Masitda Restaurant, Baltimore, Wednesday Evening

[spin_kick_snap]

To tell the truth and shame the devil--a saying Kathy's mom had adored when she was alive--when Dante had suggested that they go out for Korean food, Kathy hadn't expected much. Dante didn't speak the language, didn't know the culture, and his only real introduction to the cuisine was what Kathy cooked at home and the hundred of weird bottle and jars of seasoning she kept in the door of the fridge, next to the more normal bottles of mayo and ketchup and relish. It wasn't that she was expecting it to be bad or anything, but she'd figured something middle-of-the-road, declaring its authenticity by blaring k-pop from the mid-2000s with two kinds of kimchi at most and a couple of sushi offerings to round out the 'Asianness' of the menu. All of which would have been perfectly fine and Kathy would have gone home, full and happy, and not given it another thought.

She realized she was wrong the moment they stepped into the restaurant. It smelled like home, evoking a sense of nostalgia and homesickness so sharp she rocked backwards on her heels for a moment. The table next to them had seven different banchan bowls on one side of it and over the shoulder of another patron, she could spot a menu page devoted entirely to different kinds of kimchi, several of which had seasonal warnings next to them. Apparently this place thought it wouldn't do to serve Yeolmu-kimchi in the middle of winter and you know what? They were goddamn right.

Kathy reached for Dante's hand, squeezing it tightly, letting her grip speak louder than she could right then about how pleased she was with his choice of restaurant for the evening.

[Not for broadcast and for that guy she's with!]

Comments

[rebelseekspizza]

"Eh. Same thing," Dante said.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Frequency versus quantity," Kathy declared, voice prim. An interesting choice, considering the topic of conversation. "And I bet fifteen-year-old-me would be thrilled, once she finished being scandalized."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Didn't fifteen-year-old-me try to start an anti-porn party?" Dante said. "Or... wait, had a porn party hosted for her 'cause she was being a total prude?"

[spin_kick_snap]

Funny how that old memory could still sting and bring color to her cheeks. Oh Gwen Stacy, Kathy was never going to like you.

"Like I said, I'd have to finish being scandalized first."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Took you a while," Dante said, amused.

[spin_kick_snap]

"I still maintain that the porn industry is generally awful to its female stars and actors of color," Kathy said, her nose in the air. "So nyah."

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante shrugged. "Sure, but you changed your mind on fucking."

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy gave that due consideration. "A bit," she admitted. "Mostly that I wasn't some kind of dirty deviant for liking it so much. That sex didn't create some kind of value judgment about me. That kind of thing."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Definitely made you mellow out," Dante said.

[spin_kick_snap]

"True enough," Kathy said lightly. "Not sure if you could have handled a me that was quieter, shier, and yet more high-strung."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Coulda fucked that out of you if we tried hard enough," Dante mused.

He was kidding. Mostly.

[spin_kick_snap]

"How's that working out for you so far?" Kathy asked, because she didn't really think anyone would describe her as not high-strung now.

[rebelseekspizza]

"You're relaxed at least like a third of the time," Dante argued.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Looks like we're going to have to up the number of times we fuck then," Kathy said with a small laugh. "I'd like to get to half the time at least."

[rebelseekspizza]

"I can make that work," Dante promised her.

[spin_kick_snap]

"You're too good to me," Kathy said with a slow grin. "I'm willing to let you trade off with Anders anytime you need a breather, too, just to be kind."