Audrey Hepburn's Pearls: Part I

Chapter 95.1: 1995, Ruiz

Chapter 95.1: 1995, Ruiz

Walking up the street to the diner, I was deep in my thoughts just like I had been on the train. Thoughts about what I’d seen in the kitchen, that weird spark in my throat as I’d seen Georgina and Miss Cha Cha together. Something weird, intimate.

There was traffic next to me beyond the parked cars along the sidewalk. Lots of yellow cabs waiting in the line of cars, passengers inside looking harassed and worried as the nine o’clock hour creeped up though it was only minutes to eight. It was a Wednesday anyway, hump day.

As I approached the diner, I saw two familiar people leaned against the bike rack in front. A small smile spread across my face, seeing them. But also confusion, because why…

“Oh, hey!” Veronixxxa cried out, seeing me. She waved her half eaten cinnamon roll above her head. The diner didn’t serve cinnamon rolls. Tony saw me at this and waved, too.

I waved back, hurrying up. Tony wasn’t supposed to be working today. So why was he here? Small worry filled me, wondering if I got my schedule wrong but no that couldn’t be.

“Hey,” I said, getting to them finally. Tony eased off his piece of bike rack, making a space to let me lean there if I wanted to. I appreciated it, easing into that spot he’d made. It immediately felt so comfortable, even though it was hard round metal pressing into my back.

“Hey, girl,” Veronixxxa grinned. Her long, bleached blonde hair was perfect even though it was eight o’clock in the morning. How she did it, I would never know. “How you doing? You working?” she asked, still smiling.

More nervousness about getting the schedule wrong. “Yeah, I should be?” I asked, staring her in the face. Her smile crinkled her nose bridge a little bit.

“Cool. I’m working today, too,” Tony beamed. He reached over and took a piece of lint off the shoulder of my jacket, so casual.

“Thank you. But why are you working today? I didn’t hear anything about it. Do you mean in the afternoon?” I asked. But that didn’t make sense either. If he was working in the afternoon, why was he here now?

“No. Alejandro called out I guess, so I got called in. Must have been something really important for him to do that. But anyway, yeah! I bet it’ll be fun to work with you. I kind of wanted to.”

That made a small pinch in my heart. He wanted to work with me? I wanted to work with him, too. I was relieved. No Alejandro today. Thank the lord. No awkwardness, no nervousness about having to keep my mouth shut. Plus other things…

“You two have to go inside in five minutes, right? Don’t forget to clock in.” Veronixxxa took a big bite of her cinnamon roll, and as she chewed Tony took the rest of it from her and took a bite. My eyebrow went up and I hoped they wouldn’t see it.

“We’ll clock in, don’t worry,” Tony said with food in his mouth. He swallowed hard. “Damn, that’s dry. What’s wrong with you, you didn’t order orange juice or anything?” He turned to her, but took another bite despite what he’d just said about it.

“Like I expected it to be dry? I’ll never go to that place again anyway.”

“That’s smart of you.”

Veronixxxa seemed to puff up with pride, smiling at him. My eyebrow went up further. I couldn’t contain myself. What was happening with this morning? All these intimate things going on, first with Georgina and Miss Cha Cha, now them?

“What’s up with you two, sharing a cinnamon roll like that?” I asked, looking at the diner beyond them, too nervous to address them directly with this question.