Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Ahhhh, they have seafood scallopini with a Japanese flair! I’m definitely getting that. Oooh, flounder, scallops, shrimp, hiratake, soumen, and a yuzu-butter sauce… that sounds yummy!”

Yosuke looked at his friend and colleague, Rise, over the top of his menu, with a wry smile. “You go right ahead and enjoy yourself. Tell me how it is, though.” He skimmed the menu; the offering list was relatively small - unsurprising for a new restaurant of this size - but everything looked good. Most of it was familiar with a unique twist here and there - such as Rise’s Japanese scallopini - but towards the bottom of the menu, his gaze fell on the item “Chef’s Special.” That was it; just a name and a price. He raised an eyebrow. Most such offerings had some sort of description - offerings of that day’s catch or the freshest seafood on the market or see the server for details - but not this.

“Wonder what the ‘Chef’s Special’ is.” He held out his menu, and Rise shrugged.

“If you’re curious, try it. Duh.”

Yosuke made a face at her, and she laughed. The two had been friends since high school - they’d dated for a couple of years, but it just hadn’t worked out -  but both of them had gone into the music business and now they worked together at the same agency. Rise was in the middle of transitioning from an idol career to a pop career of her own; Yosuke was a songwriter and producer, and he’d been responsible for more than a few of Rise’s hits. They made it a habit of going out for lunch any time they were both in the office, since they were usually both so busy otherwise - well, Rise was more busy than Yosuke, but the fact still held - and when Nanako’s had opened on the next block over, of course they’d made plans to try it.

It was a rather busy day; nearly every table in the restaurant was full, although as there were only ten or so tables, with a handful of seats at the bar, that didn’t mean too much.

As Yosuke looked around, the waiter walked up. “Do you have any questions?” Yosuke, nodding, held up the menu. “What’s the Chef’s Special?”

“Exactly what it says.” The waiter gave an oblique smile. “The chef will make a meal of her choosing.”

“So… it could be anything?” The brunette’s sense of adventure was piqued. When the waiter nodded, he grinned. “Sure, then. I’ll get that.”

“Do you have any allergies or extreme food dislikes?”

“He’s allergic to tofu and he really doesn’t like fish.” Rise giggled, and Yosuke nodded in agreement. The waiter made a note, and Rise pointed to her menu. “I, on the other hand, love seafood! I’m getting the seafood scallopini, and a glass of white wine.”

“And I’ll take whatever wine pairs with the food I get.” Yosuke handed their menus to the waiter, who nodded and hurried off.

Their food was a little slow in coming, but they’d had worse waits and as neither of them were in a hurry, it wasn’t an issue. Eventually, the waiter carried out a tray from which wafted the most amazing smells - Rise’s scallopini was a mound of fresh seafood, mushrooms, pasta, and golden yuzu butter - and with a small flourish, the waiter set a covered dish in front of Yosuke, who watched with anticipation. First, the wine was poured - a partially-oaked chardonnay for Rise, and a French sauvignon blanc for Yosuke; then, the waiter lifted the cover.

“Butternut-squash ravioli, spaghetti squash sauteed in peppercorn brown butter, and fresh semolina angel hair pasta with a pumpkin seed, basil, and sage pesto topped with fresh parmesan and reggiano cheese. Does it meet your satisfaction?”

Yosuke’s eyes were already shining. “It looks amazing.” He grabbed a fork, cutting open one of the ravioli to take a bite. “It tastes amazing! My compliments to the chef.”

The waiter smiled a little. “Of course. Once you’ve finished the meal, would you be willing to give your full opinion on the dish, as well as any changes you’d make or ingredients you would have preferred?”

The brunette raised an eyebrow at this, but nodded. “Yeah, I can do that.”

“Thank you.”

When the waiter walked away with the tray, Rise looked over at Yosuke. “I guess if these are from-scratch dishes, the chef probably wants feedback.”

“Yeah, I mean, I understand it.” Yosuke was already digging in; the food really was amazing, and it paired perfectly with the wine. “How’s yours?”

“Really good! Really unique. I mean, I wouldn’t say it’s the best dish I’ve ever eaten but it’s a really interesting swap and tastes great - they got all the flavour changes right.”

The brunette nodded. He might actually say this was one of the best dishes he’d ever eaten, but he did his best to be objective. Still, it was a joy to eat, and when the waiter came back to bring their plates and their cheque - which Rise yanked away before he could get to it, as that was one of their continual ‘arguments’ - Yosuke nodded.

“I guess if I have to say anything other than it was really fucking good, I’d say that the sage was more pronounced in the pesto than I would have expected, and I think that more garlic - perhaps in the peppercorn brown butter - would have been great. Really, though, it didn’t suffer from either of those things and I’d gladly eat it again.”

As he spoke, the waiter scribbled down his comments, then nodded with a smile. “Thank you, and thank you for eating at Nanako’s. We hope to see you again soon!”

While Yosuke wouldn’t say he was a foodie, he’d definitely say he liked good food; the memory of that meal stuck with him, and a few days later he found himself looking up at the clock, mid-afternoon, having been so engrossed in his work that he’d forgotten about lunch. The meal from Nanako’s immediately flashed through his mind, and he sighed.

Doubt they’re open between lunch and dinner, and-

He was already checking the internet; surprisingly enough, they were open, so he hummed a satisfied tune as he grabbed his jacket and scarf, setting out for the restaurant. It was only a five minute walk - ten minutes, if you counted getting through his office building - and when he walked in he was unsurprised to see that there were no other customers. A guy - with silver hair, of all things, which was unusual in itself - was measuring some stuff out of bottles behind the bar, but he was the only person in the place. He looked up when Yosuke walked in, his expression a little surprised, but he smiled and nodded.

“Hello, welcome to Nanako’s. I’ll be right with you.”

“Yeah, sure dude, take your time.” Yosuke smiled, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jacket; the waiter - or bartender, or whatever he was - just nodded, capped whatever he was pouring, and set it on the corner of the bar before wiping his hands and walking over. It gave Yosuke enough time to notice that he was tall - almost unreasonably so, as he was several inches taller than the brunette, who was an even six feet - and he walked with a comfortable gait that was certainly easy on the eyes. When he got to Yosuke, he smiled, taking up a menu, and gestured to a small nook with a few hooks and a coat rack. “Would you like to hang your coat and scarf?”

“Sure, thanks.” Yosuke quickly divested himself of the indicated articles of clothing, tugging his sleeves back down to cover his wrists; the waiter waited patiently as he did.

“Do you have a table preference?”

“Hmmm.” Yosuke looked around the room. “I’ll take the window table, do a little people-watching.”

“Of course.” The waiter led him over, and then left Yosuke with the menu as he walked off to fetch a water pitcher.

Yosuke skimmed the menu, but although the offerings were different, he found himself musing over the ‘Chef’s Special’ again. When the waiter walked back over and started to fill his water glass, the brunette looked up. “The Chef’s Special - it’s something different every time, right?”

“Hmm? It is.” The waiter’s gaze sharpened for a moment, and when it did, Yosuke had the sudden realisation that the guy had silver eyes that were only a little darker than his hair; it was disconcerting, but by no means off-putting, and the brunette found himself smiling. The waiter just shook his head, as if to clear it, then nodded. “You’ve had it, then?”

“Yeah, it was, uh, butternut squash ravioli with-”

“-spaghetti squash, angel hair pasta, and pumpkin-seed pesto. I remember. You said that a little less sage and a little more garlic might be good.”

The brunette blinked at this, but nodded. “Yeah. You weren’t my waiter, then, though-?”

“No, but I remember the Chef’s Specials. We keep a list of all the suggestions made for future improvements.”

Yosuke raised an eyebrow. “The chef sounds like something. She’s certainly got a lot of talent, or she spent a long time in school, or something.”

An odd look flickered across the waiter’s face and he merely nodded. “Our chef has a culinary degree and several certifications, yes. I’ll make sure to pass along the compliments. Have you decided on an order?”

“I’ll have the Chef’s Special again.” He smiled, handing over the menu. “And some sort of non-alcoholic drink to go with it, I’ll trust you or the chef or whoever to put it together.”

“Mmm. Right away.” The waiter looked as if he was lost in thought as he walked away from the table; Yosuke raised an eyebrow at this but just sat back, propping his chin on his hand, elbow on the chair arm as he watched people walk by on the sidewalk.

After a while, the waiter brought him a cup of tea; it smelled fragrant and herbal. “A starter for the meal,” he said, smiling; Yosuke noticed that it was a really nice smile, and he just returned it with a nod and smile of his own. “Especially considering the cold weather. Blackberry and holy basil.” He gestured to a container on the table. “Sugar, if you’d like it; I don’t recommend cream.”

“Smells great, thanks.” Yosuke was already reaching for the sugar; the waiter just nodded and walked off, disappearing back into the kitchen.

The meal this time was a little less of a wait, but considering that Yosuke was the only person in the restaurant, it wasn’t a surprise. Finally, the waiter returned, holding a tray; on it was a glass of something golden and a plate of what looked like chicken and fruit; as it was placed before him, Yosuke chuckled at the lack of covering.

“Not going to make a presentation of it this time?” The waiter paused for a moment, looking a little uncertain as his gaze flickered to Yosuke’s face; the brunette just smiled at him. “It was a joke, sorry.”

“Ah, my apologies.” The man rubbed the back of his neck, then gestured. “Chicken with pears and figs in a honey-balsamic reduction over baked brie with artichokes and asparagus. The drink is hot lemonade with lavender and thyme.”

Yosuke just stared at the plate. “Wow.”

“Does it meet your satisfaction?”

“Uh, definitely.” Yosuke took a bite of pear and brie, then grinned up at the waiter. “I’ll tell you if there are any issues but go ahead and tell the chef that it’s amazing.”

A small smile flickered at the corner of the man’s mouth, and he nodded. “I will, thank you.”

The next time Yosuke 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 Yosuke decided to sit at the bar this time.

This time, Yosuke 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, Yosuke 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.” Yosuke 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 Yosuke waited for his meal; occasionally the brunette 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 silver-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 he ate hungrily, although he kept an eye on the waiter. At one point, he sat back.

“So, the food here is fantastic, but there’s rarely any customers any more-?”

An expression of sadness flashed across the silver-haired man’s face, almost too quickly for Yosuke 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 meal times.” The brunette looked a little guilty, but the waiter smiled at him.

“Oh, don’t apologise. 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 Yosuke 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?” Yosuke 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 off 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.” Yosuke laughed. “I work in the music 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 Yosuke 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.” Yosuke - 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 Yosuke just shrugged. “Oh, well, I understand. No harm, dude, don’t worry.”

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

“By the way, I’m Yosuke Hanamura. 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 Yosuke’s hand - the brunette noticed that he had a nice, firm grip, and his fingers were really long and delicate. “Souji Seta. It’s good to formally meet you, Yosuke. I hope we’ll see you again soon.”

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

Yosuke 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 Souji - 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, Yosuke 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 Nanako’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 - Yosuke 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 Rise was at the height of her idol days, and although it had been fun for about six months, he’d quickly given it up. Yosuke 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 Souji’s there.

When he 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 Souji straighten up behind the bar with a look on his face that could have been interpreted as relief, had Yosuke not been so tired. The silver-haired waiter hurried over.

“Good evening, Mr. Hanamura, how-” He paused, his expression shifting to one of concern when he saw Yosuke’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 brunette followed Souji 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?”

Souji 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; Souj 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.” The brunette 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.” Souji gently set a glass next to Yosuke’s elbow; the brunette 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.” Yosuke 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.” He gave the silver-haired man a smile as he lifted it to his lips, and again, it looked as if Souji was blushing - Yosuke 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. Souji merely nodded, then hurried off to the kitchen.

The drink hit the spot and Yosuke 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 Souji was watching him with an odd expression on his face. “Mr. Hanamura, if you’d prefer-”

Rubbing his eyes, Yosuke found himself blushing. Can’t believe I fell asleep. “Yosuke, please.”

Souji swallowed, then nodded. “Yosuke, then. If you’d prefer, I can take this back and keep it warm until you’ve had some rest-”

“No, no.” Yosuke 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.” Souji’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.”

Yosuke 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 Souji had put on the word “we” and he suddenly realised 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. Nanako’s, hmmm? I wonder if she’s his girlfriend?

The thought made him 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 Souji 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 Souji standing nearby, looking as if he was waiting; smiling, Yosuke 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.” Souji looked embarrassed, but pleased; Yosuke wanted so much - had he not been so tired he might have wondered at 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.” Souji smiled as Yosuke paid, and then waited patiently by the door as Yosuke bundled himself back up. The last thing the brunette saw as he sped away in the taxi was a head of silver hair still watching from the restaurant window - likely to make sure I don’t fall asleep on the sidewalk - and he thought back to the uncomfortable speculation he’d had about Souji and Nanako.

Yosuke fell asleep that night in a strange, strange mood.

Chapter Text

It was another couple of days before he had time to go by Nanako’s; partly because he was busy, but also partly because he found himself feeling… put out… every time the idea came up.

Finally, he decided to go one day a little closer to lunch. He told himself that it was just because he was hungrier, earlier; he couldn’t hide the small, nagging thought that if there are more people, I might be able to keep myself from flirting so much with Souji. He liked the guy, he couldn’t deny that fact. How much? He wasn’t willing to think about that.

Stepping into the restaurant, he was glad to see that there were a handful of people inside, more than he’d seen since the first time he and Rise had been; Souji seemed a little frazzled, running from table to table, but he still brightened up when Yosuke walked in, and the brunette had to mentally scold himself when his traitorous heart lept at the sight of the silver-haired man’s smile.

“Afternoon, Yosuke. Table, or bar?”

Surely there’s no harm in talking? Just a bit? He fought his inner responsibilities for a few moments before nodding. “Bar.” He smiled a little - it was too hard to keep aloof when Souji was being so friendly and warm - and followed the waiter to his usual seat. When Souji looked at him with a questioning expression, Yosuke nodded. “Chef’s Special, some sort of non-alcoholic drink to go with it. Hot tea before?”

“Of course.” Souji smiled, heading off; the routine was the same as usual, with the waiter gone for most of the time that Yosuke was waiting for his food. Souji brought a nice hot mint tea, and then eventually, the meal - a rich lamb stew made with beer and cheese. Yosuke sighed happily, digging in, and Souji started to clean behind the bar, although he kept an eye on the brunette and Yosuke would swear there was a smile on his face as he watched.

After sating his initial hunger, the brunette wiped his mouth, took a long drink of the mulled cider that he’d been given, and looked over at the waiter. “More people in here than usual.”

“Yeah.” Souji smiled. “Not many returns, though.” A small sigh; before Yosuke could respond, however, the waiter raised an eyebrow. “That reminds me. You haven’t brought your girlfriend back since that first day - I hope the food didn’t disagree with her.”

“My-?” For a second, Yosuke was confused, but then he remembered his first visit. “Oh, you mean Rise? Hah, no, she’s not my girlfriend. She’s a friend and a colleague, and I’m her producer. She’s on tour right now, or she probably would come along with me from time-to-time - she did enjoy the seafood scallopini. I mean, we did date back in high school… but man, that was a long time ago. Trust me.” He chuckled. “If I had a date, this would be the first place I’d bring them.” Or not, depending on how interested I stay in the waiter.

He’d just had this thought when he realised that Souji’s expressions had gone through quite a metamorphosis - for someone as quiet and reserved as he seemed to be, at least. He’d started out looking relieved when Yosuke said ‘not my girlfriend’, but at the ‘this would be the first place I would bring my date’ comment, he merely smiled - and it didn’t reach his eyes.

Yosuke wasn’t sure what to make of this, but he was pretty sure it was encouraging.

He’d just open his mouth to test the waters a little, say something about being single, but suddenly the doors to the kitchen opened and his attention was immediately drawn to a short, blonde young man who looked around the room frantically before dashing over to the bar.

“Sensei, sensei! I’m so sorry but I just spilled the pesto and we have four orders of flatbread, can you make another batch?”

Souji looked alarmed at this. “Of course, Ted, I’m coming now-”

Without a glance back at the brunette, he dashed off to the kitchen, followed by the worried-looking blonde, leaving Yosuke to blink at the space where the waiter (?) had just been standing.

Wait. Sensei? Make another batch of pesto? Does that mean-

Turning his attention to his stew, he stared at it as if it had answers, but it was as clueless as he was; it was still delicious, however, so he went back to eating, albeit slowly as he thought about all the reasons he had to be wrong. Instead, he found himself coming up with more reasons that he was right.

After about a quarter of an hour, the kitchen doors opened again, and Souji walked back out; he looked a little apprehensive, and when he stepped behind the bar, Yosuke raised an eyebrow.

“You’re the chef! Why didn’t you tell me?”

Here, the waiter- the chef - looked embarrassed. “It seemed important to you that the chef be a she, and I didn’t want to creep you out because of it. Sorry I’m not some cute girl.”

“Well, you’re cute, so either way I’m not put out.” Yosuke grinned as Souji turned bright red, but then the brunette hmmm’d. “But okay, I swear the first waiter we had said ‘she’!”

Souji looked puzzled, then shrugged. “Temporary waitstaff. They were mostly on-hand to get the orders down and get feedback on the meals, so I guess he made a mistake.” A chuckle. “That’s kind of funny.”

“And you did name your restaurant Nanako’s. I mean, I assumed it was the chef, but-” Yosuke braced himself, preparing for ‘that’s my girlfriend,’ especially when Souji gave a soft smile.

“Well, Nanako is my sister’s name, so-”

Oh thank god. Granted, it didn’t mean there wasn’t a girlfriend - or boyfriend - somewhere, but it was one hurdle cleared. A grim thought came at that point, however.

“She’s not, uh-” He couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence, but Souji understood, and he chuckled quietly, shaking his head.

“Oh, no. She’s studying music at the Tokyo Conservatory, like our mother did.”

This surprised the brunette. “Oh, hey! I went there.”

The smile Souji gave him at this was warm, and he nodded. “Nice! I got my culinary degree in France, but I’ve studied in a few other places, as well.”

“Yeah, I remember you mentioning that back when we were talking about the mystery chef.” Yosuke chuckled quietly. “You must really love food - all of the meals I’ve had here are amazing.”

“Thanks.” Souji responded with a quiet chuckle of his own. “I guess I love food as much as you love music.”

“Fair enough!” They laughed together, and it felt warm and comfortable. Yosuke cleared his plate, leaning back.

“So, what’s the whole deal with these Chef’s Specials and everything? How are you always out here talking to me if you’re the chef?”

“Because I’m not the only chef.” Souji nodded back at the kitchen. “I make all of the Specials, I come up with the menu, and I make the ‘unique’ ingredients each morning, like the yuzu butter, the pumpkin-seed pesto, and things like that. Ted has been studying under me for a while, and he takes care of a lot of the standard menu items; I help, of course, but my main goal is to come up with new recipes, perfect them, and eventually have enough for a cookbook, so he cooks while I work on recipes and documentation.”

“And tend the bar?” Yosuke couldn’t help but slide that comment in, and Souji turned pink again.

“I, er… don’t do that all day, you know.”

“Only certain times?”

“Only certain times.” Souji wouldn’t meet Yosuke’s eye at this, but that was okay. The brunette was already starting to feel happier than he’d expected when he came in that day, so he just smiled.

“Well, I’m more than glad for the company.” Standing, he stretched, then paid the bill; with a lighter heart and a spring in his step, he headed back to work, determined to return for a meal sooner rather than later.

Indeed, he was only able to wait for two days before going back. It was later in the afternoon, this time, and he was glad (and then guilty for feeling glad) to see that no one but Souji was in the restaurant. A smile broke across the silver-haired man’s face when Yosuke walked in, and the brunette returned the smile with one of his own. Souji hurried over as Yosuke was taking off his coat and scarf, and the brunette chuckled.

“You don’t have to meet me at the door every day, you know I’m just going to sit at the bar and talk to you and have whatever you decide you want to cook for me today.”

“Ah, well.” Souji fidgeted a bit, and Yosuke raised an eyebrow, but let him continue. “I haven’t eaten lunch yet, so I was thinking I’d make enough for both of us and join you, since there’s nobody around? We could eat at one of the tables near the kitchen, in case a customer comes in, and I can take notes at the table about your opinions instead of waiting for the end.”

At this, the brunette couldn’t stop a wide smile from crossing his face. “Absolutely, of course I’d love it if you joined me.” When he said this, the chef looked happy, and the expression made Yosuke smile even more.

“All right, okay. Grab a seat and I’ll get you a drink, and then I’ll get cooking. Do you, uh- have any requests?”

The question startled the brunette, who shook his head as he took his seat. “None. Everything you’ve cooked has been amazing, so I’d be happy to eat anything. Heck, I could probably even eat fish if you cooked it.”

Souji looked pleased at this, but shook his head in return. “I think I won’t push that yet.” He chuckled quietly. “Hot tea, or something stronger?”

“Oh, what the hell, how about another one of those hot lemonades with brandy?”

“Coming right up.”

Yosuke watched Souji behind the bar, noticing that the silver-haired man had as much of a smile on his face as he knew he had himself. He couldn’t help watching Souji’s hands as he made up the drink; Yosuke had always enjoyed watching as the man made his drinks, and now he found himself wondering how it’d be to watch him cook. He really is so skilled with his hands.

Of course, that led to dangerous territory, so Yosuke put it resolutely out of his mind. After all, we’re just getting to know each other. Finding him incredibly cute and attractive is just a bonus at the moment.

As he was thinking this, Souji carried the drink over, smiled, and then headed into the kitchen. Yosuke watched - almost wistfully, wishing he could go back and watch - but then shook his head, pulling out his tablet; he always had work he could do. And he’d felt more inspired to write lately, which meant more songs - although some of his most recent ones he wasn’t sure he wanted to let anyone record.

After about half an hour, Souji returned, carrying two plates and a basket; when he set everything down, Yosuke saw that they both had personal frittatas. He couldn’t quite see Souji’s, but his had ham and cheese and artichokes and avocado and olives and more things hidden below the drizzle of hollandaise sauce; it smelled divine, and his mouth watered as he reached for his fork.

“I’m gonna start feeling like a broken record, because this smells amazing. What’s in the basket?”

Smiling, Souji flipped the cloth open to show a half-dozen rolls, dripping with butter, and Yosuke just grinned. “I should have guessed.”

They both dug in, and Souji started taking notes immediately; Yosuke watched for a little bit, and occasionally he added a comment - “a little less hollandaise, and maybe a mix of different cheeses” - but most of the time he just ate, savouring the flavours. He might be imagining it, but he would swear that Souji’s cooking just kept getting better and better every time he came by.

As they were meandering towards the meal’s finish, Yosuke looked up. “So, you like making new recipes. Is that the reason you opened this restaurant? I get why you’d need time to focus, but I’d think that keeping business steady would also be important. I mean… Souji, these are the best meals I’ve ever eaten in my life, and I’ve had food at plenty of fancy parties and by plenty of gourmet chefs. I don’t know how you’re not swimming in customers.”

The chef looked a little embarrassed at this, and he shrugged faintly. “Honestly, the restaurant is just the means to an end for me. My final goal is to publish a cookbook with all my recipes; creating meals and learning how to combine ingredients is my favourite part of cooking, and I want to share that joy with people, let them learn at home how to do the same thing for their families. The restaurant just gives me a place for inspiration, and to have people try my recipes; after all, I could only push them on my sister so often. Don’t get me wrong - I like seeing people enjoy my food, and I respect people who have the goal of making their restaurant successful. I’d just rather cook and write.”

Yosuke laughed. “So throw parties, make people try them there.”

Souji shrugged at this. “I… have a few friends, but not many. You see that I’m not the most socially-ept person out there. I spend most of my time cooking and writing up recipes.”

“Well, either way, I’m glad you did - I mean, we never would have met, and I never would have gotten to eat absolutely amazing food.” A smile. “I just don’t want you to go out of business because then where would I get my meals? You’ve ruined me for other restaurants.” The brunette smiled, but at this, Souji looked a little embarrassed.

“Well, I mean… I’d always be glad to cook up something whenever you wanted it, even if the restaurant was gone…”

Yosuke looked startled but pleased, but before he could say anything, the door opened and a customer came in. Souji had finished his meal, anyhow, so he jumped up to go seat them; the brunette regretted that the moment was gone, but he still felt warm inside.

Is this flirting? This is totally flirting. Oh my god, we’re mutually flirting! Yes!

Over the next few weeks, Yosuke started dropping by Nanako’s nearly every other day, when he could manage it; whenever the restaurant was slow - and he most definitely tried to find the most unpopular times to go - Souji would join him, sharing whatever dish he’d made that day for the brunette. Slowly, they got to know each other, and slowly, they flirted more and more; Yosuke started slowing down a little, as soon as he realised that he was actually serious about this guy, because he could tell how shy Souji was - and of all the things he could mess up he did not want to scare him away.

Eventually, the afternoon came when Souji refused to give Yosuke the bill. “Just… consider it on the house,” he mumbled, looking embarrassed; Yosuke made a few more token attempts at getting the silver-haired man to relent, but he wouldn’t, and the brunette left that afternoon walking on clouds.

That’s gotta count as him buying me dinner. Right? Right! It’s totally a date!

It didn’t happen every time, but it happened enough, and after another week or two Yosuke decided he was going to try to at least get an answer as to whether or not the chef was single - although he was relatively certain that was the case. He spent the morning trying to figure out how to ask without being too obvious; when he finally got to the restaurant, however - a late dinner, this time, thanks to work - it turned out that it didn’t matter.

They were just sitting down to their shared meal when Souji - with an exaggerated cough and a pointed stare at his glass of water - cleared his throat. “So, uh. You’re a pretty big-name producer, from what I've seen on the internet. I guess, um… I guess you get a lot of, um… interest?”

The chef was bright red as he said this, and Yosuke put his fork down, looking amused - and feeling more than a little surprised. Oh my god, did he seriously just ask what I think he asked? Has he been looking me up online? Hiding a smile, he raised an eyebrow.

“Well, I mean, I do have a lot of people asking for me to produce their albums, but I still get to pick and choose which projects I prefer.”

“That’s not, uh-” At this point, Souji looked as if he was waiting for the ground to open up and swallow him up, and Yosuke couldn’t help but smile.

“If you’re asking if I date around because I’m relatively well-known in the industry, the answer is no. I did the celebrity thing, yeah, for about six months - back when Rise first hit her peak - but it dulled really fast. I’m not saying I don’t like people, I would just prefer to pick and choose who I spend my time with.” He smiled a bit more at the expression of relief on Souji's face. “As for dating? I tend to be really busy, so it’s going to have to be someone I’m really interested in; I’m not looking for cheap thrills and summer kicks. Living that kind of life was pretty lonely; I’d rather find someone I feel comfortable around. You know, like I could just sit down and have dinner with and talk to.”

Souji looked up quickly at this, and when he saw Yosuke smiling at him, he turned even more red than he’d already been; there was a smile playing at the corners of his mouth, though, and Yosuke couldn’t help pushing the conversation along.

“And what about you? I mean… sure, Nanako’s is named for your sister, but you’re telling me there’s nobody out there that’s caught your eye?” He took a stick of garlic bread from the basket between the two, biting into it as he watched Souji flounder for words. The silver-haired guy mumbled something about well maybe there is, but he finally shrugged.

“I thought for a long time that I was married to my work, to be honest. I was happy just cooking and thinking up new recipes. But you know, recently I’ve been thinking… maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to find somebody. I think I’m finding that putting my emotions into my meals is… making them turn out a lot better, after all.”

Yosuke smirked, looking down at the pasta on his plate. “So, is that why the food you’re serving me keeps getting more and more amazing?” Souji blushed again; he said something, and Yosuke leaned forward. “I didn’t quite catch that.”

At this, the chef looked up, giving Yosuke a half-desperate, half-annoyed smile. “I said maybe, yeah, it is.”

Yosuke laughed, but inside he felt like he’d just won a grammy. It took everything he had not to spend the rest of the meal grinning like an idiot; he changed the subject to something Souji felt more comfortable talking about, but it didn’t escape his notice that the silver-haired guy kept glancing up from time to time with a soft look on his face that made Yosuke’s toes curl.

Finally, the meal was over; the clock showed that it was nearly closing time, and Yosuke pushed aside his plate with a sigh. “That, once again, was absolutely amazing. I loved the extra spice in the sauce. And… hey. Ring me up for two meals, okay?”

For a second, Souji blinked at him; Yosuke looked at him, and he seemed to suddenly get it, blushing. “Wait, no… you don’t have to pay for me to eat my own food!”

The brunette had expected resistance, so he sighed. “Fine, then I’ll start bringing a bottle of wine whenever we eat together.”

Souji hadn’t been expecting this; he bit his lip. “But… you won’t know what I’m cooking ahead of time. I won’t know what I’m cooking ahead of time.”

They went on back and forth like this for another minute or two before Yosuke finally grit his teeth. “For goodness’ sake, am I the only one who considers these to be dates?”

This seemed to shut Souji up, as he turned bright red; after a moment, he looked down at the receipt, smiling faintly. “...No.” Without another word, he charged Yosuke for two Specials, and Yosuke handed over his card, feeling victorious and more than a little happy.

By the time it came to see the brunette out, Souji was clearly still feeling embarrassed; he pulled Yosuke’s coat off the coat rack and handed it to him, but he put a little more force than was necessary into the motion. When Yosuke got his coat on, he looked up to see the rack - a heavy-looking wooden thing - starting to teeter towards Souji, who had his back to it; the brunette grabbed the chef’s arm, jerking him backwards against his chest, just in time for the stand to fall over with a loud crash.

For a second, they stood there, Souji’s back pressed against against Yosuke’s chest; the brunette was pretty sure he could feel the taller man’s heart racing, and Souji looked horribly embarrassed.

“I- uh… thanks.” This last word was whispered so quietly that Yosuke barely heard it; he heard enough, however, and couldn’t help smiling. Giving into his impulses, he leaned forward, putting his lips to the silver-haired man’s ear, although he had to lean up to do so.

“You’re really cute,” he whispered. At these words, Souji froze; Yosuke chuckled, low in his throat, and laid the softest kiss on Souji’s earlobe before letting go. The chef pulled away, looking more embarrassed than Yosuke thought he’d ever seen; for all that he wouldn’t meet the brunette’s eyes, however, there was a smile on his face.

Laughing quietly, Yosuke finished buttoning his jacket before throwing his scarf around his neck. “Thanks for the meal, Souji. I’ll definitely be back again as soon as I can.”

“...Yeah. I’ll look forward to it.” Souji’s words were quiet, but he looked up in time to catch Yosuke’s eye as he walked out the door; as with the night Yosuke had come in so exhausted, he headed home in a taxi overly conscious of the silver eyes that were watching him drive away.

After that, things seemed to go a lot more smoothly. The flirting was more pronounced, of course - although they had to keep things semi-professional whenever there were other customers - and while there was never anything quite as forward as Yosuke kissing Souji’s ear again, they had their share of half-hugs, shoulder-leanings, and various other displays of affection.

Several weeks after the ear-kiss, Yosuke found himself mired in yet another long, drawn-out recording session. He was more than a little frustrated - he’d already made plans with Souji, after all, to have dinner together - but unlike the time before, this time wasn’t the recording artist’s fault -  not exactly.

Sighing, he pulled out his cell phone. They’d already exchanged numbers, and although they didn’t talk on the phone often - and although Yosuke texted more than Souji did (which was to be expected, given how often Souji was elbow-deep in cooking) - the brunette would occasionally open up his phone to find that the silver-haired man had sent him something short but sweet; “I miss cooking for you” or “Wish you could have come by tonight,” or “Did okay with sales, but it would have been nicer to see you here.” And then he’d get a ridiculously goofy smile on his face and feel glad that Rise was still on tour.

There were no such smiles this time. They were in a forced break - the artist had locked herself in the bathroom again, in tears, and the manager had gone to try to convince her to return to the studio - and Yosuke fired off a quick text to Souji.

I’m gunna hav 2 skip dinner, nother lonnnng session. Sry, Souj. (;﹏;)

He’d expected no response, given the fact that Souji was usually busy cooking, but he was surprised to see a return text almost immediately.

Oh. That’s a shame. Is it another diva?”

nah, this 1s just a kid who’s 2 scared 2 hit her potential, and IDK why

Tell me a bit about her.

Also, how are you feeling?

Tired. Frustrated. Wuz looking forward 2 dinner. And u.

She’s… IDK. 15? 17? Gr8 voice, but every time she gets n2 the groove, she freaks out n loses it.

There was a long break; the girl was coming back in, led by her manager, when Yosuke’s phone lit up again, and he just had a chance to see Souji’s return text.

Just hang in there, okay? Don’t overwork yourself. You looked terrible that one night.

Smiling a bit, Yosuke put the phone down. “All right, guys, let’s try again from the top.”

It still wasn’t working; Yosuke was about to just give up and call it a night - maybe I can get there before the restaurant closes - when the phone in his recording booth lit up. Answering it, he found that it was the doorman.

“Mr. Hanamura? There’s a delivery here for you. Says it’s dinner.”

Yosuke was about to retort that he hadn’t ordered dinner when he realised that… he sort of did. Smiling a bit, he sighed. “Yeah. Send it up, please.”

He left the girl talking with her manager as he went to the elevator to meet the concierge; the box was a decent-sized one, obviously with more food than for just one person, and when he looked inside there was a folded note.

Yosuke,

As if I’d let you go without eating again! There’s dinner inside for you and your protegé. I suggest taking a few minutes to talk while you’re eating; I don’t know if she’ll open up, but she might be able to tell you what’s going on.

Take care of yourself, please.

Yours,

Souji

The ‘Yours’ closing line made him grin like a fool; he managed to force it into more of a manageable smile by the time he got back into the studio. Setting the box down onto the table in the break area, Yosuke stuck his head into the room where the girl and her manager were.

“Let’s break for dinner.” The girl looked hesitantly at her manager, who nodded; they got up to go, and Yosuke held out a hand. “Hang on. I’ve got dinner here for our songbird - I don’t want the crowds downstairs to stress her out too much. I’m afraid, however, I didn’t feel confident ordering for you, ma’am; you’ve been working so hard all day, I figured you’d appreciate a break, a chance to get out and get some fresh air. We won’t start recording again for at least an hour.”

The girl’s manager started to complain at this, but Yosuke gave her a calm smile, turning on his best charm. “Ma’am, your security guard is right there.” He pointed through the glass. “And he’s on your payroll, not mine; I’m certain that if I were to even touch the dear girl, he’d have my head. Don’t worry, I promise she’ll be fine.”

It was clear that the woman didn’t want to leave, but Yosuke’s smile was so professional - and the girl herself didn’t actually seem terribly bothered by the idea - that in the end she had no choice but to leave, saying that she’d be back as soon as she could. Once she was gone, Yosuke finally exhaled; she’d been getting on his nerves all day with her constant demands, although he appreciated her efforts on behalf of his current artist.

“Come on in.” He jerked his head into the room with the table, noting that outside, the manager was talking animatedly to the security guard while gesturing at him; he just made sure to smile and wave, and then turn back to the box of food. “Grab a seat. Not sure what we’ve got here, but I am sure that it’s going to be amazing.”

Pulling the food out of the box, he found that there was a large soup container for her, along with some foil-wrapped flatbread; opening the lid, a savoury scent wafted out, and they both perked up. “This is for you,” he said, reading the lid. “It’s… mild curried butternut squash soup with root vegetables and coconut cream.” Raising an eyebrow, he looked at her. “Got any allergies?”

She shook her head, and he nodded, handing her a spoon. “It’s a good choice. Milk would wreck your throat, but coconut cream doesn’t have that problem. And the heat will be good for your vocal cords. Just don’t force yourself to eat any more than you want, okay?”

The girl nodded, digging in, and Yosuke turned to his own container; sage and green-tea encrusted pork loins broiled with bacon, grilled peppers and zucchini, and peppercorn-cream gravy with rice. A homey meal, but comforting, and he had to tighten his grip on his fork for just a moment as he was overwhelmed by a sudden feeling of missing Souji, more than he’d expected. After a moment, he reached for the short note, skimming it again before smiling to himself.

Already several spoonfuls in - if Yosuke had to guess, she liked the soup - the girl looked up at him. “This from your girlfriend?”

“Boyfriend,” he said, smiling as he set the box aside. “He runs a restaurant nearby.” He briefly wondered what Souji would think about him using the word boyfriend, but he argued with himself. He did agree that these are dates! And if we’re dating, that makes him my boyfriend. The brunette’s response seemed to be enough for the girl, anyhow; she just nodded and continued eating.

“It’s good.”

“Yeah. His food is really great.” Yosuke dug into his meal, enjoying every bite; after a few minutes, however, he looked over.

“So, what’s got you so worried? I mean… it doesn’t bother me that we’re not getting anywhere - you can’t even imagine the clients I’ve had, and I have faith that you’ll find your sweet spot. But I can tell something’s stressing you out. Wanna share?”

With a troubled expression, the girl looked at her soup. She didn’t say anything for a while, and Yosuke assumed she wasn’t going to, but eventually she shook her head. “I’m scared. She-”

“She, your manager?”

A nod. “She always tells me I’m perfect, I need to be perfect, I need to stay perfect. And then she watches me, and I just… whenever I hit the right notes, I get so worried that the next ones aren’t going to be exact, and then it’s like everything runs together and I drop the whole song and…”

Her face crumpled, and Yosuke frowned, pushing a napkin over to her. “Hey, I understand. And, for the record, I’d pat your back but I’m pretty sure your security guy would take my arm off and I kind of need it to work, not to mention to eat and shower.”

He was rewarded by a smile and small giggle at this, and the girl grabbed the napkin and wiped her eyes. Meanwhile, Yosuke was staring into his meal container, thinking.

“Was she always like this?”

“No, it used to not be so bad. I mean, she’s always been… strict. But it got a lot worse when we started talking about recording an album.”

Classic overbearing manager. Yosuke sighed. “I understand. I’ve seen it more times than you can count. Let me ask you this, then. Would it bother you if she didn’t come back in for the rest of the session tonight?”

The girl looked at him, wide-eyed, and he gave her time to think about it. He finished up his meal at about the same time she did - he’d been starving, and Souji’s food always hit the spot - and as he took the empty containers from her to throw away, she took a deep breath and nodded.

“I want to try.”

Grinning, Yosuke looked outside, and then nodded. “Well, then, let’s go ahead and get started! Given the crowds in the cafeteria - or even worse if she went out - I don’t expect her to be back for another hour or more, so let’s see what we can get through before she gets back. And don’t worry, she won’t be coming back in tonight, no matter what.” He held out a fist, and after a moment looking at it, and then at him, she shyly bumped it with her own fist, and then giggled.

Chapter Text

~ring ring~

C’mon, the restaurant should be closed now, so pick-

~click~ “Hello?”

Yosuke felt his mood - which had already been better - lift just from the sound of Souji’s voice, and he filed that revelation away to examine later; on the phone wasn’t the time for emotional soul-searching. Instead, he just smiled.

“Hey there. I just wanted to thank you for dinner. It was - as always - absolutely amazing. My client loved it, too.”

There was the softest hint of a chuckle on the other end of the line - Yosuke could see the expression he knew the chef was making at that moment, and it was wonderful - and Souji’s voice came back over the line.

“Well, I’m glad. You’re not going to end up starving yourself again if I have anything to say about it.” There was a pause. “Did it go okay?”

“Yeah! It was all a case of overbearing manager; we managed to shake the stifling mama hen off for a couple of hours and get some good recording in, and given the results she couldn’t very well say it wasn’t working. I called the label execs and they’re going to make sure she stays out of the studio for the rest of the sessions - which, thanks to you, should be a lot smoother and go a lot more quickly. I might even be able to make it in tomorrow or the next day for dinner!”

“I didn’t do anything, really.” Souji’s laugh was soft, and Yosuke really wished he was there in person to see it. “But if it means you’ll be coming in sooner, I’m glad. It was a slow night.”

“You did do something, but I’m not going to argue with you.” The brunette laughed. “And I’m sorry I wasn’t there to liven up the evening. I’ll text you the next time I think I’ll be able to come in. Deal?”

“Deal. And, uh… well, you don’t have to wait until then to text, you know, if you don’t want to…”

Souji sounded a bit nervous, and Yosuke couldn’t stop grinning.

“Don’t worry, I won’t. And, well… I have a little confession to make.”

“...oh?” The voice on the other end of the line sounded hesitant, and Yosuke took a deep breath.

“I called you my boyfriend earlier when she asked who made the food. I hope that’s okay. I really don’t want it to be a lie.”

He waited, as there was a moment of dead silence from Souji; suddenly, the silver-haired man was stuttering, and Yosuke couldn’t stop grinning.

“I, uh, well, uuh n-n-no, of course that’s- that’s fine, if that’s… yeah. If you’re okay with that, I mean, yeah. Uh. I really-” There was a faint beeping in the background, and Souji sounded relieved. “I really have to go, but I hope- I hope you can come by soon.”

The brunette, whose smile was so big he was surprised he could actually speak, laughed. “All right. Good night, Souji. I look forward to seeing you soon.”

When the call was over, he stared at his phone for several minutes. I’m so head-over-heels for this dork. It’s nice to know he feels the same way, at least a little bit.

A couple of weeks later, Yosuke stopped by the restaurant late one evening only to find that there was already a closed sign on the door; frowning, he was about to turn away when he saw, in the dimly-lit interior, Souji sitting at the bar, looking depressed. Putting his hand on the door, he shook it gently, trying to get his boyfriend’s attention.

Souji looked up, startled; when he saw the brunette standing outside, he walked over, unlocking the door. “Hey. Sorry. Come on in. I didn’t know you were coming by tonight, so…”

“No, it’s fine. I should have texted you, but I got out of work earlier than I expected. What’s wrong, though?” Yosuke followed Souji back over to the bar, waiting for a moment as he turned up the lights a bit.

“Just… I don’t think it’s working out.”

“-wait, what? You don’t think what’s working out?” A panicked feeling immediately flooded Yosuke’s chest, but at his voice, Souji looked up, an alarmed expression on his face.

“Oh! No, not that, not… us… but… this.” He gestured to the restaurant. He’d been losing customers steadily, between his lack of early advertisements and new restaurants opening up in the area for spring; he’d even made a few changes - brought in a piano, had music on some nights, started taking out ads in the papers - but it hadn’t seemed to work. The few reviews the restaurant got weren’t bad, but they weren’t stellar. The chef sighed. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“Hey, no, it’s okay.” Yosuke took a seat next to him as Souji pushed over a folded newspaper, one of the circulars that was published in the shopping areas about the nearby restaurants and stores. The brunette skimmed it, shaking his head; it mentioned Souji’s amazing special recipes, but noted that the rest of the menu was merely ‘okay’.

“That’s bullshit, for one, but for the other… those are your personal recipes. I think Teddie just isn’t the right person to cook them.”

“I know.” Souji sighed. “He’s a really good cook, but nobody does well when they’re trying to channel someone else’s inspiration. But I can’t- I can’t spend all of my time in the kitchen, or I’ll never have a chance to work on what I really want to do. I just…”

Sighing, he sank his head into his hands, and Yosuke slid his stool closer, running a hand soothingly up the silver-haired man’s back before gently rubbing his shoulder. “Hey. Why’d you start this restaurant in the first place?”

Souji looked up at him. “I told you. I wanted a chance to develop my own recipes so that I could publish a cookbook.”

“Yep.” Yosuke nodded at this. “You started it as a vehicle to create, not because you wanted a restaurant, or because you wanted it to be successful. It’s been some time, you know; do you think you have enough recipes?”

The chef was about to shake his head, but then he paused, thinking. “I… might. I mean… I don’t know, but… I don’t know. Maybe I should just focus on my book.”

He looked lost and frustrated, and Yosuke just wanted to see him smile. Sliding his arm around Souji’s shoulders, he was happy to see that his boyfriend didn’t even hesitate to lean in, resting against the brunette’s side; taking a deep breath, Yosuke leaned over to catch Souji’s eye.

“Hey. You’ll figure it out, you know? We’ll figure it out. This restaurant isn’t your end goal, and people love your one-off dishes. Your book will be amazing, just like your food.”

Souji gave him a small smile, but then sighed again. “You know, you’re really the only one that orders that any more, though. It’s so rare for anybody else to.”

“Well, I love your cooking.” He paused, looking at Souji, and bit his lip. “You know…” He realised that he’d lowered his voice, and took a deep breath. “It’s not the only thing I love.”

As Souji, looking stunned, stared up at him with a wide-eyed expression, Yosuke stood up from the stool. “Hey, come here.” He held out his hand; when his boyfriend took it, the brunette led him over to the piano, where he took a seat. Touching a few keys, he made sure the instrument was still in tune before thinking for a moment. Souji, meanwhile, stood next to the piano with the same wide-eyed look of uncertainty; there was an undercurrent of hope to it, and it gave Yosuke courage.

Putting his hands to the keys, he started to play a slow, sweet little tune; he’d been toying with it for the last few days, and while it wasn’t complete, he liked it. Smiling up at Souji, he softly sang a few lines about falling in love, making up the words as he went. He knew his voice wasn’t the best, but it was passable, and as he sang, Souji grew more and more flustered. Finally, Yosuke stopped, smiling, and turned to his boyfriend.

“That’s about you, you know.”

Souji’s face was bright red at this, and he had a hand over his face, trying to hide it, but he looked so happy, and Yosuke reached out, standing up as he pulled Souji close. He hesitated just for a moment, to give the silver-haired man a chance to pull away or ask him to stop, but the look on Souji’s face was so wonderful that he couldn’t help himself. Sliding a hand up to cup the back of his boyfriend’s head, he pulled Souji in for a kiss.

He’d expected Souji to be hesitant, but he wasn’t; while the kiss started out slow, it quickly heated up as Souji slid his arms around Yosuke’s waist, leaning in. Yosuke pulled him closer, pausing to catch his breath and taking the chance to trail kisses up his boyfriend’s jaw; as he did, Souji held onto him, eyes closed as he panted softly.

“I really love you, Yosuke.”

Hearing the words directly from Souji - before he’d even said them himself - made the brunette’s eyes widen; he felt himself turning a little pink himself as he smiled, gently placing his forehead against Souji’s.

“I love you, too. And hearing that… makes me so happy.”

Souji was following his lips with his eyes, and the expression made Yosuke so hungry that he leaned in for another kiss; this one was deep and sweet, and after a while, Souji pulled back, his voice rough.

“My apartment is upstairs. Come up?”

He didn’t have to ask twice. Yosuke wrapped an arm around the silver-haired man’s waist, following him up the stairs that lead up from the kitchen; even as they walked, Yosuke had Souji’s hand in his own, kissing along his wrist, sucking gently, causing his boyfriend to inhale, shakily. As Souji paused to unlock his apartment door, Yosuke nuzzled the back of his neck.

Yosuke didn’t even have a chance to look around the apartment; Souji was already pulling him down the hall and through a door, sliding his hands into the brunette’s back pockets to tug him close, and Yosuke started to kiss and suck at Souji’s throat, and the noise his boyfriend was making at this was amazing, and the brunette never, ever wanted it to stop.

Laying in bed in the darkened room several hours later, Yosuke - who had his head pillowed on Souji’s arm as the silver-haired man wrapped another around his waist so that they could talk quietly to each other - took a deep breath. Souji smelled like spices, and it was such a comforting scent, and they were talking about everything and nothing - but most importantly, about spending more time together, although Yosuke was currently sorting through some ideas of his own - and the moment was absolutely perfect.

Perfect, that was, until his stomach decided to growl.

Yosuke froze, turning bright red; Souji - who’d been in the middle of saying something - stopped, and looked at the brunette, and then started to laugh. It was a bright, happy laugh, and after a few moments Yosuke couldn’t help but join in; after they’d both had their moment, Souji chuckled, poking his boyfriend’s cheek.

“You came in for dinner, didn’t you? And we haven’t eaten.”

“We were busy. I’m not complaining.” Yosuke grinned, kissing Souji’s finger, and the silver-haired man laughed again.

“That’s fair, but I think I can do something about that now. Want me to cook something? I could stand to eat, too - I never had dinner.”

The brunette brightened at this. “Does this mean I get to watch you cook?”

Chuckling softly, Souji nodded, sitting up as he turned on the bedside lamp. “Yeah, if you want. It’s nothing special, though.”

“I beg to differ.” Feeling around at the foot of the bed, Yosuke grabbed his shirt and pulled it on. “I always liked watching you use your hands. And I can understand why, now.”

Souji turned red at this, giving Yosuke a look, and the brunette laughed, and they headed for the kitchen. Looking around, Yosuke raised an eyebrow. “It’s really small.”

“Yeah.” Souji shrugged, leaning over to dig through the fridge. Pulling out a carton of eggs and a handful of other ingredients, he straightened up. “Another reason I was happy having the restaurant downstairs - there’s only so much I can do in here. It’s nice for late-night snacks, though.” He smiled at Yosuke before turning to start cracking eggs into a bowl.

As he worked, the brunette - wearing a t-shirt and boxers - leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms. He tried to stay out of his boyfriend’s way - occasionally, Souji would ask him to hand over a utensil or something off one of the spice racks - but he found himself grateful he was finally getting the chance to watch Souji cook.

Granted, Yosuke knew that the view was enhanced by the fact that Souji was only wearing a pair of pajama pants - he wasn’t that stupid. But the chef was every bit as confident with his work as Yosuke had expected after watching him mix drinks, and the brunette found himself entranced.

I would be happy to see this every day for the rest of my life.

The thought didn’t surprise him, although he refrained from voicing it, at least for now. Meanwhile, Souji spoke occasionally, explaining what he was doing or what ingredients he was using, and Yosuke couldn’t help - at one point, when he knew that he wouldn’t distract the chef - leaning over to kiss Souji’s shoulder. The motion surprised the silver-haired man, who blinked, but then turned his head and smiled at Yosuke, and Yosuke was happy.

Dinner was western-style omelettes and hotcakes with jam and clotted cream; when it was finished, they sat down together to eat - close enough that they could lean across the corner of the table for kisses whenever they wanted - and, as always, the food was amazing. The brunette polished off the omelette in short order; he was just finishing up his hotcakes when he looked up to see that Souji had made short work of his food as well. Smirking, Yosuke leaned over.

“You have jam on your mouth.”

Looking embarrassed, Souji reached for a napkin; he got some of it, but not all of it, and when he raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend, Yosuke chuckled.

“Nope.” Reaching out, Yosuke pulled him in, licking the spot of jam off before giving him a slow - and very sweet - kiss; Souji just sighed happily, leaning in as he wrapped his arms around the brunette, tugging him closer.

The next morning, the brunette was awake before his boyfriend; he’d been thinking about something all night, and he couldn’t help feeling nervous. It was probably the most nervous he’d ever been, but that’s because there was a lot riding on what he was about to do.

Souji woke up with a slow, sleepy smile; when he turned and saw Yosuke next to him in bed, the smile just got wider, and Yosuke couldn’t keep himself from reaching out to brush his boyfriend’s tousled silver hair off his forehead.

“Morning.”

“Morning.” Souji stretched, and then rolled over to prop himself up on one elbow. “How’d you sleep?”

“Pretty well.” The brunette chuckled quietly. “Been up for a while, though. Thinking about some things.”

“Oh?” Souji stilled a little, although Yosuke could tell he was trying not to seem worried. “Anything I can help with?”

“Yeah.” Giving a warm smile to hopefully allay some of his boyfriend’s fears, Yosuke scooted a little closer, reaching down to rest a hand on Souji’s hip. “I’ve been thinking, and… I want you to move in with me. My house is… big enough for the both of us, I’ve got a really nice kitchen, and it’s just a really great space, I think you’d be happy writing your book there.”

Souji froze at this, looking stunned; he searched Yosuke’s face, as if trying to see if the brunette really meant what he was saying. He must have seen the truth there, because he exhaled heavily, rolling over onto his back.

“I- wow. That’s, uh- that’s… huge.”

“Yeah. I- I’m sorry. I know it’s big, and sudden, and I don’t want you to feel pressured. I really care about you, but this isn’t a make or break issue, and...” Crap, I really hope I haven’t ruined this, please don’t let me have ruined this, I-

But then Souji was speaking again. “I don’t hate the idea.” His voice was quiet as he rolled back over to look at Yosuke. “To be honest, I really missed you the last month or two, whenever you weren't around. I just didn’t know if I was moving too fast, or…” He took a deep breath. “I can’t just jump in and say yes, there are things to think about, and I’d like to at least see your place before I decide-”

“Of course! Yeah, sorry, I didn’t mean you had to say yes right now.” Yosuke hesitated before reaching down to hold Souji’s hand, and he was rewarded when the silver-haired man squeezed back.

“Yeah. Thanks. But in the end… you were right. I don’t need the restaurant, it was the means to an end, and this apartment I could take or leave - I only had it because it was upstairs. And I like the idea of being able to cook a lot more meals for you. If I don’t have enough recipes, I’d come up with them quickly enough.”

They both smiled at this, and Yosuke exhaled. “So, you’ll think about it, but you feel positive?”

“Yeah.” Souji smiled, and the brunette leaned over for a kiss.

“Then what say we head over this morning? I don’t really need to be in the office for any reason today. I can just as easily take the day off.”

“And I really have no reason not to close the restaurant. I really wouldn’t expect more than a handful of customers, if even that.” Nodding, Souji sat up, stretching. “Then… go ahead and get your shower, and I’ll make breakfast.”

Several hours later - Yosuke had managed to convince Souji to take a shower with him and that had delayed breakfast until it might have well have been lunch - they found themselves climbing out of a taxi on a quiet street along the ocean. Souji was looking around, wide-eyed.

“Wait, you live… on the bay?”

“Yeah.” Yosuke chuckled a bit. “When you make a decent living and you don’t blow everything partying, you can afford this sort of thing.” He lead the way up to the door of a large, single-floor house overlooking the water; there were huge windows everywhere - almost the entire oceanfront side of the house was glass - and it was spacious and modern. Unlocking the door, he ushered Souji in.

He’d expected his boyfriend to be surprised - after all, he’d always downplayed his career and finances, as he did whenever he dealt with anyone, so as to not be treated differently because of it - but as he led Souji into the kitchen, he wasn’t expecting his boyfriend to freeze, looking alarmed.

“It’s- I can’t live here! It’s too big, it’s too nice!”

Feeling panic start in the pit of his stomach, Yosuke turned, moving back to Souji’s side. “Wait- wait, what? Souji, what do you mean? I mean, hell, if anything I was worried you’d only say yes because of my kitchen -” here he laughed, trying to make light of the joke and ease his anxiety “- but I didn’t expect you to say no because of it. What do you mean ‘it’s too nice’?” He put an arm around his boyfriend’s shoulders, and was grateful when Souji leaned into it instead of pushing him away.

“I… it’s just… too much. I can’t be such a burden, or take so much from you, and I-”

“Hey.” Yosuke wrapped both arms around Souji, who just moved closer; the fact that his boyfriend wasn’t running away comforted him, and he could understand that the chef was probably afraid of being thought of as a freeloader. “Hey. I bought this place because I intended to share it with someone some day - and it just so happens that I’ve decided that the person I want to share it with is you, if you'll have me.” He put a hand on Souji’s cheek, searching the silver-haired man’s face; at his words, Souji had relaxed a little, although he still looked upset. Rubbing his thumb gently along his boyfriend’s jaw, Yosuke pulled him into a slow, sweet kiss to try to get his feelings across.

When he finally pulled away, he found that Souji seemed calmer, and the brunette smiled at him. “I love you, Souji. Please, at least think about it? You can write here, and cook here, and we can even make taste-testing parties a thing. And I can think of any number of people who would fall over each other to get in line to get a chance at amazing, one-of-a kind meals, especially if they were created especially for the attendees.” Souji smiled weakly at this, and Yosuke softly bumped their foreheads together. “You could sell the restaurant and pay rent, or pay for food, or whatever, if it would make you feel better. And if it worries you… I’ve never lived here with anybody else before you, and I don’t intend for there to ever be an ‘after you’ to worry about.”

At this, Souji blushed, and Yosuke smiled softly, leaning in for another kiss. Afterwards, Souji sighed, still looking a little conflicted - although not nearly so much as he had been to begin with - and the brunette chuckled. “I don’t even use this kitchen, you know? I microwave stuff, make coffee, sometimes I try my hand at sandwiches or scrambled eggs. Which I burn, by the way. When I entertain - which is rarely - I hire a chef, although I’d never feel the need to do that again. When I date, well… I go to your restaurant.” He gave Souji a meaningful grin at this, and the silver-haired man blushed harder. “I would be so, so happy to see you in here every day, as long as I’m the one you’re cooking for, and as long as I’m the only one inspiring your new recipes from now on.”

Giving a long sigh, Souji smiled. “You really have a way with words, you know? You say exactly the right things, and I- how am I supposed to say no to that?”

“Do you want to say no?” Yosuke gave him an impish grin, kissing his boyfriend's wrist, and Souji chuckled quietly.

“No, I don’t. Okay. I’ll do it - my food is so much better when I cook for you, I don't ever want to give that up. I love you, Yosuke.”

“I love you, too, Souji.”

Souji sold the restaurant - Teddie bought it from him, wanting to start his own restaurant, cooking what made him the most comfortable, and Souji and Yosuke wished him all the best. To the brunette’s great satisfaction, they moved in together shortly after; Souji was a bit nervous in his new home - and new kitchen - at first, but he soon grew comfortable and found that it was even easier to come up with new recipes when he was cooking for Yosuke every day. The taste-testing parties were a great hit (Rise insisted on being invited to every one of them), and soon Souji found that he had people commissioning recipes and menus from him - everyone wanted something unique for their dinner parties or events - and after a while he finally felt comfortable about not being a ‘freeloader’ on Yosuke’s generosity.

The brunette - who had a studio at the house - started to work from home more often; he even recorded his own stuff, here and there, although he never had any intention to go public with any of it. While Yosuke worked, Souji would write his cookbook, and eventually Chef’s Special: Food from the Heart was finished. It was a resounding success - if not globally acclaimed, popular enough to warrant sequels and a handful of television appearances here and there.

Not that either of them were complaining - more volumes meant more new recipes, and Souji never got sick of cooking for Yosuke, just like the brunette never got sick of eating his boyfriend’s cooking.