Ok. Alright. This is going to the best anniversary of his boyfriend's life! Right? Scented candles, roses, a playlist that he spent too long trying to make..Chocolate! What kind of chocolate does Laurent even like?! Damen let out a frustrated groan and scrubbed his palms against his face. All this time preparing and he forgot what his boyfriend favorite chocolates were? How to go about finding Laurent's preferences without arousing suspicion? Damen didn't know any of Laurent's friends (does Laurent have friends?) and he never thought to ask before…

The doorbell startled him out of his thoughts. Damen strode across the room and opened the door to reveal a teenager on the other side. Laurent sometimes babysat for the extra funds. Nicaise happened to be a regular client of his. Although in Damen's opinion he was to old to be babysat, but what did he know? He had dark hair, blue eyes, and a tiny earring adorning one of his tiny earlobes. He's a comely looking boy, but that attitude leaves much to be desired. He still remembered when the kid stabbed him with a plastic fork at a birthday party.

"Well? Are you going to let me in or not?"

Seriously, has he ever heard of a thing called manners? Damen rolled his eyes and allowed the snotty adolescent in. Nicaise tossed and plopped down on the couch; ignoring him in favor of watching the television. Laurent entrusted him with Nicaise's welfare, so he tried to keep his hostile thoughts to a minimum. He closed the door and brought a glass of coke to coffee table.

"You sure you want to do that? Laurent hates it when people don't use coasters."

Damen paused and his mind raced. How did he know that?How much do they talk? He IS Laurent's longest lasting clients and they DO seem close..maybe he could ask him if he knew Laurent's favorite chocolates? He retrieved the coasters from the kitchen and placed them under the persperating cups, "Nicaise, you wouldn't happen to know Laurent's favorite chocolates, would you?"

The youth turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow, "Why do you want to know?"

Damen explained his woes. Nicaise listened with a bored, unimpressed expression, "What's in it for me?"

The kid couldn't be serious...but he isn't laughing.

"Um...what?"

"You want information that have. I want something in return, got it? I didn't need to listen to your plans for that night, you neanderthal."

Damen groaned. He didn't expect this interaction to be pleasant, but he hadn't expected bargaining for this minute detail, "How about $20?"

"$50 and I'll tell you."

If he passed this up, then he would need to wait another year for another anniversary like it. AND HE WANTED TO WOO LAURENT NOW DAMMIT!

"Deal," He replied.

~~~~~~~~~~Insert goofy time skip here~~~~~~~~~~~~

The candles are alight and the scented oil wafts a faint strawberry scent. Dinner was in the oven; Chicken, brown and juicy, was his lover's favorite. The flowers were on the table and beside them were the chocolates. Tonight, he discovered he had an ardent talent for pacing and glaring at clocks. Every car was Laurent's to his jittery mind. He felt as though his anticipation was palpable to any and all who were within a 5 mile radius. Finally, a pair of headlights turned into the driveway. Damen snatched the flowers off of the table and ran out to greet his blond boyfriend. He extended his arm and offered the roses to Laurent, who just stepped out of the car.

"Hello, lover," he chuckled.

"Happy anniversary, love!"

"Happy anniversary, you giant puppy. Hold on," he ducked back into the car and held out two shopping bags, "For you."

They swapped their gifts. Damen looked in one bag and pulled out a gift, "Ancient Greece?"

"You're always watching documentaries."

He pulled out another gift, "French and English Dictionary?"

"You have expressed a desire for learning the language...if only to make sure my family wasn't be rude," Laurent japed. He still had the second bag in his hand , "I brought you apricots."

Damen pulled the final item from the bag, "Love poems for the hopelessly besotted?"

"Do you want your apricots now?"

"Are you going to read some to me, love?"

"Apricots try to be peaches, but they are poor imitators."

Damen smiled and stooped down to kiss to him, " Thanks, love. Come inside. I've got a surprise for you."

Damen led him by the hand as they walked through the door. He saw the smile and blush creep across his and his heart swelled with pride. He put that happiness there and he wanted to keep it there. He kissed his lover's hand, "Dinner is going to be ready in a few, so why don't you have some chocolates to hold you over. They're your favorite."

Laurent looked at the package his boyfriend held up, " Those aren't my favorite kind of chocolate."

"What?"

"My favorite is Hershey's...I'm fairly sure you bought something Nicaise would enjoy. This is far too rich for my taste."

"Killing a kid is wrong and illegal in many countries."

"That it is. We could always eat them and make sure he has none left to enjoy."

Damen appreciated his love's devious mind, but there's a problem that still remained: "I gave him $50 just to find out what kind of chocolate pleased you."

Laurent walked to Damen; closing the already small gap between them, and wrapped his arms around his waist. Laurent's head rested on his chest and his whole body trembled. He loved it when Laurent laughed, "You lovable, gullible dork."

Damen hugged kissed him. That night they watched t.v. popping the chocolate confection into each others mouth. Damen fell asleep to Laurent reading an excerpt from the book.

I tried my best. I personally think Nicaise wouldn't help Damen unless something was in it for his benefit...at least at first. My smart angry son 3