close as strangers ↣ joshler ✓

6. Sauce

"Honey! I'm home!"

"That was awful straight of you, Dr. Joseph," Jenna raised an eyebrow from where she sat on the couch, reading a book.

"On the contrary," Tyler slipped his shoes off and set them by the door. "The way I said it was awful gay."

"Got it," she laughed, sliding her bookmark into her book and closing it. "Are you ready to start dinner? It's five thirty."

"Yeah let me take my stuff to my room and get these clothes off. Do you wanna set everything out?"

"Sure," she stood up and made her way to the kitchen as Tyler made his to his bedroom. He set his bag on the office chair he had and changed out of his dress clothes, throwing on a shirt and sweatpants instead. He set his watch on his dresser and left, heading to the kitchen.

Upon entering he saw what Jenna had out and he realized they were making pizza. He smiled to himself at that. Tyler was extremely amazing at cooking (whereas Jenna could cook and bake but Tyler was shit at baking) but pizza was still his speciality. "I made the dough before you got home so it could rise. Everything else is ready though," she explained.

"I appreciate you," he smiled.

"I know you do. I appreciate you more though," she replied, a smile making its way on to her face as well.

"Impossible," he laughed out, going over to the sink to wash his hands. Once they were clean and dry he went over to Jenna and grabbed the ingredients for the sauce, moving over so Jenna could start rolling out the dough.

"So... how was your first day of work?" She asked, rolling pin in hand.

"Boring as fuck," Tyler chuckled, Jenna giggling as well. "It was all formalities: meeting my co-workers, getting my name in the system, setting up my office. They don't have any patients for me yet so they're just gonna have me do paperwork for the next few days," he shrugged. "Nothing hard just boring."

"Maybe one day you can leave early and come help me at the bakery? That is if you want to."

"You know I suck at baking, Jen."

"But you don't suck at keeping me company," she replied, letting out a small grunt as she rolled out the stiff dough.

"Okay then yeah I'm cool with that," he paused for a moment. "Oh my god I forgot to tell you the worst part. They sent in an order for my new name plaque that goes on the wall by my office door and they fucking spelled 'Joseph' wrong. How do you even do that?" He asked, looking up as Jenna as she laughed loudly. "It's not funny!" He told her despite the wide grin on his face.

"How did they spell it?"

"J-o-s-e-f!" He told her, prompting her to laugh even harder while her face turned a light red. "The company had my name spelled out for them on the order!" He groaned, refraining from covering his face as he poured the tomato paste into the sauce pan with the tomato sauce he already added.

"That's hilarious."

"So now they have to completely re-do it and it's gonna take like two to three weeks to get there so the guy who had my old office before he retired still has his name on the wall. Apparently I am Stanley Matthews now," he mumbled making Jenna laugh once again.

"Oh my god that's beautiful," she breathed out.

"Jenna!" Tyler groaned once again, the mentioned giggling in response.

"What? You have to admit it's super funny, Dr. Matthews," she giggled out. Tyler gave her a warning look as he grabbed the oregano seasoning from the area of the counter she was at. He measured some and added it in along with some olive oil, salt, and pepper.

"I'm going to move out," he muttered, walking over to the stove which was right next to Jenna.

"Fine. I can give Biscuit her own room."

"Don't be that person," Tyler shot her a look. "If you become that person I will never speak to you again and I'll become best friends with Mason and then steal him from Sarah."

"Dating your best friend? Again?" Jenna joked.

Tyler felt his heart stop and suddenly Jenna turned around. "Oh my God, Ty. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to say that."

The brunette put a fake smile on his face. He turned to face her as well. "Say what? I didn't hear you."

She blinked. "Oh um. Nothing. I just said you would be stupid to try and go for Mason. At least go for someone hot."

Tyler forced out a laugh, turning back around. He knew Jenna really didn't mean to say it but it still hurt. His best friend and boyfriend didn't come to say goodbye and Tyler just left. He didn't even try. Granted, he didn't have the time to try. But wasn't trying more important?

"I'm telling my boyfriend what you said," Tyler teased.

"Good then he'll leave her for you and I can finally swoop Sarah up off her feet," she laughed but Tyler could hear the guilt in her voice.

Tyler shook his head, stirring the sauce as it bubbled ever so slightly to warm up. They continued in silence as they made dinner and Tyler turned the stove down to low before grabbing a ladle and scooping a very small amount. He let it cool and was about to try it before a mischievous grin made its way onto his face. "Jenna?"

"Yeah, Ty?" She looked up, her blue eyes meeting his brown ones.

"Smell this it's really good," he told her, a small smile now on his face. He was hoping his acting skills as Danny Zuko would come in handy.

Luckily, they did and she took a step over, believing him. She put her nose by the ladle and just as she was about to pull back Tyler hit her nose with it, causing pizza sauce to cover her nose and upper lip. Jenna gasped. "Tyler Robert!" She picked up a handful of flour from the bowl of it she was using to roll the dough with, dropping the clump into his hair.

"You bitch!" Tyler narrowed his eyes but he was smiling. Jenna giggled and slapped his ass playfully, leaving a floury handprint on his dark gray sweatpants.

"Oops!" She laughed even harder.

"This is war."