The door swung open and Yut-Lung glanced up from the book he was reading. One of his men came in and bowed.
"Sir your guest has arrived."
"Bring him in." Yut-Lung watched the man bow again and leave the room. Once he was gone the Chinese leader tossed the book onto the low table in front of him and stretched. This was going to be a long conversation and he knew it. From outside the room Yut-Lung heard loud voices and a few seconds later the door swung open once more. Two of Yut-Lung men came in dragging a struggling Eiji Okumura. The deposited him on the carpet at Yut-Lung feet and stepped back. Eiji pulled himself off the ground and faced the young Chinese, a look of determination on his face.
"So, my men finally caught you." Yut-Lung crossed his arms and leaning back in the chair. "Abought time."
"What do you want?" Eiji didn't sound scared or angry, just weary. It was clear that he was expecting the worse but was too tired of dealing with Yut-Lung to muster up any real emotions. The young Chinese felt a twinge of annoyance. He had been the enemy of the Japanese for a while now, surely, he deserved some reaction from him. Yut-Lung swallowed his pride and kept his face expression neutral. Now wasn't the time to try to intimate Eiji. That wasn't why he brought him here. Yut-Lung gestured at the couch across from him.
"Sit down."
Eiji didn't budge. He eyed Yut-Lung suspiciously. The Chinese sighed in irritation.
"Must you make everything so difficult? If you don't sit down, I'll force you to."
Eiji paused and glanced back at Yut-Lung's men who were hovering around them waiting for an order. Finally, the Japanese sat down on the couch, preaching on its edge. Yut-Lung smirked in satisfaction.
"Can you tell me why you brought me here?" Eiji asked grimily.
"I've decided to call a truce."
Eiji made a sound of disbelief and crossed his arms. Yut-Lung suppressed an irritated sigh. Of course, Eiji wouldn't believe him that easily. They have been enemies for a while now. It had been over a year since the Chinese man first declared Eiji as his enemy. He had never liked Eiji and had hated the effect he had on Ash. He had hoped to drive them apart. It came as a nasty shock to him when Eiji and Ash started dating. Yut-Lung did everything in his power to make their lives miserable. He had only stopped his tirade against the couple last month. It was no wonder then that Eiji couldn't believe anything he said.
"I know you don't believe me-"
"No I don't" Eiji cut in. Yut-Lung clenched his fists and clicked his tough disapprovingly. It would make life difficult if Eiji didn't actually believe that Yut-Lung came in peace. If he tried to escape or fight, then it would only cause problems when Ash learned about it. Yut-Lung decided to change tactics.
"Has Sing told you he's been in contact with me?" Yut-Lung asked. Eiji hesitated before admitting,
"Yes, he's mentioned that…. He says that we should try to talk to you again and that you had….'changed'" Eiji put emphasis on the last part.
"Do you believe him."
"I don't know." Eiji looked away. "After everything you did, it's hard to believe you changed. But I do trust Sing." Yut-Lung waited a moment but Eiji didn't seem to watch to continue. He sighed. This was going to be difficult for him.
"Sing said the same things to me…He…helped convince me to make peace with Ash for China Town's sake." He hated this. It took everything in Yut-Lung to admit that he was swayed by Sing. It made him feel vulnerable. He shouldn't have that kind of weakness to be swayed so easily. He didn't like that Sing's words had more value to them most people's words. Admitting it out loud hurt his pride.
Even so it had the desired effect. Sing was someone they both valued and trusted. If Sing had talked to Yut-Lung it made his story more valid. Eiji seemed to relax a little.
"Alright so you want a truce." The Japanese said.
"That's right, and to show that I mean it, I'm going to give a gift as a sign of peace."
"How does kidnapping me show that you want peace?" Now that he wasn't so weary of Yut-Lung, Eiji sounded exasperated. "If you wanted to give me a gift couldn't you have just dropped it off at our apartment? I know you know where that is."
"You miss understand me." Yut-Lung leaned in towards Eiji. "The gift isn't for you. It's for Ash." Eiji blinked in confusion.
"If it's for Ash then why did you kidnap me? Why didn't you just leave his gift at our apartment?"
Yut-Lung sat back surveying the Japanese. He enjoyed withholding information from him. He knew it was petty, but he liked having power over Eiji. It was with a little reluctance then that he forced himself to continue.
"There are many things I don't understand about your relationship." Yut-Lung ran his fingers through his hair. "Ash couldn't possibly thing a small fragile thing like you could save him. From the beginning, it made no sense." He twisted a piece of hair around his fingers and gave it an irritated tug. "Then he decided to date you and I was even more confused. This went beyond him needed a way to escape his current life. He must have found something…desirable about you." Yut-Lung raked his gaze up and down the Japanese." Eiji shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.
"I get it, you don't like that I'm with Ash."
"It's more than that. I don't understand why Ash would want to date you. You dress like a haggard housewife. You look like your mom shops for your clothes and cuts your hair. You don't own a suit or any real nice clothes. You only have seven outfits."
"I have more than that!" Eiji cried insulted. He glowered at Yut-Lung. The Chinese snapped his fingers and one of his men dropped seven pictures on the table between them. Each picture had Eiji wearing a different outfit.
"I had my men tail you and take these. You mix and match them but it's still only seven."
Eiji opened his mouth to protest then closed it blushing furiously.
"That's unfair." He finally spat out. "I had more clothes, but my suitcases got lost in the confusion. I've spent so much time in dangerous and in hiding that I didn't have time to shop for more."
"Please that's a terrible excuse." Yut-Lung waved a hand dismissively. "If you genuinely wanted to get new clothes you could ask one of Ash's gang to go with you. You never put much of an effort into how you dress. It doesn't cross your mind."
Eiji made an unhappy sound but didn't argue. Yut-Lung snapped his figures again and the man took the picture off the table. The Chinese man rested his chin on his hand.
"All this leads to the overline truth that you don't have any sex appeal. Between your cheep over modest clothes and your unkempt appearance, it's a wonder that Ash found anything appealing about you."
"Ash doesn't care how I dress." Eiji growled, his cheeks turning slightly pink. "So, I don't see why you should."
"Ash decided to take you as you are and not ask for more. But it must be hard for him to come home every day and see you" he gestured up Eiji, "Looking like this. A part of him must be disappointed."
"You don't know anything." Eiji muttered but Yut-Lung saw that his confidence was slipping.
"I know many things. I know that it is not only Ash your terrible clothes choice is affecting. Even if you decided that Ash's feelings are unimportant as long as you're happy with him."
"I don't" Eiji cut in. Yut-Lung continued as if he didn't speak
"But that doesn't mean he doesn't deserve more. He's Ash Lynx, the terror of New York. Everyone respects and fears him. Even mafias and people with political power don't want to mess with him. He's beautiful and deadly. A demon with an angle's face." Yut-Lung waved his hand to emphasize his point. "When people enter a conversation with him, they don't know what he's thinking. They don't know what he'll do. He's unpredictable, wild…." Yut-Lung dropped his hand and glared at Eiji. "So you can imagine their shock when they meet you. A small weak plain creature. Nothing of you stands out." Eiji flushed more as his confidence continue to crumble. Yut-Lung leaned back in his chair. "Most go into denial. 'There's no way Ash Lynx would date this guy.' Other's think Ash lost his touch. Others see you as a weakness. 'If Ash can fall in love with this guy, he must be more emotionally vulnerable then before.' Your mere presents bring Ash down. You shame Ash by existing by his side."
"Ash doesn't care." Eiji's voice sounded almost pleading. "If this was a problem, he would tell me."
Yut-Lung ignored him.
"That's why I came to the conclusion on the perfect peace gift for Ash. I'll help save his image."
"You're going to kill me to save Ash's image right?" Eiji looked tired. "That's where you're going with this."
"How would that be a good peace gift?" Yut-Lung asked incredulously. "I've been trying to do that for the last year. No, I brought you here to change you."
"I'm not going to become anything like you." Eiji said defiantly, "Ash wouldn't want that!"
"Although it would help Ash if you learned to fight or at least hide your ignorance." Yut-Lung shot him a look. "Ash would only be angry if I did that. I'm merely going to chance your outside appearance to be more…pleasant."
Eiji started at him as Yut-Lung's words sunk it. He gaped at the Chinese for a moment before chocking out,
"You kidnapped me to give me a makeover?"
"That's correct." Yut-Lung smirked at Eiji's confusion. "There are many things we need to do." Yut-Lung pointed his figure at Eiji's face. "Your eyebrows, hair, eyelashes, nail, and skin need to be worked on." Yut-Lung wrinkled his nose. "Do you even use lotion? Your skin looks so dry. Then after that, we'll work on your clothes."
"You're insane." Eiji belated out weakly. "You kidnapped me to give me a makeover. What kind of peace gift is that?"
"One that Ash will benefit from" The Chinese crossed his arms. "I'm going to make it so that when someone looks at you, they can understand why Ash choose you. I'm going to make it so when you stand next to Ash he can feel proud to show off his boyfriend." Yut-Lung leaned in until his mouth was next to Eiji's ear. "I'm going to make it so when he gets home and sees you he loses all self-control."
Eiji's face turned bright red and Yut-Lung leaned back satisfied. He snapped his figures once again and a group of people entered the room. Eiji stared at them. They were clearly not part of the mafia. They came from many different backgrounds and cultures. Some were dressed strangely while others were dressed nicely. With them came the overpowering smell of hair spray and lotion.
"These people are professional makeup artists, fashion designers, pedicure and manicure professionals, hair specialists, skin specialist, ect." Yut-Lung waved a hand at them. "They will take you to the next room and examine you to see what needs to be done. After that we'll get to work."
Eiji sputtered in protest as one of Yut-Lung's men took him firmly by the arm and lead him after the specialist. Yut-Lung watched him go. He would make a presentable boyfriend for Ash yet.
"He did what?"
Sing couldn't believe what he was hearing. After all they discussed this last month, he had thought Yut-Lung had turned over a new leaf. Apparently, he was wrong.
"He kidnapped Eiji." Ash seethed. "I'm going to kill him."
"When did this happen?"
"This morning. My guys reported that they saw Yut-Lung's men take him away." The blond turned and started down the sidewalk, anger radiating from him. Sing rushed ahead and got in his way.
"Hold on let's just talk to him first." He pleaded. Ash barely glanced at him.
"He's been trying to kill Eiji for months now. I'm not going to give him a chance to hurt him." The blond walked around Sing and started off again. Sing rushed in front of him and held out his arms.
"Wait Ash, please listen. I'm sure this must be a misunderstanding. I've been talking with Yut-Lung. He's changed."
"I don't believe that." Ash tried to walk around Sing. Sing shifted so he was still blocking Ash.
"Look I know a way we can talk to Yut-Lung without Eiji getting hurt." As Sing hoped Ash's paused. "I have inside information that would be bad for Yut-Lung if the public knew. If we talk to him and he's really planning on killing Eiji then I can hold that over his head. He won't kill Eiji as long as I have this information. If we go their guns blazing and he wasn't planning on hurting Eiji, then there's a chance he'd still hold Eiji hostage." Ash thought this over for a second then nodded gruffly.
"Fine we'll talk to him first."
Sing gave a sigh of relief and put his arms down. He followed Ash silently to the Lee's headquarters. Truthfully, he was unsure what Yut-Lung was doing. He couldn't see how kidnapping Eiji was anything but an attack on the couple. This hurt and disappointed him more then he would like to admit. Sing had thought he had gotten through to Yut-Lung.
After spending so much money harassing Eiji and Ash, Yut-Lung's actions started taking a toll on China Town. Sing was forced to confront him in hopes to save his people. They had a long yelling match until both parties were exhausted. After that Yut-Lung had finally relented and pulled back on the amount of effort going into killing Eiji. It was a start. Sing began visiting regularly and soon he had formed a bond with Yut-Lung. The Chinese boss hated to admit it, but he actually started enjoying the other man's company. Yut-Lung was pleasant when not on a wrathful rampage. After months of building trust, Sing had finally got Yut-Lung to let go of his anger for Eiji. For the last month, Yut-Lung hadn't done anything towards the couple. He even briefly mentioned that perhaps peace was the best option. Sing had thought that was the end of it.
Apparently, he was wrong.
They arrived at the building a few minutes later. The guards at the door didn't even stop them when they entered. They were so used to seeing Sing that they now trusted him enough to not question his decisions. The first person to stop them was one of the inner guards. He sent a message to Yut-Lung announcing their presents. After a couple of minutes, they were granted access to one of the lounges. Inside they found Yut-Lung sprawled luxuriously out on a couch sipping tea. Ash stormed in and glared down at him. Sing hurried in behind him hoping he wouldn't need to attempt to hold Ash back.
"Where is he?"
Yut-Lung looked up at the two of them before giving a long sigh. He daintily placed his cup on the saucer and sat up. Sing clenched his fists in frustration. Ash was seconds away from attacking Yut-Lung. The least the latter could do would be to speed things up a little and explain. Yut-Lung, however, didn't seem to be in a rush.
"Have a seat."
Ash didn't budge.
"Where's Eiji." His hand reached down for his gun. Around them the guards put their hands on their weapons. Sing tensed. This was bad. Yut-Lung didn't look at all concerned. He put up his hand and the guards released their weapons.
"He's not in any danger. He should be back in." he glanced up at the clock. "Ten minutes." He gave a small shrug. "In the meantime, have a seat." Ash paused for one more tense moment before sitting down. Sing sighed in relief and sat down next to him. Ash still looked like he was about to spring up and strike Yut-Lung down in an instant but at least he wasn't going for his gun.
"Why did you kidnap Eiji. I thought you agreed that a war with Ash wasn't going to end well" Sing tried to keep his voice neutral, but he knew he sounded accusatory. Next to him Ash shifted waiting for Yut-Lung's answer.
"I do agree with you." Yut-Lung said casually. "That's why I'm giving you" he looked pointedly at Ash "a gift as a sign of peace."
"You kidnapped Eiji as a sign of peace?" Sing didn't know how much more he could take of this. Between the fear of Ash killing Yut-Lung and Yut-Lung's uncompromising nature he was losing his mind.
"No, I kidnaped Eiji to help improve Ash's image." Yut-Lung waved a dismissive hand. "We all know how pitiful he looks next to Ash." Ash gave a low growl. "So I took Eiji here in order to…fix that." The blond jumped to his feet and whipped out his gun. All the guard yanked out their guns. Sing jumped up and tried to get in the middle of it all.
"Hold on!"
"Don't stop me Sing." Ash seethed. "Didn't you hear what he said? He brought Eiji here in order to 'fix' my image. It's clear that he's going to eliminate Eiji. That would 'improve my image' right?" He pointed the gun over Sing's shoulder straight at Yut-Lung's head, his eyes filled with a raging fire.
"Hold on! He might not have meant it like that." Sing glanced back at Yut-Lung. "You better have an explanation for this." Yut-Lung mildly twirled a strand of hair around his figure while he observed Ash.
"You know, Eiji thought the same thing when my men brought him here." he let go of the strand of hair. "To answer your question that's not how I plan to improve your image. I'm going to chance Eiji to better suit you." This didn't soothe Ash.
"If you're planning on making Eiji like you or me, I will kill you."
Yut-Lung's eyes narrowed, and he clicked his teeth disapprovingly.
"Eiji said the exact same thing. It's scary how much you think like him now. No, I'm not planning on change Eiji's personality or skills."
"Then what are you planning on doing?"
"Put your gun away and sit down, then I'll tell you."
Sing wanted to slap him stupid. He almost forgot how petty Yut-Lung could be. After he started making regular visits, he learned the best way to deal with the pettiness was to ignore it. Yut-Lung stopped after a while. He only acted this way when he wanted to make a power move. Ash's escalade emotions were making him worse. Yut-Lung knew he had the answers, so he was taking his time to say them. What worried Sing was that Ash might actually shoot him. He knew Yut-Lung still had a death wish and didn't truly care about his life. It made this situation even tenser.
"Ash please just sit down." Sing groaned. Ash paused for another few seconds and Sing worried he was going to shoot anyway. Then finally he reluctantly put away his gun and sat. The guards put their weapons away as well.
"Now that you've calm down, I'll continue." Yut-Lung took another sip of tea. "I'm giving Eiji a makeover."
"What?" It was Sing's turn to interrupt. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. That's why Yut-Lung had kidnapped Eiji? Yut-Lung gave Sing a look and continued.
"Eiji needs a new wardrobe and a new style. Once he's done he'll have clothes for every occasion." Yut-Lung put down his tea. "He'll have outfits for a casual night out, outfits for formal nights out, outfits to impress, cute home outfits, and of course sexy outfits."
Sing was going to strangle him when this was all done. He couldn't believe all this was because of a makeover. Sing understood where Yut-Lung was coming from. Yut-Lung had grown up understanding that appearances could sway men to do his bidding. Having an image meant success. To him, giving Eiji a makeover was a generous way of giving Ash a leg up in his dealing. What truly frustrated Sing was that Yut-Lung didn't just tell him beforehand of his plan. He would have told him that kidnapping Eiji for a makeover and not explaining to Ash was a terrible idea.
As Sing started to relax Ash gave a low growl, his hand twitching near his gun. Sing looked over at him in surprise. Yut-Lung said he was just giving Eiji a makeover, why was Ash still so tense. Ash's face twisted into an expression Sing couldn't identify. He looked both angry and alarmed.
"You're unhappy about this." Yut-Lung asked slightly amused.
"Eiji isn't like us." Ash was trembling now. "He's not in a position that he needs to be presented like a doll. I'm not going to dress him up to have him make me look good." His eyes became haunted with memories. "He's not under people like Golzine or your brothers." His voice got louder. "I won't become like them! I won't do that to him."
Sing swore under his breath. This situation was getting out of control. Of course, Ash didn't want to see Eiji turned into a doll. He forgot the blond's history. This was not going to end well. Sing glared over at Yut-Lung. Why didn't he think this through? He knew Ash's past. He should have figured it out that Ash would take it badly.
"Calm down. I'm not turning him into anything. The clothes and hair are just to make him a neater version of himself. Nothing should make him feel uncomfortable or unrecognizable. It shouldn't change him." It seemed like Yut-Lung did think this through. Next to him, Ash relaxed a little.
"That's not exactly true I suppose" Yut-Lung amended. Ash tensed. "The sexy clothes are defiantly going to make him uncomfortable. You can't blame me for that though. It's not my fault Eiji has no sex appeal to work off of. I had to start from scratch."
"Eiji is not going to use his body to seduce people." Ash was back to strike mode.
"Of course not." Yut-Lung rolled his eyes. "He would fail miserable. The sexy clothes are for you alone." Ash paused and opened his mouth. Then paused and closed it again. He seemed to be fighting an internal battle.
"That still doesn't make it right." He finally spluttered. "If he doesn't want to wear it then I won't force him to."
"Of course not, but you'd be lying if you said you didn't want to see him in it." Yut-Lung's eyed Ash smugly. Ash growled.
"Besides" Yut-Lung continued. "All you need to do is to lie and tell your boyfriend that he looks good. That should bring up his confidence."
"I don't need to lie to him." Ash glared. "he's already extremely attractive."
"Of course, he is." Yut-Lung gave a snort of disbelief.
Sing felt uncomfortable listening to this conversation. He didn't want to know anything about Eiji and Ash's private life or if Eiji was 'sexy' or not. Sing decided he should intervene. Now that all parties understood each other there was no reason for open hospitality anymore. Sing opened his mouth to try to ask Ash what he wanted to do next when the door to the right of them opened.
"This one isn't actually too bad." Eiji said as he entered. "I like that it has pockets and he's not as tight in the sleeves."
Sing stared at him. This was clearly an outfit that was made to impress. It looked like a suit, but the fabric was a little too loose to be a suit. It fit him snuggly but still looked neat and nice. Yut-Lung wasn't kidding when he said that the clothes amplified Eiji. The outfit somehow made Eiji look impressive yet still approachable. The nice hair cut only added to his appearance.
"I'm glad you like it." Yut-Lung turned to Ash. "As you can see, there is nothing about this outfit that makes Eiji anything then what he already is." Eiji froze where he stood and slowly turned around.
"Ash!" he exclaimed blushing. He fidgets with sleeve of his outfit. Ash looked him up and down. Sing could practically hear the war going on in the blond's head.
On one hand Yut-Lung was right and Eiji was still Eiji in those clothes, not a doll or toy. On the other hand, Yut-Lung still kidnapped Eiji which was unforgivable in Ash's books. On the other hand, however, it wouldn't kill Eiji to have more outfits and there was no reason to say no to free clothes. On the other hand, Ash hated the idea that Eiji had to dress up for his sake. On the other hand, damn does he look good.
Sing looked away embarrassed. There was definitely something hungry in Ash's look. Sing guessed he wanted to see Eiji in all his outfits…especially the sexy ones.
"Just say it." Eiji said sounding miserable. "I look like a kid playing dress up." He pouted.
"No, you look amazing." Ash took a few steps forward and tilted Eiji's chin up. Eiji met his eyes in adoration.
Yut-Lung made a sound of annoyance and stood up.
"And that's our cue to leave. Let's go before they start embarrassing themselves more."
Sing stood up quickly and followed Yut-Lung out of the room. They walked in silence for a few minutes down the hall.
"Do me a favor and tell me next time" Sing finally said.
"Why? It worked out didn't it?"
"Do you know how close Ash was to storming in here guns blazing?" Sing pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "It was almost impossible to talk him down. You're lucky he ran into me first or you wouldn't have had time to explain."
Yut-Lung stopped walking. He surveyed Sing with an unreadable expression. Finally, he pressed his lips and huffily turned his head away.
"Thank you."
It was barely audible but Sing definitely head it. From what he could see of Yut-Lung, his cheeks had turned red. Sing suppressed a smile and shook his head. Despite what everyone thought of him, Yut-Lung had changed. It made it impossible for Sing to hate him.
"Well at least it's over and done." Sing said as he started walking again. Yut-Lung followed.
"What are you talking about? We barely got through a fourth of the outfits. Grooming that boy took longer than I thought it would. He's returning here tomorrow."
Sing froze.
"You're joking."
"Does it look like I'm joking." Yut-Lung turned to look back at Sing.
Sing searched his face before groaning and shaking his head.
"Please don't kidnap him again."
"Don't worry, I won't need to"
And with that ominous statement Yut-Lung spun on his heals and matched down the hall leaving Sing to worry about tomorrow.
"You're coming back here tomorrow?" Ash stared at his boyfriend in complete bewilderment. "Why?!"
"Well." Eiji picked at the sleeve of his nice jacket. "I had time to think about it and he's kind of, right. I mean, there's no reason for me not to dress up nicer. It only causes you problems when I look like housewife."
"Eiji" Ash put his hands on either side of Eiji's face and forced him to make eye contact. "I don't care if everyone hates how you look and decided to band together to attack me because of it, I will NEVER force you to wear anything you don't want to."
"Ash…" Eiji blushed before pulling himself back together. "But it's not only just for you….It's also for me." Eiji said putting his hand over Ash's "I like these clothes. I haven't been able to go clothes shopping in a while since I've been busy." Ash dropped his hands from Eiji's face a look of shame in his eyes.
"Sorry. I know this whole mess has been hard on you. I should do better."
"No, no! It's not your fault! I mean even when things are calm I never made much of an effort to buy clothes. It just never crossed my mind. Yut-Lung is offering me a lot of free clothes that are both comfortable and my style. Plus, they look good on me…I mean you said they did." He looked shyly at Ash. The gang leader leaned in and kissed him.
"You look wonderful in them."
"Then I'm going back to get more! Don't worry this time I'm going to ask Sing to come with me." Ash visibly relaxed.
"I guess Yut-Lung really has changed." Ash muttered.
"Yeah it's going to be nice not having him try to kill us all the time."
"I still don't trust him." Ash crossed his arms. "It's going to take more than a terribly planned gift of peace to change that."
"I doubt he thinks we're going to trust him." Eiji gently put his arms around Ash's neck. "It's just his way of showing he changed. "
"Hmmm," Ash kissed Eiji gently. "I suppose so. Though now I'm curious to see you in all your new clothes." Eiji pulled away a little.
"Some of them are kind of embarrassing."
"I want to see those the most." Ash smiled evilly. Eiji pouted and turned his head away.
"You're impossible you know that."
Ash laughed and kissed Eiji on the forehead. Eiji turned his head and kissed Ash on the lip again. They were starting to make out when the door opened. Both boys pulled apart quickly as one of Yut-Lung's men stepped inside.
"I have a message from Master Lee Yut-Lung." The man cleared his throat. "Please take this embarrassing sight to your apartment. My apartment is not your playground." The man paused. "Also don't make a mess of your new clothes. That is all." Eiji's face turned red. Ash rolled his eyes.
"How is he still this annoying even when he's not our enemy?" He grumbled
"I guess people can't change that much." Eiji muttered. He smiled up and Ash and took his hand. "Let's go home." Ash smiled back at him and the two of them headed out toward the exit.