“No I’m not fucking jealous. I have some actual decorum.”
“Ooo, fancy,” I tease, but when his eyes meet mine I can see he’s not playing around. “Wait. You’re actually serious? That’s like ten feet away.” I gesture to the back room.
“Couldn’t even take it to the car.”
“Oh really?” I laugh. “Is that why you have a decked out van in the lot?”
Tek shrugs and moves a few more items into place.
“I can’t tell what you mean by that.”
“And you never will.”
“Did people care?”
“I don’t think many of them knew. People like zoning out. Most have headphones or ear buds. I didn’t like it, but you know what your brother’s like.”
“Not when it comes to his sexual exploits, I don’t.”
Glancing back across the street, I see the ‘open’ sign on in Watersons’ window.
I run my hand over my back pocket, feeling for my phone. “Hey, I’ll be back in five.”
“No you won’t.”
“Yes I will.” I unlock the shop's front door and turn the closed sign over. “You wouldn’t stop me from taking a piss, would you?”
“The bathroom’s not out there.”
“I said, I’ll be back,” I call out and jog across the street.
The same old guy is behind the counter and he gives me a sly grin as he looks at me from over the top of his newspaper. “Are you hungover, Son? Cause we ain’t got no food in here.”
“I’ve never felt better. You got any slippers?”
He turns the page and shakes the paper so the pages are sitting straight again. “Second aisle. Next to the dressing gowns and hot water bottles. But if you’re looking for style, you’ve come to the wrong place.”
The selection is bigger than I expected, and I end up settling on a pair of grey speckled grandpa slides with the toes in. Then I’m half way to the register before I backtrack and pick up the same style in navy for myself.
I quickly pay and say goodbye to the closest thing I have to a new friend.
Perhaps a little too pleased with myself, I push back through the door to Teken Ink in a rush, and find a woman talking to Tek.
Swallowing my excitement back down, I wrap my lips around my teeth and quietly walk towards the reception desk with my shopping bag in hand.
“I heard what happened,” I hear her say as she steps even closer to Tek. “I can’t believe they did that to you.”
“It is what it is,” he responds, just as dryly as he would if he were talking to me.
“That's why I thought I’d come and offer my services before you put an ad on Craigslist.” I watch her sidle closer until she playfully nudges his arm with her shoulder. “You at least owe me an interview.”
“I don’t owe you shit,” he says, but there’s a smile in his voice.
Her hand lands on his forearm. “You know I’m a perfect fit.”
“We’re good.” Tek pulls his arm away and walks towards the desk. It’s then that she looks at me properly for the first time.
“Who’s this?” she asks, following Tek.
