I haven't updated in a while....I feel bad about it

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AKD

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The next time Ten came back - a little less than a week later - it was closer to lunch, but there were still only a couple of tables full; the waiter was the same as the time before, and Ten decided to sit at the bar this time.

This time, Ten saw a beef bourguignon on the menu that caught his interest - he wanted the Chef's Special again, but it was cold outside - but when he made his order he almost thought he saw a flicker of disappointment cross the waiter's face, and he found himself making excuses.

"Yeah, you know, it's really cold outside, so that looked good, and it just seemed like what I'd want right now, so I didn't want to maybe give a bad review to something just because it wasn't what I was looking for at that exact moment, so..."

"I understand." The waiter smiled, and again, Ten found himself drawn to it - he wasn't even going to try to lie to himself that he'd picked the bar for any reason other than that he was hoping to get a chance to talk to the guy a bit more. "In the chef's defense, that is something that's taken into consideration, but don't worry. I'm sure you'll enjoy your meal."

"Yeah, well, not that I think she'd care or anything but if for whatever reason she does, just tell her I'm sorry, and I'll probably go for that the next time I come back." Ten wondered why he felt a little guilty, but either way, he shouldn't feel bad about ordering what he wanted at a restaurant, should he? Either way, he nodded. "I'm sure I will enjoy it. Glass of red wine with it, please, but only one."

"Of course."

The waiter was gone on and off while Ten waited for his meal; occasionally the silver-haired would spot him seeing to the other tables, but the rest of the time he wasn't sure where the guy was. It wasn't until his meal was brought out - a rich bowl of beef and vegetables topped with a generous dollop of cream with sliced bread on the side - that the red-haired man appeared to have returned somewhat for good, starting to wipe down glasses behind the bar.

And, of course, this is when I'm going to be stuffing my face.

Oh well. Itadakimasu!

It was, as he'd expected, amazing - although there wasn't quite the same flair that the other dishes had, which was a little bit of a disappointment. Still, it was delicious, and Ten ate hungrily, although he kept an eye on the waiter.

"So, the food here is fantastic, but there's rarely any customers any more-?"

An expression of sadness flashed across the red-haired man's face, almost too quickly for Ten to notice, and he sighed. "Well, we do have more customers at lunch and dinner - you tend to come at unconventional times."

"Sorry about that. I work nearby, and I tend to lose track of mealtimes." The silver-haired looked a little guilty, but the waiter smiled at him.

"Oh, don't apologize. I know that- well, the chef - enjoys the chance to invent new recipes. Besides, it's always nice to see a regular."

His smile was warm, and Ten made sure to return it with one as warm as he could manage - the guy was totally his type, even if he did find himself feeling a little curious about the chef, too. "Well, I'll try to do my part next time."

He was rewarded by a warm chuckle, and he loved it, and then the waiter was speaking again. "We don't really advertise much, which is probably the problem. It... would be nice if we could get some of the lunch crowds we used to have, though. It's lucky that we decided to hire temporary waitstaff for the opening week rather than bring people on full-time. But then there's the chance that we could overstress our workforce - I'm not sure I- well, the chef - could handle coming up with recipes so quickly if the place was constantly packed."

"Oh?" Ten raised an eyebrow. "She doesn't just have a book of them or something?"

"Hmm?" The waiter shook his head. "Oh, no. Each recipe is something that the chef comes up with after the customer orders - usually taking into consideration the customer, their mood, the weather, things of that nature."

"Wait. Wait. She comes up with these recipes on the fly? Holy shit, I never would have guessed."

Another small smile. "Yes, some of them might be based on prior food pairing ideas - I think the chicken and honey part of your last meal was an example - but the complete recipe came after you ordered. I know it sounds like an odd quirk..."

"I dunno." Ten laughed. "I work in the music and entertainment business; I'm used to odd quirks. It's different, but if it's what inspires her, what's wrong with it? I mean, every dish I've had here was amazing, and the two Chef's Specials were definitely the best."

The waiter seemed extraordinarily pleased at this, and if Ten hadn't known better - it has to be the lighting - he would have thought the guy was blushing. "Well, thank you, I'll make sure to pass along-"

"You know." Ten - who was getting more and more curious about this mysterious chef - eyed the kitchen. "Could I pass the compliments along myself?"

"Uh!" The waiter coughed. "I'm terribly sorry, but the chef really doesn't want anyone in the kitchen other than staff, so..."

It was a disappointment, but Ten just shrugged. "Oh, well, I understand. No harm, don't worry."

After another smile at the waiter - who hurried off to see to one of the tables that were about to leave - Ten finished his meal; as he was standing to leave, he nodded to the red-haired man, who'd returned, and held out a hand.

"By the way, I'm Ten. I figure if I'm gonna be a regular, I might as well get to know folks."

A soft smile flickered across the waiter's face, and he shook Ten's hand - the silver-haired noticed that he had a nice, firm grip, and his fingers were really long and delicate. "Taeyong. It's good to formally meet you, Ten. I hope we'll see you again soon."

"Oh, you can definitely count on it." Ten gave Taeyong one of his best winks and headed back to work, although not before noticing - with satisfaction - that the blush across Taeyong's face that did not appear to indicate a dislike of Ten's flirting.

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Ten went back several times, sitting at the bar any time there weren't too many customers, and always getting the Chef's Special; each time he did, he talked a little bit more with Taeyong - mostly about odds and ends, food likes and dislikes, work, and that sort of thing.

He found himself really enjoying the guy's company, which was almost as much of a reason for him to go back as the food.

Unfortunately, after a few visits, Ten ended up behind-schedule on the record he was currently producing - although he knew that the artist's manager had a far worse time of it than he did - so he didn't have time to go back to New Cultures's for another meal for several weeks.

The day the record was finally finished - the tapes had been locked away and a copy was sent out so that the CDs could start being produced - Ten barely had enough energy to drag himself out of the studio, much less attend the launch party that was going to be held that night.

Not that he really cared; he'd done the limelight thing back when Sicheng was at the height of his idol days, and although it had been fun for about six months, he'd quickly given it up. Ten liked parties, liked people, but he wanted them on his own terms.

Collar turned up against the wind - face buried so deeply in his scarf that he probably looked like a yeti and he didn't care - he made his way over to the restaurant for a late dinner. A hot meal, hot booze, and somebody cute to talk to.

That's all I want. I really hope Taeyong's there.

When Ten stepped into the restaurant, he noticed that - again - it was just himself and one other customer; it was later, however, so he supposed he shouldn't be surprised. As he tugged his scarf off his mouth, he saw Taeyong straighten up behind the bar with a look on his face that could have been interpreted as relief, had Ten not been so tired. The red-haired waiter hurried over.

"Good evening, Ten, how-" He paused, his expression shifting to one of concern when he saw Ten's face, and he withheld the 'how are you' portion of his comment. "Table, or bar?"

"Bar, if you don't mind me passing out on it. Not literally, I'm just exhausted, and it's more comfortable to slump over a bar."

Plus, the view is better.

"Of course it's fine, right this way."

The silver-haired followed Taeyong over to the bar and took a seat, but before the waiter could even hand him the menu, he waved it off. "Chef's Special, tell her I'm fucking exhausted, please. And whatever booze goes with it. And something hot to drink beforehand?"

Taeyong gave him a small smile, although the look on his face was still more one of concern. "I'll pass the message along. Alcoholic, or non, for the pre-meal drink?"

"Alcoholic, please. Ugh." True to his word, he slumped over his arms, crossed on the bar; Taeyong gave him a sympathetic glance before hurrying into the kitchen. He came back a few minutes later and started to pull down some bottles.

"Long day? It's been a while."

"Yeah. You could say that." Ten groaned again. "Been working thirty-six hours a day for like the last two weeks to get this stupid record done, and the freaking prima-donna, diva, self-centred-" He sucked in a quick breath. "Sorry. About to say things I shouldn't. Let's just say that the artist was more interested in being seen until the wee hours at parties than actually getting any recording done."

"Sounds rough." Taeyong gently set a glass next to Ten's elbow; Ten looked up to find the waiter smiling at him gently. "I've got to take care of a few things, but I'll be back."

"Hey, it's fine, this is your job." Ten looked at the glass; it was golden, like the lemonade he'd had before. "Lemon?"

"Yeah. You liked the lemonade, right? This is hot lemonade with brandy and honey."

"Ooooh. Yeah. Yeah, this is perfect. Thanks." Ten gave the Taeyong a smile as he lifted it to his lips, and again, it looked as if Taeyong was blushing.

Ten was too tired to tell if he was seeing it just because that was the response he wanted, but either way it was a pleasant sight to go with the warm, soothing drink. Taeyong merely nodded, then hurried off to the kitchen.

The drink hit the spot and Ten found himself relaxing. It went down smoothly - almost a little too smoothly - and suddenly he was being woken up by a bump as a plate was set in front of him. Looking up, he saw that Taeyong was watching him with an odd expression on his face.

Rubbing his eyes, Ten found himself blushing.

I can't believe I fell asleep.

"If you'd prefer, I can take this back and keep it warm until you've had some rest-"

"No, no." Ten reached for the plate. "Sorry about that, I'm sure it looks awful to have someone sleeping in your restaurant-"

"Don't worry about it." Taeyong's smile was gentle again but still concerned. "You're the only customer here, and it's close enough to closing that I was going to just go ahead and turn the sign."

"Oh, man, I feel bad, now-"

"Don't, please. But are you sure you want to eat now?"

"Yeah, I'm starving. I can sleep in the taxi on the way home, or when I finally get home. If I wait for the food, it won't be fresh, you know?"

"All right. It's a simpler dish this time - pumpkin and avocado curry, Indian-style, with tomatoes and cream - but I - we - thought that it would be more comforting. To pair with it, we have hot sake - not quite the usual pairing, but the sweetness will go well with the curry, I think."

Ten looked down at the plate - it certainly smelled amazing, and he nodded. "I think that's perfect."

Still, he couldn't help but feel a slight twinge - he hadn't missed the emphasis Taeyong had put on the word "we" and he suddenly realized that if he was seeing the guy every day, and they had so few customers, then it was very likely that they didn't have a large staff.

Which means there's a very good chance that he's close to the chef. Her boyfriend, maybe?

The thought made Ten feel more than a little disappointed, although he convinced himself that it was just because he was tired and hungry, so he dug into the curry.

He immediately had to stifle a moan.

He already loved curry - of all different styles - and this one was so warm, so creamy, and so good that he'd cleared almost half the plate before he even touched his sake. As Taeyong had mentioned, the sweetness cut the spice just enough, and before long he was wiping up the last of the sauce with some naan bread.

"That was fucking amazing." He looked up to see Taeyong standing nearby, looking as if he was waiting; smiling, Ten nodded to the plate. "Like, I know you prefer when I give you feedback but the only feedback I have about that is that I could eat it every day for the rest of my life. It was amazing. I think the Specials have only been getting better."

"I'm glad." Taeyong looked embarrassed, but pleased; Ten wanted so much - had he not been so tired he might have wondered just how much - to stay and talk to the guy, but the warm food and alcohol had put him dangerously close to falling asleep again, so he slowly stood up.

"And on that note, I need to get home and sleep for... like, three days. I'll be back, though. Things should be a lot less busy for a while, so..."

"Sounds good. I'll keep an eye out." Taeyong smiled as Ten paid, and then waited patiently by the door as Ten bundled himself back up.

The last thing the silver-haired saw as he sped away in the taxi was Taeyong still watching from the restaurant window - likely to make sure he doesn't fall asleep on the sidewalk.

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Saturday, November 23, 2019