xp_logs | Monet and Kurt, date night

Kurt smiled at Monet across the table, reaching to lift the bottle of wine between them. "Would you like another glass?"

Monet smiled back. "Do you have to ask?" She waited while he poured and then took a sip of her wine, looking out over the restaurant. "It's such a shame the food was shit, wasn't it? I mean, gorgeous company, good wine... crappy food."

"I am sorry about that", he said, poking at what was left on his plate with his fork. "I had heard good things about this restaurant. Perhaps the chef has changed."

"Maybe the chef ate his own cooking and died," Monet suggested.

Kurt laughed at that. "Maybe so. I will have to vet places before I bring you to them, in future."

"Or I could. It's not like you have to quality control my life. Even if that would be nice occasionally..."

"Not your entire life", he agreed easily. "But the places I choose for us to go to, yes. I want you to enjoy yourself."

She rolled her eyes slightly at the sheer cheesiness of it all before saying "But I do enjoy myself. After all, I'm with you."

"I am glad", was the earnest response, before he turned to look for the waiter. "Shall we risk dessert?"

"I think so." Monet paused for a moment, caught up in a nearby waiter's thoughts. "But not here - the sous chef has appendicitis and he's real stressed about the quality of the deserts tonight - the second year apprentice was doing them and it didn't end too well." She beckoned to the waiter and handed over her credit card.

Kurt didn't object - he'd paid for the last dinner, and they both knew she had more money than him. He just nodded in response to her words. "Somewhere else, then. What would you like?"

Kurt smiled at Monet across the table, reaching to lift the bottle of wine between them. "Would you like another glass?"

Monet smiled back. "Do you have to ask?" She waited while he poured and then took a sip of her wine, looking out over the restaurant. "It's such a shame the food was shit, wasn't it? I mean, gorgeous company, good wine... crappy food."

"I am sorry about that", he said, poking at what was left on his plate with his fork. "I had heard good things about this restaurant.
Perhaps the chef has changed."

"Maybe the chef ate his own cooking and died," Monet suggested.

Kurt laughed at that. "Maybe so. I will have to vet places before I bring you to them, in future."

"Or I could. It's not like you have to quality control my life. Even if that would be nice occasionally..."

"Not your entire life", he agreed easily. "But the places I choose for us to go to, yes. I want you to enjoy yourself."

She rolled her eyes slightly at the sheer cheesiness of it all before saying "But I do enjoy myself. After all, I'm with you."

"I am glad", was the earnest response, before he turned to look for the waiter. "Shall we risk dessert?"

"I think so." Monet paused for a moment, caught up in a nearby waiter's thoughts. "But not here - the sous chef has appendicitis and he's real stressed about the quality of the deserts tonight - the second year apprentice was doing them and it didn't end too well." She beckoned to the waiter and handed over her credit card.

Kurt didn't object - he'd paid for the last dinner, and they both knew she had more money than him. He just nodded in response to her words. "Somewhere else, then. What would you like?"

She just looked at him. "You have to ask? We're going to that chocolate cafe I like and we're having desert cocktails." Monet paused for a moment. "Can you be the designated getting us home-er? I got massively lost again last time I tried to fly home at night."

"Any dessert cocktail you wish, and I will pay", he promised, then nodded. "I can do that. I apologise in advance for the brimstone", he added with a grin.

"Yeah, we really need to work on that part of things," Monet said, grabbing handbag, scarf, fuzzy hat (she didn't need it but it was so cute!), little coat and mittens. Juggling her armful of stuff, she led the way out, glaring suspiciously at the sky as she did.

Kurt just laughed and followed her out, glancing upwards when he saw her face. "I think the rain will hold off a little longer. And we should not have to worry about it after the cafe."

"It wasn't rain this morning, babe. It was horizontal sleet. It was sleeting sideways under my umbrella. Sideways!"

Even he had to pull a face at that. "Not pleasant at all, liebling. At least it has stopped?"

"This is New York. I don't trust it. It's trying to lull us into a false sense of security before it leads us down a dark alley and bashes us." Monet paused for a moment. "You know, that made more sense in my head?"

"It was a perfectly valid metaphor", he assured her. "And if it does start again tonight, we will go from inside to inside and all will be well."

The first drops of rain fell about them as Monet dragged Kurt into the lee of a building. "Dude. Rain. It's going to mess up my hair. Get us out of here?"

"Happily." He wrapped an arm around her, fixing the destination in his mind, and the next moment they were standing just inside the cafe.

And that was the exact moment that the Dutch Medallion's on-shift bouncer Shane swung a punch at the man who'd appeared right the fuck next to him in a cloud of smoke.

Kurt caught sight of the fist, just barely, and his reflexes kicked in in time for him to duck without thinking... unfortunately leaving Monet standing in the way.

Unfortunately for the bouncer, that was.

Monet had been blindsided by the sudden jolt of adrenaline-powered reaction from the bouncer. She hadn't dodged or blocked as the bouncer's strike landed on her chin and stared at him in a slightly dazed and confused way as he stumbled back and tried to come at her again.

"Dude! What was that?"

Shane blinked, and pulled the blow he was going to make with his offside hand and dropped to a guard position, a wary distance from the two, his injured right fist tucked against his side. (And what? Was the girl made of like steel?)

"We did not mean any trouble", Kurt said hurriedly, straightening back up at Monet's side. "I am sorry our arriving alarmed you, but we are not going to fight."

Shane looked at the two of them warily, his injured hand cradled against his side. "Y'all appared out of nowhere. That ain't right," he said, trying to calm down.

"That is teleportation", Kurt said wryly. "And trust me, I will think twice before coming straight inside that way again."

The bouncer shook his head. "I'm going to have to ask y'all to leave now. It ain't the mutant thing. It's just..." He trailed off and took another deep breath, special forces reactions fighting for control against the need to be a calm, responsible bouncer. "Peter over there calls the police, if he thinks there's going to be trouble and there ain't, but he's called and the police don't know that."

Monet had recovered from the punch and shook her head. "Kuuurt, how about we find a new bar?" she asked.

He sighed, but nodded. "That would probably be best. I am sorry."

"Y'all ain't to blame," Shane said. "Why don't you come back next week? I'll buy you both a drink to make up for this."

"Oooh, awesome!" Monet slipped her arm around Kurt's waist and led the way out. "See you on Friday!" she called before saying "Not so bad, is it? Least we get a free drink next weekend, too."

He couldn't help laughing, an effect she often had. "Free drinks and no one was very hurt, so not so bad indeed. Let me find you somewhere else with chocolate cocktails."

"I know this one great little place... Come on."