Species II: Monster Unleashed

Chapter 4

                                       Officer John and Chloe stopped at small diner in the middle of no where for lunch. It was a small diner that hadn't been updated in a while. She wasn't sure if she should trust John yet, but he seemed like a nice guy so far. He held the door open for her. He hadn't touched her at all which she appreciated. And he told her she could order whatever she wanted. The smell of french fries, bacon, and chocolate made her smile. She looked over her menu with eager eyes. Everything looked so good, but she had to be a lady and not abuse his kindness. Maybe just a salad. She thought to herself.

                   Noticing her struggle over what to order John decided he would place a big order that way if she changed her mind she could eat off his plate. He eyed her up in down. Even in her baggy plain gray sweats he could tell she was thin. She looked as though she hadn't eaten a good meal in a while. She looked weak and almost a little sick.

                    "Ready to order?" the waitress asked making her presence at the end of their booth known. Chloe jumped slightly startled. She looked to John for him to answer. This mad John a little sad, he wondered what this girl had been through. After getting lost in thought looking at poor Chloe, he turned his attention to the waitress and gave her a friendly smile.
                    "Yes! I will take a double bacon cheeseburger with a side of fries and a coke. I would also like a vanilla milkshake and a plate of fries for the table." The waitress jotted it down quickly as she popped her gum.
                   "And for you?" she asked Chloe. Not sure why, but Chloe suddenly felt like she was going to have a panic attack. SHe went from having no options to so many and didn't know what to do. She was overwhelmed and embarrassed. She wanted to cry a little bit, but settled on biting her lip.
                  "She'll have the same." John answered and smiled at Chloe warmly.
                  "Okay," the waitress rolled her eyes and jotted it down.
                  "Strawberry instead of vanilla, please." Chloe's voice was so quiet, but luckily they heard her.
                  "Sure," the waitress turned on her heels and made her way the kitchen.

                  They sat there in silence waiting. Chloe refused to make eye contact with him. He didn't know what to say. It was obvious to him that this girl had been threw alot.
                  "How old are you?" he asked.
                  "I don't know." she fidgeted with her hoodie strings embarrassed.
                  "What do you mean? How do you not know?"
                  "It's a long . . . complicated story. I think he said I'm like 23? I don't honestly remember."
                  John just nodded. "Do you have amnesia or something?"
                  Chloe thought about it for a second before nodding. "Something like that."
         Another long silence stretched between them. The waitress came back and brought them their drinks and the order of fries for the table. John felt relief when she started eating some fries. He wanted to tell her to "eat up", but didn't want to possibly upset her.
                 "So . . . you have a kid right?" Chloe nodded as she chewed some more french fries.
                 "A boy?" he asked. He couldn't remember what McCoy said the kid's name was, but he was certain it was a boy's name. She nodded again.
                 "How old is he?"
        Chloe frowned and shook her head at herself before shrugging. "I don't know."
The most awkward silence lingered between them. She felt like the world's worst mother. She wanted to cry, but she was all cried out. She just felt shame.
The waitress brought them their food and slipped John a piece of paper. it had her name and number on it. He gave "Bonnie" the waitress a polite smile. She winked at him and made of show of swinging her hips as she walked away. She was beautiful. She looked like a 1950's pinup girl with pretty raven black hair. Once she'd eneded her little performance and made her way back to the kitchen John turned his attention back to Chloe.