DON'T BREAK THE RULES

Chapter 7 - New Phone

Joe was avoiding Jamie's gaze, staring directly at the counter as Jamie wandered across the kitchen after volunteering to cook a meal. It was him who had awakened first but had waited for Joe to wake before standing to his feet and entering the appartement. Before Joe was allowed in the kitchen, Jamie shoved him towards the showers since the smell of booze mixed with sweat followed his every move. After he was done, he joined Jamie in the kitchen, who rapidly set a glass of water in front of him and sternly said, "Drink."

They had yet to speak on what had happened between them. Although Jamie did not seem angry, his movements were stiff, as if he was debating whether he should be helping Joe or not. As he turned the omelette to cook the other side, noticing the steam rise as the sizzling continued, he scratched the side of his neck. He knew he needed to say something since his words were what drove Joe to leave.

Hence why, after contemplating in his mind, he bit his bottom lip and murmured, "I said some wrongs things." His breath had been low and barely above a whisper.

Unsurprisingly, Joe hadn't heard a thing, raising an eyebrow as he thought Jamie had hummed under his breath. "Are you talking to me?"

"Of course I am," he spoke louder, waving his spatula before pushing the omelette onto a plate. "There's no one else here, is there?"

Joe sent a few fingers through his hair. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

The attitude was more so to deflect needing to admit his wrongs, stalling for a few seconds. Then, as he turned and handed Joe the plate, he mumbled again, "I may have said some wrong things the other night."

Instantly, he turned away to throw the slices of bacon on the pan, needing to avoid Joe's stares; he felt at a strange discomfort as he was never one to apologize and it worsened when Joe failed to respond in the seconds that followed. It made him start to sweat and when a minute passed, he couldn't wait anymore."Say something."

"Um," Joe bit his bottom lip, staring at the counter instead of Jamie's back. "I-I don't think...look, you've helped me a lot and I should just be grateful."

Jamie did not respond, instead focused on the slices of bacon, eventually pushing them onto a plate and shutting the burner. As he settled the plate on the center of the table, he cut himself a slice of the omelette, grabbed a few pieces of bacon before sitting across from him.

It was only when they began eating, that Jamie glanced upwards to him and murmured, "I'm glad you came back..." He noticed how Joe's eyebrows raised and rapidly added, "...because I need someone reliable to help around here." That made Joe snickered, to which Jamie snapped, "I'm being serious."

"I know, I know," Joe smiled, "Master Jamie."

A sharp inhale was heard and Jamie rapidly lowered his eyes, focusing on the meal in hopes to prevent himself from getting flustered. Once he finished, he shoved his plate towards Joe and stood to his feet. "I have class; make sure it's all spotless by the time I get back."

Joe nodded his head. "Understood."

"I don't have work tonight either—we could go to the bar tonight if you want? I get a few free drinks as employee discount if we do go." When he noticed Joe's eyes suddenly seem to sparkle, he chuckled and walked towards the bedrooms. "I guess that's a yes."

There was never a day Joe would ever say no to free drinks. Which was part of why the moment Jamie left the appartement, he cleaned everything from top-to-bottom twice. He made sure all the stainless surfaces were even more spotless than they already were and even after being done after five hours, he did the same routine once again. To the point that the moment he finished his work and wanted to rest until they had to leave, Jamie returned.

Rule #6: Greet me whenever I come home.

"Master Jamie." Joe tiredly stood from the couch and headed for the door, to which he found a yawning Jamie loosening his laces before pushing his shoes to the side. "Welcome back," a long smile lifted his lips.

That made Jamie finally set his eyes on him. "You look exhausted."

"I am," he sighed, noticing that Jamie's eyes twinkle when he glanced over Joe's shoulders, noticing that the light shimmered all his furniture.

He had never seen a smile that brightly on Jamie's face as he wandered across the appartement. "I've never seen my home this clean before." To Joe, it was the same as always, but the way Jamie swiped his finger along the surface of the counter and beamed, his eyes widening as he did the same to the inside of the microwave, the door cabinets, the plates. "It's never felt like this before."

Joe rested his head against the wall, observing in delight how Jamie seemed to float as he stepped towards the living room and gasped at the shine from the television.

After a few minutes, he noticed Jamie's ears perk before he faced Joe. "I almost forgot—I wanted to show you something." Jamie sprinted for his bag, returning with a small plastic bag with a box inside.

Joe frowned, uncertain why Jamie's movements suddenly became stiff and awkward as he handed Joe the bag, until he peered inside and realized what it was.

"It's the latest model," he gasped.

Jamie nodded his head. "It'll be easier for the both of us."

It was a cellphone.

However, a sudden guilt washed over Joe as he reached inside the bag, retrieving the box with the new design of the television that had recently been released. This on its own cost one grand, and that the phone itself, not taking in consideration the plan with it. The ends of his eyelids wrinkled as he glanced towards Jamie, seeing the long grin across his face; he was practically bouncing of joy. "I could have bought it with the money you give me—"

"It comes out to the same thing then, doesn't it?" Jamie patted his shoulder and grew too eager that he yanked the box from Joe's palm and started ripping it apart himself. "This way we can call each other and see where we're at."

Joe stayed quiet, watching Jamie's slender fingers as he finally reached the device, the shining metal causing his lips to widen. "I don't even have the latest model Joe; this is beautiful." He was still reluctant to accept this gift but still extended his palm as Jamie handed it to him. "I might have to go get one myself."

When Joe turned it on, he did feel a bit of relief that he could now communicate with people. The last time he had a phone was before his divorce with Connor. Not because he didn't want a phone, but because all of Connor's pictures were there and instead of deleting them on, he decided to stop using his phone. It didn't get better when he lost his job at Morning's and instead sold his phone for a couple bucks one night while he was desperate for a few cans of booze.

"Thank goodness," he finally admitted, a genuine smile stretching his lips. He was reviewing the applications already downloaded as he said, "I haven't been able to call anyone in months. Now I can call my friends and ask them what time they're going to the bar and stuff—"

"Wait what?"

Joe glanced towards Jamie and he couldn't stop himself from taking a second look to eventually settle his eyes on him. Jamie's content had completely faded, replaced by a sudden glare that Joe felt his skin crawl.

His lips opened for a second but nothing came out, searching for the best words to repeat what he had said. With caution, he said slowly, "I can..." Jamie's eyes instantly narrowed even further, "...call my friends and ask them—"

"So you didn't read the set of rules, did you?"

The atmosphere had changed completely and Jamie's jaw was pulsing from clenched to unlocked. Before Joe could even respond, he muffled a curse word under his breath and stormed towards the fridge, reached at the top and retrieved the binder that had all the set of rules for Joe.

He slammed the binder on the counter and began rummaging through the pages, growling under his breath, "I told you to read all the rules on the first day. Why didn't you listen?"

He finally landed his finger on a sentence and leaned backwards, turning towards Joe.

Rule #47: If you have a phone, the only contact you can have is mine.