Stranger Things Have Happened (Elvis Presley story)

Chapter 20

I let out a deep sigh as I make my way down the creaky hallway that leads to the staff room in the back of the restaurant. It's long and narrow, and quite creepy actually, if I might add. Ever since I started working here I've been creeped out by it. And the fact that all the waitresses, even clumsy ones like myself, are required to wear roller skates doesn't help. I can't even tell you how many times the rickety floorboards have caught one of my wheels and almost made me faceplant. Anyways, once I make it to the staff room, I reach behind my back and untie my apron before sliding out of it.

Making my way to the far wall where cubbies line the wall, I locate the one marked with my name and migrate towards it. There is a small bench underneath the cubbies, so I perch myself on that and untie my roller skates before slipping them off. After retrieving my own shoes and sliding them on, I begin to fold my apron. As I am doing this, my eyes scan around the room. It's smallish and kind of run down. Flimsy wooden paneling clings to the walls and dirty pale pink carpeting that has seen better days covers the floor. As my mind begins to wander, a voice from behind me makes me jump. 

"Anna."

Quickly shoving my apron and skates into my cubby, I turn around to see who it is. One of the waitresses named Debbie is standing in the doorway, looking annoyed.

"Yeah?" I ask.

"There's somebody here to see you," she says. I try to ask her who it is but she just shrugs and saunters away before I can finish.

Rolling my eyes at this, I grab my purse and turn to make my way through the doorway and down the narrow hall that leads back into the nearly empty restaurant. Winding my way around tables and scanning or any familiar faces, I eventually find myself at the front of the building by the hostess podium and the waiting area. I am confused momentarily, being that I see no one that I recognize. Just as I am about to shrug it off and turn to go back, a low voice floats to my ears.

Turning in the direction where it came, I see a man in a long dark coat with the collar popped up high, a plaid scarf covering his mouth, a hat concealing his forehead, and dark sunglasses. He first thought that pops into my head when I see him is a mixture of a secret undercover detective or a serial killer. Either way, he catches me off guard when he points in my direction. Peeking over my shoulder to see if he was gesturing to someone else, I see that I am the only one in this area. I must me me. Raising an eyebrow suspiciously, I slowly approach him.

"Um, hi," I start awkwardly. "Were you talking to me?" Just then the man reaches one hand up and tugs his sunglasses down slightly, revealing two entrancingly blue eyes.

"Who else would I be talking to, darling?" He responds with a soft sassiness. I instantly know who it is.

My mouth drops open. "Oh my God! What are you doing here?" I spit out in a jumbled mess of excitement before I realize that I probably shouldn't be drawing attention our way. Composing myself a little bit, I try again, is time in a whispered tone. "Elvis, how are you here? Did anyone see you?"

The corners of his mouth tug up in his signature half smile and he slides his sunglasses back up to cover his eyes. "I'm a master of disguise, honey. Even you didn't recognize me." I can't help but smile at that, and before I know it, he embraces me into a tight hug. "You sure are cute in your uniform," he says into my hair, giving my waist a squeeze.

When we pull away, I take a second to look him over. Even knowing that it's Elvis, he's still hard to recognize. The coat he wears is a few sizes too big, making him appear larger. The scarf hides a good portion of the lower half of his face, and the sunglasses and hat take care of the rest. I'm not surprised that he remained unnoticed by the public eye.

Reaching his hand out, he captures me by the wrist and gently pulls me behind him, holding the door for me as we exit the restaurant. The two of us walk outside to his car together. For a second I am concerned about this though, because I had driven myself here. But Elvis tells me not to worry, informing me that one of the guys can come get it later.

The whole ride home we hold hands. Even when he takes off the hat, scarf, and glasses, he still has my hand in a death grip. At stoplights he steals quick kisses that make my heart flutter and a blush to come to my cheeks. I almost don't want the ride to end, but when we pull up to Graceland the feeling subsides. As Elvis pulls the key out of the ignition, I move to open my door and get out.

"Wait, wait, no," he says, stopping me. I watch as he quickly hops out and runs over to my side, opening my door for me. "Let me." He smiles widely, offering a hand out. The corners of my mouth tug upwards as I take it, letting him help me up. He closes the door for me and takes my hand in his before walking the two of us up the driveway and to the house.

"Does everyone else know you're here?" I ask as we climb the front steps.

"Yeah, I got in this morning after you left for work," he looks over and smiles at me. "I didn't want to distract you so I waited until after you got off to surprise you."

He opens the door and we both step inside. The house seems more alive than it has in weeks. Everyone is here for once. Gladys and Vernon, Mary, Jerry, Red, and Joe, and even Elvis. Being here all by myself has helped me realize how important moments like this are. How important spending time with the people who are close to you is. So when Gladys runs over and embraces the two of us in a motherly hug, and the chatter and laughter of the guys in the other room fills the air, I can't help but have a huge smile on my face. Because this is what really matters.