Chapter Text
April is a pretty shitty month. One thing England is good for, rain. One thing April is good for, rain. April in England means, more rain. It's almost as if Mother Nature just wants to rinse the dirty city of London from its...dirt for lack of a better word. The pounding rain seems to dampen the emblematically noisy streets of downtown London. It could be poetic, if it didn't mess with Louis' plans for boarding. Thus, Louis had to find other ways to spend his time.
“You have to get a job” Stan says while he bandages Louis' knee. “I don't mind that you don't pay your share of the rent, you just need something to do instead of literally killing yourself of boredom.” he finishes.
“Stan, we have already spoken about this. My secondary school education does not get me very far. I'm still waiting for a sugar daddy to pick me up.” Louis says as a matter-of-fact. Stan just gives him a look as if to say really? while putting a finishing touch to Louis' spider man band-aid, it's a common look between them.
“Well until that works out, I think that you should get a small job that could keep you out of the house” Stan suggests.
“You want to get rid of me so easily!” Louis whines ending with a pout on his face and his wide eyes.
This conversation happens about every time Louis hurts himself while goofing off. This time he decided to test out his hand-railing skills with his skateboard. It didn't end well.
“There we go, good as new. I think I might get you some padding before you try out your skateboard again.” Stan says as he stands up. This earns an eye-roll from Louis.
“Thanks, dad. I'll be sure to check with you next time I want to have any type of fun” Louis states, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Stan ignores Louis, as per usual, and heads toward the kitchen to put away the first aid kit, not used in just emergencies anymore.
Louis hops off of the dining table and runs to the living room. He hops onto the couch and grabs a controller is about to turn on the TV when he spots something. “Stan! In this day and age there are still newspapers!?” Louis shouts behind him as he picks up the wad of papers.
“I found it in front of our door this morning. Must be one of those free ones.” Stan shouts back, the sound of the stove turning on can be heard. He must be making tea. “Make sure you make me my Yorkshire!” Louis shouts back. “Milk and no sugar” Stan shouts automatically.
Louis looks back at the paper and sees right in front of his eyes an eye-catching advertisement.
YOUNG WORKER WANTED AT STYLES' BAKERY/NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED
MUST BE OVER 18
Louis reads the ad with renewed excitement. He hasn't been able to find a job since they laid him off at Pound-Land for arriving late to work one too many times. Not too many places want to hire a scruffy man with tattoos and only a secondary education. It's not his fault he decided to take a road trip instead of uni. Stan decided not to join him and ended up with a Master's in Psychology and a solid job at Gordon Psych. When Louis eventually came back with more tattoos and less hair, Stan took him into his London flat with open arms. It's good to know that a friend in need is your friend indeed. Speaking of, “Stan! I think I found my next job!” Louis shouts.
Stan walks in with two mugs of tea. He sets one of them down in front of Louis and leans back with his arms on the back of the couch. “Styles' Bakery...that's the one two blocks from our flat. I haven't seen too much activity in there, it seems pretty sketchy that you don't need any experience to work there. You sure you want to do this?” Stan asks, his paternal tone taking over.
“It's in the paper, it has to be trustworthy. Plus, it's so close and you know I hate the tube. It's like the ad was written just for me.” Louis defends with the paper close to his chest. It's pretty obvious that Stan has already given up and Louis runs over his room to change.
Louis stands in front of his closet with his hands on his hips. All of his clothes seem too unprofessional, but a job at a bakery doesn't sound like a very professional job to begin with. Louis decides on a grey jumper that he “accidentally” bought three sizes too big and black skinnies with white vans. He looks at himself in the mirror and figures that a bakery can't not hire him based on his messy hair. With one final look, he heads toward the front door. Stan is waiting with an umbrella in his hand. Louis nods at him and grabs the umbrella and keys.
“Don't talk to strangers.” Stan says as Louis walks out.
“Only if they're hot.” Louis throws behind him. He closes the door behind him and heads toward the stairs, they swear that they're going to fix the elevator.
The rain only seems to increase when Louis walks out of his complex. It almost seems like a sign for Louis to stay at home, good thing that Louis is extremely oblivious. His umbrella does its job for about three meters before it all goes to shit. His umbrella flips inside out with a strong gust of wind, his phone is knocked out of his hand with the force of it, and the rain pours all over his person. Now drenched and looking like a wet cat, Louis marches over to the small bakery.
The building is squeezed between empty stores and has an overall creepy vibe. The sign is red and reads “Styles' Bakery” with the “ry” not glowing. The paint on the building is peeling back to reveal brick with green ivy growing on the corners and sides. The only windows on the building appear to be two stories up and the double doors look like they haven't been opened in years. Louis hesitates before deciding to go inside through the double doors.
The interior is uncharacteristically bare for a bakery. The tiled floor is dusty and matches well with the dirty tables and dusty, mismatched armchairs. The only light in the room being hanging lamps above the sales counter. The staffing area looked at least a little cleaner. The display case showed different cakes, muffins, and cookies that looked surprisingly delicious considering their dwelling.
Louis' examination is soon interrupted by the sound of a door opening. Louis looks up to see a man the same height as him walk toward him. The man has blonde-dyed hair with obvious brunette roots and a scowl on his face.
“Umm...hi?”