Shape of You (+18)

Chapter Eleven

▬▬▬▬Marley's POV▬▬▬▬

One week later...

"Look at it! Would you want to eat that?! It's still pink in the middle!" the older man complained, pointing at his burger with a huge bite mark in it. "If I get sick, I'm suing!"

"Uh, yes sir, but...you ordered your burger medium well," I reminded him.

"Medium well! Not raw! I'm not paying for this!"

"But, this is what medium well looks like," I shared with as much patience as I could muster. It wasn't the easiest when I was in a diner full of people all watching me wrongfully get fussed out by an irate man.

"Well, I don't like it!"

Then maybe you shouldn't have ordered 'medium well' if you didn't know what the hell it was.

"Okay, sir. I understand. Would you like me to check with the chef and have him make you another burger, well done this time?" I asked, managing to keep my tone kind.

The man, who looked within his fifties, far too old to be behaving like this, sucked his teeth, like my offer was dissatisfactory. Waving his hand dismissively, he said, "Yeah, sure. Whatever."

"Alright," I nodded with a smile.

It wasn't too often I encountered customers that acted like him, mainly because our patrons were regulars and had gotten to know me. Not on a personal level, but they were used to seeing my face, and returned my hospitality with civil politeness. Those kinds of customers were a nice distraction from my confusing personal life.

"Okay, good. I don't want anyone else knowing about you."

Those were Joel's words from a week ago. At the time, they really rubbed me the wrong way. I mean, I couldn't blame him for thinking it, but to say it to my face, not even an hour after fucking me? That was just cruel. No, I wasn't catching feelings are anything like that. It was the fact that clearly I was just his secret sex toy. I'd hoped we'd at least become friends of some sort, eventually, so that when we stopped doing whatever it was we were doing, it wouldn't be like I had slept with a stranger however many times we did, but that I had slept with a friend.

My fault though, for hoping that. It was honestly just a way for me to cope with my slutty ways.

I mean, I was still a little bitter about what he said, and yet, I let him come over my house twice since then. Each time ending it hot, strenuous, meaningless sex. I couldn't exactly fault him for not wanting his friends and family to know someone like me.

Ding! Ding!

The sound of the door chiming drew my attention, and in walked the devil himself, Joel, and his angel of a daughter, Everly.

He's not a devil just because he's ashamed of you.

Rolling my eyes at my inner thoughts, I looked over to Beth's side of the diner, hoping she could serve them, but she was in the middle of taking a family of five's order, which meant I had to do it.

"Marley! Marley! Hi!" the sweet girl greeted me when she saw me walking over. "Do you still remember me? I didn't spill my drink last time," she grinned, swaying on her heels in her light-up sneakers, pink and yellow striped leggings, and blue coat.

"Of course I do. You're a hard girl to forget," I smiled, lifting my eyes to her handsome father, making eye contact with him for the first time since they came in. "We're a little crowded today, but there's one table left that I can seat you at."