The next few days flew by with Thorne working not only on one, but two time-consuming weddings. Not for the first time, Thorne thought he was immensely grateful for Cress being by his side. If not for her, he would have had to decline to arrange the very expensive wedding of Sybil Mira and Aimery Park. A wedding that was so expensive not least because it was last minute. He hadn't dared ask why, but Sybil Mira (or Ms. Mira as she insisted on being called—a first in a job where he was always on first-name basis with the clients from the get-go) had given him a deadline of two weeks.

Two weeks.

And not for a simple country wedding on some remote vineyard, oh no. High-class, urban chic in the best location that L.A. had to offer were her wishes. Or rather, demands.

If not for a stroke of luck Thorne prided himself in, there was no way he or any other wedding planner would have been able to arrange it. But one of Thorne's acquaintances, for whom he had planned several events, had just opened a new stylish nightclub downtown, and while he was only opening booking events two months from now, he made an exception for Thorne.

It also helped that money didn't seem an issue for the couple from hell, Aimery Park and Sybil Mira.

Still, the ridiculously short time made the job as difficult as it could be while making sure to meet Cinder, Kai and Cress, too. If not for Cress, he would have had a break-down by now, he was sure. But she was handling Kai and Cinder's wedding mostly on her own, only getting back to him if he could negotiate a better deal. She had even come by his apartment to discuss whatever they needed so he wouldn't waste time driving through town, sometimes bringing coffee, sometimes takeout. And she let him complain. Not that he complained a lot, thank you very much. But Cress was an immense help in all of this, Thorne found.

Right now, Thorne was more relaxed than he had been in days. It helped that he had turned off his phone (though he knew that Ms. Mira would berate him endlessly about him later) and enjoyed his time with his friends while they figured out the menu for the guests.

"Cress, you must try this." He offered Cress his fork with an agnolotti with sweet corn, mascarpone and summer truffles.

Cress ate the offered pasta with delight. "Mhmm. This is sooo good. Wait, try mine." She a pierced a piece of her own food and offered it to him over the table, cupping the fork underneath so nothing would spill. "So delicious."

Thorne chewed on the bit of chicken, bursting with flavor. His eyes closed and he hummed appreciatively. "That seals it, Cress. We should retire and become professional food critics."

Cress laughed. "Or open our own restaurant. Then we could eat there all the time."

"Nah, too much work."

She thought about it. "What about hiring our own personal chef? Oh!" She snapped her fingers. "We should make that a clause in our contracts. The couples should provide a personal chef for us for the duration of the contract. Only well-fed wedding planners can do their jobs to their clients' full satisfaction, after all."

"Cress," he said," I like the way you think."

They chuckled together. When Thorne turned his head though, he saw Cinder and Kai looking at the both of them in bewilderment. "What?"

Kai caught himself first. "Well, you seem to be very cozy with each other all of a sudden."

"All of a sudden?" Thorne mock gasped. "My dear Kai, whatever do you mean? Cress and I were nothing if not cozy. Wouldn't you agree, Cress?"

"Certainly, Thorne." She grinned at him playfully before turning to the couple. "Like two peas in a pod."

"Never been closer."

"Always amiable."

"Delightful, really."

They broke out in laughter. The stress of the last few days felt like a distant memory at that moment. It was time to get back to business though. "So, how are your main courses," he asked Cinder and Kai.

"I like it ... though probably not as much as you two," Cinder said, still a bit taken aback. She quickly focused on her food again. "What was that fish again?"

Cress looked up the menu. "Black cod. Mizo-glazed black cod." She was all business now too. "We asked the chefs to give you several options, with one menu favoring flavors from East Asian cuisine, the other being more traditional American. We made sure that both would appeal to your guests from here and overseas."

"And more importantly, your unbeatable wedding planner duo," Thorne chimed in, rubbing his belly.

He could see the corners of Cress's mouth twitch as she tried not to laugh. "So, we had the American starters consisting of sweet Maryland crab cakes with herb remoulade and a spring pea soup with garlic flowers, and we had cucumber honeydew gazpacho and snapper ceviche shooters. What did you think about it? You liked the selection? Which three would you pick?"

"It was very good," both agreed, but it was Kai who elaborated. "I like that it was very light and fresh and had variety. I'm personally not someone who particularly enjoys herb remoulade but that one was quite good." There was a bit of silence at the table before Cress and Thorne grabbed a pen to cross out the crab cakes with the herb remoulade. Cinder laughed while Kai looked perplexed. "What? I just said I liked the remoulade."

Cinder reached over to take Kai's hand in hers. "Kai, everyone at this table knows you. You might be very diplomatic about it but you didn't like the remoulade."

Kai looked around to see if anyone from the staff had overheard them but they were all busy preparing the next course. He relaxed a little. "I still thought it was one of the better ones."

"Sure you did," Cinder agreed amiably before turning to Cress and Thorne. "I liked it too. As Kai said, it was fresh. I did like the Asian appetizers more though, to be honest."

"Ah yes." Cress read through her menu again. "Chinese chicken salad in miniature tortilla cups, Asian shrimp and cucumber appetizer, pork belly and Peking duck-stuffed buns and Asian meatballs with a pineapple slaw ..."—Cress took a curious glance at Cinder's plate—"which you haven't touched."

Cinder gave an apologetic shrug with her shoulder. "I'm allergic to pineapple."

"Oh." Nervously, Cress checked some list on her tablet again, her forehead crinkled. "You haven't mentioned that you're allergic to pineapples. You left that field blank."

"Which field?"

"In the questionnaire I sent you. Where you answered about your favorite food, things you don't eat and allergies."

Thorne had to give it to Cress – she was thorough. Cinder on the other hand looked a bit abashed.

"I apparently haven't read it as thoroughly as I should. I thought I wasn't a fussy eater, so I checked almost everything. Sorry, Cress."

"No worries." Cress typed something on her tablet. "Any other allergies?"

"No. But the other three appetizers I really liked a lot," Cinder hurried to say.

"Noted. Which one did you prefer, Kai?" Before Kai could respond, Cress added, "In short. No need to be diplomatic about it."

Kai gave her a pointed look. "And here I thought diplomacy was in your job description too?"

Snapping his fingers, Thorne drew Kai's attention to him. "Wrong. It's quick decision-making. So, pick an appetizer course now." He huffed with a glance at Cress. "Politicians."

"I doubt that's the way you should treat your clients," Kai argued.

"Oh, I should. Time is money, after all. Now, come on."

Kai shrugged. "I preferred the second round of appetizers too."

Thorne nodded. "Then we should settle on the Asian main courses too, don't you think, Cress?"

"Yes. So, the guests can pick between grilled rack of lamb with stir fried vegetables, wasabi potato puree and cilantro mint vinaigrette as one option, miso-glazed black cod with sautéed Asian vegetables as another, and then the deep fried-chicken mince, taro with bean curd sheets served with spring onion ginger soy glaze. The chefs will also prepare a vegetarian option off the card. But did you like the main courses you tried?"

"Yes. Again, the other one with the agno..."

"Agnolotti?" Cress supplied.

Cinder nodded. "Yes, that one. They were really delicious and everything, but I thought the Asian options were more interesting. I never had anything like it. I would probably pick the lamb with the wasabi potato puree."

Thorne was very satisfied with Cinder's response. He had picked the chefs and gave them pointers as to what he wanted, and it felt like the food was already going to be a highlight. He called for one of the waiters. "We're ready for dessert then. Option two, please." To Cinder and Kai he said, "With the starters, we planned to arrange them in threes, so the desserts will mirror that. People have fun trying out several small things rather than just one piece of cake or one bowl of icecream."

"I can't believe how many details you have to think about. I mean, don't get me wrong, I know the job isn't easy but I can hardly wrap my head around how much really goes into this whole wedding planning business," Kai said to Cress and Thorne with an earnest smile. "Thank you for putting so much effort into our wedding."

"Aww, you sap." He gave Kai a playful punch to the shoulder. Thorne had already seen the touched expression on Cress's face and preferred the mood not to become too mushy which he was never good at handling. Nope, he rather made a joke and was even more grateful when the waiter came and placed the desserts in front of everyone.

When he looked across the table to Cress, he was surprised to find she hadn't picked up her tablet but looked in adoration at the three little desserts as if she couldn't wait to try them. With a chuckle, Thorne picked up his own notes. "Here we have the dessert: Yuzu lemon-lime meringue tart, saffron rice pudding with whipped cream tipped with edible gold leaves—which apparently is a thing every fancy dessert needs—and, last but not least, a coconut pandan cupcake. As you can see, deviating from the usual American desserts gives us some room for new things. No chocolate, no vanilla, no local fruit or anything else you would usually expect. Instead, these desserts are new, exciting and fresh, perfect for a summer wedding. And before Cress kills me with her eyes, I insist that you try them as quickly as possible."

Cress squealed in delight, an adorable sound he hadn't expected from her. He shook his head as he gave the tart a try. It was sweet and sour as was expected from the citrus fruits in it but the yuzu gave it a more interesting, bitter flavor. Moving the gold leaves to the side, he found the rice pudding with the spice just as good. His favorite, he decided, was the cupcake.

Kai and Cinder fed each other with the tart, seemingly in their own world. It looked very intimate and romantic and Thorne realized with a start that just minutes before, he and Cress had fed each other too. It certainly couldn't have looked the same way? No, they had just been fooling around like friends did.

He glanced at Cress who had closed her eyes in contentment, wiggling happily on her chair and sporting a little speck of coconut frosting on her upper lip. "Cress, you got something on your lip."

She opened her eyes, a hand flying to her mouth, wiping at it but missing the spot. "Gone?"

"No."

"Urgh, I'm such a pig."

"You're not." He reached across the table, wanting to use her napkin to wipe the spot for her, but fearing another moment that would look too couple-y for his taste, he just pointed at the approximate place where the speck was. "There, just at the right corner."

This time, she got it. "Thanks." She finished her last bit of the tart, sighing in contentment. She allowed herself a few seconds before picking up her tablet again. "So, what's your opinion on the dessert?"

"If you're only half as happy as Cress is, I think we're set," Thorne said jokingly.

They discussed the dessert, which got a round of praise by everyone, and the main menu was settled. The chefs would work on some additional finger food for the reception that fit the theme, but Kai and Cinder expressed their full trust that they would be just as amazing without even trying them.

Which left only one more point to discuss.

"So, since we finished Cress's favorite part—dessert, and don't even try to argue, darling—we now come to my favorite part ... drinks!" Cinder groaned but Thorne wouldn't have any of it. "Don't pretend you're not into cocktails. I think I distinctly remember your last night out with Iko included tons of them. And I also remember your Terminator impression that followed." Ignoring Cinder's glare, he continued. "Anyway, you could have just another boring champagne reception"—he pretended to yawn—"or you could have signature drink that fits with the menu."

Cress nodded enthusiastically. "Believe me, it's a great idea. We're going to offer the usual beverages, and I also thought lemonades, iced teas and flavored iced water made with exotic fruit would be very refreshing drinks for all of your guests. But a signature drink is something that's just a nice addition."

"Thank you, Cress." He called for the guy who would be mixing the drinks. "So, once again, prepare yourselves to be wowed."

They tasted their way through several drinks. Going with the Asian-inspired flavors definitely paid off with the drinks too. The fruit and mixers were bound to be another highlight. With Cress's help, Thorne knew that this wedding would be his personal favorite. Maybe because it was for their friends and they tried to make it personal and everything came together much better than they could have hoped for. Most importantly, it was a new direction Thorne hadn't tried yet. His usual weddings were elegant and had lots of details too, but the vibrant colors and the exotic dishes they had picked for Cinder and Kai's wedding were exciting.

Keeping an eye on Cress and her alcohol intake, he explained the different drinks and their ingredients with the help of the bartender. The main ingredients were (aside from various alcoholic bases) lychee syrup and ginger, juices from agave, dragon fruit, lime and mango, as well as green tea and lemon grass.

"Oh, this one is nice too," Cress exclaimed with a hiccup. "It has bubblies. Bubbles, I mean."

Her blunder was met with laughter. "Easy there, Cress. Not that I won't mind you starting to sing again, but let's pick a drink first, right?"

"Singing?" Kai said, his cheeks slightly red. "When did you hear her sing?"

It was Cress who answered. "I got biiiit drunk when Thorne and I drove to L.A. But just a little. Like this." She held up a hand holding the thumb and index finger slightly apart to indicate it, her face scrunched up in concentration. "And there was good music."

From Cress's account it sounded like they had lots of fun clubbing, not being stuck in a dingy motel while their car was being repaired, but Kai didn't need to know that. "Good music courtesy of this lady here. Did you know she can sing like that, Kai?"

"Yeah." Looking a bit more sober, Kai eyed Cress as she wiggled on her chair, matching the rhythm of an also slightly tipsy Cinder who hummed the Terminator theme. "I'm surprised you do."

Thorne didn't know what he meant, but already there was another drink to taste. Before he could say anything though, Cress exclaimed, "That's it. I know this is the perfect drink for your wedding."

Everyone looked at her. "How would you know?"

A shrug. "Gut feeling."

"Hey, guys. Guys, listen." Cinder tugged Cress by the shoulder, pulling her closer. They were both more than just tipsy by now, their movements clumsy but Thorne was surprised by Cinder's gesture since she usually wasn't so touchy-feely. Well, not with him at least. Oh, the wonders of alcohol. "If Cress says that's going to be our drink then that's going to be our drink. She knows ... everything!" she added with a hushed voice before grabbing her drink. "Hasta la vista, baby." And with that she downed the contents.

Thorne took a sip. The sour taste of citrus and the slightly bitter tang were followed by a sharp sting, making his mouth tingle pleasantly. It was different than the other drinks, but the flavors matched in interesting and tasty ways. "Not bad."

"Not bad? It's perfect! Right, Kai?"

Kai's cheeks were still flushed as he looked adoringly at Cinder. "Yes. Perfect." He probably would have agreed to anything at this point.

Thorne leaned over to Cress. "Why that drink specifically?"

"It's not too sweet. They're not for a sweet drink. It has to be"—she hiccupped—"not sweet."

He bit his lips so he wouldn't laugh. "A very sharp observation." To Cinder and Kai he said, "See, that's your drink according to Cress. Bitter."

"With a shot of sass and a hint of snark," Cress chimed in happily, probably only half-aware what she was saying. It still made Thorne snicker.

"True. So, the verdict? Is this your drink?"

"Definitely. It's ... I don't even know but its good, Thorne. There's ginger in it which is ... I like ginger, you know?"

Okay, if even Kai had trouble forming words it was time to call it a day. "Okay, good that settles it. We got the drink," he said to the bartender who had watched the group slowly getting intoxicated with amusement. "I thought we could think about a name for it so your guests can order it but I feel the three of you are too wasted to—"

"The Kaider."

"Pardon?"

Cress peered into her glass, looking for a remaining sip, disappointed when she didn't find any. It took her a few seconds before his words registered. "The Kaider. The drink. We should call the drink Kaider. Kai and Cinder. Oh!" She turned to Cinder. "Except if you want your name first. Cinto. Oh, that sounds good too." Cress tried both versions, nibbling on her straw but Cinder shook her head.

"I like Kaider. People should order it all the time. Someone should travel in time and bring it with them so it's going to be mankind's favorite drink."

"Great ideas all around." Thorne stood up, pulling Kai with him. "But I think we should get all of you home."

The group left in a merry mood with Thorne realizing that aside from him, no one seemed to be used to drinking a lot. Kai held himself up pretty well, but Cinder and Cress were drunk. It was definitely safer to order cabs for all of them.

Kai appeared next to him after he finished his call (and did his best to ignore the nineteen missed calls and seventy-six messages from Sybil Mira). "Thorne ... you weren't joking about the Terminator stuff, weren't you?"

Thorne looked over where Cinder was walking in a strangely robotic fashion, quoting random lines from the movie from time to time. "Nope."

"That is ...," but whatever Kai had been about to say was lost when he looked at Cress who was now happily humming to herself. His gaze cleared up a little. "Say, Thorne ... you and Cress, you spent a lot of time together, right?"

Thorne eyed Kai suspiciously. "Yeah, we're working together, remember? Just like you wanted us to."

"Right." Kai nodded, thoughtful. "But you're drinking and dancing together"—none of that was remotely true, but Kai continued before Thorne could correct him—"and she sang for you. She never liked singing in front of people."

Raising an eyebrow in disbelief, Thorne glanced down the parking lot where Cress was now singing songs from Dirty Dancing. "You sure about that?"

"Yeah." Kai didn't pay attention to Cress though. Instead there was an uncertain expression of his face. "So, you two seem pretty close."

Thorne held up his hands. "Not sure what you're getting at, Kai. Cress and I are really just working together." He shook his head. "Okay, we're friends now too I guess. But that's it."

"That's good." There was a long pause where he just watched Cinder and Cress who seemed to have found common ground by recreating the dance scene from The Breakfast Club. Their laughter made Thorne smile, and he wished he could join them rather than listen to Kai's cryptic blabbering. "You need to talk to her, Thorne."

"What?"

"Talk to her. Ask her if she's okay."

Thorne pointed to the dancing girls. "Oh yeah, she looks downright miserable."

Kai didn't seem to have heard him. "She never talks to me. She hasn't even visited Cinder and me and she doesn't want to go to lunch with me if I ask her. Whenever I try asking her how she's doing back home, she evades my questions. She always says has to work on the wedding and has tons of stuff to do."

"But that's true, Kai."

Kai glared at him but there was something miserable in his expression. "She meets you for lunch or breakfast plenty of times. She even brought food to Cinder's construction site if only to discuss a few things. But she never comes to see me!"

Stunned into silence, Thorne was glad when he saw the first cab arriving. "Kai, not sure what you want me to do—"

"Just to talk her. Ask her if everything's okay. I was so excited to spend time with my friend but it never happens. And I worry, Thorne. Not that she"—he paused—"you know she was pretty sick as a kid, and not that something happened and—"

Thorne grasped Kai's shoulder reassuringly but also used some pressure to steer Kai into the direction of the cab. "I actually talked to Cress about that. She's fine. Her hair proves that. See, it's super long."

He couldn't even blame Kai for being confused by that.

Helping both Cinder and Kai into the cab and making sure the driver would get them to the right address (since Cinder continued to interrupt to tell the driver to get them into the year 1984 since she was on a secret mission), Thorne patted Kai's shoulder reassuringly when Kai grasped at his arm. "Please, Thorne? Just ask her. Maybe it has something to do with her boyfriend?"

Thorne sharply drew in breath. "Cress has a boyfriend?!" He glanced at Cress who was now waving a second cab in her direction, not knowing she was at the center of Thorne and Kai's conversation.

She never mentioned a boyfriend. And unlike Kai, he actually did spend a lot of time with Cress. Her calls were always business-related, he had assumed. He didn't know what to feel about it.

Somehow, he didn't like it.

But Kai shook his head. "No. I don't think so. At least not anymore. Or maybe I'm reading too much into things. There was this guy she went out with a year ago or so but I was so involved with Cinder and my political campaign that I didn't really catch up." Guilt was written over Kai's face but Thorne felt that Kai was working himself up over nothing. "Maybe they broke up and she's sad? Maybe she needs someone to talk to. Apparently, she doesn't want it to be me."

What was he, a shoulder to lean on? Did Kai even know what he was asking of him?

But then Cress drew his gaze. His eyes followed her slight figure, right down to a set of very nice legs. Maybe she did need a shoulder to cry on? It suddenly didn't sound so bad. If said boyfriend actually existed, which Thorne actually doubted. Kai was always making assumptions about things. Just like when Kai had worked himself into a frenzy over Cinder. He had worried about her saying no to his proposal whereas everyone with half a brain could have told him that there was no way that Cinder would say anything but 'yes' to him. There was probably something else going on with Cress. If there was anything going on with her, that is.

Thorne sighed. The things he did for his friends. "Sure, I'll ask her." He gave the driver a sign so he could drive off.

He walked over to Cress who was now chatting up the other driver. Her speech was still a bit muddled, but the driver didn't seem to mind and nodded earnestly at everything Cress said.

She turned around when Thorne approached, a blinding smile showing off her dimples. "Want to share the cab?"

"You thought I ordered it just for you?" He opened the door for her. "You should be happy I'm sharing my cab with you," he told her with a joking wink.

Cress entered, slightly wobbly on her feet. "I thought you said were a gentleman?"

"And you've known me long enough by now to know it's just a farce." Climbing in behind her, he closed the door. "Now, scoot over."

Deciding it would be easier (and safer) to drop off Cress first, he gave the driver the address of Cress's temporary residence. By the time they exited the parking lot, Cress had already dozed off, her head having found its way onto Thorne's shoulder. The fresh scent of vanilla and berries wafted off her hair, tickling his nose and keeping him awake.

Thorne decided that he would ask Cress about how she was doing, just to placate Kai.

And if Cress actually needed a shoulder to cry on—he glanced at the blonde head resting on his shoulder—well, it seemed like his shoulder was already being prepared for that.

A/N: Well, that chapter turned out to be fun to write. I hope you enjoyed reading it and leave a review. A big thank you to kanouchi for betareading despite her busy schedule. :D