Fairytale

That was the dumbest thing I ever did. Of course, she ran away while I patiently waited for her at the altar. I knew she didn’t love me, and to be frank, I didn’t love her back. Our marriage had one purpose, and one purpose alone. Getting her dad’s company.

I was the best employee, and if her dad wasn’t as stubborn as having a family member running the business, I would be the one doing it. He told me so. But his daughter would be the one running it after he retired, even with her being a primary school teacher. So I concocted a plan. I became close to her and told her about my aspirations. She was thrilled. She always hated the idea of working there

Everything was going smoothly until the new PE teacher, Josh, appeared. Rose felt head over heels for him, and I can't blame her. But the wedding had already a set date, all the invites had been sent. Even my grandma, who lived in a small town about 40 hours driving, was coming. I took a plane to meet her and then rented a car for the huge drive since she "wouldn’t step foot in those mortal machines." Have you driven for 3 days with your 90-year-old grandmother? Not fun. At least I planned the way so even with a few setbacks, we wouldn't be late.

My grandma went to a hotel, by her choice. She said that she wanted to give space to Rose and me. When I got home Rose wasn’t there. I went to her friend’s house. and she was there, with Josh. I asked her if she still wanted to do the marriage stuff, and she said yes.

That Saturday I discovered that that was a lie. But not only she ran away with Josh, but she also left a letter telling her dad all of the plans. And he read them in front of the wedding guests, at church. She had left last Friday night, but her dad decided to humiliate me.

"Now I'm escaping from the rage of Nana. And Rose's dad. Mostly Nana." The waiter of this roadside diner smiled and laughed.

"When I asked what brought you to Fairytale, I was expecting you to give a small story, not come here and summarize the plot of a movie." After he said that, we both laughed.

"Hey, all I'm getting is that I should sell my story to Hollywood. That's what you said, right?" I smiled at him.

"Hey, all I'm getting is that you are using comedy as a coping mechanism." He took a seat right in front of me.

"What do you mean coping mechanism? I have no feelings for Rose, it was just to get the company. Doing a job that I hated, it's true, but in a great company." I smiled at him and grabbed a french fry from my plate.

"If you hated the job, why did you keep it? If I don't like something, I just leave it." He also grabbed a fry from my plate. 

"So this is your dream job? Waiting tables in a small town in the middle of nowhere?" We both went for the same fry at the same time. He gave me a grin and all I could see was his blue-grey eyes and his honey-blond hair.

"Nah, I have a webcomic, and this is my parents' diner. You didn't answer me, though. Why did you keep the job?" I laid back and sighed. 

"Agh, that's a tough one. I think that the answer to that is my grandma. She always said that if I'm not married with a stable job that I got without her help, I would be disowned. I wanted to be a cook, but she would never support that." After I said that, his face showed that he was doing a machination. 

"Do you know how to use a griddle and a fryer? My dad is retiring, and the only cooking I can do is instant ramen. And even that I suck at it. I burnt it one time." He was offering me a job. I mean, I would need a place and a job for a while, especially after that disaster, I probably lost my grandma's money. And any place to stay.

"I haven't used one since college when I worked at a fast-food restaurant, but yeah." He stood up after I finished talking and made a sign for me to follow him. I did. We got to the kitchen, where a 60-year-old man was there sitting in the corner, exhausted. 

"Hey, dad, I think I found the person to replace you. Meet George. See, you two have the same name, isn't that a sign?" His father looked up, concerned. 

"My actual name is Ashton George Tucker but you can call me Ash sir. I come from a family of possessions, and my grandma always taught me to give my full name. I guess this weird habit is a good thing since it appears that I'm applying for a job." I approached him and extended my hands to him. He shook my hand looking at the clock near the entrance of the diner. It marked 5 to 6 pm. Then, the door opened and a man in his early 40s entered.

"Right on time. That's Matt, he owns the gas station and motel across the road. He always comes here at this time on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays and orders a Hot Elf." When George saw my face he explained. "That's a double cheeseburger, with jalapenos. My wife named them like that since the name of the town is Fairytale. He also gets a fries portion and a big Dr. Pepper. I will get a regular elf. No drinks."

He went and sat with Matt, and I started working. It took me a while, but I was able to pull it off not so easily. I gave both burgers, the fries, and the drink to Logan, and went to the counter to see. He brought my now soggy fries and we were waiting for the result. His dad gave me a thumbs up and left with Matt.

"Wait, nobody told me it was starting now." I said laughing.

"Don't worry, we are closing. Any truck driver that doesn't want vending machine food from the motel can go into town. We close at six on Mondays, but we normally go till 1 am. Which is where dad will probably put you. Now let's go, we have a diner to close and clean." He started moving and I went along. Yeah, this could be life.