If there is one thing that Vincent would never forget about his mother, it was that she taught him to cook with all his heart. “Chocolates are meant to make people happy, so it is only natural that the ones making it should be happy as well. They should put their hearts into it so that the people that would eat their chocolates would feel the same happiness.” Vincent said back in Lance’s car.

“So that’s what the two of you meant.” Lance said with a smile. “The chocolates you gave me last night made me really happy. Even though I was really feeling bad, after eating it, I felt really happy. You must be really happy when you cooked it.” Lance said and then smiled at Vincent.’

“I’m always happy when making chocolates.” Vincent replied. “I wonder how I could make Henry cook with his heart as well.” Lance suddenly stepped on the break and the car came to an instant halt. Vincent was thrown forward a little bit. “Hey!”

“You’re not really going to teach Henry, are you?” Lance was looking at Vincent seriously.

Vincent knew why Lance was acting that way, and even though he likes Lance, he still couldn’t imagine the two of them together. There was no way he could date someone like Lance. “I need to finish my mom’s legacy.”

“I understand that but…”

“You’re straight.” Vincent said with a shaking voice. “You’re not attracted to men, you like women, Lance. Whatever it is you think you feel for me, that’s nothing but an illusion. You may think I look attractive, but that’s all there is to it.” Vincent felt relieved and yet really sad after finally saying what he felt. He was afraid that he might be right, that Lance didn’t really like him.

Vincent was about to leave but Lance pulled him back. Lance’s hands were firmly on Vincent’s shoulder. Lance was leaning close to Vincent with a very serious expression. He was squeezing Vincent’s shoulder tightly. Vincent was unable to move. His heart was thumping and it was beating so fast that it clouded his own thoughts. “Whether my feeling for you is true or not we’ll find out.” Lance said very seriously then… he pulled Vincent closer for a kiss.

Lance’s lips were soft and the kiss was very gentle and pure. Vincent’s eyes were wide opened in shock, his whole body went into a panic but it soon mellowed as his heart was melted by that wonderful kiss. His heart was on fire and his mind void of anything but that kiss. His hands were on Lance’s chest, intending to push him away, but as the kiss progressed, he found himself clutching on Lance’s shirt, pulling him closer.

Lance moved away a little bit and took hold of Vincent’s left hand. He pressed Vincent’s hand on his chest. Vincent felt the fast beating of Lance’s heart. He could tell that Lance was nervous. “You feel that. My heart is going crazy right now, and it’s like that every time I am close to you. It doesn’t matter what my preference is and it doesn’t matter who you are, all I know is that I like you a lot.”

It was difficult for Vincent to even look at Lance straight in the eyes. His heart was beating as fast as Lance’s. He wanted to tell Lance what he truly felt, he wanted to embrace Lance, but his heart wasn’t ready, he was still afraid to be hurt and left all over again. Vincent looked down and spoke gently. “Why are you doing this to me?” His hands were still clutching onto Lance, he was still shaking.

Lance moved his arms around Vincent’s neck, hugging him and pulling him closer. Vincent’s face was buried in Lance’s chest, and Lance’s chin was resting on his head. Vincent was melting, he had never felt so intoxicated on someone before, and Lance was making him feel that way at that moment.

Finally, Vincent pushed Lance away, he was trembling and his eyes were watering. “Stop this, stop confusing me, and stop confusing yourself. You… are someone that I could never be with.” Vincent’s heart broke when he said those words because the truth was; he wanted to be with Lance more than anything.

Lance stopped Vincent from going out of the car. “Just look in my eyes and tell me that you don’t want to be with me, then I’ll stop bothering you.” Lance said.

Vincent closed his eyes. He couldn’t do what Lance was asking, he knew it to himself. When Lance turned him, he tried his best to stare at Lance straight in the eyes. “I’ve heard that line too many times in movies, sadly we are in the real world, so if you’re expecting that I wouldn’t be able to answer you, or if you’re thinking that I would force myself to, then you are mistaken.” Vincent said in a very nonchalant tone and an expressionless face. “Think whatever you want, but I won’t be involved in your cliché movie scene.” With that being said, Lance looked pretty dumbfounded and Vincent took that chance to walk out of the car.

He kept on walking without looking back and then turned in one corner where he was sure that Lance wouldn’t be able to see him. There he fell back on the wall and touched his chest. It was beating so fast that he felt like it would explode. He left out a deep breath and bowed his head, and then while scratching his head he said: “What am I going to do?” He sounded very defeated. His other hand was covering his lips before he traced his own lips with his finger.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

“The expo would be in less than a month, and everything seems to be in order, there are still some applicants wanting to join the expo, well the more the better. Dad really wants to impress the whole industry by hosting this year’s expo, so all we could do is try to understand why he was putting really great pressure onto us.” William ranted as he sat on top of Vincent’s empty desk.

Lance was looking out the window with his mind wondering. He kept on remembering the kiss. When his lips touched Vince’s he felt electricity throughout his veins. His heart was pounding like crazy while their lips were touching that if he didn’t move away, he felt that his heart would explode.

“Are you even listening to me?” He heard William said. He turned his chair around and saw William jumping down the desk and walking closer to him. “Ever since you got back today, you’ve been out of it. And this…” William said as he gestured his hand towards Vince’s desk. “You haven’t explained this either.”

Lance only looked at William and ignored the question. He was still thinking about the aftermath of the kiss. Vince’s reaction was confusing and vague. Lance couldn’t understand what Vince meant. Does he like him back or not? But if Lance basing solely on Vince’s face that is flushed red, and Vince’s hands that were shaking and sweating cold, then Lance could say that Vince probably feels the same way.

“I don’t get why you have to move your assistant’s desk in your office. I’ve been hearing a lot of rumors about the two of you. You’re bickering with him, shouting, getting angry? Very unusual of you. Then yesterday, you actually had lunch with him, at a very expensive place at that.” William sounded so curious.

“We went to Cibo Per L’amina, a potential participant at the expo.” Lance said briefly.

“That doesn’t explain anything.”

“Well, I don’t really have to explain anything. Let the rumors be, I don’t mind at all.” Lance said as he stared at his computer blankly.

“It’s a good thing Carys is out of the country right now, or else she’ll go…” Even before William could finish his sentence, the door of Lance’s office burst open.

“WHAT THE…! So the rumors are true, you’re sharing your office with your new assistant!” Carys said in an outburst as she walked in.

“Ballistic…” Lance said as-a-matter-of-factly without really looking at Carys.

“What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be on a business trip!” William sounded surprised.

“Do you think I could just stay away when there are rumors of Lance dating his assistant, and a guy at that!” Carys sounded very pissed off.

Lance had no time for playing with Carys. “So? What’s that got to do with you?” He said looking at Carys seriously. If Vince was still out of the picture, Lance would have probably eased Carys’ irritation; comfort her at the least. He had always seen her as his little sister, but he also knows that Carys feels differently. It didn’t matter before because there was no one special in his life, but ever since Vince came into his life, everything changed. He knew he had to be honest to Carys about his true feelings, it’s the least that he could do for her.

Carys looked at Lance with confusion. “What?” She looked very dumbfounded. “It got everything to do with me!”

“You’re acting like you own me. If you forgot, we are not in that kind of relationship, you’re a friend, and that’s that.”

Carys looked shocked for a moment then looked at William for support only to be disappointed. William was quiet and he looked away instantly when Carys looked at him. “It’s that guy, isn’t it? Your assistant!” Carys asked angrily as she pointed at Vince’s desk. “Ever since I saw him, I knew that I couldn’t trust him! HE IS A MAN! For goodness sake!”

“Carys…” Lance wanted her to stop. He was having a headache.

“You don’t know him, Lance! He is a fox! There are rumors going around that he slept with different people every other night when he was in Europe, that he danced at clubs every night, flirts around, and let people touch him, just to get free drinks. He is a…” Carys said in an outrage.

“ENOUGH!” Lance shouted angrily, banging his desk as he stood up. “If you say another bad thing about him, I don’t know what I could say or even do…” He was clenching his fist. “Just go…” Carys wouldn’t budge, even though William was trying to push her out of the office. “GO!”

William walked Carys out and Lance was finally able to calm down. William went back to the office. “Dude, it’s about time…” William lauded with a smile.

“What?” Lance was confused.

“You should have done that sooner. Seriously, my sister was becoming more obsessed and possessive, that it even scares my whole family. If you have told me sooner about your plan, then I would have helped you. You don’t have to worry about Dad, I’ll talk to him, I’m sure he’ll understand.” William said with a smile then walked away.

Lance fell on his chair, exhausted. Somehow, although he didn’t know how, William misunderstood the situation; thinking that everything was planned by him just to wake Carys from her infatuation. He was as dumbfounded as Carys probably was, even more, because of what he heard about Vince. It’s not that he was suspecting Vince, he was merely surprised how fast Carys worked, he was sure Carys would cause more trouble just to get Vince out of her way.

Lance was very uneasy at work. He couldn’t concentrate at work at all because all he could think of was Vince. He didn’t exactly know why, but he decided to go out of work early and drive to Cibo Per L’anima. There was just a nagging thought in his mind that Vince was there. Just by thinking so, Lance became very worried and jealous.

He parked his car across the street, hesitating to go in. He wasn’t so sure what he was doing there at that moment, he thought of asking if Vince had been there, but, he was simply too hesitant. His question was soon answered when Vince walked out of the restaurant door with a grin.

No matter how much he wanted to go near Vince, Lance stayed in his car. He knew that Vince wouldn’t talk to him after what happened. A car parked near where Vince was and Lance became curious as to who it was. He saw a tall, lean man stepped out of the driver’s seat and walked towards Vince. Vince smiled and stretched his arms. Vince’s hands were on the man’s shoulders, and then Vince pulled the man closer. Vince gave the man a quick kiss on the lips. The man instantly pushed away and walked towards the car with an irritated expression while Vince followed with a naughty smile.

Lance couldn’t believe what he saw. Was that the reason why Vince couldn’t date him because Vince was already dating someone else? Lance squeezed the steering wheel tightly. Just the thought of Vince dating someone else was enough to drive him really angry. It was not like him at all; to be worked up just because of one person, to lose his mind over one thing, and to feel so unconfident about something. All of those, he was experiencing, just because of Vince. But he was holding onto something; the way Vince look when they kissed and Vince telling him he is special.

It was a very confusing night for Lance. He couldn’t sleep, he couldn’t stay still and he couldn’t calm down. The sight of Vince kissing someone else kept on replaying on his mind, and every time it would, jealousy would overcome his entire being. He already knew it would bring nothing good, but he couldn’t help it. Whenever Vince is involved, Lance couldn’t help his emotions, and it seemed that it would always go to the extremes.

Lance tried his best to concentrate on his work the next day. Vince didn’t go to work that day, and Lance knew it was because of Cedric’s challenge. He was also oblivious that his staff was noticing the great difference in the way he was acting than before Vince came into the picture.

When Lance couldn’t take it anymore, he walked out of his office and drove straight to Cibo Per L’anima, only to be disappointed. It seemed that Vince and Henry went out in a hurry without telling anyone why. At first, Lance didn’t know where to go, but his instinct had brought in in front of Cedric’s home.

He saw the same car that Vince rode last night. That man was there, so must be Vince. He became much more irritated at the thought of that man being with Vince that day instead of him. Was that man that important to Vince? “Why is that man here?” Lance walked out of his car angrily.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Cedric was lying on his bed, weak. Henry was sitting beside him and Vincent was watching as his plan unfolds. He couldn’t believe how easily Cedric agreed with his plan. The old man even made some great inputs to his mischievous game.

Henry was talking to Cedric with a really worried expression. Henry looked at Vincent with a slightly irritated expression then looked back at Cedric. Vincent had no idea what the two were talking about.

It didn’t take long before Cedric called Vincent. Cedric told Henry that he wanted to eat something made by his grandson, something that is cooked with his heart, and he wanted Vincent to help Henry. Henry seemed so much against it, but the sight of the weak Cedric on the bed made him change his mind.

“Are you happy now?” Henry asked in an irritated manner when he and Vincent walked out of Cedric’s room.

“Generally, no.” Vincent replied without looking at Henry. “Look, you don’t have to see it like I am going to teach you. Clearly, you know more about cooking savory dishes than I do. Just think of it this way; I’m going to point out what you are doing wrong and make some suggestions as to how you could correct them.”

“That is the same thing.” Henry said, irritated.

Vincent looked at him and then smiled. He stepped closer to Henry and placed his hands on top of Henry’s shoulders. “You’re a smart guy. This is going to be easy.” Vincent said teasingly. He could clearly see how irritated Henry was. He removed his hands on Henry’s shoulder and put his arms around it as they walked down the stairs. Henry threw his hands away but he kept on putting it back just to tease Henry more. He was just so annoyed about Henry’s overconfidence that it made him want to irritate the young chef more.

“What a nice view….” Vincent was surprised and took his hand away from Henry instinctively as he heard and saw Lance down the staircase. “It seems the two of you are getting cozy together.”

“What are you doing here?” Vincent was in a panic. After what happened yesterday, he didn’t know how he could look at Lance straight in the eyes. He was feeling too embarrassed. The sight of Lance made Vincent’s heartbeat so fast instantly.

“What about you, what are you doing? Why are your arms around him?” Lance looked really annoyed.

“Who…?” Henry asked curiously.

“He’s my boss.” Vincent answered quickly, worried that Lance might say something unnecessary.

“You know, for a boss, you seemed pretty concerned about him touching me.” Henry said haughtily as he walked down the stairs.

“That’s just normal when the person you like is touching someone else.” Lance replied while looking at Vince.

Vincent’s eyes widened as he heard what Lance said. He couldn’t believe that Lance was saying that so openly. He didn’t know whether he should feel happy or mad at that moment. He stood frozen on the stairs as Henry looked at him with a grin and then walked away.

“What are you doing here?” Vincent asked as calmly as he could. He tried his best to hide the fact that he was feeling so nervous.

“I’m here for you. Why are you here with that chef?” Lance asked.

Vincent was still on the stairs, he couldn’t bring himself closer to Lance. The closer Lance was the faster his heart would beat. “I’m here to teach Henry how to cook with his heart and to make Cedric eat my Mom’s recipe.” He said in a monotone.

“Aren’t you coming down?” Vincent didn’t budge. “If not then I’ll go there instead.” Lance started climbing up. Vincent couldn’t handle being so close to Lance at that moment, so when Lance was near him, he dashed down the stairs and passed Lance. “Hey! Are you trying to avoid me?! So childish….”

Vincent looked back when he heard what Lance said. True, he was acting childish and he knew it, but he couldn’t help it. It’s either he acts childish or be close to Lance and be intoxicated with Lance’s presence. He chose the former.

“So what if I’m acting childish? At least, I don’t steal ideas from movies and act it out in real life.” He said confidently. “Why are you even here? You should be back in your office, doing your work. Just go back.”

“I don’t want to.” Lance said as he walked down. “I want to be with you.”

“Wow!” Vincent said sarcastically. “And I’m the one acting childish.” He said with a grin and then walked away.

Vincent went straight to the kitchen only to see Henry already starting to prepare to cook. He needed to calm down for a while, to think about his goal, and to keep Lance away from his thoughts. “So, what are you going to cook?” Vincent asked casually.

Henry didn’t look at him. “Why don’t you stay with your boss instead? I could handle everything myself.”

“Your grandfather wouldn’t ask for my help if he believes that you could cook what he wanted by yourself. Sure, you could cook great tasting food, but that’s all there is to it. It tastes good, but still, it’s empty.” Vincent replied as he walked closer to Henry.

“Grandpa always says the same thing. I’m tired of hearing about it.” Henry was annoyed. “Instead of nagging, why don’t you just cook your chocolate? We’ll continue our contest and let Grandpa be the judge.”

“Instead of going into a contest that you have no chance of winning, why don’t you just put your energy into cooking something that would make your grandfather happy?” Vincent said as he looked around the kitchen. It was such a huge kitchen, and he couldn’t contain his want to cook in there. “Well… this is such a huge kitchen… No… forget it…” Vincent regained his focus. “What are you thinking when you cook?”

“Can you give up already?” Henry sounded pretty angry. “I don’t need your help. I could cook good food by myself. I wouldn’t be a successful chef if I couldn’t. If you’re not going to compete with me then just get lost.”

“The people who eat at your restaurant, those people who actually enjoy your food, they aren’t wrong. Your food is good, but even though it satisfies the craving, the stomach, and the tongue, it leaves the heart… empty.”

Henry’s eyes become furious. He grabbed Vincent by the collar angrily. “Just what exactly do you know?! As far as I could see, everyone who ate my food leaves satisfied. It’s only you and my grandfather who kept on complaining about my food!”

“For what reason do they eat? To fill their stomachs, to taste the food of the famous chef, or to splurge their money on expensive food? Food is not that simple, it’s not something that should only make us full, it’s something that should make us happy, something to show the people we care what we feel, and something to convey our emotions. Your grandfather loves food, and he loves you, so that’s why he wanted you to learn how to cook with your heart. Do you know why your grandfather is called the Soul Chef? It’s because he cooks with his soul, and the food he creates makes the people who eat them feel what’s truly in their heart and in their soul.”

Henry pushed Vincent away while laughing mockingly. “How very absurd. You said that food is supposed to make someone happy, but then you said my grandfather’s food brings out what the eater truly feels. Tell me, what if the one who eats the food feels anger, how can he be happy? Stop saying crap.”

The atmosphere in the kitchen was starting to become tense. “You really have a lot to learn. No matter how many techniques, recipes, or even cuisines you know, your food would still be as empty as it is today. Your cooking could never make anyone happy, not you, not your grandfather, not even your customers. Do you know how pathetic it is for a chef to not be able to make someone truly happy through food?” Vincent said in an imposing tone.

A punch landed on Vincent’s cheek all of a sudden that made him tilt his head to the sides. “Get lost, before I lose all my patience with you!” Henry shouted angrily.

“You’ll regret punching me. Just see…” Vincent said with a glare. Everything was as Vincent thought it would be. Henry was a hot-head, that’s one of the first things that Vincent noticed. Angering Henry would be a step closer for him to achieve what he wants. Any kind of emotions from the usual emptiness that Henry has when cooking could help Vincent.

When Vincent walked into the living room, he came upon Jovan and Lance talking quite suspiciously. “Towards Vincent… Do you…” Vincent knew what Jovan was about to ask.

“What are you two doing?” He interrupted. He looked at the two and felt the heavy atmosphere around them. They were arguing, he was sure of that.

“We are just talking.” Jovan said with a smile.

“Okay…” Vincent answered not fully believing him. “I need to get something in the car.” He said. He could feel the weight of Lance’s stare and he did his best trying to avoid it. What could be the two talking about? Vincent was really curious and worried.

Jovan stood up and walked closer to Vincent. “What happened?” Jovan instantly took Vincent by the chin as he saw the bruise beside his lips. “Who did this to you?!” Jovan was pretty worried and angry. “It’s that Henry, isn’t it?” Jovan was about to rush to the kitchen but Vincent pulled him.

“Just help me with my things, okay. I’m fine. You don’t have to be so barbaric just because of something so little.” Vincent said, calming Jovan down.

“How is that a little thing?” Jovan still sounded angry.

“Leave it!” Vincent said authoritatively and Jovan complied.

When he and Jovan were walking out to the car, he saw a glimpse of Lance looking at him with an expression he couldn’t understand. Lance was looking at him, and that stare pierced right into him.

Vincent didn’t let Jovan inside the kitchen. Henry ignored him. He started cooking his chocolate with every happy memory he could think of. But it seemed that every time he would try to remember something, Lance would pop into his head, and the kiss would always replay in his head. No matter how much he tried to shake the thoughts off, it would just come back. In the end, he cooked with the thoughts of Lance and his growing affection for the man.

With blushing cheeks and a racing heart, Vincent finished cooking his chocolate. Henry was about to be done with his dish as well. Vincent took a spoonful of his chocolate and walked towards Henry. “Taste this.” He said with the spoon outstretched towards Henry.

Henry looked at him. “Get lost. I don’t have time to…”

“Just shut up and taste this!” Vincent shouted fiercely at Henry and then pushed the spoon forward until Henry had no choice but to open his mouth. Henry stopped protesting as he tastes the chocolate slowly. “So how is it?” Vincent could see that Henry liked the chocolate, but also knew –from what Cedric told him- that Henry was a very prideful and stubborn man. That’s the reason why he and Cedric had to come up with such a ploy, because in normal circumstances, Henry would never allow Vincent to help him.

“Whenever you are cooking, you should always cook with happy thoughts and memories in your mind. Because what you feel when cooking would be conveyed to those who would eat it. When you are cooking, you should put what you truly feel in your food, in that way those who would eat your food would also feel what’s truly in their heart, only then could they be really happy.” Henry looked away, his expression becoming mellow. “Why are you cooking, for fame, for money? It shouldn’t be. You should cook to give happiness to others. That’s what my Mom told me, and that’s what your grandfather wants you to learn.”

“How do you expect me to believe what you are saying? All my life I tried my best just for Grandpa to acknowledge my cooking. But all I hear from him is that it isn’t enough or something’s missing. I studied hard and did everything that I could, but still, he wouldn’t acknowledge my skills. Do you know how painful it is to be rejected by the person you look up to? Do you?!” Henry was leaning on the island of the kitchen when he looked at Vincent. There were tears forming in his eyes. “I’m tired of trying. If he doesn’t want to accept my talent, I don’t care anymore!”