Love Or War

Chapter two: First Sight

Able

“Oh my God Able, can you believe it! We are going to be working for a fancy restaurant, eating fancy foods, meeting fancy people. Ugh! Isn't it just the dream?” Cherry asks while bouncing up and down.

“Well I guess it could be someone's dream, but I was hoping to get the chef position, being a chef is my dream, I only accepted the waitress job because I need to stop living in my car and save up for my final year of culinary school.”

“I don't even know the first thing about being a waitress, I lied through my teeth to get that job, what am I going to do?” I signed in defeat.

“Well, first of all, you're going to gather all your belongings and come to my place, because no friend of mine is going to be living in her car! You just need to help with rent when you have the money, of course”

She stopped dead on her track, looked me straight in the eyes and said

“Secondly, how about we make a deal!? You cook me amazing foods that I can eat myself to death and I can teach you how to be a waitress so you don't fall flat on your face when we start working.” Then she extends her hand out to me and starts walking again.

I couldn't believe it, I hardly knew this girl and she was already calling me a friend and offering me a place to live. I never had many friends growing up mainly because my parents always wanted me to stay home and study.

I suppose my only friend was my grandmother. I didn't know what to say. I just couldn't believe someone was being so nice and genuine with me. I ran up behind her and gave her a big hug, that's the only thing I could process at that moment.

This random girl is helping me make my dreams come true. Wait! She is no random girl anymore. She is my friend, my only friend.

“Alright that's enough lovey-dovey crap, if I didn't know any better I'd say you're trying to hit on me, which I wouldn't be opposed to, you are adorable after all.” she winked at me and I felt like my face was on fire.

“Wait, what? No no, that's not what I meant, I just-”

“relax sugar bear I was only playing, besides I have a gaydar and you are waaaaaay off of it. Plus, you're not my type. She said cutting me off.

“I like my women taller, but don't worry, you are adorable” she winked at me again.

I was lost for words, I didn't know what I could possibly say that wouldn't make this more awkward.

“Alright, come on sweet. Let's go home so you can make me something amazing to eat”. She said while putting an arm around my shoulders.

Home! I said to myself. I like the sound of that.

Cherry and I finally made it back to her house, or should I say our home. We got to work and started lugging all the boxes that were in my car up the stairs to my room.

“God damn girl! What in the hell do you even have in these boxes! Let alone, how can you fit that many in one car! You're lucky I love you ‘cause you're breaking my back women.” Cherry said as she rubbed her back.

I felt bad, I told her she didn't need to help me move my boxes but she insisted saying I'm too much of a shorty to lug all of my stuff up the stairs. I never knew I was so short until I came to LA where literal skyscraper women walk along every sidewalk.

“Why don't you make it up to me with a fancy dinner and a back massage.” she gave me a little wink.

This woman and her flirting, I swear she will be the death of me.

“Food I can do, back massage is a hell to the no, go find yourself a girlfriend for that” I waved a wooden spoon at her.

“Thank you!” she said while smashing my face.

“Hey, I said I would cook for you. I never said it would be good or not” I crossed my arms together. She looked at me and started to furrow her eyebrows while her bottom lip popped out.

“Alright, fine. Lucky for you, my grandmother would have my head if I ever made anything distasteful.” I laughed.

“So is your grandmother the one who taught you how to cook?” she asked me.

“Yeah, she taught me everything she knew. She even taught me a couple of secret recipes”. I said, wiggling my eyebrows.

“She used to have a whole book filled with them, but unfortunately my parents took it from me and said I would be too busy being in law school to actually cook,” I explained.

“Man, your parents sound like pricks.” she blurted out.

I shook my head and laughed. “Yeah, I miss my grandmother.” I had to hold back the tears. ‘I will show the world your food grandma. I promise’

A week later…

As the morning sun shone through the window making it hard to see, I felt something or should I say someone trying to drag me out of bed.

“Come on and wake up! Today is our first day and we have to get around for work!” Cherry said while trying to drag me out of bed.

I sat up as fast as I could running to the bathroom, showering quicker than I have ever before. And I threw on my work uniform.

“Do they have to make the skirts so short?” I ask Cherry while trying to pull them down as much as I can.

She laughed. “Here let me do your makeup for you!.” she jumped up and down.

After about 10 minutes or so of me sneezing and eyes watering she was finally done. I walked over to the mirror and almost gasped. I looked like I was going to walk the red carpet with this makeup.

“See? You look gorgeous! Also, I heard the owner of the whole restaurant chain is coming for the opening day today, and I may be into girls but I heard he is quite the looker”. She said while nudging my arm.

I rolled my eyes at her. There is no way the owner of the whole restaurant chain is going to look anywhere my way.

The past week Cherry has lived up to her word and has been teaching me to be a waitress. I kinda got the hang of it, I just can't carry as many drinks, so hopefully, I won't have to serve for big groups or parties until I can get everything down. Fortunately, Cherry volunteered to take the bigger parties for me so I won't have to worry.

We make our way to the restaurant, get out of the car and already at the entrance of the building, we could smell the amazing aroma of food wafting in the air. Alluring everyone who walks by to it. I would give anything to cook here.

When we got inside there were almost a hundred circle tables that were covered in an elegant pale white sheet, with candles lit in the middle and wine glasses at every seat. They had elegant white roses in the middle of the tables. With lights strung up along the walls and chairs. There was also an orchestra playing in the corner.

There were already a lot of people waiting to be seated to finally get a taste of the food. “Alright, let's do this,” I say out loud more to myself to give confidence.

Throughout the night I had everything under control, and Cherry kept her word and took care of all the big groups and parties for me, while I handled the rest, mostly couples or small groups with no more than three people. The hardest part of the job for me was when I had to grab the trays of food.

I would sometimes stand near the kitchen watching the chefs at work, stirring soups, sauteing stuff, and just daydreaming about when it would be me the one making the delicious food.

Just around the closing time a big group of men, about 5 or 6, came in. All of them were tall and well built wearing slim suits that fitted them a little too well, you could see that they took care of themselves.

But one, in particular, picked my interest.

He was tall with slicked-back dark brown hair, with a little stubble on his face. He had the deepest green eyes I had ever seen. Sharp jawline and an amazing body. He truly looked like a god.

The moment he looked into my eyes, I could feel my heart skip a beat. It was weird. I don't even know who this man is and yet I already felt a connection to him. And as part of the big group agreement I had with Cherry, she jumped in front of me.

“Welcome to Moon Rising gentlemen, may you please follow me to your seats.” she smiled warmly at them.

Just as she turned her back to seat them. “May we have her as our waitress?” The godly man in the back asked in a silky voice that gave me goosebumps.

“Oh, well umm sure, I suppose that would be alright as long as Able here is okay with it,” Cherry said as she looked in my direction with a sorry expression on her face.

“Will you gentleman please follow me?” I turned around with menus in my hand and walked them to a table.

I could still feel the godly man's eyes on me the whole time my back was turned and, for some reason instead of being creeped out, I felt slightly aroused thinking of him watching me. I thought for a second there I could hear a growl come from him. Maybe it's just my imagination from a long day.

While ordering their drinks, the man's eyes never left me. I walked to the bar and placed all the drinks and waited for them to be ready.

The bartender put all the drinks on a big circular plate for me to carry them all at once. I carefully lifted up the drink tray, silently praying to whoever is out there that I don’t drop it.

I successfully was able to lift the tray and start walking a couple of steps behind, but as soon as I turned around, I ran into a wall, or so I thought.

I ended up spilling all the drinks on the person I ran into and myself included. Now smelling like booze I look up to yell at whoever ran into me.

“What the heck-” I smacked myself in the head internally when I realised who it was.

“Oh, I am so sorry sir, please let me help you clean that off of you at once,” I said in a panic. Turns out the person I ran into and spilled the drinks on was the man from my table.

I grabbed the closest rag I could find and began to rub it on his suit. I carefully tried to dry his face when my finger accidentally touched his skin. As soon as my finger grazed his skin I felt my whole body burn with desire. It felt like little fireworks erupting on my skin.

I let out a small gasp. “What was that?” I ask, looking at my hand and back at him.

“Hello my little mate, my name is Lucas, but you, my dear, may call me Luke.” Wait, did he just say mate?