Turns in the Road: The Table, by cmar, Wes/Eric
Title: The Table
Author: cmar
Relationship: Wes/Eric
Rating: PG
Warning: Middle-aged straight people in love. Eww!!!
A/N: This takes place four years after 'The Secret of BioSynth', the last (so far) in my 'Red Fire' series. The character of Lina Munroe was introduced in 'Boxed In'.
- - -
Silver Hills, late 2009
“I suppose you’re wondering why I brought us all here.”
Wes watched his father expectantly. He had been wondering exactly that ever since he had gotten the call at work, inviting him and Eric to dinner at one of Silver Hills’ better restaurants. When they had arrived to find Lina Monroe waiting along with his father, his expectation that this would be a business dinner evaporated. It was replaced by the suspicion that it was some weird kind of family outing - father with girlfriend, son with boyfriend. He hid a grimace.
From the corner of his eye he saw Eric, seated next to him, frowning slightly, perhaps having the same thought. Across the table, Lina smiled at them - a little nervously, it looked like - and then looked down, the slight flush coloring her cheeks making her look surprisingly young. The sudden conviction hit him that something he wasn’t going to like was about to happen. As he glanced at Eric, the dark eyes meeting his seemed to hold the same certainty.
He looked at Lina more closely this time, seeing a woman in her early fifties, dark brown hair, eyes still down-turned, a little on the plump side. Trying to see her as his father would, he supposed she was attractive in a middle-aged sort of way. She was a competent police officer, and a nice enough person. Still, it was disconcerting to see his father dating a woman. But date her he had, ever since she had worked on the case of Wes’s kidnapping and almost-murder in 2004. At first Wes had assumed it wouldn’t last, that sooner or later they would split up, or just quietly drift apart - but no. Five years later they were still together, and in fact seeing more of each other than ever.
He tried not to show discomfort at the sight of his father reaching for her hand, and of them smiling at each other. “Okay, Dad. What’s...”
He trailed off as a young woman stopped at their table, flashing a bright smile before saying, “Good evening! I’m Reena, and I’ll be your server tonight. Is there anything you’d like to start off with?”
“I think we’re fine,” Collins said after a glance around the table.
“Wonderful! I’ll be back in a few minutes to take your orders,” she said, giving them another professionally enthusiastic smile, and walked away.
Wes turned back to his father. “So go on, Dad. What’s up?” he asked, carefully keeping his voice casual.
“Well, son... Eric...” Collins hesitated, with an uncertainty that seemed unlike him. “You know Lina and I have been seeing each other for a while now.”
“Yeah...” Wes replied cautiously.
“Well - umm - we’ve decided we’re serious about each other.”
“Serious? How serious?”
“Very.” He took a deep breath - gave Lina another alarmingly fond look - and then grinned. “We’ve decided to get married.”
A deafening crash of silence greeted this pronouncement. Wes opened his mouth and then closed it again when he realized none of ‘What the hell?’, ‘Why??’, or ‘What about Mom?’ was likely to be a constructive addition to the conversation.
Finally, “Married?” Eric said, his voice tightly neutral.
“Yes. You know: white dress, preacher, ‘I do’, that kind of thing,” Collins said.
“Huh.” Eric eyed Lina as if doubting her right to wear white. There was more silence until he extended his hand, first to Collins and then, more reluctantly, to Lina, muttering, “Congratulations.”
His partner’s elbow in his ribs roused Wes a moment later. “Yeah, congratulations,” he said with as much warmth as he could manage. After a brief search for something more to say, he continued, “So... when are you... uh, you know, gonna do it?”
“We’re thinking next summer.”
“That’s really soon, isn’t it?” Wes asked with a fresh wave of dismay.
“Around six months.” Lina nodded. “Not a lot of time to make arrangements, but...” She stopped as Wes became aware of someone standing over their table again and looked up to see the same waitress.
“Hi again! May I tell you about our specials?” she said brightly.
“Well, we-”
“Tonight we have one of our chef’s specialties, the pain de viande ala pompeux: ground beef with bread crumbs, eggs, and chopped onion, delicately spiced and baked with a light tomato topping...”
Wes tuned out the annoyingly cheerful voice as she went on. Dad. Married. This couldn’t be happening. But apparently it was. Should have seen it coming. But why? Couldn’t they just keep on dating? Or live together? No, that would be just as bad.
“Wes.”
“Huh?”
“What do you want?” His father was looking at him expectantly.
For you not to get married, was his first thought, until he realized the waitress was waiting for his order. With a glance at the menu in his hands he blurted out, “The... um... grenouille,” - the first thing he saw. When everyone stared, at first he thought he had pronounced it wrong.
“Very good, sir,” Reena’s big smile slipped just a little, “but while marinated frogs’ legs flambé are an excellent choice, they’re only an appetizer.”
“Is that what that is? Sorry, I meant... uh...”
“Cancel the flaming frogs. He’ll have the chicken,” Eric said decisively.
“We have several wonderful chicken dishes. Which one would you like?”
“Any one. You decide.”
“But, sir...”
“Yeah, whatever, I don’t care,” Wes mumbled, and handed the menu over. Her smile now decidedly wobbly, Reena nodded and left.
“Where were we?” Collins asked.
“The wedding,” Lina said. “We intend to keep it small and simple. It’s the second marriage for both of us, after all.”
“We can have the reception at the house,” Collins said. “That’ll make things easier.”
“The house. Right,” Wes muttered. The house Lina would move into. And where did that leave him?
“We’re still talking about where to go for our honeymoon,” Lina continued. “Maybe Hawaii. Or Italy. Or France.”
“Maybe all of them,” Collins said with a smile. He reached for Lina’s hand again. “Neither of us has ever taken much time for traveling or vacations. Let’s do it now, together.”
Wes looked up unwillingly. The two of them looked so dumb, gazing into each other’s eyes like that, like a couple of kids in love. Disgusting, really. And yet... his father looked happy, had to admit that. Happy, relaxed, the lines of age and years of work and worry in his face softened. Has he been looking like that around Lina all this time, and I never noticed?
“I think I’m going to go powder my nose before dinner arrives,” Lina said, breaking what Wes realized had been several seconds of uncomfortable silence.
And it continued as she walked away. Collins seemed about to speak but glanced at Eric, who fidgeted nervously and then said, “I gotta go make a phone call. Be right back.” He took off, ignoring Wes’s half-hearted protest.
So now what? Wes tried carefully examining the bread and taking as long as possible to spread on some butter and take a bite. It tasted like sawdust so he put it down on his bread plate and looked at it. Then he looked at his knife, at the tablecloth, at his wineglass. Anywhere but at the man sitting across from him, until he spoke.
“I’m sorry, Wes. I had no idea you’d be this upset.”
“I’m not upset.”
“The frogs’ legs say otherwise. Look, I understand this is a surprise, but I thought you’d be pleased. I thought you liked Lina.”
“I like her okay.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“There isn’t any problem. It’s just that...” Wes shrugged uncertainly. “Well, it’s kinda sudden, isn’t it?”
“We’ve been dating for five years.” Collins was watching him closely, face calm but his hands playing nervously with his napkin. “Your mother died over thirty years ago. I loved her, and I always will, but now I love Lina too. You can understand that, can’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess,” Wes muttered, torn between confusion, frustration, and guilt. “I guess it’s just that...”
“What?”
“Well, that things are going to change.” He looked up again. “Ever since I can remember, it’s been just you and me. Now - I guess that’s over.”
“But it’s been over for years, Wes. Ever since you and Eric got together. I know how you feel; I felt some of that myself when you told me about you two. Among other things, of course.” They both smiled briefly and awkwardly at the memory of that confession and the resulting conflicts. “In fact - is that part of it? You and Eric?”
“What do you mean? What’s it got to do with me and Eric?”
“The fact that Lina and I can get married, and... well, you can’t.”
“No, of course not. We’ve never even thought about getting married.” But Wes frowned, surprised at himself for feeling a sharp stab of - something. Envy? Resentment? His eyes fell to his father’s hands, now clasped on the table. It brought back another image, one that made him look away.
“It does bother you, doesn’t it?”
“No.” Wes shook his head.
“Wes. Tell me.”
“Well... Maybe it does, a little, but not the way you think. Not marriage, but... just little stuff, like that you and Lina can tell everyone you’re dating. You can go out together, and - and act like a couple, and not worry about who’s looking. Even tonight - you guys can hold hands on top of the table. Out in the open. If Eric and I want to hold hands, it has to be - under the table, where no one can see.”
There was another silence for a few seconds, until Wes looked at his father and found him watching with a sympathy so deep it both surprised and touched him. Collins cleared his throat. “I’m sorry,” he said. “Maybe things won’t always be that way.”
Wes shrugged again. “Not your fault, Dad. Nothing you can do about it.”
“I suppose not.” Now his father’s expression was unreadable, his eyes thoughtful.
Wes put a smile on his face. He was being selfish; ruining what should be a happy occasion. It was time to stop. “Man, I shouldn’t be thinking about myself at a time like this. I - I think it’s great. I’m sure you’ll both be very happy.” He even found himself meaning it.
- - -
Just to make his white lie into the truth, Eric had checked in with the Silver Guardians’ operator. Just as he had expected, there was nothing going on. Sighing, he put away his cellphone and glanced towards the restaurant, wondering if it was safe to go back inside yet - and froze momentarily as he saw a shadowy form standing just outside the front door.
“So, you had the same idea I did,” Lina said.
“What’s that?”
“To give Alan and Wes a few minutes alone.” She shook her head. “I told him not to spring it on both of you in public like this, but he was so sure you were expecting it.”
“Nope. Not expecting it.” Eric looked away, hoping she’d take the hint and stop talking.
“You don’t like me, do you?”
Startled, he turned his head to face her. “I don’t feel one way or the other,” he said after a hesitation.
“Yes, you do. You’re still angry that I treated you as a suspect when Wes was kidnapped.”
“You were just doing your job.”
“That’s right. Of all people, you should understand that. So why are you holding a grudge?”
“I’m not...” Eric frowned. Why bother denying it? What did he care if this woman knew he didn’t like her, and why? “Okay, fine, if you insist. Yes, I don’t like you. Not because you suspected me, but the reason you suspected me.”
“Because I found out about you and Wes.” Head slightly tilted, she studied him for a moment. “You do realize in a case like that, a lover is the logical suspect. The one we have to check out first.”
“Yeah, but you didn’t have to go after me the way you did. You didn’t have to push so hard,” Eric muttered.
“Yes I did.” Lina raised her chin slightly. “I push hard because I have to. Because finding out how a person died, and why, and who’s responsible, is an important job and that’s the most effective way to do it. You would have done the same thing.”
“I dunno.” Eric glared at her. “Would you have had that attitude if I wasn’t gay? I don’t think so. You didn’t know anything about me, but you just assumed there was something wrong because of the one thing you did figure out.”
“And look who’s making assumptions now.” Lina stared back, her eyes just as hard as his.
“Whatever. You don’t know what’s gone on in my life. I have reasons to think this way.”
She stepped closer, so close he almost backed away, her face harsh and determined. “I had a sister,” she said in a voice so low he could barely hear. “When she was in high school she told her best friend that she was attracted to her. The ‘friend’ spread it all over the school. There was a lot of ugly talk. My sister, Livia, couldn’t take it. She ran away. Disappeared. A month later a cop came knocking on our door to tell us she was dead. She was only sixteen. Thirty-five years ago, and I can still see her face. So don’t tell me I don’t understand.”
Eric was still standing with his mouth half open when she smiled, the hardness disappearing as if it had never existed. “I think they’ve had long enough. Shall we go back to the table?”
- - -
When Wes saw Eric and Lina returning he was able to give them a real smile, and was relieved to see Eric return it and even hold Lina’s chair for her in a gesture that obviously surprised her even more that it did him and his father.
The waitress, Reena, was passing, giving him a wary glance as she went by. On impulse, Wes waved her over. “This is a celebration, isn’t it?” he said to the others, and then to her, “We need a bottle of champagne.”
“Um... which one would you like, sir? Please?” she asked, a little hesitantly.
Wes gestured expansively. “The best you’ve got.”
“Ah, the 1985 Château de Prétentieux.” Her smile was suddenly restored to all its dazzling glory. “A lovely choice! I’ll send the wine steward right away!”
“Wes...” Collins leaned closer as she walked away. “You do realize that particular champagne costs over four hundred dollars a bottle?”
“It does?” Wes blinked and shook his head. “Well, doesn’t matter. It’s my first gift to the bride and groom.” He grinned. “Cheers!”
TBC...
Linkage:
[Turns on my site]
[Turns on ff.net]
List of 22: Public Dining
Author: cmar
Relationship: Wes/Eric
Rating: PG
Warning: Middle-aged straight people in love. Eww!!!
A/N: This takes place four years after 'The Secret of BioSynth', the last (so far) in my 'Red Fire' series. The character of Lina Munroe was introduced in 'Boxed In'.
- - -
Silver Hills, late 2009
“I suppose you’re wondering why I brought us all here.”
Wes watched his father expectantly. He had been wondering exactly that ever since he had gotten the call at work, inviting him and Eric to dinner at one of Silver Hills’ better restaurants. When they had arrived to find Lina Monroe waiting along with his father, his expectation that this would be a business dinner evaporated. It was replaced by the suspicion that it was some weird kind of family outing - father with girlfriend, son with boyfriend. He hid a grimace.
From the corner of his eye he saw Eric, seated next to him, frowning slightly, perhaps having the same thought. Across the table, Lina smiled at them - a little nervously, it looked like - and then looked down, the slight flush coloring her cheeks making her look surprisingly young. The sudden conviction hit him that something he wasn’t going to like was about to happen. As he glanced at Eric, the dark eyes meeting his seemed to hold the same certainty.
He looked at Lina more closely this time, seeing a woman in her early fifties, dark brown hair, eyes still down-turned, a little on the plump side. Trying to see her as his father would, he supposed she was attractive in a middle-aged sort of way. She was a competent police officer, and a nice enough person. Still, it was disconcerting to see his father dating a woman. But date her he had, ever since she had worked on the case of Wes’s kidnapping and almost-murder in 2004. At first Wes had assumed it wouldn’t last, that sooner or later they would split up, or just quietly drift apart - but no. Five years later they were still together, and in fact seeing more of each other than ever.
He tried not to show discomfort at the sight of his father reaching for her hand, and of them smiling at each other. “Okay, Dad. What’s...”
He trailed off as a young woman stopped at their table, flashing a bright smile before saying, “Good evening! I’m Reena, and I’ll be your server tonight. Is there anything you’d like to start off with?”
“I think we’re fine,” Collins said after a glance around the table.
“Wonderful! I’ll be back in a few minutes to take your orders,” she said, giving them another professionally enthusiastic smile, and walked away.
Wes turned back to his father. “So go on, Dad. What’s up?” he asked, carefully keeping his voice casual.
“Well, son... Eric...” Collins hesitated, with an uncertainty that seemed unlike him. “You know Lina and I have been seeing each other for a while now.”
“Yeah...” Wes replied cautiously.
“Well - umm - we’ve decided we’re serious about each other.”
“Serious? How serious?”
“Very.” He took a deep breath - gave Lina another alarmingly fond look - and then grinned. “We’ve decided to get married.”
A deafening crash of silence greeted this pronouncement. Wes opened his mouth and then closed it again when he realized none of ‘What the hell?’, ‘Why??’, or ‘What about Mom?’ was likely to be a constructive addition to the conversation.
Finally, “Married?” Eric said, his voice tightly neutral.
“Yes. You know: white dress, preacher, ‘I do’, that kind of thing,” Collins said.
“Huh.” Eric eyed Lina as if doubting her right to wear white. There was more silence until he extended his hand, first to Collins and then, more reluctantly, to Lina, muttering, “Congratulations.”
His partner’s elbow in his ribs roused Wes a moment later. “Yeah, congratulations,” he said with as much warmth as he could manage. After a brief search for something more to say, he continued, “So... when are you... uh, you know, gonna do it?”
“We’re thinking next summer.”
“That’s really soon, isn’t it?” Wes asked with a fresh wave of dismay.
“Around six months.” Lina nodded. “Not a lot of time to make arrangements, but...” She stopped as Wes became aware of someone standing over their table again and looked up to see the same waitress.
“Hi again! May I tell you about our specials?” she said brightly.
“Well, we-”
“Tonight we have one of our chef’s specialties, the pain de viande ala pompeux: ground beef with bread crumbs, eggs, and chopped onion, delicately spiced and baked with a light tomato topping...”
Wes tuned out the annoyingly cheerful voice as she went on. Dad. Married. This couldn’t be happening. But apparently it was. Should have seen it coming. But why? Couldn’t they just keep on dating? Or live together? No, that would be just as bad.
“Wes.”
“Huh?”
“What do you want?” His father was looking at him expectantly.
For you not to get married, was his first thought, until he realized the waitress was waiting for his order. With a glance at the menu in his hands he blurted out, “The... um... grenouille,” - the first thing he saw. When everyone stared, at first he thought he had pronounced it wrong.
“Very good, sir,” Reena’s big smile slipped just a little, “but while marinated frogs’ legs flambé are an excellent choice, they’re only an appetizer.”
“Is that what that is? Sorry, I meant... uh...”
“Cancel the flaming frogs. He’ll have the chicken,” Eric said decisively.
“We have several wonderful chicken dishes. Which one would you like?”
“Any one. You decide.”
“But, sir...”
“Yeah, whatever, I don’t care,” Wes mumbled, and handed the menu over. Her smile now decidedly wobbly, Reena nodded and left.
“Where were we?” Collins asked.
“The wedding,” Lina said. “We intend to keep it small and simple. It’s the second marriage for both of us, after all.”
“We can have the reception at the house,” Collins said. “That’ll make things easier.”
“The house. Right,” Wes muttered. The house Lina would move into. And where did that leave him?
“We’re still talking about where to go for our honeymoon,” Lina continued. “Maybe Hawaii. Or Italy. Or France.”
“Maybe all of them,” Collins said with a smile. He reached for Lina’s hand again. “Neither of us has ever taken much time for traveling or vacations. Let’s do it now, together.”
Wes looked up unwillingly. The two of them looked so dumb, gazing into each other’s eyes like that, like a couple of kids in love. Disgusting, really. And yet... his father looked happy, had to admit that. Happy, relaxed, the lines of age and years of work and worry in his face softened. Has he been looking like that around Lina all this time, and I never noticed?
“I think I’m going to go powder my nose before dinner arrives,” Lina said, breaking what Wes realized had been several seconds of uncomfortable silence.
And it continued as she walked away. Collins seemed about to speak but glanced at Eric, who fidgeted nervously and then said, “I gotta go make a phone call. Be right back.” He took off, ignoring Wes’s half-hearted protest.
So now what? Wes tried carefully examining the bread and taking as long as possible to spread on some butter and take a bite. It tasted like sawdust so he put it down on his bread plate and looked at it. Then he looked at his knife, at the tablecloth, at his wineglass. Anywhere but at the man sitting across from him, until he spoke.
“I’m sorry, Wes. I had no idea you’d be this upset.”
“I’m not upset.”
“The frogs’ legs say otherwise. Look, I understand this is a surprise, but I thought you’d be pleased. I thought you liked Lina.”
“I like her okay.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“There isn’t any problem. It’s just that...” Wes shrugged uncertainly. “Well, it’s kinda sudden, isn’t it?”
“We’ve been dating for five years.” Collins was watching him closely, face calm but his hands playing nervously with his napkin. “Your mother died over thirty years ago. I loved her, and I always will, but now I love Lina too. You can understand that, can’t you?”
“Yeah, I guess,” Wes muttered, torn between confusion, frustration, and guilt. “I guess it’s just that...”
“What?”
“Well, that things are going to change.” He looked up again. “Ever since I can remember, it’s been just you and me. Now - I guess that’s over.”
“But it’s been over for years, Wes. Ever since you and Eric got together. I know how you feel; I felt some of that myself when you told me about you two. Among other things, of course.” They both smiled briefly and awkwardly at the memory of that confession and the resulting conflicts. “In fact - is that part of it? You and Eric?”
“What do you mean? What’s it got to do with me and Eric?”
“The fact that Lina and I can get married, and... well, you can’t.”
“No, of course not. We’ve never even thought about getting married.” But Wes frowned, surprised at himself for feeling a sharp stab of - something. Envy? Resentment? His eyes fell to his father’s hands, now clasped on the table. It brought back another image, one that made him look away.
“It does bother you, doesn’t it?”
“No.” Wes shook his head.
“Wes. Tell me.”
“Well... Maybe it does, a little, but not the way you think. Not marriage, but... just little stuff, like that you and Lina can tell everyone you’re dating. You can go out together, and - and act like a couple, and not worry about who’s looking. Even tonight - you guys can hold hands on top of the table. Out in the open. If Eric and I want to hold hands, it has to be - under the table, where no one can see.”
There was another silence for a few seconds, until Wes looked at his father and found him watching with a sympathy so deep it both surprised and touched him. Collins cleared his throat. “I’m sorry,” he said. “Maybe things won’t always be that way.”
Wes shrugged again. “Not your fault, Dad. Nothing you can do about it.”
“I suppose not.” Now his father’s expression was unreadable, his eyes thoughtful.
Wes put a smile on his face. He was being selfish; ruining what should be a happy occasion. It was time to stop. “Man, I shouldn’t be thinking about myself at a time like this. I - I think it’s great. I’m sure you’ll both be very happy.” He even found himself meaning it.
- - -
Just to make his white lie into the truth, Eric had checked in with the Silver Guardians’ operator. Just as he had expected, there was nothing going on. Sighing, he put away his cellphone and glanced towards the restaurant, wondering if it was safe to go back inside yet - and froze momentarily as he saw a shadowy form standing just outside the front door.
“So, you had the same idea I did,” Lina said.
“What’s that?”
“To give Alan and Wes a few minutes alone.” She shook her head. “I told him not to spring it on both of you in public like this, but he was so sure you were expecting it.”
“Nope. Not expecting it.” Eric looked away, hoping she’d take the hint and stop talking.
“You don’t like me, do you?”
Startled, he turned his head to face her. “I don’t feel one way or the other,” he said after a hesitation.
“Yes, you do. You’re still angry that I treated you as a suspect when Wes was kidnapped.”
“You were just doing your job.”
“That’s right. Of all people, you should understand that. So why are you holding a grudge?”
“I’m not...” Eric frowned. Why bother denying it? What did he care if this woman knew he didn’t like her, and why? “Okay, fine, if you insist. Yes, I don’t like you. Not because you suspected me, but the reason you suspected me.”
“Because I found out about you and Wes.” Head slightly tilted, she studied him for a moment. “You do realize in a case like that, a lover is the logical suspect. The one we have to check out first.”
“Yeah, but you didn’t have to go after me the way you did. You didn’t have to push so hard,” Eric muttered.
“Yes I did.” Lina raised her chin slightly. “I push hard because I have to. Because finding out how a person died, and why, and who’s responsible, is an important job and that’s the most effective way to do it. You would have done the same thing.”
“I dunno.” Eric glared at her. “Would you have had that attitude if I wasn’t gay? I don’t think so. You didn’t know anything about me, but you just assumed there was something wrong because of the one thing you did figure out.”
“And look who’s making assumptions now.” Lina stared back, her eyes just as hard as his.
“Whatever. You don’t know what’s gone on in my life. I have reasons to think this way.”
She stepped closer, so close he almost backed away, her face harsh and determined. “I had a sister,” she said in a voice so low he could barely hear. “When she was in high school she told her best friend that she was attracted to her. The ‘friend’ spread it all over the school. There was a lot of ugly talk. My sister, Livia, couldn’t take it. She ran away. Disappeared. A month later a cop came knocking on our door to tell us she was dead. She was only sixteen. Thirty-five years ago, and I can still see her face. So don’t tell me I don’t understand.”
Eric was still standing with his mouth half open when she smiled, the hardness disappearing as if it had never existed. “I think they’ve had long enough. Shall we go back to the table?”
- - -
When Wes saw Eric and Lina returning he was able to give them a real smile, and was relieved to see Eric return it and even hold Lina’s chair for her in a gesture that obviously surprised her even more that it did him and his father.
The waitress, Reena, was passing, giving him a wary glance as she went by. On impulse, Wes waved her over. “This is a celebration, isn’t it?” he said to the others, and then to her, “We need a bottle of champagne.”
“Um... which one would you like, sir? Please?” she asked, a little hesitantly.
Wes gestured expansively. “The best you’ve got.”
“Ah, the 1985 Château de Prétentieux.” Her smile was suddenly restored to all its dazzling glory. “A lovely choice! I’ll send the wine steward right away!”
“Wes...” Collins leaned closer as she walked away. “You do realize that particular champagne costs over four hundred dollars a bottle?”
“It does?” Wes blinked and shook his head. “Well, doesn’t matter. It’s my first gift to the bride and groom.” He grinned. “Cheers!”
TBC...
Linkage:
[Turns on my site]
[Turns on ff.net]
List of 22: Public Dining