My Army Boy

chapter one

'Hey Lou" Cindy Jules called out to me, as she wandered over to the corner booth with our friends.

I look over and smile" I'll bring the usual."

Heaving a sigh I straighten up from where I had been leaning against the counter and head to the small window to call back their orders to Joel Tarvi the cook.

He nodded in acknowledgement, Joel wasnt much for conversations, which worked well for me on this day. I wasnt really in the mood for much conversations, it was my final week of high school and soon I will be off to university. To much was changing, and I did not like change.

I watched as my friends sat around chatting easily among themselves which was to be expected in a small town where everyone knew everything about everyone. I looked around the diner at the other patrons, Miss Betty, the sweet old lady who had fallen in love young, only to have her husband go off to war a few months after being married, sadly he hadnt returned. I remembered my mum telling me when I had asked a few years ago that not long after he had left Miss Betty had found out she was pregnant but by the time the letter had gotten to the base where he had been posted he had already been killed in action. Miss Betty had never gotten over him and from knowledge had never really moved on. She had stayed faithful and raised their son deciding to busy herself with town council and working three jobs up until her retirement last year, now she mainly stayed at home or on the odd occasion like today she ventured out for a meal.

As my gaze went over the others, Charlie Long, whose wife left him and moved to Las Vegas to become a stripper, very successful from what everyone had said. Not that I could have blamed her Charlie was very opioniated and made sure everyone was aware of all his opinions whether they wanted to know them or not and today was no exception it would seem I thought watching him on the phone to some poor buggar who was copping one of his traits.

Then there was Taree Brine who had, had her first child at 16 and had moved away with the father only to come back to her family when he had left her after realising it wasnt so fun being responsible for more then yourself, though from what everyone says Taree had got her act together gone to back school and now works in a major law firm in the next town over.

I finally allowed my eyes to come to rest on Shawn Davis, he had been pretty popular when he had first come to this town back in primary school we had been pretty good friends, but if what was being said was true, his father was a drunken abuser. Word had been that his mum had tried to leave before Shawn had entered in to high school and when Derek his dad had found out from a friend he had gone home and beaten Shawn pretty bad and Jane had stayed with him out of fear after that day. Many people over the years had tried to get involved but Jane feared what would happen to Shawn so many soon stopped trying. Then soon enough Shawn himself had started to close off. People including myself had tried to remain friends but Shawn had just shut everyone out. He now hung by himself reading or staring off in to space.

"Order is up Lou" Joel called out.

I sighed as I often did when thinking about Shawn and went to the window to collect the plates. After collecting a couple I decided to come beck for the rest. Due to it being a quiet and slow afternoon Carl the owner had asked if I could take the shift with just Joel and I had agreed. Unfortunately that entailed the boringness of it also.

I had worked at The Classic Diner since I had turned 15, I seem to be one of the few people in this small town who was actually trying to get off to university. Most of my friends had decided they didnt want to think that far ahead and not many of their parents were pushing them, unlike my own. My dad was the town Judge after being a lawyer for more then twenty years he had decided he wanted to try something different and sticking to what he knew a judge seemed like the best option he had said to me. My mum was a paediatrician, many of my friends had grown up going to her, and in all honesty a lot still did because my mum has that gentle nature and respect for people that you couldnt find with a doctor from a neighbouring town.