Date: Mon, 28 Dec 2009 18:28:06 -0600 From: Mathew Davidson Subject: The Couch, part 10 Should you be reading this? This story contains descriptions of sexual interactions between consenting underage males and if its illegal where you are then, don't do it! If someone says you cant and doesn't have a good reason however, then I quote my favorite author on this site, "Fuck Em" try it, you never know! I do occasionally use derogatory terminology in my work, and I apologize if this causes offense to anyone. It's not meant that way at all. Also sorry for any spelling mistakes, I get a little dyslexic at times.. Alright. We're introducing a new character here, so don't worry, still the same story, but with new people, AND the same people. The Couch: Part 10 Levi awoke to his alarm at 6am. He groggily dragged himself out of bed and crossed his small room in the back of his fathers trailer and stood in front of the mirror. He looked at his reflection and sighed. He was standing in his underwear and the bruises covering most of his body from his last beating were painfully evident. Looking past the bruises, as he had learned to do many years previously, he looked at his seventeen year old body. He was well toned and lightly muscled with tanned bronze skin, his face was his best feature, with his short dirty-blond hair accentuating his visage, which was still slightly layered in baby fat, so his cheeks were rounded and when he smiled his teeth flashed brilliantly white and straight, a legacy of his mother. But Levi never smiled, not since his father had moved them from their home in Paris to this little city in Canada. His dad had said they would be happier here, but Levi didn't believe him. He hadn't been happy since his mother had died in a car accident when he was thirteen, and when his dad started drinking heavily and hitting him, things had gotten a lot worse. Now they had no money and no smiles. He sighed again and got dressed in his best clothes, which were dirty and too small for him, but were still the nicest he owned. He opened his small window and grabbed his new debit card and backpack and crawled out. He caught the bus and took the thirty minute ride to the train station and then sat on the train for another hour before it pulled up in front of the college. He was going here because he liked cooking, and the program was cheap. He had graduated from high school a few months ago and applied for student loans without telling his dad, if he ever found out how much money Levi had in the account to pay his tuition he would drink it away in a month. This was Levi's only chance at getting out and he wasn't going to waste it. Levi walked into the auditorium and sat in the back, practicing his skills at blending in and trying not to stand out. Everyone was well dressed and clean, and he knew he smelt since he hadn't showered that morning to avoid his father. He listened carefully to the program head and then when it came time to be broken into brigades he was called almost last. When his name was called he stood and tried to appear confident as he walked the last few steps to his waiting group, all of whom were looking at him. There was one boy there who was outright staring at him, and Levi grudgingly admitted he was quite cute. He was 5'7" with black hair and dressed in plain but expensive clothes that fit him tightly, but well. Levi had known he was gay or at least bi for a long time, but he had never had a sexual encounter of any sort so it hadn't really hit home for him. As he was on the last step he slipped and started falling forwards. Time seemed to stand still for him and he thought "What a great way to make a first impression" as he started falling towards the floor. He felt strong arms halt his progress to the floor and looked up into the grinning boys face. "Easy there, cant have you going home with a cracked head before class even starts." He stood up and looked up into the boys face. He was two inches taller then Levi and had the most beautiful eyes Levi had ever seen. He stared for a sec then looked down. "Th... thanks." "No probs'. My names Matt, and it looks like we'll be in the same class for a long while. What's your name bud?" "Levi." "Cute name, goes with your cute face." Matt said, smiling. Levi blushed furiously and was about to say something when the chef yelled out "Lunch break guys, be back in room NR112 in one hour!" Matt gestured for Levi to follow him and they started in the direction of the cafeteria. Matt's phone started ringing and he picked it up, Levi heard him say "Yeah we get a break too, I'll meet you in the cafeteria." Levi walked silently along as Matt hung up his phone. Matt looked at him then said "Not really the talkative type are you?" Levi blushed again and said "Sorry, I'm just not used to all these people." Matt looked at him strangely then said "Is that an accent I hear? You from around here?" "No, me and my dad moved here from Paris a few years back, my first language is French." Matt smiled widely and switched to French "I've been in French emersion since kindergarden, so I speak it decently. My accent his probably horrible though." Levi smiled for the first time since Matt met him and responded in French "You speak it excellently, and your accent isn't too bad." They continued on towards the cafeteria speaking in French about nothing, then Matt saw Arthur sitting at a table in the far corner. He gestured Levi to follow him and sat down at the table beside Arthur, Levi sitting across from them. Arthur smiled broadly and said "Already being followed around by boys I see. And attractive ones at that. My names Arthur." Arthur stood and offered his hand, which a blushing Levi took and said "My names Levi." "Arthur be nice, Levi's a little shy. He is originally from Paris, isn't that cool? It's where I've always wanted to move after I graduate." Arthur nodded and said "Cool it is, but I'm starving lets grab some lunch, I'm dying here." Matt and Arthur stood but Levi stayed seated. He opened his bag and took out a paper bag and withdrew from it a sandwich and a sorry looking apple. Matt deducted from all that he knew about Levi that he probably didn't have any money. He walked with Arthur to the cafeteria counter and ordered his food, plus one order of fries and an extra drink. Arthur gave him a knowing look and they walked up to the counter and payed, then walked over to the table where Levi was just starting his sandwich. Matt put the fries and pop down in front of Levi and smiled, then dug into his own food. Levi sat there starring at the food then started eating the fries and took a sip of his pop. "Thanks Matt, you didn't have to do that." Matt just nodded and finished his meal. They split up and Matt and Levi went back to their class with Arthur heading off to his. The rest of day was busy, with the boys having to be fitted for their uniforms and getting their supplies list together. Each culinary student was expected to provide their own knives and other supplies, and Matt watched Levi grimace as all the things to buy were listed off. During their break at around 3pm Matt followed Levi outside and watched as he bummed a cigarette off of another student outside. Levi lit up and they stood outside chatting. Matt wanted desperately to ask about the bruises he had seen all over Levi's chest when they were changing, but figured that now wasn't the time. Matt smelt cigarette smoke and thought about the last he smoked, which was only a few days ago. He only smoked when he was really stressed or was busy at work and needed a break. For some reason every chef in the world would let you go to have a cigarette, but none would accept that you needed a break for no reason other then to take a breath. They went back inside for the remainder of the day and then when it was finally over Matt stopped Levi before he got on the train. Matt jotted his number down on a piece of paper, he found out earlier that Levi didn't have a cell phone, and gave it to him. "If you ever need anything, give me a call alright? Or if you just want to talk, about absolutely anything. I know how you feel better then most I'd wager." Levi gave him a weird look and said "Thanks, I may just do that. I'll see you tomorrow." He walked off to the train and Matt went to his car where Arthur was waiting inside for him. They drove home, talking excitedly about their first day. The rest of the week went by quickly, Matt not learning anything else about Levi despite his constant questions. Levi refused to talk about his home life or about himself almost at all. Friday morning Matt and Arthur were sitting around the table and Matt said "Would you mind if we took two cars today? I'm going to offer to drive Levi home today." Arthur said "Your worried about him aren't you... No I don't mind. Any particular reason today?" "He has bruises, new ones almost every day, and they seem to be getting worse. Either his dad or mom is abusing the shit outa him and I want to know where he lives." Arthur frowned and agreed it was a good idea. The day went by quickly and as Matt was walking with Levi at the end of the day he said "Hey, would you like a ride home today? I cant imagine taking the train is fun." "No, its fine, you don't need to do that." Levi started walking towards the station when he felt Matt's hand on his shoulder. "Levi, I know how you fee-" Levi spun and said "You have no fucking idea how I feel. You and your fancy clothes and your car. Your mommy and daddy are probably paying for you to be here, they probably pay for everything don't they? I have nothing, I work hard and don't have anybody. You have no idea what its like." He turned again and started walking towards the train. The look on Matt's face had been full of hurt and pain and Levi mentally kicked himself for his outburst. "We lived in a one bedroom condo for most of my life. My dad used to drink and hit me, then one day he went to far and put me in a coma. He left and when I woke up me and my mom had to move to an even smaller place. My dad came back one day and nearly killed me and Arthur, he stabbed my mom to death. The police shot him when they arrived but it was too late. The only reason I have nice things is because she saw it coming and had life insurance, and I work forty hours a week. I know how you feel, even if you wont admit it. I just want to help." Levi had stopped when Matt had started talking. He slowly turned and looked Matt in the eye from six feet away. Matt had a determined look on his face and tears in his eyes. Levi had no idea what to say. Without thinking about he croaked "A ride would be nice." Matt smiled and walked up to him. When he was right in front of Levi he wrapped his arms around him and hugged him. They pulled apart and walked wordlessly to Matt's SUV and got in. They drove in silence for awhile, then Matt said "An address would help this along you know." Levi blushed and said "Just head to country row trailer park and I'll direct you from there." Matt opened his mouth to say something but Levi blurted out a question that had been gnawing at him since the first day he met Matt. "Are you gay?" "Yup." "And are you and Arthur... together?" "Yup." Silence followed and Matt looked over at him and said "Is that a problem?" "What? Oh! No not at all I was just wondering." "Arthur is the only reason I made it through my mom being taken. He is my reason for being alive and for being happy. We've been together for almost three years, He's more of a husband then a boyfriend. And what about you? You have a girl somewhere?" "No, to be honest I never have. I find myself often looking at boys and I think I might be gay, but I'm not sure." Matt smiled inwardly, he had been sure that Levi was gay, and now he knew. He could tell Levi was uncomfortable with the conversation though so he changed topics. "Do you work? Or just go to school." "No, I've tried finding a job in a kitchen somewhere but I have no experience so no one will hire me." "Well if you'd like I'm sure I could get you a job at the steakhouse where I work, we need some new people." Levi said that would be awesome, then they arrived at the aforementioned trailer park, He directed Matt towards the back where they stopped in front of a nice looking trailer. "This is me. Thank you Matt, for everything. I'm sorry I yelled at you." "Don't worry about it. Call me if you need anything or just want something to do, I'll see you on Monday if not." Levi leaned over and hugged Matt once more before he got out, then walked up to the trailer and waved until Matt was out of sight. He stepped down off the stairs of the nice trailer and walked a few trailers over to his dads ramshackle hovel. He walked in and saw his dad sitting on the couch with a bottle of wine in one hand. He looked up as Levi entered and spoke in fast paced French. "There you are whelp, we're out of wine and I have no money, I got this letter today and I have a few questions for you." He threw the letter at Levi and Levi saw it was from Alberta education, surely about his loans. It was open and Levi knew he was doomed. "I also called the bank and apparently you have a new bank account you didn't tell me about. And you had almost ten thousand dollars!" Levi went pale at his fathers use of the word `had'. "Papa, what did you do?" "Why I moved the money to my account of course. As your legal guardian it was my right, now get your ass over here so we can talk properly." His dad lumbered to his feet and walked towards Levi. Levi dropped his bag and lifted his arms in defense as the blows started to rain down, he eventually ended up on the floor curled into the fetal position, crying not from pain, but from sadness. He would have been eighteen next week, and his dad wouldn't have been able to take his money, but now, he couldn't afford college, couldn't afford his supplies, and he would never be able to go back. His dads voice brought him back to reality, as he was hit in the face with his backpack. He picked it up feeling that it was heavier then it had been. He saw some clothes sticking out of the top, he must have blacked out for awhile. "Get out of my house. I will not have a dishonest wretch like yourself under my roof! I don't care where you go, go sleep at the school you like so much for all I care." Levi felt tears well up behind his eyes and turned towards the door. He had nowhere to go, and now the only family he had was disowning him. He limped out the door and down the stairs, into the cold winter night. What should he do, he thought. He felt in his pocket and found a bit of paper. Curious he pulled it out, wincing as he moved his right arm. It was Matt's number. Levi walked over to the trailer next to his and knocked on the door. A woman in a housecoat answered and Levi said in his most polite voice "May I use your phone, please." The woman looked at him skeptically then handed him the phone hanging on the wall, not moving aside so he could come in. She wasn't letting some beat up teenager into her home. Levi dialed the number and waited as it rang, and rang, and rang. It went to voicemail and Levi felt his spirits hit rock bottom. He left a message and hung up, thanking the woman and limping away. He sat down on the road and started quietly sobbing into his hands. What would he do? ------------------------- Matt heard his phone ring from across the room, it was still in his pants pocket, and said pants had been tossed far away by Arthur. He started to move towards it but Arthur grabbed him by the waist and pulled him back into the bed. "Ignore it!" Arthur said, before lightly biting Matt's earlobe. Matt kissed the top of Arthur's head and then sat on Arthur's chest. He leaned down and kissed Arthur's lips. "In some kind of rush? Let me just go see who it was." Arthur rolled his eyes and let his head flop onto their pillow, releasing Matt from his hold. Matt jumped naked off the bed smiling and picked up his phone just as it beeped to let him know he had a voicemail. He didn't recognize the number but decided to listen to the message. He held it to his ear and Arthur saw his face turn into a frown then a fearful look plaster itself where moments before there had been only smiles. Matt looked at Arthur and grabbed his pants and quickly put them on, then started looking for his shirt. "What is it? Matt what's going on?" Matt didn't answer but threw his phone to Arthur. As Matt finished getting dressed Arthur listened to the message. "Hey Matt its Levi, I um... My dad kicked me out and I was just wondering if you could, uh, pick me up and maybe drive me downtown to the shelter or the hospital. I... I shouldn't have called, I'm sorry, don't worry about it. It was good getting to know you, I probably wont be at school on Monday so au-revoir mon ami." Matt saw Arthur put the phone down and said "I wont be able to find him if he gets on a bus somewhere so I'm going there now, I'll be back in a few minutes." Arthur nodded and threw Matt's phone to him as Matt ran out their bedroom door. Seconds later Arthur heard the car start, then roar out of the driveway. He silently prayed Matt didn't kill himself getting there, and Arthur got up and put on some pants and then went down to the spare bedroom and made sure everything was in order, he was sure, or rather he hoped, that they would have a guest that night. ----------------------------- Levi let his tears play out, then stood and walked towards the bus stop, his small bag slung over his shoulder. He would go downtown and head to the homeless shelter, where he hoped there was some room. He didn't have any money for the bus however and his dad had stolen his wallet with his student ID which served as a pass. He was just about to ask a well dressed man at the stop for one of his tickets when a black SUV screamed to a stop behind the parked bus. Matt jumped out of the drivers side and ran up to Levi. Levi turned from the man and said with an awed tone of voice "You came..." "That's what friends are for. Now get in the car, its freezing out here and your face is turning blue." Matt took Levis bag and threw it in the back as Levi got into the passenger seat. Matt could see that he was shivering, and wasn't surprised since he didn't have a real winter jacket on. Matt cranked the heat on and Levi gave him a grateful nod. "If you can just drive me to shelter downtown, that would be great." Matt looked at him with one eyebrow raised and said "I don't think so, you're staying with me and Arthur tonight, we'll figure the rest out in the morning." Levi started to argue but Matt just ignored him and pulled his phone out. "Arty, I got him, we're on our way back, could you get the guest bed... You already did? Awesome, I knew there was a reason I kept you around. Love you, see you in a bit." Levi smiled and watched the lights flash by as they drove to Matt's house. A thought struck him and he said "Are you sure your parents wont mind?" Matt laughed and said "O I thought I mentioned that. Me and Arthur live alone. I bought a house with the money my mom left me and its just me and Arty that live there now." "Wow, that's cool. Must be nice." "So you said your dad kicked you out? Like for good?" "Yeah, after he beat... yeah, I cant go back there." "When are you eighteen?" "Next week." "Perfect." Matt went silent and they pulled up in front of a big red house a few minutes later. Levi got out and winced as his feet touched ground. His legs hurt terribly and his arm felt like it was on fire. He started walking towards the door but felt his legs give out, and he started to fall, only to be caught by Matt. "Second time this week, lets not make this a habit." Matt grinned and instead of helping him to his feet, Matt scooped Levi into his arms and carried him into the house. When they were in the doorway Matt called out Arthur's name. Arthur came bounding down the stairs and stopped in front of Matt and Levi. "Everything all right?" "Yeah I'm-" Levi started to respond but was interrupted by Matt. "He can barley walk and something is up with his right arm. Can you carry him upstairs?" Arthur picked Levi up as if he were a toddler and carried him to the guest bedroom, where the lights were on and the covers pulled back off the bed. Arthur laid Levi down softly. "Levi, I'm going to school to be a paramedic and I've done more then a few emergency medical courses, can I take some of your clothes off and check to make sure your ok?" Levi didn't answer and looked at Matt, who nodded slightly. "Alright." Arthur gently undressed Levi down to his underwear, then softly ran his hands all over Levi's body, applying pressure in certain places and asking for feedback. When he was done Arthur covered Levi with the blanket and left the room, telling Matt to join him in the kitchen shortly. Matt went and knelt next to the bed and looked into Levi's eyes. "Go to sleep and we'll talk in the morning alright? My room is right up those stairs if you need anything." "Thank you." Matt smiled at him and left the room, extinguishing the light as he left. He walked down to the kitchen and saw Arthur sitting on the couch. Before he could get up Matt walked over and sat on his lap, wrapping his arms around Arthur's midsection in their favorite cuddle position. "How bad is he hurt?" "He's just bruised for the most part, I couldn't find anything serious. But I'm no doctor Matt, and I still think he should go for a checkup tomorrow." "We'll see." Matt gripped Arthur tightly and lay his head on Arthur's shoulder. Arthur smiled and kissed the top of Matt's head. "He's staying here isn't he." Matt sighed and responded "I don't know. He has no direction Arthur, we cant just send him away." Arthur stayed silent, knowing that Matt was really just thinking out loud. "And we cant just let him live for free. Aside from costing us too much, that's a horrible habit to build now, mooching I mean. I'll talk to him tomorrow and we'll go from there." They sat together on the couch for awhile more then went to bed. The next day dawned brightly, and Matt got out of bed and had a shower. Matt hated sleeping in, but Arthur was like a sloth come weekend mornings. Matt didn't mind, as this gave him some alone time to catch up on reading. Matt emerged from the shower and got dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, forgoing socks, underwear, and style. He walked out of their room and down the short flight of stairs to the floor that Levi was on. He walked up to the door and heard movement from within, so he knocked. "Come in." Matt walked in and saw Levi sitting on the bed shirtless, but with his pants on. Matt took a moment to appreciate the view. Aside from the bruises, Levi had a very nice body. He had almost no hair at all, and had well defined musculature. Levi looked up at Matt and smiled. "How ya feeling today bud?" Matt asked as he took a seat at the small desk in the room. "Much better, if a little sore. Thank you again for saving me last night, I don't know what I would have done." "Don't worry about it. We do have to talk though, about whats going to happen with this." Levi's face fell and he looked sullen. "I'll leave if you want, I don't want to impose upon your generosity." "You misunderstand, I don't want you to leave." Levi looked up at this and Matt smiled. "But neither can we just have you here. Food is expensive, and so are bills and such. If I can get you that job, would you be willing to pay a four hundred dollar a month rent?" Levi beamed and nodded yes he would. But his smile was replaced by a sad look and he said "My dad stole all my student loan money. I can't afford school now but I'll still have to pay them back." "That's not right on the last bit. You were under eighteen when you took out the loan which means it defaults to your dad. If you call them Monday then you can explain the situation and the debt will be transferred to your father." Levi looked up, wide eyed. "Really? Wow, that would be awesome. But I still cant afford school..." Matt stared at Levi hard. He still had over four hundred thousand dollars worth of insurance money. He looked long and hard at the beaten up boy sitting on the bed in his house. "I'll tell you what. If you work the same amount I do, your paycheque will be about 650, that's thirteen hundred a month. If you give me one thousand dollars in rent, you don't need to worry about food, and that leaves you some pocket money, I'll pay tuition and buy your supplies." Levi was stunned. He had only known Matt for a week, and Matt was offering something amazing that he had never thought he would have in his life. A job, money, an education, and happiness. Levi leapt to his feet and rushed over and hugged Matt. When he pulled back he had tears in his eyes. He wiped them away and said "It's a deal." Matt smiled and said "Alright then. Today we go shopping. We both have to buy knives and you need some new clothes. I work tonight so I'll bring you with me and we'll see about that job. Go have a shower and get dressed and we'll head out." Levi did as asked, and Matt left Arthur a short note explaining that he would be back later and would explain everything then. First they went to the mall and Matt bought Levi a new wardrobe, explaining that this would be his birthday present. While Levi was trying things on Matt texted Arthur and asked him to go out and pick some stuff up to surprise Levi when they got home. Once Levi had new clothes they went and drove downtown to a little store called KnifeWear, that specialized in Japanese kitchen knives. Matt bought a set for himself then helped Levi pick his out. Levi kept looking at the price tags and Matt told him to stop. He explained that they would use these knives for the rest of their careers hopefully and that they needed quality. They spent over five thousand dollars between them and as they got into the car Matt grinned and said "Let's not tell Arthur about how much this cost, he would shit bricks." Levi laughed and smiled back. They drove to the house and got out, Matt helped Levi carry all the bags inside. When they finished they walked into the kitchen and Arthur was sitting at the table with a white box and a laptop. "Hey squirt, I heard it's your birthday soon. I got you some presents!" He handed Levi an iPhone and gestured towards the laptop. "The phones new but the laptop is the old one I left at my parents house, you can have it. It's still pretty new and works fine. Has all my music on it so see if you like it." Levi looked at his phone and the laptop. He had never owned a computer or cell phone and was ecstatic. He hugged Arthur fiercely then let him go and sat down at the table and started playing with the laptop. Matt walked up and slipped his hand round Arthur's waist. Arthur put his arm on Matt's shoulders and leaned down and they shared a long kiss. When they came apart Levi was looking at them. "You know Arty, we'll have to find a nice boy for him now." Matt said, grinning. "Well he's attractive enough, I'm sure we can find someone. Maybe find another lost puppy and bring it home." Arthur grinned back and they looked at Levi, who rolled his eyes. "Et vous deux devrait trouver un salle." Levi grabbed his laptop and walked upstairs smiling broadly. Arthur looked at Matt and said "What did he just say?" Matt grabbed Arthur and pushed him onto the counter, kissing him hard. "He said `Get a room'." ----------------------------------- Levi left Arthur and Matt alone, letting them have their fun. In reality he wanted nothing more then to find a boy, the fact that he was still a virgin at eighteen bothered him sometimes. But not today, he was far too happy today. He walked into his room and finished putting away his clothes, then set the computer on the desk and let his new phone charge. He threw all his old clothes in the garbage, they smelt and none of them fit him well. He sat on the bed... his bed, and thought about how kind they had been to him. He vowed he would find a way to repay them someday. An hour or so later, Matt walked upstairs buttoning up his pants. He grinned as Levi looked out the open door and rolled his eyes. "Sorry, we were interrupted last night by a phone call." Levi brushed at the mention of his plight the night before. Matt came and sat on the bed beside him and put his arm around Levi's waist. He felt the smaller boy tense up and chuckled softly. "Have you ever been with boy? Or a girl?" Levi's deep blush as he turned away was all the answer Matt needed. He put a hand on Levi's thigh and said "It's alright, no one here will think less of you for it. If you want I can set you up on a date or two, boy or girl. Your hot, and I don't say that often, so I think you would have no problems, especially if you layer on that sexy accent. If you have any questions at all, ask me anything. Now grab your coat, we need to head to work." Matt stood and went downstairs again, Levi following close behind. They said goodbye to Arthur, and Levi's heart skipped a beat when he saw that Arthur was just pulling his briefs on, and was totally naked aside from it. If Arthur noticed he didn't say anything, just smiled and waved goodbye. The got into Matt's car and drove the short distance to the restaurant. Matt parked out back and went in through the door, Levi following close behind. They entered a small hallway with only one door on either side. They entered the first and they were in a small office, where an older man was typing away at an ancient computer. Without looking up he said in a gruff tone "Why are you bringing strangers into the back Matt?" Matt sighed and said "It's good to see you too Joe. This is Levi, soon to be your new Mis en Place cook." "Usual rates apply. Well get him a uniform and get the fuck out of my office, I'm busy." Matt grinned and ushered Levi out of the door, closing it behind him. Levi looked puzzled and Matt laughed. "What the hell just happened?" "Your hired, you make seventeen an hour and you'll be in the schedule by the end of the night. Come with me and we'll get you a costume and introduce you to the staff." Levi followed Matt around the corner of the hallway and into a small laundry room. Matt handed him a pair of pants and a chef's jacket. Matt undressed and opened a locker in the back of the room, taking out a uniform identical to Levi's except his jacket had a gold stripe down the arms and across his shoulders. They dressed and Matt stowed their clothes in his locker, then led Levi into the kitchen. It was a massive operation and Matt hollered loudly "Hey! Pause for a second. This is Levi, he's our new prep bitch, be nice, its his first time in a kitchen." Everyone waved then went back to work. Matt led Levi to the quieter corner of the kitchen, Levi noted that everyone moved aside as Matt walked by, and Matt said "This is your station, if you work morning shifts you'll do most of the prep that we use in the evenings. If you work night shifts like you will most of the time, you'll help me out. With anything and everything" Levi stood wide eyed and nodded. He looked around and saw that most of the kitchen staff were younger, almost no one looked to be over 30. He also saw that all but a few had colored stripes down their jackets, most had a black stripe, a few had blue and only two had red. No one else in the kitchen had a gold tripe like Matt's. Tentatively, he looked at Matt and said "What exactly is your position?" Matt grinned and said "I am head-sous chef. Which means that whenever Joe is playing accountant and not in the kitchen, which is often, I'm in charge. Now Levi, know this. We may be best bud's outside those doors, but in my kitchen I do not tolerate anything but the best. I've seen you at school and you seem competent, but screw up in here and I WILL chew you out. Got it?" Levi nodded and Matt waved one of the guys wearing a black stripped jacket over. He looked to be about Levi's age, if a little younger. He was about 5'8 and had black hair and grey eyes. Levi thought he was quite cute, and when he looked at Matt, he saw a grin on Matt's face. "Rye, can you show Levi here the ropes?" "Sure thing boss." Matt patted Levi on the shoulder and winked, still grinning and walked around the kitchen to his station. Levi looked at Rye and said "Hey.." The boy smiled and said "The names actually Riley, but everyone calls me Rye. I just started a few months ago and I'm prep too. Here let me show you where to start." Riley leaned down and pointed to the bins all along the shelf under Levi's station. "These are the prep bins, they each have a type of vegetable we use lots off. Looks like we're low on onions, why don't you slice some up and throw them in there, I'll help ya." Riley showed Levi where all the things were stored in the kitchen and then grabbed a bag of onions and set them on the big board. They started slicing and talking. Riley had moved to Calgary with his mom a few months before, and he had just turned seventeen. He was still in high school and had left his boyfriend behind when they moved. "It wasn't a super serious relationship, but it was still sad to leave him." Levi just nodded and didn't say anything at all. They talked about the restaurant and Levi learned that Matt was a great person to work under unless you screwed up for no reason. He would let mistakes slide the first time, but if you did the same thing again he would start screaming. Riley was apparently his understudy in the kitchen and Matt's favorite employee. "Well, he will probably like you more now, You live with him after all. And that drop dead gorgeous boyfriend of his." "So everyone here knows he's gay? And they're all ok with it?" "I wasn't here to see it, but apparently when Matt started he was openly gay, and he moved up pretty fast. Eventually all the people who mocked him and people like us just kind of...went away. All the people who work here are either gay themselves or don't give a damn if you are. What about you?" Levi thought about it, his instinct was to lie and say he was straight, as he had done all his life. But things had changed, and he had a whole new life now. He thickened his French accent a little and smiled widely at Riley and said "Moi? If everyone who teaches me is as cute as you, I think I will be here for a long time." Riley blushed and was about to say something when someone called him from across the kitchen. "The rush is starting, I have to get back to my place on line. Let me know if you have any questions." He turned and walked away, and Levi felt slightly disheartened then he looked down and saw a business card with a phone number written on the back sitting where Riley had been standing moments before. He grinned and tucked the card into his pocket. He could get used to this. He smiled and went back to work, and Matt also smiled from where he had watched the exchange from across the kitchen. He was glad Rye had understood when he gave him the card with Riley's own number written on it, and glad that Levi had taken his advice. He watched Levi work for awhile longer then saw one of his grill cooks take a burnt steak off and try to throw it away before he noticed. His voice cut through the air like a knife and the employee in question stood rigidly as Matt yelled. Eventually Matt moved on. Yes, life was good. Nothing like a day off to spend sitting on my couch writing. Hope yall have enjoyed this chapter, it was fun to write. Not too many fun scenes, I promise I'll make up for it next go-round. Email me at matt-k-d@hotmail.com and let me know what you think, the emails make my days!