Dent Sucrée [Part 3]
>PART 2<
Gourmandise Constellation
You bring a joy to my heart
I’ve never felt before
With each touch of your hand
I love you more and more
Courtesy of Angélique, Jonghyun’s uncle gave him some time off Saturday afternoon. Apparently he was convinced that Jonghyun had worked so hard in his stead during his business trip that he cut Jonghyun some slack for today only. Personally, Jonghyun didn’t feel with the sentiment; both he and Angélique alike knew that he had lost focus during his absence instead of maintaining it. But as long as his uncle doesn’t get to know he has been playing favourites with certain customers, he guesses it’s better he lives this one lie out.
Besides, in the middle of drying his hair, Jonghyun realizes that he really needs the time.
Staring at his messy closet, he storms his brain for what in the world he should wear. Kibum told him to dress nicely, but he was long gone before Jonghyun could even ask him to explain what «nicely» meant. So, naturally, he will have to find the perfect balance between nicely (whatever nicely is) and too nicely.
With that exact thought in mind, he digs for his finest black jeans-finest, because he only owns one pair. He throws it on the bed and digs back into his pile, getting his hands on his three only pairs of button-up shirts. One is of a red plaid, another white one has a stain on it, and the last white one is wrinkled.
Jonghyun curses himself for his bad habits, but throws away the red and stained ones nonetheless. He is not yet happy with the outcome. He needs compensation; balance.
The perfect idea hits him, and he is soon dressed up in his jeans and button-ups-only with a light marine blue jumper over the wrinkled piece. He stares at himself in the mirror. His clothes might be acceptable, but his hair is not.
He ends up spending twenty minutes on trying to do something about the disasterous mop on top of his head, at last deciding he’ll just gloss it up and part it in a not-too-nicely kind of way. He steals his dad’s derby shoes in a rush, pushing his necessities inside his pockets and almost forgets to lock the door on his way out. Praying he’ll get to the café before Kibum does, he successfully texts Angélique without stumbling over his own feet.
From: Jonghyun
Meet me outside in 10 mins pls
Sent: May 19, 5:47 P.M.
It is by luck she for once decides to be nice without asking for immediate negotiations; he sees her from the distance, eleven minutes after, and feels relieved that Kibum isn’t there in her stead.
«Oh, wow,» she exclaims once she sees him, grin on face. She gives a thumbs up. «Good. You did good.»
«Really?» Jonghyun pants out, lightly getting rid of the light dampness at his temples with his fingertips. «The hair isn’t too much, or?»
Angélique squints at her eyes at him, pursing her lips. «This matter is under possible discussion, since you don’t even know where you’re going. I, in my own humble opinion, think that if you ha-»
«Bonjour!»
Jonghyun gives her a look once Kibum approaches them. She cuts herself off mid-sentence, soon recovering from her brief disturbance. «It looks good, no worries,» she assures him with quick words before throwing in a «have fun!» as she heads back inside.
Kibum looks absolutely grand. Jonghyun’s heart jumps in his chest once he lays eyes on him, clad in handsome slacks with a pair of suspenders over a striped button-up shirt, folded at the arms and tucked into his pants. On his nose rests a pair of black Ray Bans, a clutch in his hand, and his dark hair is neatly parted in the middle. His smile is ever so charming on his pink lips.
«Bonjour,» utters Jonghyun at last, bereft of speech.
«You look striking,» Kibum remarks. «It’s nice seeing you out of your uniform for once.»
A beam lights up Jonghyun’s face. «You look very handsome yourself,» he returns. He is excited and nervous all at the same time; Kibum’s calm demeanour somehow affects both. «So, what exactly are your plans for the evening?»
There is a mischievous glint to Kibum’s eyes. «You’ll see,» he simply says, motioning for Jonghyun to follow along as he starts walking down the pavement. «I do hope you’re hungry?»
Jonghyun is certain that he’ll at least have an appetite once he has food before him, so he does not consider the question before replying just that. They walk comfortably through streets and crowds of people. Jonghyun gives Kibum all the praise, for his built-up nerves would most likely have brought the opposite effect had Kibum not been an awfully natural small talker.
Some minutes later, and Kibum halts the both of them in front of a taller building. The first floor appears to be occupied by a restaurant-and a rather expensive one, at that, Jonghyun decides. There is a red carpet from the pavement up to the gleaming glass doors, where a doorman greets incoming visitors, all of which Jonghyun can see is dressed formally. Even the building itself looks extravagant in the evening sun’s illuminations and shadows, and with the rich, colourful flower decorations outside.
«Is this why you told me to dress nicely?» Jonghyun asks, stupefied.
Appearing humoured, Kibum takes off his sunglasses and puts them inside his clutch. «Partly, yes.»
That is all he says before lightly touching Jonghyun’s lower back, the doorman welcoming them inside. The entryway is more of a nicely garnished lobby. Kibum seems to have been there before, as he immediately shows way to the left where they soon enter the restaurant he had seen from the outside.
As it turns out, Kibum has made a reservation. Jonghyun thinks he’s past his biggest astonishment when they are shown to a welcoming table for two. Kibum, being the gentleman Jonghyun should have known him to be, pulls out a chair for him. With both seated and a separate menu in front of them, Kibum looks up at him. «Say, Jonghyun, do you eat meat? I think it’s only proper I ask.»
Jonghyun nods. «Sure I do.»
«And do you drink?»
«Well, at occasion, yes.»
Kibum grins charmingly. «This is an occasion.»
As he says it, their assigned waiter comes by their table, polite. «Bonne après-midi, messieurs. What may I get you this lovely evening?»
A moment of dread runs through Jonghyun, because he is yet to look through the menu properly; he has no clue what the restaurant has to offer, much less what he wants, but Kibum speaks up before he can even open his mouth. «Two plates entrecôte marchand de vin, please,» he orders, without even opening his menu.
The waiter takes a quick note, nodding. «And may I recommend a red Bordeaux for your meal, messieurs? A La Dame de Montrose 2012 brings forth the flavours just superbly.»
«Sounds terrific,» Kibum states, his eyes bright and smiling as they peer into Jonghyun’s rather impressed ones.
«Have you been here before?» ponders Jonghyun once the waiter has collected their menus and taken his leave. It has definitely piqued his interest. «You didn’t even look at the menu before ordering.»
«Something like that,» Kibum says, pursing his lips as he absentmindedly fiddles with his clutch on the table, eyes still set on Jonghyun’s. «I’ve only found my way around places like this because of the many meetings my parents has made me go to throughout the years.»
He falls quiet once the waiter comes back with two glasses and the bottle of wine, classic white cloth on his forearm as he pours their glasses and respectfully leaves them be. Jonghyun watches as Kibum grabs hold of his glass, taking a whiff of the wine, lightly stirring it, before taking a small sip. «Did you like them?» he asks, correcting himself when Kibum raises his brows in question. «The meetings, I mean.»
«I thought they were boring at first,» Kibum admits. «I remember I didn’t want to go. But I guess with age I caught on? I started walking in my dad’s footsteps and got more and more interested in politics, both at a national and an international basis.»
Jonghyun nods, rapt. «So that’s what you want to work with in the future?»
«That’s right,» he smiles, dimples in cheeks. «I’ve wanted to engage in politics of human rights and freedom for a couple of years now.» Kibum tilts his head, tentative as he asks, «What about you? You’re not that much older than me, right?»
Even if Kibum is careful in his ways and tries to take lightly on the subject, Jonghyun can’t help but feel a familiar lurch in his stomach. «That has sort of always been a sore topic for me,» he finds himself saying, looking at his own thumb running up and down the bridge of his glass. «I never got any higher education, I just work for my uncle.»
Kibum frowns. «Does that make you feel…bad?»
«Kind of,» Jonghyun confesses, voice small. He suddenly feels small, too. «I always thought that working for your uncle in some small café in Paris seems awfully inferior. My sister is attending law school; it’s been her dream since she was twelve. I even took a free year after high school to figure out what I wanted, and all I came up with was to flee away from my problems and move to my dad.»
They both fall silent after he finishes speaking, and Jonghyun regrets it right after. The ebullient chatters around them and Kibum’s wide open eyes as he stares at him soundlessly makes him wish the ground magically opened and swallowed him whole.
To make matters worse, Kibum starts chuckling.
«Jonghyun,» he calls, an incredulous toothy smile on his face. His hand slides across the table to cover Jonghyun’s softly. Kibum looks into his eyes, serious. «I honestly don’t know you that well yet, but there is something I’ve come to know this far, and that is that you’re doing something you love doing. It doesn’t matter that you work for your uncle, or that your sister is going to law school! Look at you,» he smiles. «Having a stable job and out on a date with a pretty decent guy, I’d say myself.»
Chuckling, Jonghyun turns his hand underneath Kibum’s so that their palms rest against one another. «You’re more than just a decent guy, Kibum.»
He is about to blurt out something touchy-feely like «you’re wonderful», but the waiter saves him from the embarrassment when he serves them their meals. The warmth of Kibum’s hand disappears as he moves away to make place for the plates. «Bon appétitt,» he announces, retreating.
«Merci,» they reply in unison. Jonghyun isn’t sure what he had expected, though he is positive it had not been the nicely placed beef and deep red sauce with fresh colours of green and red vegetables on the side. It looks absolutely delicious, but also absolutely expensive. Kibum gives him a look from across the table, as if telling him not to even think about it. He smiles sweetly. «I hope you like it.»
It would be a shame if he hadn’t.
After their meal and after they had stealthily emptied the bottle of Bordeaux, Kibum had insisted he pay, in which Jonghyun had argued that there was no way he’d let that happen when he could pay for himself. Their agreement at last was that if Kibum paid for Jonghyun this time, Jonghyun would treat Kibum to a meal later (plus three pastries «on the house», as Kibum had called it so nicely).
He finds that his nerves prior to their date has been for nothing. Kibum seems to have an immediate effect on him; he makes him feel at ease, and he is equally good at speaking courteously as he is listening when others talk. To boot, his laugh is ridiculously contagious. Jonghyun guesses these are simply natural traits of a savoir faire. He is glad Kibum asked him out. Otherwise, he doesn’t think he would ever have the guts to do so himself. An actual first date like this makes him realize that would be a pity.
Jonghyun is expectant as Kibum brings him up to one of the remaining floors-a part of which he has not yet mentioned. Even more anticipatory did he get when they were simply granted access just because of Kibum’s name being on the receptionist’s list.
They stand close in the elevator, even though there is no one but an older man in a tux along with them in the spacious lift. The opening doors reveals a large locale with lots of chattering people, dressed just as formally as the ones in the restaurant. It takes only one look to the first poster greeting them to know that this is a formal event featuring peintres.
A slight horror strikes Jonghyun once he sees it.
He pulls Kibum to the side before he can walk in any further. «Um, a question,» he starts, peering into Kibum’s questioning eyes. «Meeting parents isn’t ideal for the first date, is it?»
«I guess that depends?» Kibum knits his brows together. «Why do you ask?»
«It’s just,» Jonghyun shuffles his feet, «My dad is here. You know, like one of the artists?»
«Your dad is an artist?» Kibum’s eyes widen. He scans the crowd around them, subtle as he speaks. «Why didn’t you…» he trails off as his eyes narrow. Jonghyun tries to see what he’s caught eyes on, but comes up empty-handed.
«What?» he whispers.
Kibum points to one of the paintings on the other side of the room, where half a dozen people are holding a conversation. «That’s my mum.»
«The lady with the flower brooch?» Jonghyun asks, scowling his eyes for better focus. Kibum hums the affirmative and turns to him with the most defeated look on his face. Jonghyun covers his mouth as he snorts out a laugh. «Is this even happening right now?»
«It appears so,» Kibum giggles. «Then it’s a good thing I didn’t bring you primarily for the art event.»
«You didn’t?»
Shaking his head, Kibum smiles. «No. I still haven’t taken you where I wanted to,» he reveals. «It’s not far, we just have to get across the room unnoticed to spare ourselves the trouble.»
Jonghyun nods, determined. They keep close as they move further into the room, persistently making a somewhat crooked beeline through the crowded space. Jonghyun almost crushes into Kibum’s back when he twenty feet later abruptly stops in his tracks, apparently only to sandwich his clutch under his arm and fetch two glasses of champagne from one of the waiters.
«Here.» He hands one of the glasses to Jonghyun, a knowing twinkle in his eyes, before grabbing Jonghyun’s free hand and proceeding towards his intended location. To Jonghyun’s surprise, they end up on one of the balconies.
«Whoa,» he exclaims, eyes immediately enthralled by the view of the city. The sun is in the middle of setting, casting a warm, dim light over their surroundings. Rich, red roses has grown in spiral about the balcony’s banister. Despite the substantial platform, only a small, round table and two folding chairs are placed in one corner, accompanied by a lit candle on top of the table. Jonghyun is transfixed. «It’s beautiful out here.»
Kibum hums beside him, sipping on his champagne. «I think so, too. The first time I came across this place during a similar event like this one, I spent half my time out here. It’s the most beautiful at this hour.»
Absolutely not a thing compels Jonghyun to argue against. As he is humoured by the people seeming oh so small down on the street, Kibum puts his glass and clutch on the table. «I’ll be right back,» he says, and disappears off to somewhere inside. Jonghyun croons to himself, inhaling the fresh spring air and tasting his drink. It does not take long until Kibum comes back through the open balcony doors, now holding a platter with cake and two spoons in his hand.
«I thought we’d share,» he announces, placing the treat on the table.
Jonghyun finds himself smiling as he stares at him from his spot by the banister. For one, Kibum looks awfully endearing in his big leather plateaus and suspenders. The night has been nothing but pleasant this far, Jonghyun thinks, with Kibum’s open mind and singular company. He feels lucky to have spent time with him in this way.
The corner of Kibum’s lips tug upwards. «I was thinking the same just now,» he says.
Jonghyun is mortified to find that he had said that out loud. He gets more and more flustered with each step Kibum takes towards him, and by the time they stand in front of each other, the butterflies in his stomach are fluttering. Kibum bites his lip, equally timorous, it seems, as he tentatively intertwines their hands.
«I enjoyed spending time with you tonight,» Kibum murmurs carefully, eyes uncertain.
«So does that mean you want to go out with me again?» Jonghyun ponders, hopeful.
Kibum is smiling, seemingly trying to suppress it by sinking his teeth back into his lip. He tilts his head to side just the slightest, looking down at their hands before meeting Jonghyun’s eyes again. He nods. «Absolutely.»
Feeling greedy, Jonghyun decides to rebut his usual self and be bold as he leans forward to peck Kibum on the lips. It lasts for a mere two seconds and he is soon pulling away, however, he is not allowed to do so when Kibum cups his nape and crashes their lips back together. Jonghyun sighs through his nose as Kibum deepens the kiss even further. He reaches forward to hold onto Kibum’s waist, exultant to feel his soft lips on his own for the second time. He senses Kibum smiling into the kiss, ever so infectious, Jonghyun can’t help but to grin himself.
It somehow ends up in a mess of clinking teeth and saliva as they end up laughing against each other’s mouths, and for the smallest of moments, Jonghyun thinks that he has never felt this happy before.