The only positive thing about sitting through a double shift at work was the extra cash.
Another day, another dollar.
Bailey sighed as he closed the notebook in disgust. He looked across the lunchroom table to Richard. “Do you ever wish you were doing something different?” Bailey asked.
Richard looked up from his magazine. “Different how?”
“I don’t know. A new job? A different career? Living somewhere else? Just doing things differently.”
“I suppose so.” Richard shrugged. “Most people have goals, things they’d like to do in the future. Me? I’m putting as much money aside as I can to do some travel. I want to take the big world trip, you know? And I’m studying computer programming.”
“You are?”
“It’s only an online course. This job fits in well. I have time to study and it pays the bills until I’m ready to head off. It doesn’t hurt I’m living back at home.”
“So working here is a stopgap?”
“Sort of.” Richard put the magazine back on the table. “What’s going on, Bailey?”
“Nothing,” Bailey said. Richard folded his arms and stared at Bailey, unblinking, until Bailey gave in and started talking again. “I’m just feeling a bit lost at the moment, I guess. As if I should be trying for something more.”
“There’s no should about it, no rule book you need to follow. Not everyone has or needs a plan.”
“But I’m twenty-three and only working part-time at a job I hate. I’m not like you. I’m not working towards something better.”
“Look, there’s nothing wrong with working a call centre job. Some people do it all their lives. Like Ryan. He loves the industry. What is wrong is doing something you don’t enjoy. Being a call centre agent is only not good enough if it isn’t something you want to do.”
“I know.” Bailey slumped in his chair and sighed. “I don’t mean to put down the people who do the job. It’s just not for me.”
“What is for you then?” Richard asked.
“I don’t know. That’s the problem.” But he did know, didn’t he? Tom had put those thoughts in his head about teaching, or helping people, or any one of the things he could be doing instead of what he was doing now.
“Well, only you can answer that one, Bailey.”
Any further discussion was cut short when Monica popped her head into the room. “Guys. The meeting starts in two minutes.”
Bailey looked at the time on his iPhone. Yep, he’d managed to spend nearly all his lunch hour working on his budget and whinging to Richard and he was no closer to any answers—budget-wise or career-wise. He pushed back his chair, pocketed his phone, and picked up the remains of his lunch, depositing the garbage in the bin on the way out of the break room.
The meeting area was packed. The bifold doors between adjoining rooms had been opened to increase the space and fit the entire customer service department into the room.
“Jesus. They’ve got us all here. It must be important,” Richard whispered.
Bailey nodded as his stomach fell. “Definitely not good.”
The low murmur throughout the room died down as the Customer Service and HR directors entered and stood to the front.
“Wow. They’ve brought in the big guns,” Richard said in a low voice.
The sick feeling in Bailey’s stomach intensified. He swallowed heavily. Whatever the announcement was, it was serious. “Fuck.”
“Shh.” The guy next to Bailey have him the evil eye.
“Everyone, if I could have your attention please.” The last of the mumblings died down as the people in the room focused on the Customer Service director.
The tension in the room was palpable. There were rarely occasions to bring the whole department together, and usually if there was, there was some sort of advance notification. The last such meeting that Bailey could remember was the communication of the company’s annual results, which had been combined with an announcement of the merger with another electricity provider. It was a celebration of the expansion of the company, followed by drinks. Bailey didn’t think there’d be much celebration this afternoon.
“Thanks for joining me here today. You’re probably all wondering the purpose of the briefing and I’m not going to keep you in suspense. Unfortunately, the news I have to impart…”
And with those few words, the bottom fell out of Bailey’s world.
* * *
Bailey couldn’t believe that he and the other part-timers had been given their notice.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
He pulled his coat collar higher as he walked purposely down the city street. With his head down he focused on his feet and ignored those around him. His thoughts swirled and he dug his hands into his pockets. Losing his job had been the last thing on his mind when he’d started his shift that day. Given there’d been no announcements at the end of the financial year, he’d figured his job was safe. He’d been stressed to the max about finding the right direction in life, but now not having a job too…. What the hell was he going to do? How would he pay his bills without a source of income? His finances were already shot to hell. He’d be forced into taking the first shitty job he could find and not being able to focus on moving in a new direction. At least they’d been given two months’ notice of the intention to outsource more of the company business to the offshore location.
He skirted around a group of people standing on the footpath, ducking and weaving, determined to get to Tom as soon as possible. He wanted to talk to him, needed to talk to him. Not only did Bailey need a sounding board, he needed to hear that everything would be all right. It wasn’t until he’d pushed open the door to Take Two that he finally felt able to take a proper breath, and as soon as he saw Tom, it was as if the weight on his shoulders had been lifted.
Bailey shrugged out of his coat as he headed towards the counter where Tom was deep in conversation with someone seated on a stool. It wasn’t until Bailey got closer that Tom looked up.
“Can I….” Bailey could tell the moment Tom realised he wasn’t another customer. His smile grew wide. “Bailey. Hi. I wasn’t expecting you. Did your shift end early?”
Tom looked so happy to see him that Bailey didn’t want to get straight into it. “Yeah. Got an early mark.” Too bad the early mark is so we can get our heads around the bad news.
“Well I’m glad you chose to spend it here.” Tom leaned across the counter. Bailey met him halfway with a light kiss. Not nearly enough, but it would have to do. Tom’s eyes twinkled as they moved apart, the glance holding a promise for later. “Come pull up a pew. Phil was just telling me about a new contract.”
It was only then Bailey noticed that the customer sitting at the bar was Tom’s friend Phil.
“Hey, good to see you.” Phil stood and held out his hand.
Bailey shook. “It’s nice to see you again too.”
Bailey sat on a stool next to Phil, putting his coat on the vacant seat next to him. Tom moved to the coffee machine and started performing his magic, the aroma of ground coffee beans rich in the air. It was warm inside, and the gentle tones of acoustic covers over the speaker system mingled with the sound of muted conversation and the soft noise of the cafe. Bailey glanced around the room, satisfied to see it still held a number of customers despite nearing closing time. He spotted Cassie clearing tables across the room and gave her a wave. Tom’s business seemed to be picking up more and more each day. It was no wonder he was now in a position to need more help.
“You’ve just finished work, have you?” Phil’s question drew his attention back to the man next to him.
“Uh-huh. I… ah… let’s just say it’s been a tough day.”
“You need this then.” Tom slid the mug in front of Bailey.
“Thanks.” He sipped the coffee, Tom never taking his gaze from Bailey as he watched him drink. The warmth of the drink, matched by the warmth in Tom’s rich brown eyes, went a long way to soothing the anxiety that had been eating away at Bailey since the announcement at work. He wanted to spill everything that had happened that afternoon and couldn’t wait for Tom to close up for the day so they could escape upstairs together. But in the meantime, he enjoyed the warm, secure feeling of being in Tom’s presence.
“So tell me more about the contract, mate,” Tom said to Phil.
“They’re doing some development around at the old wharves. They’re turning a couple of the old finger wharves into apartment complexes. We got the contracts for all the kitchens.”
“That’s amazing.” Tom’s voice was full of excitement.
“Yeah.” Phil chuckled. “Definitely earned some brownie points with the old man.”
Tom looked to Bailey. “Phil works in his family’s company.”
Bailey smiled at Tom, grateful for him providing some background. “I think I remember hearing something about that, but it’s hard to remember all the details.” He turned to Phil. “Congratulations. It sounds like a great opportunity.”
“Yeah. It’s pretty huge. Luckily we’ve got the room for expansion at the factory but we’ll need to bring on some more cabinet makers. I’ll probably be doing more of the overall design and coordination and less of the actual manufacturing myself.” He chuckled. “I might have to ask Elliot for some pointers.”
“Between the two of you, you’ll be taking over the property development world in no time,” Tom said. His tone was teasing but Bailey had no doubt Phil and Elliot would be making a mark in the world, based on what he’d heard so far about the two of them.
Phil provided more details about the contract and the plans for expanding the family business, further cementing Bailey’s opinion of what a great opportunity it was. Phil was animated, hands moving in the air as he articulated his ideas for the design. His passion was obvious in the way he described not only the materials to be used, but the ambiance he wanted to create with the look and feel, maximising the harbourside location and impressive water views.
“So it’s a really prestigious job?” Tom asked.
“Sure is. The tender competition was fierce, so it’s bloody awesome to win.”
“I’m so proud of you, mate.”
Bailey listened with a heavy feeling developing in his stomach. Tom was obviously impressed by his friend and his achievement, and deservedly so. Bailey acknowledged that Phil deserved recognition, and he wanted to be just as happy for Phil but jealousy wound its way through him instead. Why did some people have all the luck? It wasn’t as if Bailey didn’t work hard—sure, he might not have a passion for the call centre but he’d done his job well when he was there. I didn’t deserve to lose my job. And now he had absolutely no desire to talk through his situation with Tom. How can I tell him what a failure I am? I want to see that look of pride on his face, not pity.
“Bailey? Are you okay?”
Bailey looked up at Tom’s concerned words. No, I’m fucking not. He bit back the retort and forced a smile he didn’t feel. “Sure. Sorry, didn’t mean to wander off, I just have a few things on my mind.”
“And I’m boring you with all this business talk.” Phil pushed back from his stool, but he chuckled so Bailey knew he didn’t have any hard feelings. “I’ve got to get going anyway. I’ll leave you guys to it. It was nice to see you, Bailey, but I’m sure you’ve got plans for using your free afternoon that don’t include me.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to—”
“No need to be sorry. Like I said, I need to head off. I’ve got a ton of things to do,” Phil said.
“No rest for the wicked, huh?” Tom said. “Once again, congrats, mate. I really think it’s awesome. We’ll get together soon for a proper celebration.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
Phil gathered his stuff from the counter, shoving his phone into his pocket before donning his coat and taking his leave.
“It’s not long until closing time,” Tom said, picking up Phil’s mug and placing it in the rack with the dirty crockery. “Are you going to stick around? Maybe we can get some takeaway and watch a movie, or we can go out if you want.”
“Takeaway sounds brilliant,” Bailey answered. A quiet night curled up with Tom on the couch upstairs sounded like the perfect balm for his troubled soul.
An hour and a half later, cafe closed and clean up complete, Tom and Bailey were ensconced on the couch. The huge bowls of laksa—hot and spicy comfort food—were empty on the table. With his belly full and Tom by his side, everything felt good. His problems didn’t seem nearly so insurmountable.
He’d find a job and then he’d tell Tom about it. Or maybe he’d talk to Tom about it another day. Just not tonight. Tonight he was happy. He just wished he could stay in this little bubble forever.
“Is everything okay, Bails? You don’t seem your usual self,” Tom asked gently, his voice breaking the silence.
Bailey turned his gaze on Tom and a smiled—a genuine smile, because he was okay, at least for now. “Yeah, I’m fine. But thanks for asking.” He leaned forward and picked up the remote from the coffee table, pressing the button. The TV blared to life. “So, what are we watching?”
“Not that bloody Love Island,” Tom said, snatching the remote from Bailey.
“Hey! There’s nothing wrong with Love Island.” Bailey had developed a fascination with the show. He claimed it was due to the limited television selection on the free-to-air channels he’d been forced to watch since cancelling his Netflix subscription—it might have cost under ten bucks a month, but every dollar counted, especially recently—but in reality he’d been sucked in by the melodrama of the show.
Tom scoffed but they ended up watching it, joking and laughing, and Bailey stayed safe in his little bubble. At least for the night.