Cole grinned from under his dark blue ball cap. It was always stained and dusty, having come from a job to fix something else that had fallen apart at The Grill.
He'd only been so chipper because Kelces mother was telling him all about how I'd make him something good to eat, not the crap from the menu.
"Oh she will? I've been begging for hours but all she does is ignore me."
The lunch rush was a lunch walk. Maybe even a stumble. No one around here came in for lunch because the menu was one kind of pasta, a burger that barely classified as such, and two types of fish that we never had, or poutine six different ways.
I smacked Cole's arm, rolling my eyes at his smart mouth. He always knew how to piss me off enough to make him food to get him to shut up.
"Flo, my poor boy is starving here, and my arthritis..." Hilary began, frowning at me like I'd pity her sad little eyes soon.
"And you don't believe in your cooking?" I asked her, teasing since I had nothing to do. It was slow, and Joe had consolidated all of the three orders.
Hilary swatted at me before she headed to the office, gone to visit with Mary instead of stand here for no reason.
Cole grinned to me, his eyes and nose dark from the shadow of his hats brim. "So? I'm just waiting for a call about a part. I've got time for a meal."then I think he realized how it could be rude of him to ask for me to make him something. "I mean, if you've got time,"
I hated cooking here, the same stupid plain burgers and gravy over fries. It was boring and not challenging at all. I couldn't add any flare, any new spice or ingredient because it would possible murder Kelce if he saw it.
But Cole, I'd known him for a while, and I never minded cooking for him.
"What's the order?"
He never told me exactly what he'd wanted. If he'd wanted beef or a stir fry or something. He only ever gave me what he'd felt like, and let me decide what to make.
"Something spicy and crunchy. Been into Takis recently, so I'm gonna keep riding that train," he chuckled, making me smile.
Cole was brown haired and I had no idea what colour eyes. I'd only ever seen him with his hat pulled down on his face, not letting anyone see much. But I could see the grin and his stubble, and it had been always nice to see.
He fixed just about everything in the restaurant, and was there most days when something would fall apart again. So most days I'd make him a meal, ever since he's begged for more after I'd made him a sandwich the first time I'd met him.
Cole chatted to me while I cooked, pausing when he'd get shouted at by Kelce for his smokes, or when he would be in my way.
"Make it real spicy, I wanna burn," he teased, and I wondered if he had the brain of a squirrel.
Cole got his call about his part right as he'd been asking again why I worked in this dump of a place, how he wasn't sure how I could give up the high life of the fanciest restaurants in the world for The Grill.
It had been well over a year since I moved, and since I started working here. Cole asked a few times a month, but I'd always ignore by acting distracted, or luckily he'd get distracted.
I'd made his meal and left it under the heat lamp for him. It was a chicken burger breaded in crushed takis. I made a him onion rings too, knowing he'd appreciate a spicy flavour on them this time. He'd always liked fresh onion rings.
I had put headphones in, knowing we had no customers to cook for. I was prepping for dinner, wanting to try to make something new and show Mary and Kelce that we could add new fresh ideas to the menu. Instead they focused on having Cole renovate the place slower than molasses.
