AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thanks,” he signed, his weak fingers tipping from his chin.
Ravi smiled at him as he knelt down beside the bed. “I’m going to get you some crêpes before the shop closes. I’ll leave them in your mini fridge.”
Bodhi frowned deeply, his finger moving off his forehead twice.For-for?
Ravi rolled his eyes, but the expression on his face was fond. “Because you’re exhausted, and I know you’re gonna wake up hungry, and you’re going to want one of your safe foods. Come get me after class tomorrow and I’ll head into the café with you. You can introduce me to the boss.”
That burning trepidation was back again because Bodhi wasn’t sure he was strong enough to see the look of happiness on Caleb’s face once he realized that Ravi was nothing like him. But needs must.
“Tomorrow,” he signed. His eyes slipped shut and he felt Ravi give his cheek a small kiss before he stood up. Bodhi tried to feel for the vibrations of the door closing, but before Ravi was gone, he was out.
* * *
Bodhi wished he was more surprised when they walked up to the front doors of the café and saw no crowd, the lights off, and a sign on the door telling the public that they had to close for the afternoon. In spite of the fact that Bodhi had nothing to do with what happened, he felt oddly guilty. Like being part of the generation of people who were responsible for Caleb’s public humiliation and reluctant celebrity made him part of the problem.
He told himself that was ridiculous, but that didn’t convince his brain otherwise.
Pressing his face to the glass, he narrowed his eyes and waited, and eventually he saw movement beyond the swinging kitchen doors. He turned to his brother and shrugged. “Someone’s here. Let’s go in through the back.”
Ravi nodded and followed along closely as they slipped through the alley and headed for the service entrance. As he came around the massive dumpster, he saw Luke, Ananda, and Michael standing guard on the stoop. They were in animated conversation, moving at Deaf speed to the point Bodhi couldn’t follow.
He shrank in on himself, but his brother leaned in close to his ear and said aloud, “They’re talking about running out of food and coffee.”
Bodhi’s face burned but he nodded all the same and jerked his head for his brother to follow. The moment Luke noticed someone coming, he immediately went on guard until he saw who it was. Their hands stilled and Ananda leaned against the railing.
“I’m sorry! I forgot to text you to tell you not to come in.”
Bodhi shrugged and waved her off. “It’s fine. This is my brother, Ravi.” He spelled his name, then offered his name sign. “I told Caleb I’d bring him by since we need more help. Is he here?”
Luke shook his head. “No. He’s still hiding out at Jori’s. But Wren’s in the office.”
Bodhi turned to explain to Ravi who those people were, but Ravi was clearly following the conversation because he was nodding along with his hand in front of him.Peh-peh.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Ravi signed after, then offered his fist for a bump. Bodhi tried not to pay attention to the fluid way his brother’s hands moved, or the look of surprise on everyone’s faces because he knew they were all thinking the same thing.Those two are twins? What the fuck is wrong with Bodhi?
“Go on in,” Luke said, smiling gently.
Bodhi hunched his shoulders and moved past the group, glancing back just once to make sure Ravi was with him. He felt a small measure of relief that he wasn’t going to have to face Caleb today, but it wouldn’t last. Eventually, Caleb would work through his anxiety about coming into work, and then he’d throw himself into it the way he always did until the chaos died down.
And that tiny, microscopic flicker of hope that Caleb might like him one day would fizzle into nothing the second he met Ravi.
He took a breath, then tapped the button on the side of the office door, watching the lights flicker before he turned to his brother. “Wren grew up like us. He has CIs and was in hearing school. Didn’t learn sign until later, when Caleb introduced him to the Deaf community.”
“So why is Caleb such a dick toyou?” Ravi asked.
Before Bodhi could answer, he saw movement in his periphery and his cheeks flamed when Wren grinned. “Because my brother’s whole personality is a dick,” he answered with flippant, slow hands. “What’s up, Bodhi? Didn’t Ananda text you that we closed?”
Bodhi tried not to take it personally that he was forgotten. Again. “No, but that’s okay. Yesterday I told Caleb I’d bring my brother by since we could use the extra help. He works at the café on campus, but he’s got space for part time hours.”
“A little bit,” Ravi clarified with a grin as he walked into the office, Bodhi trailing behind him. He shook Wren’s hand, then dropped into the empty chair like he’d been hanging out in the office his entire life. “I’m happy to help, though.”
Bodhi couldn’t decipher the look on Wren’s face, but he was hyper-aware of the way Wren kept looking between them, like he was trying to solve a puzzle. The attention was making Bodhi’s stomach feel fluttery, so he leaned back against the wall behind the door with his arms crossed.
Wren seemed to take the hint and he turned his attention back to Ravi as he began the standard interview questions. His hands moved slowly at first, the way he always did when he talked to Bodhi, but the faster Ravi signed, the more Wren echoed him until Bodhi was losing the thread.
He swallowed against a dry throat as the pair of them laughed, Wren almost losing it at Ravi’s easy sense of humor.
“You’re hilarious. I like you.”
