"It's really not that hard." Stevie mumbled as lingered a couple of feet behind her oldest, watching as he struggled to work the oven.
They had only been there for a couple of hours and she already had a headache. It had been a long time since she'd had to train someone at work- that was usually Elises job, but Crosby was different... He was stubborn and Stevie was the only person that would take his comments with a grain of salt... Well, her and Lindsey, but he bailed on her.
But it was originally him that had suggested Stevie put their son to work at the restaurant to begin with, only because Lindsey didn't want to deal with him all day in the studio. And as much as it pained her to admit it- she didn't want to hire him.
It wasn't that she didn't think he could do it, but because she knew that they would bump heads almost instantly.
Stepping to one side, he held his hand out for her to show him how it was done. "Go ahead, boss lady." He leaned back against the counter, trying hard to act even remotely interested.
"You have to preheat it first, okay?" She reached out to press the button, though her eyes stayed locked on him, making sure he was paying attention. "It doesn't just start off at four hundred degrees instantly." She added, almost certain he didn't know that.
She had tried to teach her sons those life skills as teenagers- she didn't want them to have to rely on a woman, like their father did... but of course, the very last thing they wanted to do was sit around the kitchen, listening to her ramble on about the oven, and the stove, and a bunch of other things they could have totally cared less about.
And that's why they found themselves standing there, going over what each button meant.
"Alright, cool." Crosby nodded his head lightly as he watched her for another long moment.
"Yeah..." she mumbled. "So cool." She rolled her eyes lightly, causing him to chuckle in return.
He could tell that she wasn't necessarily thrilled about training him, and that was totally fine- he didn't expect anything else.
"How about we ditch this place and go grab some lunch?" He slipped a hand into his pocket casually, almost like he wasn't being absolutely annoying.
She sighed heavily as she fell back into the counter. "Listen, this wasn't my idea either." She admitted with an arched brow. "You can just sit at home for all I care." She added in a blunt, almost mean tone of voice.
He scoffed softly. "Why do you always do what he says?" Crosby knew how to push her buttons- he'd been doing it his whole life, so he was basically a professional. "If he wanted me to work here so bad, why isn't he here showing me the ropes?" He was being a smart ass, like usual. "You're always such a push over with him." His voice grew a little quieter, even though he knew full and well that it would get a rise out of her.
"Well, we must be doing something right, considering the fact that our marriage has lasted the test of time." She was not afraid to get a little rude back... Not with him, at least. "That's more than you can say, huh?" That was kind of deep- she knew that, but she really didn't care.
He was always picking apart his father and there was nothing that drove her crazier... Everyone has issues- it's only human and Lindsey was no exception to that, but neither was she.
He grinned lightly as he let off a very soft nod. "You got me there, ma." He couldn't help but laugh, even though he knew that she didn't necessarily find any of it very funny.
Biting down on her lower lip, this feeling of regret washed over her instantly... She shouldn't have been that harsh. "We can just go get lunch, Crosby." She lazily reached out to turn off the oven, silently giving up already.
"I was only joking." He shook his head as he slid one hand in his pants pocket.
"If you don't wanna do this, I'm not going to force you to." She argued as she tossed some of the dirty dishes into the sink. "So why don't we just make life easier for the both of us and give up before we're really fighting?" She held out a hand, trying hard to act like she wasn't bothered by their disagreement.
He had just moved back in with them and the last thing she wanted was to start off rocky right away... The had months to get under one another's skin.
"I'll drive." He assured as he led the way towards the back door.
Rolling her eyes softly, she followed not too far behind. "My keys are the desk in the office." She announced in a low tone.
~~~
"I'm not paying for that." She raised a brow as she eyed the beer sitting in front of him.
Crosby chuckled lightly. "I was gonna buy lunch anyway." His eyes traveled around the restaurant, finding it almost impossible to look at her.
She always looked so sad and so let down... It was a real drag sometimes.
Shifting awkwardly in her chair, Stevie's chin fell in her hand. "I thought the whole point of you coming home was to get sober..." she was not being mean, or stern- she was really trying to be sympathetic.
"I haven't had anything to drink all day." He was lying- he had downed a couple of 3 ounce fireballs only minutes after he'd opened his eyes that morning.
She rubbed her temple as she let a soft sigh escape her. "If you don't want to work and you don't want to stop drinking completely, then the only other option for you is rehab." Stevie's voice was gentle and even a little sad... She hated that for her son, she really did.
"Nope." There was no hesitation- not a hint. "I'm not going to rehab and I'm not going to any AA meetings, either." He had already told his father and Kara that... He wasn't going to those places, because he was going to get better all by himself.
"I know this isn't easy for you," her hand met his after a moment of silence had washed over them. "But I really want you to try." She gave his hand a soft squeeze in hopes that would reassure him in some way.
He stared at her for a long moment, just then realizing how tired she looked... "It doesn't just happen over night," he shrugged lightly.
"Right," she lingered. "So, you have two weeks to prove to me that you want to get better, and if you can't do that, you'll have to figure it out on your own... Without your father and I."
