I'm Fine

Chapter 14

I ate in silence. My eyes were kept open for Brody, but he either seemed to have left or was hiding somewhere.

"Imogen!" cries Harly. "Did you hear anything I just said?"

"No." Harly sighs.

"Are you thinking about that table boy?" she asks, making me choke on my food.

"No!" I exclaim.

"Liar!" she says, laughing.

"I'm not!"

"Are to!"

"Not!"

The old man in the corner frowned at us and the red-headed lady's baby started bawling.

I blushed red. "Sorry." Harly looked at me inquisitively. I gestured behind me and she looked past my shoulder. Her mouth parted into a little 'o' and she nodded.

The doorbell chimed. I didn't bother to look up at who it was, but my first instinct was to swivel my head around to the counter to see if Brody was finally going to appear.

He didn't.

This tall, young lady who looked around her early twenties exited the office door. She wore a large smile, big blue eyes and sandy hair tied up in a loose ponytail. 

"Welcome to Harby's Diner, may I help you?" she said. Her voice sounded high and sweet, but packed with authority.

An old woman with a hunched back, a ripped up red cardigan and a ugly beige button down dress stood in front of the counter.

"I'm looking for a pair of young girls," she croaked out. The lady who was towering over her gave her an odd look.

"Like those girls?" she asked, gesturing towards Harly and I. Harly was eating away at her French toast but I was engrossed in those ladies conversation.

I suddenly turned away.

I didn't hear a reply from the tall lady. I think that might've been Alice, she certainly looked like Brody. Strong build, same face, kind smile.

The sound of a cane hitting the wooden floors in an odd rhythm followed the end of that conversation. I sucked in through my teeth.

"Harly? Imogen?" the old lady's voice said. Harly looked up from her plate. I looked out the window.

"Yes," Harly replied, stuffing her mouth full.

"I'm Hillary."

"Okay..."

"Can I speak with you?"

"Just me?"

"No, this girl here too." She prodded by shoulder with her cane.

"We don't know you," Harly said cautiously. "How can we trust you?"

"Good question. Simple answer. You can't."

"Imogen?" Harly said, clearly out of words to say to this 'Hillary' person.

"Yeah?" Harly didn't know what to reply of course so she didn't say anything.

Suddenly, I heard yelling.

"It's you! I thought I told you that you weren't welcome here." My head spun around to face Brody looking red faced and angry.

He pointed out the door. His eyes were locked with Hillary's.

She sighed. She hobbled out the door and didn't turn back.

Brody turned to us.

"Who was she?"

"No one."

"She has to be someone."

"Someone not important."

"Everyone's important." Brody gave me a funny look and shook his head in confusion.

"She's just an old lady with a few screws loose. I keep telling Alice not to let her in, it makes the customers uncomfortable." He was more talking to himself now.

"But, how did she know our names?" Harly asked, taking a sip of water. Brody shrugged.

"Mystery woman."

"Don't you find that creepy?"

"Creepy what?"

"She knew our names." I looked at him, scanning his face.

"Hmm, she must know a lot of people."

"But, we've never seen her before," says Harly, her full attention in our conversation.

"I'm not sure then. She usually just comes in here to stare at this photo and the people eating food," he says, handing me a photo frame off a shelf.

The man in the photo is sitting on what seems to be a rocking chair, in front of a fireplace probably. He looks old and tired, with sagging cheeks and grey eyes with a sad smile. There's a small child sitting beside him, on a wooden chair with a wide tooth gap and squinted eyes.

This photo seems normal to me. Maybe she's the little girl in the photo? Can't be, this little girl looks quite different. Then again, people do change. 

The thought lingers in my mind for a bit. Brody strikes up a conversation with Harly but I tune myself out.

I stare at the photo. My eyes focusing on the little details of the man and the young girl. It makes me shiver and my mind starts to blur thoughts into a whirlwind.

And then it hits me. I do know her.