The Family Diner

1~Enter the Family Diner

Chapter One: Enter the Family Diner

At 7:00 AM precisely, on every day except Sunday, a middle-aged man flips the handmade cardboard sign in his front window from CLOSED to OPEN.

And so begins another day in the Family Diner.

At first, it is just him and his wife inside. He sits behind the front counter, reading a novel. His wife begins to prepare the food in the kitchen, humming a quiet tune.

But eventually, the bell at the door sounds and someone enters. Sometimes with friends. Sometimes alone. The man closes his book and smiles cheerily at whoever has shown up.

"Welcome to the Family Diner! Please follow me; I'll show you to a table."

~~~~

JUNE 28TH, 2016

Michelle Mancham

"Can we go to the diner for lunch?" Feli asks.

I just sigh. "We went yesterday."

"I know. But Alfred probably misses us!" he replies with a shrug.

"If there's one person who doesn't miss us, it's that old geezer," I retort, getting up from my chair and heading to the kitchen. Feli follows. "I'll just make something, okay? I still have that meat loaf from a few weeks ago. I'm sure it's fine."

"No!" my son protests hastily. "How about let's not eat that. I don't want E Coli. Look, we go there so much the food is basically free, remember?"

Sakura picks that moment to saunter into the kitchen. "I'm hungry. Let's go to the diner."

"But I don't want to drive," I groan, already on the losing side of the fight.

"I'm hungry. Can I drive to the diner?" asks a newcomer. Natalia.

I silently pray to Jedus. "Alright. Fine. Let's go to the diner. Feli, go get Azura and Berwald and Toni and Miku."

"Miku left last night."

"Feli, go get Azura and Berwald and Toni."

It takes him about twenty seconds to get back. "Azura isn't coming this time and I can hear Berwald chanting again so I didn't go in. Toni says he's not feeling well."

I frown. "Let's not spend too much time at the diner, then."

The four of us pile into my minivan and Natalia backs out of the driveway. The sun is shining brilliantly.

The diner is ten minutes away, not including traffic. I should really start making them walk, but the place is my only chance to socialize with real people.

Just as we pull into a parking spot, a figure starts barreling towards the car. The sun is shining behind them, making it impossible to distinguish who it is.

"Shit, that could be anyone. Get under the seats!" I shout from the backseat, wrenching off my seatbelt and ducking onto the dirty floor.

~~~~

Madeline Williams

As soon as Michelle's beat-up old van wheedles into the parking lot, I start running. As expected, I see her eyes go wide before her and everyone in the car hunker down out of view.

"It's me, meatsweat!" I sing out, knocking on the back window.

The car unlocks, and she clambers out. "Sorry. I thought you were Alfred or a Jehovah witness or something."

"Obviously. Where's Oliver?"

My friend's face sours. "A war. He fights in so many my family has given up remembering which. Last night, Toni asked when World War II would be over because he "misses dad." All I could do was refrain from calling him stupid."