My Mania Ended The World Peace. ★

⋆ 2 ⋆

            Adrian strolled inside, the door clicking shut behind him. Some of the customers were glancing over at him, no doubt wondering wether he was a bully or a friend to that poor waiter. And honestly, when it really came down to it he could be both, but if this was considered bullying it was mostly unintentional.

            'Sorry about that,' Adrian said as he approached him but didn't exactly get closer.

            Hyde Blum was dashing away, walking right through those swinging doors over at the counter, which rattled long after he left them behind. This didn't seem too concerning. After all, he could be really prissy about the smallest things.

            One time, for example, he was freaking out about a tiny gummy spider Adrian got from a dentist visit and decided he'd into sneak into Hyde's pocket. He never saw that one again after it was thrown in a furry over the Brooklyn Bridge, and Hyde almost sent Adrian after it when he grappled him and started pulling him towards the railing. Good thing Adrian was slightly stronger than him so that never ended up happening.

            With a delay, Adrian added, 'And the other sorry, too.' as he slid into one of the high stools rowing around the counter.

            The counter stood out into the restaurant almost like an animal enclosure; it was big and clobby in comparison to the modern-looking rest of the shop, was made of fat brick walls, gleaming with a varnished surface, and low enough to serve as a roundabout table.

            That made Hyde look over his shoulder, a strange gloss over his eyes, as if he wasn't familiar with Adrian. 'Make sense, son.' He said curtly. 'I'm already wasting enough time doing this job. Don't you be an extra shift.'

            He grabbed a sponge, dampened it then rubbed with brisk aggressive strokes over his apron, mumbling quietly to go along with it.

            'Your mum never taught you not to disrupt people who're unenthusiastic enough about their work already? I don't even give a shit about this job! Or the pay! Or this apron even—screw—it—!'

            The sponge went sailing then landed with a thump on the wall, and lastly in the steel skin. Hyde crossed his arms in front of his chest like some little kid in the middle of a tantrum. Hyde was having these quite frequently for a grown-ass seventeen year old, and to make this sound a little worse his birthday was approaching. July the eighteenth, that one was going to be his special one because he was turning eighteen then, on July the eighteenth.

            Adrian just stared for a while before he blinked himself back to action, words falling back on his tongue and out. 'Relax.' He said. 'I just came by to say Hey, and that I'm Sorry for yesterday. Y'know the deal...I hope your dad's not too pissed. I didn't mean any of it.' He shrugged.

            He didn't even believe Hyde's dad could be any more pissed than Hyde himself was, but letting a homophobic slur slip out of your mouth in front of not only one, but two gay dads, after they were so nice to hand you a cigarette wasn't in his best interest either. It always felt shitty being rude to a friend's parent, nevertheless, even if one of them is shitty to begin with.

            Hyde rolled his eyes. 'I call him a fag all the time if I'm not calling him Dale, who cares?'

            'Jeremy Blum and Dale do!' Adrian said lamely.

            Hyde smiled absentmindedly and snorted. It was a reference towards the name of the shop which was named after their owners Jeremy Blum and Dale Blum, so of course he was snorting.

            Hyde loved silly references; silly hillbilly everything.

            He slouched over to Adrian to lean against the counter, then hoisted himself up. Behind them a lady with a nest of bright reddish hair and matched lipstick was silently giving him shit for it, but said nothing and enjoyed her cheesecake—Probably with a spoiled appetite. Adrian knew that from his own mother, if you even just do something slightly out of order her nerves were on edge for the rest of the day.