Chapter Text
It started off as a dare. Entirely innocent. A harmless challenge; meant for a little fun and nothing more.
"All these analogies and comparisons you both use to describe food," Ryan goaded with an amused smirk, "I'm betting that you couldn't do it if you had no idea what it was you were tasting."
Andrew had no idea how any of this had come about. It was just the usual banter between colleagues. Everyone around the table were talking and enjoying the spread laid out for them, despite the cameras recording the whole grand event. The Worth It holiday special had officially wrapped up the rest of the season, and now that the cameras were off the drinks and partying were alive in full swing. Shane chuckled lightly before taking another sip of Kwesi's Punch du'Creme, as he watched the exchange quietly with a sly smile.
Andrew laughed at the statement and looked at Ryan with the same challenging glare that was leveled his way. He and Steven had been discussing their thoughts with him about the year and their respective shows, while Adam was quietly munching away not very far from them all. Shane was pounding back liquid-- most likely in an attempt to quell the burning on his tongue. Andrew answered with a snicker, "you're just mad because your nose is still burning internally from that wasabi croquembouche and now you can't taste anything."
Steven nodded in agreement, "I'll have you know, Andrew and I both have very refined palates, Ryan. The whole point of the show is to taste food. It's not just about knowing what you're eating. It's about experiencing it though all your senses." He tossed another cream puff into his mouth to punctuate his point. Andrew silently chuckled with mirth as Ryan rolled his eyes and said, smiling, "if that had wasabi in it, you would be singing a different tune."
He smirked at them in provocation, taking a sip of his own creamy rum drink as the gears began turning and an idea popped into his head. Steven opened his mouth to reply but it was cut short.
"I challenge you guys then," Ryan continued, "fifty bucks says you guys can't correctly guess the intricacies of three different foods, at three vastly different price points.. blindfolded. You have to be able to tell how expensive it is... AND name at least three things in each dish that separate them from the other ones you taste."
Steven’s eyes flashed in amused defiance. Andrew shook his head with a laugh and glanced over at Steven before turning his attention back to Ryan. Shane seemed to be listening intently as a slow grin tugged the corner of his lips. Andrew replied, “deal. Is that fifty bucks for each of us, or fifty bucks split?"
Shane, who had been quietly drinking his punch this whole time finally opened his mouth to answer for Ryan, wanting in on this little game, "fifty for you both if you win. But fifty for Ryan and myself if you lose."
"What about me?" Adam piped in suddenly, "I can film it if I get a cut of the pool."
Andrew's attention turned to the typically quiet cameraman. Adam had been listening in this whole time, and the expression on his face was amused. There was a brief pause as the five of them considered it.
"You know.. this could be a neat idea for the show..." Steven said thoughtfully, "I have to head back to New York in a few days, but we can set up the details for it."
New York.
At the mention of it, a small frown pulled at the corners of Andrew's mouth. It was only momentary but shaken off seconds later, replaced by the earlier challenging smile.
The idea of a blindfolded Worth It episode seemed interesting to him. It would test his ability to pick out flavours, make for a fun video because of the added challenge, and he was confident Steven and himself would each be walking out of this with fifty dollars to boot. The only real snag was that his friend had to return to New York soon and that basically limited their options on places they could go to do this. Still, it seemed like a fun idea.
Andrew shrugged internally as the others bantered back and forth about who would win. There was a brief talk about chilis and spicy things when Ryan quipped about Shane's inability to handle spicy food and the two of them started arguing with each other as usual. Steven was laughing. A few ‘fuck you’s were exchanged, but it was all lighthearted. Everyone was grinning.
Eventually a loose plan was made, an agreement for emails to be sent out to the five of them about where and when to meet up, and with that the party continued.
Through the course of the evening, the reminder echoed about in Andrew’s mind. Steven was returning to New York again in a couple days. That meant that they would be spending New Years without him this year. Andrew frowned into his drink. It wasn't like this information was new. He had been out of the state for a while now, and it's not like they never saw one another... Or that he missed him... It's just that planning episodes for Worth It became a lot more difficult these past months without his boisterous personality in the office. The way he would practically vibrate when he got a really great idea. His boundless energy seemed to get the whole team fired up, and without him actually present things seemed to just… drag on.
The walls in Steven's LA apartment seemed a lot more bare since he moved as well, and before the two of them set up the faerie lights and other various Christmas decorations, the house seemed very empty and obviously not lived in. That felt wrong to Andrew somehow. It's not that it bothered him. It wasn't that he missed Steven. It was just... different.
Eventually, the crowd began to trickle out as the hours of the evening dragged on. Andrew tamped down the negative thoughts, enjoyed himself and the company around him; eventually said goodbye to co-workers as they left one by one. Soon enough, it was just Adam, Steven and him left to clean up the spare apartment. It was late.
Adam finished up his last plate of food, smiling at the camera as it recorded the final shots for their three part holiday special. Meanwhile, Andrew and Steven cleaned the dishes and put away spare food.
Ever since Steven moved to New York it seemed like time slowed down while he was away, and sped up when they were shooting content. Andrew didn’t mind of course. It was just... not the same. It seemed to go too fast.
Steven, dish towel in hand, broke the companionable silence, "blindfolded Worth It hmm..."
Andrew cast him a sidelong glance, then grabbed another dish to run under the water and scrub down. "It seems like an interesting concept," Andrew supplied, "how do you think those two are going to plan it though? It's not like they have much time... You have to return to New York on Tuesday and I don't think Ryan and Shane intend to give us something local, considering we’ve eaten at pretty much every restaurant in the area."
Steven turned to him with an ebullient smile. His jubilant personality always seemed to catch Andrew off guard, and this time was no exception. "Then you guys will just have to come to New York!" he exclaimed.
He said it like it was just the easiest solution in the world.
"Come to New York?" Andrew repeated, his hand stilled, soap all over the plate. Steven beamed and nodded.
Andrew thought about it. They just finished the holiday episode today and they still had all of the editing to do as well as preparation for the next season and all of the meetings for the next Tasty video and other various projects on top of that. How would he find the time to just... fly to New York? Especially so last minute?
"I don’t know, Steven. This is really short notice. Not to mention plane tickets are really expensive during the holiday season. That plus hotel fairs-- is it really worth it for just fifty bucks?" He turned back to the cupboard and placed a now dry plate back where it belonged.
Steven just waved his hand dismissively at him. “It'll be fiiiine . I'll talk to the higher ups; explain that it's for the next season of Worth It. Our fans have been wanting an Unsolved crossover with us for practically forever. I mean, this isn't exactly the creepy territory Shane and Ryan usually cover, sure, but it's not like we know what it is we are going to eat this time. I'm sure I can get Buzzfeed to pay for it." Steven had a joyful lilt in his voice.
Andrew hesitated, his mouth opening and closing as he tried to form a coherent sentence. "Steven! I really-"
"Yeah, no I get it, you have family to attend to and I mean who wants to spend a holiday with a colleague, right?"
Andrew brought his hand up to tug at his hair, getting a little soap on himself as the thoughts jumbled around. The plane tickets, hotel fairs- New York wasn't easy on your pocket. He tried to ignore the slight sting that came from hearing Steven call himself a mere colleague of his. He was more than that. They were more than that.
It was really not the best decision, as far as decisions go. It was very last minute; like a late Christmas gift hastily wrapped with cheap wrapping paper and tape. Still.. If Steven was sure they could pull this off--
Before Andrew could finish the thought, Adam came in with his now empty plate.
"I just think it's going to be hilarious to watch you two try to food cheers with blindfolds on. Try not to wear white for the shoot, ok?" he said with a chuckle, "it's going to be great-- I get to just sit back and film you both while Ryan and Shane inevitably find something to bicker about."
He approached both Andrew and Steven to place his dirty plate on the pile of dirty dishware. He then picked up a spare dish towel to help Steven dry.
Once more, the room fell into a comfortable silence as the three of them continued to wash up; Andrews concerns dismissed. The scene was almost domestic , Andrew thought to himself absentmindedly as he handed off a bowl to Steven who proceeded to dry it and place it in the cupboard. It was a shame the place was empty three weeks of every month.
One by one the dishes were cleaned and put away, save for three wine glasses sitting on the island. Andrew fished a bottle of Chardonnay out of the fridge while Adam grabbed them and brought them to the counter. Soon enough, the three glasses were filled and they all found themselves sitting on the couch watching Netflix on Steven's laptop.
The light in the room flickered from the screen as the show was playing, but Andrew had trouble concentrating. He didn't even register what movie they chose. His mind was too busy swirling with thoughts of New York. It had been a long time since he was in the area, and even longer since he spent New Years Eve watching the ball drop in Time Square. Now that was a thought he didn't really want to remember...
The last New Year he spent at Time Square, he and his girlfriend had...
No. He wasn't going to think about that. Andrew pulled his mind back to the present with a frown. Steven was saying something to him.
"--at my place."
Adam nodded to Steven before the two of them looked over at him expectantly. Andrew could feel heat rising to his cheeks. He didn't mean to zone out. Especially not where his train of thought took him. He opened his mouth to reply, sheepishly, "I'm sorry guys.. I kind of spaced out there for a moment. What were you saying?"
The corners of Steven's lips pulled a small frown of his own as he sighed. "Well if you don't want to, I completely understand Drew, but I figured it would save us money. I know a lot of apartments in New York City are small but It's not like we'd be sharing the same bed or anything… That is, if you’re even on board with all this..." Steven looked away towards his laptop as he spoke, openly disappointed. Although he tried to hide it, Andrew could hear the rejection in his voice. There was a pause before he continued.
"My loft has a pull out couch one of us could use, and I have a spare room that I use as my personal office. It has a futon that can pull down so I don't have to move my computer to the living room when I want to watch movies." Finally, Steven met Andrews gaze again, his expression complete honesty. "Look. I’m sorry to be pushing this. But like… It's Christmas, and to be quite frank.. It can get kind of lonely in NYC. I'm just saying I wouldn't mind having my best friends around for a couple weeks, even if Buzzfeed wont cover the whole trip."
Understanding dawned on him and Andrew smiled warmly. Perhaps he could make it work. "No Steven, I agree that staying at your place is a good option. I didn't mean to zone out, there. I'm sorry...just starting to get a little tired from today's events, I think. It might be time for me to call an Uber and crash for the night."
"I think I might do the same," Adam added with a small yawn.
Steven's frown remained momentarily before Andrew added, “...But I really do think that this is a good idea. Besides! We can’t let Ryan and Shane insult our name like that. That fifty bucks is as good as ours!”
At his words, the frown on Steven’s face suddenly melted into a smile, clearly happy to be spending the holidays with his friends. It was a crazy idea, he probably shouldn't have agreed to this, but the warm joy on his best friends face made the details matter seem minor in the grand scheme of things.
The three of them packed up as Andrew called an Uber for himself and Adam. He then downed the last of his wine, and set the glass gently on the end table by the couch. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all. God knows he could use a vacation and a change of scenery. Plus, this meant he got to spend more time with Steven. He smiled at the thought. Not because he missed him, of course. Just because things would resemble some semblance of normal for a little while longer. That's all.
Too soon, the Uber arrived and it was time to head out. Steven rose to his feet to show his friends to the door.
"I'll send you a text tomorrow," he said, the large beaming smile from earlier returning to his features. "Either way, this is going to be an amazing New Year."
"Have a good night Steven!" Adam said with a wave before climbing into the vehicle. Andrew slowly followed him, but turned and smiled back at his exuberant friend warmly.
"BYE!" Steven called as Andrew opened the door of the car. He turned back and held Steven's gaze for a pause, longer than necessary, before he climbed in and shut the door.
He was going to New York. He was going to win a bet with Steven. He had holiday plans with his friends.
He was happy.
***