[That lack of any social media had made Jason's presence on the app so suspicious that Edward had been certain the younger man was running some kind of scheme at first. Being less active than Edward himself was one thing, but to have no footprint at all - without being some old man or wealthy recluse? It was suspicious. After that first gathering, he'd been hesitant to reach out again despite how well Jason had played his role, concerned that further meetings would lead to trouble of some kind.
It was only the sheer exhaustion that had been obviously plaguing Jason when they met - and his ever-growing frustration with his coworkers - that had convinced Edward to contact the younger man again. Finding that handful of posts from Jason's roommate had further helped to dismiss those concerns, and now he thought nothing of going alone with Jason to some small, out-of-the-way restaurant.
He'd even gotten comfortable enough to share his future plans, things he'd shared with almost no one else. Hands stilling under Jason's, he breathed out slowly, surprised by the wave of relief that came when the younger man didn't mock the idea of starting on his own despite being the one to bring it up.]
I don't doubt your capability but it's fine. I've built the whole thing from the ground up. Engineering, bespoke programming, it's all me. If they want to implement any upgrades in the future without starting from scratch, they need me to teach the other programmers. Anything less, and it will be months of additional work just to be able to do basic troubleshooting once I've left. They'd be fools to take that risk.
[Edward distracted himself from Jason's baffling encouragement as the bike came to a halt, sitting back and dismounting, removing the helmet to pat at his hair. It was easier than dwelling on why Jason would care about his career and future plans. Leaving his current employer didn't benefit the younger man at all, and thanks to the NDAs in place, Jason knew barely anything about what Edward was working on. He'd call it an act, playing the part of the caring boyfriend, if it didn't sound so sincere. Which was still possible but if that were the case, Jason was missing his calling as an actor.
Clearing his throat once he'd done as much as he could to fix the mild case of helmet hair, Edward turned towards the entrance to the bistro. On a whim, he offered Jason his arm.] Shall we? I want to see if it lives up to the expectations you've set.
no subject
It was only the sheer exhaustion that had been obviously plaguing Jason when they met - and his ever-growing frustration with his coworkers - that had convinced Edward to contact the younger man again. Finding that handful of posts from Jason's roommate had further helped to dismiss those concerns, and now he thought nothing of going alone with Jason to some small, out-of-the-way restaurant.
He'd even gotten comfortable enough to share his future plans, things he'd shared with almost no one else. Hands stilling under Jason's, he breathed out slowly, surprised by the wave of relief that came when the younger man didn't mock the idea of starting on his own despite being the one to bring it up.]
I don't doubt your capability but it's fine. I've built the whole thing from the ground up. Engineering, bespoke programming, it's all me. If they want to implement any upgrades in the future without starting from scratch, they need me to teach the other programmers. Anything less, and it will be months of additional work just to be able to do basic troubleshooting once I've left. They'd be fools to take that risk.
[Edward distracted himself from Jason's baffling encouragement as the bike came to a halt, sitting back and dismounting, removing the helmet to pat at his hair. It was easier than dwelling on why Jason would care about his career and future plans. Leaving his current employer didn't benefit the younger man at all, and thanks to the NDAs in place, Jason knew barely anything about what Edward was working on. He'd call it an act, playing the part of the caring boyfriend, if it didn't sound so sincere. Which was still possible but if that were the case, Jason was missing his calling as an actor.
Clearing his throat once he'd done as much as he could to fix the mild case of helmet hair, Edward turned towards the entrance to the bistro. On a whim, he offered Jason his arm.] Shall we? I want to see if it lives up to the expectations you've set.