Argent Eye III

15

After changing my outfit at least five times, I decided to settle for something fairly casual but cool at the same time. Black cargo trousers, a black T-shirt with a white flower on it, and my leather jacket. I put on a bit of black eyeliner, too, just to complete the look, and then slipped on my black and white Adidas trainers. I shoved my keys, phone and necessary cards in my pocket, and then left, making my way to the tube and hoping I remembered the way to his uncle's restaurant.

When I arrived, I was glad to see Adam waiting outside- I was wondering whether I'd have to walk in on my own, and what I'd say if I did.

He smiled when he saw me, and when I got closer, all the nerves I'd had before seemed to dissipate. He was wearing black jeans and a black jumper, so nothing too formal, and his hair was swept back, I presumed held by hairspray. His blue eyes were bright despite the darkness of the winter evening.

"Hey." I said, smiling.

"Hey." He grinned. "You look nice."

"Thanks." I said. "You don't scrub up too bad yourself."

He looked down at his outfit. "What, this?" He waved a hand, then looked over my shoulder. "So, uh, the others couldn't make it?"

I gave him a look. "You were an idiot to think that Kate would be able to keep your little plan a secret."

Adam pursed his lips, his cheeks flushing red. "Ah." He said. "Lesson learned."

I just laughed.

"Anyway, shall we?" He asked, and pulled the door open to the restaurant, allowing me to walk through.

It was the same as before- I noticed the chefs cooking in the open kitchen, and there were other customers sat at the tables, grilling their own food or eating plates that had been cooked for them. Adam led me through the main restaurant bit, and then to a quieter area round the back. The table was set, with the grill turned on, and so we sat down.

"I hope you liked what you had before." Adam said. "Because it's gonna be even better this time."

I smiled. "It was so good last time." I said.

At that moment, one of the waiters came over with plates of food- gyozas, chicken, steak, and chips. I didn't miss the quick wink he flashed Adam, who smiled back.

"Thank you." I said to the waiter, before he left.

"Well, bon appetite." Adam said, and we tucked in. I was hungry, that was for sure.

"This is way nicer than last time." I said, munching on a gyoza.

"You think?" Adam asked. "My uncle wanted to try out some new recipes."

"It's amazing." I said, and then decided that I wanted to learn more about Adam. "So you said that you went away for a couple of years before coming back here?"

Adam nodded. "Yeah. I just had to get away for a bit, you know? Find my feet and all that."

Similarly to when this conversation had been brought up before, I could tell that Adam was hiding something when he said this. I just didn't know what.

"I just travelled round a bit." He continued. "I went to Japan for a while to see if I liked it there, staying with some of Akio's relatives, but it just didn't feel like home. Eventually, I decided to come back here."

"And you're uncle was good with that, I take it?" I asked.

"Absolutely. He's always been so supportive." Adam paused, and swallowed his food. "You may have noticed that we're not actually blood relatives."