Should I Stay or Should I Go?

9 to 5

    As cars raced off the highway and down the curling turns of tightly stacked exits, a small diner known as "Alphie's Wonder Burgers" sat quaintly, yet boldly in place. Vehicles passed by the establishment at blistering speeds, making the ramps quake and concrete groan. The people inside however, paid no mind to the hum of car engines or the honking or irritated drivers; as the ones inside were used to the constant sounds of automobile chaos on their front doorstep.
The staff of the local establishment had begun their swap with the late night crew and were now loitering around the back, leaning on ugly blue countertops and black and white checkered tiles. Some employees laughed and joked among themselves while the newcomers grumbled about having to work until almost midnight. The late night manager counted stock among the dingy yellow cabinets and wrote the information down with a fancy blue pen that all the employees knew was stolen from the owner's personal stash.
    One employee however, sat by his lonesome, minding his own business and not even batting an eye to the bright, yet also dingy primary colored world around him.
    The man, despite shrinking somewhat into the corner due to posture, had a strong build. Blond hair with loosened hair gel, tired blue eyes, and a greasy uniform gave the man what used to be a clean presentation, now a tired and gritty one. The clothes and appearance seemed to be somewhat taken care of, but there was only so much one could do as they hustled around a greasy diner. The blue polo with its garish stripes clashed with his more traditionally handsome appearance. A man who had the look of a king, but certainly not the life of one.
As he cracked his neck to the side and stretched his arms. A worn name tag with the writing: Ludwig B. Serving you since 1978 Could be read along his chest.

    The man known as Ludwig leaned against one of the countertops as he counted what seemed to be tip money. Flicking through the dollar bills expertly, he sighed gently under his breath as his fingers reached the end of the stack.
Fifteen bucks, just his god damned luck.
    He knew he shouldn't be surprised though, his big bucks for the night cheated him out of the opportunity to make bank. The table of teens had been horse-playing among the booths, and in their roughhousing had kicked Ludwig in the shin as he walked by with a pair of tooth-rotting sweet root beer floats. The nauseating drink, to the luck of the German, ended up on the table and in a few of the boys laps. Their annoyance with his "clumsy-ass nature" left a sour taste in the minds of the customers despite a quick cleanup and a polite apology on his behalf.
With a click of his tongue, Ludwig left his memories of earlier and returned to the greasy back room, then pulled out his leather wallet and deposited the bills into the appropriate slot.
Before closing said wallet however, he couldn't help but glance at the photograph hidden behind his credit cards.
    It was a crumpled up photo of an adult man and two boys. The man had long, light hair, beautifully braided down his back in a lovely, simple form with twists, curls, and other styles melded into the style. A cleanly pressed shirt and tie with matching dress pants were worn, giving the man a polished appearance. On both of his knees rested two young boys. On the left, a rambunctious boy with blinding white hair had the largest grin on his face. Eyes crinkled in the corners that twinkled in happiness. He clung to the adults arm for balance, as while his legs were somewhat long, he still was too small to rest his feet on the ground in a secure manner. Opposite of him was a smaller child. Slicked, gelled hair shined in the light. With a small, innocent face resting underneath. His eyes were wide with a slight furrow to the brow, but a small, genuine smile rested on the smaller one's lips, pushing through the nervousness of the situation. This younger boy leaned into the torso of the adult, and wrapped his arms around the man's frame as much as his little arms allowed. The man in return secured the boys' own waist to his position in a comforting embrace.
    Ludwig felt his lips pull upward into a sad smile, feeling positive memories, but stashed the wallet and photo away before his mind could wander from the good. The photograph meant too much to him, and he wasn't going to let negative thoughts tarnish how happy of a memory the small piece of paper provided.
    Lifting himself off of the counter with a grunt, Ludwig untied his apron and name tag then chucked the two items into his little cubby across the way. He grabbed his belongings, and walked his way out of the back door without a glance behind himself and the people who did the same.