Discord Thread || Antoni&Tee-01
Discord text thread featuring: Tee & @antonirenaldi
When: 2nd April 2021
Mentions: N/Aâ
Description: Tee and Tony meet up in person for the first time before the other starts working at his therapy clinic. Tony tells him about his divorce.
Trigger Warnings: talk of divorce
Antoni.
The last time Antoni had spoken with Timothy Hill, he'd been a happily married man en route to a bigger city for a bigger life. Now, as he nursed a whiskey and waited for his boss to arrive, he felt like a completely different person, needing to remind himself that he was just as capable of doing his job now as he had been a few weeks before. It wasn't as though he'd been hired for his home-life, he assured himself, swallowing the last of his self-doubt with a sip of his drink. And if this doesn't work out, you'll just go back home - whatever that means. Spotting a familiar face approaching his table, Antoni stood, forcing a smile and extending a hand. "There he is. How are things?"Â
Tee
Tee couldnât be prouder of the way his clinic was going. The number of clients were increasing and they all had great things to say about the service offered. It was going well enough that he needed to hire more people to help him out although maybe that wasnât that surprising considering the drama and issues everyone living in Kingsboro seemed to have. Antoni was the perfect candidate and he did amazingly in their online interview so it was no hardship for Tee to offer him a job at Wellbeing Therapeutics. Although they chatted during their online interview and over the phone a few times, he was still excited to actually meet him in person. Tee saw the other sitting at one of the tables as soon as he walked in and he made his over. Antoni looked friendly enough but something seemed different than when he interviewed him, although Tee couldnât put his finger on what. âItâs great to finally meet you in personâ, he smiled, shaking his hand before taking a seat. âThings are pretty great, everythingâs in full swing to welcome you on board.âÂ
Antoni.
âDefinitely,â he agreed, sitting when Tee did. He liked the manâs demeanor, a refreshing change from the vastly older, borderline stodgy men heâd worked under in the past. Heâd been a little surprised at just how young his new boss was, but everything had pointed to it being a positive thing; theyâd developed an easy banter, and Antoni didnât feel a constant need to assert or prove himself. âThatâs great. Iâve looked into all the files, and I feel prepped for the new clients.â Everything was perfect, except for the small fact that - A server came by for Teeâs drink order, interrupting Tonyâs line of thinking. When she left, he added, âThe menu here looks great. You like this place?â
Tee
Tee knew that it wasnât common to find someone his age already with his own therapy clinic but it was one of the perks of having rich parents who supported his dreams and endeavors. It wasnât uncommon for others in his sector to look down on him for his age though. Like that guy he interviewed before Antoni who pursed his lips in judgement when he saw Tee was the one interviewing him and tried to pass him off as a joke. That was probably one of the reasons him and Antoni hit it off so well from the get go. If the other was uncomfortable over his age, he never showed it. âThatâs great. The clinic keeps growing every day with more people calling for appointments so me and another psychologist arenât really enough to keep it going on our own. I was thinking of eventually hiring other professionals like speech and occupational therapists but one thing at a timeâ, he joked, knowing it was best not to get too ahead of himself. Tee ordered himself a drink when the server came by, and was grateful when they didnât make a big deal in front of Antoni. Most of the people working at Urban Cajun were like a family to him and treated him as such but they also knew when he was at a professional dinner and kept their boundaries. âI love the menu here, Iâm a huge seafood lover. I feel like I kind of have to say that I love it, even if I hated it though or my mum would have my head.â It was best to get it out there instead of having the other find out on his own. âMy parents kind of own this place.âÂ
Antoni.
âOh, hey, thatâs great. My son actually sees a speech therapist, and itâs been really beneficial. They were thinking he maybe didnât have strong enough muscles in his cheeks to form certain words? They had us give him ice water with lemon to get him to learn how to pucker his lips, and now heâs pretty much at his 24-month milestones. Itâs great, all the techniques they have.â Antoni took up a menu, although heâd already perused it while heâd waited for Tee, listening as the man spoke. He looked up at the new information, dark brows raised in appreciation. âReally? That must be awesome, how long have they had it? Iâm huge on seafood too, thereâs this place on the coast we go every summer ...â His voice trailed off and the bright expression on his face fell a bit. âActually, speaking of families, I should probably give you an update.âÂ
Tee
Tee had some basic knowledge when it came to speech impediments but definitely not enough to be able to offer solutions and techniques so he always ended up referring his clients to a speech therapist friend of his. It would be so much better to have one working at the clinic so that all of the services could be offered under one roof but this sort of thing took time and planning. He wanted to see for himself that Antoni was settling in nicely before he would even consider recruiting anyone else. "You're right, and you know what they say. This sort of sector is multidisciplinary and we all have to work together in order to reach the final goal." Tee nodded, smiling a little shyly. Not everyone took the news that his parents were successful business owners very well, especially when they figured out that was the reason why he could afford to open his own clinic at such a young age. "I think they've had this place for close to twenty-one years at this point. They started off with this one in Kingsboro then gradually started opening up in more places." Tee noticed the way Antoni's expression shut down and he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Okay...what's up?"
Antoni.
âWell, itâs - nothing that will affect my job performance, I can assure you,â except for the lack of sleep and the noticeable increase in my drinking habits a darker part of his mind amended, but Antoni pushed on. âMy wi- uh, Gabrielle ... didnât make the move with me. Weâre separated, and weâve begun divorce proceedings.â The words sounded foreign in his mouth, and he washed down the taste of them with another swig of whiskey. âSheâs in Boston, with Luca. Iâll need to leave on Friday afternoons to either spend the weekends there or bring him back with me, and then returning on Sundays. Iâm fine with front loading my appointments towards the beginning of the week to make up for the later half of Friday, if thatâs alright with you.â He hated the way his circumstances painted him. He felt like a failure, and realized he hadnât been meeting the manâs eyes.Â
Tee
Tee could tell that their conversation had taken on a serious note but he wasn't sure what he was expecting. Especially when Antoni said it wasn't something that was going to affect the way he carried out his job. Whatever it was, he definitely wasn't expecting the other to tell him that he and his wife were getting divorced. It's not like Tee knew much about his private life; their interview was meant to discuss work-related issues and Tee was never really the kind of person to pry but Antonu had mentioned being happily married and having a son. He even mentioned how the whole family was excited to make the move to Kingsboro after Tee contacted him to let him know he got the job. So to be told that from the last time they talked to now things had gotten so bad that the couple had already begun divorce proceedings...it shocked him. "Shit." It was the first thing that came to mind and he couldn't hold back the curse. This wasn't something that Tee could relate to. While he's had his fair share of relationships ending badly, he was never married but he could imagine that if he was going through something like that, he wouldn't appreciate others making a big deal out of it. "Don't worry about appointments. If you want to take on less clients to give you more liberty to come and go...we'll figure something out."Â
Antoni.
"Oh, no," Antoni countered, waving a hand in the air as if to brush away the smoke from the bomb he'd just dropped into Tee's lap. "Less clients doesn't seem necessary. Work will probably be a welcome distraction." He tried to smile, but it was thin and tight. "I'd like to do what I came here to do, if that's still alright with you." Thankfully, a waitress appeared tableside to see if they'd decided on dinner, and Tony felt the tension in his shoulders lessen a bit. "I'll have whatever he's having," he quipped, handing over his menu. "I have a feeling he knows what's good here."Â Â
Tee
Tee wasn't sure if the other was actually being honest or if this was his way of trying to make a good impression on his new employer. Giving him fewer clients wouldn't be a problem. Tee might never have been married but he knew first hand how much a breakup could hurt, especially if it came out of the blue. Pushing Antoni wouldn't be a good idea, especially about something which was probably a very sensitive subject so he just nodded and dropped it. "Whatever you want." Handing over the menu which he hadn't even opened, Tee smiled at their server. "I'll have the soup of the day to start with and the spaghetti seafood."Â














