Spilling Guts

Part 10 - Fries and Old Flames

The smell of curry spice, salt, and fried potato curls soaked the air. The heated spice of it made a person want to either bounce with glee or sneeze. Will breathed it in as he came up behind Reese and Beni in line for the New Amsterdam takeaway restaurant. It was little more than a hole in the side of a building that held space for two tables and enough floor tile for people to line up. And the line went out the door and around the block. It smelled so much better than plastic wrapped sandwiches.

Will tapped their shoulders and held up his reusable canvas bag. "Got the honey buns and sodas. Here's your change."

"Excellent," said Reese, collecting the quarters and slipping them into a canvas and leather wallet. Did Reese buy a new wallet? It looked familiar...

Reese gestured to the sea of tables in the open air food court. "Claim a table. We will join you in a few minutes."

Will looked back at the long line. "Right..."

"We'll move faster than this," said Beni with a wink.

Will nodded and walked away. Probably better I not know. Plausible deniability.

He found a table close to a fountain where teens took turns trying to skip pennies on the water. The faint mist of the fountain gave off a chlorine fume, but the smell of curry followed him like a warm silken scarf. It reminded Will of Doctor Massaru Devi and his love of spicy food. It had been a while since Will had called him. Their bonding over pudding and daytime television while in Med Tech had been a boon to his boredom and he missed it.

Perhaps he could call Massaru, catch up. See how the wedding plans for his son were going.

Will's phone vibrated in his pocket. He jumped to answer it, some part of him hoping it was Massaru in some moment of serendipity.

Instead it was a familiar area code. The same one he answered that morning.

Ah hell, what now? Tuberculosis? Syphilis? Pon farr?

Will answered anyway. "Hello, Jacob."

There was a pause before Jacob replied. He sounded as awkward as Will felt. "Hi... Um, just checking in."

"Nothing has changed since you called me... three hours ago," said Will. He arranged the sodas on the table to keep his free hand busy. Just went through and emotional rollercoaster and panic attack, but all's well on the western front. "Did you tests come back?"

"No. My results probably won't come in until later tomorrow. Uh... are you busy? Like for the next couple of days?"

Will sat down and sagged, letting his weary spine fit into the plastic molded chair. "It's Wednesday. I have work every day until Saturday. Why?"

"I was thinking of visiting Denver. Visiting you... It's dumb, really."

The fucking nerve! "You call me out of the blue about possibly being positive, and now you want to see me in person?"

There was a shaky, sucked in breath. "You're the only one that hasn't yelled at me yet."

Will could imagine some people's reactions. Screaming sounded real good if he wasn't in public. But his train of through tripped over the waver in Jacob's breath.

Had he been crying?

No, don't be sympathetic to him. You broke it off for a reason and it was his cheating ass that started this...

But he remembered a night long ago, a rare occurrence that Will was able to crash the night on Jacob's couch or bed, when he had been woken up by a clatter. Jacob, tired out of his mind and overworked on a legal case, had tried to make a midnight omelet. Comfort food. Will had found Jacob crying on the kitchen floor because the last two eggs had broke on the counter and sink. Tears from stress. Will had cleaned the kitchen and then spent the next hour holding Jacob on the couch until he slept. He made grilled cheese sandwiches the next morning.