Page 23 of Stroke of Fate

Oh, right.When I went after Bear, I told the guys I needed the restroom. They couldn’t have seen me talking to her from here.

“Yes, I washed my hands.” If I had gone to the bathroom, that is. “Now, will you let me eat in peace?” Without waiting for his reply, I grab another chip, and this time, it makes it to my mouth in one piece.

“Phew, thank fuck.” Mack releases a mix of a nervous laugh and a sigh. “Sorry, Levi, but Sam told us how disgusting public restrooms are. I’m talkingfecal bacteriadisgusting.”

“It’s true,” Sam jumps in, catching me up on the missed conversation. “My professor showed us a study about what stays on your hands if you don’t wash them. Gross stuff, man.” His face contorts like he’s caught a whiff of something awful.

I swallow what’s left in my mouth before responding. “Wait a minute, are you guys telling me you never washed your hands before, regardless of what's on them?”

A chorus of “Yes, of course!” rings out around me as I grab another chip and load it up with guac.

Man, this stuff is good.

“It’s just hearing it in scientific terms freaked us out,” Austin adds.

“Yeah, man, some of that data Sam was spewing had us worried, and then you came back and stuck your hand in my chip bowl,” Mack explains with a shudder.

“First, it’sourchip bowl. Second, I’m pretty sure even if I didn’t wash my hands, they’d still be cleaner than yours,” I say, pointing a finger at him. “I don’t even want to know who those fingers have been inside of.”

The table erupts in laughter, myself included. Mack gives me a light shove, but even his shoulders are shaking. Thankfully, we’re spared from more fecal talk when our main course arrives.

As expected, we eat until we’re stuffed. Once the check is settled, we head to the exit.

I linger behind the guys, trying to catch a glimpse of Bear, but like earlier, I don’t see her anywhere.

When we reach the parking lot, we go our separate ways—Austin and Sam pile into one car since they live on campus, and Mack catches a ride with them.

Inside my car, I tell myself to go home but make no move to drive away. If I go without apologizing to Bear, I’ll spend another night tossing and turning, thinking about her.

Who am I kidding? I’ll think about her regardless.

Another idea hits me. I quickly pull up Static’s website and find their hours at the bottom of the page. It’s less than an hour until closing.

The smart thing to do would be to drive away. I have training in the morning, but I can’t find the willpower to turn on the ignition.

Fuck it.

Mind made up, I lean back in my seat and get comfortable.

9 | BEAR

“How was your first night?” Macy asks, offering me a bottle of water from the mini-fridge.

We’re hanging out in the break room after finishing the closing shift. I take a sip of water, contemplating her question. Despite the fatigue catching up after a long night, I feel good about how things went.

“Not too bad, I think?”

“Yeah,” she says with a smile. “You did great, especially with the large crowd we had.”

As silly as it sounds, her praise makes me feel better, easing any lingering doubts about handling the pressure fade.

“I’m relieved that the first shift is over,” I admit.

It can only get easier from here, right?

“I’d say it’s the hardest shift, but you never know. We get some pretty wacky people who like to test your patience.”

Her words make me think of Sadie. She wasn’t wacky per se, but she was bitchy. I was relieved when she wasn’t seated at one of my tables.

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