Alfredo's - Pretentious Volume 1

Chapter 1

Danny dug his phone from his pocket, checked the time and scowled, he was late again. He groaned and forced his legs to move faster. Faculty photos blurred as he passed them like pictures of a NASCAR race. He narrowly avoided a collision with Mr. Meece. The high-pitched voice of the big burly Janitor called after him

"No running in the halls!"

Danny pushed forward, struggling not to laugh. A sound like that should not be coming out of a man that size. He turned left, stopped at his locker and scrolled through the combination with fumbling fingers. It popped open, and he threw his books and papers inside, then slammed the door and grimaced at the crash of its contents when it fell to the floor. He cursed, put the lock back in place, and ran for his home room.

Mrs. Sandoval's door open, waiting for its occupants to arrive. Danny sighed and slowed to an easy canter as he made his way to his seat.

A pretty girl with curly red hair, hazel eyes and dimples, smiled shyly, but Danny looked away, pretending not to notice. Slinking down into his chair, he relaxed and scanned the room.

Musical symbols hung in odd patterns on pasty white walls with photos of instruments and the lyrics to some of Mrs. Sandoval's favorite songs interspersed amongst them. In the front of the classroom, a piano sat on a platform in one corner and a brown walnut desk stood on the opposite side.

He wished chorus wasn't his first class but it did have advantages. The first was a boon. Mrs. Sandoval was always late, giving him a bit of leeway in the morning. He smiled at this good fortune. The other advantage sat in the second row with her two closest friends surrounding her. Aryn Morgan, a raven-haired beauty with the brightest green eyes Danny had ever seen.

Tanya and Katie's desks were turned to face Aryn. It was only a lucky chance they were able to sit together. Mrs. Sandoval's seating arrangement was based on the group you sang with, and all three girls were lower soprano. Danny liked the arrangement. It made it easy for him to watch them without being obvious.

He was wedged in with the altos, and when they took their place on the risers, Danny stood almost directly behind Aryn. He could smell the fragrance of her perfume, and envelope himself in her scent. He felt warm standing close to her. He wondered what it would be like to wrap his arms around her, to touch her; he imagined kissing her.

Katie dropped her pen and looked up. Danny's cheeks reddened and he turned away.

Glancing at Brie, Danny felt a pang of guilt for not acknowledging her. Her crush on him wasn't any different than his for Aryn. Brianna was a nice girl, he didn't want to hurt her feelings, but didn't want to encourage her either. She was writing something in a notebook now, the moment forgotten.

He turned his attention back to the girls to find Aryn staring at him. Black curls teased her shoulders, her green eyes holding him captive. His heart beat faster, but he couldn't look away, until smiling at something Tanya said, Aryn turned back to her friends.

Danny took a deep breath, surprised at the depth of his reaction; it wasn't like he hadn't seen a pretty girl before.

When he turned back, Aryn was watching again, her cheeks pinked, and she smiled. Danny would have sworn the room grew brighter. The smile he returned deepened the color.

The door creaked, and Aryn shifted her attention to the front, as a tall woman with chestnut hair folded behind her ears, entered the room, shutting the door behind her. She wore khaki slacks and a yellow knit top that enhanced the look of her ample form. High heels ticked on linoleum as she moved, stopping at every desk in the front row. She handed the students a stack of papers to pass to the people behind them. Katie and Tanya moved their desks back in place, trying to avoid being noticed. Mrs. Sandoval caught their eyes, then stood up straighter and addressed the room.

"Okay people, pass those back quickly, please. We're running late today and time is wasting. Let's get started."

Danny almost laughed as the stack of paper plopped onto his desk. She was the one that was late. If she worked for him, he would have fired her a long time ago. He would have felt bad about it, but still would have done it. He reminded himself that her propensity for being late worked in his favor. Keeping one of the pages, he passed the others back.

Danny walked home drinking in the unseasonably warm sunshine. Fifty degrees felt hot when the temperatures were in the twenties a couple weeks before. There was still melting snow on the sidewalks, but the roads were clear, and the sky was blue with only a few grey clouds. He longed for spring. Cold months and grey skies made him feel subdued, but it would be cold again by the end of the week.

A screaming horn jarred Danny from his thoughts. He turned to find a taxi cab drive on, as a thin man with a scraggly beard, flipped off the driver.

"Watch where you're going asshole!"

Danny readjusted his backpack and sighed, wishing he could take a walk on the waterfront. He liked to go there to think and he didn't feel like working tonight. But when your family owned a business you worked when you were needed, scheduled or not.

Staring at the sidewalk, he turned his thoughts to Aryn. Did she know the effect she had on him? He wanted to ask her out. Money wasn't a problem, even when Mama couldn't pay him he had tips, but time off was another story. 'Responsibility first,' Mama always said, and whether grudgingly or with pride she saw that he and his sister Becky lived by that rule. Becky hated it, but she managed to escape to a college in Ithaca. Mama needed to hire someone to replace her, but for now, Danny was picking up most of the extra hours. The only time he had to himself was walking to and from school.

Shutting the gate and locking it behind him, Danny took the stairs to the flat he shared with his mother, above Alfredo's Restaurant.

Opening the door, he stopped and took a deep breath. The flat was simple and clean. Beige walls wore colorful paintings of the Italian countryside and Mama always bought fresh cut flowers to put in crystal vases that sat on hand carved tables brought to America by his grandparents. A couch sat between them, with an afghan draped across it. He took another deep breath and smiled. Mama changed the flowers every few days according to her mood and what was available at the farmers market. He liked this mix, honeysuckle and freesia maybe?

He placed his books on an end table and went to get ready for work.

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