It was as if everyone was trying to piss him off.

“Where is Tao?”

“For the last time, I don’t KNOW!” Kris all but shouted at Dasom whose lip immediately fell into a quiver, big eyes filling with tears.

Watching her walk away dejected with an apology sniveled over her shoulder, Kris actually felt (for a brief moment, at least) like an .  But then he remembered that Dasom had been the sixth person that morning (that hour!) to ask him where the chef was.

His irritation flared up again, like a kettle set to boil, building up in him until he finally set the crate of wine bottles down, perhaps a little harder than he normally would have.

“Why does everyone think I always know where he is?!” He threw out at Chanyeol, who shrugged as best as he could with a heavy cut of meat slung over his shoulder.

“I don’t know, because you usually do?  Besides, you two seemed pretty buddy-buddy the other week, so maybe they thought you would be the best person to let the chef know about Jiyeon -”

“Buddy-buddy?  ...’buddy-buddy’?”  Kris barked out a laugh, biting and sarcastic, before shaking his head.  “We’re coworkers, we have to work together, so of course it’s -  ...it’s - I mean, it’s not like we’re friends or anything like tha -”

He cut himself off short, suddenly squinting.  His mind had finally caught up with what the line cook had been saying.  “...wait.  Hold on, did you just say Jiyeon?  As in Park Jiyeon the actress?”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol muttered, grunting as he slammed the heavy weight onto the counter, rolling his shoulders back before reaching over for a butcher’s knife.  “You didn’t hear?  She tweeted that she was going to make a reservation tonight.  I asked Luhan up front and he pretty much confirmed it too.  I mean, apparently hashtag ‘Tabletops’ is trending right now, so if we have more business this week, it’s thanks to her.  Social media is crazy, man.”

It took only a few seconds for Kris to whip out his phone and confirm that what Chanyeol was saying was true.  It seemed that Jiyeon wasn’t just an up and coming It-Girl - even before her acting days, she’d been somewhat of an amateur food blogger, and her popularity in the newest action and romance films to hit the theaters had only helped to skyrocket her personal food blog to several thousand hits a day.

Which would explain why they had all been coming to him asking for Tao.

“Oh.” Kris muttered, absentmindedly patting the dust from his gloved hands. “...I see.”

It made sense now.  Still, it didn’t change the fact that -

“I haven’t talked to him in days.  Barely even pass by him lately.”

Chanyeol paused from where he had been making cuts, looking over his shoulder with a frown.

“Really?  Chef’s been kind of off these past few days, been coming in later than usual, always looking like he hasn’t slept, been kind of snappy.  We all thought it had to do with… well.  You know.”

Chanyeol looked pointedly in his direction.

This time, Kris hadn’t actually done anything wrong, but his reputation had apparently preceded him.  Again.  It made him itch in frustration, bristling instinctively.

“Chanyeol, I -”

He stopped himself before he could go any further.

He knew why it upset him.  For some reason, the implication that he was part of the problem, the realization that everybody had been making those kinds of assumptions behind his back for who knew how long was one that definitely stung, but try as he might, he couldn’t find any way to prove them wrong.  He had always known what the others had felt about his ‘particular’ personality, and yet he had never tried to get close to any of them before, nor did he do anything when the others had shied away, obviously intimidated.

He just hadn’t really cared enough to show them any different.

At least, not until…

/The man sitting across from him in the booth was spinning him tales of the tattoos that painted his skin, this time pointing down at the pinup girl with the curled hair that just barely peeked out from underneath the sleeve of his rolled up shirt.  More of a representation of himself, he explained, than of any woman he might have lusted over.

‘Because we all need a little Rita Hayworth in our lives, don’t we?  Life’s too short not to have fun.  Happiness and self-confidence - they come one after the other.’

Tao was laughing then, all crinkled button nose and twinkling eyes./

And yet those same eyes had held such an expression of disappointment, when he had told the other ‘no’.  It was still something Kris reflected on with regret.

“If you can help me wrap the rest of this pork up for tonight, I can go out and look for Tao myself, if you want.”

Kris snapped to attention, the other’s words bringing out in him a strong, unanticipated, and visceral reaction in him.  He breathed in sharply.  Aware that the other was still watching and waiting, he pulled the towel from his waistband, throwing it onto the countertop.

“No.  I’ll do it.”

-

Except that Tao was nowhere to be found.

Not in the kitchens.  Not in the dining area.  Not in the reception area or the back alley.

Nowhere at all.

Apparently, nobody had seen him all day, and given that lunch service had just begun, with sous chef Luna forced to take over where Tao usually would have, it was definitely a source of growing alarm.

This wasn’t at all like Tao.

Despite it all, he couldn’t help but begin to feel worry rather than anger, pocketing his cellphone after a moment’s consideration.  He knew he should have called the owner, but Kris promised himself one more try, one last thorough look around.

Luna was perfectly capable enough of taking care of things in the meantime, there was still plenty of time yet before dinner, and besides -

You don’t want to see him in trouble, do you?

Kris found himself pausing, staring blankly down at the pair of gloves he had been ready to pull on.

-

It was by complete chance that Kris eventually found Tao, huddled up in the corner of the tiny little diner down the street.

He’d been almost desperate at that point, walking down the street while asking himself where the other could have possibly gone, when, speak of the devil - there he was, sitting at the bar nursing a cup of coffee between his hands, visible just barely through the smudged window and the faded gold lettering.

Kris had stopped dead in his tracks, peering in through the window with both hands held over his eyes, almost not recognizing the other man.

And the source of his confusion was the fact that Tao was, for once, not dressed in a chef’s uniform.

Rather, today he was the rebel without a cause, a young and handsome flash of James Dean in those sinfully long black leather pants, the tight black shirt and jacket that clung to his chest.

Squinting through the window as if looking through the frame of a painting, Kris was struck once again by how uniquely handsome the other man was.  Certainly not a beauty in the conventional sense, what with his numerous ear piercings and icy platinum hair, but there was an undeniable pull, dark seduction in the wispy curls of smoke, those gleaming dark brown eyes.

A car horn blared somewhere behind him and the moment was then lost.

Kris blinked the stars from his eyes, forgetting them as quickly as they had come.

With a shake of his head and a sigh, he stepped to the side and pulled the door open.

-

“Oh, hey Kris.”

“‘Oh, hey?’  ‘Oh, hey?’  Where the hell have you been?  People are looking everywhere for you!”

Tao slumped in his seat, kneading at his head with a hiss.

“Oh they’ll be fine.  Luna can take care of things without me for a while.”

Kris shook his head, slamming a hand onto the countertop and causing the mug in Tao’s hand to rattle.  Tao moaned weakly at the grating sound.

“No, she can’t - we’ve got a very important guest tonight, an internationally famous actress who I’m sure you’ve heard of. You’ve got to come back RIGHT now and put everyone on task because they’re running around like chickens with their head cut off without you there!”

Expecting the other to turn around and hiss right back at him, Kris found himself tensing for nothing at all as Tao continued to sit there, massaging his head within his hand.  When his words came, they were strangled slurred.  Pained.

“‘s fine, I’m telling you alr’dy…”

On a hunch, Kris leaned in closer, taking in a deep whiff of the other’s breath.

Tao froze, and bloodshot eyes trailed up to his own.

It was faint and fading, but what he suspected to be there was indeed there.

The scent of alcohol.

The chef was hungover.

Any concerned thought still lingering dried up, replaced instead by anger and disappointment.

Pulling up a seat beside Tao at the countertop, Kris did not need to yell, did not need to raise his voice for his words to sting.

“How long.”

Tao had the decency to look ashamed, rubbing the heel of his hand into his forehead.

“I…”

“How many days have you come in smelling like a cheap drink?  What’ve you been doing at night, Tao, when the rest of us are too tired from working hard and long hours?  What are you doing?”

Tao pushed his stool back.  It screeched, loud and jarring, against the linoleum floor.

“Enough!  I can’t ing deal with you and your high and mighty attitude right now, okay?  My head is pounding, my throat hurts, I feel like I’m about to throw up, and here you are, like a jackass, talking to me like I’m a kid!  I - I just need a few minutes of peace and ing quiet!  And - a - a smoke - ...!”

Without sparing Kris a look, Tao threw a few dollar bills onto the counter before pacing quickly to the door.  He had already stepped through and onto the street, his fingers digging into his back pocket for his Marlboro Reds when Kris caught up, gripping Tao’s shoulder and forcing him to turn around.

“We don’t have time for this - I came here on everyone’s behalf to get you to stop pissing around and come back to the kitchen.  Park Jiyeon will be coming.  Park - Ji - Yeon.”

With a jerk, Tao threw Kris’ hand off, ignoring the stares and the whispers of those passing by on the steret as he stepped up into the sommelier’s space.

“So?  So?  What does the rich want?  A special menu?  Some extra praise and attention?  A fancy in’ gold dusted caviar plate?!  I guess we’ll just have to make her something so good that she’ll diamonds!!”

It was nice to hear the fire back in the other’s voice.  Though it still smelled strongly of alcohol, Kris thrived in how the other’s breath burned against his skin.  He could see that in his anger, Tao’s eyes were slowly clearing with clarity.

That’s it!  He wanted to yell, wanted to grab the man by the shoulders and shake him.  That’s more like it, show me that fire!

But just as fiercely as it burned, it flickered out in an instant.  When the pain he had momentarily ignored came back with a vengeance, Tao’s expression was shuttering, eyes fluttering shut as he hissed and clutched at his head.

“I - I don’t what came over me, I’m sorry, I don’t feel well, I’m afraid you’ll have to -”

Kris snarled, reaching over to grip the other’s arms and shaking him roughly.

“Come on!  Don’t you dare walk away from me now - we have a job to do, so get it together!”

Tao was protesting with weak fingers clutched in the Kris’ shirt, as much tugging him closer as he was pushing him further away.

“But Luna can…”

“Luna is not the head chef!  You are!  She might be fine covering for you, but everyone in there is counting on you to come back!  Don’t let them down!”

“And you want me to believe that you’re the one they sent to bring me back?”

Tao looked unconvinced.

Kris sighed, impatiently combing his hair back with his fingers.  “Look - this isn’t as hard as you’re making it out to be so just listen.  The last few appearances she made on network television, Jiyeon kept going on and on about how she lived in Brittany for some time during her childhood.  Alright?  There you go.  Just make her some foie gras or something and it’ll be fine!!”

The most basic of basics.  Yet, instead of looking relieved as Kris would have expected him to be, Tao looked even more nervous than ever, beads of sweat forming on clammy skin.  It took but a second for Kris to make the connections in his head.

“You… don’t know how to cook basic French?  That’s a staple for any chef!”

“I’m no Julia Child, alright?”  Tao snapped back, annoyance coming on strong.  “You don’t understand - I’m self taught, and even if I was feeling hunky-ing-dory right now, it still doesn’t change the fact that everything I cook is based off of food - places - people - experiences that I’ve had before.  And if I don’t know anything about her to connect with - if I don’t know about French food - how the hell do you expect me to pull this off?!”

That was right.  Of all the foods he’d seen Tao cooked, no matter how dressed-up-avant-garde they might have seemed, they were all, in part, recreations of simple homemade classics.  Turkey dinners and pumpkin pies.  Grilled plums and chestnuts roasted over a fire.

Still, there was no denying the talent the chef had.  It was there, undoubtedly.  He knew that if the other at least tried, no matter if it was his first attempt at French cuisine or his fiftieth, there would be created something truly wonderful, regardless.  Now if only there was some way to instill the same confidence in the chef himself.

Or, at least, to call on an emotion that would push him into action.

“...you’re scared. aren’t you?”

Ah.  Now there was a word that Tao hated.

The tattooed chef stiffened immediately, jaw clenched as tight as his balled up fists.

“That - and you’re upset that I turned you down the other night, aren’t you?  That’s why you’ve gone out drinking every night, haven’t you?”

He could tell, from the look in Tao’s eyes, that it was hook, line and sinker.

“That’s not - !!!”

Tao spun toward him, a protest on his lips and an angry flush creeping across the bridge of his nose - but Kris was right there, just inches away, staring without fear back at him with eyes that saw straight through him.  Tao felt his pupils dilate, feeling the light brush of the other’s nose against his own.

“Don’t pretend like you can’t.  You can.  I know you can.”

Behind the false guise of those harsh words, there was something kind and comforting in that usually hard voice.  In those usually sharp and shrewd eyes, there was something there, offering Tao his begrudging support.

“You need something you can relate to?”  Kris breathed onto his cheek, filling his lungs with something that was just as addicting as Tao’s Marlboro Reds.

“Fine.  Listen closely.”

-

You’ve lived there for a little more than a year now.

The first few months, it was hard.  You missed home so much - the sound of loud traffic and english-speaking voices, the smell of fried fast food, greasy beneath your fingers.

It was so different here in comparison that at times you felt as if you were the only one you knew, stranded on some strange alien planet.

But as you build a rhythm and routine, you take comfort in what becomes the familiar.

In the sunny afternoons, when it wasn’t too cold, you would take a trip to the market.

Some fresh veal, butter and flour if you need it.  Cheese and a baguette are a must, all stuffed into the same brown bag that you’ve placed in the basket of your red bicycle.

And as you travel home on that roughly paved road of carved stone and old memories, the wicker basket rattles, straining to hold your hopes.

Maybe on the street you’ll see a man with a heavyset brow.  He’s the one with the tick - swears uncontrollably, twitches nervously - but he’ll always lift a hat in your direction, every single day.

Croissants.  Freshly baked.  Flakes open steaming hot.

It’s still there - amongst the smell of the cafe chocolate and the sound of steaming milk, the white noise of muffled chitter chatter.

Maybe today, you’re already thinking of dinner.  You’ve never been a professional cook, no, but you know the basics.  The essentials.  You’re already mentally laying out the knives and the bowls, breaking the bread in your mind, when, by the street corner, you see her standing there - waiting -

No - you don’t just see her - you smell her - like lilacs.  Like daisies.  Like an early spring for a hopeful love.

You’re young and you’re foolish and you fall so hard and so fast, trying to brake the bicycle.  You stumble and you trip when it doesn't work, but she smiles anyway, laughing at your poor attempts to introduce yourself in your shabby t-shirt and ripped jeans.

You can see sunshine in the whites of her eyes, roses in those full red lips.  Her eyelashes that flutter on her cheek beat like your heart through your chest.  She hears it, she must have, it’s so loud.  And when dimples at the corner, she tilts her head to consider you, a vision of beauty, in that white summer dress.

She opens to speak.

-

“Enough!”

A clear voice pulled him from the deep well of his memories, and he blinked slowly, startled back to the present, the sound of shoes scuffing against the sidewalk and muttering voices rising back into his ears once again.

“Okay - That’s enough.”

Tao was there.

Staring at him in a new light, his eyes were wide open as if seeing a side of him that he’d never seen before.  Kris almost felt vulnerable, but a hand distracted him before he could slip into that hole, clasping onto his shoulder and squeezing lightly.

“I, uh, I think I’ve got what I’ve needed.”  Tao whispered, eyes still wide.  “...thanks.”

Kris had to take another moment to gather himself, but when he did, he scrubbed at his face, taking in a deep breath.

“So - so you’re good, then?  You’re going to come back with me now?”

Tao tore his gaze away, nodding stiffly before that lost look he knew so well settled onto the chef’s face.

Tao was in his own world again.

“Yeah.  I think - I think I can come up with something now.”

-

A swig of coffee and two extra strength pain relievers later, Kris was striding back through the back doors of the kitchen, this time with Tao in tow, still readjusting the collar of his white uniform with his leather jacket slung over his shoulder.

Everyone was overjoyed to see the head chef finally back, temporarily abandoning their stations to crowd around the head chef.

Tao was a little bashful and a little shy over their worry, rubbing at his head.  He was still a little weary, but there would be no more time for rest though, as the looming kitchen clock was ticking away just as ever.

Lunch rush had just finished, which meant that they would have just a few hours before the night’s special guest would arrive.  That didn’t give them much buffer time for preparation, either.  With apprehension written clearly on their faces, the staff turned to the head chef in anticipation, a flock of sheep waiting to be led.

They were in luck - though perhaps a bit clumsy and thick in some senses, Tao was a ripe genius in the right environment.  It took him but a few seconds to roll up his sleeves, gazing around at the ingredients that had already been laid out, before he snapped back to attention.

“Okay, here’s the plan.  We’ll go with something simple to save some time.  Dasom, I need you to get me some herbs - thyme, bay leaves - and a cheese plate too, if you have the time.  Luna - I’ll need the freshest ing loaves of bread you can bake to pair with the food, in the oven as soon as you can, alright?”

He moved away from them all, pointing out toward Chanyeol’s work station as he began to plan aloud.

“Chanyeol, do we have any more of the veal shoulder?”

“Even better - we just got some fresh this morning at the market.”

“Awesome.  I’ll need it boned and trimmed and laid out on the counter as soon as you can so we can get it in the pan.  Get Sehun to help you on that.  Minseok, I’ll need something chocolate from you tonight.  Anything’ll work as long as it’s not too fancy - remember people, simple.  We’re sticking with simple.  Oh - and Minzy -”

He caught the girl’s arm as she made to slip past him to shadow Luna.  She looked up toward him, wide-eyed and questioning.

“I’ll need you to run a special errand for me.  Could you slip out to the florist down the street and grab a bouquet of lilacs and daisies?”

Other than furrowing her eyebrows, she did nothing else but nod, too used to the eccentric way Tao worked to question him.  A frazzled Doc Brown with wild hair in his moments of bizarre brilliance.

They all hit the ground running, working with such complete trust in the chef’s vision that the only one left behind was the sommelier who had brought him back.

Kris stared at Tao’s back, and though the chef did not turn completely to face him, he shifted his face to the side just enough to show the hesitant smile spread across his lips.  It was meant for him.

He understood then - what it was Tao had been looking for in those words, in those memories.

That feeling of being so young and so full of love, of rediscovering yourself in another space, another place, of the starry-eyed nights, those whisper-filled days -

And that street where all of it had happened -

Tao was going to recreate it.

-

“Alright, keep your stations clean and clear!  We’re working on a tight schedule here!”

There was an art to it.

Like a symphony of sounds, of smells, of quick moving feet and flying hands.  Every chef a musician - a maestro at their craft.

“Good evening.  I think I’ve made a reservation tonig-”

“Ms. Park?  Yes.  We’ve been expecting you.  Right this way.”

The fast thok-thok-thok-thok of sharp knives against wood grain added vigorous energy, and a beautiful chorus of chopped onions, carrots, turnips and mushrooms was pushed into the already boiling and bubbling pot in one swift sweeping motion.

Steam rose up billowing, submerging them in its intense heat, clouding their minds with the desire for perfection and pitting them all against the test of what it really took to sink or swim under pressure.

“Anything to drink?  Perhaps some Chardonnay?”

“And what would you recommend?”

“Ah - madam - nothing but the best for you.  A 2007 Meursault Les Tessons - aged to perfection.
It’ll go well with what we’ll be serving you tonight.”

“What I'll be served?”

Hands kneaded at the dough, slapping it down time and time again with a rhythm that was unyielding.

The oven was ever warm, the smell of bread baking ever wonderful as it rose to a crisp crackle and pop.

“Let me pour that for you, madam.”

“Oh, look at that gorgeous color.  You really do have an eye for this -”

“It's my job, madam.  Yours tonight will be to enjoy.”

Chicken stock was free falling in a slow motion dive into the pot, and the veal basked in its waterfall, soaking and simmering amongst the thyme and bay leaves.

“Behind you -”

“- Excuse me!”

A coordinated half circle spin to get out of each other’s way and saucepans were passed from hand to hand.

Whipping cream was added to the frothing mixture, dripping thick and white.

“Some flowers, sent personally by the chef, with his warmest regards.”

“Oh - lilies!  My favorite!”

The other chefs were too busy with their own tasks, so Tao took to the sauce pan personally with a whisk, the muscles in his arm tensing hard as he bent over it, casting a sharp eye toward the clock in the center of the room.  He’d have to hurry.

With renewed vigor, he grunted, adding speed and power, gradually gaining momentum.

“Minzy, towel please!” He cried out, feeling the sweat beginning to trickle down his forehead, sliding down the bridge of his nose and threatening to fall into the mix.

“Minzy!” He called out again sharply, unable to take his focus off of his work.

Thankfully though, before he had to take matters in his own hands, a dry towel reached out, carefully wiping from his forehead and nose any trace of sweat that lingered.

Tao slowed, feeling the warmth from hands that were far too large to be Minzy’s seeping into his skin.  Through the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a familiar man standing by his side.

“Minzy is still helping Minseok with the cake.”

The sauce had finally begun to form, and Kris watched the progress over his shoulder, slowing roving his eyes up and over Tao’s straining arms - before finally settling to meet Tao’s gaze.

Tao felt his cheeks begin to burn, for some reason an equal mix of oddly pleased and yet also embarrassed at the other’s quiet attention.  He swallowed thickly and tore his gaze away.

“I…” Tao cleared his throat, shaking his head.

“...thanks.”

Kris continued to stare for a moment longer without any response before a small smile finally tugged onto his lips.  Folding the towel back over his arm where it belonged, he picked up the glasses he had originally come into the kitchen for, offering only two words to Tao as he left back through the door.

“You’re welcome.”

Here it was again, the succulent sweet flavor that was building to a fevered .

-

Tao rotated the plate beneath him with his hand.  With the other, he used short and deliberate and a spoonful of sauce to bring beautiful splatters of ivory color to the otherwise dark plate.

They had all gathered round, watching as he scraped the remainder of the sauce from the pan, drizzling it in a circular motion onto the perfectly cooked and still steaming cut of veal.  It ran down the sides, slowly oozing and dripping with succulent juice.

Blowing air out from his lungs slowly, he set the pan down to his side with a clatter, shoulders gradually relaxing as he wiped his still wet hands on his apron.

“There.  It’s ...done.”

Amidst the light, praising applause, long arms reached over him, brushing against his sleeve as they grabbed hold of the dish, lifting it up and over his shoulder.

“Blanquette de veau.” Came Kris’ quiet remark, audible only to Tao who strained to hear the whispers.

“What?”

Tao turned, catching a strange emotion that was burning in the other’s suddenly bright eyes.

“Blanquette de veau.” The other repeated, tapping a finger against the plate within his hands.

“Veal ragout.  It’s a dish that I used to have quite often when I lived in France.”

“A...what?” Tao asked, completely lost.

Kris continued to stare back at him, blank and silent, before a slow grin spread across his face.  He snorted - just once - in laughter.

“Just as I suspected.  You didn’t even know it.  ...amazing.”

Tao furrowed his eyebrows, still trying to decipher the other’s words when Kris pushed past him with the plate lofted over his head.

He turned, a second later, perhaps to ask what the other had meant - but Kris was already gone.

The swinging kitchen doors were the only sight to greet him.

-

“Madam.  Your entree.”

“...is ...this…?  You’ve got to be joking - there must be some kind of mistake -”

“No, madam.  We don’t make mistakes.  Enjoy.”

Picture perfect Jiyeon whose face all women coveted, whose beautiful smile had won her countless awards - for all of the acting skills she boasted in the theaters - there was none of it in the shy and uncertain way she was acting now.

She carefully cut a piece of the veal as if handling something unsavory, looking around her just once before bringing the piece up slowly to her lips.

Slowly, cautiously, she took a bite.

Of those who waited, Kris and Tao were the only one who opted not to crowd around the port window, remaining where they were, leaning against the counters opposite of one another.

Arms folded across his chest, Kris had, at some point, caught Tao’s eye, and he remained holding the other’s gaze through the long, tortuous minutes that they waited.

Tao looking on with more than a little uncertainty and doubt, Kris watching him with a glimmer of something unknown - as if he were ready to snap the other up like a morsel of food offered to a starving man.

And then it came.  The sound of a woman sobbing in earnest.

“Oh - my God - I think she’s crying.”

“You have go to be - ...ting… me...”

“What?!  Just from eating our food?”

“See for yourself!”

"I can't - move out of the way, squirt - "

“Wait - shh - what’s she saying?  Mom...?  She’s calling out for her mom!”

“...Chanyeol, hurry up and go give her a handkerchief or something!”

“M-me?!  Why me!  Y-you do it!”

Amidst the excitement and the noise, Tao looked back to see Kris giving him a single, slow nod, offering to Tao the approval that he hadn’t even known he had had been waiting for all along.

More than he would have liked to have admitted it, it felt…

...Good.

Tao turned away before he allowed the pleased smile to spread onto his face.

-

Another day over, another sleepless night to come.

Tao slowly pulled off his hat, arching his neck back and feeling the stiff muscles in his body shift with a crick.  Swinging his hands down by his side now, he groaned, soft and drawn-out.

The others had all already left by now.  He’d let them go early for a celebration of a good night and a good job, yet he had offered to stay back himself to close up shop, perhaps still feeling a little remorseful from his absences the previous few days.

Wiping down the last counter, he tossed the rag down, pulling on his leather coat with a grimace and zipping up tight.

Turning to face the now empty kitchen, Tao took one last glance around before shutting off the lights, opening the back door and locking it behind him.

Standing in the dark chill of the back alley, a Marlboro Red found its way to his lips as he fumbled in his pockets for his light, already wracking his brain for the nearest bar, the closest distraction for the strange restlessness that made his fingers shake and his mind race.

Before he could light up though, hands reached out from the pitch black, gripping his wrist tight.

Tao started, yelping and dropping his cigarette to the floor as he darted forward, only to be caught by the hold the stranger had on his wrist and forced to pivot around with its momentum.

Fist already balled up and ready to throw a er punch, Tao just barely stopped himself when he recognized the figure holding onto him.

Kris.

Tao sighed, rolling his eyes as he dropped his fist back to his side.

“Do you do always have to do that?  ...spooky bull.” He muttered, snatching his wrist back when the other released it from his grip.

“And what’re you still doing here anyway?  I thought I let everyone go early.”

There was a hard look in the sommelier’s eyes, furrowed brows as if the other was fighting some kind of internal battle.

“Are you heading out to the bar again?”

It was more of an accusation than a question, and Tao didn’t honestly want to answer, knowing how disappointed the other would be.

But he was never one to lie.

“Yeah.  Probably.  ...sorry.”

This time, he did not ask for company.

There it was again, that pregnant silence, that uncertain pause that gave birth to such strange and unpredictable thoughts.  He wasn’t quite sure why he felt the way he did - he was usually so comfortable in his own skin, so confident with what he had to say with others - but there was something about Kris, the intense and often misguided way the other always had looked after him - that brought out something fond in him.

He didn’t really understand, not yet, but he still hoped, still waited, for the other to say something.

And this time, Kris did.

“Listen,” Kris began, with a rare, troubled expression that seemed so precious on his stern and perfect face.

“I… I’m not the type that likes to party.  I’ve never been comfortable in large groups of people, to be completely honest.  That’s partly why I… why I declined last time.  I prefer the company of a few friends.  Sharing glasses of wine and stories by the fire.”

Already picking up on where the other was going with the conversation and unable to contain the growing excitement in his voice, Tao blurted out the first thing that popped up in his head, without giving it proper thought.

“Yeah the type that sits in a leather armchair sipping wine from a goblet, reciting poetry in a red bathrobe!”

Man, he was seeking a painful death tonight.

Tao looked up with a delirious laugh, expecting a frosty look directed at him.

What he got instead surprised him.  Another small snort, the slight twitch of lips.

“Something like that.”

Kris looked down toward the ground now.  “But... if you’d like to, perhaps tonight instead of going out to the bar, maybe you’d consider sharing a drink with me at my house instead.”

“...at your house?” Tao repeated, airy and mumbling, not sure whether or not he was hearing the other correctly.

“Yes.  What do you say?”

“...”

When the other failed to speak, still gaping with shock, Kris shifted in place, scratching the back of his neck.

“...Kiara still talks about you, you know.  Looks like you made a big impression on her.  I’m sure she’d love to see you again?”

It was a subtle nudge for a response.  Just enough to get the gears grinding in Tao’s mind once more.

Blinking to see that the other looked just as bashful, a ball of something warm built up in his chest.

Slowly straightening his back, Tao snapped his mouth shut with a click, eyes still as wide as ever as a smile curled his lips upward.

“...alright.”

-

Lay was surprised to see Kris so early, already opening his mouth full of questions on the other’s unusual timeliness.  His old friend didn’t stop to say more than a few words though, stepping past him after a brief greeting to wake Kiara up where she had been napping on the couch with a gentle pat on her head.

While she was still making kittenish yawns and rubbing her fists over her eyes, Kris picked her up and balanced her on his hip, slinging her purple Dora backpack over his other shoulder.  He gave just a few words of thanks as he promptly left, telling Lay that he would call him later - maybe over the weekend.

“Wait - but -”

Kris was already striding through the door though, and as he did, Lay caught sight of it, so surprised by its presence on the other’s face that he squinted, blinking hard in disbelief.

Was that a …?

Lay remained at the door, eyebrows raising even further when he caught sight of someone who he did not recognize already occupying the passenger seat, reaching over to pull a suddenly delighted and squealing Kiara into their lap.

Isn’t she usually shy with most strangers?

Still too numb to comprehend what he was seeing, he could only wave as Kris pulled back from the driveway, driving slowly back down the street.

When they were gone, he found himself considering what he had seen in the other’s face, the smile that was so earnest and genuine.

He hadn’t seen it in a long while.

With a shocked laugh that bubbled up in his throat, he shook his head, stepping back from the doorway and pushing the door shut.

-

Nothing happened that night.

At least, not by the fireplace, not while they sipped on Kris’ private reserves, a 1976 Hugel & Fils Gewurztraminer with hints of spice that left Tao feeling touched that it had been opened for him.

There was too much to say -

Too much that had been hidden in childish animosity that left them both feeling like fools, now that they realized just how well they complimented each other.

They weren’t alike - no not at all, Tao was too loud and brazen, Kris too reserved and calculated - but they both took to what they loved with a passion, and during those many weeks that they had worked together, it had been fascinating, truly, to see how much two people could struggle so much to get along - yet work together so flawlessly well.

Between the almost tall tales of the magnificent dishes Tao had crafted and the absolutely perfect wines that Kris had paired with them, they spun each story to Kiara who blinked at them slowly through increasingly droopy eyes, her head propped up in her hands, a sleepy, dopey smile on her face.

They raised their glasses to their own stupidity, toasting the explosive arguments they’d had, the explosive arguments which they were still bound to have.

It was to a rather silly impression he’d given of the cross-eyed look on Sehun’s face when Minseok had “accidentally” dropped an entire slab of fudge on his foot, that Tao finally earned his first, true laugh.

Not the soft puffs of air he’d heard before, for this was no snort of amusement, but a true and genuine sound of laughter.

It wasn’t the most beautiful thing Tao had ever heard.  No, Tao still swore by the Wu-Tang Clan bible of the 36 Chambers, and was still too attached to the beautiful croon of a blues singer in a smoky bar.

But, in that husky, deep voice, Tao thought - that it placed most firmly third on his list of most pleasant sounds.

When the master sommelier asked him what was wrong, he answered with a shrug, hiding his smile behind the rim of his glass.

-

“Thanks for helping me with getting Kiara in bed.  She’s usually so stubborn - but she fell asleep right away when you picked her up.”

“Hah, maybe I should quit while I’m ahead, right?  No sweat, though.  Guess I should be thanking you, actually.  Since I’m spending the night.”

“No worries,” Kris began, leading Tao down the hallway. “It’d be too dangerous for you to go home now anyway, considering how much you’ve drunk ...and how shockingly low your tolerance is.”

“I don’t think I’m that bad…” Tao muttered, half under his breath, but Kris jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

“Maybe you don’t realize how much you look like a tomato right now.  Also.  You’ve been hiccuping for the past few minutes.  Proof enough, if you ask me.”

Tao scowled, clapping a hand over his mouth as he tried to quiet his hiccups.

A few steps more and Kris stopped at the third door down the small hall, rapping his knuckles on the door as he turned to face the head chef.

“And here’s the guest room.  Sheets should be fresh, the bathroom’s at the end of the hall.  I’ll set out a fresh towel for you in case you need to wash your face.”

Tao nodded, softly hiccuping as he tried to sidle past.  A hand touched his side lightly before he could, drawing his attention back to the other man.

“...what’s up?”

His breath caught at the gentle slide of cloth across his cheek, brushing his hair as a hand pushed up against the door by his head.

“Kris…?”

The sommelier’s eyes were flickering shades of dark chocolate brown and melting gold in the dim glow of the hallway.  And as his vision fell into a tunnel, focusing on the expression on Kris’ face that was so strangely soft, a quiet voice found its way to his ears.

“Stop going to the bars.  It’s killing you.  You can come here instead.  ...if you’d like.”

Tao didn’t know what else to say, the honesty in the other’s voice leaving no room for argument.  All he could do was to numbly nod, watching as a smile flashed onto the other’s face in response.

A hand ruffled his hair affectionately, carding through the white strands for a fleeting moment - and then Kris pressed in achingly close.

Cheek turned to the side, Tao found that he couldn’t move, pinned against the wall by the flush on his face that deepened at the touch of lips against his cheek.

With just a ‘good night’ whispered into his ear, Kris pulled away, turning around and striding back down the hallway without another word or look.

Tao, on the hand, remained there holding a hand to his cheek, speechless until he finally was able to gather himself from the puddle of goo he had melted into.

-

Hey, Lay.

I know I said I’d come over this weekend to help you clean the house, but ...things came up.

Listen, I know I’ve been kind of absent-minded lately, but I’ll be sure to make it up to you next week.

Until then …raincheck?

Kris hung up the call, setting his phone down firmly on the table, following the sound of a child’s gleeful shrieks - the warm voice which laughed between exaggerated monster snarls - into the other room.