The Good Hair Family Sitcom

Short Episode 5: The Interview

Brayden's POV

Sunlight from the kitchen streaks the hallway of doors, the walls chopping it off before it can reach my feet on the carpet outside Deion's room. His new house is almost identical to his old one, but it's in a neighbourhood 20 minutes from his last. Still, with some colour replacement, the two homes would be indistinguishable. 

After waiting what I think is an appropriate amount of time, I call to my boyfriend on the other side of the door, "Can I come in now?"

"Yup."

I crack open the door, the creak reminding me that although this house is fairly new to him, it's been here for decades. Inside the room, Deion sits on his bed, dressed in brown trousers and a white button-down with silver cufflinks jewelling each sleeve. Those cufflinks belonged to his grandfather, but now they adorn him, making him shine even more than he already does. He's now sitting on his bed, pulling on a pair of red and navy striped socks.

"Do I look professional?" he checks. 

"Yes." 

I step up closer as he finishes with his socks and stands up, giving me a fuller view of his outfit. His eyes track mine as I look him up and down, my focus naturally getting caught each time his shirt hugs a muscle without a single wrinkle interfering. 

"This is a good ensemble," I state. "You should wear this again."

At that, he gives me a grin and raises his eyebrows. "Yeah? How come?"

Instantly, my cheeks grow hot, and he notices. 

"You good there, Driscoll? You seem a little flustered."

"Teasing me makes it worse!"

"I know."

Deion chuckles and wraps his arms around my waist, bringing me toward him. I try to keep my expression of annoyance, but it only lasts until he leans in to kiss me. When he breaks his lips away from mine, I'm even more annoyed than I was before. 

"I didn't say stop."

He laughs again and returns his lips to their rightful place, pulling me in tighter. My arms find their way over his shoulders, a subconscious act that happens when I don't want him to stop kissing me—which is most of the time. Thankfully, we get a decent while to ourselves before the door swings open, and Deion and I divide, both as embarrassed as Deion's mom looks having walked in on us. 

"Oh, sorry," she apologizes awkwardly. "Um, Deion, you should get going soon so you're not late for your interview."

"Thanks, Mom."

Ms. King closes the door again, and the awkwardness fades pretty quickly. We've been dating for almost two years now, so none of this is a surprise to her, although I am shocked she still hasn't learned to knock before entering. 

"You still haven't told me what job you're interviewing for," I say. 

"What can I say? I'm a man of mystery."

"Hmm." I give him a skeptical look. "I suppose that's not an adjective I wouldn't give to you."

He grins and grabs his wallet and keys from his dresser, tucking them in his pockets, disrupting the perfect smoothness of his dress pants. 

"Come on," he says. "Don't wanna be late. Give me more interview tips while I drive?"

"Certainly," I reply and take his hand.

________________________________________

Brayden's POV

When I step out of Deion's car, he comes around to meet me on the sidewalk, and I take note of the part of town we're in. 

"We're awfully close to The Spoon," I say. "Can we get baby taters after your interview?"

"Sure," he says with a smile.

He winds his hand with mine and guides me as we walk toward our destination, getting closer to The Spoon. I assume his job interview must be past that, but then puzzlement settles in when he turns toward The Spoon's doorway. 

"Not now," I tell him. "You'll be late for your interview."

Rather than agree and continue walking, he says, "Have a little faith in me."

He takes the door handle and pulls it open, gesturing for me to go on in ahead of him. Although I'm still unsure what he's doing, I go with it, stepping into the busy diner. When Deion comes in after me with a huge grin, I finally understand.

"Wait—"

My dad walks over and greets us before I can finish. 

"Deion," he says, "good to see you."

I turn to my boyfriend. "You applied to work here?"

With a little chuckle, he nods. 

"Take a seat," my dad says to Deion and motions to a booth nearby. 

Deion gives me a brief kiss on the cheek before whispering, "Wish me luck," and heading over to sit down. 

My dad's about to join him, but I step ahead of him first, cutting off his path. 

"Dad, you better hire my boyfriend."

"Don't worry," he responds with an amused grin. "He's got a pretty good chance."

A/N: One more little episode. I'm very excited for it, because when rereading this, I realized if I was a reader, I would've wanted to see a bit of the event taking place next.