That Cold Gaze || Tom X Reader

Chapter 2

About a week had passed, and you had already completely forgotten about the man called Tom. You had burned your fingers a couple more times on the fish-friers since meeting him, and eventually requested that your boss switch you to a different station. As a result, today you were on cleaning duty.

You were wiping down the tables in the area designated for dining in. Business was slow at the moment; it was a bit after the usual lunchtime rush hour and only two customers were in the building. Once they left you would clean their table and then you would have to do the bathrooms. Oh, joy.

You heard the bell over the door ring, signifying someone had entered the restaurant. Because it's a habit, you said a greeting to the customer as you continued cleaning your table.

Upon looking up, your eyes widened a little. The customer looked a little familiar. You turned your attention back to your work, but meanwhile you were trying to remember where you had seen him before.

You glanced back up, sneaking a peek at the customer again. It was that guy from the bus. What's his name again? Jon? Tim?

And then the feeling of paranoia struck again.

Stop being such a chickenshit. This is just a coincidence.

You knew you were being irrational. This kind of thing is normal. You took some deep breaths and calmed yourself down. It was almost time for your shift to end, anyway. Once you finished the bathrooms, you'd be home free.

---

About an hour later, you were leaving work. You waved at your coworkers and exited the building.

You turned in the direction of the bus stop and began walking. You pulled out your phone and put in your earbuds, playing your favorite song. The bus stop wasn't too far, but you had enough time for a few songs at least.

You began humming along quietly as you strolled down the sidewalk.

As you neared the bus stop, you noticed someone else waiting there. It was none other than Mr. Moody-black-eyes. Again. You stopped a few feet away from him and removed your earbuds so you could listen for the bus.

"Didn't know you cleaned tables for a living."

You jumped at the sound of his voice. You hadn't expected conversation. Shuffling your feet, you shrugged. "Yeah, well, I doubt you're any better off," you mumbled under your breath.

He snickered beside you, and you felt a bit peeved. This guy was annoying as hell.

You felt his smug gaze on you, and you turned to face him. "What? Am I so interesting that you can't look at something else?" you questioned sarcastically.

He cocked an eyebrow and looked down the road. "No. You're just funny looking when you get defensive," he stated nonchalantly.

You're eyes narrowed and you looked forward again. He was a prick. You had no idea why you were so scared by him before. He was just your average asshole. Your stomach still churned from fear a bit, but it was subsiding slowly.

The bus arrived soon after and you both boarded. You flashed the bus pass towards the driver and looked for an empty seat. You found a decent spot and sat down, sliding to the window.

You felt the seat sink beside you and you glanced over at your company. It was No-Eyes again. You just stared at him in annoyance. He glanced at you and asked what was wrong.

"Why are you sitting with me again?" you asked in a monotonous voice.

"Is it a crime?"

"Yes."

"Oh, really? In what world?"

"Mine."

He flashed a smug smile before facing forward and probably ignoring you. You were surprised by how talkative he was being, even if it was mostly at your expense. Last time he had seemed to be in a bad mood like you had been. Maybe he's just in a good mood-

"H-hey... Last time we spoke you were being kinda... moody. Uh... why was that?" you asked awkwardly, fearing you were overstepping boundaries.

He coughed and glanced at you, shrugging. "I was probably a bit drunk."

Oh.

--

As it turns out, you and Tom just happened to use that bus route a lot. Your initial fear of him had nearly completely gone away after just a few bus rides.  You two eventually became what you could call "bus buddies" and would usually sit together and talk. You both insulted each other quite a lot, though you had learned it was all in good fun. You eventually exchanged numbers and messaged each other occasionally. This was merely the beginnings of your stories together.

A/N: Ayy I updated. Yeah, sorry. I still have no idea what I'm doing ahaha... I'm sorry for the cheesy bit at the end. I just figured you people wouldn't want to read more awkward conversations and insults until you and Tom become friends. It'll pick up from here, don't worry. See you when I next update~