Slightly different ~ omegaverse

Part 13

Collin's POV:

As soon as we entered the restaurant, our eyes met with the beaming smile of my dear friend Victor, who was eagerly waiting to welcome us with open arms. Us, meaning Yoshi. Victor was dying to meet my mate from the day I told him we had found each other.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, little one!'' Victor said excitedly, hugging Yoshi friendly. My little mate seemed a little baffled but soon awkwardly hugged my friend back. But he looked so sweet... Yoshi, I mean. Victor was a man of imposing size and strength, with broad shoulders and powerful arms. Despite his intimidating build, he was actually a friendly and easygoing guy. Most of the time. When someone crossed him or messed with him in any way... oh dude... After we greeted each other, he showed us the way to our table and gave us menus. At this hour, there weren't too many people around, creating a quiet and pleasant atmosphere. I pulled out a chair for Yoshi to sit on, and he thanked me with a warm smile. Gosh, his appearance was simply breathtaking in those light-colored clothes.

"You look divine.'' I said when we both sat. Be blushed fiercely at my compliment, hiding behind his bangs. "Please, look at me. I want to see your face.'' I protested. Yoshi listened to me and looked at me, blushing even more. "You look so cute while blushing, baby...'' My eyes wandered on his face, wanting to see more.

"Stooop...''He covered himself with his hands, and I couldn't help but laugh at his adorable reaction. We ordered the food and started a casual chatter.

"I want to know more about the things you like.'' I said. Yoshi drank a sip of his orange juice and looked at me surprised. To be honest, to this day, he never told me about his interests or things he liked to do. Of course, he mentioned something, but it wasn't much like he was holding back.

"Really? I don't want to bore you with my boring chatter, I'm not that interesting.'' He sounded sincere and humble.

"What are you talking about? I want to know everything about you.'' I protested, grabbing his hand that lay on the table.

"Well... if you insist... As you already know, I love to sing, but besides that, I can play piano. My mom used to teach me how to play it, and I just fell in love with it, with the music.'' He smiled more to himself. He looked like he was remembering something good.
"As you know, my mom is very strict when it comes to school. To be honest, I always hated it, the pressure, the people I didn't always like but had to spend time with, mean teachers... The experience of going to school was always a bit of a downer for me until you came along and started taking me to and from it. I began to wake up each morning with a sense of excitement, knowing that I would get to spend time with you on the way to school. Your presence and conversation made all the difference in the world to me. In school, I felt more motivated to do my best because of you. You always asked me how my day went, and showed genuine interest in my progress, which made me feel cherished and motivated. It was such a joy to meet you after school and tell you all about my achievements and to see the pride in your eyes as I shared my successes. Thank you.'' I felt like I was going to cry, I didn't know he cherished my presence and opinion this much. I kissed his palm and began to listen again. "For the thing that I like... as you know already, I love children, spending time with them, I think I could be a good teacher, you know? I also adore animals. In the future, I'd love to have horses, at least two.'' He looked at me with puppy dog eyes, trying to sweet-talk me into agreeing to his plan. I'm not gonna lie. He was tempting. "I loooove good food, especially my mom's or this Korean Omma I met while living in Korea for two years. I swear to Goddess, I could kill to try her cooking once more...'' He daydreamed, and I just giggled at his cuteness. "Mmh, yes, that would be all. I'm sorry I talked so much.''

"I love listening to you. I love your voice. The way I can sometimes hear the accent while you talk, it's the music for my ears.''

"Haha, you are too cheesy.'' Yoshi's face reddened. Our flirting interrupted the waiter with our food. Yoshi ordered pasta while I asked for something called Fiorentina. It was a steak, but since a regular portion was too small for me, I ordered a double amount of the meat. The food smelled and tasted delicious. Yoshi looked at my portion. He looked like he wanted to try it but was too shy to ask. I smirked and stopped eating, putting my cutlery away.

"What's wrong? Do you not like yours? What do you want from me, looking at my food like that?" I teased.

"Um... Can- can I try yours?'' Hesitation and embarrassment sounded in his voice.

"It's rare, y'know? Still wants to try it?'' I asked, and he nodded vigorously, making me chuckle again. I offered him a piece of meat on my fork, and he took it into his mouth. At first, his expression was unreadable, but then an adorable grimace appeared on his face. The view was priceless, and I started to laugh uncontrollably.

"I don't think I like it rare...'' Yoshi took a deep breath and gulped down his food, washing it down with a gulp of his juice.

"Told you.'' I smirked and took another bite of my food. "What would you say about going to my house after we eat? You've never been there, and I want to show you.''I made a suggestion, and he immediately smiled.

"Of course! I would love to!''

After finishing, we went to the reception to pay for our food. I saw Yoshi taking out his wallet to pay and instantly stopped him.

"What are you doing?'' I asked.

"Paying? Would you like to pay for yourself? But I wanted to pay for both of us.'' Yoshi said like it was something obvious. The waiter looked at us questioningly, waiting for the final answer about who was paying. I knew I couldn't let Yoshi pay. It was unthinkable for me.

"No way, I invited you, I'm going to pay. Besides, I can't let you pay when, for the last few days I lived under your roof and ate your food.'' I asserted.

"The food you prepared! And for the last few days, you only helped and cared for me. I have taken advantage of your kindness too much.'' He refused to back down and insisted on paying. But I didn't intend to back down either. It might have been too much, but I decided to use the last thing I had. My alpha voice.

"I will pay. End of discussion.''I made sure that my tone wasn't too harsh when I spoke to Yoshi, as I didn't want to scare him. However, I also wanted to convey the message very clearly that I won't back down from my stance. He looked surprised but did what I said and hid his wallet, and with his head down, he moved a few steps away. I couldn't see his face, but I hoped I hadn't crossed a line. I took out my credit card and handed it to the nervous waitress. After the payment was successfully made, both of us left the restaurant in silence and got to my car. Yoshi wasn't talking to me, which made me anxious. I didn't mean to scare him, I just wanted him to let me pay, and that was the easiest way to achieve that. As we sat in the car, I spoke first.

"Is everything okay? Look, I didn't mean to-''

"No, it's fine, don't worry. You just startled me a little bit there, haha...'' He didn't sound too convinced. Suddenly, I felt so guilty about what happened. He was so cheerful and sunny just a few minutes ago. He just wanted to pay, harmlessly. And I acted so harshly. I still forget how fragile and innocent my puppy was. I could've done this some other way, more gently.

"I'm sorry, baby... I shouldn't have said it like that.'' I grabbed his hand and kissed it tenderly. "Will you forgive me?'' I could be so soft only for him. So tender only with him. So gentle only to him. However, Yoshi's presence in my life didn't bring weakness, but rather strength. Through our relationship, I discovered a new version of myself. My character was bolstered, and I became a better person as a result of his influence. Then, I saw it. It was the most adorable smile I've ever witnessed. The smile that gave me power and strength. The smile that gave me hope and made my knees weak. At that moment, I knew that everything was going to be okay.

"I am fine, I mean it. I'm glad you understand.'' Yoshi placed his hand on my cheek and kissed me deeply. The kiss was tender, but it contained all the emotions we felt. "I love you...'' He whispered, his forehead against mine.

"I love you more...'' I whispered as well, my eyes closed. As we sat in my car, a serene silence enveloped us, creating an intimate moment that was punctuated only by the gentle expressions of our affections and emotions. The stillness of the air heightened every sensation, from the rustle of our clothing to the beating of our hearts, making the moment feel all the more precious and special. I appreciated all the emotions he shared with me.

Okie dokie, that is another chapter (U^U). I hope you liked it and see you again!^^