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She had texted Mercy earlier to see if she wanted to go to lunch after her morning classes were over. She only had one afternoon class and that was hip hop dance, so she had plenty of time to just eat, chat and hang out. She hopped in her truck and pulled out of the parking lot, tossing her book in the back seat and driving to the diner. It didn’t take her long to get there and when she pulled into the parking lot, she sent a text to Mercy to let her know she was there and sat got out to head inside. While it was unseasonably warm all winter, she opted for pants, yet again despite dresses being much easier for dance class.

She walked into the diner phone in hand to see if Mercy text her and stepped to the side to wait quietly.

Mercy was already at the diner, having left class just a bit early so she could meet Lily there and make sure her father didn't need any help with anything in particular. She was sitting in a booth when she saw Lily come in and step to the side. “Lily! I'm over here!” She waved excitedly, getting out of the booth so she could see her clearly. Knowing her short a**, it would be difficult to see her over the heads of everyone else that was sitting in the diner. Mercy walked over and tugged on the sleeve of her new friend’s shirt gently.

“I'm sitting over there~ C’mon, I want you to meet my father before he tries to feed you the whole menu.”

Lily looked up when her name was called and smiled waving at Mercy, when she saw the other girl get up and come over to her, tugging on her shirt. “Hi, I hope you didn’t wait to long. Class ran over a little bit, but I don’t have any others until late afternoon.”

She looked around the diner curiously and gave a laugh before nodding, “I would love to meet and I certainly am not opposed to trying as much as I can stomach.” Her appetite may not have be verocious, but her metabolism and activity levels meant should could eat. She was keen on anything with much grease, but everything was fair game.

“I had to run out before cook was finished breakfast this morning, so I’m starving.”

“No not at all!~ I just got here not too long ago really.” She smiled, sitting back down where her booth was located. “You have a cook? Wow~” She's never really met anyone that has their own personal cook besides her stupid mother, but then again, it was possible other people could have cooks in their house. It wasn't something Mercy thought would be an important factor since she always cooked for herself [except when she visited her dad or mom] but the more you know? “My dumb a** mother has a cook….But other than that, never really met anyone that's had a personal cook.” David came around the corner and Mercy waved to him shouting, “Daddy! Over here!”

David blinked at his daughter, but made his way over, seeing a rather petite looking young woman with red hair sitting across from her. She was really pretty….Did his daughter decide to switch sides? David smiled and took out his notepad, “Sup chickadee? Who's this pretty young lady?” He smiled at Lily and held back his curiosity about his daughter’s sexuality. He would be happy for her regardless, but he really wanted grand babies. Mercy smiled at her father while she pulled up the menu. “Daddy, this is Liliana, Lily for short. I met her when I went out shopping~ She has a bomb a** singing voice!” She knew from the shopping trip at Victoria’s secret that Lily was shy, but if her dad heard her singing voice he would agree with her.

David raised an eyebrow, looking to the pretty redhead, “Oh? Nice to meet you Liliana. I am David, Mercy is my over excited daughter as you can see.” He chuckled and decided that perhaps his daughter made a new friend instead of a lover she finally thought she could take home to her dad.

Lily blushed and laughed, “um yes. I’ve had a cook all my life … though I can cook a bit now … I don’t often need to though. I’m not the most fond of it … I nearly set my station on fire in cooking class in college once. In my defense though … teacher let me pair with my friend Ulane and well neither of us is a skilled cook.”

She frowned a little at Mercy calling her own mother a dumbass, that seemed kind of extreme, but she refrained from speaking on it. She didn’t know Mercy and she knew she should judge. Sitting across from Mercy, she looked up when Mercy called over her dad and smile, but blushed deeply when he called her pretty. She was too easily embarrassed.

“It very nice to meet you sir,” she said softly holding out a hand for him to shake. “Excitable and fierce … she saved me … um in a manner of speaking ... from woman who thought it was okay to record me singing in Victoria secret while I shopped for personals. Wouldn't want that on youtube for all the boys at school.”

She giggled and grinned at Mercy, “so what’s your favorite, huh Mercy?”

It was Mercy’s turn to blush, a rarity really. She forgot not many people knew what her mother was like. “I'm sorry, you’ll know why I talk the way I do when you meet her. Katrina is....Well I have no words for how she is. It's weird how she managed to birth me when we’re so different.” David nodded in agreement, shaking Lily’s hand gently, raising an eyebrow. “Oh? Thats kind of rude, recording someone while they're shopping.” He shook his head with a sigh. “Young people these days with their cellphones. Privacy is just something of the past isn't it?” “So says the dad that has everything on his snapchat, twitter, AND facebook~” David rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish grin.

“I can't help that I like to keep up with the times.~” Mercy rolled her eyes and smiled. She loved her dad, he was one in a million really. “My favorite is the Louisiana Stack. I can never finish it all, but it has just the right amount of spice and the sweet bun the burger is placed on makes it all the better.

Lily figured Mercy really must not get along with her mother, because she just hadn’t ever heard anyone call their mother by their first name. She, her brother and sister wouldn’t even dare … their dad would be less than please. “It’s the same thing with siblings though, like, my brother, sister and I couldn’t be more different, but we come from the same parents, raised the same way, in the same house. So I’m not surprised, if you are total opposites.”

Lily gave a small laugh at Mercy and her dad. “Wow, Mercy your dad has more social media than me … I’ve just got a youtube channel. My sister thinks I should get an instagram though, but I don’t see the point. Not much for picture taking.” It wasn’t that she didn’t like being in pictures, it was that she hadn’t really a vain bone in her body so she didn't selfie much and never thought to do outfit of the day pics.

“Its good to keep up with the times Mr. David,” she said with a nod before looking to Mercy and sighing, “especially in this city … the new is insane.”

She grinned a second later, “well if its too much for you why don’t we get that and share and if we need something else we can share that too?”

David nodded, glad someone would see his point of view on things. Mercy often teased him about his social media accounts when she had just as much as he did. “Social media isn't for everyone. Just having an account on any platform means you lose some privacy. It isn't easy thats for sure.” Mercy smiled and looked up in thought. “We can share sure~ Dad, can we get one Louisiana please?” David grinned and nodded, making his way back to the kitchen. He hired a really good cook by the name of Avery. When it came to his daughter, he liked to cook for her personally as well as any friends she may bring.

Avery did like Mercy, and he thought she liked him at one point, but nothing ever happened. “Hey Mr. Adams~ Merc here?” “Yep, she's over there with a friend if you want to say hello? Maybe you could go bring them their plate after I make it?” Avery grinned, all too eager to go see his daughter. Even if Mercy turned him down, he would keep trying to convince her otherwise. Maybe he would change his mind once he saw Lily? She was just as pretty. David went about cooking the burger, making sure it was just right before giving the order to Avery to go hand over to Mercy.

Avery gladly took the order and presented it with a smile. “Hey Merc~ Your order’s right here.” He set the plate down, looking to Lily with a charming smile. “Hey, don't think we’ve met before cutie~ I'm Avery.” He winked at Lily then, Mercy had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. Avery was a flirt and they may have fooled around once or twice, but he was really not her type. Too nice and wayyyyy too….Unoriginal. They were still good friends though and thats what mattered.

Lily smiled at David, but shook her head, “... well if I want to make it big that is probably something I ought to get use to. I’m aiming for my name up in light before I’m 25. As of 4 days ago, I officially have two years to go.”


She watched as he left to get the burger and Lily turned to Mercy, “You didn’t get a chance to tell me what it is you're going to school for the other day? Probably something far more practical than a music major.”

She sat back waiting for Mercy to answer while they waited for their good, which came surprisingly quickly. It was quite impressive. She hadn’t really at first been paying attention to who delivered it, giving a polite thank you. She looked up however when he introduced himself calling her a cutie and winking. She turned red a tomato looking at him a little wide eyed and looking away again quickly.

She gave a nervous laugh, “I’m Liliana. It’s nice to meet you.” She gave him a sweet smile but “otherwise she sort of awkwardly looked away not use to someone being flirtatious with her. It didn't often happen.

“I'm going to school for my Registered Nursing License~ I'm interning at the hospital for a couple of years before I can actually do anything. I'm glad it's a paid internship though. So practical, but it takes soooo much more time. If I was well...Smaller, I would try my hand at being a model.” But, since she wasn’t exactly shaped like most of the models shes seen in magazines and whatnot she wasn't going to try.

Avery gave a bow and grinned when he saw Lily blushing. How cute~ “Nice to meet you Liliana, I hope you enjoy your time here and don't worry if Mercy ends up eating half the burger and then some. The Louisiana Stack is her favorite.” He winked at her before dodging a kick from Mercy, laughing his way into the kitchen. “Thats our cook, don't mind him, he’s always trying to flirt with anyone he can~” She was laughing, tilting her head with amusement shining in her eyes. “Why the blush?”

Of course she could guess, but it was much funner if she got Lily to admit why all on her own. Avery was pretty good-looking, maybe she could try to set them up later?

“Oh, Destiny City Memorial Hospital! My brother works there … you’ll probably meet him one day. Hard to mistake him, we look just alike, cepts he’s taller with much longer hair and no freckles, but you get the idea. He’s working in the ER, with the pediatrics team.”

Lily gave a giggle at Avery’s teasing of Mercy, she honestly didn’t mind if Mercy ate more of the burger. They could always get dessert and Lily could eat more of that. “Oh you’re cook huh, but he’s like our age, right?”

At Mercy’s questions her blush reddened and she mumbled, “I’m just not use to people flirting with me … I mean people have and I’ve had a boyfriend, not that it worked out … but I mean … I’m just not use to it … yeah.”

She stared resolutely at the burger as she made to cut it in half not really wanting to think about how she was woefully inexperienced when it came to flirting, dating or anything of the sort.

“Oh? What's his name? I’ll keep a look out for him while I'm there! I would love to meet him.” She hoped to become a pediatric nurse someday so maybe he could give her some pointers. She took a bite of their burger, humming at the delicious flavors that exploded in her mouth. Her father was one of the best cooks she's ever known, really and truly. “Yep! Avery didn't go to school. My dad likes to hire people based on their skill and personality, not their degree. He only graduated high school and managed to start a booming business by saving up.”

Not everyone would be as successful as her dad, hell, not even she thought she could be that successful. Mercy gave Lily a wide grin, leaning in, “Oh? Girl, you're adorable! I feel like people should be lining up to have a chance with you.~” That was the truth really. Lily was quite the looker and she was sure someone would come along and swoop her right up when the time was right.

“His names Xander, though I suppose everyone would call him Dr. Jacobs … we those not on his team anyway. He’s at work at lot, so I’m sure you’ll run into him. I’m glad to see more people going into the medical field. That hospital has always been so short handed, but that's this crazy city we live in. They actually had to add a second coma ward.”

She took a bit out of her burger and smiled thinking that was great of her dad not worry too much about a degree. It was nice that he managed to build this great restaurant and was doing well for himself. She liked success stories like that … it reminded her something of two friends she hadn’t seen in awhile and another she might never see again. She sighed lightly to herself.

She shook her head thinking about how this was no time for such thoughts and tried to stamp down the feeling bubbling up in her, though she was fully successful and the smile she gave Mercy was so what watery. She gave a weak laugh, “you sound like my sister.”

“Xander or Dr. Jacobs? Okay I’ll make sure to keep a lookout. The medical field is a wonderful industry to work in. I love helping people and the pay isn't bad either. Yeah! I heard about that. Something about terrorists and random attacks during the night right? Shits crazy.”

“Oh? What she like?” Mercy could feel the mood turns somber all of a sudden, making her frown. Was it something she said? She went over everything in her head in order to see if she somehow ended up insulting the woman when she really had no intentions of doing so, worrying her lip. “H-Hey, you okay?” She sighed and looked down at their plate, “Did I say something wrong? I know I can talk without thinking sometimes, and it's gotten me into so many fights as a kid…” Hell, shes even lost friends because of her mouth, but she refused to tone down something she was born with.

Maybe if she tried to change the subject?

“Hey,would you like a root beer float?”

She was really trying to pull herself together, she really was. It was a fine time for her to go all to pieces feeling lonely when out with a new friend. What a weird feeling to have just then… It wasn’t Mercy’s fault and Lily was realizing it wasn’t something she could do much about at the moment. It was so weird, she barely thought about things like this … didn’t really give herself time did she. She always strong so strong … but everyone had to cry sometime right?

She sat there and big crocodile tears started streaming down her cheeks, her hand going up to try to wipe them away, but it was no use. She looked a Mercy feeling really bad for ruining their lunch. “I’m so sorry Mercy … I … I … I have to go.”

She hopped up and practically ran from run the restaurant, leaving her half eaten half a sandwich and without answering Mercy’s question. She was going to have to apologize a million times for this, if Mercy even talked to her again. When she reached her car, she hopped in and drove back to the school … despite not really see very well through her tears. She pulled into the parking lot nearest her class and pulled her knees to her chest and just cried. Didn't help she felt really bad for ditching Mercy like that.

After a good 30 minutes she just decided to just skip class and go home.