InsaneJournal

Who: Scud + Miles
What: Meeting
When: Mid-July
Where: Miles' restaurant
Rating: pg-13 because language or something
Status: Complete




Scud wasn't jealous. Mostly, because he didn't do jealous. Or at least that was what he'd been telling himself lately. He'd never been before all this anyway.

But really, not jealous. Because he had no reason to be. Lo and him had had another grown up talk after the appearance of this Miles guy on the 'Net. Grown up talks were something that Scud dreaded, but wasn't really sure why at this point because they tended to just end in sex. It was possible that he needed to revise his outlook on them.

Anyway. Not jealous. But curious. And possibly, he owed the guy a thank you in a completely sincere and not smug sort of way. Also he wanted to know what Korean ice cream tasted like. Which was why he saw fit to step into the guys' restaurant.

Miles had actually come in early for once, which meant that his employees could come ask him questions without running the risk of getting shouted at. He was in his whites, taking the down time as an opportunity to go through the front register.

When the door opened, he smiled a little awkwardly, but did his best. “Hello; welcome to Arirang. My name is Miles, I’m actually the head chef. Would you like to eat in, or are you here about our ice cream?”

"Ice cream," Scud offered a lopsided sort of smile, and tilted his head to the side a little to get a clear look at the chef. Proper chef, not just some cook.

As always, Scud hardly fit in with his too baggy jeans and dark, retro t-shirt. "You talked about it. On the net? Seemed good. Scud, by th'way." He wandered a little closer to the register. "Nice place."

It took a minute, but eventually Miles made the connection. “Oh. You’re. Lo’s new ... right.” Well, this was awkward. “Have a seat at that table by the entrance, I’ll bring some by. We have vanilla, berry, green tea, and kiwi. Right now the kiwi’s the big hit, believe it or not.”

Lo's new. Yeah. Scud only gave a little shrug, as if to say that yeah okay that was true. He did not point out that Miles was, in fact, Lo's old… whatever.

Although that didn't mean he wouldn't get to it eventually.

"Kinda like the idea of berry. Uhm. I ain't trying' to be awkward. Just so y'know. Just kinda thought I'd stop by. See what's what. Eat ice cream." Okay, yeah, he made it awkward. He stuck his hands in his pockets and hovered near the table that was pointed out to him.

“No, it’s understandable. And it is good ice cream. Sorry, I’m just ... I’m not normally at the front of the house.” Miles sighed inwardly. “Let me go get the cart, I’ll be right back.”

He went back toward the freezer, inwardly kicking himself. He’d have to convince this Scud that he didn’t necessarily want Lo back right?, and he wasn’t the sort to homewreck even if he did. And that was a conversation he didn’t really want to have in the front of his restaurant, but at the same time, what other place would be better?

He came back out with the equipment and berry mix. At least he could talk about food for most of it? “Okay. The only real difference between standard American ice cream and Korean style is that they use rice milk instead of cow’s milk. It’s also good if you’re gluten free or lactose intolerant.” He set to work mixing the ingredients, glad he remembered how. Most customers liked to watch it all come together before he flash froze it - thank you, molecular gastronomy.

By the time Miles came back, Scud had actually managed to sit (it was a triumph, sometimes. He fidgeted. It was a thing he did), and was fiddling with his scuffed up zippo, turning it round in his hands and feeling kind of stupid about this all.

This restaurant? Wasn't the type of place he should have been in. People weren't meant to make ice cream in front of other people. They were meant to scoop it out of a thingy and into a cone, and Scud was meant to hand them $2.50 and call it a fucking day.

Scud realized of course, that this place was very Lo. Probably he'd make happy noises over it all and look smug. It just made Scud want to scuff his foot on the ground and pout.

Stay cool, Scud. Stay cool. "Learning experience. Cool," he said, in a way that totally was not cool, and was actually kind of lame.

The guy didn’t seem interested at all, and for one second Miles felt absurdly defensive. He finished the process and went for the flash freezer without saying a word. “It’s been a while since I’ve made it myself, I hope it’s decent.” He finally said. “I’m the head chef, so I do all the behind the scenes work usually. Paperwork and expediting, making sure everything’s up to par.” Was there maybe a hint of snootiness in those words? Maybe. Possibly.

It wasn't a lack of interest on Scud's part. Not really. It was more a lack of -- well. He knew his place in the world. And he knew that this wasn't it. The fact that Lo even wanted anything to do with him was sometimes a surprise.

"Sorry," he said, because he kind of was. "I think it's cool, man. Really. Just never know what to do when -- you know? It's a bit like being lost." He smiled then, and it was lopsided, but earnest.

This was weird in all sorts of ways, because Scud knew for a fact that before he'd met Lo, this might have been a very easy encounter, indeed. Scud would only need have flirted.

Well, he hadn’t expected that. Miles raised one eyebrow. “That actually worries me; I don’t want anyone to feel lost or awkward in here.” It was fine dining, sure, but if it looked too forbidding, that could keep customers out. “I don’t ... You don’t need to worry or anything, by the way.” That was diplomatic enough. “I’m not a homewrecker.”

"It's probably just me." Scud scratched the back of his neck and gave another smile -- he was good with a smile, he knew that much. "Kinda just the opposite of how I was raised an' all. Don' even know how to manage when someone brings out a birthday cake at those crappy restaurants, man. But it's a good show. Seriously."

Now that they were both going for diplomatic, Scud was sure there were possibly just seats waiting for them at the UN. Or something.

"Oh." he said, and looked very hard at his ice cream for a moment too long. "I wasn't worried." Was that rude? Fuck.

A little, but that was okay. Miles figured he could ignore it. “I was lucky enough to grow up in New York, so I got to see and experience fancy food and chefs. Not everyone gets that. Sometimes I forget.” He handed the bowl over to Scud. “There we go.”

Which was fine. Sometimes if he had to be honest, Scud needed to be ignored. He was really just a mess of bad habits and poorly worded opinions. When he bothered to give an opinion in the first place, which was rare and apparently a bit obnoxious.

"Didja? M'from Jersey, m'self. It looks good. You're a decent dude, man." God, it was like word vomit that he just couldn't stop.

“I just love food.” Miles shrugged. “It’s like I get to make magic. Like ... if you haven’t heard of him, there’s a man named David Chang who works in New York. He does things like ... well, once he made a gourmet macaroni and cheese with instant ramen noodles. It doesn’t all have to be truffles and gold leaf.”

Now that Miles had said it, Scud was pretty sure that he didn't want anything more than he wanted gourmet ramen and cheese. He'd have to remember to ask Lo about it. Dating a teleporting demon who liked fancy food was awesome. Especially since Scud didn't usually have to pretend to be fancy along with him.

He tried the ice cream as Miles spoke. "Hadn't heard of him. Want to now. Y'know, I never learned how t'cook. Is it hard? I mean -- this ice cream is awesome. Like, seriously." He had a donut maker at home. It was cool. Probably it didn't count though.

“Some things are hard, but making some things are as easy as anything. A lot of it is trial and error.” Miles did appreciate that the berry cream had gone over well. “Like, one of the things we make here is a Korean ramyun - it’s literally just like the stuff that you ate in college, except it’s handmade noodles and fresh ingredients instead of pouch flavoring. It takes about twice as long to make if you cut up the vegetables ahead of time.”

"So six minutes." Then again, Scud preferred the microwavable ones because he honestly was just that lazy. His smile was lopsided, and terribly amused. Nice of this man to assume he went to college, in any case. He hadn't. Nor had he had the patience to finish high school -- but that wasn't something he admitted to many.

"That's pretty cool. Bet Lo wouldn't mind if I ruined his kitchen completely trying' to learn, huh?"

“Probably not. I did it often enough.” That image even coaxed a smile out of Miles. “He’d grump, but only that.”

Lo grumped a lot. It was a thing he did. Scud wasn't sure he ever actually meant anything he complained over though. "Harmless," he said with a lazy wave of his not spooned hand.

“Usually.” That actually got a faint smile from Miles. “He just folds his arms and looks down. Or sighs.”

“The sigh!” Scud actually laughed at that, making a vague hand gesture as if really just excited. “He does do that, holy shit.”

“One time I was going to make a fancy dinner for him - I’d done a bouillabaisse - which is a fish stew that steams for literally a day - but I’d spilled the black pepper all over the counter. He came home and his kitchen smelled like pepper flakes, and instead of being happy about my stew, he grumped at me over the stench.” Miles was able to smile at this point; he’d been mortally hurt when it had happened.

At this point, Scud found that he was both sympathetic and interested. He leaned forward a little, spoon in his mouth and eyebrows raised. “What’d you do?”

“Told him to go away and ate it myself.” Miles smiled a little. “It was delicious.”

Scud blinked, and then smiled another one of his lopsided sorts of smiles before shaking his head. “Y’know. I like you.” And really, that was that as far as his opinion went.

Well, that would definitely make things less odd. If he could tolerate this man and vice-versa. Miles just smiled a little. “A lot of people don’t.” Honestly, as long as this guy understood he wasn’t going to break up the two of them, he could live with whatever. “I may be a horse’s ass sometimes, but I’m not a homewrecker, and everyone can be a horse’s ass sometimes.”

Really, Scud hadn't been worried about Miles being a home wrecker in the first place. He didn't know much about relationships or pretending at being a grown up, but if he did know one thing, it was that he was all kinds of solid with Lo. They were a thing. A thing that came in a pair. And they were in Not Lesbians with each other. So, there was that.

"It's cool. I like a dick every now an' again," Scud said, and Christ if he wasn't just a little bit teasing and a little bit flirting. He couldn't help himself. He was back on some kind of normal ground, and this is what people did when they were comfortable.

Miles could tell, and it was both a relief and awkward. “I do, too,” he finally said, “but I haven’t had one in a while. Not ... that I’m looking at yours?” Oh, hell.

Scud actually laughed at that, because it was sort of a double entendre and he liked those sometimes. “S’cool,” he murmured, and then busied himself with ice cream. “You’ll find one, man.”

“Eventually.” Glad to get out of that one relatively unscathed. “I don’t date taken men, no matter who they’re taken by.” Miles started cleaning up the cart. “The restaurant takes up my time. I may have a sort of national following, but it does bite into one’s social life.”

"That's where you gotta look then, man." Scud was not a love guru. He should actually just be ignored, but Miles didn't know that, and he wasn't advertising it and misadventure was totally going to happen. "Plenty 'a good looking dudes probably come in here. Sleep with all the -- whats the word? Gourmands?" Because what was dating? Seriously. He'd met Lo after making bad sexual jokes about hamburgers. Christ.

“They do say that only chefs can date other chefs.” Miles managed a faint smile. “If you’ve never dated any of us, we are type A, I will admit that.” God help anyone who tried to mess with his mise-en-place, his tools for service. He’d fired people for less.

“I never date at all,” Scud admitted, but was a little amused. “Well. Never did.” He tilted his head to the side though and gave a shrug. “Everyone’s gotta type.”

Miles couldn’t entirely resist. “So yours is grumpy commitmentphobes?” He was finished cleaning up the cart. “I genuinely wish you luck, and I’m not being rude.”

It was sad because it was true. But Lo also got points for being really flexible. And adopting stupid tiny dogs that like churros.

“You too, man. It was good talkin’ at all.” Now they both were terribly aware of the other one. That’s what mattered or something. And ice cream. “What do I owe for the ice cream?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Miles looked down, and just then, he heard a loud bang, and two voices shouting in Korean. Never had he been so relieved to hear what was probably a pot blowing up. “I should probably get back to the kitchen, the dinner rush will hit in about twenty minutes ... but really, don’t worry about it. Take your time.”

Yeah, awkward was awkward. But Scud only smiled, looking for all the world like he didn't notice it at all. He mostly just delighted in being able to manage getting free meals basically always. "Thanks. Better make sure no one's dead back there. It was --er -- nice meeting' ya. Sorry for the weird." Sort of.

“It’s okay.” Thankfully, he was able to run off without any more awkward goodbyes, mostly because of the aforementioned pot blowing up. Sometimes having a crazy busy kitchen was a lifesaver.