The Way of Fate (Book 1)

Bonus Chapter

Happy 2018! I hadn't thought about adding in bonus chapters until @caprisoniall asked. Well, I wrote one! Here's a little Mika-Sammy moment for you guys. I hope you enjoy!

Mika

I was just wiping down the counters of my kitchen when I heard the bell above the front door jingle. I looked up, confused, before my eyes landed on the clock. When did it get to be this late?

"Hi Poppa," Sam said with a smile as he pushed through the kitchen door.

I smiled back at him. "Hey, Sammy. How was school?"

The ten year old hopped up on the counter, his feet dangling. I stopped trying to get him not to do that years ago. He just wouldn't stop. "Eh. Alright. But I have a question for you."

I went back to cleaning up. "Oh yeah? What's that?"

"Well, I was wondering if you know anything about my mom?"

I sighed, tossing the cloth into a sink. "I don't think I'm the one to ask about that."

"Please, Pops? I know that but Dad won't tell me anything and I really want to know."

It didn't surprise me that he already went to Allen - he knew the truth about Allen being his birth father - although I didn't know when that could have been. Allen hadn't mentioned anything about it to me. "What brought this on? Why do you want to know so badly?"

"Because everyone else at school has a mom. I know I must have had one too, so I want to know what she was like. Is that such a bad thing?"

"I guess not," I said. "But I do mean it when I say your father is the one to talk to about this. I only ever met her a couple times, and they weren't the best encounters, to be honest."

I wasn't sure how much Allen really wanted Sam to know about Sarah. We haven't even thought about her in so long, I almost forgot she ever existed. But I didn't want to sit here right now and tell him his mother tried to kill him the last time they were in the same room together.

"You know what?" I said when Sam got too quiet. "We'll talk to him tonight, okay?"

That put a smile back on his face. "Okay!"

"Great. Now go fold the napkins for me, will you?"

Sure, I had a waitress coming in within the next hour who I pay to do those, but I knew Sam liked folding them, so every once in a while I'd let him. He was actually pretty good at it, which is why I let him occasionally.

He tended to come by here after he got out of school most days. Since Amy was away at college most of the time and Allen was usually at work, it was easier for Sam to be watched here while I was here. It helped that his school was only a ten minute walk from here too. I didn't mind keeping an eye on him either. He was a really good kid and he was always willing to help out if I needed him too.

I just can't believe how big he's getting. Ten years old already. To think I knew him since basically day one was amazing. Allen and I still loved each other, maybe even more so than even when we got married eight years ago. The time went by so fast. Where did it all go?

The bell above the front door jingled again. I was expecting Kathy this time, so I didn't stop what I was doing to greet her. She'd come back here in a second anyway.

"Poppa, Pops, Poppa," Sam called repeatedly, running over to me. "There's someone here who wants to talk to you."

"What?" Now I was confused. Sure, the front door was unlocked so Sammy could get in, but the closed sign always managed to deter regular customers from entering until we were open. Who came in and why did they need to talk to me?

Putting aside the stack of plates I was carrying, I walked out of the kitchen into the dining area. There, standing by the table closest to the front door, was a kid, probably only a few years older than Sammy, if I could tell correctly underneath the dirty hoodie and dirt-covered face.

"Hi," he said rather bravely. "Are you the owner?"

I nodded once. "And who are you?"

"My name's Owen. I know I don't look that great or responsible or anything, but I need a job. You can trust me. I'm not going to steal from you or anything. And I don't really have any experience or references or anything like that, but I'm a hard worker. I only need to be paid a couple bucks an hour, no more. That's all I'm asking for."

As he was talking, I saw a reflection of myself in the kid. I had a speech very similar when I was about his age, begging people to hire me just so I could get some money.

"Okay," I found myself saying. I wasn't sure why, I didn't need any more help. This was just a small place that only opened for dinner every night. There was one other cook besides me for the weekends and two on my waitstaff who alternated nights. But I could probably find a place for this kid.

His eyes lit up. "Really? Thank you, sir. When can I start?"

I thought for a second. "How about right now? Go wash up and you can do dishes for me tonight. We open in an hour."

When Owen disappeared into the bathroom, Sammy came over to me. "Why'd you hire him, Pops? I thought you said you didn't need more people?"

I sighed and sat down at the table, motioning him to sit across from me. "Well, Sammy, sometimes people do things that go against what we originally said. I'm going to give this kid a chance here, because I see something in him I wasn't expecting to see in anyone that I might hire."

"But he's dirty and poor. What if he does steal from you?"

As much as we tired to teach Sam that money wasn't everything, he still grew up rich, which came with certain attitudes. "It doesn't matter what he looks like or how much money he has," I told him. "And I don't think he's going to steal. He actually reminds me of myself when I was his age."

He nodded. "When you and Amy had no home, right?"

I had mentioned my time on the street with him a couple times, although I'm sure Amy told him some more about it. Thankfully, she knew better than to bring up my old sexual acts, especially with Sam.

"Exactly. I never would have met you or your father if I wasn't given a chance just like I'm giving him today. You understand that, right?"

Sam nodded again, his gray eyes that were identical to his father's shining up at me. "I get it." Then he stood up and walked around the table to hug me. "You're such a good person, Poppa. I want to be just like you when I grow up."

I chuckled. I'll admit that I'm a much better person than I was thirteen years ago, but I still would rather him turn out to be just like Allen. Rich, successful, attractive, romantic. This list could go on. Sam would definitely be successful in whatever he chose to do with his life, whether took after Allen or tried to be like me, I knew he'd succeed.

Not that I was rushing anything. He was already growing up too fast. I didn't need time to go any faster.