Ocean offered Johnny a permanent job after his first night, meaning he got equal amounts of shifts as Kai and Brett. He worked every Friday and Saturday night and one night in the week after college. He was a popular dancer with the customers right from the start.
He'd got on well with Brett since that first day when he'd shown him around. Throughout the first night, Brett had kept going over to him and checking in, making sure he was doing okay and making sure he was keeping hydrated. Dancing was thirsty weekend it was often easy to forget to get a drink.
Already a week had gone by and he felt like he'd been doing it for years. He'd also made a friendship with Brett that usually took years to develop. They had a similar sense of humour and really seemed to click.
After Johnny's first shift, Brett had asked if he wanted to go to Basement for a few drinks. He felt such a successful night needed celebrated. Johnny accepted the offer and they'd carried on drinking until the early hours of the morning.
All his inhibitions had gone and he didn't even mind dancing in the window. It was dark, so it was unlikely that anyone he knew outside the fay scene would be out on the streets.
Jade and Milo came to see him on his ae ond weekend. He was more comfortable after a week, so didn't mind them coming. He'd thought it .ight be strange having his girlfriend watcj8him.dance on a bar. But it wasn't anything she hadn't seen before. He'd bee naked in front of her more time than he could count. It was just a different setting.
After midnight, Jack, Ali, Jade and Milo left him o it and went to Essential.
'You coming to meet us there later?' Jade asked him.
'I'll probably just go home after my shift if you don't mind. I came here straight after a day at work and I'm pretty knackered.'
'Sure, that's fine.'
Jade wanted to kiss her boyfriend as she always did when they left each other, but she knew she couldn't. Johnny had explained the situation to her. she knew that he hadn't 'come out' as being straight to his colleagues yet and she didn't want to put his job at risk.
'I'll call you tomorrow,' he said.
'Okay.'
Jade left with her friends. Johnny hot back on the bar to finish the last hour of his shift.
Tramps stayed busy the rest of the evening. at one Ocean called last orders, but it was after half one before the last person was out. Johnny sat down at the bar and took a long drink of his water.
Brett came out through the doors from the back, fully dressed ready to go out after.
'You coming to Essential?' Brett asked him.
'Nah, I'm knackered,' said Johnny. 'I'm heading home.'
'Come on,' said Brett, 'I want to hang out with you.'
'Maybe next week,' said Johnny.
Brett looked at him. An idea entered his mind.
'You smoke weed?' said Brett.
Do the bears shit in the woods?
'Yeah,' said Johnny.
'I've just got some great new stuff,' said Brett. 'We could go and have a smoke if you wanted?'
As tired as Johnny was, he was never too tired for that.
'Okay sure,' said Johnny.
'Great, get dressed and we'll go.'
'Where are we going?'
'You'll see.'
They walked for about fifteen minutes. The further they got away from Soho, the quieter it got. They walked through a council estate. Johnny had no idea where they were going until they got to a large wire fence. Brett pushed at the door, which easchsined up, but opened enough for them to slip through it.
'Should we be in here?' said Johnny.
'It's fine,' said Brett. 'Nobody ever comes here.'
'What is this place?'
'It's an abandoned piece of land,' said Brett. 'I think someone bought it to build flats on it, but they ran out of cash so it's just gone to ruin.'
'So why have you brought me here?'
'Because it's the most peaceful place in the city. Nobody ever comes here, except for me.'
Brett walked on ahead and Johnny followed him. In front of them was a wreck of an old car, that looked like it hadn't been driven in months.
'Come on,' said Brett, as he put his foot on the bonnet and m got up on top of the car.
'Is that safe?' said Johnny.
'It's fine, I sit up here all the time.'
Brett held out his hand. Johnny took hold of it and was pulled up on to the top of the car.
'Lie down,' said Brett.
'Why?'
'Just do it.'
Johnny was worried. He still had t told Brett he was straight, so wondered if this whole trip had been so he could be seduced.
But he did as Brett said and laid down on the hard roof of the car. But as he looked up to the sky, he could see what Johnny meant. It was so dark that the stars were brighter than he'd ever seen them before.
'Wow!' he said.
'See what I mean?' said Brett.
'It's amazing.'
'It's because there's no light pollution out here, so you can see them clearer.'
Brett took a joint out and lit it up. He took a toke on it, then handed it to Johnny.
'Thanks,' said Johnny.
They lay between to each other in silence, taking it in turns with the joint and staring up to the stars.
'You not going to the club?' said Johnny.
'I'd rather just hang free with you,' said Brett.
'Cool.'
So that's what they did. It was a warm evening, so they took off their jackets and used them as pillows. They stopped for a couple more hours, lying side by side, smoking, talking and laughing. It was quite a novelty for Johnny. Usually, when he smoked weed with his friends, they played video games and didn't talk all that much. It felt good chatting and enjoying spending time with a friend without the distraction of a large screen TV.
It was exactly the way he wanted to unwind after his shift, after his first week in a job he never thought he'd do.
'Can we come here again?' said Johnny.
'Sure,' said Brett. 'We could make it out place.'
'Yeah. I think it's the perfect place to unwind after a shift.'
They finished the joint, so Brett sat up to roll another one. Suddenly he felt his emotions build up and come out. He'd been so busy with work, that he'd tried to keep certain feelings he'd been having build up. He wasn't really one to cry, but he'd had his heart broken recently and felt like he was in a safe place with Johnny.
Johnny noticed his new friend was crying and sat up too.
'What's the matter?' he said, putting his arm around his shoulder.
'Oh, nothing, om being stupid. Ignore me,' said Brett.
'Well, it obviously isn't nothing if it's made you feel like this. Come on, you can tell me,' said Johnny.
'I was dumped last week,' said Brett.
'Ah man, that sucks,' said Johnny. 'How long had you been with him?'
'Well, it's them actually. I was dating two guys who were a couple.'
'What happened?'
'They decided three's a crowd and that they wanted to be a two again. we'd been together as a three for just over a year.'
'I'm sorry mate. I broke up with my...with someone last year. I know how it feels.'
He decided not to mention it was a girl and they'd got back together since.
'Well fuck 'em,' said Brett. 'That's the last time I'll ever get attached to someone and let them hurt me.
Johnny kept his arm over Brett's shoulder and they looked up st the stars.