Carmen is happy.

Perhaps it is from the success The Bear is having, or maybe it is from the fact that his relationship with you is better than it had ever been before. Carmen is slowly learning how to let go — to not being anxious all the damn time.

And it does some good to both him and you; after months of the Chef saying it could never work. That he was too busy; that he shouldn’t care.

But that’s the thing, Carmen does care about you more than he let on. He’d go as far as saying that — fuck, he loves you. And that’s probably why you’re here, at The Bear, after hours. Sitting up on one of the counters, watching as Carmen tries new recipes for his Christmas’ special menu.

He seems fully into it, tongue picking out between his lips, eyebrows furrowed. Everything needs to be perfect but there’s something missing and he can feel it; a glance to your side and he hums.

“Babe— think you could taste the mango purée for me? There’s something missing and I can’t find what. Spices, maybe.” he tells you, nodding his head toward a plate where the mango purée rest in.

Carmen is proud of himself for that — because before you, he would just have worked his mind off alone.