Boss with Benefits

Chapter 3 - Thunderstorms in Our Eyes

Okay Rody, today is the day.

Rody reassured himself, taking deep breaths as he strolled down the peaceful road, the same one that would be bustling when daylight hit with cars rolling down the streets while his presence got drowned out by the sea of people going about their day, but were so quiet at this very moment. Rody's thoughts were the ones accompanying him tonight instead of the passerby whose chatters would fill the air and joined in the liveliness of this place, the sound of his footsteps the only other one besides the noisy thoughts running around in his mind.

Those thoughts were the ones that said by this point, he should've quitted his job at La Gueule de Saturne, so in an act of protest, he instead chose to entertain the ones pondering what he should be telling Manon once he reached the phone booth, fully knowing deep down there would not be a need to distract himself with something else if it wasn't true.

His stay here had been long overdue, and if that wasn't bad enough, there was not an ounce of strength in him to actually change it.

From planning to stay here for only a week to prolonging that deadline to three weeks, Rody wasn't sure how it happened. The only he knew was that, all his courage to quit his job after his supposed last shift three weeks ago, all of a sudden, decided to all climb out of the windows against his will, leaving him there stuttering like an idiot in front of Vincent before awkwardly telling him "nevermind". The reason he did it, he was not aware of either. 

Ever since the first day he was made aware of the existence of La Gueule de Saturne, it was already decided in his mind that never once would he step foot in that place, or rather, he knew it wasn't somewhere his kind belonged. It wasn't just the food it was known for, it was so much more than that. It was the place of prestigious, where people of the high class came to relish in the fine dining experience of one of the world's most popular restaurants to date, owned by an equally famous chef who, one day, took the world by storm with his culinary expertise and made what the bistro what it was today. It wasn't somewhere that Rody would ever dream of ever getting the chance to experience, not with his background, not with his barely over minimum salary, and not with lack of etiquette that was clearly visible in his awkward mannerisms. Even after landing a job here, he still couldn't quite shake off those feelings, those thoughts that his existence alone was enough to stand out like a sore thumb amongst the lavish decorations, the fancy talks about the rare cuisines served that day and the rich folks who would regular this place like that usual hangout spot on a Friday night.

And yet, when it was time to part ways with it, he couldn't bring himself to do so.

Was it because somewhere down the path life had given him, his feet stumbled on this hidden turn which took him to a destination he never would have guessed he would arrive at, causing him to think it would be such a waste of the sheer luck he had been given? Was it his beloved colleagues who had not only treated him as their equal, but also had graced him with their welcomes and smiles every morning when he swung open the doors? Or maybe, just maybe, it was that chef whose dark locks floated with each step he took as elegantly as the way he moved around the kitchen like a boss he was, like the young chef who had risen to fame with nothing except his own expertise in the field and his immaculate skills.

Perhaps his charm also played a small part in it, the same charm that would sometimes get Rody's head to turn to his direction with his deep dark eyes that would catch Rody's eyes sneaking glances at him from afar way before his mind could register what he was doing—

Rody halted in his track with a palm smacked over his face.

Rody, why are you even thinking about that? Rody thought with a grunt escaping his lips. He's a celebrity that many people would kill to see, of course you'd get curious. It's not that deep.