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Their monthly meeting came on the last weekend of October. It was Obi-Wan's turn to find and choose the place and it was showing. The place they were meeting in was so in Obi-Wan's style that it made Anakin groan.
"Seriously?" he asked, shaking his head.
"You will have your turn next month, kid," Cody answered before Obi-Wan could and Obi-Wan snorted.
"You're literally not that much older, don't patronize me." Anakin rolled his eyes.
"You have a reservation?" Rex asked Obi-Wan, trying to change the subject and eager to sit down and rest a bit.
"Yes, yes, let me just talk to someone here and we can sit," Obi-Wan said quickly and left the three of them by the entrance, moving deeper inside.
It was their tradition since Obi-Wan graduated and Anakin was old enough to drink, once a month they went out to the bar of choice to drink and talk. At some point Cody started joining them, as Obi-Wan’s closest friend and Cody’s brother, Rex joined them naturally to be someone Anakin could talk to and it just stayed that way. They were meeting throughout the month sometimes, not always in the full squad but that one day once a month was sacred for the four of them.
“Come on,” Obi-Wan appeared next to them once again. “Our table is ready.”
The table was a little booth with a good view of the stage. Obi-Wan apparently ordered drinks for them because the waiter brought four glasses to their table soon.
"So, Anakin, how are the kids?" Cody asked, taking a sip from his glass. The drink was sweet, alcohol barely perceptible. Obi-Wan knew him well, he thought, smiling lightly.
"Loud." Anakin chuckled. "I wouldn't be here if Padme's parents couldn't come. I think that the two of us don't have enough hands to keep Luke and Leia from getting into trouble. And they are not even walking yet!"
"The real nightmare will begin when they do walk." Obi-Wan laughed. "But you're happy, right?"
"The happiest."
Cody looked at Obi-Wan on his left, barely catching his thoughtful expression before he smiled again.
"How about you, Codes? Anything new?" Anakin asked in return.
"I got a promotion." Cody took another sip.
"What? And you're telling us now? Let's drink to it, bro!" Rex sounded surprised but happy as he clinked their glasses together. Obi-Wan and Anakin followed soon after and Cody smiled.
"It's still a bit unbelievable for me," he answered. "So I wasn't talking about it until I got it on paper."
"I, on the other hand, will be leaving my job soon," Rex said, shrugging. "So you know, if you need someone to replace you on the position you're vacating..."
"I love you but no," Cody answered. "The only thing worse than working in the same place with your family members is working with your significant other. It's a recipe for a catastrophe."
"That's true," Obi-Wan added, finishing his drink in one big sip.
"So how about you, Obi-Wan?" Cody asked, elbowing him playfully. "You're just listening and commenting, nothing about you. I don't agree to become a character in one of your books!"
"I wouldn't dare." Obi-Wan laughed. "I don't have anything interesting to say, to be honest. I'm writing, trying to keep up with my deadlines and yeah, that's it."
"What are you writing now?"
"Fantasy romance novel about an elven pirate captain and his best friend in whom he eventually sees his soulmate."
"Sounds... Cliché," Anakin said slowly. "You know, no offense, it's just..."
"It sells and I like writing it. And yeah, it is cliché but it works."
Anakin went to order another round of drinks for them and there was silence at their table for a bit. Suddenly there chaos around the stage started, with connecting some cables and speakers.
"It's karaoke open mic!" Obi-Wan exclaimed once he realized what was going on.
"And you expect me to believe you didn't know about it when you chose this place?" Anakin asked raising his eyebrows doubtfully.
"You probably won't believe me but as a matter of fact, I didn't. I was sure it was yesterday, that's why I wanted us to meet on Friday instead of Saturday."
"Fate decided." Cody laughed. "You're going to join the competition?"
"I don't know, should I?" Obi-Wan asked amused.
"Yes!" Cody and Rex answered at the same moment Anakin said "No!".
"Sorry, Ani, fate decided. Fate and democracy" Obi-Wan patted his arm with a laugh and then left the booth, coming closer to the stage.
"Is he this bad?" Rex asked Anakin, surprised by his reaction.
"Quite the opposite," Anakin groaned. "He is perfect for things like this. He sings like he belongs to some boyband. And I'm afraid it will become his sole interest for the rest of the evening."
"Maybe they won't let him perform..." as soon as Cody said these words, Obi-Wan appeared on the stage, with his perfect smile and not a sign of nervousness. The host spoke.
"Please welcome our first participant tonight! Ben Kenobi, who is going to sing 'I've got my mind set on you' by George Harrison!"
Obi-Wan looked around the room looking for Cody, and when he caught his eyes, he bowed his head a little as if he was dedicating the song to him. Cody felt his face warm up but he held his look bravely.
The music started playing and Obi-Wan smiled contently, closing his eyes for a moment. And then he started singing and Cody thought Anakin was right. Obi-Wan was really singing as if he had been doing it whole his life.
I got my mind set on you
I got my mind set on you
I got my mind set on you
I got my mind set on you
But it's gonna take money
A whole lotta spending money
It's gonna take plenty of money
To do it right, child
The whole place applauded when he finished his performance and Obi-Wan bowed theatrically, making Cody laugh.
"So is there any special someone you have your mind set on?" The host asked, trying to keep him on the stage for a bit longer.
"Yeah, he is sitting right there. Always on my mind." He gestured towards Cody and Cody suddenly wanted to disappear, almost angry at the sudden attention that was brought to him by Obi-Wan's statement.
"Well, I hope you at least earned a kiss with the performance like this."
"I don't know, did I?" Obi-Wan looked at Cody, walking towards him slowly, giving him time to react however he felt comfortable. They were friends for a long time, they lived together when they were in college and everyone who ever met them was surprised the two of them weren't something more. And now Cody needed to decide what he was going to do now. But he really wanted to kiss him.
Kriff everything, he finally thought and smiled, meeting him halfway.
"You just had to do a whole show, didn't you?" He asked but didn't complain when Obi-Wan pulled him into a kiss, feeling Obi-Wan’s lips curving into a smile against his own.
"You know me, I'm always a drama queen," Obi-Wan answered when they parted for a moment and Cody's smile became even wider before he initiated another kiss himself. Obi-Wan chuckled, and Cody thought it was perfect, the feeling of deep.
"Can you stop doing this?" Anakin complained when they broke the second kiss and of course, it made Cody want to behave like a little shit he was. He grinned.
"One more for Anakin?" he asked and Obi-Wan laughed wholeheartedly before kissing him again and kriff if it wasn't the best kiss in Cody's life. He kissed others before, of course. But he never felt so giddy with happiness just because he was kissing someone. He never felt this bubbly feeling in his chest, this overwhelming wave of positive emotions he didn't want to name yet. He almost didn't want to part but they had to stop kissing at some point and it probably was the moment they should. The rest of the bar applauded them and Cody hid his face in Obi-Wan's shoulder, suddenly embarrassed.
"I'm letting you know I recorded the whole thing," Rex informed Cody when he and Obi-Wan sat back at their table. "I'm not sending it to the rest of the family, but I want you to remember that I have the recording in my possession."
"Be a dear and send it to me, will you?" Obi-Wan asked and Cody elbowed him. "What? I want to see it again, you don't? It might be a nice souvenir."
"The only thing I want to remember is here," Cody answered touching his forehead. "I may lose the recording but I'll never lose the memories of how I felt when you kissed me for the first time."
After that Obi-Wan just needed to kiss him again and Anakin groaned. Cody, for once, didn't care.