"Baby Please Take My Hand And You'll Never Be Alone Again"... These Words Are The Absolute Truth.

“What if I do bad?” I asked.

“You aren't going to do bad,” Chris replied, pulling into a parking spot.

“But, what if everyone hates me? And, I trip and fall. You know, balance is not my friend!” I said, frantically moving my hands, in the air. I groaned, and put my face in my hands.

I heard Chris sigh, and the car stop.

He removed my hands, from my face, and looked at me.

“You'll do great. No one will hate you; It's not possible. And, you won't fall. I promise everything will be fine,” He said, and kissing my fingers. I sighed and got out.

We walked to the door, and went inside. Kalaya was waiting for us.

“Oh, right on time!” She exclaimed. I laughed.

“Alright, follow me,” She said, motioning me to come. She led me to the back. “Okay, here's your apron and name tag,” She handed them to me.

“Great!” I said, putting them on. I put my hair up, in a ponytail, and turned towards her.

“Okay, now, here's your writing pad. This is what you'll use to write down what people want, how they want it, and so on,” She said, handing it to me. I nodded and put it in my pocket.

“Now, all you have to do, is when someone comes in, and sits down, let them sit there for a minute or two before walking up to them. Then, go ask them what drink they want, turn it in. Bring them their drink, and ask them what they want to eat. Then, turn that in. Bring their food to them, wait until they finish, and bring their plate to the back. Refill their cups as needed. Then, you can collect the tip, which will fully be yours. But, the number one thing, is always remember to smile,” She said, quickly.

My eyes went wide, but I nodded like I understood, nevertheless.

“Great! Good luck,” She said, smiling and walking off.

I sighed, and heard the bell on the door. I didn't look back, but felt my pocket. I didn't have a pen.

I looked everywhere for a pen, until I found one. Then, I thought it had been long enough to wait, so I walked to the table.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, putting my hands on my hips.

Chris looked up at me, with a smile. “This is my favorite restaurant. Next to Waffle House, of course. I'll have Sprite,” He said, flashing his bright smile at me. I blinked, and then went to get his drink.

♥

I sat down the Sprite on the table, and asked him what he wanted to eat.
“Hm, I want...Pad Thai, with no meat. Substitute Tofu, for the meat, please,” He replied, smiling.

“Alright. Stop smiling at me, like that. You're like one of those possessed dolls,” I said, laughing.

“Hey! I resent that. You're not be a very good waitress, Miss Jessie,” He said, shaking his finger at me.

I stuck my tongue out, at him. And, went to put his order in.

♥

Chris poked my hand, as I sat down his Pad Thai.

“Don't poke me,” I said, smacking his hand, playfully.

“But, the customer knows best. So, poke, poke, poke,” He said, poking me, repeatedly.

“Well, fine,” I said, and started poking him.

“Hey, don't poke me. Poking is not cool,” He said, still poking me.

“Oh, boohoo. This person's food is done. Gotta go,” I said, walking away, and laughing.

♥

“You did very, very good, today,” Kalaya said.

“Thank you,” I said, smiling, and taking off my apron.

She smiled, and nodded. “You'll get your first pay, at the end of the week. See you tomorrow, Jessie,” She said, waving.

“See ya,” I replied, walking over to the rest of the tables, and picking up the tips.

Yes, Chris was still here. I have no idea why, though.

He stood up, and walked to me. “Ready?” He asked. I nodded.

“I just had to finish getting my tips,” I replied.

“I think you missed a table,” He said, looking at the table he sat at. I cocked my head to the side, confused. “Go look.”

I walked over to the table, and picked up a fifty dollar bill.

“No way, Chris. I'm not taking this, not possible. Take it back,” I said, pushing it to him.

“No, I'm not taking it. You need that way more than I do,” He replied.

“Chris, I can't take this. I just can't,” I said.

“You can, and you will. You know, I have that band. Well, I get more than enough money than I need. I don't even know what to do with it. I don't want it, I just need enough money to get buy. And, I have that. So, take it. Please,” He said, putting it in my pocket. I sighed, defeated.

“Thank you!” He said, jumping up and down, and hugging me. “I hope it's not this hard to give you a tip, everyday. Because, you know, I do eat here, everyday,” He said, smiling mischievously

“Oh, perfect.”