Lovesick

Chapter 5

It's Nikkari, letting him know his shift has just ended, and he'll be arriving momentarily.

Horikawa quickly changes into his second favorite shirt, the one he wore the day Kane-san proposed to him, and gives himself a quick once over. He might not look as elegant as a Kanesada, but he does look presentable.

The place they're going to, Nikkari explains while he drives, is not too far, and has a nice, classy atmosphere. It's a favorite place of his, and he sometimes goes there with colleagues to drink. What Nikkari doesn't tell Horikawa is that Yagen was the one to introduce the bar to him, but the tealnette is sure that they won't be running into the doctor, he's on call for the whole day and can't afford to visit a bar.

The nurse quickly finds parking, and Horikawa just barely stops himself from gawking at the entrance. The sign is written in English, and Horikawa can't quite make out what it says, but it looks cool. The building is a shiny, lacquered black, and the young wife understands what Nikkari meant when he described the place as classy.

Nikkari chuckles softly, he's made the right choice in bringing the younger boy to this place. He swings the door open for Horikawa, "After you, Miss."

Horikawa smiles brightly at him, and if Nikkari wasn't so painfully in love with Yagen, he would have surely felt his heart skip a beat.

The inside is even nicer, though it takes Horikawa a second to adjust to the dim interior lighting after the bright street lights outside. Piano plays softly from one corner of the bar, and the name of the song is barely on the tip of Horikawa's tongue.

He follows after Nikkari, who sits down at the counter. The bartender, a young man with blue hair and an eyepatch smiles at them, he seems to know Nikkari, and they talk about this and that for a few minutes.

"You're not here with the doctor today?"

Nikkari smiles, "Oh, no, this is Horikawa, a friend of mine."

"H-hello!" Horikawa feels a little nervous, surrounded by two extremely handsome men.

"Oh my," the bartender looks at Nikkari  "he's so cute! Just a friend, you said, right?"

"He's married." Nikkari says somewhat sternly, and Mitsutada seems to pout a little.

"Well then, it's not cool if I take up all your time. What would you like, Hori-chan?"

Horikawa blushes at the sudden nickname, but somehow he doesn't mind if the bartender is this friendly with him.

"Mmm...." the brunette puts a finger on his cheek and thinks for a second, before looking up at Mitsutada "what would you reccommend?"

"Hori-chan looks all cute, sweet, and milky, so how does a white russian sound?"

"Ehh...that sounds good!"

"And you, Nikkari?"

"The usual, beer with milk."

Horikawa looks around a little more, and notices how everyone else seems to also be dressed classy. This must also be one of those places that only people like Kasen can enter, looking at Nikkari again, he also seems to have the look of the elite. His green hair shines, even under the dim lighting, and he carries himself with elegance. Not to mention his extremely charming smile...could he be from an important family also?

Nikkari catches Horikawa looking and smiles at him, "Are you enjoying yourself? It's a nice place, isn't it?"

Horikawa nods his head, "Yes! Thank you for bringing me here!"

"You seemed a little down the last time we met, so I thought going out for a drink might be good for you."

"Ah..! Thank you! You don't need to take me into such consideration."