Mama's Fallen Angel

Bobbie sighed dramatically as she applied a final coat of Aqua Net to her freshly teased, dirty blonde hair. Looking into the mirror, she saw a nineteen year old who was talented at conforming to the zany style of the 1980’s, but even so, that had never felt like enough of an accomplishment. After all, what’s talent without recognition? No amount of hairspray, jewelry, or lipstick would change the fact that she was a complete nobody from northern Oregon. She quickly pushed that troubling thought from her mind as she applied a moderate coat of mascara onto her already long eyelashes. She’d always been fond of her ice blue eyes, and this definitely made them pop.

After several more minutes of sitting at her desk and staring longingly at herself in the lighted mirror, she stood to reveal that she was not clad in the glamorous outfit that one may have expected, but instead in a dull gray uniform with ‘Saucy’s Pizza’ emblazoned across the chest. The sight of this triggered another sigh, and she quickly turned away from the mirror. She had never quite accepted the idea of living a working class life. Most of her childhood had been spent wrapped up in foolish dreams of stardom; however, years later when stardom had not come knocking on her door, she had been forced to find a job elsewhere. The lack of enthusiasm didn’t do her work ethic any justice, but it is always hard to give up on one’s dreams.

“I’m leaving, mom,” she said stiffly as she shuffled down the staircase and out the front door. She heard a faint response from the kitchen, but didn’t take the time to really hear it at all. Likely enough, her mother had come up with a typical reply like “have a good day at work”. This statement was ridiculous in itself. Have a good day at work? Making pizzas? Was this even possible?

A cool spring breeze ruffled through her hair as she began to walk briskly down the sidewalk. The Aqua Net was certainly doing its job, because every single hair on her head stayed in place despite the wind. Freshly painted houses with matching mailboxes and shrubbery passed her by as her walk continued. That was the single most thing she had always hated about living here. The uniformity of the suburbs was enough to drive any creative mind mad. Nothing changed and everything was always the same. It was the epitome of dull and boring around the clock. She had always wanted more out of life than this.

The walk was ended as the small, shabby pizzeria appeared, looming in the distance. She had been hired here when she was seventeen and had worked regular shifts ever since. The bells on the glass door announced her arrival as she pushed it open. She punched the time onto her employee time card and thus began her shift.

“How’s it going?” Jack, one of her coworkers asked as she stood near the counter typing her apron. He was her only friend in the area and he knew everything about her and her aspirations. They’d known each other since grade school, and though she was more than sure that he was sweet on her, he was a nice guy to talk to.

“Same old, same old,” she replied nonchalantly. “Nothing ever changes around here.”

He chuckled fondly. “I swear girl, you’re never going to let yourself be happy until you see your name in lights.”

“Why would I expect any less?” she questioned, and he just shook his head, a smile still etched onto the corners of his mouth. He knew better than to argue with her about the probability of living a better life. It wasn’t like she was unaware that all odds were against her. She just clung to the feeling in her heart that things would be different someday.

She was nearly halfway through her four hour shift when a rather large order was called in from a house several miles down the road. Five large pizzas, three orders of breadsticks, and one large order of wings. While working on filling the order, she couldn’t help but wonder why anyone would be ordering so much. Maybe it was for some kid’s birthday party or something. She had just finished spreading the assorted toppings onto each of the pizzas when she noticed that Jack was dealing with a particularly difficult customer. The man was rather fat, wearing a torn flannel shirt and jeans, and was visibly drunk. She shook her head, disgusted. It wasn’t the food preparation that made this job undesirable, but instead the lack of sophistication of the clientele.

“Bobbie, can you deliver that order for me?” he turned to her and asked, exasperated.

“Sure thing,” she agreed.

As soon as all of the food was out of the ovens and into their respective packages, she loaded everything into an insulated delivery bag and grabbed the car keys from a nearby hook on the wall. She took a look at the address as she turned the key in the ignition of the delivery car, causing the engine to sputter and roar to life. It only took ten minutes to commute to the house that the address matched. It was large, a beautiful shade of blue with ornate decorations, and all in all quite out of place in this neighborhood.

With the bulging delivery bag resting on her hip, she shuffled up the driveway and onto the front porch. At the touch of a button the doorbell rang. She could hear it echoing through the rooms inside. After several moments of waiting she began to wonder if she had come to the right house. Sure enough, it was, for while she was double checking the address, the sound of hurried footsteps could be heard inside and then the door swung open, nearly knocking her off of her feet.

“Thank you for choosing Saucy’s Pizza, your total today is forty-five dollars and fifty-three cents,” she said methodically as she collected herself, doing her best to not drop any of the baggage in the process. As she looked up at the customer she was greeted by a man with a rather grand appearance, at least when compared to your average small town citizen. He wore a pressed suit and tie, and a pair of shoes that she could see her own reflection in. His hair was thinning, though he was not yet bald, and it was slicked back with gel. He eyed her with a type of curiosity that she did not recognize for a moment, and then he spoke.

“Keep the change,” he said, pressing a wad of cash into her outstretched hand.

“Have a nice day,” she responded and turned on her heel. She didn’t get a chance to walk back towards the car, though, because the man’s outstretched hand roughly grasped her shoulder and pulled her around so that she was facing him again.

“I don’t know if anyone has told you this before, but you’re gorgeous,” he exclaimed, flashing a toothy smile. “Have you ever considered modeling?”

“Uh…” she stuttered, “I guess so.”

“If you ever do consider it, let me know. Here’s my card.” In just a few seconds he had disappeared from the door and returned with a small white business card in his hand. Before she could even ask any questions he winked at her and shut the door. She was left on the porch with an empty delivery bag, a mind full of questions, and the little slip of paper.