The Way Back | ✓

5.5

London wanted to speak up then, wanted to seize the moment but there was no moment to seize. The moment had passed when she had paused and Gabby had dismissed her enthusiasm for working in this restaurant as she tossed her an apron. It made the bitter feelings in London rise up again and though anger was slowly brewing within, there was nothing she could say back to her boss. She wanted to stay in Gabby's good graces, after all, especially if she was vying for that promotion.

The other staff soon arrived and London delegated out jobs on who was to get what sorted. The kitchen was abuzz with the speculation of who this special guest was and what was so special about them that they rented out the entire restaurant and London also too wondered about it, but what dominated her thoughts was that fucking promotion and she had failed to seize the moment.

Gabriella was a good boss, always giving you opportunities to improve but if she didn't like what she saw she would fire you without a second thought. This kitchen was like her baby and if anything were to happen to that baby, she'd lose her shit. It had happened once and London had no intention of ever witnessing such atrocity ever again.

The restaurant had shut down for two days that week and it was the worst two days the employees had ever experienced, having been under intense speculation and investigation.

It did not matter that Gabriella was not the owner of Tollerz. She was the head chef and without the person who ran the kitchen, Tollerz was nothing. Nobody could take her place and London didn't think she'd fit Gabby's shoes anyway — could anybody live up to her legacy? — but London did yearn for more. She wanted to be sous chef, and maybe move onto a different place of work and be head chef there.

She dreamed of running her own kitchen.

Oh, how surreal that would all be.

She sat at the back of the kitchen, gulping down some water and scrolling through her phone. A message from Chris. It was sent the night before but London had missed it, having indulged in rather pleasurable activities back at Andrew's place. She hadn't checked her phone even as she rushed home and got dressed for today.

The message held a surprise.

Her heart accelerated and joy took over her senses when the words of his text finally sank in. There was a job offer and Chris had recommended London and they want her to call in to place her bid on the job. For head chef.

Her heart stopped for a millisecond.

Then it did a double take.

And then she could barely breathe.

It was not like her panic attacks but it held something familiar. The short breaths, the rush beneath her veins so she forced the excitement down to prevent herself from hyperventilating. She tried to regain control of her breathing and when she did, she leaned back on her chair, her heart returning back to its normal pace as a wide grin took over her lips.

Chris: trust me, you want this job. call them!

London reread both of Chris' message. She decided to take his advice and with a deep breath, she called.

The restaurant was all rented out by Christian Devoe, a man who was notoriously famous for the movies he acted in, for the books he wrote, for his almost-marriages. He was a scandalous man but nobody had caught wind of him for the last six months.

"Holy shit, the legend is still alive," breathed one of her coworkers, peeping out through the kitchen. "And he's in our restaurant!"

London Liang understood the appeal to Christian Devoe. He was handsome, as handsome as a white man could get these days anyway, he held a charisma to him that just pulled people in. He was photogenic, his writing was excellent and his acting was brilliant. If there was a thing he was horrible at, the internet had yet to dig it up.