Such a Beautiful Lie to Believe In

The stove sizzled beneath me as I quickly withdrew my hand from the evil frying pan I had been holding. I rapidly ran over to the sink next to the stove and ran my fingers under the cool, healing water. This was my fourth burn this week.

“You know, for a professional chef…you burn yourself a lot,” my friend and assistant manager, Kathy, laughed from the doorway.

“It’s totally not my fault though,” I protested, “…it’s the stove’s fault!”

“Wow, you sound just like a three year old, I just thought I should let you know. And do you think you can get those onions cooked for the steak dinner within two minutes?”

I was slightly mortified. “Of course I can cook onions. Damn it Kathy I am a professional! Now, leave before I…burn you too!”

“Oooh, you’re so scary, Joie. And please, if you even tried to burn me, we all know you’d just burn yourself first!” And with that she ran out of the room, probably in search of the manager of the restaurant, Alex, who also happens to be her boyfriend of 2 years.

It’s so weird…like California isn’t a ‘small town’ kind of state, so you would think that all the cities would just be so not close. Well my restaurant, or technically the restaurant I work at, proves that wrong. Here at Endless Oceans, everyone knows everything about everyone else. The entire staff is friends or relatives with someone on the staff. For instance, my cousin is a waitress who is dating one of the chefs who works with me in the back. His brother is the manager I mentioned earlier who is going out with my friend Kathy.

I could go on forever about all the connections, but that seems like it would just be a waste of paper. If you wanted to see it for yourself, then get a job here and you’ll find out just how creepy it really is.

Anyway, let me tell you a little something about myself. Wait, I have to finish these damn onions. I cautiously lifted the frying pan again and tossed the onions around over the flame. Within seconds the flavored onions were done and I poured them over the steak, completing the dish. “Order up!” I shouted as I walked out the door for my break.

Well, I’m Joelle Monroe, but I go by Joie. I’m a world-renowned chef (believe it or not) and I work at California’s fanciest place, Endless Oceans. I have also been chosen to cater at the governor’s mansion from time to time. In fact, I’ve met him and we get along great, surprisingly. I’m 24 years old, and single – but I’m looking.

I live a pretty normal life, unfortunately. Each night when I return to my brand new apartment with a view of the beach, I always find myself wishing: I just want something interesting to happen in my life. I don’t care what, I just want a change.

People always told me to be careful what I wished for, but I was never one to take people who say things like that seriously. Too bad I didn’t listen to them…because something that could change my life was right around the corner; I just was too blind to see it.

_Synyster’s POV_

We were in the mood to celebrate…even though it was only 2 in the afternoon, we were ready to party. Now, before you call us crazy, let me explain what we are celebrating – today, around noon, we made our 100th kill. That probably sounds like a weird thing to celebrate, but it’s perfectly normal for us.

Our gang, Avenged Sevenfold, has big plans…and we’ve made a name for ourselves along the way. 95% of Huntington Beach fears us. The only people that would dare stand up to us is the 5%, also known as the governor and his ‘followers.’ He is our only roadblock to success. And the way Matt sees it, he is going to be the 101st kill.

Well, on a happier note, we went to Endless Oceans, the most expensive joint in the area. Matt ordered a steak, with extra grilled onions on top. And the waitress said that all our food was waiting on Matt’s damn onions.

“This is getting ridiculous,” Zacky complained, “If this place is so perfect, then why has it taken over 30 minutes for a steak?! The rest of our food is probably gonna be cold too.” Just after Zacky had spoken, the waitress came out to the table with a massive tray of food.

“Um, Lauren?” Matt called, referring to the waitress by her first name, “Can you bring out the manager back there? I want to have a word with him. That wait was uncalled for.”

“Um, ok…,” she replied hesitantly as she walked back to the kitchen.

A few minutes later, a girl came over to the table timidly. She was probably the hottest girl I’ve seen in a long time. I would totally do her right here and now if it wasn’t such a public place. Oh well, I’m a guy that always gets what I want…meaning I’ll get her eventually. Matt caught me staring at her and gave me a smirk, knowing what I was thinking.

“Um, hi guys. I’m Joelle Monroe, the manager of the kitchen. I heard you had a complaint?” she said as she approached the table, taking a glance at each one of us.

“Yes,” Matt spoke up, “it took over half an hour just for my steak here. And the others had to wait for their food just as long. I think you should fire whoever the hell can’t cook fast enough back there.”

Her reaction was not one that I had expected. She turned bright red and looked like she was about to cry, actually. “Oh, um I’m really sorry about your wait. I take full responsibility for it. I was the one who was making your steak. I had it all done, except for the onions. I burned my hand on the frying pan somehow. Again, I’m so sorry. I’ll take your steak off the bill.” She looked completely mortified. I almost felt sorry for her, really.

Everyone around the table was waiting for Matt’s reaction. “In that case, I apologize for being so rude. The steak tastes fantastic; I just had no idea that you burned yourself making it for me. Will you take this?” he said, offering her a $20 bill.

Her jaw dropped, “What? I couldn’t possibly take that!”

“No,” Matt said firmly, placing the bill in her hand, “you don’t have a choice.”

“O-ok. Thanks, I guess. Um, enjoy your meal guys!” she said, totally shocked, as she walked back to the kitchen.

“I’ve never seen you be that nice to any stranger before,” Jimmy commented, once we had our privacy again.

Matt shrugged, “I couldn’t help it. Syn over there totally has a crush on her, meaning that we’ll be seeing her again soon. So I figured I might as well leave a good impression on her.”

Johnny suddenly jumped in his seat as his phone vibrated against his leg in his pocket. He was the member of our group who got all the text messages and emails regarding our ‘job.’ He quickly scanned the email, and by the time he was done, his eyes were wide.

“Matt, this isn’t good. Jason just said that the governor is planning something. He doesn’t have all the details yet, but he said there will be a televised speech tonight regarding the ending of our ‘rebellion.’”

Matt growled as he jammed his fork straight into the remains of his steak. “That bastard! How many times is he going to get in our way?!” he shouted. He took a deep breath, and suddenly a weird look washed over his face. “No worries, I think I have a plan. I just need a laptop.”

We paid the bill and left the restaurant. As soon as we got in the Escalade, Jimmy hopped in the driver’s seat and Matt sat in shotgun for once. He whipped out his laptop and immediately did a person search. I glanced over his shoulder to see him looking at a profile of a girl, but not just any girl – it was Joelle.

He began to read her profile out loud, “Joelle Marie Monroe, born on December 16, 1984. She’s the head chef at the exclusive Californian restaurant, Endless Oceans. And she’s the official caterer to the governor himself. Ha! I knew that I heard her name before; I mean it’s so unique. She works for the governor on the side, and she knows him on a personal level. She can be our ticket in!”

All the guys cheered – not only did we just figure out a way around the governor, but we also get to work with Joelle. See, I told you I always get what I want.