Love, A

The Boy With Black Nails and Beanies

It was obvious he was hiding something from day one. The way he never looked up for too long unless he was high, the way he blasted his music just enough to drown the world out without pissing anyone off. How he always moved as fast as he could but found something to do. He was hiding something, holding it back and keeping it to himself.

One day they started hiring. That just meant more people, and how could he ever be comfortable with that? The first people they hired worked mornings. He liked to sleep and do chores in the mornings, and he never worked, so this didn't bother him. He was okay with this. Then he got his friend on the night crew. Thank fuck for that, because that meant no new people. Or not. Then came the quiet one. She didn't need to be here, and he never understood working toward a goal, so he could never understand her. The quiet one cooked and did the grunt work closing the worst parts of the kitchen, so he didn't mind. Then came the waitress. She was quiet, for a day or two, and she got comfortable. Something about her made him uneasy, like she could read him like a book. But she stayed away, kept to herself. The blonde waitress came and the first waitress trained her, but neither of them bothered him.

-

He never worked mornings. He hated working mornings. But he needed the check, and this was today. And then he saw her. The cute, short girl. She had brown hair and wide, curious, innocent brown eyes. Her laugh was light and airy, her smile was visible through her mask. But what made her perfect was that she wasn't. She was clumsy and messy and she was funny... She was learning, she wasn't cocky like the first waitress or unhelpful like the blonde waitress. She was just herself, unapologetically and happily, just like he longed to be. It wasn't a matter of falling slowly. It was a dance where they twirled and teased and he suddenly slammed flat to the ground before her, and she didn't notice or mind, she just laughed and smiled and made him feel full again. The cute, short girl with the wide brown eyes...

-

He got to see her more. She hardly worked nights, so he made it possible. When the first waitress decided, for some unfathomable reason, to invite everyone on a stupid outing for presents for people who didn't deserve them, he waited. Her avatar popped up; the cute, short girl with the wide brown eyes. She was all aboard and ecstatic. Of course she was, he smiled to himself, that's how she is. Kind and generous and genuinely happy to be. He typed out a short, unenthusiastic yes before blasting his music and driving away.

-

"You like her, don't you?"
His chipped black nails froze over his playlist. Why was she talking? To him? What did she say? How did she know? No matter, he would just brush it off. He nodded simply. She gave him a knowing look and went back to her break. After q a couple minutes, she slid off the stool when the short, cute girl with wide brown eyes came to the back. With a last knowing glare, she walked away from him. He did not see the waitress for the rest of the night.

-

His car struggled to a start, and he sped off to the nearest spot he knew. The car trudged along the freeway, some busy streets, and came to a harsh stop atop a parking garage. The boy's fingers shifted around his bag for a moment before finding the tiny glass jar and the stolen lighter. After a couple clicks, a tiny flame whispered into existence and was gone within 15 seconds. He took a long, hard inhale and allowed himself to relax. The screen of his phone lit up with a text.

Mom
When will you be home?

He swiped the message away. As if she would be there whenever he showed up. He began mindlessly scrolling, until he came across a post. The picture was boring, a bland outfit with a basic white girl caption. It was the username that caught his eye. The damn waitress. With unnecessary aggression, he clicked her name and scrolled through her profile. Boyfriend, stupid high school stuff, boyfriend, spoiled rich girl vacation, boyfriend, boyfriend, painfully ugly outfit... What was her deal? This page was boring. She had nothing of substance or value. Use some emotion, damnit, or at least provide a somewhat decent visual. He was about to exit her profile forever when it caught his eye:

Message

What did he have to lose?

Bruh how did you know I like her?
sent
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