350 Pancakes

Damien's blank expression wasn't what Katherine expected to see, making her wonder as to what was going on in his head.

Years ago, before she lost her memories, she told him she was going to tell him what 218 meant for her but she never had the chance to, even when she met him again after that auction. Things happened and they never got to talk about it. And now that she thought about the past, she mused as to why she even shared this part of her to him in the first place. And to some stranger on top of that!

Out of all the lies that she said back then… Out of all the different personas that she had put on in front of people outside of Shadow, her birthday was the one thing that she held so dearly.

When she joined Shadow, her life went through a period of 'reset'. No family. No background. She was no one. Her name was still Katherine but she was no one. And maybe she thought that remembering her birthday would keep her grounded. That even though she was living a new life, she could still have that part of her in her mind–the day when she was born.

She didn't share very important details about her personal life with anyone. Especially not to outsiders. The only people who knew about her real birthday from Shadow were Parker, Chris, and Styles. So she couldn't tell why she was inclined to share that information with Damien back then–a stranger that she had no business with. It was dangerous… but she did it anyway.

Now that she was no longer restrained to keep things from him, she could tell him that and so much more; it was such a liberating feeling. She wondered if it held a huge importance to him that she shared it just like how much it meant to her. 

But then she also pondered if he had already done a background investigation about her when she disappeared on him a couple of months ago.

As if their minds were in sync, Damien drifted back to the day when he last saw her. That day she left. When he felt as if a huge boulder fell on his shoulders and crushed his bones.

He had asked Markus to search for anything he could find on 'Katherine Young'. And after a few days, his assistant submitted the report to him on his office table. He was still lost, heartbroken and was sleep deprived, not knowing what he was supposed to do and where to look for her. But when the information that he asked for—all packed inside a sealed brown envelope—was already in front of him, he couldn't—for the life of him—dare to open it.

Damien had contemplated hundreds of times as there was a part of him that was scared to read facts about her. He feared that if he read her file, everything would seem real. That she really was that girl many years ago. That she was the same girl from the family that his family was supposed to execute. He was still in denial. Which was why no matter how many times he was tempted to do so, he couldn't convince himself to check the contents of the envelope.

However, hearing it from her first hand, he realized that he made the right decision not to read her file back then. Because with the way that his heart was slamming against his chest at the revelation, he certainly preferred that the information came from her. 

After a long time of silence, it was interrupted by the clacking of plates that were placed on their table. "Here are your orders!" said the server.

Damien hadn't spoken for a few minutes now and was just staring at the table. Perhaps what she thought was a big deal for her wasn't actually a big deal for him? Perhaps it wasn't that important? Katherine waited for them to be alone again before she swallowed and hesitantly asked in a hush, "Are you disappointed?" 

"What? No—" Damien snapped out of his trance. He saw her lips curved into a frown and he realized that he hadn't responded to her yet. What a moron! "I'm sorry… I was…" He sighed as he lowered his head. He chuckled at himself before he reached for her hand across the table, flashing her one of his gorgeous smiles as he continued, "I'm not disappointed. I'm delighted."

"But you were in deep thought just now…"

Damien explained what he was thinking earlier, sparing her details about how shitty his time was while she wasn't around. "Thanks for telling me… It's a bummer that we didn't do anything special that day."

"It doesn't matter…" She smiled, cutting a piece of the pancake on her plate that was drenched in maple syrup and melted butter.

The two didn't know it back then but now that they do, he thought that it sucked. He also remembered that it was the day when he had to tell her about Margaret and the unborn child in her womb. What an awful way to spend her special day. He was relieved that he was at least able to fly her to France the next morning, it made the whole thing a bit better. "Well, it matters to me. I'll make it up to you."

"You don't really have to…"

"You can't stop me, Kitten. Come on, tell me more…"

Katherine rolled her eyes at his enthusiasm. It was strange how she was also excited to tell him about herself. And she was suddenly reminded of that night they spent together on February eighteenth – the magical night when she danced with him out in the balcony where she told him about her dream… where they shared a kiss for the second time.

She brushed her thoughts and cleared her throat. "Okay… um… My maternal grandmother was French. Her maiden name was Laurent and she was from Bordeaux. Her family had this vineyard there that we used to visit when I was young. I don't know if it's still there though… It's been a long time since I had last seen them."

"Would you like to go there again someday?"

"Someday…" She smiled. Dark thoughts were leering in the back of her mind, wanting to destroy her mood. But she didn't allow it. Instead, she pushed it far back and locked it in place, deciding to make this night worry-free so she could enjoy her time with Damien.

Katherine didn't long for anything lavish. Her wishes were pretty simple and so were the things that made her happy. Just like having pancakes for dinner with Damien in this rundown diner that not a lot of people knew about.

While she enjoyed her food, she noticed that Damien hadn't touched his plate yet and when she looked up, she met his gaze. "Do I have dirt on my face? Why aren't you eating?"

"Nah… You're perfect." He winked.

And just when she thought he was going to start eating when he grabbed his knife and fork, he reached towards her plate and started slicing a piece of pancake. She watched as he swirled the pancake on the syrup and butter before he put it in his mouth. Her eyes grew wide, "Hey! Why—That's mine!"

"Yours tastes better." He chewed the food unapologetically, flashing her a goofy smile after he gulped it down. They literally have the same order of a stack of three pancakes. And yet he stole from hers.

Katherine didn't understand why Damien did it. So she frowned at him and stole from his plate too.

And of course he let her.