluctantly, but agreed that they should text each other if they wanted to meet up again.