Keeping Quiet

Chapter 2

          I left DC later that night. I decided that I was going to drive down to Charleston, South Carolina. My parents used to take me there for a week every summer, but we haven't been since I was 11. I arrive in Charleston 9 hours after I leave DC. It's about 9:00 am, and the city is pretty quiet. Since I left Washington so suddenly, I'm going to stay in a hotel until I can find a place to live in the city. I'm also going to have to find a job. And soon. I didn't think any of this through very well... either way, I can't go back now. Especially after what my fortune said. After checking in at the nearest hotel, I sit down and try to figure out what I'm going to do. How am I in danger? I can't think of anything I've done to put me in danger. I can't think of anyone who would want me in danger. What could it be?

         Since I wasn't getting anywhere with that, I decide to walk around town and look for a job. When I step outside, I see that the streets have been populated with many people, all with swirling auras, walking, talking, or sitting on benches.

        As I walk down the street, I look into different shop windows and check to see if there are any good prospective places to work. There are a couple places that catch my eye, but none that have any "Help Wanted" signs up.

       I haven't eaten since the disastrous Chinese takeout last night, so I walk into a diner on the corner of a busy street. Taking a seat at an empty booth, I think that maybe the fortune was just one of the workers messing around with another one of their friends. Maybe they didn't mean any harm by it. Am I taking this too seriously? Should I have thought it through more before I left DC? Even while trying to convince myself that I'm being stupid, there was something telling me in the back of my mind that the fortune was serious. That it was meant for me. Maybe-

"Hi, my name is Serenity, I'll be your server today. Can I start you off with a drink?" a waitress with a bright yellow aura says, interrupting my internal monologue.  

"I'll have orange juice please," I say, faking a smile at the waitress. I've never been a big fan of coffee, so it's definitely gonna be juice for me.

"Ok, I'll be right back," Serenity said, writing my order down. A few minutes later she’s back with my orange juice and takes the rest of my order. When she leaves again, I take some time to look around the diner. It's fairly large, and there are booths and tables everywhere. The diner has a 50s style to it, complete with red booths and a black-and-white checkered floor. The place is also clean, which is always a plus. I look toward a counter where it looks like they sell icecream and I happen to see a "Help Wanted" sign! This is awesome! It looks like the diner would be a fun place to work.

        Serenity comes back with my order, and I ask her about the sign. "Oh yeah," she says, glancing towards the sign. "Would you like me to get you an application?"

"That would be wonderful, thank you," I nod at her.

        I soon finish eating and sit back to wait for the check and an application. The food was amazing! Yet another plus to the diner. Actually, it makes sense that the food is good; there are many people in the diner now, and most of them appear to be pretty happy, at least that’s what their auras tell me.

          I look towards one corner of the room, and see that a small table is occupied by one man. The man is looking straight at me, staring into my eyes, and yet I can't seem to break the eye contact. He has one of the murkiest brown auras I've ever seen, and there are a lot of nasty, greedy people in DC. Does he have something to do with the fortune cookie? Why else would he be staring at me?

         The man has dark brown hair, and coal black eyes. His skin seems paler than most people in Charleston, but who am I to talk? He's wearing a black t-shirt, and casual khaki pants. He doesn't have any food or drinks in front of him, so why is he here? And more importantly, why in the world is he staring at me?