Chapter 28
chapter twenty-eight
Every night for the past three days, I’d fall asleep alone and wake up with Tobi in my bed. I never said anything about it, and he never did either. It was just something I expected now, waking up with warmth behind me and my bed no longer feeling as vast as space.
I wasn’t sure when exactly he’d sneak in, or why he kept pretending like he wasn’t going to end up in my bed, or why he’d pretend like it never happened. I’m sure he had his reasons, though, and I definitely didn’t mind.
Like now, he was just sitting on the couch, messing with his phone while he waited, as if we hadn’t just woken up beside each other.
He had been absolutely enamored, yet mortified, with his new phone.
It took a while to show him the basics since his other one had been so old and broken.
He still had questions every so often, but he seemed to be getting the hang of it.
I never mentioned how much it cost me, but he was still worried about it and kept promising to pay me back.
Which, if that was what he wanted to do, then so be it.
But I’d secretly try to keep him from doing so.
“You ready?” I called from behind the couch.
He jumped up, and so did Fishy. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Fishy, you can’t come with us. I’m sorry.”
Fishy looked absolutely dejected, but we were meeting with Price and Crew at Fire and Ice, which was definitely not a pet-friendly establishment. Poor baby.
The drive there was mostly silent, with Tobi taking deep breaths every so often to try to regulate himself. I knew he was anxious. Who wouldn’t be? He told me Price had driven him to the hospital when he was detoxing, but aside from that, he hadn’t had a real conversation with him yet.
I glanced over at him just as he wrung his hands together. “I can’t believe y’all went viral on TikTok.”
I huffed a short laugh, turning into the employee parking. “We couldn’t believe it either. Our entire lives changed within a couple of days. Suddenly, we were sold out every single night and booked up to six months in advance. We had to hire a lot of staff and get really smart about scheduling.”
“Damn. But it slowed down, right?”
“Nope.” I put the car into park, staring at the back door.
I made sure to bring my key this time. “It hasn’t slowed down at all.
Instead, it’s gone the opposite direction.
Price got more and more popular, and then all the TV shows and interviews happened, and then we had another video go viral recently.
We’ve lost a lot of people because they couldn’t keep up with the pace, and we’ve hired a lot more who could.
I don’t think we’ve worked a single slow night since we went viral the first time. ”
“Jesus, that’s quite the change. Why did it take them so long to consider opening a new location? I mean, that’d bring in so much more revenue. They could do a lot with that.”
I shrugged. “You’ll have to ask them yourself. I think they were hesitant to put more stuff on their plates. That, and change is scary. We’ve all gone through a shit ton of change over the years, so I know just how daunting it can feel.”
He stared at the door, not even blinking. “Yeah, I get that. But sometimes change is good. Sometimes, it makes everythin’ better. I know Crew isn’t the type who likes to gamble, though.”
“No, he really isn’t.” I watched the door in solidarity, trying to figure out what he was seeing. Was he waiting for something to jump out of it? “Are you ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
It was early enough that only Crew and Price would be there for now, and if we started getting close to shift time, Tobi would have time to decide whether he wanted to stay or leave. I got out of the car, waiting for him at the door.
We stood in front of it together for a moment. I reached out, grabbing his hand with mine, and squeezed his. “I’m here with you, okay? I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere. If you need a second, or if you want to go, just tell me. They’ll understand.”
He took a deep breath through his nose, letting it out through his mouth before squeezing my hand back. “Okay. I think I’m ready.”
I took the keys out of my pocket, using one hand to unlock the door while he kept holding my other one.
We went down the hallway together slowly, letting Tobi take everything in.
Price had contracted a company to remodel a few years back, so it looked quite different from what Tobi would’ve remembered.
“Wow. This is so different.” His head was on a swivel as we neared the kitchen. He stopped in his tracks entirely when we came upon it, his mouth slightly agape. “Holy fuck. This is some high-dollar shit.”
I followed his line of sight, trying to look at everything with fresh eyes. “Pretty cool, huh?”
He let go of my hand to walk straight toward the grill station—the same station he’d worked on when we all started at The Arch. “This is amazing. I bet it cooks like a fuckin’ beast. These are like fifteen grand a pop.”
“Oh, are they?”
When he turned his head to look at me, he had the biggest, most genuine smile on his face. “Oh, yeah. I’ve looked into a few of these before online. I don’t know how they cook, but I do know they’re expensive for a reason. Fuck, the things I’d give to work on these babies.”
His pure excitement had me excited, and I never even liked cooking all that much.
The doors swung open just as Price stepped into the kitchen, his shoes squeaking against the floor.
He paused, staring at Tobi’s back. I watched his chest rise and fall just before his Adam’s apple bobbed, and his lip twitched.
He cleared his throat, giving the barest hint of a smile.
“Been a long time since I’ve seen you in front of a grill. ”
Tobi turned on his heels, his body tensing as they stared at each other. I was watching them get lost. Lost in the years of denial and pain they’d unknowingly shared, just without each other. “I honestly never thought I would be again. It, uh, feels nice. This is some good lookin’ stuff.”
“Yeah, I had no idea we’d be at a point where we could afford all this.” Price jerked his head to the side. “Come on. Crew is waiting for us in the office. I’ll give you a tour in a little bit if you want.”
Tobi turned to me, almost like he was looking for reassurance. I held my hand out, letting him choose to take it before following Price and me.
Crew lifted his head from the computer, a big grin on his face. “Well, hi. Did you get to take a look around?”
I took a seat in front of the desk, pulling my hand away just long enough for Tobi to take the seat next to me. “We looked at the kitchen, but we haven’t had a chance for the rest.”
“We can look at all that later, then. You look good, Tobi.”
“Do I?” Tobi scratched the back of his neck. “Thanks. I’ve gotten a bit more sleep lately, so I’m sure that’s been helpin’.”
As long as you’re in bed with me, I wanted to say. But I didn’t because I understood tact and had social awareness. For the most part.
Price stood behind the office chair Crew was in, placing his hands on Crew’s shoulders and squeezing gently. “How was detox?”
“Hell on earth. Torture. I’m pretty sure I died and came back to life.”
“Did it scare you into staying sober?”
Tobi shook his head. “No. I want to stay sober because I want to stay sober, not just because of how awful withdrawal is. Which, by the way, is truly fuckin’ awful. There were some really scary moments.”
I nudged his arm. “I told you they’re no joke. The safest way is always with medical staff on standby. Just in case. It’s why a lot of people don’t get sober.”
“It was worth it. Every second. And a great deterrent, but not the main reason.”
Crew wrapped his fingers around Price’s wrist, holding them at his shoulder. “We’re proud of you, so just remember that.”
“Kind of weird to hear. You’re proud of me for trying to stop poisoning myself.” Tobi sighed. “I’m not proud of myself yet, but I’m sure I will be. I see a therapist soon, so I bet she’ll work with me on that.”
“You’re going to therapy?” Price asked.
I squeezed Tobi’s arm, almost in a way to reiterate my pride in him and also because I just liked the feeling of him. I liked having him so close to me. “Yeah, we found someone who sounds pretty good.”
Crew nodded along, his eyebrows raised. “Y’all know how therapy changed things for both of us. I’m glad you’re going, Tobi. Have you thought any about what you’re going to do for work?”
“Yeah, sort of. I just know I need to look at applications. Cal got me a new phone so it actually works right, and I can start applying now. The ten-year gap won’t look good on my pretty lackluster resume. But I’m determined, so I know it’ll work out eventually.”
Crew tilted his head back, looking up at Price, who nodded. “Price and I were talking about this, actually. We know how difficult the job market has become, and we knew you might have some trouble. We’d like to have you back here if you’d be willing.”
Well, I definitely wasn’t expecting that. Neither was Tobi, seeing as his jaw had dropped and he was staring at the two of them almost blankly. I nudged his arm again, whispering. “That’s a pretty good opportunity, don’t you think?”
“I, uh…” Tobi blinked a few times, shaking his head. “Wow. That’s really generous of y’all.”
“We’ve missed you. You as a person and your skill.
” Price rounded the table, sitting on the edge of it right in front of us.
“You’re talented. You always have been. If you’re serious about getting your shit together, we’re serious about helping you.
Whether you stay here another two years or you leave in two months. We want you back in our family.”
“Family?”
“Tobi”— Crew leaned forward, putting his elbows on the desk—“You have to know that’s what we are.
The OG staff has been family since day one, and even if you leave for a while, that doesn’t make us any less than before.
You’re one of us. A part of the OG. We’re willing to do a lot for you as long as you keep going.
You don’t even have to be a cook at first if that’s too much.
You can do what I did when I first started working at The Arch. ”
“Like, do inventory and fuck the manager?”
I snorted, Crew’s eyes widened, and Price let out one loud, startling laugh. He had a point, though…
Putting his face in his hands, Crew shook his head with a laugh. “That’s between you and Callum. He’s the floor manager, so take that as you will.”
I pretended to write notes on an imaginary notepad. “No fucking in the office… Got it.”
Price groaned. “We never fucked in the office. You guys just like to make shit up and then make fun of us based on the shit you make up.”
“Hey, if the shoe fits, okay?”
“The shoe doesn’t fit. There is no shoe. That doesn’t even make sense in this context.”
Crew waved his hands around. “Boys, hush. Now is not the time. Tobi, just think about it, will you? Get our numbers from Callum, and you can ask us any questions you have. Consider the offer indefinitely on the table.”
Tobi looked happy. Honestly happy. His eyes sparkled under the office lighting, and the smile lines I loved so much were so prominent. Finally, we would get to be the ones to deepen them. “I’ll definitely think about it.”
Tobi had decided not to meet anyone else after getting the full tour of Fire and Ice’s renovations. I couldn’t say I blamed him. I’d felt weary myself, and I wasn’t in the position he was in.
We didn’t do much for the rest of the day. I’d shown him some of my abandoned woodwork projects in the shed, we cuddled with Fishy on the couch, and we watched some of the episodes Price starred in on TV. It was getting late, the stars twinkling our names to lure us to sleep.
Fishy was already on his bed, all cozy and comfortable, when Tobi shuffled past me. “I’m gonna head to bed. Night.”
I stopped in the hallway, looking up as he climbed the stairs. After so many nights of ignoring it, I realized just how much I didn’t want to ignore it anymore. I’d let him have his moment, and now I wanted to share it with him. I didn’t want him to be alone, even in this.
So, I called out to him from below just before he made it halfway up. “Why are you going to the guest room when we both know you’ll just end up in my bed?”
He stopped. I watched as his back muscles went rigid, his hand frozen on the railing. “You noticed.”
“Of course I did. How could I not?”
He slowly turned, looking down at me. “I don’t know. That sounds silly, don’t it?”
I started walking up the steps, and he stayed right where he was. We locked gazes, neither of us breaking as I met him where he was, only one step between us. “Come to bed, baby doll.”