His Wild Blue Air

Day 19

"Don't tell me sorry," John interjected before he could get a word in. Ethan halted and then tried again but, "Don't tell me it won't happen again."

Ethan did a slight head tilt, lips pressed into a thin line. He cocked his brows, quietly asking John what he wanted him to say. 

John crossed his arms and Ethan tried really hard to not look at the way his arms just beefed up with the stiff biceps he possessed. "You need to remember that you're not in America. You're here. You don't own a company here. You're under my employment."

"I know. And I'm sorry. I just lost track of time," Ethan uttered his first words since he entered the supermarket. "And seeing that I'm already late, how about you keep your anger to yourself right now and let me change?" 

John grumbled but jerked his heads towards the locker room. Ethan sidled past the man in a hurry and didn't waste time to spin the dial of his locker and change into his work uniform before emerging again. As Ethan had expected but hoped he would not, John was standing outside waiting. He released a long-suffering sigh and braced himself for the tongue lashing.

"You two need to get ahold of your sex drive, man," John said.

Ethan winced. "It just happened."

"Doesn't it always?"

"I mean, have you seen Skylar?" John threw him a baffled look, as if he couldn't believe that Ethan had actually asked that question. Ethan drew back. "Of course you don't. You love your wife very much."

"Yes, I do."

Ethan then threw a hand in his direction, in the action of emphasizing his following point. "And I love Skylar very much. I mean, you must understand a man's needs sometimes. Especially in the morning."

"But I don't appear late to work. And that sounds sexist."

"Oh come on!" 

"Look," John said, displaying an understanding small smile, "I get it. You and Skylar are in the budding stages of a relationship that won't last." Ethan tensed at that. John only raised his brows and lowered his head. "It's true, man. She's not gonna do a long-distance relationship. She's not a risk taker. She's taken enough risk being in a relationship with you, knowing that it wouldn't last."

"John," Ethan enunciated in a tone full of warning.

"I don't appreciate it when the people who work for me are not responsible. Yes, you can have sex as much as you want just as long as you are responsible, which you're on time to work. Otherwise, there's no point in keeping you in my employment."

"You know I don't even need this job, right?"

"Do you really want go there?"

"No."

"Good. Now get to work."

Ethan walked away immediately without one last look, still seething in his chest at John's insensitive but honest words. He decided that standing behind the cashier till today wouldn't do because he had too much pent up energy left, so he chose to do some heavy lifting. He didn't stop climbing up ladders to lift heavy boxes up or down. Either way, he managed to channel his energy somewhere not violent. 

When he was sure that he wouldn't punch John the next time he saw the man, he began to look for him. He found John monitoring one of the trainees at the cashier till, coaching on the operations of the machine. John met his eyes across the room and he made a gesture of needing to talk. John nodded subtly, holding one finger up. 

Ethan went back into the aisles, waiting for John. More than one minute later, John appeared. "What?"

"I'm taking Skylar out on a date tonight," Ethan blurted, rubbing his fingers repeatedly by his sides - signs of nervousness.