caycay | IC Inbox - Duplicity

Oh, let me get some pics before we start plating.

[And, of course, he will take just as many pictures of his plate once he's filled it. But there was something special about a fresh-out-of-the-oven moment. Cater make sure to snap a few different angles before fetching the plates from a cupboard.

Really, without Lilia there to sabotage them, it couldn't be too bad. It really did smell amazing, too.]

Everything tastes better when you make it with friends, so this is going to be off the charts.

Yeah!

Oh, oh, how would you plate it? I remember seeing your potato galette and it looked so cool!

Presentation's a key part of food prep too, right?

[ can you feel the nervous excitement vibrating off of him. kalim has never been happier not being rich. ]

You bet it is! Plating, like, totes puts it all on a new level. Hm, with this dish, I think this is how I'd do it.

[He considers the food carefully before using utensils to place the chicken as elegantly as possible on his plate, then shows it to Kalim for inspection.]

What do you think? Really takes it from homecooked meal to restaurant specialty, huh?

Wow... I bet even Jamil would be impressed.

[ he grins, and then extends a clean fork to Cater ]

Here, try it!! Oh, but after we get a picture!

[As soon as Cater has determined that he's taken enough pictures, he accepts the fork and cuts himself a healthy bite. His face lights up as the flavors hit his tongue, and he positively beams at Kalim.]

OMG--Kalim, it's amazeballs! Totes worth all the effort! We make one hell of a team, dude.

You really think so?!

[ the earnest joy on his face, he's not bothering to hide any of it. To be told he cooked something good, when mostly he's gotten "not bads" to just being told to stay out of the way entirely is gonna be something he remembers for a lot longer than Cater probably intends with the compliment. ]

This is great!! Thanks so much for your help, Cater!! I feel like I'll do even better next time!

Yeah, man! I know you will! And, hey, if you ever need a taste tester, you know where to find me.

[Just, you know, don't feed him anything that Lilia's also put a helping hand in. In any case, he takes his plate over to the table and takes a seat. He'll wait for Kalim to have a chance to sit down and start eating, too, before he brings up what the other teen had said in his text.]

So, you said you wanted to talk about something?

[ he joins him, so relieved to not be eating lunch alone now. And he's quite cheerful about it, until Cater mentions what he'd said.

Oh, right.

He'd gotten so excited about cooking that he'd completely forgotten about it. And he looks unexpectedly embarrassed, flustered even. ]

Oh yeah. I needed to tell you something happened. Um...

[ he should just say it, right? ]

[Cater hadn't been thinking too hard about it, but Kalim's change in expression makes him pause. He'll finish the bite he's taking before he puts his fork down, giving the other boy his undivided attention.]

Sure, go for it.

...

[ deep inhale, and: ]

I slept with Rayne. I'm sorry!!

[And that was pretty much the last thing that Cater was expecting Kalim to say. He's clearly shocked, but...not offended. Actually, he doesn't look upset at all, more just taken aback.]

Oh, uh, okay.

[Wait, actually. His expression turns a little concerned.]

He didn't hurt you, did he?

[ kalim, for his part, feels immediately better. That's off his chest, and he doesn't feel like it's an uncomfortable secret... the last thing he wants to do is ruin things for Cater and Rayne. ]

Nothing too bad.

[ he says with a light shrug ]

I don't know what things are like between you both, and I didn't want to hide that from you...

Okay, good.

[He knew just how rough Rayne could get--sometimes unintentionally. Sometimes too intentionally. If Kalim said things were fine, well...Cater didn't really want more details, so he had to trust him on that.]

We're in Duplicity, so...having sex with anyone is just kind of on the table at all times. Like, just look at the weather we're having right now. Just going outside for too long makes you want to get busy.

[And that wasn't putting Cater's job into consideration.]

Yeah, but things are different for certain people, right??

[ he looks at him very sincerely ]

Just because it's normal here doesn't mean it doesn't matter to you. And I care a lot about you! I'd feel too guilty otherwise.

[ maybe that wasn't explaining it right... or maybe he's overthinking it. ]

[It was Kalim, so there was absolutely no reason for Cater to be surprised. And yet, here he was, feeling frozen under the absolute sincerity being directed at him. Just how much did Kalim care, anyway? It couldn't have been any more than he cared about anyone else in his life.

He gives a slight laugh.]

Well, no harm done, because it doesn't matter to me at all! If you two want to do it again, as far as I'm concerned that's between the two of you and none of my business.

Mm...

Okay.

[ he still feels a little doubtful, and maybe that shows up in his face. but he'll take another bite of lunch instead.

It's not like he's never seen this style of relationship before, so... maybe he was just overthinking it. ]

[Cater take a breath. He wants to just...leave that there. To take the out and change the subject to something a little less meaningful. But...as he eats a little more, he can't get Kalim's apprehensive expression off his mind. So, damn it, he'll try a little harder.]

...it's a culture shock, I get it. If this place wasn't so sexually motivated, I might feel differently about it--but I was already here for a year before I even met Rayne. Relationships here are complicated, and we both already have a lot going on with multiple people, so...when we're with each other, we're with each other. But when we're not, we have our own things going on--and that's something that we have an understanding about. Does that make sense?

[ he nods slowly, and then looks up at Cater. Explaining it that way makes a ton of sense to Kalim, it's sort of similar to his family with his dad. But that seems too heavy to get into here, with an already heavy topic. ]

Yeah, it does.

I guess-- I don't wanna have any regrets, no matter what. So, it was just better to tell you.

[ why he needs to resolve those regrets so quickly? well... don't worry about it. ]

[Cater has this nagging feeling that Kalim wanting to live without regrets was something more than just a nice-sounding philosophy. Maybe it had something to do with the truth-telling room they'd been put into. Still, he's not prepared to press Kalim on the matter, especially when he's only being so forthcoming, himself.]

That's a good way to live, TBH. You didn't need to tell me, but I still appreciate you being concerned about how I might've felt about it. Thanks, man.

[But this city, how long would it let Kalim be able to resolve those regrets? At what point would they eat away at him, instead? Cater hated to think about it--hated the idea that Kalim would be brought as low as he was.]

Do you feel any better about it?

Yeah. I do!

And I got to cook with you too. So I think this was a great hangout so far.

[ 'so far.' Sure, he definitely wanted to tell Cater, just to make sure there weren't any secrets between them of that sort. But also, he just wanted to hang out with him, especially after what they'd shared in the truth telling room.

Even if the city made him miserable, not every aspect needed to do the same, right? ]

Only thing we're missing is music.

[This time, Cater lets the topic change to lighter things. His laugh is a bit less forced as he winks.]

Well, we can always change that. I didn't bring my guitar but I can run and get it--so long as you don't think Lils would pout at us having an impromptu jam sesh without him.

I'd text him to tell him to come home too!

... But actually, I'm kinda worried about him.

[ and this prompts him to wonder, should he also be worried about Cater? Since Riddle vanished... And he knows he would be a mess if he had Jamil and lost him. ]

He's been playing video games non-stop, or working. It kinda feels like he's avoiding us?

...oh.

[Cater frowns. It seemed like so much had been happening, lately, that Cater hadn't particularly stopped to think about Lilia being more withdrawn. The two didn't work together or live together, so even though they hung out, Kalim definitely had more of an obvious window into any abnormal behaviors.]

Do you think it has something to do with losing Riddle? I didn't think the two were that close. I mean, besides living together.

It might be... I'm gonna ask him when he gets back.

[ honestly, everything is too quiet for Kalim's tastes. He doesn't know how much longer he can go with limited or no distractions. But there's a pause, ]

Are you okay, since Riddle left...?

I'm fine.

[Which he says maybe a bit too quickly.]

It's not the first time he's left.

[It was harder the first time--something he never talked about with anyone, and especially not with Riddle, himself. At the end of the day, it just proved his biggest fears right: the more you let someone in, the more it hurt when they disappeared.

But this wasn't about him, and he was glad to turn it back to being about Lilia. Or try to, anyway.]

Don't be surprised if he keeps things close to his chest.

[All three of them were alike, in that regard: never admitting how they really felt, underneath it all.]

If he's avoiding us, something might have happened that he's having a hard time processing. The last time the two of us avoided each other...things were really bad.

IC Inbox - Duplicity

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