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From what he’d read, Kit had been willing to guess that this person was the sort that wanted to hide, so he imagined they wouldn’t be wearing something that would stand out too much. Hmm...doesn’t want to stand out, but tall? That must suck, he thought, chuckling quietly to himself. Leeeet’s see...whoa, that’s a pretty big hoodie. How do you get something that oversized for someone of that height?

Fairly confident he had located his target, the tattooed teen ambled over to casually cut the stranger off on his route back to the table of food. He blocked the path with his own body, placing himself directly in the way as he held up another strawberry he’d selected - this one dipped in milk chocolate - and pressed it to the other young man’s lips. “Hello there, sweetheart. Looking for something?”

Picking up on the anxious behavior, the slightly taller male’s smile broadened and he cocked his head. “How come? Nervous eater?” Kit retrieved the white note card from his back pocket and held it up to reveal Xi-wang’s information printed on it. “If this is you, it seems like it’s my humble privilege and pleasure to escort you this evening.” Tilting forward, he gave a playful little mock bow before righting himself with a wink. “I’ll do my best to satisfy your appetite...whatever your tastes or cravings.”

The wavy-haired young man reached out to gently lift the other’s right hand from his sleeve in order to bring it to his own lips, brushing the back of it with a light kiss while his eyes remained locked on Xi’s. “I’m Kit.”

Kit laughed lightly at the confirmation of the name. “Glad to know you still remember it,” he teased. “And so glad I guessed right. Xi-wang, what I want to do is nothing more than spend the evening in the pleasure of your company.” He lowered their hands, but didn’t let go. “And get to know you better, if you’ll permit me.”

Turning back around to face the table, he snatched up a plate and flashed a sweet smile at Xi-wang. “We can start with your favorite foods, if you like. Seems like the most logical place to begin, don’t you think? What can I get for you?”

“Well of course you wouldn’t. You know what you look like,” Kit explained. “If you’re hiding that face under a hoodie, though, no one’s going to be able to see those features no matter how much they stand out or if someone even knew what you meant by how they stand out. In fact, it seemed to me like you were doing your best not to stand out, so could you have expected me to know who you were?” His tone was light and cheerful, indicating he hadn’t minded in the least.

Leaning in, he whispered in Xi-wang’s ear, “Let me guess. Someone put you up to this, didn’t they? Wouldn’t make sense for someone as shy as you to have volunteered yourself for something like this.” He raised his brows and drew back comically as if suddenly happening upon a revelation. “...Unless it was only after you found out who you were paired with that you began to dread this event.”

He chuckled at the other tall fellow’s comment. “Nothing here? What about your favorite food in general?” Kit hovered by Xi-wang’s side and gave his hand a small squeeze before letting go in order to use both hands for loading food onto the plate. “You said ‘some’ looks good, which means you have a preference. Hehe, you gotta work with me a little here, angel-face. I’m not much of a mind-reader and I’d hate to pick up some things you didn’t like.”

“There we go...that’s better.” Kit beamed fondly as Xi-wang finally lowered his hood and revealed his face. Slipping a finger under his chin, he gently tipped his head up to get a better look at his allegedly striking features. “Huh...so these are the markings you were talking about. Not tattoos like mine, are they?” he asked, gesturing to the bright blue swirl designs under his own eyes. “Don’t look like make-up either, though.” Dropping his hand, he released Xi-wang’s chin.

“Heheheh...sounds like a true friend,” he mused upon hearing the other’s reason for attending the event. “Setting someone up with a matchmaking service seems like a kind of drastic move for a goal as simple as that, though. If I were that friend of yours, I’d try to find something you liked and see if there was a way to get you to meet others who shared that interest. But this?” He spread an arm, gesturing at the pink, red, and white heart-shaped, lacy decor surrounding them. “This makes things a bit awkward for trying to start a new friendship. I definitely don’t blame you for wanting to try and hide.”

He blinked when he noticed Xi-wang duck his head. “Huh? Oh, don’t sweat it, cupcake. Relax; I was just teasing.” Grinning again, he affectionately ruffled the other young man’s hair. “Not everyone feels comfortable opening up in the same way for the same reasons in the same amount of time. Just do things at your own pace and I’ll do my best to keep up. I’m in no rush.”

Nodding slowly at the comment about Chinese food, Kit paused, looking thoughtful. “Chinese food, huh? Got a favorite dish? Or foods you especially dislike?” He laughed at Xi-wang’s doubt about the food being as good as it looked. “If you want, I can taste test them for you. Can’t say we’d have the same exact taste in things, but at least I can make sure they’re not poisoned,” he joked. “There’s just one thing. I don’t like chocolate.”

Kit put a portion of each item that Xi-wang pointed out on the plate he carried as they stepped alongside the buffet table. At the question posed to him, the tattooed male peered at his companion out the corner of his eye. “Me?” His smile became sly. How cute; it seemed Xi-wang might have been taking an interest after all. Either that, or he was merely being polite. “I like barbeque pork buns and shark fin dumplings. Meat pastries in general are my favorites, though. My favorite fruit also happens to be Chinese in origin.” Half turning to his new acquaintance, he asked, “Is your ethnicity Chinese?”

Kit tilted his head. “No?” He racked his brains for what sickness Xi-wang might have been referring to. It seemed like the residents of Destiny City had had a great deal of illnesses to overcome in the past year. “Hmm...were those because of the spider attacks? Or that pumpkin spice latte that I think people were getting sick from?” He scratched his head. “I don’t think I remember any sicknesses leaving marks. But then again, I don’t get sick all that much.”

Taking a bite out of a heart-sprinkled, frosted cookie, the tattooed teen appeared astonished. “Oh...you’re dating someone?” His brow furrowed in what seemed to be puzzlement. “You can’t just talk with them normally? I feel like an event like this might just worsen the situation. Unless that friend of yours was trying to make the person you’re dating jealous, but then I don’t know why he wouldn’t just pretend to flirt with you instead. Seems like it’d be a lot more simple and easy to clear up the situation if need be.” He chortled softly again. “I was just referring to the decorations to day it’s more of a romantic atmosphere than a platonic one. But don’t worry; I’ll be nice.” Casting Xi-wang another Cheshire grin, he added, “After all, you probably get enough romance with whomever you’re dating.”

When he heard the other laugh, Kit’s own smile broadened. It sobered a little at the mention of the city being unsafe, though, and he nodded gravely. “Yeah...but hey. What’s life without a little danger, right? And the citizens of Destiny City have prove time and time again that they can persevere. Definitely my kind of place. Rarely a dull moment.”

He listened carefully as his new acquaintance spoke more about his food preferences and parentage, taking it all in and making mental notes. “So you like spicy stuff, don’t like greasy or oily foods, and don’t mind meat, but you don’t like seeing anything killed,” the older teen remarked. Kit tried to interpret Xi-wang’s expression as best he could and put a hand on his shoulder. “Heh, don’t worry. When my sister and I found out how people leave sharks to suffer alive just because of the high demand for their fins, we stopped having those.” Once they reached the end of the table, he handed the other young man his plate.

“Come on. Let’s go sit somewhere.” With one hand holding his own plate and his other free once more, he held it out for Xi-wang to take if he so chose. “By the way, if you think I’m prying too much or making you uncomfortable in any way, just let me know. I’ve been told I have little tact and no sense of personal space.” After glancing about a bit for a place to sit, he looked back at the other black-haired boy. “So you don’t know your father, huh? And it sounds like you’re an only child.”

“Oh, so this Nischal has his own relationship...that makes sense, then.” Though Xi-wang tried a little later to conceal his misery, Kit had seen enough to realize that the other young man was very troubled by the way things were going between himself and the person he was dating. “Cold and abrupt, huh? Did you bring it to their - his? - attention? Ask him why?”

Sometimes you wish it was, huh? You’re starting to sound like you know more than you’re letting on. It reminded him how he had discovered what a small world it was when at the Anthemusa music festival, Cassie and Clayton had turned out to be Dark Mirror Senshi like himself. “Heh, yeah, sleep is definitely good for your body, but it can be difficult to get enough when you know there could be monsters roaming the streets, ready to suck out your very soul.” It seemed fairly likely to Kit by now that anyone could have been a part of the not-so-secret war through a different identity. If that was true, though, the question remained as to what side Xi-wang was on. Not that Kit would have minded regardless.

He sneered at the comment that the Chinese young man sounded picky. “What? Cupcake, everyone has likes and dislikes. Those weren’t even all that specific. Or a lot. You don’t sound picky, trust me. And even if you did, what does it matter?” He extended his arms and recited a quote. “‘Those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind’, right? Don’t you worry about it.”

The wavy-haired teen nodded again at the mention of Xi-wang’s parents, uttering a soft thank you when an empty table was pointed out to him. It interested Kit to note it was so far away from others, but he didn’t mind as long as his companion was comfortable. “Alright, just let me know. And I’m sorry to hear that about your parents. Hopefully your love life turns out better, though.” He offered an encouraging smile as he set down his plate at the table and pulled up a chair first for Xi-wang and then for himself.

“I’m no expert in romance, but today is Valentine’s Day, and you still have some time left,” Kit pointed out, munching on a sparkling sugar cookie. “No need to waste it all with someone you just met. If you haven’t already, why don’t you try doing something nice for them to see how they might respond?”

Kit finished off his cookie as he heard Xi-wang out and inspected a pair of shiny, dark cherries next. He played with the stem that linked the two as he contemplated the issues at hand. “I understand how it can be difficult to broach a subject that might bring about conflict, but if you never talk it out, you’ll never be able to resolve it.

“Think of it this way: if he’s already upset, it can’t hurt to at least try to find out what about, right? At least that way he’ll know you’re aware he’s upset and that you want to know why so you can try to do something to fix it. If you don’t say anything at all, he might think you’re being insensitive and not even paying attention to him.”

Popping one of the fruits in his mouth, he pulled the stem free. “If you’re still worried about how to bring up the topic, though, I’d suggest starting with some sort of peace offering. Lovers tend to expect gifts on Valentine’s Day, after all. You can use a box of chocolates or a bouquet of flowers to smooth your way if he’s that sort of guy.”

Xi-wang assured Kit that he would try and the slightly taller male reached over to pat him on the back. “Atta boy. That’s the most anyone can ask for.” Looking over, he cast the other dark-eyed teen an encouraging smile and offered him the other cherry, holding it to his lips. “It’ll work out for the best, I’m sure.” Considering something a moment, he added, “If you think you might want some more advice or help or just someone to listen to you, though, I can give you my number. Only if you want it, of course.”

“Thank you.” Accepting the phone, Kit quickly entered his number and handed it back. “It’s good to hope, kiddo. And I wish you the best of luck,” he said, his merry demeanor suddenly taking a more serious tone. “But whatever happens, just remember what I said, okay?” He reached out to clasp Xi-wang on the shoulder in a friendly manner once more. “Those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

Wiping his hands on his napkin, he put it on his paper plate with the rest of his trash and stacked Xi-wang’s empty dish under it them so he could throw them away. Then he pushed his chair back and stood. “I’ll take care of things here. You go on ahead. Have a happy Valentine’s Day and it was a pleasure meeting you.” Kit saw the other young man off with a final, sweeping bow.