Chapter Text
The bistro was busier than ever, since it was Valentine's Day and all. Rody has been constantly on his feet, catering to the patrons that had come. Rody felt like his legs and arms were ready to pop off with all the back and forth he had been doing for the past few hours. He really wished that Vincent would hire more waiters. Rody found himself being a little jealous of the couples in the restaurant, reminding him that he had planned to call Manon and ask her out on a date, but she never picked up.
He felt himself sigh after he had given a customer their order. He noticed how each time he would try and call Manon, she never picked up. At first he thought she was busy, something that he had been telling himself for comfort. However, he slowly started to think that she had changed her number, or something bad happened to her.
As he finished up the last few tables, he heard the bell chime. He looked up and saw Manon with another guy. She had her hair tied back with a black ribbon, with a dark green dress that stopped above her knees with her arms exposed, showing off her smooth skin. He felt his heart deflate, along with his cherry attitude. Rody felt himself blush a bit despite it not lasting long as he watched Manon had her arms around the guy's arm, nuzzling his shoulder.
Not wanting to have his heart ache more, he quickly cleaned up the table and went to the back. He noticed Vincent was in his usual spot, observing the cooks to make sure they didn't ruin any of the dishes. The two made eye contact, but Rody quickly grabbed the half full trash and went outside to discard the bag in the dumpster. He let out a small sigh as his body brought him to the left side, leaning against the wall.
Rody felt his heart break more as he remembered when Manon had ended things with him. At the time he was devastated and didn't understand why, but the more he thought about it, the more he understood why she did what she did. He had always neglected his needs in favor of making Manon happy, even if that meant he would have little to no cash to his name. He was destroying himself in favor of making sure Manon was satisfied.
While it did take a while to come to terms with how much he was doing, it also made him try to fix his life as a way to show Manon that he has changed. He thought if he fixed his life, then she would give him another chance. It made Rody hopeful that he would get back together with the love of his life, until it felt like he had been slapped in the face by reality.
He lowered himself to the cold ground, pulling his legs close to his chest as he rested his chin on top. Manon had moved on. Those four words felt like a knife being plugged into his already bruised and broken heart. He looked up at the sky, noticing it had slowly turned to night, which meant it was almost closing time. Taking a couple of deep breaths, Rody shakily stood up and was about to open the door when it had already been pushed open, revealing Vince. The two stared at one another before Rody looked away, rubbing the back on his neck.
"H-Hey, Vince"
"Lamoree."
Vince said, his voice was cold. Rody felt himself shrink by his tone. The taller male closed the door behind him as he took out his pack of cigarettes, placing it between his lips before fetching out his lighter, making the stick burn. Rody cringed a bit as the smell infiltrated his nose.
"Why are you here?" Vince asked, the gray smoke cloud exiting his lips.
"I, uh...needed a break." Rody awkwardly chuckled. Vince nodded his head, his eyes never once leaving the redhead.
Vince noticed the shift in his waiter's demeanor when he quickly went outside. With the two of them outside alone, Vince noted how stiff the redhead was. When he saw Rody go outside, he could tell something was up. He didn't have his bright smile Vince had grown fond of. So he went to the front and saw Manon with a guy.
It did take long for Vince to connect the dots. Rody had gotten his heart shattered when he saw Manon show up with the guy, causing him to leave the situation. A common occurrence Vince had picked up on when he had Rody at his apartment to cater to his guests a while ago with a certain brown haired guest.
The same situation was happening, except it's about petty romance. Vince rolled his eyes mentally. Rody stood still, not meeting Vince's eyes. He saw how tense the shorter male was, something that didn't sit well with the chef. Vince let out a sigh as he put out his cigarette. He tapped Rody on his shoulder before heading back inside. He didn't need to see if the redhead was following, considering it was just the two of them.
"Uh, where did everyone go?"
"They left." Vince bluntly stated, heading into his office with the waiter behind him.
"But...I thought the bistro didn't close until a little bit later?"
Rody stood by the door, feeling small. He didn't know that much time had passed. At least when he was outside, it didn't feel like time flew by. Rody watched as Vince slightly cleaned up his desk before fishing out his keys. Rody moved aside to let his boss walk out, with the short male following Vince like a lost puppy.
"That's because I closed it early."
Vince explained, walking out of the bistro. Rody paused for a moment before shaking his head and followed the ravenet outside. He watched as Vince locked up the bistro before looking at his waiter. Vince tilted his head to the side before walking away, hoping his employee got the hint. Vince led them back to his apartment, something that confused Rody. He started to get flashbacks to the last time he was in his boss's place. It wasn't a great memory.
Vince unlocked the door and went in first with Rody following in pursuit as he closed the door. Vince placed his keys in the bowl that was beside his door before going into the kitchen. Rody stood awkwardly, not really wanting to sit on the couch. It didn't seem comfortable at all. He let out a shaky breath as he decided to sit on the couch instead of looking like a fool. He turned his head to the cello that laid out in the opening. He wondered if he played the instrument for anyone, but was reminded that Vince had stated he doesn't have time to do such silly things.
Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Vince come back with two glasses and a bottle of expensive wine. Rody felt himself shrink a bit. He wouldn't, and couldn't, ever be able to buy wine that was cheap. He watched as Vince poured wine into the glasses, handing one to Rody. The redhead smiled sheepishly as he took the glass. Vince looked at him before putting the lip of the glass to his lips, tilting his head back as the liquid moved. Rody finds himself staring at his boss's lips, noting how smooth they looked. It made Rody think what it would be like to feel them against his own.
Rody snapped himself out of the trance, finding his face heats up as he consumed a good amount of the wine before coughing a bit. He placed down the glass as he felt the wine burn in his throat, with Vince not being affected at all by the drink. Rody found himself pouting a bit, remembering that Vince couldn't taste anything. He watched the ravenet grin as he finished his drink. Rody looked away, feeling himself grow a bit irritated as he picked up his glass and slowly felt the wine travel down his throat.
Rody leaned back, making himself comfortable. Vince watched as he laid against the armrest of the couch, his legs stretching out before having them bend at the knees. The chef watched as his employee finished his drink and poured himself more. He held out his glass towards the redhead, which Rody noticed and poured more wine into the glass before setting it back on the table.
The two sat in silence, something that made Rody a bit uncomfortable. He looked over at his boss to see he was more focused on his drink than the redhead. He noticed that at some point he had changed his chef shirt to a black turtleneck. Probably did it before coming back with the wine. Despite them initially having a rocky start, he noticed how Vince had slowly become more open to his mindless questions. It made Rody happy.
He remembered how he planned on staying at the bistro for only a week, but decided to stay since his rent due date was slowly creeping up. He doesn't regret staying, especially if it meant Vince and him would grow closer to one another. At least, in Rody's eyes. It's a challenge for the redhead to decode Vince like he is able to.
The more Rody grew closer to Vince, the more he started to feel nervous. There were times where he was sweating over Vince's wrath, whether he was telling a customer who was complaining about the menu or being dissatisfied with the cooks performance, but found this to be different.
Rody felt like he had to try harder to be less of a klutz —which failed at times— and try to please the cold chef. While he was at first oblivious to the fact Vince was much nicer to him compared to the cooks, it took one of said cooks, Lewis, to point it out to him. Rody felt his cheeks heat up remembering the memory, along with all the times Vince had shown a more different side to him. The chef was always there to defend and help him, especially if a customer got up and started to harass him.
He remembered one time a man got upset about the main dish presented to him, saying it wasn't what he had the other day. When Rody tried to calmly explain the situation, the man grabbed the dish and threw it at the redhead, which in turn caused Rody to fall backwards and drop the trays and wine he always had to carry. He remembered how once Vince entered the room, everything went dead.
Rody could the patrons were both scared, yet intrigued as to what the chef would do. Vince had put on the calm, friendly persona he would show as he asked the man what the issue was. Rody had watched as the man had tried to pin everything on him. Something that made Rody almost speak up, but Vince was quicker. Rody watched as the man who once wore an angry expression turned into a fearful one as Vince had explained he saw the scene be played out.
The man was banned from the bistro that day, something that made Rody want to smile wickedly as he watched the man leave for good. Vince had called one of the cooks over to clean up the mess as he took Rody into his office. The redhead was just grateful that soup wasn't being served that day, remembering the last time something similar happened. It was an unpleasant experience to say the least, but also made something spark inside Rody.
He remembered how gentle Vince was, with his hands soothing all the burn marks on his torso. His hands roamed around his chest, as if the raven haired man was mapping out every inch of his exposed skin, his hands grazing over his nipples. Vince noticed how he tensed and mumbled a small 'sorry', but Rody was grateful he didn't make a sound.
Rody shook his head to bring himself back into the present. He looked over at Vince, noticing he had the wine bottle in his hands. At some point when he was zoning out, they had discarded the glasses in favor of just passing the bottle. Rody noticed that Vince was moving his lips. He tried to listen to the ravenet, but his attention was on Vince's lips. They looked so soft, so smooth. Rody felt his face heat up even more as he consumed more of the wine, pulling himself out of his thoughts in order to listen to the chef instead of looking at his lips.
"The audacity people have nowadays." Vince slurred. "Those critics have no idea what they're saying."
"Ah."
Rody took a small sip of the liquor before handing it to his employer, watching as lips touched the top of the bottle, with the liquid finding its way into Vince's mouth. Rody watched, his mind wondering about unspeakable things that would damn him to Hell if anyone else found out, especially when it was someone of the same gender.
"Who wants to cook with love?" Vince slurred, lazily placing the almost empty bottle down. "Who the hell do they think they I am? I'm not some parent cooking for children."
"Love." Rody giggled. "Such a strange thing."
Vincent turned to look at the redhead, noticing he wasn't wearing the black vest that was from his uniform. It made the taller man confused as to when he had taken it off. Vincent didn't mind it though, he was enjoying himself for the first time in years.
"It's so warm and inviting." Rody laid down, his head resting on the opposite armrest as he looked at the ceiling. "Such an amazing feeling, especially on Valentine's Day."
"Ha! What a load of nonsense." Vince chuckled darkly. "It's such a petty thing. Romance and all that bull shit."
"Don't be rude, Vince." Rody whined.
"Don't you remember earlier with Manon and that guy?" Vince brought up. "You call that warm and amazing?"
Rody stayed silent. He had completely forgotten about that small fiasco. Despite it being brought up and was now plaguing his mind, Rody didn't really feel heartbroken, or at least not intensely anymore. Sure his heart still hurt, but he didn't really feel the strong emotions like earlier. Rody just assumed it was in the heat of the moment, or something bizarre like that.
Perhaps he was jealous that Manon had moved on already, or perhaps he was jealous at the fact she had found someone who seemed like a gentleman, and handsome. He let out a small groan as he placed his hands over his face. His feelings and thoughts were swirling like a tornado, with the wine not helping in the slightest.
"I'm not even upset anymore."
Rody sat up to look at Vince, who was sitting against the back of the couch instead of the armrest. Vince cocked an eyebrow, a bit confused and intrigued by the redhead's words. Vince watched as the red sat up, their shoulders brushing against each other.
"Sure it still stings," Rody looked at the bottle on the table. "But it's not as intense as before."
"Has the lover boy finally moved on?" Vince chuckled as he teased the waiter. "What a development."
"At least I can show my feelings," Rody jabbed a finger at Vincent's chest. "You son of a bitch."
"Excuse me."
Rody watched Vincent's calm demeanor turn into a cold one as he retracted his finger. The redhead felt himself tense, but not as much. It was hard to take the ravenet seriously when they've been acting so chummy and sharing drinks. Vince grabbed Rody's wrist and pinned the redhead down, looming over him. Rody used his free hand to place it on Vincent's chest as the two stared at each other. Rody felt his body was on fire as he found himself mesmerized with the chef.
"The hell did you just say?"
"Ah, I, uh...nothing!"
"Liar."
Vincent leaned closer to Rody, feeling the taller man's hot breath on him. They were inches away from one another to the point their lips were close. Rody felt himself drawn to them once more, wondering what it would be like to kiss the Vincent Charbonneau. He felt like he was a mouse trap, with Vincent being the cat who would devour him. Oh how Rody wished, craved to feel Vincent's lips mark him. If anything were to happen between them tonight, Rody is going to completely blame the wine.
"You might wear your heart on your sleeves, Lamoree," Vince started. "But that doesn't mean shit to me. I know when it's appropriate to show emotions and when to not act like a damn child who bitches and moans when they don't get what they want."
Vince snarled at the redhead, noticing how the man underneath him was still. He felt the hand on his chest move up until a warm hand caressed his cheek. Vince placed his right hand under Rody's chin, holding his face in place. Vince looked Rody over as if he was a piece of meat. The man who stood an inch or two shorter than Vince. His fluffy hair was more messy than it usually was, with his face slowly starting to become less red to show his sun kissed skin along with his two moles on the left side of his face. It made Vince wonder if the waiter had moles on other parts of his body that were hiding behind articles of clothing.
The white blouse he wore with his uniform looked wrinkled, almost clinging to his skin to show off how much muscle the redhead has. Vince wished he could feel Rody, wanting to savor every inch of him. If Vince could, he would shred the clothes off Rody just to admire his body more, but refrained from doing such an impulsive act.
Besides, it would be more fun if Rody would willingly allow Vince to do such a thing. His eyes scanned Rody once more. The redhead's chest was rising and falling in a steady rhythm, his green eyes shining with longing, with a bit of lust being covered up. His lips looked rough, chapped even. Vince wanted to know what Rody Lamoree tasted like.
"W-What time is it?"
Rody suddenly asked. Vince sat up and looked over at the clock that hung on his wall. It was almost midnight. He felt Rody try to sit up, but couldn't move all that much with Vince sitting on top of him. Rody wanted to push Vince off him, possibly able to if he wanted, but he didn't. He knew he should head back to his run down apartment, but something inside him didn't want to go back to his apartment that held more depressing memories than happy ones.
"Almost the end of this wretched day."
Vince slowly got off Rody and stood up, taking the wine and finishing it off. Rody fully sat up, now that Vince was off, and watched as the boss went to his kitchen. Rody picked up the two glasses that had been abandoned and followed the chef. He watched Vince throw the now empty bottle away as he placed the two glasses in the skin, setting them a few inches away from one another.
"You can sleep here tonight."
"What?"
Rody turned to see Vince leaning against his fridge, his eyes on the waiter. Rody wanted to stay, but he had to get his bike and go back to his apartment. He needed to change his clothes too, since they smelled pretty bad.
"Thank you, but I can't." Rody scratched the back of his head. "I-I have to get my bike and head to my apartment."
"Don't be a moron." Vince deadpanned. "I'm not letting you bike to your flat at night, especially since you have liquor in your body."
"Vince, it's fine, really!"
Rody tried to assure the taller male, but felt himself shrink as his boss grabbed his wrist and led Rody to his bedroom. He's only been in here once back when he had to cartier to Vince's guest, but eventually found himself snooping around since he was curious, and found nothing but the key to the freezer in the bistro. He should probably give it back to Vince soon.
Rody watched as Vince went through his clothes until he handed the waiter a shirt and sweatpants. He then left the room to give Rody some privacy and to have the couch prepared to be slept on. Rody let out a small sigh as he made sure the door was fully closed before peeling off his work attire.
He put on Vince's clothes, noting that they were a bit tight on his boy with Rody nose immediately being hit by the smell of citrus and cigarettes. To say it wasn't comforting would be a lie. Rody had noticed how much more comfortable he finds himself when being around his employer. Rody lazily folded his clothes and placed them at the foot of the bed, with the large window inviting the moon's light to shine brightly.
The redhead moved and stood in front of the window, looking up at the night sky. It was so peaceful, so calming. He wished he had a view like this in his apartment. Rody hugged himself, wondering if she had forgotten. Based on what happened hours prior, he knew the answer, yet refused to let it sink in. Rody let out a shaky sigh as he remembered his childhood and how rare it was for his birthday to be celebrated, since his parents were constantly working to make ends meet or wasting said money for themselves.
As he grew older, he slowly stopped celebrating his birthday in favor of celebrating Valentine's Day instead. He wanted to be showering his partners with love and affection, something he never received when he was young, or when he got older.
Rody was always the giver, not the receiver. Always the lover, not the loved.
"I guess she did forget.."Rody sighed sadly, unaware of a looming presence.
"Forgot what, exactly?"
Rody snapped out his thoughts and jumped in skin, turning around to see Vince standing in the doorway. He felt a wave of deja vu hit him.
"V-Vince! You scared me."
Rody let out a small chuckle, scratching the back of his neck. Vince said nothing as he stood besides the waiter, hiding how pleased he was with scaring the man.
"You gonna tell me?"
"Tell you what?"
Rody looked back out the window, trying to avoid Vince's question Trying to play it off like he didn't say anything. He heard the man beside him let out a sigh, knowing full well that Vince was pinching the bridge of nose, annoyed.
"Just tell me."
"W-Well...it's, uh," Rody cleared his throat, very hesitant to answer the question. "It may or may not have been my birthday today."
Rody glanced over at Vince, seeing the ravenet was staring at him with a surprise look on his pale face. Rody gave his boss a sheepish smile before looking away. He felt a cold hand be placed under his chin, making Rody move his head to face Vince. He noted that the man was still taking in the information, but had his neutral face on.
"And why didn't you tell me, hm?" Vince cocked an eyebrow. "I could've whipped up a cake or any dessert you'd like."
"I-I...didn't think it was important?" Rody stammered out, feeling his cheeks heat up a bit. "B-Besides, Valentine's Day is better..."
Rody met Vince's eyes. The taller man wore a bored, annoyed expression with his eyes saying something completely different. They had a bit of warmth that is never seen. It made Rody's heart flutter a bit.
"You know," Vince huffed. "That is the stupidest thing I've heard come out of your mouth. If my head wasn't already pounding from the alcohol, then your reasoning would be. Honestly Rody, why? Why care about some shitty holiday over your birthday?"
"Because it's far more important than mine."
Rody softly murmured as he removed Vince's hand from his face as he felt his eyes start watering.
He walked over and sat on Vince's bed, his hands covering his face. He felt the mattress sink as he felt Vince sit on his right side. Vince didn't know what to do in the situation. He was never the greatest at comforting people, since he's always by himself. The ravenet went to pat Rody on the shoulder, but the shorter man leaned against Vince, startling him a bit. Vince hesitantly wrapped arm around Rody's shoulder, unsure of what to do.
"Ever since I was young, my birthday was rarely celebrated. My parents were either too busy with work or treating themselves to dinner." Rody softly admitted, leaning more on Vince. "So I just slowly stopped celebrating my birthday, focusing my time and energy on Valentine's Day; showering others with love and affection, it was a constant thing."
"What about receiving?" Vince softly ran his fingers through the messy red hair. "Have you ever received the same treatment?"
Vince felt Rody tense as he buried his head in his chest. Vince felt his cheeks heat up a bit, with his heart slowly thumping faster. Vince removed his hand from Rody's hair in favor of holding his shaky hands. He gently rubs his thumb against the waiter's knuckles, wanting to bring the redhead's hand close to his lips to give a firm kiss, but restrains himself. Rody looked up at Vince, the two locking eyes with one another.
"I'm the giver, not the receiver, Vince." Rody whispered. "I don't get anything in return."
"But shouldn't you be getting some sort of love in return?"
"Manon was the closest to getting some love," Rody leans away from Vince, their hands still touching. "But now, that's gone."
"Rody." Vince softly said.
"I'm so confused, Vince."
"I think the wine is finally getting to you." Rody let out a soft chuckle at Vince's words. "You should sleep. You can sleep in my bed."
"But...what about you?"
"I'm sleeping on the couch." Vince shrugged. The ravenet watched Rody's nose scrunch up a bit, which confused Vince a bit. "What?"
"You're gonna sleep on that uncomfortable thing?"
"If you're going to insult my furniture, then I'll make you sleep on the couch."
Rody felt himself shrink under Vince's piercing eyes. The waiter put his hands up in surrender, something that made Vince grin as he calmed down.
"That's what I thought."
Rody watched as Vince removed his hand from his, standing up and stretching a bit. The ravenet started to leave, but Rody quickly grabbed his wrist as he stood up. The two looked at one another before Rody engulfed Vince into a tight hug. Vince felt his cheeks heat up more as he wraps his arms around Rody's waist. The two stayed like that for a moment before they pulled away, still in each other's arms.
"Thank you," Rody softly smiled. "For everything you've done for me. I don't understand why you do it, though, but thank you."
"You are so unbelievable sometimes, I swear." Vince shook his head.
"What?" Rody titled his head, confused by Vince's words. "Swear on what?"
"Rody," Vince started. "I swear you're so oblivious it's actually infuriating to put up with."
"W-What? Rody moved back a little, his arms that were around Vince's neck loosening a bit. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Vince shrugged as he let go of Rody, softly pushing the red onto his bed. The chef watched Rody's face turn a light shade of red as he looked up at Vince. The ravenet leaned down and gave Rody a small peck on his cheek, moving away quickly once he pulled back. Rody's face grew a darker shade of red.
"Rest." Vince spoke as he ran his fingers through Rody's hair one last time before pulling away. "Tomorrow we'll do whatever you want, to make up for not doing it today."
"What about the—?"
"Don't worry about it, and start thinking about what you wish to do." Vince walked over the door, getting ready to close it before stopping. "Goodnight, Rody."
Rody watched as Vince closed the door behind him. Rody laid down on the soft bed, wanting to scream into a pillow. Rody couldn't wrap his head around what had just happened. First he was heartbroken when he saw Manon with another guy, then Vince invited him to his apartment where the two finished a wine bottle, feeling his heart flutter whenever Vince did anything when they talked, and now was constantly thinking about the kiss Vince gave him. Despite it being on the cheek and not the lips, like Rody wanted. The redhead found himself pondering what was happening.
He felt like he was going through the motions. A fast, yet heart aching and confusing motion. Rody is definitely blaming the wine they had prior. The redhead let out a small sigh before getting under the covers, his nose being met with the same citrus and cigarette smell that Rody has grown fond of, a smell that made him feel comfort. Rody silently wished that Vince would sleep by him, but he was on the couch.
Rody mentally cursed at himself for not asking the ravenet to stay rather than watch him leave. As he got comfortable, Rody couldn't help but wonder what tomorrow would be like; just the two of them. No cooks, no shitty customers complaining, just them. Maybe Rody could ask Vince to play something on his cello. Ever since he saw the instrument, he always wanted to see Vince actually play it. Either way, he was going to be spending time with Vince. Rody smiled as he went to sleep, dreaming about his day with Vince.