MACKIE

7. The Interview

Mackie did a once over through the car window, making sure she appeared presentable in the eyes of her hopefully soon-to-be-employer. It didn't take her the whole morning to look for an outfit but she did find something appropriate to wear: a high waisted knee length black skirt, a blue and black polkadot blouse and her usual black flats. She always kept them in the trunk of her car just incase she ever decided to wear heels. She even took the time out to put her braids up in a bun, and that was something she normally didn't do.

Pleased with her appearance, she made her way to the front of the diner, letting a few people go before her. Mackie was expecting it to be a building like any other restaurant nowadays, maybe even in a Plaza, but it wasn't. On the outside, the place resembled a white mobile home, with the words Bite Night Diner displayed in the front in big bold black letters. Underneath that in smaller bold Italics letters it read: where the food is always tasty since 1953.

Modern time decor was not what she was expecting for the interior, however she gave points for using basic elements of a diner. The color theme was red and white, a bit much in her opinion. The original diners were normally built narrow and elongated with a service counter taking up most of the exterior, which was exactly how this diner was designed. The drink and preparation area were also towards the back walls with built in red stools in front occupied by a few patrons ordering their meals. Photographs of people, maybe the owners family and friends flooded the walls, some of them dating back to the early years of when the diner first opened up. Mackie could only imagine the history surrounding this place.
She arrived at the service counter, the smell of fried foods and sweet desserts invading her nostrils. She stood next to an overweight man enjoying his burger. The grease from the burger dripped down the corner of his mouth and landed on his shirt. He didn't care enough to try and wipe it off and instead continued to devour his sandwich as if it would somehow grow legs and runaway.
       Disgusted, Mackie turned her attention to the skilled server balancing two cups of Pepsi in one hand and a tray of food in the other. Her uniform was pretty casual; blue jeans, a red t-shirt with the Diners name displayed in the front with a black knee length apron tied around her waist and non slip black sneakers. Nothing formal about this attire and that was the way Mackie liked it.
"Hey there." She greeted. She smiled at Mackie as she handed two guests their beverages. "I'm Kira and I'll be right with you, ok?"
Mackie nodded and replied, "No rush I'm only here for an interview. Take your time."
"Thanks."
Mackie sat on a stool one seat away from the man gobbling down his burger and waited patiently for Kira to return. She's had quite a few serving jobs back in the city so this wouldn't be a problem for her. If anything the places she'd worked before were a lot bigger than this Ma and Pa restaurant. To her, this job would be a peace of cake.
She felt the vibration of her phone in her bag and removed it to see what it was. It was an angry text message from her father.
Quit ignoring my calls, Mackie. Not sure what you're trying to do here but your really starting to irritate me. STOP ACTING LIKE A FUCKING CHILD AND ANSWER THE DAMN PHONE!! She rolled her eyes, a smirk on her lips as she dropped the phone back in her bag. The last sentence was in capital letters to make it clear that he was screaming at her. Oh, someone's mad. Mackie thought laughing silently to herself. Not to mention the big f-bomb he just dropped. Yeah, he was definitely pissed.
Unbothered, Mackie shrugged it off. She wasn't going to let that bother her. It was his fault anyway. But knowing Giovanni, it wouldn't be a surprised for him to drive the 300 miles here just to chew her head off. He was that kind of guy. Either way, she didn't care. She was still in her mood and it's not like she wasn't going to call him later. He could be so annoying sometimes. Then again, he did have a short fuse. Mackie made a mental note to return his call after her interview.
          "Thank you for being so patient, hon, said Kira, her hands finally free and resting on her hips. She was a petite brunette with unusually dark grey eyes. It reminded Mackie of the clouds when a thunder storm was approaching. We had a little rush and since I'm the only server on right now I was a little busy. I don't think I caught your name."
           Mackie waved it off. " No worries. My name is Mackie Amoretto. I'm here to see Jimmy Jenkins."
           "Oh yeah that's right. You must be the City girl everyone's been talking about. News travel fast in these parts."
            "So I've heard." Mackie muttered, trying her best not to rolls her eyes. No such thing as secrets around here, huh?"
          Kira couldn't help herself from laughing. "Afraid not, but you'll get use to it. It's nice to meet you, Mackie. Cool name by the way." She stuck a hand out for Mackie to shake
          "Thanks and Likewise," Mackie, replied grabbing her hand.
         It was only for a split, second, but Mackie saw the terrifying expression on Kira's face when she pulled her hand away. She recovered with a quick smile as if nothing happened. 
       "I'll let Jimmy know you're here." With that, Kira disappeared through the double doors. Mackie assumed they led to the back where the kitchen and the office were located.
That was weird, she thought, staring down at her hand in confusion. Pretty sure that was a normal handshake. What was that about?
     A few minutes passed by before Kira appeared again. This time a tall older man that looked to be in his late 60's with shoulder length graying black hair and neatly kept facial hair followed behind her. He looked tired, almost worn out. It's as if he's been up for days and could use some much needed sleep. Even so, his physical appearance was professional enough: white long sleeve dress shirt neatly tucked in black slacks with a clean pair of shiny black dressed shoes. Not what Mackie was expecting from a man who owned a small town diner in the middle of nowhere, but she wasn't mad about it.
         "Mackie, right? He greeted with a polite smile. She noticed that he didn't stretch a hand out for her to shake, but she tried not to let it get to her. Maybe Kira warned him about something she didn't understand. Pleasure to meet you. I'm Jimmy Jenkins but you could call me Jimmy. When can you start?"
         Mackie was a little taken aback. He didn't beat around the bush and just got right down to business. "Well I was hoping Friday. My weekends are open. I go to school and study during the week."
         "Ok, that's good. Thats the kind of availability we need anyway. It seems you already have serving experience, so you don't really need much time training. You'll shadow Kira here for a few days and you should be good to go." Kira forced a smile before looking away for just a moment and then returning her gaze back to Mackie. "We're a small restaurant but it does get busy. If you're a good server, then making money should be no problem." Jimmy removed a menu from one of the caddies resting on the service counter and handed it to Mackie. "Not much to really memorize here so this should be like a walk in the park for you. We're open 24 hours a day all year round except Christmas and Thanksgiving, so let me know what shift you prefer: 1st, 2nd or 3rd."
      "2nd shift is fine by me."
       We're usually pretty busy around that time, so that's good, Jimmy commented. 2nd shift it is."
         Man, this guy really doesn't beat  around the bush, Mackie thought eyeing the menu. There wasn't even a back to it. Everything was on the front. There were only four types of soft drinks to choose from as well as for the milk shakes. The entrees were made up of mostly burgers and cold cut sandwiches. Side orders included onion rings, mash potatoes, fries, and coleslaw. Not to mention the desserts. They were pretty boring options too. Vanilla ice cream, chocolate ice cream, a chocolate brownie  and a vanilla bean cheesecake. Not much of a variety, is there? If that's the case, why the hell is this place so busy? Mackie thought to herself , while still reading the menu. And why the hell is a burger damn near forty dollars? Yeah right. Looks like I won't be eating here.
          As if reading her mind, Jimmy said, "there might not be much on the menu but our food is really good. Everything we prepare, we prepare from scratch. Our local farmer doesn't use antibiotics or growth hormones on our animals. That is why our sandwiches are more expensive than most places. You might think our burgers look greasy but we don't use any oil. That's just how juicy they are. Don't knock it till you try it, Mackie."
          Mackie nodded, still shocked at the prices on the menu. You'd think people were ordering seafood at a fancy restaurant as appose to burgers at a Ma and Pa diner. Of course she didn't say that part out loud. Instead she replied, "Ok, I'll keep that in mind. Thanks for the heads up."
             "Sure. Well I have nothing else to say. Do you have any questions for me?"
     Mackie shook her head. "No. Not really. You explained all I needed to know actually."
       Well then, if you come up with any, let me know.  I'll see you Friday at 3, right?"
        "Yes, I'll be here."
      "I'm looking forward to working with you. Enjoy the rest of your day."
     Ok. Thanks for the job, Jimmy. I appreciate it. See you soon."
         With that they parted ways and Mackie started for the exit. She realized that the whole time she was speaking with Jimmy, Kira never left his side. In fact she stared at Mackie the whole time during their conversation. As if that wasn't creepy. What was that even about, anyway?  Before Mackie made her way out the door, she heard Kira say, "she's one of us. You know that don't you, Jimmy?" Jimmy's comment surprised Mackie even more.
          "I know, He replied, his voice sounding worrisome. I felt it too."
           Mackie didn't turn around. She didn't want them to know she heard their exchanging of words even though she wanted to ask them what they meant by that.
She's one of us.