Wei looked down. That answer stayed with him.
The three companions had become unusually quiet. One of them finally spoke. "I'm sorry."
Darius looked at him. The man hesitated. "I laughed."
Darius nodded. "Okay."
The man seemed unsure what else to say. Darius gave him an escape: "Thank you for saying that." Then he walked away.
At 9:40, table 17 left. Wei was the last one through the door. He stopped near the entrance. Darius was standing beside the host station.
Wei looked back. "Darius?"
"Yes."
"I didn't know."
Darius understood what he meant. "That I spoke Mandarin?"
Wei nodded.
Darius smiled faintly. "You didn't ask."
Wei almost smiled. "No." He hesitated. "Good night."
"Good night."
Wei left. The doors closed behind him.
Thomas looked at Darius. "Eight languages?"
Darius nodded. "Eight."
Thomas shook his head. "Why have you never mentioned that?"
Darius shrugged. "It's never been relevant."
Thomas looked toward the door. "I think it just became relevant."
The following Monday, Darius received an email from the restaurant's corporate office. It wasn't about the incident, at least not officially. Thomas had recommended him for an international hospitality fellowship.