From the Ashes

Chapter 5

A/N

UmmMm... Hi? Long time no see, and all that. Did you miss me? Or maybe I should ask, did you miss this story? I... yeahhh, sorry for the e x t r e m e l y long wait on this one. It was a tough second half of 2015 for me with my new job, which basically took over every aspect of my life since it drained me so much (plus the monster of a one-shot I wrote at the time). I've decided to not let it do that this year, and as such, here's a new part to this fic! I hope you enjoy, even though it's a really short one, and look forward to more updates (just like I do) <3

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Laughter filled the shower room, boisterous and clear above the din of splashing water and conversations. One in particular stood out, smooth and low as it was, making it nearly undetectable in between the bright titters of the others, and still unfamiliar enough to be noticeable.

Tyler rolled his eyes. It seemed like he was going to have to endure yet another idiot who thought their place of work was some type of social arena instead of taking things as seriously as the job required, if not deserved. Not that he had anything personal against Scott or Mitch, the two youngest members of his team – not counting the rookie – but if he'd wanted to go back to high school, he'd become a teacher or something. You'd never think Tyler was only a couple of years older than them – the way his colleagues went on was tolerable at best.

He wasn't even actively listening, but with the volume of the tittering coming from the other side of the tiled room, it was impossible to miss how Scott and Mitch were going on and on about how everyone's nicknames.

A fresh wave of annoyance curled in Tyler's gut as he reached for the shower gel.

He hated it. The others insisted on calling him "Sunshine", and it never failed to rub him the wrong way. Of course he was aware of the irony of his appointed name, and even though he refused to acknowledge it, that made it all the more annoying. It was ridiculous, and ridicule was not something he wanted to endure. What he wouldn't give to have a team of mature grown-ups around him instead of these constant reminders that some of these people were barely out of puberty – or so it seemed on most days.

Turning on the spot, Tyler let the warm water rinse the lather from his body, trying to shut out the noise of the public showers. Underneath his skin, his muscles were still tingling and starting to get a bit sore from their recent work-out. It was a feeling he enjoyed thoroughly; if there was one reliable thing in life, it was his own body, and as long as he took good care of it, he trusted it to always do what he wanted it to. A delightful bonus to staying in shape was, of course, being quite hot, if he did say so himself.

He felt a smirk start to form on his lips at the thought; so what if he knew that he looked good? Plenty of people had told him that he did, and despite what RJ had said about his eating habits and his recent dry-spell that morning, it had only been a week ago that he'd pulled an especially eager, cute little blond at the coffee shop a few blocks from his apartment, of all places.

It was a good thing that he was friendly with the manager and that it had been a quiet morning, since Tyler and the blond barista had exited the little toilet at the back of the shop together to be met by a glare and a pointed cough from behind the huge espresso machine. The look that the older man had given them was one that held a clear warning, and yet he hadn't said a word as his employee had patted down his hair and adjusted his apron quickly before swooping into place behind the counter once more, his face flushed and his lips puffy and red. Tyler had smiled and discreetly nodded at the scowling owner while stuffing a folded up bill in the jar of coins at the cash register. It was only polite to tip the staff, after all.