Page 17 of Cosmo

“It happened to the first couple guys Murphy had here, including Eazy. If you ever think it’s not a big deal, ask him about it. I wear Gold Rush with pride now, but prefer Goldie,” he said with a deep, resounding chuckle.

“Gold Rush? That’s a drink?”

“Sure! Hypnotic, Haze, as in Purple Haze, Absinthe, all of them are drinks or liquors. Murphy thought of it, and it’s a good idea. We also like to have us be different colors, like a rainbow. It’s easier to keep up with us. Our files and everything are under our colors. Mine is yellow or gold, yours is red, and so on.”

“I get it. Makes sense and it’s a little less dull than, say, Blondie and Baldy.”

“Hey,” he shouted, laughing. “I’m not actually bald!”

“Are you kidding? Bald guys are fire.”

Goldie winked at him, and Liam swooned a little. “Stop that flirting,” Goldie warned.

“Right. Right, right.”

Goldie spent the afternoon showing him things, including the tablet that brought up drinks he didn’t know how to make, which was most of them.

“This saved all of us, but it’s best to practice on your weekday nights. Even come in while one of the others is working during the week. Once you get in a groove, it comes almost naturally.”

Goldie seemed confident that he could learn, but Liam wasn’t as confident. There were thousands of drinks. When the old men came in, Mick soon joined them, and they all drank dark beer and told old stories of their youth. It was a good, slow day andGoldie had him take the tablet to his room that night to look through the drinks.

Everything under the sun was in there, and yes, all colors and drinks that had no color at all, like classic martinis. He’d heard of them, of course, but had never had one and didn’t know what the hell vermouth was.

Still, he remembered the drinks Goldie told him they got orders for most, and he had a few of them memorized before he fell asleep that night.

The next morning, he went to the gym in the basement and got in a workout before heading up to the kitchen to get coffee and something to eat. Just as he was opening the fridge, Eazy came into the room and said, “The eggs and bacon are everyone’s, but I need you to make me a list of what you need today. I’m heading to the store in an hour.”

“What I need?”

“Sure! Personal care like shampoo, deodorant, and make sure it’s good. You really work up a sweat on the weekends. Um, foods you like, fruits, bread, cereal, whatever. You can buy your own once you get your pay, but for now, I’ll get what you need.”

“Thanks. I…I’ll make a list.”

“And come by later. You can see the kids. We like the guys to get to know them, so they aren’t scared of the new people.”

Kids were another thing that brought up terrible memories. But, for the time being…

“Sure. I’ll head up after I eat and shower.”

“Okay, great. Everyone marks their food with these,” Eazy said as he pulled out one of the kitchen drawers in the last cabinet. “Here,” he said as he handed them to Liam.

Liam took them and saw they were circular stickers. Three colors, red, purple, and green. “Goldie told me everything was color coded here.”

“Five or six guys, we had to have some organization,” Eazy said with a laugh. “I hope you don’t hate red. You’ll see it a lot.”

“No, it’s fine.”

“Good. When I bring your stuff for the bathroom and kitchen, stick one of these stickers on it. You guys know what’s yours, sure, but this helps. When you live with a lot of other people, anything that can keep arguments at bay is a good thing.”

That was smart. The entire setup was smart. He admired them, even if he wanted little to do with them. “Okay, I’ll use the stickers.”

Eazy eyed him for a minute, then moved to the stools and waved him over. In no mood for a lecture, he went unwillingly, but he had to keep up good will until he found a way out.

“Listen, Liam, I get it. This is…a lot. Murphy was a kid that got into a lot of trouble. He needs to help others that have lost their way, I guess. And no, it’s not all charity. In fact, it’s not charity at all. He will expect things, hard work being one. But, for now, it’s a lot, and you’re not expected to just jump on board immediately.”

For some reason, that made him feel much better. Eazy’s voice was like his name, easy and calming. “You must be a wonderful dad.”

“I’ve been told that, but I’ve never felt good at it. A lot of times, I’m struggling to do things right.”

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