My new co-worker forces me to my knees - I'm Not Gay - Chapter 2
It took me some effort, but I managed to keep myself to myself until Tania'd finished showing me all the goings on at
Dice&Slice.
I all but stormed out of the video game studio's offices after she'd let me go for the rest of the week. I would start the Monday after.
It was now Friday, which meant that Sam would be working right down the street, probably still having his lunch in his personal office. One of the perks of being a successful realtor, no doubt. The guy at the reception was satisfied with a simple
"I'm here to see Mr. Downes."
In a flash of white-hot rage, I found myself with the collar of his shirt in my fist not five minutes later. He looked up at me in shock and dropped his sandwich on his desk.
"Did you know?"
I shook him, taking advantage of the privacy he works so hard for. "Did you know, Sam?!"
"W-what? Dude, Devon, chill out!"
"I
can't
chill out because
you
just hooked me up with a job where I have to look at
that guy's
face every. Fucking. Day."
"What guy?"
I let him go, sighing and flopping into one of the chairs in front of his desk. "That guy... from, y'know...
that night?
"
Understanding finally dawned on his face and I felt like decking him. "Whoa, you're saying Lucas Townsend works at Slice&Dice?"
"Why are you saying his name like it means something? And don't act like you didn't know!"
"I didn't! I swear, dude. I had no idea. We haven't talked about that night since. You really think I would spring him on you like that? Come on, Dev. Give me some credit."
I eyed my best friend harshly for a moment before conceding that he wouldn't do that to me. I try to control my breathing and slump back into the chair. Even now, this guy got such a rise out of me. And he wasn't even in the room with us now.
After a while, Sam says, "I can't believe Lucas Townsend works at Slice&Dice man."
"Why? He's gotta work somewhere, right? It's just my bad fucking luck that he happens to work there." I frown at Sam. He looks back for a millisecond and then suddenly averts his eyes. "What?" I press.
He inhales deeply and leans his elbows on his desk, looking at me as if he was about to share a state secret.
"Lucas Townsend u-"
"-Stop saying his full name like that, weirdo."
".. used," Sam continues, "to work at Senses."
He must have seen my mouth fall open and raised his eyebrows in response, nodding meaningfully.
"Yup. Actually, he became one of the co-owners the year before I took you there. Haven't seen him there for a while though, I was wondering where he'd ended up."
"You were still going to that place?" I asked incredulously.
"Oh yeah. Never stopped. Until I moved here to the Hague last year, of course. I just didn't realise that a little part of that place followed me here." Sam's eyes darted off towards the window, a dreamy look in his eyes. "The
best
part even. What are the fucking chances?"
I struggled not to gag. "Jesus, Sam. That guy was
not
the best part of that horrible place. And now I totally understand why that club was so fucked in the first place. The guy's a fucking creep. Did you hook up with him?"
"No, I wish." A flash of annoyance came across Sam's face. "And the guy's
not
a creep, Dev. You're just an insecure, immature flake." Sam spat.
I was shocked at what he'd said. I couldn't respond.
"Don't look at me like that, dude. It's like I said that night, get over yourself because nobody forced you to go into one of those rooms. Not Lucas and not me. No one. And by the way, It actually fucking hurts when you act as if hooking up with another guy is the worst thing that could happen to anyone. So quit that, please."
Fuck. Okay. Point taken. We'd never even continued that conversation. Never in three years had Sam or I brought it up, for my benefit. So I felt like I needed to humble myself a little bit now that I had done it myself.
"Fuck, Sam. I'm sorry, you know I don't mean it like that. It just really confused me because that's
not
me, okay? You know I'd beat up the first guy who judges you for being bi... And I
know
. It was my own fault." I sighed. "That doesn't mean that the guy isn't a dick. Who the hell goes and has sex with guests of a venue he owns? That's sick."
"It was part of the job." Sam explained.
I let that simmer for a while. Reluctantly wondering whether I was just another customer to Lucas that night, one who wasn't 'special' and someone he 'just felt sorry for'. I didn't know which one of the two made me more furious.
But it'd better be the fucking second one
I could handle being part of