Our Safeguard

Chapter 56

Chapter 56

~Jerome~

       I lost count on how many times I wanted to hit my head against the wall just during this shift today. I didn't understand how so many customers could just be so clueless. Your coupon didn't work? Yeah, there was an expiration date on it and no, it wasn't my fault it wasn't working. You wanted a discount and I wouldn't give you one? I couldn't just randomly give you discounts. You wanted me to watch your kid while you shop? I wasn't a babysitter.

       One customer even got mad at me because her child was acting up. I just stared at her and said, "Ma'am, I work in a vet clinic as well and met dogs more well behaved than your kid."

       She demanded she sees my manager, but my manager didn't reprimand me. She pretended she did in front of the customer, but when the customer left, she didn't write me up or anything. Thankfully, I had a manager that understood that customers could just be really stressful and it wasn't fair if we had to always just take our shit.

       She only let us get away with talking back to them as long as we weren't too rude, and definitely not if we use explicits.

       By the time it was finally time for my break, I was tempted to just quit my job, if I was being honest. I did work at the clinic as well, but only from time to time. Not as often as my job at the grocery store. Besides, I was still recovering from my eating disorder and felt that being around all the food in the store helped me get used to the idea that I couldn't always avoid food.

       Not to mention that we still got annoying customers at the clinic, but not as often as the grocery store.

       When my shift finally came to an end, I went to the staff room and grabbed all my belongings before I left the store. That was probably the most stressful shift I ever had. I didn't know that customers could just be so clueless, and even selfish, at times.

       As soon as I got home, I noticed that Nolan was cooking something in the kitchen, which he definitely didn't do often. He would make quick meals like sandwiches and fruit salad, but nothing really that would involve a lot of preparing.

       He seemed to be in a really good mood as well. He had a subtle smile on his face, and seeing it just made me really happy. 

       When he noticed that I came home, he smiled at me even wider. "Hi."

       I couldn't help but smile back at him, especially when his smile was just so contagious. "Hi." I took off my shoes before I walked over to head and kissed his forehead. "What are you making?"

       "Baked potato soup," Nolan said. "I used to make it all the time years ago, and I had just been craving it a lot recently. I stopped cooking when I first started hurting myself because I couldn't stand the idea of being near knives, but I think I've been doing better."

       "Well, I'm proud of you," I said. "So I've been planning the road trip a bit and I made sure that I booked dog-friendly hotel rooms so Daisy could come with us. I don't think you wanted to be separated from her for a week."

       "You're not wrong," Nolan said. "I don't even think she would want to be separated from me." 

       As Nolan mentioned that, I noticed that Daisy was lying on the floor in the kitchen, just watching Nolan. It was very, very rare for Daisy not to be by Nolan's side. Usually when she wasn't, it was because Alan tried forcing Daisy to spend time with him, but it never lasted.

       Poor Alan just really wanted a pet.

       Nolan had just finished cooking some bacon and put it on a plate with a paper towel to dry. Despite the bacon pieces being a bit hot from just coming off of the stove, Nolan picked up a piece and tossed it to Daisy, who caught it flawlessly.

       "I'm surprised your dad is letting you cook bacon," I said.

       "Oh, this is my own pack that I bought," Nolan said. "My dad definitely wouldn't have let me cook it to put in the soup." Nolan picked up one of the pieces and popped it in his mouth, again ignoring the fact that it just came off of the stove. "He's so obsessed with it."

       "Yeah, I think your whole family is," I pointed out.

       Nolan shrugged, knowing that I was right. I had never met a family who was all so obsessed with bacon. 

       Nolan lowered the heat on the stove before he placed a lid on top of the pot. Because no one else was in this area of the house, he decided to cusp my face in his hands before he pulled me into a kiss. And of course, because I loved this guy so much, I couldn't just not kiss him back.

       I wrapped my arms around his waist and pulled him closer to me. I could feel him smile through the kiss and I honestly thought he was going to pull away any second, but he didn't. Then again, he was always such a horny person, so I should have assumed he would kiss me as long as he could.

       "Can you two try not to each other in the kitchen?" I suddenly heard Ryder say, so Nolan and I pulled away from each other to see Ryder standing by the bottom of the stairs. 

       Because I still had the urge to be a pest to Ryder, I just had to say, "But the kitchen is for eating."

       Ryder just glared at me before he walked into the kitchen to find something to eat. He noticed the cook pieces of bacon and tried to grab one, but Nolan slapped his hand away. "No," Nolan said. "It's for my soup."

       "Oh, come on, they're small pieces," Ryder said. "I was just going to grab one."

       "Yeah, probably one handful," Nolan said. "Go buy your own bacon if you want some."

       Ryder grumbled something as he went to the cupboards to find something to eat. Once again, I still felt like being a pest and said to Nolan in a loud whisper, "You think he would be mad if I kiss you again?"

       "I will throw an apple at your head if you do," Ryder said. "Are you ever going to move out?"

       "Wow, you're trying to kick out your brother's husband?" I asked. "That's so rude."

       Ryder looked at Nolan. "I don't get what you see in him."

       "Apart from him saving my life?" Nolan asked.

       "Doesn't count."

       "Well, then I don't think you want to hear my answer."

       Ryder looked confused, but then he realized what Nolan must have been referencing to. His face scrunched up in disgusts as he walked away, saying something about losing his appetite.

       Once Ryder was back upstairs, Nolan asked, "Wanna have sex?"

       "Not when your family is home. And you're still cooking your food."

       "Let's go get a hotel."

       "Wait for the road trip then."

       Nolan sighed. "My life is so hard."

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i love nolan so much, he's so silly.

i'm so glad to be done this semester of school. i now have four and a half months off hehehe.