Beer, Burgers & Boyfriends

Emmett jumped onto the metal bench of the men's locker room which bent dangerously under his weight and he exclaimed: “It’s Friday boyssss, you know what that meanssss!”

“Does it mean you’ll finely shut up? Otherwise, I’m not interested,” Noah mocked him while he was tying his shoelaces.

Jacob, who was just about to put on a clean shirt, intervened. “Hey, play nice, you two! You can argue all you want when we've decided where we are going to eat today. Anyone have a suggestion?”

“Can we go to Nando’s?” Nick suggested with a lazy yawn. He threw his head back dramatically and complained: “I haven’t had good chicken in aaaages.”

“What’re you talking about? You literally had chicken at KFC last week!” Caleb exclaimed bewildered. “Besides, as much as I love fucking you guys over for my own amusement, I’m not gonna torture Hakim by taking him to the place his ex-girlfriend works.”

Hakim groaned. “Not even my ex-girlfriend; we only made out a couple of times, remember? Nothing more, nothing less... Please stop reminding me of what happened, her stone-cold rejection when I asked her if she wanted to go on a date was already brutal enough! It would be mega uncomfortable if we ran into her at Nando’s again...”

"Maybe we could go to “Beer and Burgers” again?” I nervously proposed. “It’s been a while since we’ve been there and ya’ll seemed to like the food.”

“You just want to go back there because you have a hard-on for that blonde waiter!” Noah scoffed bluntly.

“And? What does that have to do with anything?” Jacob frowned defensively. He had been one of the first to realise that my infatuation with Simon had not been a temporary fad and despite being the one that teased me about it the most, I could always count on him to back me up. “Chicks or dicks, who cares?! Let the boy be into what he’s into. Don't forget that we’ve been to Nando’s plenty of times just because Hakim wanted to see Nadia; we should do Joey the same favour.”

Hakim laid down on the floor in agony. “Stop talking about her, will ya?”

Caleb rolled his eyes and lifted our miserable friend off the ground. “Oh come on, Hakim, no need to be dramatic. I’m with Joey on this one: let’s go to ‘Beer and Burgers’! The chicks were cute, the food was great… Plus, one of the waitresses may help you get over your heartbreak, my friend! That Shania girl was cute, no? She’s totally your type.” He looked down at his depressed teammate, who did not seem in the position to agree or disagree with anything at all at the moment.

“Well, that’s settled then,” Jacob decided. “Get your asses off of those locker room benches, boys: we’re going to ‘Beer and Burgers’!”

I shivered when I was surprised by the unexpectedly chilly wind outside and I zipped up my hoodie. The sweet, summer heat from a few weeks ago seemed like a phantom of the past as the harsh winds of autumn made their entrance. Although I do not usually mind the cold, I would certainly miss the sensation of the burning beams of sunlight on my bare skin.

‘Beer and Burgers’ looked exactly like we had left it; the tables were a little bit sticky and suspiciously greasy, the tin logo plates on the fake brick wall still looked like the owner had bought them newly off of Amazon and the only thing -except for the futuristic, intimating, chrome kitchen equipment- that was clean, was the cracked, dull, checkered floor. Despite the inauthenticity of the place, walking through its doors felt like coming home in a sense and I was immediately filled with a misplaced sense of nostalgia. I got goosebumps when my body instinctively remembered the smell of greasy fries, the taste of juicy meat and the sensation of soft beams of sunlight tickling my skin through the window.

I was shaken out of my trip down memory lane by the sound of giggling when we walked past the kitchen. Simon was pushed into the bar area by some of his female colleagues, who were excitedly gossiping among themselves and whispering things to Simon. Meanwhile, Simon was trying to push back and flee into the kitchen while he still could, but once our eyes met, he stopped trying to resist and let himself be pushed towards the counter.

My heart skipped a beat.

“Um, h-hey Joey,” he smiled nervously with a face as red as a tomato. “Welcome back.”

“Hi Simon, glad to see you again,” I said with a confidence I previously had not known I had. I suddenly noticed that his hair was a lot shorter than the last time I had seen him and he was not wearing it in a messy bun anymore. As much as I had liked his long hair, I instantly fell in love with his new haircut and desperately wished I could weave my hands through the tangled strands.

Hakim tugged the sleeve of my hoodie as a sign that we should pick a place to sit, so before my friends could drag me off, I smiled kindly: “I like your new haircut!” Simon looked a bit dumbfounded at first and was unable to respond, but his face, which quickly became redder than it already was, told me enough.

When I and my friends were finally settled down around one of the many tables inside of the restaurant, Jacob snatched the menu up from the table before I could and smirked: “That was a super smooth start, pal! I taught you well. Keep it up and that boy will be yours in no time.”

“Yeah, do you really think he likes me?” I wondered hesitantly.

Jacob smiled reassuringly. “Oh Joey, don’t pretend like you don’t see how he looks at you. He more than likes you; he’s positively obsessed with you.”