166Chapter 1
"The wine and the lights and the Spanish guitar" - Just one last dance, Sarah Connor
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It was Saturday afternoon and I was sitting on the counter, chopping down on sandwiches. My auburn hair kept falling in front of my face, shielding my eyes. Annoyed, I blew some air and it went up, only to fall back again. The hand that wasn't holding the sandwich, was tapping on the table nervously.
This Saturday, I was going to start my new job as a waiter. If you ask me, that wouldn't be my first option, honestly. But nobody else wanted to hire me. It hurt my ego, ouch it said. Papa's pizza parlor was the last place I went to, but the owner, Keegan or papa as he liked to refer to himself, offered me the job immediately. I was beyond ecstatic. The interview itself was easy, all I had to answer was; can you write? do you like leftovers? Yes, and yes please.
Believe it or not, I, Olivia Adler, the girl who never even manages to get an interview was new a new waiter. I grinned at the thought, happily eating my sandwich, as I let the nerves wash away for a second.
I was waiting for my older brother to come down and drive me there. I was sixteen but unlike the rest of my peers, I still didn't have my driver license. The minute I saw his shaggy blond hair come down the stairs, I jumped off the counter. It was irritating that he was always running late. It had happened on several occasions that I had come late to school because of his tardiness.
"Adam, you take longer than a girl in the bathroom. How is that even possible? I don't wanna be late for my first day, you know." I complained to him. He just merely shrugged, putting on his shoes.
"Chillax little sis, it doesn't take minutes to become this," He pointed towards himself. "Handsome, so do take notes."
I rolled my eyes. "Conceited much?"
We stepped outside the house, locking it on our way and got inside his blue Volvo he got for his seventeen birthday. Newest car on the marked, it wasn't. He had bugged our parents about a new car over a year - before, he was only allowed to drive the family car - till they finally gave in. When they told him he was going to get a new car, he bragged like there was no tomorrow. Smiling and smirking like some cad, he went on for days. That is before January the fifth. With all his friends gathered around, he was surely disappointed to see - not a new car - but rather a used one. He was fuming for days, before he decided to give it a try.
He smiled, but decided not to answer. The radio was on and an elastic humming of blues blared softly through the car. Adam was singing, making my ears hurt. He got an awful singing voice. I didn't tell him to stop though, he would sing even louder if I did so. Experience attests to that.
His blue eyes glanced towards me. "Excited for your new job or what?" I grinned, of course I was. This was big. I was feeling really giddy but also very nervous? What if messed up? Knowing me, I probably would someway. I tried to play it cool. Play it cool.
I gave him a nonchalant look. "I am actually, nervous, but still excited. Mostly excited."
"Just don't be you and I'm sure everything will be fine…get it? Don't be you." Adam told me wisely. That was a pretty nice advice. Not. But that's just Adam, voicing everything on his mind, not caring if he hurt other people. I scoffed at him, turning my eyes to the window.
"Thanks for the ride, remember to pick me up about three hours." I told him, once we arrived outside the small pizza place. I closed the passenger door behind me, straightening my t-shirt a bit.
"Yeah, well. Bye kiddo." this was his way of saying, good luck.
I stepped inside Papa's pizza parlor, the smell of pizza hitting my nose instantly. It was like every other pizza places in the whole town, except this one had a little more fifties style to it with a jukebox. There were pictures of old rock bands hanging on the white walls, while the room was filled with booths and stools by the counter. The place itself wasn't very large, but it was intimate.
"Miss Adler, there you are." A man in his thirties said, with a beard and a beer stomach with his Aerosmith t-shirt emphasizing on his big stomach. He had a brownish hair color, but it seemed to have lost its beauty over the years. There were wrinkles around his eyes, but his golden brown eyes seemed to glow such youth, almost twinkling.
He smiled at me, showing off his impressively white teeth. "Just punctual, like I like it. That's just dandy, ain't it?" I nodded, not quite getting what he was trying to say. This was obviously Keegan. "So, I guess ya know what ya supposed to don't ya?" I nodded yet again. "Well, good, that's very good Miss. But you should know that this is not an easy job, it may seem like one, heck it may even be like one but inside, deep, deep inside…it isn't."
"I'm happy to be working here sir." I was glad that I didn't stutter, but the man's aura was oddly calming.
"Now, now… you should meet your other co-workers. Ya know what they say right?" He grinned. "A good household is a full, uh, household."
I didn't really get that, but smiled and nodded. It wasn't like I was going to point out that what he said made no sense whatsoever. That would just be plain stupid, but that never really stopped me.
"So, just make ya self comfortable, ya hear." He wiped his hands, smiling wickedly, before going to the backroom. This man was, well, odd. I grinned to myself, I like it.
A girl with light brown hair, long, skinny but not so it seemed sickly, walked up to me, handing me a brown apron and a note book and a pencil. Her hair was wavy, her face heart shaped, plump lips red while her eyes were green. She had on a bit of makeup, but not too much. The long white skirt fit her curves. She smiled, her red lips matching her red tank top. I think she was trying to be polite, or maybe even careful. So, that she won't scare off the new waitress.
"Hey there, I'm Janet." She introduced herself, and I detected a little bit of a southern accent. I noticed that I had to look up to meet her eyes. Sometimes being short just isn't fun. I'm not that short, I'm an average 5'2, and it's just that she's freakishly models height. Grow me a beard and call me a gnome.
"Olivia Adler reporting." I gave her a salute, while she looked at me with raised eyebrows. I can't believe I just did that. I mentally scowled at myself. If she found me odd, she didn't say anything.
"Oh, well. You must be the new waitress."
Oh, wow, what gave that impression, I wanted to ask, but didn't. I just shrugged, looking plainly bored. Which I wasn't, not really, but I give out that impression. I was trying to play it cool, like I had done this so many times before. Like a professional, who was on job for amateurs.
"Well, I guess you know what to do right. If there's any trouble, just ask me. I'll be like your waitress guru." She winked. When she realized I wasn't going to answer, she just shrugged and walked away.
Good girl. I'm not antisocial, not at all. Okay, perhaps a bit, but bad experiences keep me from going out and talking to people. Whenever I approached people and decided to be friendly and talkative, they well, they'd just stare at me like I'm a total loser and walk away.
Janet looked behind her shoulder, as she was stepping inside the kitchen and said, "You have to take the orders from the people in booth four." I nodded to ensure that I would.
I put the apron on.
Not much after inspecting the place, I walked up to a couple sitting in booth. The guy was whispering in the girl's ear, making her giggle. I actually like watching people act in love. Not that I have ever been in love myself, but I like it. Watching, trying to determine if they would last. Probably not, but I let them live in the illusion.
I don't think they would appreciate a girl coming up to them and saying; "Sorry to break it to you, but you might as well split before you guys marry, get a bunch of kids, are overweight, can't look at each other without the urge to snap ones neck." No, I highly doubt it.
I licked my lips and put on a serious face. "Hello, my name is Olivia and I'll be your waitress this evening. What can I get you?" I had watched enough movies to know what to say.
"A ham pizza with mushroom and two large cokes." They replied at the same, before looking at each other and laughing. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. The girl looked up, as she said, "Can you perhaps ask if there can be a bit of onion in the pizza? I like it you see, but he doesn't like too much of it." I nodded, before writing it down.
"Will there be anything else?" They shook their heads, smiling. The brown haired guy put his hand over the brown haired girl. I decided that it was my cue to leave. Walking away, I still heard a bunch of giggles.
"A ham pizza with mushroom and two large cokes and a bit of union." I yelled to Keegan, who was in the kitchen. He made a motion to show that he got it, and went back to making the pizza. I put the notepad on the table, just in case he needed to see it.
I'm getting the hang of this alright.
This was not a favorite place to eat, but it was small and intimate for people who wanted to escape the harsh world for a few hours. I guessed the pizzas were alright, but it was really that they had extremely good French fries, almost like McDonald's good that drove people in.
I was starting to get bored. There were only two costumers, and I had already gotten their orders.
I looked behind my shoulder; the couple didn't waste time making out. I have always wondered how people were able to breathe with another person's tongues down their throat. What if the girl chokes because the boy can't keep his tongue in his own mouth? Shit… I looked back at the couple. How many seconds had gone now? Shouldn't they come up for air? What if they die because I didn't interrupt?
"FIRE, IT'S FIRE!" I shouted impulsively. This was stupid, but I didn't want their death on my guilt. No thank you, I tell you.
"FIRE, FIRE?" A scared Keegan came out of the kitchen, his hands flying crazy. I was about to tell him no, but I don't get the chance before he goes running out, while the couple who were making out ran closely behind him. Ops. The place was suddenly quiet.
I put my face in my hands. Wow, that was really stupid. On my first day too, I should have waited at least…. two days. Now I am going to get fired, well Adam was right; I acted like myself and look what happened. It seemed that I was doomed to fail. At least they didn't die.
"That's impressive. On your first day and you already got Keegan running with his tail behind." I turned around to stare at the amused Janet. This was hardly funny.
When she saw my horrid look, she added, "Don't worry, He doesn't hold grudges. I think he knew that there was no fire, he just wanted a break." She paused. "Lazy ass." I was sure that I was as red as a tomato, not that I know if I am red when I blush, since I'm never within a mirror when I do. It's a free guess.
"I hope not. What's gonna happen now?" I asked, embarrassed.
"The same old routine, he's gonna be gone for like fifteen minutes, and then he'll come back and give us free pizza."
Free pizza with no fire and no deaths? Yes, please.
The conversation started to come to its end, which made me feel awkward. I don't like those quiet moments, filled with uncomfortable tension, with nothing to say.
"How many employers are there here?" I questioned, trying to think of some topics we could discuss.
"It's not that many; it's just me, you, and beside Keegan and Freddy, he covers for Keegan when he's not here. He makes the pizzas."
I began twirling around in my seat. "Who are they? I mean Daniel and Freddy. Why aren't they working here today?"
"Well, Freddy is only the cover-up for Keegan. He's hired to come and do Keegan job when Keegan himself isn't around. He travels a lot. While Daniel, well, he worked here longer than I have. He's not working here today because he had some family business of his own," She paused, sitting down beside me. "Keegan and him are really good friends. He is a really nice guy, he's funny to be with. I've known him for a long time now."
She paused again, before frowning. "But sometimes he just doesn't know when to quit it." I detested some bitterness in her voice.
"What has he done to you?"
"Not me, but he can be unbelievably stupid and he doesn't realize it. He kissed Kate, my friend, but ignored her afterwards. She was heartbroken and she kinda got mad at me because I introduced them. Honestly, I don't blame her. Should've seen it coming though, since I introduced them at a party." Kate girl, huh? Perhaps she was trying to cover up for herself. Many girls do that, I've heard.
I shrugged, not really my business. "That's bad." I told her simply.
I've learned from experience not to butt into other people's business. I'm not really into gossip and all that and I won't try to get information out of people. See, it's not that I'm not curious. Trust me, I am. But I don't like to cross the line. And I don't want to get into a full detail conversation on how this thing happened. I don't want her to ask me about advice, since I suck at it.
"Yeah." She sighed, before jumping off the seat. "I have to get the pizzas out by now or they'll be burned up. Do me a favor and clean the tables, just get some new pepper and replace the old that's on the table, replace the salt and everything. So later on we can eat before some costumers arrive."
I agreed and walked over to the nearest table.
A/N: I had this for a while now and with my best friend's encouragment, I decided to post it to see what kind of feedbacks I would get. The first chapter might seem boring but it well get better, trust me. Reviews are always appreciated because I'd love to know what you guys think.
- Mimi [Edited 6 - 27 - 10]