Captain William Laurence (betwixtsea_nsky) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2020-05-30 20:08:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, !partner thread, pidge gunderson, william laurence |
Who: Laurence and Pidge
What: Reuniting after Laurence's deployment
When: The day after he gets back
Where: Pidge's doughnut shop
Rating/Warning: Low/none
Status: Partner Thread | Complete
Laurence hadn’t gone directly to Pidge’s doughnut shop once he’d disembarked and had completed all his work. First, he had gone home, had a nice, hot shower, and then had promptly fallen asleep for the next twelve hours. It had been an exhausting deployment this time around, and he was glad to be home. No sooner had his head hit the pillow than he was greeted, once again, by his familiar dreams - this time, the feral dragons he had met in the Pamir mountains had made a liar out of him to the Turkish aerial corps when they had stolen a half-dozen cattle immediately after Laurence had assured the Turks that they were not thieves.
He’d ended the dream with the news that the British Ambassador in Turkey was dead, and he woke up, pinching the bridge of his nose. Why did he have the distinct impression that his next few dreams were going to be a headache indeed?
Still, it was a new day, and it was best not to dwell on the dreams if one needn’t. He dressed himself for the day, a blue button-down shirt and a pair of black slacks, and made himself a small breakfast. Small enough that he might have room for dessert after. He snorted a little at the thought. The idea of dessert for breakfast still seemed ridiculous, and yet…
And yet here he was, twenty minutes later, outside of Pidge’s doughnut shop. He smiled to himself, wondering what Pidge’s reaction would be, straightened his tie, and got into line. It was a surprisingly long line, and Laurence was beginning to second guess his plan. Perhaps it would have been better to call ahead, so that he could see Pidge when Pidge was less busy.
He was already here, however, and in no time he was at the front of the line. Pidge barely glanced at him when they asked his order, and Laurence smiled warmly. It was good to see them so hard at work. “I believe I’ll have a cruller and a coffee, if I may.”
***
Days on register weren’t that common for Pidge but today it had been necessary after the third blowup at their employees resulting in a full meltdown from the girl that had been working the counter. Pidge had sent her on break and then asked her to help out in the back with baking until they got the line down again. If anyone was going to get yelled at about a wait it was better them than somebody else. They could, and would, yell back. And had the authority, without question, to throw someone out if they had to.
They’d been glancing up at the customers as they greeted each one, barely absorbing the faces which was why it had been so easy to dismiss it as someone who just looked like their friend Laurence stepping up to the counter. But there was no dismissing the voice and Pidge looked back up in surprise, a rare grin spreading over their face as they practically jumped over the counter to hug the British man. Physical contact wasn’t something they normally did but Laurence was the closest thing to family that Pidge had found out here other than Tony and then both of them had to go away for their careers. Laurence coming back was a good reason to make an exception to their normal routine with people.
“You’re back! For how long?”
***
Laurence stiffened at the unexpected contact, but quickly relaxed into it, wrapping his arms around Pidge’s shoulders. Pidge wasn’t his natural born child, but sometimes Laurence felt as if they were, and he would be lying if he said that he hadn’t missed them.
“I cannot rightly say,” he admitted. “Until they ship me out again. But I’m back for as long as they’ll allow me to be.”
Someone behind him cleared their throat impatiently and he grimaced. “My apologies. I should have thought to call so that I could come at a less inconvenient time,” he said.
***
Pidge stepped back when they heard someone clearing their throat, taking a moment to make sure the annoyance didn’t show on their face as plainly as they felt it. “We’ll be with you in just a moment.” Was the comment that came out of their mouth as they turned back to their stuff. “Becca? Can you take the register while I catch up with Laurence.” It was tempting to say something about family just coming home from sea but they held back. A little bit of self control had grown in the past few months.
“Grab a table. I’ll be right there with your crueller and coffee. Perks of being the boss and not taking a break earlier.” Becca could handle it and they knew it. She’d proven herself since they’d taken over, deserving to keep their position as assistant store manager.
***
Laurence managed to suppress the smile at seeing Pidge. It was nice to see them handle it maturely instead of acting as annoyed as they inevitably felt. He clapped Pidge on the shoulder before he made his way to one of the empty tables and took a seat, watching Pidge gathered his items.
***
There had been some touch and go moments with Pidge’s temper in the months that Laurence had been gone when it came to dealing with impatient, and sometimes even rude, customers but for the most part they were proud to say they’d kept their temper. They put Laurence’s items on a tray and grabbed a drink for themselves before making their way over there. “I couldn’t remember if you liked cream and sugar so I put some on the tray just in case.” They said sitting down opposite him.
***
“Thank you,” Laurence said warmly, adding just a splash of cream and a dash of sugar to his coffee and giving it a quick stir with his spoon. “So, Pidge, how have you been over the last few months? Keeping out of trouble, I trust?”
***
Pidge had also grabbed a donut for themself before coming over, picking at it now. “I got another job - at Godfrey Industries. I work in the network security department.” Laurence wouldn’t approve of what had led to the job offer so Pidge would keep it quiet unless directly asked. “I had to throw a couple people out for being rude to my employees but other than that it’s been good. I’ve been staying out of trouble as much as I can.”
***
“Oh, that’s fantastic!” Laurence said. He knew no more about computers than was necessary for his job, but he knew that Pidge had a passion for it. “Congratulations. You must have worked hard for that. Mr. Godfrey seems like a good man.” Laurence remembered him offering shelter and supplies during some of the more violent Orange County invasions, at least, even if the two men hadn’t spent much time together.
***
Pidge tore off a piece of their donut, using the excuse of eating it to distract from having to respond right away. Gathering their thoughts so they wouldn’t have to lie. “He heard about my abilities with security systems and came to talk to me. Offered me the job. It was a surprise.” They said shrugging. Leaving out the part where Roman had found out when Pidge had hacked his company and had threatened to have them arrested. Probably better to keep that part between them and Roman.
***
It really was better to keep that small detail private, because as it was, Laurence couldn’t be prouder to learn that not only had Pidge landed themself a great job, they’d been recruited for it. Laurence all but beamed. “That is marvelous, Pidge,” Laurence said. “I’m sorry that I was away. I suppose it is too late to take you out for dinner to celebrate?”
***
Pidge gave Laurence a small smile at that question. “It’s not too late. I haven’t actually had a chance to do much to celebrate.” Their mom would be glad to hear that Laurence was taking them out to do something other than just work.
***
“Oh good,” Laurence said, pleased. “Then if you’re free tonight, I can pick you up around six for dinner?”
***
Pidge thought quickly over their schedule for the night. Roman wasn’t all that strict about Pidge coming into the office all the time so that should be okay. And they didn’t have any time urgent private jobs or avenues to follow up. “6:30 might be better. Give me time to actually get into something more appropriate for dinner. At the very least not covered in...everything from here.”
***
“Six-thirty will be just fine,” Laurence said warmly. “With all my heart, I look forward to it.” He glanced over at the ever growing line, frowning to himself. It had been a mistake to come unannounced to Pidge’s workplace. He hadn’t recalled the shop being so busy when he’d been deployed, but he should have suspected that Pidge would turn the place into a success. “I do have some more stops to make today though, so I should be going. But I hope you will allow me to pick you up for dinner tonight?”
***
Pidge had been keeping track of the sounds around them, including the crowd and heard the call for another cashier. They were going to have to put in another batch of donuts after the ones that were cooking now were done. It would be good for business but hectic and annoying for them. Maybe it was time for a third oven. They still had the kitchen space for it after all. “I’ll be ready at my place at 6:30 for you to pick me up.” It was an easy compromise to make.
***
“I will see you then, Dear,” Laurence said, finishing the last bites of his doughnut and his coffee. “Do try not to work yourself too hard in the meantime.”