Last Resort Diner

My car coughed, sputtered, and died as I pulled into the parking spot furthest from the door of the Last Resort Diner. I slammed the steering wheel with my hand while letting lose with some very creative words in several languages. I may not have a top-notch formal education, but growing up as a military brat had broadened my language abilities.

Getting out of the car, I lifted my leg and kicked the piece of crap door shut with the bottom of my foot. No need to lock it. It was worth more to me as an insurance claim than anything else. It wasn’t like I had anything valuable to leave inside it either.

Hustling across the parking lot and in the back door, I wrapped my apron around my waist as I went. I threw my purse in my locker and grabbed my notepad. As I walked through the kitchen to the front, Mel, my boss and the Diner’s only cook, flipped some eggs and pancakes off the griddle and onto a plate.

“Where the hell have you been, Valerie? Your shift started 2 hours ago.”

“Sorry, Mel,” I yelled over my shoulder as I headed to the dining room.

I could hear him muttering about firing me but I knew he wouldn’t. This was the Last Resort Diner for a reason. Only those of us who couldn’t find a job elsewhere were willing to work here for Mel. He wasn’t the best boss but at least he did pay timely.

As I entered the dining area, I could hear an overwhelming buzzing coming from the large crowd. Rachel, the only other waitress that had lasted longer than 2 days here, yelled over.

“Can you get table 13? They just arrived and I haven’t had a chance to get them. Table 12 needs refills, table 11’s food should be up.”

“Sure,” I yelled back heading to grab the coffee pot. I rushed over to table 13, poured coffee for those who wanted some, told them I would be right back to take their orders, refilled the cups at table 12, and headed to grab table 11’s food. Just another rough start to a busy morning rush hour.

An hour later, the diner was finally clearing out. The only patrons were an older couple in the back corner who came several times a week, held hands, ate, and talked for hours.

The bells on the door chimed and a girl appearing to be in her late teens or early twenties entered carrying a baby car seat. She went to the booth against the far wall, putting the baby carrier in first before sitting facing the door.

“I got this one Rachel. You go rest for a bit. Thanks for covering for me this morning. I owe you.”

“You sure do, honey. What happened this time? No, go take care of the customers and then come back and tell me.”

“Be right back.”  I grabbed the coffee pot, refilling the elderly couple’s mugs before heading to the young girl. “Good morning. Welcome to the Last Resort. Would you like some coffee?”

“Last Resort? I guess that fits. No coffee but thank you. Can I just get a glass of water while I look at the menu? What is good, filling, and cheap?”

“Everything here is cheap and filling. Good is another question. Mel isn’t very creative as a cook but it is edible. I recommend the Hearty Man’s combo if you want plenty of food. It has scrambled eggs and pancakes along with a side of bacon or sausage and toast.”

“I’ll take it.”

“Anything for the baby? Can I see him? Her?”

“I have a bottle for him. He takes it room temperature so we are fine.”

I went to put in the order as the young girl uncovered the baby and pulled him out of his seat. As I headed back to her table with a glass of water, I noticed a small tear trickle out of her right eye.

“Are you okay? Anything I can do for you?” I asked as I set down the glass on the table.

“I am fine.”

She snuffled and turned her head away so I couldn’t see her tears but I could tell they were getting worse. I left her alone and walked over to where Rachel was resting.

“What’s up with her?” Rachel pointed to our new customer.

“Don’t know. She wanted cheap, filling food. Nothing for the baby. She started crying but says she is fine.”

“And what are you going to do? We both know you can’t let anyone get away until you know their entire story.”

“Not sure yet. I will play it by ear.”

“So why were you late this time? Car? Loser boyfriend? Cat stuck in a tree? You really are a sucker for anyone down on their luck.”

“Snooks got out the front door as I was leaving and ran up a tree. I had to climb up to get her down and then had to re-shower. Then Dale got home from wherever he was all night just as I came out of the shower….”

“Never mind. I know that Dale only ever has two things on his mind. I’m sure he spent the night drinking the first and seeing you fresh out of the shower……”

“Order up. NOW!” Mel yelled as he banged the order bell.

“Gotta run. Be back.”

I grabbed the big plate of food and took it to the young girl at the table. “Here you go. As I said, it isn’t anything special but it is filling.”

“Thank you.”

She dug in as I went to get some more water. By the time I returned, the eggs were gone and the pancake stack was getting smaller.

“You are hungry. Do you want me to put in an order for more? All you can eat. No extra charge.”

“I am fine but I would love more eggs especially. I haven’t eaten since…” Her voice drifted off as she turned toward her baby and another tear ran down her face.

I went to put in another order for the Hearty Man’s combo.

“You know we don’t give out All you can eat meals. If you don’t charge her, that is coming out of your paycheck, Valerie. You are such a sucker.” Mel growled at me.

“I know, Mel. But look at her. Something is wrong. She has a baby. You can tell she is starved for food and love. Take it out of my next paycheck.”

Taking a glass of orange juice over to the table, I set it down in front of the girl and then slid into the booth across from her. “My name is Valerie. I can see you aren’t fine no matter how many times you try to tell me you are. I am a good listener if you need to talk.”

She turned sad eyes to me as she continued to eat quietly.

“I’ll just sit here with you if you don’t mind. You talk when you are ready.” We sat that way for about 2 minutes until I couldn’t stay quiet any longer. “What is your baby’s name?”

“Dalton.”

“Such a strong name. How old is he?”

“He is 3 months old.”

“Are you from around here? I don’t recall seeing you in here before.”

“I lived with my parents a few towns over. They kicked me out when I wouldn’t get rid of my baby. They had sent me away to live with my aunt while I was pregnant so noone in our church would know. They said I was an embarrassment to the family.”

“What about the baby’s father?”

“He kept in touch while I was in hiding at my aunt’s but she wouldn’t let him visit. I let him know after the baby was born so he could come get us. I waited at the hospital door but he never showed up. I thought we were in love and would get married. I even named the baby after him. He didn’t have a job but he was looking. He told me he had so many people who wanted to hire him but he was waiting for someone who deserved him.”

“You never heard anything from him? Do you know where he went?”

“He just disappeared. I hope he is okay. What if something bad happened to him? I have no clue where he could be. We hadn’t made many friends since we usually met in a cheap hotel. He wasn’t much for going out.”

I thought about my boyfriend Dale. We had only been together a few months. I doubted it would last much longer. As Rachel said, he was another of those down on his luck many that I took in out of pity and then couldn’t get rid of. He didn’t have a job or home when we met. He stayed over and then it seemed he was living there. He didn’t like to go out with me but always seemed to have money and time for his friends.

“I am so sorry. How are you going to manage? Do you have a place to stay? A job?”

Tears began to run down her cheeks again. “I don’t know. I just don’t know what I am going to do.”

“First let me go get your refill of food. Maybe I can help you find your way.” I headed over to pick up the food Mel had just put up. “Mel, you still looking for another waitress for the night shift?”

“Why? You want overtime? You already can’t get here on time to cover your hours.”

“I was thinking about her.” I pointed to the girl. “She needs a job and a place to stay. If you give her a job with free food, I can let her stay with me for a while until she gets settled.”

“How are you going to do that? Did you finally kick out that loser boyfriend?”

“No but she can have the extra room until she is able to get on her own feet. Please, Mel. She is so sweet.”

“You and your causes. She can start on a trial basis tomorrow. What are you going to do about the baby? She can’t have it at work.”

“I can watch him while she works. Thank you, Mel.” I grabbed the food and headed back over to sit and talk. “I talked to Mel. You can work the night shift here starting tomorrow if you want. You can also eat free food while on duty. I can watch Dalton for you until we find a babysitter.”

“Wow. Really? I guess that is good. I have never been separated from Dalton but I do need the money.”

“Sit here and relax. When my shift is over, we can go to my place. I have a spare bed you can use until you get on your feet. How does that sound?”

“It sounds miraculous. Why are you doing this?”

“I’ve been told I am a sucker for those who are down on their luck. I will warn you that my boyfriend, Dale, lives with me. Your door will have a lock if you are concerned about that. By the way, what is your name?”

“Vicki. I can handle others in the house as long as they leave me alone. I guess it was my lucky day to walk into the Last Resort Diner. This really is my last resort.”

After I got off my shift, we headed out to the parking lot so Vicki could follow me to my house in her car. As we walked across the parking lot, I remembered that my car had died and I hadn’t gotten around to calling a mechanic….not that I could afford it anyway. “Vicki, I’m sorry, my car died this morning. Can we take your car? I will need to send someone back for mine another time. I don’t live too far. I would walk but with you and the baby, I don’t think we should.”

“No problem. At least my parents let me keep my car. It is about the only good thing, other than Dalton, that I took with me when I left. Let me strap him in and then you can give me directions.”

I unlocked my front door hoping Dale was awake and in a good mood. He was not going to be happy having a baby in the house. Perhaps it was time for the boyfriend to leave.

“Hello. Anyone home?”

From the bedroom I heard, “hi sexy, come in here and take off that uniform. I slept all day and need a blowjob.”

I blushed as I turned to Vicki. She was pale and stood with her mouth open as if in shock. “Vicki, are you okay?”

“Is that your boyfriend? Dale, was it?”

“Yes. Sorry. He can be crude. I rarely bring anyone here so I am sure he didn’t mean to shock you. I’ll be right back” I turned to yell back to the bedroom as I walked down the short hall. “Dale, we have company. I met someone today.”

“You met someone? And you brought this ‘someone’ into OUR home without my permission? Is it some guy you’ve been seeing on the side?” Dale jumped out of bed and pushed me against the wall.

“No Dale. It is a girl and her baby. She came into the diner today. She needs a place to stay. She is going to start work tomorrow at Last Resort.” I answered as quickly as possible trying to soothe Dale’s temper. It could come on fast but it usually subsided if I gave in.

“A baby? I hate babies. It better not cry and keep me awake. I need my sleep. You better never get pregnant or I am out of here.”

“I promise, Dale. I will help her take care of the baby. You don’t need to do anything for her or the baby.”

“I better not. I need my sleep during the day so I can go out at night and network trying to find a job.”

“Please at least come meet her. You should know each other since we will be under the same roof for a few days.”

“I will when I am ready. Did you bring home my dinner? I need to shower and eat before going out.”

“Yes. Yes. Of course, I brought you food. We will be in the living room when you are ready.”

I went back down the hallway to check on Vicki. “He will be out in a bit. Do you want to see your room? What are you doing? Why do you look like you are leaving? You are welcome here.”

“I need to go. I don’t think I can stay here. I know I can’t stay here. Please, just let me go. I still want the job but I can’t stay here. I appreciate the thought but it won’t work.”

“Why not? Dale isn’t usually this gruff. He is grumpy when he just wakes up. He is showering and then he will be in a better mood. He won’t hurt you. I will keep him happy and away from you.”

I was able to get Vicki to sit on the couch and feed baby Dalton who had started crying. As she put him over her shoulder to burp him, Dale came down the hallway.

“Where is this freeloader you brought home to invade our privacy? I can’t believe you let people move in and take advantage of you.”

I stood and walked over to kiss Dale on his cheek hoping to calm him down. “Dale, this is Vicki and her baby Dalton. Isn’t he cute?”

Vicki stood holding baby Dalton close while looking at Dale with her mouth hanging open. Dale looked at her with a surprised look on his face. Both remained silent.

“Come on. Say hi.” I looked from one to the other. “Why won’t either of you speak? What am I missing?”

Vickie finally sputtered out, “Dalton? What happened to you? Where did you go? Why did you go?”

Beside me, Dale shook and I could feel the anger rising in him. “How dare you track me down. I don’t want you. I don’t want that baby. It probably isn’t even mine. I have a good life here with Vicki taking care of me and going out at night with my friends. Go away. Get lost. Don’t ever come near me again.”

Vicki fell backward on the couch still clutching baby Dalton close as he let out a loud wail.

“Shut that thing up or I will.” Dale turned and grabbed his food off the nearby counter. “I am going out Valerie. You will get rid of her and that thing before I get back. Do you hear me? I mean it. I won’t have them in my house.” Dale got right up in my face as he yelled.

“I hear you, Dale. You know what. I was thinking earlier that it was time you moved on. Leave and don’t come back. This is my home, not yours. I pay all the bills. I do all the workaround here. You don’t deserve a nice person like me in your life. You get out and don’t come back. I am done with you.”

“You can’t throw me out. This is where I live. You owe me for putting up with your gosh-awful work hours. It isn’t like I can’t get laid anytime I want. With women much younger, prettier, and better than you.”

I pointed to the door. “OUT. NOW. You can pick up your stuff some other time.” I slammed the door as soon as Dale’s foot cleared the doorway.

“Now Vicki, where were we? Oh yes. Let me show you your room as we get to know each other. Can I hold baby Dalton?”