~*{Chapter Nineteen: Chocolate Tarte and White Coffee Ice Cream }*~

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Kyungsoo's eyes fluttered open and his vision slowly came into view. He stared up, recognizing the ceiling of his hotel room , but not remembering how he got there in the first place. 

"You're awake..."

The familiar voice startled him slightly, as he was still slightly drowsy, and he turned to see Kai siting on the hotel chair next to his bedside. The younger one's expression was unreadable, but Kyungsoo just sighed before he rolled onto his side to face away from the young bartender.

"What happened..?"

"You fainted."

"Well, yes, I kind of figured that out. I'm asking about Tao. How is he? Did he get injured too badly? What about the competition?"

"Well, Tao fainted as well and he's in his hotel room with the others- probably still sleeping. His left arm was injured, but he managed to pull through the competition. The Costumer Service staff also did well in the second half, so we'll be going into the second round."

"I see. That's a relief." mumbled the Sous Chef as he moved to push himself up, but a slight pain shot through his leg and an uncontrollable whimper escaped his lips.

"Where are you going?" growled Kai, as he pulled Kyungsoo back down onto the bed- startling the short Sous Chef.

"To see Tao. I want to see him for myself. I need to know that he's okay." grumbled Kyungsoo as he tried to push the younger one away, but instead got pulled down to the bed completely with the young bartender now hovering over him.

"No. Rest. You still need to rest! You have ing second-degree burns! For once, ignore your motherly instincts to take care of everyone and worry about your damn self." snapped Kai and the look in his eyes somewhat frightened the shorter one. 

"Don't forget who is older. I will not tolerate you speaking to me like that." Kyungsoo hissed as he tried to struggle from Kai's grasp, but ultimately fail due to the numbness in his body.

A loud groan left Kai's lips, but he eventually released his hold around Kyungsoo's wrists and plopped down onto the shorter one- snuggling into the crook of Kyungsoo's neck. The Sous Chef froze as Kai's breath came into contact with his skin and a small shiver coursed it's way through him.

"I'm sorry, Hyung." breathed Kai, voice instantly much softer than before.

"K-Kai what-"

"I'm sorry for what I said and for what I did, Hyung. But, I'm sincere when I say that you mean so much to me and I was scared the moment I saw your eyes lose focus. I don't care if you're still angry at me or if you hate my guts or whatever, but just please rest. I'm begging you, Hyung. If not for me, than rest for yourself." 

The younger one snuggled into Kyungsoo even more and the Sous Chef was sure that Kai would be able to hear his rapid heart beat, but at times like this he couldn't help it- Kai just seemed so adorable and sweet that it was bound to move Kyungsoo's heart. A soft sigh escaped Kyungsoo's lips once more as all traces of anger disappeared and he reached up to let his fingers run gently through the shorter one's hair. A light hum left Kai's lips at the feel of Kyungsoo's fingers running through his locks and he knew that the shorter one had forgiven him. He pulled back and gazed gently down at the Sous Chef before flashing a small smile.

"Kyungsoo-hyung." Kai breathed, a smile still plastered to his lips as he gently the shorter one's cheek. 

"I'm sorry." Kyungsoo mumbled as his lips tugged down into a frown. Confusion twisted the younger one's features before he leaned down to press their foreheads together- locking gazes with the Sous Chef. A small, light pink tint was noticeable on the shorter one's cheeks and Kai had to fight the urge to place a kiss on the lips that presented themselves before him.

"For what? You didn't do anything wrong, Hyung."

"No. I did. I overreacted and you're a legal adult. You're your own person and I have no right to get mad or judge you for your past. What you did was your business and you shouldn't have to explain anything to anyone. I'm sorry.  I'm sorry for getting angry and yelling. I'm also sorry for causing you trouble seeing as you had to watch over me while I was knocked out. I'm sorry, Kai." murmured Kyungsoo softly as his eyes lowered and he chewed nervously at his bottom lip. A light laugh left Kai's lips and he leaned down to peck the sous Chef lightly on the forehead.

"Don't apologize anymore. Can we just move past this all? I don't like fighting with you, Hyung."

A small smile graced Kyungsoo's lips as he nodded. "That sounds good to me."

"Oh and Kyungsoo-hyung....?"

"Yes?"

Kai shifted nervously as his eyes drifted down to the Sous Chef's lips that were just centimeters away from his own. "I um......I...."

"What is it Kai?"

Kai sighed once, breath glossing over Kyungsoo's lips, before he leaned forward to peck the Sous Chef softly- loving the feel of their lips pressed together. When he pulled back, a brighter shade of red flourished the shorter one's cheeks as he stared wide-eyed up at Kai.

"I like you and I want you, but before you even say anything, let me just say that I don't expect an answer now. You don't have to answer me right away. I mean, alot has happened today and you need rest. I just wanted to tell you that I like you. I like you so much, Kyungsoo-hyung and I want you. I want us to be lovers...or boyfriends," Kai blurted, noticing how the Sous Chef's eyes grew wider and how his cheeks flourished brighter. ",  or whatever it is to call us being together. I just....I was scared today when I saw you drop to that floor and I want to protect you and I......I don't even know where I'm going with this and this confession is going down hill fast....b-but I'll give you time to think about it all. I'll give you as much time as you need and I'll wait patiently...so yeah."

Kyungsoo, who's vocal cords seemed not to work, just stared up at the bartender with his lips parted and an unreadable expression on his lips.

"K-Kyungsoo, hyung? Say something...please?"

The Sous Chef cleared his throat, a little too loudly, as he quickly averted his eyes from the younger one's gaze- heart hammering powerfully against his chest. "I-I'll...um I....I'll think about it..."

A smile broke out on the bartender's face as rolled over to rest down next to the shorter one. He quickly threw the hotel covers over them before pulling Kyungsoo to him to embrace the shorter one. Kyungsoo was pulled flush against the taller one's chest and met with a faint smell of coffee.

"Thank you..." Kai murmured softly as his grip around Kyungsoo tightened.

"K-Kai??"

"Don't worry, I won't do anything. I just want to stay like this for a while. Rest now, Hyung." 

A small smile tugged at the Sous Chef's lips before he let out a soft sigh and allowed his eyes to flutter close. There was no use fighting Kai because it was simply impossible to fight against the younger one. Kyungsoo was exhausted from everything and Kai's confession was now also on his mind, however he decided to deal with his thoughts later as he drowned into Kai's warm embrace and lovely coffee smell before letting sleep consume him. 

~*~

"Sehun? Sehun!" Tao called frantically as he abruptly woke from his sleep in a frantic haze. A familiar pair of arms wrapped around the Pastry Chef and instant relief washed over him.

"Shhs, Shhs, it's alright, Zi Zi. I'm here. It's alright." Sehun cooed softly as rubbed soothing circles on the small of Tao's back,

The younger busser felt his friend relax in his arms soon enough and pulled away to cup his face gently. A confused look took on Tao's features as he glanced around the room and noticed the other Staff members staring at him with worried looks.

"What's going on?" Tao asked softly and Sehun reached up to brush the lose strands away from the Pastry Chef's face.

"You fainted, but don't worry! We made it to round two. " assured Sehun and a soft sigh of relief left Tao's lips as he leaned over to rest his head in the crook of the shorter one's neck.

"Tao?" Suho called softly and the Pastry Chef pulled away from Sehun to look up at the General Manager who stood next to the bed.

"Yes, General Manager?"

"You okay?"

"Y-Yes, General Manager."

"Good, so now I can do this." Suho's cheeks immediately puffed as he took both his hands and roughly ruffled Tao's hair in agitation. "You are a insane, crazy, deranged, lunatic, idiot Pastry Chef you know that! Do you not understand how worried I was when you passed out! Geez! That's why I told you not to push yourself!"

"Ow,Ow General Manager." squeaked Tao as the other Staff members laughed lightly.

Yi Xing sighed with a smile on his lips as he pulled the General Manager from Tao. "Any more of that, General Manager, and you'll cause him to go bald."

"B-But, he worried me!" wailed Suho as his cheeks puffed again and Yi Xing simply flashed a small smile before patting the General Manager on the back.

"You worried us all! You are crazy, you know that?! Why did you push me away? " growled Xiumin, who was standing next to Chen and Tao noticed the Executive Chef's eyes were slightly glassy as if he was about ready to cry.

"I didn't have time to warn you both and I didn't want you two to get hurt-speaking of which, how's Kyungsoo?" Tao asked softly, but was caught off guard as Xiumin nearly tackled the Pastry Chef in a hug.

"He's probably still sleeping and Executive Chef...If you hug him that hard, you'll suffocate him. Don't forget his arm is injured." warned Baekhyun, but Xiumin's hold around the younger one didn't soften as a small laugh left Chen's lips.

"Never do that again! Idiot! I mean, just look at your arm! Ugh, I'm older but why do I feel like I'm the youngest here." grumbled Xiumin and Tao froze for a moment. He wasn't used to any of this. He wasn't used to being cared about in such a way and it practically immobilized him. It was a new feeling, but he didn't quite hate it."

"I must hand it to you, though. It was quite amazing to see your creation you made even when you basically only used one arm. " Added Luhan as he flashed the dazed Pastry Chef a smile.

"What did I make again? I can't seem to remember." 

"You made Chocolate Tarte and White Coffee Ice Cream." Xiumin added softly and Tao nodded as his memory slowly came back to his fogged mind.

"Ah, I see. And that was enough?"

"Yes. We won over the BBC Kitchen in a ten point gap! " boasted Suho, his mood doing a complete 180 degree flip.

"I-I see...that's good...." 

"Hell yeah, it's good! It's quite amazing actually! You, my friend, are beast!" beamed Chanyeol.

"Oh, I- wait...where's Sehun?" called Tao, noticing that the shorter one had disappeared from his side. The room sort of tensed up at the question and Tao didn't miss it. He turned to Suho, who was looking everywhere but at him.

"General Manager....What happened?" Tao asked calmly and Suho sighed softly.

"He just had a rough night as well." 

"What do you mean?" Tao pressed.

"Well, after you fainted it was the Customer Service staff's turn to compete in the second round based on serving etiquette and whatnot. Well, Sehun constantly made small, but noticeable mistakes because he seemed quite distracted and worried about you. We barely passed that round and he blamed himself. We tried telling him that it was okay and that it would all be fine, but he only seemed to get even more depressed every time we tried to reassure him." explained Suho and Tao immediately moved to get up- only to be yanked back down by Xiumin.

"Let go." Tao said quietly.

"No. You need to rest, idiot." growled Xiumin.

"I need to see Sehun."struggled Tao as he slipped from Xiumin's grasps and slipped off the bed. Still slightly drowsy, he stumbled forward and nearly fell if it had not been for Kris, who caught him just in time.

"Tao, you need to rest." urged Kris and Tao tried to fight out of the taller one's hold.

"I need to see him." 

"I'll bring him, "Luhan offered as he watched Kris and Tao struggle. ",I'll go bring him here, so just rest, alright."

Tao stopped struggling as he nodded and looked at Luhan with pleading eyes. He was eventually led back to the bed as Luhan quickly dashed out to find the young busser and everyone in the room wondered by the odd way Tao seemed desperate to see the younger one.

~*~

AN:// Oh god guuis.....so tired...all the stuff i had to do this weekend......>.< sniff....anyways,I love you all? you guis know that right? ;___; you all are so precious, every last 400+ of you >.< TT^TT thanks for the comments for those who do and even for the silent readers that continue to read, I appreciate it! ^^ Also, for those of you who are Vietnamese and struggle with this English version, I've been contacted and there is actually someone translating this into Vietnamese so that for those who struggle with the English version can understand it better! ^^ 

Here's the link:

http://exoplanetvn.com/threads/trans-longfic-sa-k-exo-couple-cupids-kitchen.13119/

and the translator is none other than:Arya0725

Anyways, I love you all and I'll update soon!~  The competition chapters should end within maybe like 3-4 more chapters and then all the other fun stuff I have planned will happen.

OHHH and Halloween is coming up guys, so i was think of starting a halloween OT12 Fic with exo being monsters and what not, so what do you guys think?