Simple Manipulation

Chapter 29

        Sounds from a sizzling fryer and loud voicing booming across the kitchen drowned out my scattered thoughts. My muscles ached but my feet continued to carry me with a smile plastered on my face. I had purposefully tied my apron a tiny bit too tight around my waist to keep myself awake and focusing on that rather than other unwanted ideas. I had returned to my summer job at the restaurant as a waitress with the rest of my staff family. Also, I had fallen into a new schedule of waking up, breakfast with Marren, work all day, and picking up Amber from day-care on my way home.  

        I've yet to tire from my new lifestyle. My new adult lifestyle. Three weeks out of high school with college lingering above my head I am enjoying the days of free time while I can. Stacey and Drew's wedding is planned to take place in another two weeks. As maid of honor it is my duty to plan most of the wedding related events from pre and post parties to the food being served at the reception. Not to mention on top of all the planning "homework" I am expected, according to Stacy as well as Drew, to find myself a date to walk beside me in the wedding procession. This wondrous idea of me bringing a date is thanks to Drew "forgetting" to ask eight of his friends to be groomsmen instead of just the current seven. I tried to simply walk with Nasher but he is already counted as one of the needed seven along with Jared and Justin.

        "You doin' alright sweet-pea?" Sally asked me rubbing my back as she stood behind me.

        "Oh! Yes, yes I'm fine. Sorry, Sally." I beamed a smile in her direction and resumed picking up dirty plates and glasses from my designated tables.She gave me a funny look and nodded. 

        "See me after shift, okay?" She strolled away to the kitchen swaying her hips and humming soft melodies under her breath. For the three weeks I have been back at Drew's Sally has been keeping a close eye on me. She is concerned about my previous "affairs" with a certain someone. However, after constant pleads to no longer bring up the fiasco she seemed to drop it.

        I continued on auto-pilot through the remaining time on my shift. Seating couples, families, friends, distributing menus, taking orders, delivering orders, picking up checks, and busing tables afterwards. My past protests against not being permitted to listen to music during cleaning periods returned to my mind as I sang my favorite songs to myself and with my co-workers. Unfortunately all fun and games end in the kitchen when you cause the chef to drop the pepper shakers in his Alfredo sauce. Unless of course you are capable of reassuring the chef it would not happen again and he should let us continue dancing around.

        A pinch of guilt hit me hard when I persuaded the chef. Emotions swarmed in my head as if I had just smacked a bee hive. I excused my self from the laughing bunch and rushed out of the packed kitchen. 

        "Peyton?" I heard Sally's voice briefly as I pressed on out of the restaurant.

        "Why? I was doing so well! Peyton get it together! Pull yourself together! This is ridiculous! It's over. You ended it. Do not- do not even think about missing that animal. He is not worth it!" I shouted to myself drawing a slight bit of attention from some passers-by. 

        "Peyton? Peyton are you alright sweetie? What's gotten itself stuck in that head of yours?" Sally asked pulling me into a hug attempting to calm me down.

        "It's nothing, Sal. I'm just having another spell." I replied.

        "A spell is a spell. It is never nothing. If something gets to you so bad that it breaks you down, it is more than just nothing. Tell me Pey." 

        I paused preparing the words flying around in my mind into sentences. "Why do people miss the things in life that hurt them the most? Not as in missing a car accident, but missing someone, or something that made them smile and laugh and feel happy. But in reality that somebody was hurting them? Dragging them down, keeping them back, blocking them from the world? And yet, we miss that? Why do we miss it? We are so much better off without it but it feels the complete opposite. We feel empty and cold." I spoke through tears but was still capable of getting my hard hitting philosophical question across.