3346 Words
Posted by
Qale (aka Qale)
Nov 2 '14, 19:51
|
"'Sup Paul," On his way to the time clock, Sheldon passed by the maintenance cart.
"Good evening. Got plenty of holes for you to fill in on the shelves tonight." The older man, bits of grey frosting his scalp, tipped his bright red company hat and smiled to the younger stock clerk just heading in.
"I'm sure you do." Catching the innuendo as usual, Sheldon's felt a sudden heat come to his cheeks. He bit his bottom lip, a flash of brilliant white in stark contrast to his liquorice hued skin.
"We're always like ships passing in the night, though, huh?" Still offering a smile, he allowed his gaze to take in more of the young kid trying to put himself through college. Paul had to admit, he could appreciate the more lax dress code for the overnight crew. A simple tee shirt was filled nicely by Sheldon's taut torso. And Paul definitely wouldn't mind checking to see if those blue jeans would withstand all the bending over one had to do in his position.
"When do you get off?" Sheldon asked innocently enough. But it didn't take but a second before he coughed in embarrassment and tried to walk back the question. "Er, what I meant was..."
Paul placed both hands back on the cart and held onto the handlebar more tightly. It was as if he didn't, maybe he'd put them where they ought not during working hours. Or maybe he was grounding himself, because every second spent with Sheldon made the older man feel like he'd float away.
"I know what you meant. I'll be off as soon as I'm done cleaning the break room. Another half hour?"
Sheldon actually looked a bit crestfallen. "Too soon for me to go on my first break."
The challenges of the day certainly felt like they were creeping into his old bones, but there was nothing he'd like more than to share a smoke with the nineteen-year-old. Glancing down at the silver watch the company had given him on his twenty-fifth anniversary, he started to nod. "Maybe I can stretch it out."
Holding up a closed fist, he waited for Paul to bump it. Offering up a Cheshire Cat sized grin, the teen then turned to almost saunter down the aisle.
|
Responses:
|
