Kalpalata Lotus - Kavetham

Chapter 9

"Wow!" Kaveh exclaimed. He rolled the thin noodles around his chopsticks. Dragon Beard Noodles had to be Kaveh's new favorite dish. The green onions blended perfectly with the small bits of meat and other vegetables. The broth was warm and cradled the hand-pulled noodles. "This is actually really good!"

"I know," Alhaitham responded. "I have good taste."

Kaveh rolls his eyes and scoffs. "Yeah, right."

Alhaitham softly chuckled and finished the golden, crispy Crystal Shrimp on his plate. He pushed the plate aside and pulled his other dish closer. The Mint Salad looked fresh and smelled delicious. Alhaitham had told Kaveh that it was a good cleanser after a meal. He rolled his eyes at that. Kaveh would rather stick to his soups.

The two finished up their meals quickly. Their waitress and chef - a young girl named Xiangling - came over to their table. A small, weird, yellow bear thing waddled along at her side. It grabbed their empty dishes and walked back to the kitchen.

"Hope you enjoyed your meals!" She said with a smile and cheery tone. "Are you guys ready to pay?"

"Of course." Kaveh nodded and reached for his wallet. Before he got it out, he saw Alhaitham hand the girl his card. He frowned at him, and she walked away. "What the hell? I can pay for myself, you know."

"And how much money is in your bank account?"

He opened his mouth to protest but shut it a moment after. Alhaitham had a point.

Alhaitham accepted Kaveh's defeat with a nod. Suddenly, his phone buzzed. He opened his phone. Kaveh saw him type a quick message before setting the phone down. He raised an eyebrow.

"Who was that?"

"Nilou," Alhaitham replied. "My girlfriend."

Kaveh's heart sank. He had a girlfriend? And it was the leader of the theater club, too? Why hadn't he known about it? It bugged him. He didn't know why it bothered him so much, but it felt like his soul was crushed. "O- Oh. Uh, how long were you to uh, together?"

"A few months. We're going out tonight," he responded. He didn't seem like he wanted to talk about it, which was good because Kaveh didn't want to talk about it either.

"Um, I should go. I still have to uh, shop," Kaveh blurted. Alhaitham nodded and said a quick goodbye. He stayed behind while waiting for the waitress. Kaveh quickly got out of his seat and left the restaurant. He must have had a murderous look on his face because people rapidly got out of his way as he stormed down the street. Why was he so angry? Maybe the stress was finally getting to him.

He went to turn a corner into an alley. Kaveh had no idea where he was going, but he didn't care. Once he turned the corner, he immediately bumped into someone else. The girl was shorter than him. She had short black hair but had two braided stands at both sides that faded into a bright blue. Her eyes were- wait, no. His eyes were green.

The guy giggled and playfully put his hands in the air as if he were surrendering. "Woah, calm down. What's the cause of the frown?"

"It's just-" Kaveh sighed. He crossed his arms and hugged himself. He didn't know why he was about to vent to a stranger, but it was nice that someone was willing to listen. "I don't know. I'm upset and I don't know why."

"Say, wanna get a drink?" The guy asked him. He put an arm around Kaveh's shoulders. "It might help more than you think."

"Sure," he agreed. "I'm Kaveh. Uh, why do you keep speaking in rhymes?"

The guy shrugged and started walking. Kaveh followed. "I like poetry. Name's Venti, by the way."

"Nice to meet ya. So, where are we going, Venti?"

"To the best bar in the city!" Venti yelled enthusiastically. "The Angel's Share!"

The Angel's Share was a quiet little bar near the outskirts of town. It was two stories, small, and had a cozy feeling to it. Inside, a single bartender was behind the bar cleaning glasses while a few patrons sat at the tables talking and drinking. His long, red hair was tied up into a ponytail. The bartender's sharp eyes glanced over at Kaveh and Venti as they walked in. He let out a soft groan. "Oh no. Not you."

"Diluc!" Venti greeted with a big smile on his face. "I just made a new friend, so I gotta treat him, y'know?"

"Let me guess, you'll put it on your tab?" Diluc asked with obvious sarcasm.

"You know me so well!" Venti laughed and clapped Kaveh on the back. His bright eyes looked up at him. "Go on and start drinking. I gotta use the bathroom. Diluc makes the best drinks!"

With that, Venti left to the back of the bar. Kaveh sighed and sat at a barstool across from the bartender. Diluc set down the glass he was polishing and put hands on the bar. "So, what can I get you?"

"Wine," Kaveh ordered. "Any will do."

He nodded and turned. He grabbed a bottle of dandelion wine and set it on the counter in front of Kaveh. Kaveh immediately grabbed it and started chugging it before slamming it down and taking a deep breath.

Diluc raised an eyebrow. "What happened to make you drink like that?"

Kaveh shook his head and shrugged. He could already feel his face flushing from the alcohol he consumed. He picked up another bottle that Diluc grabbed and started drinking that one, too. "I'm upset. I just found out that... that, my friend.. no, he's not my friend. But he has a girlfriend, and he DIDN'T tell me. He's also very rude to me. He's so mean!"

"So," Diluc started. He picked up a glass and started polishing it with a rag. "You're mad that he didn't tell you about his girlfriend?"

"Yes!" Kaveh yelled. "Is that weird?"

"Weird? A little, but it sounds like jealously to me," he said with a shrug.

Kaveh's eye twitched at the bartender. His face went red with anger. "Jealously? JEALOUSLY?! You think I'm jealous?! Why would I be jealous?! I don't want his girlfriend!"

Diluc put his hands on the bar and looked at him. "No, you don't."

"Exactly! I don't know why-" Kaveh paused. He seemed to understand what he was hinting at, and it made him even more furious. "No! That's stupid! I hate him!"

"Do you?" Diluc asked. He noticed Kaveh had finished his second bottle of wine. "Hey, maybe you should slow down-"

Kaveh cut him off. His head was spinning, and speaking became harder by the second. "I do... I do what I want!"

Diluc groaned and rolled his eyes. "That stupid bard is a bad influence," he mumbled. He went over and grabbed another bottle for Kaveh. "Last one."

Kaveh gratefully grabbed the bottle and started chugging. His vision became blurry. Everything started to feel fuzzy. Venti came back, but Kaveh didn't hear what he said. He remembers moving, vut not what he was doing. It gets loud. Very loud. He hears shouting and remembers collapsing.

The sky is dark as he looks up at it. Two blurry figures come into his vision and look down at him. He said something but doesn't remember what. One of the figures bent down and picked him up bridal style. Kaveh protested but then fell asleep leaning on the stranger who whisked him away in his arms.