Chapter Text
Burger with sweet onion aioli, fig jam, and arugula
Louise narrowed her eyes as she focused on the goal ahead of her. This was by far the hardest shot she had ever had to make in her life. She took a deep breath and flicked the paper football in her hand, sending it straight through the order window and the goalposts her partner held up.
"Scoooooooorre!" Zeke shouted, dashing around the kitchen and making trumpet sounds with his mouth.
Louise rolled her eyes at the fanfare, but let him continue as she wiped down the spotless counter of their restaurant. Tuesdays were normally slow, but today was worse than usual. They had yet to see a customer come in aside from one of their regulars, Millie.
The emptiness almost reminded her of when her parents ran the place. Almost.
In the years since Louise and Zeke had taken over, they had changed a lot. The restaurant sported a new coat of paint, better decor, an expanded space, and even a brand new menu thanks to Zeke.
There were of course still vestiges from when this was Bob's Burgers. The iconic red barstools, as well as the burger of the day, had managed to stick around.
Louise's mind wandered to the crazy adventures they had gotten wrapped up in as children, and she made a note to call her parents. It had been a couple days since they had talked, and her mother always told the stories best.
She was pulled out of her thoughts by Zeke coming to a coughing halt.
"Damn, I didn't think having the kids would wear me out this much," He wheezed.
"Oh come on," Louise said. "They don't get into nearly as much trouble as we did at their age."
"That must be from ya'll's side of the family. I was a perfect little angel."
Louise tsked as she glanced at the clock. They both knew he had been just as bad as the Belcher children.
"Big angel is more like it," she said under her breath.
"Ouch, that stings." Zeke placed a hand over his heart. "You know I'm extra sensitive when Tina ain't here."
Louise watched his theatrics unfold. Although he feigned being wounded, the mischievous glint never left his eyes.
"And besides, no one coulda been smaller than you."
"Could still kick your ass though." Louise replied, cracking her knuckles.
Zeke let out a hearty laugh. "Oh we all know that. You're the toughest Belcher there is… Don't tell T I said that."
Louise chuckled, satisfied. She found herself checking the time yet again.
As pleasant company as Zeke was, Louise was used to having more people around.
Her sister Tina normally sat in the restaurant to write her novels, though she also served as another form of entertainment for Louise. Today she unfortunately had a meeting that was keeping her away for far too long.
"How long does an editor meeting take anyways," she mumbled mostly to herself.
"C'mon, girl, don't be like that. She's gotta do work sometimes." Zeke said.
"Zeke, what did I say?" Louise narrowed her eyes at him.
He held his arms up in surrender. As her brother in law and long time business partner he knew exactly how to deal with her moods.
"Okay, okay. I get it, boss.“ he wriggled his eyebrows with the last word and sent them both bursting into laughter.
A chime at the door interrupted their antics, and Louise turned to greet their lone customer.
"Welcome to Louise's Burgers," she said with fake enthusiasm. "Sit wherever you'd like."
The man nodded, a smile gracing his lips as he removed his hat. He took his time looking around the restaurant, as if he had been here before, and Louise bristled slightly.
She hated being judged, especially by strangers, but she quickly calmed down. She reminded herself how much love and care she had put into the place, and if some random guy didn't like it then that was on him.
The more she looked at him, the more familiar he seemed. She definitely hadn't seen him in the restaurant before. She would have remembered him, but there was something about him that seemed familiar.
"No way!" Zeke's outburst pulled her out of her thoughts, giving her just enough time to move before he came barrelling out of the kitchen. "If it ain't ole regular-sized Rudy back from the big city. What're you doing here, boy?"
Louise's head snapped around. Of course this was Rudy. She easily recognized the awkward look on his face and the reddish brown hair now that Zeke was messing it up.
Zeke lifted him off the ground in a move reminiscent of his wrestling days, but Louise stood frozen behind the counter. She scowled at the scene in front of her. She had no idea why Zeke was so excited to see Rudy, none of them had talked in years.
Rudy left for New York immediately after high school, barely saying goodbye to her and the rest of their friends. She thought she'd never see him again. It wasn't like he made any effort to stay in touch. Louise shook her head, wondering why he even stopped by.
"Hello Zeke. Louise." Rudy managed, though a wheeze carried through the words. "I just finished next door, and I was thinking I could use some good food."
Zeke set the man down, clapping a hand on his shoulder. "Right, I heard your old man passed. How are you holding up?"
They waited for Rudy to pull out his inhaler and take a hit before responding. This seemed to be more physical activity than he was used to, meanwhile Louise finally took notice of his all black suit and the bags under his eyes. She silently cursed herself for not paying attention to the obituaries.
"We weren't close, but it still stings, you know?" Rudy shoved his inhaler in his pocket. "At least I get to eat at my favorite restaurant. That's something."
As he sat on one of the stools, Louise stopped herself from laying a hand over his. We aren't close anymore, she reminded herself, and he doesn't need hollow sympathy. And anyways I'm still mad at him.
"Well, what can we get for you?" She asked, pulling out a notepad and pushing her emotions to the back of her mind.
"The burger of the day, please."
"Alright. One Murder on the Caliente Express coming up. Do you still take no onions, double cheese?"
As he nodded she pulled the ticket and shoved it through the order window. "Zeke, do your job already."
"Aye, aye, boss!" He gave her a salute with his spatula before returning to the kitchen.
Louise shook her head. The man was mildly entertaining, but she truly had no idea what Tina saw in him.
Rudy coughed, bringing her attention back to him. Now that they were alone, she had no idea what to say. She grabbed the coffee pot as an excuse to do something with her hands. She wasn't sure how to comfort him, or if he'd even want that from her. It had been years since they were friends, and since then Louise had done her best to forget him.
What felt like half an hour passed as she started the pot of coffee and tried to remember how regular people had conversations.
"So, how've you been?" She finally asked. "How's the uh, city?"
"Oh, it's nothing special. Work is work, no matter what you're doing. Luckily they're letting me work remotely this week, though my hotel makes me wish I never left. The Ritz? More like the Pits."
A solemn "Wow," was all Louise could muster.
"Are you staying at the Ritz?" Zeke chimed in from the kitchen.
"Is there even a Ritz in town?"
"No, there's not. I'm at a motel."
"Kinda fell flat on that one, Rudy," Lousie said.
"I know." He quickly deflected, eager to change the subject. "What about you? I guess you run the restaurant now."
"Yeah, for a few years now. We run it together," She said, gesturing between herself and Zeke, who was poking his head through the order window.
"Oh yeah, I run the kitchen and Louise is the mastermind with the MBA." Zeke said.
"Zeke." Louise chided, her voice cold.
"Oh, where did you end up studying? I don't remember us talking about your plans back in high school." Rudy asked.
Louise bit back a retort. They hadn't discussed him leaving either, but it still happened. She took a second to organize her thoughts before speaking.
"Online, but I don't have a masters." Despite her glaring, Zeke seemed eager to continue the conversation. She crossed her arms as he spoke.
"You might as well have," He said, bypassing her altogether and turning his attention to Rudy. "She aced her classes and everything, Even got Fischoeder to pay for her classes by playing his intern for a while."
"I didn't play his intern, I was actually doing work. It's not my fault I can't talk about it."
"Was it that terrible?" Rudy asked.
"Not at all," She laughed. "Just... less than legal."
"Oh... Well I won't press then. I'd hate to end up on the bad side of the burger queen of crime."
Louise let out a dry laugh in response, though she found herself unable to continue the conversation. She idly wondered how they had such seamless banter as children. They were so close at one point, but by the time they had started high school they were already drifting apart. Rudy had begun to focus more on his grades while Louise... well Louise hadn't changed much.
"So I see you still have your ears." Rudy said.
"Yeah," Louise smiled, an old memory coming to mind. "I hate doing my hair, so I just keep it covered."
Rudy nodded in understanding, but Louise found herself yet again at a loss for words. Luckily Zeke had just finished cooking his burger and she could busy herself by passing the food along.
She watched him pick up his burger. Though she had been hard pressed to make conversation earlier she suddenly found herself unable to keep the words from coming out.
"I'm sorry. For your loss... by the way." She said, her face growing warm.
Rudy didn't say anything. He was frozen with his food halfway to his mouth. The silence only lasted a moment but it felt like much longer to Louise.
"Aww, big tough boss woman has a heart after all." Zeke teased from the kitchen, breaking the tension and pulling away Louise's attention.
"Hey! I don't pay you to listen to my conversations," She said, fire in her eyes. She turned to point at Rudy as well. "And if you tell anyone I will hunt you down and end you."
Rudy chuckled as the two continued to argue. As he ate, he suddenly realized just how much he had missed this place.