Cardinal

Chapter 16 The Promise You Left

Saturday, November 11th

It was a Saturday morning like any other. I worked with Mallie in the back grill area, Jake controlling the table. The usual Saturday morning employees were there, including Mary.

"I hope everything goes well at her job," Jake stated quietly, causing me to glance over to him.

"What do you mean? She works here," I stated with a joking smile. He glanced over to me in confusion, his eyes telling me that something wasn't right about this.

"Today is her last day, didn't anyone tell you that?" My heart skipped a beat. I had no idea today was her last day, and I doubt Jake would prank me like that. I walked towards the counter that divided the front service area to the grill and looked over to the coffee machines that were near the front window. She smiled and joked with Nya as she made the coffee, something about watching them caused my heart to beat slower.

Why did she never tell me, and why did she work on her last day? Most people would not show up or just go there and be lazy the entire time. So then why did she stay? This thought stuck to me throughout the entire day, the longer I thought about it, the more anxious I got. What would I do if I couldn't see her at all?

How could I go through this job without being able to talk to her or even see her smile? As the clock got closer to two, I became more anxious. 10:30 turned to 11, and 11 went to 12. By the time it was 1, It became apparent that something was on my mind, causing me to become more and more stressed. It was through my slight mannerisms that Mallie finally noticed I was upset about something.

"Harrison, is something wrong?" I looked over to her, feeling a sense of emergency from the question.

"What? No, I'm perfectly fine!" I stated in a rushed manor, before continuing with helping Jake create the sandwiches. I was struggling, I couldn't focus on the neatness and kept messing up on folding the burgers in their respective wrappers. Finally, two o'clock came around and the employees for second shift started showing up.

I had prepared everything for them so that Jake could leave, but instead, he stayed on the table.

"Jake, you can go now if you'd like?"

"No, gimme a minute," he would repeat as I explained to him that he was able to go. Mary walked by the table that separated the hallway and grill, waving bye to everyone.

"Bye Jake. Have a great day Harry," she stated with a smile, before walking away. I waved back, giving her a warm smile before looking down at the table. My smile faded immediately, forming a slight frown.

"I stayed because I know how important she is to you Harrison. I got table, go say bye to her like I know you want to."

"What? I'm fine Jake, you can leav-"

"Harrison," he stated, looking up at me. "Don't make today a part of your future regrets." Time slowed as he said this, and the only thing I could hear was my heartbeat. Jake gave thirty minutes of his time for me, knowing how much this moment would mean to me. With a slight nod, I quickly walked out of the kitchen, throwing my gloves away.

I walked towards the back hallway, where the shelves sat silently with the large, metal door looming at the end of it. Mary by this time was walking through the door, her black hair flowing behind her. Quickly, I walked over to her and pushed the door open further, causing her to look back.

"Oh, hey Harrison..." She stepped back as I walked through the door, her back towards the drive thru. I stood in front of her, feeling anxious and distressed.