At first, Blue stiffened when Eivind commented on how different they were, but it only took a few seconds for him to realize that his lover meant that as a compliment, not something detrimental to their relationship. He wasn't wrong--the two men were incredibly different. Different ages, different backgrounds, different<i>species</i>. Their lives couldn't have been more dissimilar to one another, and yet they both seemed to find a way to connect despite these seemingly insurmountable divergent qualities. Blue remembered commenting long ago on how their fathers were similar to one another in ways, and perhaps, despite the obvious differences between them, it was small details like that which brought the two together. Blue and Eivind were both outsiders among their own families. They were loners, wanderers, constantly searching for something to give their lives meaning whether they realized it or not. The closest thing Blue had found to complete him was art, though even that hadn't quite been enough. It seemed the closest thing Eivind had found was Blue. The young man wasn't concerned about it. Flattered, even. They were different, yes, but they had grown into two lonely men who fit one another like two halves of the same torn canvas, woven together to create something new and beautiful beyond measure.<br/><br/>Blue chuckled at Eivind pondering that he would have been nurturing, not because he though Eivind wrong, but because he could image how horrid it would have been for young Eivind to cater to an even younger Blue, knowing he little monster would grow up to be something more to him one day. "What if twenty-one year old you had met me when I was ten? Would you still have known who I was meant to be? The only other mated pair I've seen is Sieger and Synnove, but I believe you when you say that not many others would have an age difference like ours. Realistically, it doesn't make much sense." He brought up a free hand to his mouth and absentmindedly ran his fingers along his lips as he thought, staring at Eivind's hand, still grasping his across the table. "I've always liked older men," Blue replied, unabashed. "To me, being attracted to you just seems right. I thought you were gorgeous from the second I saw you, even if I didn't like you."<br/><br/>He tilted his head to the side and looked at Eivind intensely, listening as he commented on life with wolves. Blue was sure that if he had grown up among them, he would be an entirely different person. Perhaps not something Eivind would have wanted as a mate. There was a reason he was mated with him, a human, and not another wolf, though neither of them seemed to understand what that reason was. "I think you're too hard on yourself," Blue said finally, shaking his head slightly, a smile edging its way onto his face. "I understand that you weren't the most reliable in the past, and that you made mistakes, shirked your duties, all of that. I get it. But since I've met you, you have been nothing but determined, dependable, and strong. You've done everything you could to take care of me, even when you didn't know me. You could have . . . you could have gone through with it, you know. You could have killed me, like you were supposed to." Blue paused for a moment, looking away from Eivind to once again stare at their intertwined hands. "But you didn't. You made a choice, a choice that no one else agreed with, and you have fought so hard in defense of that choice. A weak man, a weak<i>wolf</i>doesn't do that."<br/><br/>Eivind spoke of his father, but there was a distance there that Blue couldn't mimic when speaking about his own parents, even if he wanted to. Eivind didn't care about much, and it seemed that even if his father were still alive he wouldn't have cared for the wolf's opinion either, much like how he didn't seem to ever give a damn about what Sieger thought of their relationship. Blue admired Eivind's hypothetical resolve, however, and he bit his lower lip when Eivind said he knew he was good for him. "I would never have fucked your dad, for the record," Blue said jokingly, grinning across the table at his wolf. "I know wolves are a little more open with their sexuality, but that wouldn't have seemed right to me. I don't want to give off the impression that I'm a prude or anything. There are a lot of things I want to true that I've never had the opportunity to do. But fucking my boyfriend's father isn't one of them."<br/><br/>Blue's chest was starting to feel hot, and each time his eyes settled on Eivind there seemed to be some<i>thing</i>growing inside of him, twisting and reaching and blooming throughout his entire body. The feel of Eivind's calloused hand against his own softer variants was somehow exhilarating even in the calm, romantic environment of the restaurant. There was something he wanted to get out, some emotion he couldn't place, but it was fiery and wild and it felt like an animal clawing to release itself from the confines of Blue's rib cage. Something about the way Eivind looked tonight in the amorous ambiance, all cleaned up just for him, left Blue wanting to pull the wolf across the table and express what emotions were raging inside of him, although he wasn't even sure he had the words to convey any of them. But that certainly wouldn't have been appropriate, so Blue simply sat, staring.<br/><br/>"I know you're good for me, too," he said simply.<br/><br/>When the appetizers came, Blue watched as Eivind ate eagerly, giggling as Eivind questioned, then put the food into his mouth without waiting for an answer. Clearly, Eivind wasn't the picky type, not like Blue.<br/><br/>"They're crab cakes, Vin," Blue answered, taking a bite of the tuna, cooked just right so that once he bit into it the fish melted on his tongue. The crab cakes were buttery and delicious, and Blue couldn't stop himself from moaning softly as he chewed. "This is amazing. If the appetizers are this good I can't even imagine how mind blowing dinner is going to be."<br/><br/>The two men gobbled up the appetizers quickly and eagerly, enjoying themselves as they ate and drank their wine. Blue had finished his first glass by the time the server returned to remove their plates and watched as it was refilled for him. When the server had departed, Blue's attention was immediately back on Eivind.<br/><br/>"I feel like I've been ranting about myself too much. It's your turn," he said playfully, reaching across to find Eivind's hand again. "I wanna know about your job and how you got so good with your hands. I wanna know if you've ever had any other partners . . . you know, long-term ones. Anyone who came close to being something, well, like us, I guess?"