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 Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 12:16 pm
He didn't need a second job. The garage paid him almost double what he required for food and rent, and the rest went to the girls, both for child support and every little toy and trinket they expressed interest in when he had them on the weekend. He knew he was spoiling them, buying their love, all the things he used to tell himself he'd never do, but that was before they'd followed their simultaneous "Hi, Daddy!" with excited stories about Mommy's new boyfriend and the trip to DisneyWorld he'd promised them once they'd gotten Daddy's permission. Of course Bekki had told them to ask rather than telling him herself. How was he supposed to say no to them? No, he didn't need a second job, but he had taken one anyway so he would have something to do other than sit around and sulk.
Theo dropped the plastic tub of dishes he was carrying on his last table a little harder than he meant to, attracting the stares of an elderly customer, and more importantly, his boss. Following a muttered apology, he started to clean, eyes on his grey rag until they turned their attention elsewhere.
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Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2016 6:13 pm
Mel had been down on her luck again, still unable to find a job and on top of that out of a girlfriend. She'd seen it coming, and really didn't blame Chel for it, but now she was alone once more and back at her parents' home. She didn't really feel too comfortable staying at Chris and Chel's place after everything. So there she sat, staring off into space in the little restaurant, unable to afford anything but hoping they wouldn't kick her out for not buying anything. She wouldn't be surprised if they did, but she could hope for the best. Her eyes caught sight of one of the men working as he seemed to slam a tub down, and she could only think that maybe he was having just a bad of day as she was.
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Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2016 6:46 pm
Theo had noticed the woman the moment she'd walked in, which wasn't a surprise considering how much she reminded him of Rebekka. Well, they were more of a match if he squinted a little, considering their eye colors weren't the same and this woman had shorter hair, but they were of a very similar height and the way they carried themselves was eerily identical. Or it was until she sat down. Then she seemed to slump into her seat like her life weighed more than she could hold up.
He was supposed to get passive-aggressively confrontational with people who didn't order or who stayed too long after they had paid, cleaning their table right out from under them until they left, but he couldn't bring himself to do so this time. Instead, he waited until the stars aligned and none of his coworkers were looking, then filled a mug with coffee and set it down in front of her the next time he passed. Theo started cleaning the next table over, briefly holding his finger to his lips if she looked his way.
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Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2016 6:54 pm
Mel was surprised when the man she'd glanced over at sat a cup in front of her, even more surprised when he held his fingers to his lips to make sure she didn't say anything about it. It seemed luck was surprisingly on her side once again, and she was grateful to have the caffeine. She felt tired just by existing, at least with coffee she could pretend to have some energy. "Uhm, hey thanks," Mel said sheepishly, trying not to disturb him as she peaked over the seat at him.
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Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2016 9:14 pm
He nodded shallowly, picking up his tub and heading back into the kitchen to finish his shift.
A little less than twenty minutes later he emerged, his hair out of its tidy work ponytail and a satchel hanging from a strap across his chest. He crossed to the woman's table and stood awkwardly beside it, pressing his first two fingers to its top for a second.
"You're welcome. Do you want any pie or anything? I get it for free."
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Posted: Thu Aug 18, 2016 10:00 pm
"I don't want to trouble you, sir. I might be able to find some change to pay for it or something," she replied, glancing over the man once more. She knew she was hungry, but that meant taking more she couldn't afford. "Can I pay you somehow? Or maybe wash some dishes as payment?" She sat uncomfortably at the table, staring into the cup. She wasn't too sure what to say about it. "You uh, you feeling better? You seemed a little irritated before."
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Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2016 2:03 pm
His eyebrows rose such a minuscule amount that it was almost unnoticeable. He ventured back behind the counter—slowly, like he had all the time in the world to do this one, ridiculous thing—and brought her a piece of pie from the rotating display case. Apple. It was only after he got back to her table that he recalled he couldn't just leave it with her, not even when he was off duty. It was why he had snuck her the coffee in the first place. Free food was for employees only, not broke customers he was inexplicably drawn to help out.
Theo put the plate next to her cup, and after another moment of hesitation he took a seat opposite her, holding his hands a few inches off of the table in apology before dropping them out of sight.
"Sorry. Just until you're done. So I don't get in trouble." He looked over at the kitchen, turning away and fiddling with his bag when the cook made eye contact. "I'm fine. Just... life going ways I don't like. And you don't have to do anything. I never eat here. They owe me."
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Posted: Fri Aug 19, 2016 9:18 pm
"Thanks a lot, sir. Really I appreciate it. You don't have to go to all this trouble for me," Mel smiled, taking a bite out of the beautiful piece of pie that was offered to her. In that moment she felt all her worries could melt away. The pie was that good of a distraction to her. It was a bit sad how much she was enjoying this simple dessert, but she could only hope he didn't mind her too much. "Sorry you have to put up with me so you don't get into trouble," she continued to say, mouth full of pie as she spoke. "I'm Mel."
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Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2016 8:59 am
"Theo." He smiled, small and without any teeth. "You're not so bad. I'm worse, butting in on your problems." The smile disappeared again as he pressed his lips together, trying to push back words that were already free. Whatever she was going through, he shouldn't have commented at all. "Not that it's any of my business. You just looked like you needed some pie."
He leaned forward and ran his fingers lightly across the table directly in front of him, curious to see if he'd done a decent job of cleaning it from a customer's point of view. "So. Are you new in town?" Still nosy, but at least she had the option of lying if she didn't feel like answering.
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Posted: Fri Sep 30, 2016 8:45 pm
"Pfft. I wish. I've lived here my entire life. There was no escaping for me. Just stuck here," Mel laughed, though it wasn't exactly the happiest of laughs. She wished more than anything to get out and see the world, but that wasn't something that would happen any time soon. She doubted the debt collectors would let it happen either. "What about you, good looking? I haven't seen you around town before. What grand adventure landed you here?" It always seemed people just sort of ended up in Ashdown rather than actually wanting to come here. It had that sort of strange tug on people. If you lived here it was even worse.
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Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2016 6:24 pm
He couldn't imagine having been raised in Ashdown. Not that he thought the place was horrible or anything, at least not the half without the faceless mannequins or killer chipmunks, he was just used to something different. The rain and the ocean and his parents...
All right, maybe there were only two people he truly missed.
Theo looked down at the table again, the smile that had recently left him returning in response to her nickname. He shook his head slightly too, thoroughly amused. "Just following family. No grand adventures." At least not ones he actively wanted. "I do know they're always looking for help here, if you wanted to escape. Someday." Again, he was being presumptuous, but if she could eventually save enough to leave and get free pie while she did so, it could only be a good thing.
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