Dinner — and the gentle slide into drunkenness
The small Italian restaurant was tucked away at the end of a narrow alley, so discreet it looked like a secret the city had accidentally let slip.
A single hanging lantern lit the entrance with a golden glow, soft as a childhood memory.
Inside, the tables were pressed close to one another, cream-colored tablecloths, candles flickering like hesitant hearts, brick walls lined with shelves of dusty wine bottles.
The air smelled of warm basil, toasted bread, and olive oil.
A scent that wrapped around the soul as much as the stomach.
Nari couldn't remember the last time she had felt this… at peace.
Aera talked, laughed, gestured, lived — as if the world was too small to contain her energy.
She suddenly slammed her fist on the table, making the glasses rattle.
— No but listen, LISTEN properly!
Her voice had already climbed an octave.
— My dad walked into my room while my ex was… how can I put it… praising his creator, if you know what I mean!
Nari almost choked on her sip of wine.
— AERA! she shouted, laughing so hard her head dropped into her hands.
— MY. GOD. THE AWKWAAAARDNESS!
Aera was clutching her stomach, folded over her chair, tears already running down her cheeks.
The waiter — a handsome brunette with green eyes who smelled like woody cologne from ten meters away — arrived at that exact moment with a professional smile.
Mistake.
Bad timing.
Very bad timing.
Aera straightened up, suddenly looking divinely inspired.
— Mister tall sexy man! she said with theatrical seriousness.
— Can you bring us another bottle? We're… celebrating psychological trauma.
The waiter burst out laughing, shaking his head before walking away.
Nari stared at her, incredulous but delighted, her cheeks already warm.
— Aera… we start in two hours…
Aera grabbed her hand abruptly, almost solemnly, her eyes shining with a mix of alcohol and rare lucidity.
— My Nari…
Her voice had softened, cracked open by a truth that went beyond all their jokes.
— You should stop living like someone's always following you.
She squeezed her hand.
— Breathe a little. Let go. You're young. You deserve to exist.
Then, suddenly back to herself:
— And DRINK, FOR GOD'S SAKE!
Nari burst out laughing, a laugh that made the candle flame in front of her tremble.
It was a pure laugh.
A laugh that felt good.
A laugh that opened a space in her chest that had been locked for too long.
She grabbed the bottle and poured herself a glass.
Her cheeks were pink, her eyes shining — from happiness, alcohol, and lightness.
— You're right.
And she drank.
— Ah ah! I loooove you! Aera shouted, raising her glass.
— TO OUR FRIENDSHIP!
— TO US! Nari replied, clinking her glass against hers, the crystalline sound echoing through the little restaurant.
They drank.
Then drank again.
The lights grew softer, the voices around them more distant, the warmth even more enveloping.
The evening became a bubble outside the world:
jokes, ridiculous stories, confessions that slipped out effortlessly.
The waiter came back a third time, laughing, letting them sign the bill with a smile like they'd made his whole night.
⸻
Two hours later — in front of the Black Orchid
The cold bit at their legs the moment they stepped out of the restaurant.
Snow was falling softly, covering the cobblestones with a thin white layer that glittered beneath the streetlights.
Aera was walking like a tiny, adorable zombie — but clearly far too drunk to continue existing properly.
Her heels clacked against the ground in totally chaotic rhythms, her steps wobbling once, then twice, until she finally clung to Nari's arm like a panda wrapped around its bamboo.
— Nariiiiiii… she whimpered, laughing under her breath.
— I think… the EARTH loves me too much. It wants to keep me close.
— You can barely stand, Nari sighed, half-dead from laughter, half-exhausted.
Aera raised one dramatic finger.
— But I stand in your heart. That's enough!
She nearly collapsed again.
Nari had to grab her by the waist to keep her upright.
They walked like two idiots through the snow, the city around them blurry, shining, almost magical.
The Black Orchid appeared at the end of the street — black façade, golden sign, entrance glowing like the doorway to another world.
Nari tightened her arm around Aera's.
A chaotic night awaited them.
She could feel it.
And in her stomach, a small knot of anxiety began to bloom again…
like a shiver before a storm.
⸻
The punishment that isn't really a punishment
Aera's drunken chaos spilled all the way into the club.
As soon as the glass doors closed behind them, the warmth wrapped around them — violet lights, low bass vibrating through the floor, the sweet smell of alcohol, the murmur of customers.
A brutal contrast with the icy air outside.
Ryo, posted near the lockers, widened his eyes at the sight of Aera stumbling in.
— Oh boy… I'll handle the package, he said, slipping an arm around her, amusement tugging at his lips.
Aera giggled against his shoulder like a child.
Kai, however, did not laugh.
He didn't even move.
He took out his phone with a calm, precise, almost aristocratic gesture.
— I already called Aera's mother, he said in a low voice, without looking away from Nari.
She'll be here in fifteen minutes. You'll only be two tonight.
That icy efficiency sent a shiver down Nari's spine.
He turned to Ryo, then back to her.
— Stay with Aera, Ryo.
— Nari… follow me.
The words fell like a blade.
Nari felt her heart slam against her ribs.
Her throat tightened.
A shameful heat crawled up her neck and into her cheeks.
Her punishment.