“Ah, that was really good. I’m sooo full” Kris exclaimed while he lightly caressed his stomach with his left hand as they got out of the pizza place “Man, how did you even know about that place?! It was practically completely hidden!”

To celebrate Kris’ return and his new apartment, they both decided to eat outside— with the addition of Philip. Since it was Kris’ treat and he didn’t really know any good but cheap places to eat, it was Tao who guided him and introduced him to this pizza parlor he used to go to a lot when he first came to the Big Apple.

The pizza parlor was actually, to Kris’ surprise, located in a dark, narrow alley, between two red brick buildings, that seemed extremely skeptical if you didn’t know about the bizarre existence of a divine pizza parlor beyond the alley. Especially at this chancy time of the night. Unlike what the outside suggests, which was dirty and treacherous, the place actually did not look cheap and vile at all— although the foods are pretty cheap, but delicious. It gave a 90s bar vibe with a more modern touch thanks to some of their stylish furnitures. The dark blue walls were ruly covered with antique objects such as: an old Michael Jordan basketball jersey; plate numbers; a Mona Lisa replica; & many more;

The tables were made of dark & polished wood & so were the chairs with white cushion on the seats. The booths were more brown in color than black with red cushions that were softer than the white ones. Apart from the illumination from the counter, the only source of light that provided luminescence for each booth were lamps that hung above them.

“Fun fact. Because I’m not really street-smart, I got snatched on my 3rd day here. I was walking down that junction over there” he pointed to their right while they kept walking “And then when I got over there” he pointed to an area near them “There were two weird looking guys. At first I ignored them and then after a while, I realized they were following me.”

I didn’t really know where to go at that time so I just walked straight until one of the guys said “Hey, your handkerchief fell” I turned around and looked down and my hanky did fall. I thought they were gonna pick it up for me… but, they didn’t, so obviously I had to get it myself. When I bent down, I didn’t know what happened but before I knew it, my sling bag that was wrapped around my body was gone and the two guys started running so fast” Tao was now showing him how they ran with hand gestures “Of course, I had to chase them, all my clothes were there!! So they turned right into an alley and when I got into that alley, they were no where to be found. I felt helpless at that time and wanted to cry— I actually teared up a little.” He was now frowning as he recalled his hapless experience. “So I just sat helplessly in that alley for about 10 minutes until one black guy came up to me and asked me questions. He probably guessed that I couldn’t understand him which was partly true because I could understand some words. Anyway, he gestured for me to come with him. I mean, he could be another snatcher or criminal but I literally had nothing with me at that time except for my almost empty wallet inside the back pocket of my pants and I could hardly process what had just happened, so I just went with him inside the alley until he led me to that pizza parlor.

When we came in, he said “Hey, Kai, I found someone, maybe you can help him since I don’t think he understands me.” At that time, I wanted to tell him that I can understand him a little bit but I had no energy. So, this Kai guy came and it was Jongin! I couldn’t believe it.” He looked at Kris with a surprised expression, as if to crystallize his exact expression when it happened. “And oh my God I felt so relieved for a moment that I saw someone I know. The other guy’s name is Greg by the way. I heard he moved to L.A. now. So then I told Jongin what happened and he lent me some of his clothes and also some money, even Greg gave me some of his things. They were so nice. Jongin was actually on vacation and he said him and that black guy were friends that’s how he knew about that place…” He paused for a moment “He was the one who told you about me staying here, right?”

Kris nodded. “Yeah, he called me once and told me. Well, good thing you got snatched otherwise you would never have discovered that pizza place” Tao jokingly punched Kris’ arm

“Well… I guess it has its perks as well. After that, I started eating there a lot.”

“And now you only eat at fancy restaurants, huh” Kris teased.

“Shut up, Kris. I only eat at fancy restaurants when I have to.” he explained. “Like, when I’m meeting somebody or something good happens or something… Things like that”

“I see… I wanna be rich too. I wanna wear expensive clothes too, like you.” he delicately pulled Tao’s Gucci scarf. “I’m guessing your favorite brand is Gucci?” Tao snickered. “And God, Tao, no offense, but I swear your beanie doesn’t suit your outfit, why’d you even wear that?”

He tittered, which seemed like a forced one. 

“Because…” Tao adjusted the beanie on his head “I just like it.”

Kris gave up trying to give Tao fashion advices. He just seemed hopeless, which frustrated Kris a little bit.

“Anyway, where are we going?” he asked.

“You said you’ve never been to Central Park, right?”

“Yeah” once again, Kris recalled his visit to New York and how he only saw Central Park from his grandfather’s car window as they were passing by, but never really got the chance to go there. He’s heard many people talk about it, especially on TV, which triggered his curiosity.

“So, we’re going there” Tao smiled at Kris & they kept walking.