The Third Park (Damien x OC (Ellie)) – Part 5

After taking Dipper to her evening walk, Eleanor plopped down on her cousin’s couch, her phone in her hands.

Eleanor Zhou: “Hey! How’s everything going? Sorry I didn’t text earlier. Is Freddie giving too much trouble?”

Lucy James: “hey! not at all, Freddie is a total sweetheart, he’s a good boy. and how are things going there in NYC? did you go out with your cousins’ hot friend in the end?”

Eleanor Zhou: “Actually, this is why I didn’t text earlier. I was completely hangover yesterday. We went to a pub on Tuesday night and I might have drank a little too much. I hadn’t drank like this since college!”

Lucy James: “yeah, I remember you used to drink until you passed out”

Eleanor Zhou: “Ugh, don’t remind me of those dark times. I had zero dignity back then”

Lucy James: “and do you have it now?“

Eleanor Zhou: ”LOL BITCH!! If you weren’t taking care of Freddie while I’m out of town, I could have murdered you for this.“

Lucy James: “we both know you couldn’t. Because you loooooove me! 😉 but enough about college. how was the date?? I want to know all the juicy details!!!”

Eleanor Zhou: “Then I’m sorry to tell you that we just kissed. Yeah, I felt my knees weak, but thankfully he was holding me tight 😉 but that was it.”

Lucy James: “what?! I can’t believe you JUST kissed him. what happened?”

Eleanor Zhou: “It happened that he still is in love with my cousin. And I want no trouble.”

Lucy James: “but hasn’t your cousin JUST married? and if you want no trouble, then why did you go out with him in the first place??”

Eleanor Zhou: “Yeah, Allen is happily married, but it doesn’t erase the fact that Damien still loves him. And I went on a date with him because the flesh is weak, okay? Besides, I was completely drunk and my last hookup was like five months ago. And you didn’t see him in a suit. Or just saw him.”

Lucy James: “oh my god. is he that hot?! send me a picture of him. now.”

Eleanor Zhou: “I don’t have one.”

Lucy James: “please. go on his facebook profile. you know what, I’ll look for him myself. what’s his name again? Damien…”

Eleanor Zhou: “Damien Nazario. And he’s that kind of guy that probably is not on facebook.”

Lucy James: “what?! then he’s not my type. you can’t trust a person who doesn’t have a profile in a social media these days. even my grandma is on facebook like wtf”

Eleanor Zhou: “Good to know that you’re not interested in him, because you’re with Rob. How are things between you two, btw?”

Lucy James: “we’re good now.”

“Now” – Ellie noticed, letting out a sigh.

Eleanor Zhou: “Lucy… you know that you can tell me everything, right? If something’s happening between you and Rob…”

Lucy James: “omg Ellie! everything’s fine! we just happen to fight sometimes. it’s normal. all couples do it.”

Yep, but Eleanor was sure that their fights were anything but “normal”. She never trusted that guy. “Rob”. She knew he was bad news. But every time she tried to talk about him to Lucy, her best friend would get all defensive and then they ended up fighting.

Ellie was tired of fighting with Lucy because of a stupid man. So she decided to change the subject. This time.

Eleanor Zhou: “Alright, sorry. Anyway, yes, I just kissed him last night. We were both too drunk and I’ve had enough drunk hookups to regret for. And I don’t want to regret anything with him because he actually is interesting.” – …And I might need his help. This was an idea that grew up on her the last couple of days. Damien Nazario was an investigator. She might needed his detective skills for help. But of course she wouldn’t say that to Lucy. – “If he still wants to do it with me, sober, then I won’t say no, obviously”

Lucy James: “I KNEW IT! you little hoe!! so, are you planning on going out with him again? or what?”

Eleanor Zhou: “Shut up! Maybe. I don’t know. What do you think I should do?”

Lucy James: “oh, I gotta go, Ellie. talk to you later. bye!”

Eleanor Zhou: “What? Why? Lucy?”

Ellie sent a few more texts, but Lucy stopped replying completely. She felt a cold chill. Something was off, she knew it.

And she might knew why.

“Oh Dipper, what do I do?” – she asked the dog, which barked back at her, her tail wiggling.

The woman looked through her phone, making up her mind, stopping by a contact. Should she talk to him?

It was Thursday evening, which meant that it had been a little more than a day and a half since she went out with Damien to grab some drinks on that pub he (apparently) regularly frequented, Archer and Hopps.

She wouldn’t confess it out loud, but Ellie simply couldn’t stop thinking about him. And his damned lips. She just didn’t think about him the day before because she had this horrible headache (the hangover, of course) what wouldn’t let her think. And she tried to busy herself today. And it kind of worked. She went to the Broadway. But as soon as she was coming back to Allen’s apartment, her mind drifted back to two nights ago… His warm body enveloping hers as he kissed her so passionately, so hungrily… and that cute jealousy side of him. She knew she was a little evil teasing him by flirting with… what was the name of that guy again? Oh whatever.

Ellie firmly believed that there was no such thing as “love at first sight” and all that bullshit. But she believed there was “sympathy at first sight”. When you feel a natural affinity with someone even though you don’t even know them.

And that was something that she felt with Damien. It was simply being impossible for her to stop wanting to get to know him more.

Damien Nazario intrigued her since the very first time she laid her eyes on him. He was a little moody, very cynical and a drunkard, yes, but he was a great friend too. Loyal and caring towards those he loved. It was visible that he was feeling a little out of place in the wedding. Yet, even though he had been in love with Allen for years, he accepted to be his Best Man.

…She knew she was pushing him, being too nosy, too rude. She knew she should stop it. Somewhere deep inside her, she knew he didn’t want anything with her. He still loved her cousin.

But… what she felt for Damien wasn’t love. She just liked his company and was horny for him. And she knew he kind of had the hots for her too, based on the way he kissed her and wanted to further things between them that night (although it happened almost two days ago and he hadn’t called her since – but she didn’t either – and he was drunk).

Things didn’t have to be complicated. They could be simpler, much simpler.

Besides, she didn’t want to start a romantic relationship too. She didn’t want anymore headaches. Of all the times she actually dated someone, she never had her heart really broken – because she felt like she never had been deeply in love with anyone, actually -, but it was being tiresome. Be with someone for them to break your trust so easily.

…Yep, that was it, things could be simple between them. All they needed to do was be frankly towards each other.

With that thought in her mind, Ellie sent him a casual text.

Eleanor Zhou:“Hey there. Are you busy?”

He texted her back after a couple of minutes:

Damien Nazario: “Hello, Eleanor. I’d just came back home from an investigation. Why? Do you need anything?”

Yes. You.

Oh my god, calm down, you little hoe!

Eleanor Zhou: “I was just wondering if you’d like to go out tonight. You know, grab some dinner again. I’d like to discuss some things with you too.”

Damien Nazario: “U-oh, this sounds serious. Am I in trouble? I promise you that we’ll never play the Nazario Chug again.” – she laughed, feeling that he was slowly opening up to her, which was good. And he remembered about the other night, meaning that he wasn’t that drunk. Another good sign. – “This was a joke, by the way.”

Eleanor Zhou: “I know”

Damien Nazario: “Good, because Nadia sometimes doesn’t appreciate my kind of humor. Anyway, I would like to go out tonight, yeah. Meet me in an hour?” – that was enough time for her to prepare herself.

Eleanor Zhou: “Sure. Where? Oh, and I’d like to keep things clean tonight, if you get what I mean. And by ‘clean’ I mean ‘sober’.”

Damien Nazario: “Okay, message received, I won’t drink tonight. There’s this diner two blocks away from Allen’s place that we could go. They have this killer grilled cheese sandwich. I’ll send you the address.”

Eleanor Zhou: “You won me when you said ‘grilled cheese’. Alright, see you soon! Xx”

Damien arrived on the diner a little earlier. Although he tried to look cool and relaxed though the texts, he actually was feeling a little anxious with Eleanor’s invitation. He wasn’t as nervous as before he had that first date with her, but he couldn’t hold back a little excitement either. He liked going out with Ellie a lot, but he had some work to do, so he had been busy during those two days.

He thought that he might should have called her, but he didn’t know when was the right or ideal time, exactly. Was it too desperate call her the day after their date? Should he had contacted her sooner or later? Thankfully, Eleanor made things easier by calling him before.

The truth was that Damien Nazario sucked on calling people on dates (and just going out), in general. It was a miracle that he actually had dated someone in his entire life. But things with Alana were different; they had to spend months with just the company of one another. And the Parks always made everything easier; going out with them was fun and he always felt on ease around them.

…And he knew that he shouldn’t be meeting with Ellie again.

Don’t get involved with another Park.

He knew he should be thinking with the right head, the one above his neck. He should just listen to the voice of reason inside his head. He couldn’t let the emotions get the best of him. He had to go back to play it smart.

But, somehow, here he was, about to start another date with Eleanor Zhou.

He low-key blamed on his Latin blood. They were all too passionate about everything.

But he knew that the reason why he was there was simply because he wanted to know Ellie better. She was clever, beautiful, funny and a little weird, just like her cousins. Damien always felt this strange affinity towards them and it seemed impossible for him to resist the Park’s charm.

…Fuck.

He was so screwed.

“Am I late?” – he heard someone saying behind him. Eleanor smiled at him when he turned, her long and dark hair down framing her beautiful face.

“No, I’ve just arrived a little earlier.” – he opened the door, gesturing for her to go first. Her grin widened, approvingly.

Damien was greeted by the cook as they entered the small and family-friendly diner.

“Does everyone in New York know you?” – Ellie asked as they sat on an empty booth. He let out a low and husky laugh.

“No. I just happened to help Hector over there a few years ago. One of his former waiters was stealing from the cashier.” – he shrugged, sitting in front of her. – “And since then I have a special discount for every meal I want.”

“Oooh, nice! Do I get a discount too?” – he chuckled with her boldness.

“I don’t see why not. You’re my date after all.” – he saw a sheepish smile spreading on her lips. Those lips… – “Anyway, you told me you wanted to talk about something?”

“Yeah, about it…” – but they were interrupted by the waitress.

“’Night, Nazario. What can I get for both of ya?” – she asked, putting two mugs with fresh and black coffee in front of them.

“Hey Selma. I’ll have my usual.” – the woman nodded, not taking notes.

“What ’bout ya, lady?”

“Ah! I’ll have the same as him, please.”

“Is everything okay?” – he asked as soon as Selma left them. – “You seem a little… out of place tonight.”

Ellie hesitated for a single second. Lucy hadn’t texted her back since that evening. Not that it was an unusual thing to happen; Lucy could go days without texting her back. She had her own life. But… there was this alarm inside her mind screaming “danger! Danger” whenever she thought about her best friend.

“Hey, you okay? Do you want to go home?” – Damien’s chocolate eyes were on hers and he looked both serious and a little worried. She noticed that his big and rough hand was above hers, which held the mug tightly.

“Yes. Yes, I’m okay.” – she released the grip immediately and smiled at him. Maybe she was being just too paranoid. Lucy had never dated someone for so long before and Eleanor had been single for a while, so maybe she was feeling a little lonely. Maybe she had this unknown jealous side in her when it was about her best friend. Lucy would tell her if something was wrong. Right? – “I was just thinking about work.” – and then she took  a sip of her coffee.

Damien knew that she was lying. He was a detective; he knew when people lied on his face. And that was something that Eleanor was doing. The way she soon looked away and pulled out of his touch. Her fake smile.

“Ellie…” – her eyes were back on his. – “I know we just met a few days ago and you don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to… but if you feel in need of something, know that I’ll try to help you. With whatever it is.”

She looked at him for a few seconds, before a small but genuine smile appeared, her expression relaxing.

“Thank you, D. You really are a great guy.”

“Did you still have doubts about it?” – Ellie chuckled, rolling her eyes.

“Cocky.” – and she took another sip of her drink. – “I guess I’m just being too paranoid.” – was she talking about Allen and Nadia being married to androids again? – “Anyway, I don’t want to think about it now. Let’s focus on tonight. On us, right?”

He liked the way she said “us”. Damien smiled, nodding at her.

“This is a good plan.” – he said back as Selma approached their booth with their food.

Damien was right, that was the best grilled cheese she had ever eaten in her life, no kidding. After they paid for their dinner, they decided to take a stroll through the Brooklyn Bridge park, alongside the river, arm in arm.

“I’ll never get tired of this view.” – she muttered, admiring the Manhattan skyline illuminated by all those city lights.

“Yeah, it never stops to amaze me.” – Damien agreed.

He had lost count of how many times he walked there with Allen and Nadia after a night out drinking until none of them could barely walk straight. It felt like a forever ago. Their lives changed so much. The Park cousins had met their Perfect Matches, who turned out to be robots, they had to flee New York, he met Alana again after years, they brought Eros down… And now his best friends’ were both married to their Matches. And he was coming back from a date with their other cousin, even though he had promised himself that he would stop getting involved with a Park.

…And Ellie was buying ice cream from a loner vendor.

Damien chuckled as she walked back to his side.

“I’m sorry I didn’t get one for you. But we can share this one.” – she said, eating her dessert happily.

“You are your cousin’s cousin. Nadia has a sweet tooth too.”

“Please. Nadia is too cute. I guess it’s practically impossible to be there someone as cute as her. She’s a walking cinnamon roll.”

“You are cute too.” – he whispered, watching her reaction cautiously.

But instead of punching him and claiming that she “wasn’t cute” like Nadia would certainly do, Eleanor simply grinned at him.

“Hey, do you want a bite?” – she asked, offering him her ice cream. Damien agreed and leaned down to taste it, but instead of the ice cream, he found something warm and soft against his lips. His heart immediately leaped as he pulled Ellie closer to him, until her body was pressed against his. Her lips tasted like…

“…Strawberry.” – he said when they pulled out, one of his arms still around her waist.

“Yes.” – she giggled, her head resting on his shoulder. – “Do you want some more?”

“Of what?” – he asked, his eyes shining mischievously to her ambiguous question.

“I don’t know.” – she shrugged playfully, before kissing him again. Damien groaned against her mouth. – “Hey… what do you think we pick up where we left off the other night?” – she whispered, with that smirk he knew too well by now.

“I’d like that.” – he said, his voice low and husky because of the kiss and the excitement that was growing in him.

“Okay, just let me finish my ice cream and then we can go.”