Revan expected a lot of things today, and the lack of people in this little red cafe was not one of them. Due to a lot of cultures suddenly being forced together into smaller places, quite a few things had been adopted by the Rethavok. One of those things was commercial holidays, holidays invented mostly to sell things. Apparently today was one of them, and this normally rather plain cafe had been decorated with tons of hearts. From the general lack of commotion around town, it seemed like this particular holiday hadn’t taken off at all.
Most likely because the Rethavok already had a ‘day of love’ and it was on the 6th of September.
Either way, Revan was now sitting in this cafe, waiting. He expected his date to not come, but there, in the doorway, was Relkai, the Rethan he had bumped into a few days ago while shopping. And, to Revan’s surprise, Relkai was wearing fancy armour. Immediately, Relkai spotted Revan and headed over, delicately sitting down opposite him.
“I was worried you would flake!” Revan smiled. “Good to see you again. Want me to order some drinks?”
Relkai adjusted himself slightly, curling his tail around his leg. He was clearly nervous, but he tried to hide it. “I was… considering it. But then I remembered that Revan Rethianos invited me on a date…”
“That does help!” Revan’s smile grew. “Still, best not to undersell yourself. You are a young General, after all.”
He clapped his hands and the single waiter in the cafe appeared, wearing a headband with two springs on it. On the springs, two large, comedic hearts had been glued on, and they jiggled as the waiter walked. Both Relkai and Revan couldn’t help but stare.
“Yes, I know…” the waiter rolled their eyes as they whipped out a pad and pen. “What can I get you both?”
“You can take that thing off your head, first! You poor thing, having to wear that silly stuff.” Revan’s smile returned. “What do you want, Relkai? It’s all on me.”
Relkai shrugged, eyeing the menu. “Something sweet. Like Revan here.”
Revan glanced at Relkai, surprised by the comment. It seemed that, now Relkai had arrived and settled down, his nervousness had faded a little. He was actually comfortable.
“Two hot chocolates, please. With all the marshmallows. And cream. Lots of cream.”
“Of course. Coming right up.” The waiter nodded as he jotted the request down and made his way back to the kitchen. In just a couple of seconds, the waiter returned, bringing two very overly decorated hot chocolates, as well as a plate of cookies and chocolates. They winked at Revan, then disappeared back in the kitchen.
Turning his attention back to Relkai, he noticed that the General was much calmer. It occurred to Revan that, technically, Relkai was of a higher rank than he was. Revan was a General, but of the Exploration Legion of 616, which was more of a guild than anything else, and far less strict or demanding. Still that didn’t bother Revan, it was more of an interesting thought, especially since he and Relkai were of similar ages. Yes, Revan had done a little bit of research.
“You come here often then?” Relkai asked, sipping his drink and ignoring how hot it was.
“What? Oh, no, I just heard this place was nice. Seems like I have been correct so far.”
“Ah, I see. So what have you been up to as of late? Must be fun, going off exploring.”
Revan tutted, taking a glug of his own drink, still somehow surprised how sweet it was, despite seeing how much cream he had. “That has all been cancelled. Everyone has been helping with reconstruction. I take it you have been busy too.”
“Space port security is awful when one is in charge. Even harder now that General Gath is on half-time as he looks after his kid, and the 269th Legion is all-round a mess. I have had to learn quickly and get past a… lot of issues.”
“That is… unfortunate.”
“It is. I have had almost no time for myself.”
“That is also unfortunate. At least you have today off though!” Revan smiled.
Relkai smiled back. “Mhm, I have actually been really excited for this! And already I think this was a good choice.”
“You do?”
“Of course!” Relkai moved his hand, gently placing it near Revan. “After all, I must be a wonderful being if someone like you has asked me out on a date.”
“That is because you are wonderful.”
Relkai smiled some more. “I like you.”
“I like you too.”
“Do you… want to come over to my place after this?”
“I’d love to.”