Restaurant

@♦ Jongin Jinki nodded when the waiter left the table, giving Jongin's shoulder a little squeeze. "I know, we haven't. There's been so much going on, so we haven't really had the time, but I'll try to prioritise some alone time with each of you in the future. I want you both to be happy, always," he said, pressing a kiss to Jongin's hair.

@ρ Jinki Jongin ordered a glass of white wine for himself as well as the steak dish that looked good. He thanked the waiter and smiled as he leaned his head against Jinkis shoulder. "That sounds like a great idea. I just want to spend some quite time together, I feel like we haven't had enough of that." he explained, he loved Kai so much but it liked the idea of spending some quiet alone time with Jinki.

@♦ Jongin Jinki's smile turned a little softer when Jongin snuggled closer. He gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, also not caring if anybody looked at them. He wanted to enjoy spending time with his boyfriend, and if anybody had a problem with that, they could just look away. "That sounds really wonderful. We can bring some blankets so we won't get cold," he said. He didn't mind that kind of low key activities at all, especially not when it was with Jongin. When the waiter came a moment later to take their orders, Jinki ordered the food and a glass of white wine to go with the salmon before asking Jongin what he would like to drink.

@ρ Jinki "Alright, perfect," Jongin nodded and set his menu down so he could snuggle back up against Jinki and just be comfortable and happy. He didn't really care if people were staring at them, he would let them stare he could care less. After everything they had all been through, Jongin felt like they deserved to be able to just enjoy each other. The rest of the world would just get over it. Jongin sat up a little to kiss Jinki's cheek. "After dinner, after we drop off Kai's food we should go to the park or something. Watch the fireflies and maybe stargaze after that..." he suggested. He'd always wanted to but he never suggested it because he knew Kai would be bored by something like that. Kai was still binging on having his own life, he wanted to keep himself constantly busy. Jongin figured it would be a while before Kai calmed down enough to be able to enjoy simple things again.

@♦ Jongin Jinki nodded in agreement. "Steak and salmon sound good," he agreed, reading over what the steak dish consisted of. It really did sound great. He wrinkled his nose a little at the octopus though. "If you think he'll like it, we can order that. I won't be trying it, though, not even if he tries to make it at home," he said. There was just something creepy about octopi that didn't sit well with him, but he didn't mind ordering it for Kai if Jongin thought he'd like it. "But yes, we can wait until the end of the dinner and order it then so it's still warm when we get back."

@ρ Jinki "I like salmon, when it's cooked right," Jongin nodded and hummed before pointing to a steak dish that sounded heavenly. "What do you think? Steak and salmon?" He asked, smiling a little as he looked over the options again. "Honestly? I think he'd love the octopus dish. You know how he likes weird foods. He'd probably love it and demand we buy octopus at the store next week," he said, giggling softly and shaking his head a little bit. "I think that would be best, but lets wait to order the octopus if we can? So it will still be warm when we bring it back to him?" He suggested, he didn't want Kai to end up with cold food, or be forced to reheat it because Kai hated reheating food.

@♦ Jongin "I don't know if it's really a to go place, but we can order three dishes and then get the leftovers packed up and bring it home to him," he said, looking over the menu again. "I think the salmon looks really delicious. Do you like salmon?" He didn't want that to be one of the dishes if Jongin didn't like it, even if it looked really good. "It all looks so good. What do you think Kai would like?" It would probably delight the former doppelganger to get such fancy food, if for nothing else, then to try to break down the ingredients so he could copy the dish at a later time.

@ρ Jinki "No..." Jongin admitted with a groan and a soft pout. He rested his head on Jinki's shoulder and picked up the menu again to look it over. "Everything sounds so good, except the snails... that whole idea just sounds gross to me..." he admitted, he wasn't sure if he was in the mood for chicken, steak, sea food, or something else entirely. He sighed and looked up at Jinki. "What do you think? My stomach wants to order one of everything and I'm pretty sure it can't eat that much. Should we order something to go for Kai?" He asked, thinking that Kai might like one of the more exotic options on the menu. With his new obsession with cooking fully renewed Kai was probably at home experimenting right now, or practicing choreography. He seemed to have just become his explosion of activity and Jongin was exhausted just watching him most days.

@♦ Jongin Jinki smiled, already knowing that. He supposed it was natural when you had constant access to each other's thoughts and emotions, but he did think talking it out would benefit the two anyway. "You don't have to apologise, my love. I was the one bringing it up," he said, wrapping an arm around Jongin when he sat down beside him. "Of course it is. I like being close to you too," he replied with a smile, leaning in and pressing a kiss to his cheek. If they hadn't been in public, Jinki would have unfolded his wings and wrapped one around the younger, but sadly that was a no-go when the room was full of people. "So, did you decide what you wanted to order?" he asked, still not having made up his mind. He figured they could discuss what they wanted, since they would be sharing anyway.

@ρ Jinki Jongin nodded and smiled. "I guess, maybe. We really don't talk all that much," he admitted, biting his lip before he smiled again. "Alright, let's not worry about it anymore. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring Kai up into our date." He said. He stood up and moved around so he could sit next to Jinki, leaning against his side. "I don't like how formal it feels, I like being close to you, is that okay?" He asked, glancing up at Jinki a bit uncertainly. It was strange to him sometimes, to have nothing to go on when it came to being with Jinki other than what he was directly told. He felt blind somehow. It was fine with strangers that he didn't want to be close to, but he wanted to be close to Jinki.

@♦ Jongin Jinki gave Jongin's hand a gentle squeeze. "Even if you try to hide it, he will still know, sweetie. I know that you know everything about each other and are deeply connected, but maybe you need to actually sit down and talk it out this time. I know it seems weird, but maybe it will help you understand each other and find a solution so you can both be happy and comfortable," he said. He had no clue if it would help, but it was worth a try. "If there is anything I can do, you have to tell me, okay? I don't want to lose either of you and I don't want one of you to go around being unhappy because you want the other to be happy."

@ρ Jinki "It's just... Kai knows everything I think and feel even if it's something small and unimportant, or like an impulse thought. I can't exactly hide things from him and it's difficult because the things he does and says tends to make me uncomfortable and when he senses that he pulls himself back." Jongin tried to explain, feeling like he was failing. He wasn't very good at explaining when it came to Kai. Without just being able to show Jinki, Jongin was struggling with the proper words."Like Kai just feels like he has to pull back if I'm uncomfortable, and I really appreciate that because I know he cares about me, but I also know it's not fair to him."

@♦ Jongin Jinki listened attentively, trying to understand what Jongin was feeling. "How are you limiting Kai by being yourself and being happy?" he asked softly, not really seeing the connection there. "I know it's a complicated situation you've both been in and maybe you'd benefit from seeing a supernatural therapist too. It's a lot to work through and I'm not sure what I can do for either of you other than be there and love you in the way each of you need it. From my point of view, Kai should be able to live and be himself completely without you pulling completely away from everything, but I don't know the finer details, so I'm sorry if that's ignorant of me."

@ρ Jinki "I know, I know, I do..." Jongin sighed and smiled, squeezing Jinki's hand slightly. "It's not... I guess it's just really difficult for me to explain." He admitted, wondering if he could even put into words the complicated mess of emotions he felt whenever Kai was involved. "I feel... guilty I think." He what he finally settled on, it was deeper than that and much more complicated but that was the most simply way he could think to explain it. "Because I've spent so many years being the one who ultimately decided what to do, what we said, where we went, who we talked to, who we didn't. I feel like I shouldn't be limiting Kai now because he spent so many years completely limited by me, it's not fair to do it now. He deserves to be himself to fullest extent that he wants to be. Without me there to put limits on him again."

@♦ Jongin Jinki put the menu down and reached over the table to take Jongin's hand in his again. He could feel Jongin's insecurities bubbling to the surface and that hadn't been his intention with the meal. "You know, even if you started out being the same person, you aren't anymore. There's bound to be frustrations and anger and confusion. It completely okay to feel overwhelmed and in over your head. Kai is very... loud, but that doesn't mean I don't want to hear what you have to say too. If you think Kai is going overboard and not listening enough to you, I'll talk to him about it. I want the both of you to be happy and comfortable in this relationship. And I want to be better at listening to you so I can give you what you need and not just give Kai what he needs. It will take time to figure out how to make this work seamlessly, but I believe we can do it," he said, lacing their fingers together.

@ρ Jinki "Oh, I see..." Jongin nodded slowly and sent Jinki a brief but grateful smile. "Thank you, I sincerely appreciate that." He admitted. He hated having to say that he was overwhelmed because he knew he shouldn't be. Kai had been a part of his life since he was a child, he would always love Kai more than anything in the world but that didn't always mean that tolerating him was easy. They frustrated each other to no end, when they fought it was usually not a small affair, and Kai was always louder, stronger, and more over bearing and Jongin always cracked because he just couldn't. It was difficult. Jongin loved Jinki, but it was hard to just simply be with him because Kai always had other ideas, other desires, and other expectations of their time together. Jongin wasn't a very ual person, he didn't really care all that much for , but Kai... And Kai always got what Kai wanted. Which left Jongin feeling in over his head, sometimes he just wanted quiet cuddle time, and Kai didn't know the meaning of that. "I'm sorry we're so difficult. I thought things would be easier now but... They're just the same level of frustration, actually it's almost worse now. Sometimes I wonder if Kai and I even can get along..."

@♦ Jongin Jinki looked over the menu as well and gave a little hum. "Yeah, I think that'd be a good idea. There's so many things I want to try," he chuckled, eyes going from one course to the next. Most of them looked really delicious. He looked up at Jongin over the menu and sent him a little smile. "You haven't been acting more off than usual, I just thought we could use a little you and me time. I know it can be a bit much to deal with me and Kai at the same time. So I thought we could spend a little time without you feeling overwhelmed, since stress isn't good for you," he said. He wasn't sure it was the right way to say it, but he was a little worried and also a little selfish; Jongin and Kai always had each other, so he would take what time he could get with them seperatly.

@ρ Jinki Jongin sat back to look over the menu, trying very hard to indore the prices on the options and actually go by what sounded good. "Do you think we should order and split?" He asked, a lot of the menu items looked really good, and he wasn't sure what he wanted most. He knew what he wanted to drink though and he ordered a glass of white wine. It always amused him because Kai liked red wine, he always said the white was too sweet. While Jongin thought the red was too bitter. "So, what brought about this desire to spoil me? Have I been acting off or something?" He asked, wondering just how much of his discomfort Jinki had been able to pick up on. He knew he couldn't hide from Kai, but he'd been trying his best to make it less obvious for Jinki. Not because he wanted to lie, only because he hadn't wanted Jinki to worry.

@♦ Jongin Jinki sent Jongin a soft smile. He knew he was stressing at the moment and he knew Jongin still got easily overwhelmed when they were together all three of them. While Jinki enjoyed being with both of them at the same time, he tried to be attentive to when it got too much for Jongin. Usually Kai knew it first, for obvious reasons, but Jinki did his best to tune in as well. "Wine sound good," he agreed, opening the menu to look it over and see what they had to offer.

@ρ Jinki Jongin sighed softly but smiled and squeezed Jinkis hand. "Thank you," he said softly. He honestly been doing a lot of stressing lately and he wasn't sure how much more he could handle. He wasn't necessarily feeling excluded from the relationship, just awkward in it. He loved Jinki, and he loved Kai, but he couldn't always handle them both together. It was always a little too much and a little too intense. "I don't know what I'm going to get yet, but I definitely think I want wine with it."

@♦ Jongin "You're welcome, love," Jinki said with a smile, giving Jongin's waist a light squeeze as the were led to their table. He thanked the host and held out the chair for Jongin before sitting down as well. "He did," Jinki laughed, reaching across the table to take Jongin's hand in his. "So I decided to splurge a little and spoil you. After all, we only live once, and I thought we could use a fancy date night. Don't worry about finances or work tonight, okay?" he said, stroking the back of Jongin's hand with his thumb.

@ρ Jinki Jongin flushed but smiled at the kiss. "Yeah but..." he trailed off and shook his head. "I looks amazing Jinki, thank you," he said sincerely, wrapping an arm around him and smiling shyly at the host. As they were lead to their table he couldn't help admiring just how nice the restaurant really looked. He wondered why Jinki chose such an upscale place. The food would probably be amazing, but the price was sure to make him cringe a little. "Did Kai pay the rent this month?" Jongin joked, wondering how Jinki managed to squeeze a date like this into their thing budget. Both Jongin and Kai had jobs now, but it would still be a while until all their finances were actually in order and they could afford to live again.

@♦ Jongin "I probably would," Jinki chuckled in agreement, wrapping an arm around Jongin's waist and pulling him a little closer. "It's true for me," he said, leaning in to peck Jongin's lips. He followed him inside, looking around as well. It did look expensive, but it also looked very nice, and he was determined to spoil Jongin today. "Nothing is too good for my boyfriend," he said, gently bopping his nose against Jongin's cheek before turning his attention to the host. "I have a reservation. Lee Jinki."

@ρ Jinki "You'd need more than your wings to stop him," Jongin pointed out with a laugh, his cheeks flushing red at the compliment. "Yeah... right, but thanks, even if it's not true." He smiled softly and looked at the restaurant, nodding his head. "Yeah, let's go." He opened the door and stepped inside. "Oh wow, this place looks expensive..." he said, his eyes widening a little bit.

@♦ Jongin "I know, he can be quite... insistant. I'm just waiting for the day he tries to force me in a pair of leather pants and give me matching eyeliner... I might use my wings as a defence then," he laughed, glad to see Jongin's happiness. "It's not as beautiful as you are," he said, well aware that it was super cheesy and honestly not really caring; if he could make Jongin smile it would be worth it. "Shall we go inside?"

@ρ Jinki "Yeah, Kai really does this whole edgy y look a lot better than me. I don't have the confidence for it," Jongin agreed with a soft laugh, he hugged Jinki back and smiled. "It's okay though, you know how Kai is, he wasn't going to let me leave until I met his standards." He smiled brighter as he took the rose, sniffing it and twirling it between his fingers. "It's beautiful Jinki! Thank you."

@♦ Jongin Jinki was a little stunned when he saw Jongin, as he looked more like Kai than himself right now. He also looked a little uncomfortable. "Hi," Jinki greeted, stepping forward to pull him into a hug, placing a kiss on his cheek as he did. "You look good. Different, but not bad. I like it better when you look comfortable though," he said, wanting to make sure Jongin didn't understand his words as 'you should always look like this' or 'Kai is hotter than you'. "I bought you a rose," he said with a little smile, holding the flower out to the younger.

@ρ Jinki Jongin finally stumbled out of the house, he'd been dressed, redressed, his hair styled and even eyeliner put on. Kai hadn't let him out of the house until he looked 'absolutely able". Jongin felt nervous as he walked towards the restaurant Jinki had asked to meet him at. He had something of an idea what was going on, but he wasn't entirely sure what the intention was. Why Jinki wanted to take him to a restaurant all of a sudden. He finally spotted Jinki waiting for him waved to him with a relieved smile. He was starting to get lingering looks from people and he was not comfortable with it. "Hi, sorry it took me so long... Kai decided I didn't look good enough when I tried to leave the first time."

@♦ Jongin Jinki was a little nervous. He had asked Jongin to meet him downtown, near the restarant he had reserved a table at, with a single red rose. He was hoping to spend a romantic evening with his insecure boyfriend so he could shower him in love and spoil him a little. He wasn't sure why he was nervous, but he hoped Jongin would like the date. It was a bit of a splurge, but Jinki thought the younger was definitely worth it. Now all he could do was wait for Jongin to show up so he could show him the surprise date they were going to have if things went well.