Work Text:
i. Rose Video
He’s been working at Rose Video for six months when his manager announces that Johnny Rose is coming to visit their branch. Apparently he’s made plans to visit all the branches across the country, though Patrick is a little fuzzy on the why. All employees who are able to be there are expected to show up though, so Patrick shows up in his red polo shirt and black pants and arrives fifteen minutes early, just to be safe, even though he only lives five minutes down the road.
His manager, who’s normally a laid back guy, is visibly stressed so Patrick tries to busy himself taking care of the little things that people have missed; making sure the counter is cleared, the floor is cleaned, the shelves are stocked and the movies are organized.
“They’re here!” Someone calls out and everyone shuffles to the front of the store, awkwardly standing together by the entrance. There’s a buzz of nervous energy in the air and Patrick shoves his hands in his pockets, unsure what else to do with his hands. Their branch isn’t very big, only a handful of employees who are mainly high school students like Patrick.
“Hello Mr. Rose, welcome!” The manager greets, plastering his signature customer service smile across his face, “We’re so happy to welcome you to branch 785.”
“Branch 785,” Johnny says “Impressive late fees!”
His manager beams at that, “Thank you! And I see you brought your son with you?”
Standing next to Johnny is a dark haired boy, who Patrick recognizes vaguely from company promotional pamphlets, as David Rose. He’s dressed in black and white, sunglasses on his face and hiding his eyes, but he clearly doesn’t want to be here.
Patrick tries to pay attention to the conversation but his eyes keep slipping back to David, like he can’t help watching him. He watches as David pulls off his sunglasses at his father’s request, how he’s trying to look annoyed but Patrick can tell he’s more nervous by the way he keeps fidgeting. He’s not sure why he’s so intrigued by him, he’s never cared much for celebrity culture, only knowing things if it’s someone Rachel’s into.
Johnny walks up to all the employees, shaking their hands and thanking them. David trails behind him, but doesn’t shake any hands.
“Patrick Brewer,” He introduces himself, putting on his best smile, “It’s so nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you too Patrick,” Johnny says politely, shaking his hand, “Thank you for being a part of the Rose Video family.”
Mr. Rose moves on to the next person, but Patrick briefly catches David’s eye. Flustered, he looks away quickly, but when he looks back David is smirking at him.
When the weirdly formal line they’ve been standing in separates, breaking off into casual conversation, Patrick scans the room to look for David. Frowning, he can’t find him until he looks out the front window, seeing the silhouette of David disappearing into a taxi out front. He doesn’t mention it to Mr. Rose, not wanting to intrude into their family dynamic. But there’s a weird, almost feeling of disappointment, that Patrick’s not sure why it’s there. Instead he throws himself into a conversation with his coworkers, pushing the memory of the mysterious dark haired boy out of his mind.
ii. Toronto
Toronto isn’t New York, but David still has a soft spot for it. David loves New York and everything about it, but it’s a nice escape from the chaos and the drama of his life there. He’s there on spring break from NYU for a few days, at his parents request. He doesn’t have many friends left in Toronto, but there’s a few. An ex calls him and asks if he wants to get drinks and David knows where that’s going but he decides to go anyways, because why the fuck not. It’s not his usual scene, but it’s secluded and he knows they won’t be there long.
He’s walking back to the table carrying their drinks when someone bumps into him, which makes him spill a drink all over her.
“Oh my god!” David shrieks, relieved that he managed not to spill anything on himself, “Fuck, I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine,” The redhead says, reaching for some napkins to pat the stain. David cringes, knowing that her shirt is a lost cause.
“Can I like, pay for your dry cleaning or something?” He asks, not sure what else to do.
The girl shakes her head when another guy walks up to them, “Rachel? You okay?”
“I’m fine,” Rachel says once again, “There was just an accident, no big deal.”
“Some guy bumped into me,” David explains, even though no one asked, “Are you sure I can’t like, give you money or something?”
“This shirt was like fifteen dollars at Winners, it’s no big deal.”
“Here, you can wear my hoodie home,” The mystery guy says, unzipping his navy University of Toronto hoodie and handing it to her.
“Thanks,” she says, grabbing it and heading towards the washroom.
“I’m really sorry,” David says to the guy, presumably Rachel’s boyfriend.
“It’s all good man,” The man says, smiling at him. He’s cute, David thinks, in a boy-next-door kind of way. Maybe in another lifetime, but he looks far too nice to go for David. Plus the presumed girlfriend that David had just dumped a drink on.
David awkwardly walks away, starting to make his way back to his table when he changes his mind, turning back to the bar.
“Have they paid their tab?” He asks the bartender, gesturing to where the other man is still waiting. When the bartender shakes his head no, David hands him his credit card and tells him to add it to his.
When he’s gotten a fresh drink and is finally back, making pointless conversation before they head back to the apartment. He sees out of the corner of his eye the man and Rachel leaving the bar and the man catches him staring.
“Thanks,” he mouths and smiles gorgeously at David. David feels a slight feeling of hurt at what he could maybe have, but chases it away with another drink.
iii. New York City
Patrick’s only been to New York City once before, when his parents took him as a kid for a family holiday. It’s not his top travel destination but him and Rachel are off again, so when his cousin gets baseball tickets and a free hotel room, Patrick can’t think of a reason to say no. It’ll be a good break, get some time away, he tells himself.
And it is good. He loves a good baseball game, even if it’s not his team playing. For a couple days, he escapes thinking too much about Rachel and questions about whether or not love is supposed to be just fine or if there’s supposed to be something more. His cousin Aiden doesn’t ask anything about her either, as if he can sense Patrick’s anxiety about everything. Instead they talk sports and work and about everything else.
Which is how Patrick ends up in a gallery with Aiden. While Patrick’s never been one to seek out galleries, Aiden loves them. So, he goes with him and enjoys it for the most part. He doesn’t think he ‘gets’ some of the art, but Aiden seems to really be into it and for the most part, it’s at least pleasing to look at. They wander around and talk and Patrick can honestly say he has a good time.
Aiden goes to use the washroom, leaving Patrick to wait for him. He lets his eyes wander the gallery, feeling out of place with the rest of patrons. He notices one man and suddenly, he has the strong sense of déjà vu. It’s like he’s lived this moment before, seeing a man dressed in black and white, something so familiar about him but he just can’t place it.
He wants to keep watching, trying to dig in his brain and pull out the memory that he’s almost got, but Aiden is suddenly there and well, he can’t exactly tell him they need to stay longer so Patrick can try to place where he’s seen this attractive guy before. He swears he sees the man turn around watch them leave, but he doesn’t look back to check.
It bothers him for the last night there and the whole plane ride home. He’s not sure why he’s obsessing so much over one stranger, but he can’t stop thinking about him. Until he’s home and he’s faced with having to decide whether he wants to try again with Rachel. He agrees to get back together with her, again, and the handsome New York stranger fades from his mind.
iv. Airport
David Rose hates airports. He rarely is at them, usually enjoying the joys of taking a private jet. But his parents had needed the jet to go to California to do something this week, so if David wants to go to Japan for the cherry blossoms, he’s stuck flying first class. First class is fine, dealing with airport security however, he can’t stand. Being forced to take off your shoes in a public place is severely incorrect. Those fucking cherry blossoms better be worth it.
He’s finally through security and starts to head towards his gate, walking quickly after years spent navigating New York. He doesn’t notice the man running after him, until he taps him on the shoulder.
“What the fuck?”
“Hi, sorry, you left your wallet at security,” The man says, smiling at him with kind eyes.
“Oh,” David looks down to see his wallet grasped in the man’s hand, “Uh, thanks.”
“I figured you were going to need it. I promise I didn’t look inside.” The man jokes, handing the wallet over. The man looks at him for a second, hesitating before saying, “This might seem weird, but do I know you?”
David cringes, thinking of how he’s most definitely seen him in the tabloids, before saying “No, I don’t think so.”
The man frowns, as if he’s going to challenge him, but then shakes his head, “You’re probably right. I don’t think I could ever forget someone like you.”
Before David can process what he said someone calls out “Patrick!” further down the corridor.
“Sorry, that’s me. I gotta go,” Patrick, says “Have a nice flight!”
David watches for a second as Patrick walks away. He’s not sure what it is about a man in straight leg, mid-range denim that’s doing something for him, but he is. As Patrick disappears into the crowd, David shakes his head to clear his mind and continues on his way to his gate.
v. Cafe Tropical
Patrick’s seated in a booth across from Ray in Cafe Tropical, trying to listen as Ray chatters away about one of his business ventures, though Patrick has lost track of which one. He’s not sure why he’s so distracted today, but he just can’t make himself focus on what Ray is actually saying. He still smiles politely and nods his head and luckily Ray is more than happy to fill the silence.
Behind Ray the front door swings open and a dark haired girl in a blue plaid shirt walks in, followed by a familiar looking man, with dark hair and thick eyebrows, wearing a black sweater that looks far too hot for the weather today.
The pair walk straight to the counter, talking animatedly to each other. Patrick doesn’t mean to stare but there’s a magnetic force that keeps pulling him. He doesn’t realize he’s stopped responding to Ray until he says his name.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be distracted,” Patrick apologizes.
“Oh, that’s David Rose,” Ray says and Patrick can feel his cheeks heat up, “And Stevie Budd, she runs the motel. Do you want me to introduce you?” Ray asks, looking enthusiastic at the prospect.
“No, no,” Patrick shakes his head as he feels his face getting even more flushed.
“I’m sure you’ll meet them soon enough, David just bought the general store,” Ray explains, “It’s very surprising, I don’t think anyone expected it.”
“Oh?”
Ray nods, “Hopefully he does a better job than the last owners! I wonder if I should offer him my consulting services. For him I’d even offer a discount,” Ray muses allowed, while Patrick sneaks another glance.
Ray goes back to explaining his closet system and how it actually assists his photography business, or at least that’s what Patrick thinks he’s saying. He watches as Stevie and David collect their food from the friendly waitress at the counter. There’s a weird feeling of disappointment as he watches David disappear out the door, but he shakes it off. In a town this small, he’s bound to see him again.
& i. Ray’s house
One day David Rose walks into Ray’s house to file his incorporation papers.
“This is for you,” David says, handing the small slip of paper to the man Ray called over.
“Patrick,” he introduces himself and reaches out to shake David’s hand.
“David”, he responds.
It feels like the start of something.