An Afternoon Meal

After our entrance, a quiet thump indicated that the door had closed behind us. I paused for a moment to look around. The simple decor was spread out on the walls to set a western theme, typical for these type of steak houses. There were massive glass windows at the front displaying everything inside and an almost entirely open floor plan. I never liked restaurants like that because no matter where you were inside, people could always see everything you did. As I looked to the left, a bar was off to the side, but no one seemed to be tending to the counter. Not many people were there which was expected, for the time read 4:27 on the clock hanging across the room.

I made note of the people I could see. Two people were standing by the window. They seemed to be a newly formed couple, assuming from their body language. A teenage girl was sitting alone on her phone at one of the tables. A book bag beside her made me think that she probably came here from a local high school. A group of four was sitting near the back wall. They were most likely a family consisting of a teenage girl, a little boy, and two married adults in their thirties. Two staff members, a waitress in her thirties and a waiter in his twenties, were talking to each other off towards the kitchen. They all looked so easy.

The last person I noted was the host. When I first turned my attention to him, I noticed he held a fake downward smile that was specifically aimed toward me. He was a young teen and an average minimum wage worker. Blond hair and distinct green eyes made him pop out as different. Curiosity shined across his face. I was uncharacteristically drawn to him. His gaze shifted upwards to Light who stood in front of me. The young host got to work.

"Good Afternoon, sir." He spoke in a polite tone, but it resembled highly of his smile. "Table for two, I guess?"

"Three actually. Another will be joining us soon." Light always spoke joyously. I'm always in a good mood was his motto.

The host grabbed two menus from his stand and started walking off. "Follow me." He took us to the corner furthest from the entrance. It was a small booth laid out against two walls. Two at most could fit on both sides. The light was the first to take a seat on the side against the wall. I promptly followed beside him. The host waited until we were seated firmly before he placed one menu in front of Light and another on the opposite side of the table.

The host then turned to leave but stopped mid step. In one motion, he turned around and quickly flicked three silverware out of his sleeve and into his hand. I hadn't even noticed he was carrying them. It was dangerous. I moved to get out of the booth, but Light halted my movements with his palm on my shoulder. With his other hand, he pulled out some plastic silverware from his pocket. "We have our own."

The host nodded his head in acknowledgment and started off again. Before he left, Light called out to him. "Thank you, Sun."

Son? A sign of recognition? I had never heard Light use that before. I quickly took out my notepad scribbling as fast as I could. Why son? I pushed the note in front of Light, moving the menu away. He didn't react. He must have been thinking. Planning. I had to tap on the notepad before he left his trance.

He took a glance at the paper, quickly reading its contents. "S-U-N. It's his name."

Taking the notepad back, I wrote the next question. How do you know him?

"Work." No wonder he stood out so much. I wasn't interested in him. No. He made me anxious.

I looked up to the host stand to find Sun pointing at Light and me. The man Sun was talking to was someone I already knew well. Lieutenant is what he tells people to call him. He was built like your everyday biker: muscle based and a little tall. He wore all black as usual. I've met him a few times; I never liked him. He was dangerous. It didn't take long for him to move over to us. Taking the seat across from Light and me, he started straight to business. "Why did you call me?"

Light, who had taken notice of Lieutenant when he sat down, was waiting to speak. "Work, of course. Why don't you join us to eat?" Light gestures to the menus resting on the table. "This might take a while."

"I'd rather not." As if on cue, the male waiter walked up. Lieutenant seemed pissed to say the least. I kept my eyes on him worrying about what he might do. Light and the waiter exchanged some words, and then, the waiter was off being told not to come back until the food was ready. Lieutenant's glare held on the waiter during the whole dialogue, but as he walked away, his attention came back to us. Our eyes met for a second before he quickly shifts his eyes back to Light. "Can we make this quick?"

"Sure." Light spoke matter of factly. "Just answer me this. Why did you disobey me?"

It got silent. The only sound was from the music playing in the restaurant speakers. Lieutenant's eyes moved to me again. He swallowed. "I didn't."

"Yes, you did." Light's stare became like daggers. I couldn't help but smile. I knew the rest of the day would be fun. "You broke a law."

"..."

"You did something you shouldn't have."

"You're wrong...I... Don't know what you're talking about." Worry was in his voice.

"Really?" Light laughed. "I wonder what Kylie would say."

"..."

"Don't lie." With a tilt of his head, Light smiled, like a flirt.

Lieutenant broke. Tears building in his eyes, he pleaded. "I'm sorry. Please. I won't do it again."

"Lieutenant, I gave you only three rules."

Don't lie to Light. Don't involve women. Don't involve children. I wrote the rules on my notepad and slipped it over to where Lieutenant could read.

"You broke all of them."

"Please" Lieutenant made his final call for hope before dropping back into the seat, defeated.

A dead silence fell across the table.

I smiled. It was such a lovely sight.

A soul dying.

There was only one thing left to do.

"It's too bad. I still need you." Light threw a napkin, that the waiter brought earlier, at Lieutenant's head. "I'll give you one more chance. Don't waste it. Now, get out"

"Thank you!" Lieutenant quickly rushed through the restaurant and out the door.

As the door was closing, Light reached into his jacket pocket. His hand returned to sight holding a black box the size of a phone. I reached out and took it. "Hahaha." Light laughed while patting my head.

I couldn't help myself. I jumped from the booth and skipped across the floor and out the door. On my way out, I caught the gaze of Sun following me. He kept his eyes on me as I walked down the sidewalk, following the steps of Lieutenant. Sun remained expressionless the entire time. He looked cold. Dead. Our eyes locked until he went out of view.

I looked around the shopping center the restaurant was located in. It was relatively small compared to the others in the area. Only three privately owned shops, a hairdresser, and the restaurant filled the ten-lot complex. The other five lots remained empty and will probably stay that way. There was construction across the street, so the sound of vehicles and workers killed the noise of anything else. Not many people came here, especially around this time. Light liked it for that reason but also because there were no cameras.

It wasn't hard to find Lieutenant as he was the only person in the area. He had rushed out, but his pace had slowed. He walked by building after building until he came to an alley. I saw him take out his keys before he turned into the alley. I ran to catch up to him. Looking around the corner, I could see him unlocking his truck. He was so easy.

I quietly walked up behind him. Just as he opened his door, I took a thin knife out of the black box.

I smiled. It was such a lovely sight.

A body dying.

It was done.