KISS: Casablanca High School

Ch 22: Old Flames... (Gene)

Paul came storming over to the tables bright and early Monday morning, a nice bruise on his cheek. "Hey Paul, what happened to your face?" Eric asked innocently. The rest of us struggled to bite back smiles as Paul's face turned red. "Someone decided to egg my house and I ended up getting hit when I tried to chase them off. And to make matters worse, my parents made me clean it up! As if it was my fault! 

"Dang that sucks. Must've been a nice shot though to hit you from your bedroom window," I said carelessly. Paul's eyes narrowed. "I didn't say they hit me from my room," he said slowly. Uh oh. 

"So it was you, huh? You egged my house?!" he shouted. There was silence for a moment as we looked at each other then back at Paul. "Yeahhhh it might've been us," Peter said after a pause. 

Paul sat down at the table with a sigh and buried his face in his hands. "Thanks, guys. Really made my night," he grumbled. Dang now I felt kinda bad. 

We exchanged uncomfortable glances as Paul sat with his head on the table. "Hey man, I'm sorry we got you in trouble and hit you," I said softly. "Yeah I'm sure you are." 

Thankfully, the bell rang and we were able to get out of there before things got even more awkward. "Damn now I feel hella bad," Peter mumbled as we walked to math. 

"Yeah seriously," Eric said, staring miserably at the ground. I sighed. "Yeah. I'm sure he'll be fine though. He can be a little dramatic at times." 

"Paul! Hey, Paul!" He didn't turn to look at me as I ran up to him in the parking lot. "Look, dude, I'm sorry about Friday, I really am." 

"Uh-huh. Stuff it, Gene," he growled, pulling open the door to his car. "Aw come on man, there's gotta be a way I can make it up to you!" 

He gave me a frigid look. "You working tonight?" "Yeah, at Talloman's downtown." "Hook me up with a free dinner and we'll call it even." 

I mulled it over for a moment before letting out a sigh. "Alright, fine. I get off at 11, meet me around then." 

"It better be good," he grumbled, slamming the door behind him and driving off. Alright so he was a little more pissed than I thought. 

Talloman's was a dying restaurant and it was dying fast. We had waaay too many places just like it in the city. The food kinda sucked, we just heated it up over a stove and charged people a ridiculous amount for it. But the owner had like five pubs so he didn't give a damn.

Of course it was empty for most of my shift. A few families came and went, bringing in their small children and leaving a huge mess for me. Too kind.

I looked at the clock with a sigh and began to clear the piles of dishes from the table. Thirty more minutes until closing. So long as no one else came in for dinner, I was chilling.

No sooner had the thought crossed my mind did the bell ring as a group of giggling, probably already drunk women walked in. Perfect.

"Hey sexy, can we get a table for six?"

I looked up from wiping down the table and felt my heart skip a beat. "Cher?"

She looked as gorgeous as she did when I had dumped her, if not better. The same dark hair framing her smiling face, the same curvy body dressed in clothing that was probably too tight for the situation but looked so good on her it didn't matter.

She grinned, giving me a wink. "You miss me?" I paused, considering her question before realizing that I honestly didn't care that she cheated on me back then. "Not gonna lie, I kinda did."

She gave me a wink and grabbed my ass as I led her and her friends to their table, handing them menus.

"So are you our waiter tonight?" she purred. Shaking my head ruefully, I started to head back to my station. "Nah, I can't serve alcohol since I'm underage."

"Aw, darn," she pouted, before giving me a smile. "I guess we'll just have to talk after dinner then." "You mean after I close for the night. It'll be thirty minutes after closing time if you really want to wait that long," I replied, before heading back to the kitchen.

My heart was fluttering and I wanted to kick myself. I was not falling for this, not for her, not again. But when I clocked out and found her waiting alone on the back doorsteps, I knew it was way too late for me to turn away. 

"I can't believe I ran into you tonight!" she cried when I stepped outside, putting her cigarette out on the bricks. "Aw, and you brought me dinner?" She made a swipe for the takeout box and I laughed. "Nice try. This one's for my friend. Come back next time and I'll hook you up." 

A look of mock sadness spread across her face and she crossed her arms across her chest. "Who's the lucky lady?" "Nah, it's for my friend Paul. I owe him one. Once he stops by to pick it up, I'll be free." 

Her eyes shone and she ran a hand along my shoulders. "Perfect. You're so much taller than you were last time I saw you! And bigger too. You a senior, yeah?" 

I nodded, looking at my phone. Come on Paul, any day now. "You 18 yet?" "Give it a few months," I mumbled absentmindedly. "Eh, why wait?" 

Before I could respond, Paul pulled into the parking lot, stepping out of his car with a scowl immediately spreading across his face as he saw us. "Cher. Imagine seeing you again," he spat, taking the food from my hand and driving off without another word. 

Before I could even worry about the crap I was gonna get from him, Cher grabbed my hand and dragged me off toward her car.