Oliver Thorton

Benjamin saw this boy again. He could not place where he had seen such beautiful eyes at first. The memory simply eluded him. But he knew that he had seen that boy somewhere before.

He had been running late for work. For once in his life, Benjamin did not wake before his alarm clock. And just his luck, it had not been set up the night before! He had to skip the wash and have a protein bar as he sped down the road. He would still be late.

No one could have been more shocked than Edward. Normally his son would arrive thirty minutes early to work, never late. His shirt had thankfully been pressed the night before. 
It was as he was walking through the doors; somehow he had managed to be blind to the person ahead of him. He had knocked the poor guy to the ground.

Oliver was not too pleased himself. He had a work meeting with his boss – for reasons he was not sure of – and he only had three minutes to spare. He did not need to be knocked to the cold ground by a complete stranger. A beautiful stranger.

Benjamin began apologizing profusely. He brought a hand out to help the person up. That was when he looked up himself. He was met by those stunning sea green eyes and the voluminous lips. He wanted to get lost in them. He had seen them somewhere before. But where?

Oliver was captivated simply by the man’s beauty in front of him. He was so muscular and rugged. His face was strong and set. His eyes were warm and chocolate, yet he exuded power. He wanted to know this person. Those thoughts scared him. He had not wanted to know someone since Carter. And look where that got him.

All thoughts of Carter effectively lead Oliver from his trance. He let the stranger’s hand go and politely explained that he was late for a meeting.

It was then that Benjamin realized that he was late for work! Of all things to be late for! But he held the door open, like the gentleman that he was.

He spent the rest of his shift sneaking glances at the boy; wondering where he had seen him before.



His boss was a disgusting man. He had ordered the duck – which Oliver sincerely hoped that he would not have to pay for – and spent the entire first half shovelling it into his face and speaking with his mouth open. Oliver chewed slowly on his beef. He had lost his appetite quite a while ago.

“But like I was saying,” He had a northern accent. “These past six months that we’ve given you this promotion have been really beneficial for the shop. Customers are reporting being happier with management and staff and you’ve really stepped up.” His double chins moved when he spoke. “I don’t know why I didn’t think of you before.”

Six months. That would make Johanna six months pregnant…with his son. They had found out not too long ago. James and Oliver celebrated all day and well into the next morning. Oliver would have a son. Someone who would look up to him. And want to be with him. He would be his hero. And he would not have to explain periods or buy tampons!

“…And then my wife started bitchin’ at me for something I didn’t even do.” The point of the meeting quickly got lost somewhere in Oliver’s mind. He just wanted to get back home and spend the rest of his afternoon rubbing Johanna’s belly and speaking to his son.

And then his mind quickly shifted to his sore ankle. That man had thrown him to the ground with tremendous force. But oh my, was he beautiful. And Oliver had seen him run into the back. He worked here. How quaint. Oliver had never been to this restaurant. He had never been able to afford this restaurant. He was still not sure if he could. Hopefully his boss is not a cheap man. And he ordered the most expensive item on the menu…he better not be a cheap man.

But the stranger! Oliver wondered who he was and what he was doing. Did he find Oliver attractive? And he could have hit himself. Had he not had an ounce of self-control he might have. Why did Oliver care? The last man he was with had abused him and he was now in prison! And yet, Oliver was still not sure if he was completely over Carter yet… In fact, he had an appointment with the man. Later that week.

James, of all people, had been the one who recommended this. He felt as though Oliver still needed closure. And he would not get such by staying as far away from his ex as possible. James would stay home with Johanna – who had been spending a tremendous amount of time at the flat as of late.

Then again, so have James’s string of lovers.

Oliver was brought from his thoughts by the boisterous laughter from across the table. He forced his own chuckle and hoped for the night to end. Sooner rather than later.

And he caught the man’s eye again. He had simply been looking to the concierge when he noticed that the same man had been speaking to him. They looked over at the same time. He was a chef. So very obvious with the high toque on his light chocolate locks. A handsome man who could cook? When did this happen anymore in this day and age?

They stared at each other. For a long while actually. Oliver wanted to know what the man was thinking. In fact, he wanted to know what he himself was thinking…His mind was everywhere and yet nowhere at the same time. He was thinking of his current state of boredom; how handsome this man was; how wonderful the food tasted; what were Johanna and James up to...why was the sky blue and the grass green? Random, fleeting thoughts…

And the man broke eye contact; he had to return to the back to work. Oliver had to hide his disappointment. Why was he disappointed? He had no right. His boss would not shut up. How much more could the fat man shovel down his gullet before he exploded? Had he not been paying Oliver’s bills…he almost would have asked.

The meeting ended with no more sight of the stranger – much to Oliver’s dismay. Also to his dismay, he had to pay for the meal…the entire meal. The enormous man in front of him did not even make a flinching move towards his wallet when the bill came and simply stood and stretched. Oh the things Oliver would like to say to the man. But no; he was being taken advantage of and there was nothing he could do about it.

And Oliver’s car had broken down two weeks before; thankfully James had two – for the simple reason of wanting to own two cars – and allowed Oliver to take one for his errands when need be. He disliked asking James for this service, so used his vehicle as least as he possibly could. This meant that he took transit to work every morning. Goodness he hated transit, so much. He strongly believed that operators needed a course on how to arrive at the designated stops on time.

So the young man arrived home irritated and quite ready for bed. He did not need to see James on the couch heavily making out with his chosen lady for the night. Where was Johanna? She rarely left the flat to sleep in her own for the night. Perhaps she had left when the blonde tramp arrived and began moaning. It was more than Oliver’s eyes could handle himself.

No, she had hidden herself in his bedroom, pyjamas on, book in one hand, tea in the other. She smiled brightly at the sight of the man. Oliver wished for his son to have Johanna’s looks; she was quite the beautiful young woman. Or at least for him to have her bright blue eyes.

“How did the meeting go? Get a raise for being awesome?”

Oliver threw himself down beside her with a groan in response. He just wanted to crawl into bed and never wake. And he had work the next morning. Perfect; seeing that man yet again.

“Kill me. Kill me now. I hate my job and I hate my life!”
Johanna released a wind chime of a laugh.

“Someone’s being a bit dramatic, no?” She waited for a response. Nothing came. “What happened? You didn’t get fired did you?”

A loud sigh came from Oliver. He turned himself onto his back, eyes trained to the ceiling.

“No, but the man is such a greedy pig. Orders the most expensive item on the menu, scarfs it all down like it’s his last meal and then makes me pay for the whole thing. He didn’t even try to even pretend to forget his wallet at home or anything!” Another sigh. “And to top it all off, I think I fell in love with a man I don’t even know. He knocked me down to the floor when we were both running for the door – because stupid James made me late – and he was…the most beautiful creature I have ever seen. And he’s a chef there! A chef! A man who knows how to cook!”

Johanna let out another airy laugh.

“What restaurant did you say you went to again?”
Oliver needed a solid five minutes to remember the name.

“Maiden voyage or something like that.”

“Maiden fog, you mean? The man you’re speaking of happens to be Benjamin Hobson. He’s the head chef, his father owns the place. He’s the only good looking male there, other than his father – who aged well – but that’s off limits.” Oliver could have shot off the bed. She knew this man? She knew his name? Did this mean that she had slept with him? Oh goodness! He’s straight!? Oh no! “Don’t worry, I never slept with him, he’s as gay as they come, but he’s a sweetheart. Our parents knew each other from post-secondary or something of the sort.”

Oliver immediately perked.

“So you can introduce us? And we can get married and have beautiful children together?”

“You’re already having a beautiful child!”
Oliver rolled his eyes, and jumped over the bed to answer the ringing telephone.

“Hello, Oliver Thorton speaking.”

“I know you haven’t told mum and dad, Oli; you can’t put this off any longer.” Thomas.

The brothers had been speaking more often since the news of the baby. Thomas made an effort to call at least twice a week. He had not yet been able to make a trip down, but he had gone to see their parents over the holidays. It was currently April, therefore Thomas should be writing final exams and getting ready to leave school for the four months of break. He should be there for the birth.
 But Oliver did not want to be reminded of his parents. He knew that they needed to know about this. But would they even care? Would that change their perception of their son? Yes, for the worst. They would wish more than ever that he was more like his brother. But it was not as if Oliver would be asking them for financial support. He had made that mistake once and swore to never do it again. Not after the response he received last time.

“I know Tom, and I will…soon.”
He could hear his brother sigh on the other end. How many times had Oliver said that line?

“You have been saying that since you found out that Johanna was pregnant. How is she, by the way? You two are still good?”

So Oliver never told his brother that Johanna had been a one night stand. Again, he did not wish to be judged by someone who was so obviously better than him. He did not know what he would tell Thomas when Johanna all of a sudden disappeared from their lives, though. He did not wish for her to be viewed in ill light, because she was an amazing person in his eyes. But how could he go about doing this?

“She’s good and the baby is good. We had another ultrasound a few days ago. He’s getting big.” Oliver could not stop the smile that was blossoming on his face as his hand found Johanna’s round stomach. A small smile rose on her lips as she too placed a hand on her belly. It would hurt her too much to let her son go.

“Well seeing as I doubt you’ll be telling mother and father anytime soon, I might have to take measures into my own hands.” He continued before Oliver could protest. “My last exam is tonight, then I will be coming back home.” So what was he saying…? “Expect me in a few days’ time.”