“What?!” Kyungsoo blurted out, mouth dropping, unconcerned about the returning stares. He felt his face heat up and hoped the dim lighting made this less obvious.

Kai took no notice that this was the loudest Kyungsoo had been so far, but begun talking again.

“A Kiss? I think it’s a dish name? All these dishes sound odd? A Kiss? A Hug? A- wait, I’m not saying that one out loud,” Kai looked at his menu in bewilderment. “What? Who thought this was a good idea?”

Kyungsoo coughed and rubbed his throat with a hand, using the other to flip through the menu himself.

The names were odd but the pictures looked tasty. And he wanted a kiss, a hug, and a lot of  stuff he also didn’t want to say out loud because if he did, he’d probably sink to the floor in embarrassment.

He was conservative about things like this. He’d only kissed one person in his life and that memory had been semi-pushed out of his mind, with all the previous ones from before he became homeless.

“I think I want... a kiss,” Kyungsoo said, head bent. The meal was mostly soup and noodles. It would be good to eat something warm. With the heat and candles, the room felt pleasant but he was still cold. And besides, warm food was extremely hard for him to come by.

“Yeah, me too,” Kai said, glancing up, not minding the innuendo, entirely.

“So, two Kisses, I presume?” the waitress asked, holding a small clipboard.

Where the hell did she come from? Kai thought before realizing Kyungsoo was expecting him to confirm their order.

“Uh, yeah,” Kai nodded.

“Alright, I’ll be right back,” she smiled, for the thousandth time, before taking the menus and leaving.

Wait, now what do we do? Kyungsoo thought.

Just as things were about to get awkwardly quiet for them, the jazz band entered an intermission and they heard a microphone gently tapped.

“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for being here tonight. Sorry, for interrupting your meals, but I’d just like to send my greetings to a very special guest. Welcome back, Kim Jong In. Consider this next song, a dedication to you and your return,” the man smiled, pointing to Kim Jong In’s table.

Kyungsoo immediately shrunk into his seat, trying to hide from the faces that swiveled their way, whispering and pointing, as Kai rose his head a little higher to see who was speaking, not minding the attention.

“Kris?!” he exclaimed, face glowing. He watched his friend give the band instructions. After a quick exchange of music sheets, the men resumed their previous positions and jumped into a rendition of Irving Berlin’s “Isn’t This A Lovely Day?”.
 

Sometime during the song, the waitress reappeared, setting down their food.

Kai’s mouth hung slightly open in pleasant joy, watching Kris conduct. He hadn’t seen Kris in probably two years because of their individual travelling.

“Kim... Jong... In...,” Kyungsoo said slowly, as if tasting the words themselves. He strained hard, thinking if he’d heard the name before but he honestly hadn’t. That didn’t mean much though. He didn’t keep up with news or entertainment. There was no reason to, there was no benefit. News and entertainment didn’t give him shelter or feed him so he let that stuff fall sideways. “You must be someone important?” he considered, before starting to eat.

“No, I’m just like everyone, really,” Kai said, looking away from the band, wondering if it that was a lie. Not everyone made world round trips and spent thousands on clothes and could afford restaurants like these but they all had some humanity in common, right? The essential dreams for themselves and basic love and daily balancing between right and wrong, that kind of psychology. What he did wasn’t what everyone did, but who he was, well wasn’t he just like everyone?

Kyungsoo didn’t say anything, frustrating Kai.

Does he think I’m lying? Does he think I’m different?

Meanwhile, in Kyungsoo’s head he decided to let Kai be what he said he was. He knew people had different perspectives and wanted to respect this.

He placed his hands in his lap and finally felt the heaviness of his stomach. He was aching but a good ache, like his insides were hugging and congratulating him for treating it with such great nutrition. It was a big difference from trash scraps and occasional gift treats from the older ladies that passed by his “home.” These ladies came few and far between but he appreciated them and every time they showed up, he imagined it was his mom sending angels. They always looked him in the eye and bowed as if he were no lesser and they always ended the meeting with a good message, like “take care.”

He didn’t realize how somber his face was getting thinking about this until he felt one of Kai’s feet being pushed against his own.

“Hey, was the food that bad? What’s with the face?” Kai peered at him. Their close proximity seemed to fluctuate so much, this yard apart quickly turned into worlds apart as Kai kept going back and forth in his own thoughts and Kyungsoo did the same. Something about them together, turning each other’s inner mechanisms and making them think harder than usual. It was like everything they both desperately stuffed away kept bubbling back up.

“It was delicious,” Kyungsoo snapped back into reality, smiling with gratitude. “Really good. Thank you, Kai. Thank you.”

Kai smiled, pleased with himself.

The song ended and people clapped enthusiastically. It had been perfect, just like the rest of the set. Kai, in particular, clapped hard and Kyungsoo followed suit to be polite, noting how handsome Kris looked in a black and white tux and how out of place he looked in his dirty clothes. He wanted to go to the restroom and attempt to clean up a little but that meant walking in front of a lot of people and his anxiety was the worst.

He didn’t have time to anyway because soon the mysterious Kris appeared in front of them like magic.

Up close, Kyungsoo could see Kris wasn’t just a conductor but a walking model. With his great length and ginger-blonde hair, he wondered how it could’ve taken him so long to even notice this man when he was clearly the first thing people’s eyes fell upon when they entered a room.

“Kai!,” Kris yelled, bending down for a hug, too excited to let Kai stand up for it. “I’ve missed you.”

“Kris-hyung,” Kai grinned. “It’s good to see you! I didn’t know you were playing here tonight!”

“And the rest of this week. The usual conductor got sick and I stepped in as a favor to the owner, Zhang Yixing. Have you heard of him?”

Kai shook his head and Kyungsoo shifted, feeling out of place and cut off from the conversation.
 

So many important people..., he thought. How am I suppose to keep track of them all?

“Understandable. He just moved here from China. He’s already seen a lot of success. I almost wish this was a permanent gig.”

Just then Kris turned and saw Kyungsoo.

“Oh, I didn’t know you were on a date,” Kris made no mention of Kyungsoo’s clothes or hair or anything, to which Kyungsoo was grateful.

“It’s not really,” Kai coughed. “Not like that. We just- met and I-” he didn’t know how to explain.

How exactly do you say “I ran into a homeless man and decided we should have dinner together” without it seeming like a big deal?

But Kris, being Kris, didn’t pressure for a more indepth answer. He just reached out his hand for Kyungsoo to shake and introduced himself accordingly.

“I’m Kyungsoo,” Kyungsoo said, quietly bowing and wishing he could disappear. This was all getting to be too much. The restaurant suddenly felt stuffy and full. The lighting hurt, the air was thick, the people noisey. And this Kris guy was another reminder that he didn’t belong. He felt like the building was going to vomit him right up on the sidewalk, as if saying he wasn’t worthy.

“Well, I should get back,” Kris said, looking between the men. “I’ll give you a ring later.” And with that he walked away only to be replaced by the waitress.

Aigoo, Kyungsoo thought. I just want to be alone.

“Ready for dessert?” she asked.

“Actually, Kai,” Kyungsoo begun, picking up his bags. “If you don’t mind, I think I’ll be going.”

______

And that was the last time they ever saw each other.

I kid! I kid! I just wanted to get this part out, as a gift to all the wonderful subscribers I’ve been getting. Haha, how you wish you hadn’t subscribed now.

I’m so sorry this is like super slow but I’m having too much fun with characterization. I’ll try my best to speed it up. And hey, I even threw in some Kris and Lay, so you can’t hate me. Right? Riiight? :( Fine.