Work Text:
Mood lighting? Check.
Ingredients acquired? Check.
Red rose set on the table for two? Check.
Guest of the hour?
Right on time, Kojiro Nanjo’s longtime friend-slash-rival-slash-fellow-skateboarding-enthusiast Kaoru Sakurayashiki walks through the door of the Sia la Luce Italian restaurant clad in his kimono attire with his AI skateboard in hand. He’s usually polished and put together, but Kojiro can tell it has been a long day of working with calligraphy clients what with his robe slightly wrinkled and his long hair coming loose out of its tie. Kojiro feels a decent amount of pride swell in his chest from the fact that the uptight Kaoru can let his guard down around him.
Or maybe he’s just feeling the burn in his pecs from his earlier workout. Or maybe it’s both.
“Welcome, esteemed guest!”
Kaoru scowls in the doorway. Kojiro is quite used to that face. “Are you going to be putting on theatrics like this the whole time?”
“Like I said, I want to make this a proper run-through of what Valentine’s Day dinner at the restaurant will be like,” Kojiro states. “You can never be too prepared. It’s gonna be a packed house, and I want the food and service to be so good that every couple leaves here turned on and ready for seconds, if you know what I mean.” Kojiro lightly elbows Kaoru in the arm while the scowl on Kaoru’s face continues to grow.
“…I’m leaving. You’re too embarrassing.”
Kaoru turns towards the door, but Kojiro throws an arm around his shoulder.
“Come on! You know how it is – it’s like practicing before a big race, or practicing calligraphy to perfect it for a client. You wouldn’t cut corners, would you?”
Kaoru’s shoulder sags under his touch. “Fine. But Carla needs to charge. I’m plugging her into the outlet in the corner.”
Kojiro still thinks giving a skateboard a chick’s name is beyond weird. Regardless, while Kaoru is busy with that, he smooths out the red linen tablecloth with the place settings already arranged on the table for two and lights a votive candle in a sophisticated glass holder set in the middle of the table next to the thin vase with a red rose. The deep red and the flickering golden light elegantly complement the wooden furniture and brick wall accents of the restaurant.
When he’s done, he pulls a high-back black leather chair out for Kaoru and grabs a seat opposite him once he has sat down.
“Pretend we’re lovers,” Kojiro says, and he watches Kaoru lose his balance on the chair. “Is the ambience romantic enough?”
“What kind of question is that???” Kaoru snarls.
“Is the lighting from the candle nice?” Kojiro continues, leaning forward with a smirk. “Does it illuminate your lover’s face in all the right places?” It certainly casts attractive shadows on Kaoru’s. Though it also highlights the dark circles under his eyes, which gives Kojiro more motivation to cook a meal that energizes and excites him.
“You’re fishing for compliments.”
“I’m asking for feedback.”
Kaoru crosses his arms and looks to the side in annoyance. “Yes, it feels romantic enough. Now are you going to talk incessantly, or are you going to feed me as was promised?”
Kojiro puts on the confident grin he wears in the face of any challenge. “Allow me to wine and dine you like you’ve never been wined and dined before.”
Wine Pairing
Kojiro grabs a bottle of wine from the standing bucket of ice placed next to the table. He polished the bucket’s steel facade so well, in fact, he can see his handsome reflection in it.
“A dry Pinot Grigio from northern Italy that’ll pair perfectly with the dinner courses.” He uncorks it and pours a tiny bit into Kaoru’s wineglass. He knows the man has discerning taste for fine wine.
Kaoru swirls it around the glass and sips. “Mm. It’s the kind of wine that was made for refined palates. Crisp, with notes of citrus and almond. Your customers should appreciate it.”
“That’s what I like to hear!” Kojiro tops off the rest of the glass, sets the bottle back in the ice bucket, and clinks his own empty wineglass with Kaoru’s full one. “Cheers, Valentine.”
Kaoru nearly spits out the sip he takes, which wouldn’t be good at all considering this particular wine is expensive and not to be wasted.
“Don’t call me that!”
Bread and Antipasto
Kojiro brings out the next course and places it on the table with flair. “Focaccia bread and olive oil served with Okinawan leafy vegetables and prosciutto shaped like a rose in honor of the special day. Nice touch, isn’t it?”
“Didn’t know you were such a romantic.” Kaoru leans over the plate to eat, but a lock of hair falls loose over his shoulder and almost ends up in the plate of oil.
“Here, let me put your hair up so it doesn’t get in the way.”
Kojiro stands behind him and undoes the loose tie in his hair, carding his hands through the silky strands and gathering the pieces at the base of his scalp so he can tie it more securely. He hears a sharp inhale from Kaoru as he does so.
“Oh, are you admiring the aroma of the bread? The rosemary gives it a nice fragrance, right?”
“…Sure.”
Kojiro brings the ponytail behind Kaoru’s shoulders and lets his fingers glide through it one more time. He’ll admit the man is blessed with some nice hair, and he knows he doesn’t let just anyone touch it, so his chest fills with pride again. When he makes his way back to sit across from Kaoru, he notices his friend’s cheeks have turned about as pink as his hair.
Guess the food is good enough to make him blush, he thinks. That’s what I’m aiming for!
Pasta Course
Pasta is one of Kojiro’s specialties, so he’s looking forward to serving this next dish: penne pasta with mozzarella pearls, basil leaves, pesto sauce, and – of course – cherry tomatoes.
“Since you’re so fond of those,” he says as he takes one off the plate, puts it between his front teeth, and bites down. “Here.” He skewers a forkful and holds it in front of Kaoru. “A cherry tomato for a Cherry Blossom.”
Kaoru glares at him. It would look more intimidating if his glasses weren’t fogging up from the steam rising off the plate.
Kojiro simply shrugs. “Don’t Valentines feed each other? Besides, remember the last time I served this to you? When I stole a tomato off your plate ‘cause you were acting all huffy every time your fancy calligraphy client wasn’t looking?”
“How could I forget?” Kaoru deadpans.
“Well, I guess I owe you one.”
Belying his scowl, Kaoru opens his mouth and lets Kojiro feed him.
“The tomatoes are really fresh,” he says after swallowing. “The pesto is tasty, and the pasta isn’t too hard or too soft. The basil adds nice flavoring. The mozzarella is pleasantly cool, which is a contrast to the heat of the pasta. It’s good all around.”
“Glad it meets your seal of approval.” Kojiro grabs another forkful and holds it in front of Kaoru’s mouth. “Shall I feed the rest of it to you?”
“Give me that!” Kaoru yanks the fork out of Kojiro’s hand and harrumphs.
Main Course
“And for the main course: sautéed white fish with dragon fruit reduction and Okinawa’s finest sautéed vegetables. It should pair perfectly with the white wine.”
It’s not necessarily the most Italian of dishes, but Kojiro likes infusing some nice Okinawan ingredients into his cooking when he can. Plus, the rich fuchsia of the dragon fruit lends the dish an attractive pop of color.
“Nicely presented,” Kaoru says as he turns the plate to look at it from every angle.
Kojiro drags his seat to a side of the table nearer to Kaoru. He rests his chin in his hands and his elbows on the table as he leans over to get a better look at his friend.
Kaoru side-eyes him. “…Why are you right in my face?”
“The flavors of this dish should hit one after the other," Kojiro explains. "You’ve got bitter melon, yellow carrots, and sweet dragon fruit. I want to see what facial expressions each one elicits so I know I’ve made it right.”
“You’re too close.”
Kojiro lets out a laugh. “Says the guy who demonstrated Adam’s Love Hug on me.”
Kaoru’s forkful of fish stalls mid-air, and his expression turns serious. He goes quiet for a moment. Then, “Do you really think the rookie will be able to defeat Adam?”
Kojiro can feel the smile dissolve off his face. “I don’t know.” It’s something he has mulled over a lot lately, but he hasn’t been able to come up with a conclusive answer. Nevertheless, he’ll choose optimism. “What I do know is that he’s got a lot of great people cheering him on. The best we can do is lend him our support.”
“I suppose you’re right,” Kaoru says as he dips the piece of fish in the dragon fruit reduction and takes a bite. “Oh. This is actually quite good.”
“Don’t act like you expected otherwise!”
“Shut up and take the compliment!” His face softens when he tries the vegetables. “You really are good at cooking.”
“A compliment from the most critical person I know! How lucky! If it passes your taste test, it’ll pass any customer’s.”
And to Kojiro’s delight, he can see on Kaoru all the facial expressions he hoped this main course would produce.
Dessert
Kojiro has been working hard to get the next course just right. Italian cooking sure has a lot of great sweets, so he wants to do the restaurant’s dessert dishes justice.
“Italian lemon cake with vanilla icing in a vanilla bean sauce and, for the special day, heart motifs drawn in chocolate syrup.”
Recognition dawns on Kaoru’s face. “This is what you were making that time I brought the rookie and his crew in when they wanted to know more about Adam,” he points out.
“Yep. It was too sweet last time. This one should be better. It’ll make you feel like you’re on a romantic vacation to Italy’s Amalfi Coast.”
Kaoru narrows his eyes. “How many romantic vacations to Italy have you been on?”
Kojiro grins. “None with you. We should change that.” He winks for added effect. “Picture it. Skating around the cliffs, swimming in the sea, drinking limoncello under the stars on a secluded beach…”
“You’re getting carried away as usual,” Kaoru says.
Kojiro can see he’s flushed, though he doesn’t know if it’s caused by the wine or the prospect of getting swept away to Italy. Now even Kojiro can feel himself blushing at the thought of him and Kaoru intertwined on some sandy beach, breathless after racing down the cliffs…
Kaoru cuts into the cake and swallows a piece, cheeks puckering and eyes crinkling from the sourness of the lemon, but the sweetness kicks in soon enough – just as Kojiro planned.
“What do you think?”
“It’s excellent,” Kaoru states. “The lemon and vanilla flavors pair well. Not too sweet or too sour. The texture of the cake is perfect.” He takes another bite and gets vanilla sauce stuck to the corner of his mouth.
“You have something here,” Kojiro says, pointing to his own face to mirror it.
“Here?” Kaoru touches the wrong side of his mouth, so to remedy the situation, Kojiro leans over, swipes the stray bit of sauce off Kaoru’s lips, and sucks it off his finger.
“Oh, it is much better this time around!” It’s delicious – he really has outdone himself this time.
Kaoru looks flustered, but he forks a chunk of cake and holds it up to Kojiro. “Have a piece so you can see how the lemony part goes with the sauce.”
Kojiro huffs a laugh. “Look at that. The guy who said it was weird for me to feed him is offering me the same thing – on his own fork, no less!”
“Idiot! Eat it before I change my mind!”
Kojiro smiles and leans over to eat the piece off of Kaoru’s fork. He’s impressed with himself – it really did turn out amazing. The lemon zest he added this time makes for a more intense flavor.
They split the rest of it, passing the same fork back and forth and taking turns digging in. Kojiro ends up scooting his chair closer to Kaoru every time he hands him the fork until their shoulders are touching. They lapse into easy conversation about everything from the future of skateboarding to their respective jobs to travel until there’s not so much as a crumb left on the plate or a drop of wine left in Kaoru’s glass.
Kaoru leans back in his chair and stares up at the ceiling, seemingly satisfied from a good meal – a look Kojiro loves to see his restaurant patrons wearing.
“The cake has a pleasant aftertaste,” he says.
“Yeah?” Kojiro is curious. “Describe it to me. What does it taste like to you?”
Kaoru shifts his eyes to Kojiro’s and grins. He reaches out and grabs either side of Kojiro’s face. “Like this.”
Before Kojiro knows it, Kaoru’s lips are on his, and it sure is sweet.
“Wow, that really is a good aftertaste!”
“Idiot.”
“…Not sure I got all the notes, though. Mind if I taste it again?”
Kaoru accepts the request and loops his arms around Kojiro’s shoulders, pulling him closer until Kojiro is pressing him against the high-back chair.
Hands find silky hair once more. Kojiro prides himself on the attention he dedicates to creating flavorful cuisine, but nothing compares to savoring the taste of kissing Kaoru. They both approach anything and everything in life with a whole lot of passion – that includes what they share with each other, whether it’s a skating beef, a hotheaded argument, or fervent kisses.
Kaoru is just starting to loosen a button on Kojiro’s chef’s jacket when a hideous beeping noise fills the space.
“Charging: complete,” comes a robotic voice from the corner.
“Dammit, Carla!” Kojiro has had enough of that cursed machine.
Kaoru immediately removes his hand and furiously jabs a finger into Kojiro’s chest. “Don’t speak to Carla like that!”
Coffee
Kojiro finishes washing the dishes while Kaoru sips the post-dinner espresso he made him.
“Thanks for the meal. I’m sure your customers will be pleased. Though I certainly hope you don’t go around kissing them once they’ve finished eating.”
Kojiro winks. “How do you think this restaurant gets so many good reviews?”
“Dimwit.”
“You’d be jealous if I did go around kissing them, huh?”
“You wish!”
Kojiro dries the last plate and shelves it. The multi-course dinner has been a success, and he feels confident that his customers will leave the restaurant satisfied on the special night. “Anyway, it’s kinda late. My place is closer than yours. Why don’t you stay the night?”
Kaoru takes a sip of espresso. “I suppose.”
Kojiro wipes his hands on a kitchen towel and smirks. “Waking up with you in my bed will be the perfect start to Valentine’s Day.”
The espresso cup hits the saucer with a loud clink. “I can’t believe such embarrassing things come out of that mouth of yours.”
“And yet you can’t seem to keep your own mouth away from it.”
Kaoru slams his hands on the table. “If you keep saying embarrassing stuff like that, I’ll kick you out of your own house!”
Kojiro laughs, washes and dries the empty espresso cup, and turns the restaurant kitchen lights off. “I’ll make you breakfast in the morning as thanks for being such an honest taste tester,” he says, handing Kaoru the red rose that was on their table.
Kaoru’s expression gets softer. He accepts it and fixes him with a playful look.
After he locks the restaurant doors, Kojiro throws an arm over Kaoru’s shoulder and starts along the path towards his place. He may be stuck working on the romantic holiday, but he’s pretty sure Valentine’s Day can’t get any sweeter than the night – or the lemon cake – he and Kaoru shared together.