Ryan McCormick (mediumwell) wrote in remains_rpg, @ 2017-02-07 13:04:00 |
|
|||
"Things are going well, I hope?" Ryan asked, hoping to get the attention of their newest employee before he took a seat next to him. There wasn't anyone else at the table just yet, but Ryan didn't want to assume that he could join without asking. They were about a month into working with Ray, and they'd gotten along whenever Ryan had reason to chat with him, but Violet typically did most of the talking even if Ryan was present. Part of being a restaurateur was learning to feel more comfortable managing staff, so he was trying to break old habits. While Leo had heard Ryan approach it wasn’t until the other man addressed him that he glanced in his direction, a friendly smile graced his features as he replied. “I think so, yeah,” he supplied with a small shrug. “Figure if they weren’t I wouldn’t be sitting here right now.” It had taken him a little while to adjust to working in a restaurant again, but Leo was good with people and playing host was not an overly taxing job. “What’s your take on it, do you think they’re going well?” Leo turned Ryan’s question back around on him, curious to know what the other man might say. The two had only chatted sporadically, but Leo could say that the conversations they had had were enjoyable. Both he and Violet had been very welcoming as bosses, so much so it almost made Leo feel guilty for lying to them about who he was. "Yeah, I think so." Ryan offered a brief smile as he added, "As you mentioned, if they weren't, we would've tried to course correct a little earlier than this. But I was mainly interested in whether you're enjoying yourself or like working here?" He pushed a basket of fries closer towards the middle, hoping it was clear that he intended for them to be shared. "Things can be going well from an operations standpoint, I mean, even if you don't like what you're doing." “Suppose a month is a little long to let something go,” Leo remarked with a chuckle. “And you don’t strike me as the type to keep someone around ‘cause they’re good looking.” The remark was made as a joke as Leo reached for a couple of fries and popped them into his mouth. He took that time while chewing to think over just how he felt about working at Burgatory. It wasn’t what he was used to, or exactly what he would have liked to have been doing, but the job itself was easy enough and he liked the people -- though there was still a level of guilt he carried over the fact they all thought he was someone he wasn’t. Ryan gave an embarrassed laugh, taking the remark at face value for what he thought it was -- a joke, of course, and nothing more -- and shook his head. "You do a good job," he said simply, even if his gaze lingered briefly on the man's eyes and handsome face. Once he had chewed and swallowed, Leo offered Ryan a smile as he said “So it’s not the good looking part even a little bit?” Leo prodded and he knew he was walking a thin line blatantly flirting with his boss like this. Then without missing a beat, even as a hint of a blush developed on Ryan's face, he continued. “I’m enjoying myself. The customers are pretty great, the staff is friendly and my bosses don’t suck, those are the three things that make or break a workplace I think.” He paused a moment before adding. “Down the road I think I’d like to do more than play host, though.” Even if it wasn’t what he had envisioned his career to be, Leo couldn’t help but want to shift up the hierarchy of the restaurant some. "What interests you most, the business side or the culinary?" It may have only been a couple of weeks, but Ryan wanted to encourage ambition wherever he could find it. In fact, it was rather exciting to think about helping one of his employees develop a career, just like he had when he'd first started out in restaurants. "There are opportunities on both sides, if you're really interested and working here continues to suit you." Leo made a face and then laughed. “Definitely the culinary side, I’ve never really had a mind for business,” then again he never had to before. It was a known fact that as Russo he’d be going into law enforcement and even when he had steered away from that path, he had went into something that also hadn’t required him to have much of a business mind. “I’m interested,” Leo continued, a sly smirk playing at the edges of his mouth. “So I suppose it all depends on if working here continues to work out.” He didn’t add the part where it also was dependant on other things in his life, it wasn’t necessarily the sort of business someone talked about with their boss. "We can always reassess at the end of your first three months," Ryan said, glad to hear the interest confirmed. "That would put us at about early April, which is enough time to really know if this is a good fit." “Guess I better be on my best behavior if I’ve got a three month assessment period,” Leo joked, not even the least bit concerned. A lot or a little could happen in three months, a person just never knew. Even so, it didn’t hurt to ask more questions. “What are the opportunities? I mean, if you don’t mind me asking,” Leo was curious, even if he didn’t know just how long he would be employed at Burgatory. "Well, you'd probably start out as a kitchen assistant. That's mostly prep, things like washing produce, peeling, chopping, cleaning, organizing, helping with salads and desserts." Ryan met the other man's eyes then and smiled briefly. "Of course, that's all depending on if you're feeling comfortable with a knife. After that, though, would be to move up to one of the line cooks at a certain station. That would be something like sautée, fry, roasting, vegetables, soup… Any of that sound particularly interesting?" Leo took a couple more fries out of the basket and nodded while Ryan rattled off the various positions in the kitchen. “So pretty much you start out as kitchen gopher?” He asked, the tone of his voice making it obvious he wasn’t judging the position harshly or really at all. "You could say that, if you wanted to." Ryan shrugged, leaning back in his chair some. It was a rite of passage they'd all gone through once upon a time. “Can I be really honest with you? I haven’t done much proper cooking before, well, unless you count cooking for a group of guys on the regular…” Leo wouldn’t say anything he ever made at the firehouse was gourmet cooking, it was more like whip up whatever they had enough ingredients for at the time. “It all sounds interesting though,” he continued with a smile directed towards Ryan. “Plus I think the staff in the kitchen is pretty good company.” He stopped just short of winking at Ryan, even he knew that would likely have been pushing his limits in terms of flirting with his boss. “You think you could put up with me being in your kitchen all the time?” Leo asked instead, a sly smirk toyed at the corners of his mouth and there was a mischievous glint in his dark eyes. "Yeah. If you can pass muster, I think I could manage." Ryan wasn't oblivious to the undercurrent of interest that laced this conversation, but there wasn't much else he could do besides politely, embarrassedly shrug it off. There were boundaries that needed to be maintained, after all, even if he'd noticed. "If you're really interested, and you learn how -- and everyone's gotta start somewhere, so that's completely fine -- we'd love to have you in the kitchen." Leo had to hand it to Ryan, the man was a true professional in terms of ignoring his obvious flirtations. “Looks like I better pass muster in that case,” he remarked with an easy smile as he snagged a couple more fries. “In all seriousness I am interested in working in the kitchen,” he took a pause. “Don’t get me wrong, I like hosting just fine and people should be seated by a friendly face, but I’d like to advance in this industry and I don’t imagine that’s done real well by remaining a host.” Though he couldn’t say if his desire to advance further or not would actually stick. "Even if you don't like the business administration side of things, there's still a hierarchy for front of house staff and opportunities for advancement." Ryan gave another shrug. He was certainly biased in favor of the back of house side, but their restaurant -- and other restaurants -- would fall apart if the front of house didn't pull their own weight. "Especially if you don't have a lot of experience with cooking. It would be a lot easier to move up on that side. Either way, there are options." Leo nodded. “Oh yeah, I mean, I wasn’t saying that there wasn’t,” the hierarchy in a restaurant might be different than that in a firehouse, but he still knew that one most definitely existed and that there was room for advancement. “Again a totally valid point, though I’ve always liked a challenge and working in the back of the house would definitely provide that,” Leo paused. “Not that working in the front doesn’t, but dealing with people comes easier for me.” He gave a bit of a smile and a shrug before he glanced down at his watch. “If I want to keep either a possibility though I better get back to work,” he laughed. “I don’t think using the excuse that I was talking with the owner will fly as a reason for getting back on shift late, even if it was true.” Leo snagged a couple more fries before he stood. “Hey, you know it was nice talking to you, Ryan.” His smile might have been tinged with a bit of flirtation, but it was also genuine, as were Leo’s words. "Guess it's about that time." Ryan stood up, too, glancing over his shoulder back at the doors that led to the kitchen. He turned back to face Leo, returning the smile briefly. Even though they hadn't been able to talk much, it was good to know that their new hire was interested in more than what he had right now. "It was nice talking to you, too." |