Page 7 of Jep

“What can we do to make it right?” Slate said, picking up the bottles and tools that had fallen on the floor. He was tall, but not as tall as Moses, and gangly. A wild mane of reddish-blonde hair sat heavier on one side than the other, and the same color stubble flecked across his cheeks and chin.

“How about you two stop wrecking my shop every time you have a disagreement?” Jep said. “Or is that too hard?”

“Why don’t you tell him what you said, Slate,” Moses said, squaring up to him again.

“Whoa.” Jep put a hand on Moses’s broad chest. At six-foot-six, he made Jep’s six-two look short. But Moses got overemotional in a fight, which added to his clumsiness. It was the reason Jep had easily taken him down when they’d first met. But it was that emotion that drew him to Moses. He had a big heart. He just didn’t know how to manage it.

“I didn’t say anything that wasn’t true,” Slate said. “You were leaving streaks. I’m not the one who’s terrible at my job.”

“Oh-ho, you’re the big man now with the boss standing between us,” Moses said.

“Hey,” Jep said. “I said enough. Slate, are you talking about that blue Escort?”

“Yeah,” Slate said. “He’s making a mess.”

“No kidding,” Jep said. “That’s the point. You guys are learning. All of you. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?” He looked at both the men. “Isn’t it?”

“Yes, sir,” they said in unison.

“But that doesn’t include wasting your paint because he’s not paying enough attention,” Slate mumbled.

“You let me worry about that.”

“I wasn’t wasting anything,” Moses sulked. “And I’m sorry I hit you, Boss.”

“I’m not worried about the paint or the punch. The whole point of you being here is to give you room to make mistakes so that, when you have a real customer, you do it right. And Slate, don’t make me bring up your work ethic when you first started here. I almost kicked you out, remember?”

Moses snickered until Jep gave him a look. “Sorry, Boss.”

“Maybe you two need to call it a day.”

“No, we’re cool,” Slate said. “We’re cool, right Moses?”

Moses stared him down. “I’m cool with Jep, not with you.”

“You could try apologizing,” Jep said to Slate.

Slate started fidgeting, and Moses waved a hand at him. “You know what? Forget it. I’m outta here. Jep, thank you for everything you’ve done. But I don’t have to put up with this.”

“Moses, wait,” Jep said. But he didn’t. “Moses.” Jep caught up with him at the door and followed him out. “You’re not really leaving.”

“I can’t stand that guy. You want me to stay? Get rid of him.”

“I’m not getting rid of Slate. Take tonight to think about it. You won’t find another opportunity like this, and you know it.”

“Maybe it was a mistake to take you up on your offer in the first place.”

“It wasn’t.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I know what your other options were. You really want to go back to jail?” When Moses didn’t look convinced, Jep added, “You can’t tell me that the guys you run with out there are easier to deal with than Slate.”

“Some of them are.”

“Anywhere you go, you’ll meet people who are difficult. The best thing you can do is learn to deal with it without flying off the handle. Why do you think I put you on with Slate in the first place? I knew you guys would butt heads.”

“You did that on purpose?”

---