Chapter 8
8
DONNIE
Thank heavens the damn bell came down. I have hated that thing from the moment I first stepped foot in the shop five years ago. For the first few months, it was the signal that I was going to get sneered at or yelled at for my part in what happened to Lew…erhm, Matt’s boyfriend back then. Over time, I managed to hide the cringe, but the feeling of shame and tension never went away. It’s been forever linked to the damned jangling of that bell.
Watching the bell rolling all over the floor with the adorable man chasing it around on all fours was almost cathartic to witness. I’ve seen the guy in here before a few times. Each time he graces me with his presence, he definitely makes it memorable.
The first time he was in here, he tripped over someone’s backpack and did some elaborate dance looking thing to avoid spilling his drink. In the process, he bumped into four tables and spilled about seven other people’s drinks. But he saved his own and gave a little bow at the door before running away, red as a ripe strawberry.
The most memorable moment was probably the time last year when he knocked his smaller friend out cold in front of the shop.
“Donnie, get Mr. Squirrel Brain here a drink on me,” Walt calls out, shaking me from the memory. “I’m thinking something decaf would be ideal.”
“No fair, Gramps!” the excitable young man exclaims, running his hand through the sandy strands of his hair. “I need the caffeine to sit through my boring lit class later.”
Lew, I mean Matt barks out a laugh before coughing in an attempt to cover it up. “I’ll be sure to let Simon know you think his class is boring.”
I spend the next few minutes observing the interactions between the men at the table while I come up with something that I think truly fits the smaller man’s tastes. He acts like he is the personification of a golden retriever puppy, but I see the tension in his back every time Walt shows affection to the young man who had been crying earlier. There is something between the two of them, but he doesn’t seem to know how to show it.
Carrying over the fruity monstrosity I just made up, I get raised eyebrows from both the professor and my former boss. So what if I want to make sure the guy gets more in his system than just caffeine? I can’t help it.
“Too much caffeine means a crash later in the day,” I tell him with a smile when he looks at me doing a decent trout impersonation. “Be a good boy and drink something healthy.”
Matt and the guy they called Shiloh both break out in laughter while Toby returns to the color of a ripe tomato. A sound under the table makes me look, and I see his foot bouncing up and down on the crossbar of his chair.
Huh, he really is like a puppy, isn’t he?
“Thanks, Donnie,” Matt says when he can finally take a breath. “We’ll get out of your hair so that I can get some food into these guys. Thanks for the drinks, man. I’ll text you later about that thing.”
The two younger men gather up their things and follow the professor like they are obedient pets and not people, and I can’t help but smirk at the sight. Before I can question it any further, Walt clears his throat.
“So what is so important you needed to call me away from my grandkids?”