Meant to Crash | ✓

Chapter Fifteen

After I had changed into more appropriate attire, Lana sent me to a back room so I could change. I squeezed into jeans too tight around my hips and a shirt that draped over my body, making the pants look even tighter on my legs.

Walking out of the changing room I was sent to, I guided myself down the hallway, pushing past busy people carrying hot food in large silver platters you'd find at lunch rooms in high school. I was handed a hair net the moment I got inside the kitchen.

For the next few hours, I helped in the back kitchen with their meals. They feed the homeless two times all day, every day. Especially on holidays. I had thought that they would be closed on Christmas and Thanksgiving, but Lana told me that those were their businesses nights and the most important. What made me even more surprised wasn't the many photos of Sebastian helping out, year after year for eight consecutive years up on the walls, but the fact that Sebastian was in the back of the kitchen with us. And with each new set of people that came in, I saw him exit the kitchen and walk up into the dinning area, speaking with them and introducing himself. It was so unlike him. Or unlike how I thought he'd be. I watched from outside the window in the kitchen that looked out into the dinning area. He cracked jokes, smiled, and laughed with them.

As heartwarming as it all was, I still couldn't help but want to make fun of what he had on. I refrained from laughing when I saw the hair net on his head and the apron wrapped around his waist.

"What do you find funny?" he asked, walking up to me, coming back from the dinning area. He quickly caught on what I found so funny. "Oh, the hair net. Ah, so you find it amusing seeing me in a hair net?"

"I think it looks great with your apron. They match. You should wear this more often, like even around the office. You'd gain lots of more respect from us."

"Ha  ha," he laughed dryly. "I'm sure I don't look any better than you." He dipped his finger in a pile of excess flour left on the table that had fallen out of a bowl. He flicked it ." Actually, now I think you look better."

My mouth popped open, glancing down at the mess he made on my shirt. We definitely weren't close enough for him to start spill things on me. "You did not just do that."

He picked up another bit of flour. "Oh, but I did...and I'll do it again."

I stuck grabbed some flour of my own. "Drop it. Drop it now or I'll be forced to retaliate -"

The flour went for my face this time, nearly getting in my mouth. Grabbing a bigger handful, I flung it at him, getting it on his hair net. It was war. Nothing was off limits as I reach for more flour to throw at him. The air turned a pale white mist of flour, making it hard to see what was going on beyond the thick sheet of fog.

* * * *

It was awfully late when we left Steps toward Change. We got cleaned up and called his driver back around the corner. My stupid, silly smile forced itself on my face. I think it was the first time I'd spent time with Sebastian that didn't end with me wanting to slap him at least once.

Sebastian's voice ripped me out of my thoughts, replaying the afternoon in my head. "Are you hungry? You've got to be hungry."

"I ate at Step toward Change."

"You didn't eat the meal they had for us. The only thing you consumed was water." He emphasized.

"Well that's all I asked for. I'm fine."

"Don't be ridiculous." He leered forward to the driver. "Stop over at Sixth Avenue and Main." It wasn't a question.

"He's a little too busy stuck in traffic to do that right now, Se-sir." I caught myself.