I.
The first time Katy had set up Shaun for a blind date was in college. Well, college for Katy. He was already hustling two jobs while she was doing her best at Berkeley. If Shaun was being honest, Katy's friend was kinda cute. He didn't mind her stories over dinner too.
However...
He'd rather play video games with Katy till 3 AM or until Mrs. Chen clicks her tongue at the two them. The night ends before it could ever really start. Shaun was embarrassed to say this, but he had zoned out over dinner. So when Katy calls him to ask about the date, he makes a lame excuse to Dianne (?) and apologizes for leaving early.
"So how'd it go?" Katy asks him over ice cream, nudging his shoulder lightly. The neon lights from the arcade highlighted her delight as she beats Shaun again for the third time that night.
"Meh. I don't think we were the right fit for each other." Shaun replies, sighing in relief as the sweet, cold dessert hits his tongue.
"Besides," he smiles widely at her. "Nothing beats ice cream and arcade night."
II.
Katy sees this opportunity as a way for Shaun to branch out. Make new friends. But if you asked him, he thinks she's feeling guilty. Katy got around to dating on her final year at Berkeley. And with dating, comes the inevitable duel between boyfriend or best friend.
As the generous best friend that he is, he chose to bow out. It doesn't mean that he loves her any less. How could he when they practically grew up together. No. It meant being understanding of her not coming to their weekly karaoke and bar hopping sessions.
"... so there it was. My spot on the firm!" His date says.
Shaun nods in appreciation. He wished he could enjoy these stuff more, but he couldn't. Not when he was running away from his past.
"So how about you?" She looks at him expectantly. He raises his eyebrow as an answer.
"What about me?" He treads.
"What do you do for a living?" Ah. There it is. He considers lying, but what good would that do. Both of them obviously had nothing in common. And he knew she wasn't saying it, but they were both bored.
"Listen, you're a great person..."
Famous last words.
When Katy spots him with a big red wine stain on his favorite (only) dress shirt, she had the gall to laugh. Or guffaw. But honestly, aside from the icky feeling of a wet shirt, he was happier here with her.
III.
The third time she had set him up, he actually liked his date. She was fun, engaging, and it helped that they weren't seated in a restaurant that had a dress code.
His date, Catherine, he thinks, he can't remember hearing her name properly from the booming noise of the club, smiles coyly at him.
Shaun likes it. Maybe it'll take his mind off of Katy for little bit. They had their first fight in years this morning.
Katy didn't want to move to New York with her boyfriend to attend an internship program that would make her climb the ladder. Shaun said she should go. Katy argues that it isn't what she wants. When he asks her what she wants, however, she's radio silent. He quietly urges her to go, they say sorry, and hug after.
Except, that wasn't what happened.
Shaun may have said a few hurtful things. Katy retaliated back. A couple minutes of shouting then she storms off of his apartment. The only reason he's with a date was because his calendar pinged him.
So yeah, maybe he was enjoying the date... to get back at Katy. But when his phone vibrates, with a quiet Katy on the other line, he caves and walks out.
"So what did he do?" He asks Katy as they gaze the stars under the San Francisco moonlight.
"Its a good thing I didn't push for New York." Katy whispers, a few sniffles can be heard beside him. "He was cheating on me... for five months. I only knew about it a few hours ago."
"Oh Katy," Shaun pulls her into a hug, his heart breaking into pieces with each sob she makes. He tightens his arm around her, placing a kiss on her hair. "I'm sorry he was a jerk. He didn't deserve you and your awesomeness."
He hears her laugh-sob combination, and he feels better somehow. "Thanks for doing this Shaun. I really appreciate it. I better get going or mom would kill me."
"Yeah. We could do that. Yeah. Totally." They both pull away from the hug, and he wipes a few tears from her face. He gives her a look. "Or...."
They ended up passed out in the karaoke booth. And as if prophesied by whatever beings there are out there, Mrs. Chen did give them a lecturing the moment they stepped their foot into the apartment.
IV.
The fourth date was Soo's idea. It was a double date. One date for Katy, one for Shaun. It would be nice, she said. It wouldn't be awkward, she said.
Whoever planted that thought into Soo's head, needs to talk to him. Because this date is by far, the worst date he's ever been on. And he's been to plenty of awful dates.
Soo has some nicer lawyer friends, who were clean cut and fancy. And they were two valets. What in the hell did they have in common?
Katy laughs uncomfortably beside him, pulling on the dress that was far too short for her standards. His neck also itched from wool turtleneck Soo handed to him while he waiting for Katy to finish prepping.
"You're honestly gonna wear that?" He remembers Soo look him over up and down, disgust written in her face. Shaun doesn't even get to nod, he didn't even get in a no- and she hurls a pair of slacks and the damned turtleneck to his face.
"So Soo tells us you guys are some kind of car agents?" Katy's date asks.
The urge to not laugh at the absurdity of the notion was so strong, it was painful to hold in. Shaun can feel it. The tears from his eyes. He feels Katy's hand gripping his thighs and he knows. He knows that if they don't get out of here, the whole place is gonna judge them for their incessant laughter.
"We're actually valets." Shaun clears his throat. Compose yourself.
"Oh. Is it an in between moment?" His date inquires, her fingers brushing up and down the stem of her wine glass. "We're always looking for people at the-"
"No. We actually love our job" Katy answers. She rises from her seat, taking her purse with her. "Excuse us, we'll be leaving."
Shaun grabs a couple of bills from his beat up wallet, that he knows won't cover the bill, and places it on the table. He gives them a polite smile before following Katy out. When he catches up to her, assisting her by placing a hand on her lower back, she asks if he wanted some dumplings.
He answers her with a quick yes and they giddily make their way to their favorite dumpling restaurant on the other side of town.
Note: Soo notices a stain on the wool turtleneck, and gives the shirt to him permanently. Shaun has made sure that the shirt doesn't see the light of day.
V.
Of all the dates Shang-Chi (he goes by his real name in his thoughts now that he's accepted that part of himself) been to, this one was probably the best. His date, Olivia (considering how he remembers her name, the date is going splendidly), was a great conversationalist. She asks him questions about his life, about his job, without getting judgmental.
Months after Ta Lo, Katy falls back to routine, and had somehow set him up with a date with her former internship buddy. He doesn't get it at first, because honestly, after Ta Lo, something has changed between them. He sometimes find that he seeks out her touch more often these days, and Katy doesn't seem to mind it. Shang-Chi doesn't want to admit it, because admittance would mean the end of their friendship, but he felt sparks with her. The little jolt of electricity when they touch was exhilarating. And maybe, just maybe, he was falling in love with his best friend. And he hoped she was falling for him too.
So when she surprises him one day with a date, his heart fell. She didn't like him that way. He was just Shaun, her best friend of ten years. His agreement to go on a date puts ease back to her face, and they smile awkwardly at each other after that.
What was supposed to be an awful date, turned out to be great. Olivia was a great listener, as she was with speaking.
"...Katy's actually the best person there is." He starts enthusing her about how Katy and him met. How she sang Hotel California to the big bully and grabbed his hand to run until their lungs burned.
Olivia laughs heartily and Shang-Chi laughs with her. He hadn't had this much fun with anyone else (other than Katy, of course) in ages. He then enthuses about his other misadventures with Katy and they both enjoy the rest of the night.
When dessert rolls in, she asks him a question. "This might be an obvious observation, but I have a feeling you like Katy. More than a friend would."
"Is it that obvious?" Shang-Chi asks sheepishly. When she nods, he adds, "I'm sorry. I really had a great night though."
"You've been talking about her all night." She deadpans. "It seems to me though that she's pushing you away because she likes you."
"...excuse me?" His voice comes out a little low due to the cake stuck in his throat.
"Oh, come on! Don't you ever watch rom-coms?" Olivia counters, taking a spoonful of her desert.
"As a matter of fact, I don't."
"Maybe tell her how you feel." She suggests. She cuts him off before he can even speak again. "If she likes you then thank me by paying for the next dinner."
"And if not?" Shang-Chi asks with a raised eyebrow. "How are you even so sure about this?"
"You're not Katy's only friend you know. She's told me a ton about you. Even before this date." She takes another spoonful. "It was always Shaun this, Shaun that when we were interns. If you two are the good friends you say you were, you two could laugh about this whole debacle. But sometimes..."
Olivia pats his arms from across the table. "... you just got to take the leap."
+1
Shang-Chi thought long and hard about how he was gonna do this. And truth be told, he almost want to cancel it all. Almost.
Ever since his date with Olivia, the words she said lingers in his his mind. Take the leap. Take the shot.
He's an Avenger, for Christ's sake, he's seen things far worse than this. And yet here he was, knees bobbing up and down from anxiety as he waits for Katy.
Earlier today, he told her he set her up for a date. She reluctantly agrees, asking about the location and stuff like that. Shang-Chi told her he'd text her the time and address. He hopes she doesn't remember or just think its a silly coincidence.
It was now 8 PM, and she was nowhere to be seen. Shaun sits on the hood of the truck he borrowed for this occasion.
"Shaun?" He hears Katy call him from the other side of the parking lot. Music? Ready. Speech. Impeccable. Flowers? He looks at the bouquet of tulips in his hand. A little overkill. "W-what is this?"
"Flowers, for the beautiful lady." Shang-Chi walks up to her. The more he became clearer to her vision, the more her brows furrowed. "The flowers are little too much, I agree."
"A little bit, yeah." Katy lets out a laugh, but accepts the flowers nonetheless. "What are we doing here?"
Shaun breathes in. A ball of nerves suddenly uncoil inside of him, and he hears his heartbeat rapid in his ears. "This is where I first met you Katy."
"I know but-"
"This is where you saved me. Even if I could take down that guy in a heartbeat, you saved me." He takes her hand and leads her to the truck. Katy's breath hitches as they walk towards the truck. "You've been my best friend for ten years Katy. You've seen me both at my best and at my worst. I know this comes as a shock. But-"
Her eyes connects to his and he swears he could swim in her darks irises forever. "But what?" She whispers.
"I think, I'm falling in love with you. Katy Chen." Shang-Chi manages to breathe out. Katy was silent. Her eyes still locked to his.
She stays like this for a few moments, and Shang-Chi is afraid he broke her. "Katy, can you say somethi-"
She silences him when she tiptoes to place a kiss on his lips. It stuns him for a moment and he doesn't know how to react. When he feels her pull away, he comes to his senses, he angles his head better and dives for a kiss. The kiss was slow, and tender, and everything right in this world. Shang-Chi doesn't know how he ever lived without it.
They pull away for air, foreheads connected, eyes closed in bliss. It takes them a moment to compose themselves, to address that earth-shattering kiss.
"I love you, Katy." He whispers through the wind.
"I love you too, Shaun."