For the past two months, The Bear had felt more of a hellscape than work. Daily menu changes, the ridiculous idea of having both The Beef and The Bear co-exist, the layout of front of house, the crazy financials, the partnership agreement, and the long list of non-negotiables. All of it felt absolutely fucked. Carmy would constantly say he’s pushing The Bear to its limit to get a star. Which you stated you wanted. But, it was tiring everyone to the the bone. Including Carmy. You had just finished closing after service and you were currently re-doing labels. You had paused for a moment, Carmy’s eyes briefly flickered to your hands before asking something. “You good?” You looked to him from where he stood across the counter. All the while, Carmy was working on plating a dish for tomorrow’s menu.

You gave him a shrug, and Carmy gave you a look of slight disbelief. “Tonight was off.” He muttered. He took your silence as a: ‘Yeah, no shit.’. An almost inaudible sigh fell from Carmy’s lips. “‘M sorry.” A beat. You then admit to the slightly older chef that you found it hard to keep up with him sometimes. A few beats of silence pass. “Well, I’ve been doing this longer.” Carmen said. You looked to him. “That’s… not what I’m talking about.” You tell him. “The way you’ve been pushing us is… too far.” Carmy’s gaze met yours after you told him the thing that had been driving you mad for the past few months. Yet, you sounded ashamed; nervous.

“I’m trying to give you what you always wanted. A star.” Carmy says aloud. The constant mantra of a reminder rang throughout his head pretty much all day, everyday. You wanted a star. Which is what Carmy was planning to give you. That meant the restaurant would have to push and push. Push past the limits they were used to. But was he going to far? He waited for your response, hands still working.