A quick shower and slight brush of his mane left Neodymium fresh and decontaminated of any radiation or smog leftover from his day of work. The orb that both Astra and him had stated there was no nuclear radiation emitting from it, but there was still no telling what it was or what it could do. And going on a date and leaking radiation all over the place wasn't the most perfect idea for a date, especially if it's you first real date in...
Ever...
How bad can you honestly screw up Neo, your not that bad looking of a stallion, your clean cut and polite and, most of all, you have a well paying job, he thought to himself, trying to psych himself up for his date tonight. Besides, Astra'll be there, so if you screw up you can always blame him!
A smile creeped his face as he continued to see the many expressions of a wrongly accused Astra. It always was funny to see him turn different shades of blue from time to time. Making his way to the door, Neo checked himself over one last time before leaving, checking off a mental check list to make sure everything was in order. Shirt not extremely fancy but nice enough, check. Mane done, he looked in a mirror to see the same mane style he always wore. Eh passable. Breath, a blow into his hoof and quick sniff. Mint. Check.
With the last of his worries confirmed to be nothing more than simple worries, Neo finally opened his door and exited his home, locking the door before turning and heading off to Ponyville's spa. Tonight was going to be a good night no matter what happened, and he was going to make sure of that.
************************************************
As Neodymium approached the Spa, he was happy to see the first mare out was the same one who he met not too long ago. When she turned and noticed him, she too began trotting his way as well, a slight smile being very visible on her face. "My my MR. Neodymium, I'm impressed..." She said, eventually making her way in front of him and eyeing him from head to hoof. "I normally go by Neo." He said with a sheepish smile and a slight blush beginning to form on his cheeks. "You uh look lovely yourself Ms. Lotus..."
She smiled and continued on. "So Mr. Neodymium, where did you plan on having dinner tonight?"
"Actually, a friend of mine is actually going to join us with his marefriend as well. I hope you don't mind..." Ok, maybe this wasn't going to work out so well...
"I don't mind in the slight Mr. Neodymium. But why did you dress up like that?"
"My friend and I were thinking on going to a family owned japa-neigh-se restaurant in town. I have no idea whether or not it's actually supposed to be fancy or not so I just went with casually."
Lotus's expression suddenly changed to slight shock and worry, "Oh my! Do you think I'm under dressed?"
She wasn't exactly over dressed or under dressed. All she had was the same band holding her mane back and the cute little collar around her neck. If anything she looked better than any other mare here. "I said you look lovely Ms. Lotus. Just enjoy yourself." She smiled at the compliment once again, however this time there appeared to be a slight blush forming on her own cheeks. "Thank you Mr. Neodymium, your quite the gentlecolt." She said, laying a kiss on his right cheek and sending fire all throughout his face. With another sheepish smile, the two began making their way towards the restaurant. Thankfully Astra had managed to give him the directions before.
Eventually the two made it to the restaurant and caught sight of a blue Pegasus wearing a black suit and tie with a grey earth pony wearing a beautiful red dress, her arms resting on the Pegasi's right arm and leaning against him lovingly. When Astra caught sight of Neodymium, he smiled.
"Good to see you didn't get lost mate!" He said, the only response Neo have was a simple rolling of his eyes and shake of his head. "And it's good to see you weren't lying about who you were dating."
"I could say the same about you mate." Astra said with a sly smile. "Enough you two. We're here to eat not bicker like five year old colts and fillies." Octavia said, finally catching sight of Lotus. "Oh! My apologies. It's very nice to see you Ms. Lotus. I am Octavia" she said, trotting towards Lotus and extending her hoof. "The pleasure is truly mine Ms. Octavia." She said, shaking Octavia's hoof and offering her a smile, to which Octavia gave one of her own.
"I must say Ms. Octavia, that is a very beautiful dress."
"Oh this? It's just something I threw on." She said with a slight chuckle.
"Nice suit too Astra. Didn't know you actually had those things."
"It's something I keep around in case of emergencies."
After a few more minutes of conversations with one another, the party went inside and quickly took their seats. What was odd to Neo, however, was the fact the their seats were more of like mats on the floor that they sat on at a small table. As the music continued to play, a pony brought them a tea pot and poured each of them a glass of what Neo thought to be some type of green or herbal tea due to the smell and slightly green color. With the tea poured, the party took a slight sip of the liquid, it's calming taste and warmth soothing them as it traveled down their throats and into their stomachs, warming them at their cores. At first, Neo was unsure as to whether or not Octavia or Lotus would be able to drink from their cups due to their lack of wings or a horn, but the two surprised him when they managed to drink just fine.
"So Ms. Lotus, what job do you possess as of now?" Astra said, unwrapping his wing from the cup and gently setting down on the table in front of him. "Well Mr. Astra, I am currently a spa manager in Ponyville along with my sister Aloe. I do massages, mud baths, herbal baths, and hoof pedicures."
"Oh my! That sounds delightful! I've been meaning to get a massage for quite sometime now, but I can never find anytime for such an event."
Lotus offered Octavia a smile, "Your always welcomed whenever Ms. Octavia. My sister and I work all throughout the week."
The two mares continued to converse with one another, whether it would be on their professions or when the last time either of them had a massage. When their order was finally taken, it became quite once again at the table. "What's wrong?" Lotus asked, looking at Neo and Astra as they sat in silence. "Oh, nothing. We just didn't want to interrupt you two from your conversation Lotus." Neo said, offering her a slight smile. "Well then, I suppose it would only be kind if we turned up the conversation. Astra, what is it that you and Mr. Neodymium do exactly?"
Neo, confused at the question, looked at Astra absolutely confused by the question. "I thought you told her"
"He never told me what exactly you both study together. And I think Ms. Lotus here would be interested as well?"
"Oh yes! I'd very much like to know about what you do even further."
Astra, now taking a double take on his own concentration, went on. "Well, as I told you before, I am a scientist in many fields. However I mostly study oceanography."
"And I'm more of an engineer. I've designed a lot of the machinery used in the facility we work at."
"Anyways..." Astra continued, "Neo and I normally work together whenever there is a problem neither of us could solve. And recently, our latest project has really hit us hard."
"How so?" Octavia asked, Lotus listening patiently and occasionally staring to the right of her, smiling as she caught sight of Neo.
However, Neo didn't seem to notice and continued on. "Yeah. This latest project has us stuck between a wall and a hard place. Took us 20 test just to find out what was inside of the thing." A quick pause came as the party was present their different plates and bowls of rice, sushi, and salad before being asked if they needed anything else. Only asking for a refill on tea, the pony disappearing into the kitchen and quickly coming out with a tea kettle.
With the tea once again filled up, Octavia and Lotus each placed an even amount of food on their plates before trading the bowls and plates with one another and eventually handing it to Astra and Neo. With their plates full of various food and cups now filled with tea, each of them eating away at the food. Octavia and Lotus seemed to enjoy their food as much as possible, but Astra and Neo were mostly focusing on their day rather than their food, hoping neither of the mares asked anything else about their research. Not only was there nothing else to be said, but they also didn't want them knowing anything else about their research. Or the orb.
Or the fact that it could be used for something as horrible as Project OMEGA. "Excuse me, Neo?"
Neo and Astra both broke out of there thoughts as they heard Lotus's voice. "Oh, uh, sorry. What's up?"
"You and Mr. Astra have barely touched your food. Is something bothering either of you?" Lotus said, a somber expression on her face mixed with concern. "Oh, no, of course not. It's just... We had a long day today and we're a little tired."
Good save mate, was the look that Astra gave Neo as he concluded. They both hated the fact that they had to lie to their dates, especially considering how they didn't want to go into a relationship with a lie. But unfortunately it was one of those times when a lie was a necessary evil.
"I'm sorry to hear that Neodymium."
"Don't be. After all, it's something scientist like us do quite often."
The rest of the meal went uneventful as they all ate in silence, save for a couple of small conversations between one another. With the meal finished and bill paid for by Astra and Neodymium against both Octavia's and Lotus's wills, and went their separate ways, Astra taking Octavia home and Neo doing the same with Lotus.
"I know my friend or I weren't exactly very lively tonight, but... I had fun with you and I hope we can do this again sometime..." Neodymium said as the grew nearer to what he assumed to be Lotus's home. "I understand what it is like to be tired after a day of work, however, it must be even tiring to work as a scientist and come home after working all day long." As they did eventually reach the front door, Lotus had planted a smile on her face. "And honestly I had fun as well."
Neodymium's shyness seemed to return to him after her comment, "Well... Thank you Lotus..."
She giggled, a sound Neodymium knew he was going to enjoy. At least if there was ever going to be a second date. "You're a very nice stallion Neodymium bolt, and very handsome, I would very honored to spend another night with you Neo."
"How about tomorrow night then. Dinner or something between the two of us?"
"I don't have anything going on tomorrow night. Yes, I'd love to. Same time as tonight." She said after placing a hoof under her chin and pondering for a while. "Alright then, tomorrow night at 8. Goodnight."
Before he could leave, Neodymium's face was turned fully around and his lips met with Lotus's own pair, her sweet breath washing over him as he returned her kiss, his face growing hotter as he did so. "Goodnight... Neo" she said, her eyes half lidded as she made her way into her home and closed the door. At first, Neo stood there dumbstruck at what had happened, but his mind came full focus and his face quickly turned into a smile and his brain gave him a salute. As he continued to walk home, the only thing that ran through his mind was the feeling of accomplishment.