Cherry

Chapter 1

Cherry

I've always felt comfort in solitude. There have been things in life that have taught me to isolate myself from others, as being vulnerable can only cause more harm than good. I've always had this mentality, but it's like my opinion almost shifted when I saw him walk into the restaurant.

I don't know what it is about him that feels so welcoming. His floppy, dirty blonde hair, combined with golden, hazel eyes, or the fact that when he sat down in the red booth, he pulled out a book and began reading it instead of his menu. You don't see that much; a truly down-to-earth person.

I grab my notepad and pen, leaving the cash register so I can make my way to his booth.

"Hi," I greet the mysterious man. "I'm Cherry and I'll be your waitress tonight. Can I get you started with a drink?"

The chestnut-eyed boy looks away from his book and moves his focus to me. "Your name is Cherry?" he asks me, disregarding my question.

"Uh, yes," I smile.

"C-h-e-r-r-y?" he spells out. "Like the fruit?"

"Well, what other kinds of cherries are there?" I laugh.

"Fair point," he smiles, revealing two dimples on both sides of his cheeks. "Do you have cherry pie here, Cherry?"

"Maybe you'd know that if you opened a menu instead of reading that poetry book," I move my eyes to the unopened menu sitting on the table.

"Right, right," he smiles. He places his poetry book down on the table, spine up, allowing the pages to face the table so he doesn't lose his spot. He grabs the Heaven's Diner menu and flips the pages until he finds the dessert section. He points to a spot that says "slice of cherry pie" and tells me, "I'd like two slices of cherry pie, please."

"Alright. Is that it?" I ask, placing my notepad and pen in my pocket, considering I can remember his order without writing it down.

"Yes ma'am."

"Alright, I'll get that order in for you."

After walking through the diner and making my way to the back, I find Sylas washing dirty dishes. I interrupt him and tell him, "We have a late customer. I need two cherry pies, please."

"Can ya' take over the dishes while I cook? I wanna get outta here by eleven tonight," he tells me, letting his southern accent shine through.

"Sure," I tell him. Helping Sylas out with anything is the least I can do. I started working here when I was fifteen, and he's been generous enough to keep my spot available when I go away to college. As the years have gone on, Sylas has become more than a boss to me. He's more of a grandpa that I never knew I needed.

Once the pies are ready to be taken out, I dry my hands from the soapy dishwater and grab the saucers. I make my way back to the man's table, noticing he picked up his poetry book and began reading it again.

"Two cherry pies," I say, placing the plates down on the table. "Anything else?"

He looks up from his book, his hazel eyes gluing to mine. "Sit with me."

I laugh, thinking he's making a joke. But, he's not laughing or smiling. 

Oh. 

He's being serious. 

"Sorry. I'm on the clock."

"I can't eat two slices of pie all by myself," he shrugs. 

"Thank you," I smile, "But-"

Interrupting the man, Sylas' voice shouts, "Oh, good lord! Cherry, just sit with the man!"

He must have snuck out of the kitchen without me hearing him. I turn around and find him in the back, at the counter with a smile on his face, letting me know that he was obviously eavesdropping. "You're always in my business, Sylas. You know that?"

"Ya' know I do it for good reason, kiddo," he tells me.

I smile, trying to figure out a way to get out of this. "So, you want me to eat while we're still open?"

Sylas walks over to the front door and flips the OPEN sign to the CLOSED side, informing customers that we're now closed. "There," he says. "Now, sit down and eat. I'll see ya' tomorrow."

I sigh, "Bye, Sylas." He always has something up his sleeve. 

"I guess that was your boss?" The man in the booth asks me once Sylas exits the diner.

"Yes."

"Well, he gave you an order. You have to sit with me now," he grins.

I smile back, as his gestures are contagious. "Okay. Fine," I laugh. I listen to him and sit in the seat directly across from him. I mean, what's the worse that could happen? His eyes meet mine once again, this time intimidating me, but I notice he moves his eyes away from mine first. 

"Here you go," he slides me one of the juicy cherry pies.

"Thank you," I grin and grab a fork.

After taking our first few bites of the pie, he mentions, "Your boss seems pretty cool."

"He is," I mumble with a savory piece of pie in my mouth. "Sylas is the wisest man I know." 

"His southern accent is pretty deep," he puts his fork in his mouth, chewing up the piece of pie that was on the silverware. "I noticed you don't have one, though. That seems rare in South Carolina," 

"Very observative. I noticed you don't have one, either."

He smiles warmly like he's happy I paid attention to the smallest detail about him. "I'm not from here. I'm visiting for the summer."

"Let me guess," I grin. "Boston?"

"Is it that obvious?" he chuckles.

"Just a little bit. I can hear the accent in certain words," I smile.

"What about you? Where are you from?"

"Here and there," I tell him, not wanting to reveal too much about myself to a stranger. A handsome stranger. "I go to college in San Francisco."

"Wow. That's pretty far from this town. Why are you here?"

"You ask a lot of questions, don't you?" I laugh.

"Sorry," he laughs, finishing his slice of pie.

"It's fine," I smile. "I was raised here, so I visit my family every summer."

"Ah," he nods his head and leans it against the back of his seat.

"Why did you choose this small town to visit during the entire summer?" I ask, taking another bite of my cherry pie. "No offense, but there's not much here."

He looks at me like he doesn't know how to answer my question. He hesitates a little before saying, "I just wanted something new, I guess. I just graduated college and needed a break. I picked a random spot on the map and that's how I found my way here."

"Adventurous. I like that."

"Yeah. I took life too seriously in college. I just want to live this summer."

"I try to live every day like it's summer," I take my last few bites of pie.

"Maybe I should take some lessons from you, then," he smirks.

I smile at him as I stand up and grab the empty plates. The man stands up too and says, "Hey. Let me help you with those."

"I can handle it. It's only two plates and forks." I appreciate his offer, though. 

"You're the only one here, though," he looks around the diner. "I want to help."

This total stranger wants to help me clean up dishes?

"Uh," I nervously laugh. "You're a stranger. How do I know you're not going to kill me?"

He stands directly in front of me with his eyes glistening and smile beaming at me. "Hi, I'm Ethan, and doing harm isn't really my thing. I think we've gotten to know each other pretty well in this short amount of time, wouldn't you say, Cherry? I don't think we're strangers anymore," he winks at me. Such a simple gesture, but the simplicity sends chills down my body.

All I do is smile and shake my head sideways. "Fine. Come on," I say, leading Ethan to the kitchen. This might be a mistake, but it could also be fun, and I live for excitement.