Lies, Deceptions, And Misunderstandings

24. Millie's Diner

Two blocks down from the beauty salon was a popular diner that has been in operation since 1954.

Craig and Taylor's mom and dad used to go to there when they were dating. They woild take Craig and Taylor there a lot too. Almost every time they ate out it's where they went, and for good reason. The food, the atmosphere, the prices, the people, it was a great place.

The decor was clean and neat, but maintained to look just like it did when it first opened. The atmosphere, even today still felt like you were transported back to the 1950's when you entered and the food was spectacular.

They were a 24hr diner, serving breakfast all the time, and lunch/dinner meals from 10am till 2am. It had always been Taylor's favorite place in the world to go, however, since their mom and dad passed away, Craig hadn't taken Taylor there.

He said he had tons of happy memories in that place, but they all involved mom and dad and he didn't feel like he could face that yet.

Taylor had wanted to go back for the same reason Craig hadn't. He thought reliving the memories would help him feel close to his mom and dad again.

Today, however, was not how he wanted to do it, but he didn't have much of a choice.

When Butch and Johnny suddenly showed up at the salon saying they were there to take Kaylee and Taylor on a brunch date, Taylor suspected it had to be Carissa that kept setting them up, he just couldn't prove it.

A few minutes later, when she came over, handed Kaylee a credit card, and told us to head down the street to the diner with the boys, Taylor saw his theory as pretty much confirmed.

Heading out the door, Taylor quickly glanced back at Craig laying flat in the last chair on the other end of the salon.

He wondered what they were doing to his brother, but didn't have time to figure it out before being pulled out onto the sidewalk by Johnny, who still held on to Taylor's hand.

Once they took a seat in the diner, everyone began to browse the menu, everyone except Johnny and Taylor.

Johnny was standing near the front entrance, feeding quarters into the jukebox and picking songs to play. For Taylor, that jukebox triggered memories of his parents, which then began to flood his mind.

He could see his mom's face and how it used to light up when George Jones and Tammy Wynette's "Golden Ring," would began to play, every time they came in, as they sat looking at the menu.

Taylor knew his dad was always the last one to come in the door and he would drop a single quarter in the jukebox and quickly press D7 as he walked by, but he didn't think his mom ever figured it out. That song was their song and she always loved how it somehow played everytime they were in there.

Taylor smiled as the memory played in his head and he knew that when he was ready to marry, he wanted a relationship just like what his parents had.

About that time Johnny headed to the table with a big grin on his face.

Taylor was jarred out of his memories of his parents as "White Houses" by Vanessa Carlton began to play on the jukebox.

Butch high fived Johnny as soon as he slid in to the booth, next to Taylor.

"Good one," he told Johnny with a grin.

Kaylee punched Butch in the arm and told him she knew what that song was about. Taylor, however, did not and was confused by everyone's reaction.

He wasn't soon to find out either as the conversation quickly turned to food when the waitress showed up to take their order.

Once everyone had placed their request for burgers, the waitress left, everyone except Taylor. He ordered the same thing he and his mom had always loved to share, a stack of pecan pancakes with warm maple syrup and cinnamon butter.

Taylor's thoughts once again turned to memories of his mom and dad as he began to picture his mom and dad sitting across from him in the booth.

Taylor and his mom were sharing a plate of the pancakes. His mom lifted a bite of pancake with whipped cream and held her fork out towards him, as she often did, for him to take a bite.

In return he would feed his mom a bite and they would have a laugh.

As Taylor replayed the memory of himself raising the fork for his mom, he noticed his hand. His chewed short fingernails were painted in light red polish that looked old and peeling, like he had been wearing it for a week or more. On his wrist were several thin bracelets that slid down his arm with a clink, as he lifted it.

That wasn't right. It wasn't right at all. That wasn't him in the memory. That was a girl. Why? What did this mean? Why was his memory being tarnished by his current predicament?

He shook his head rapidly, trying to erase the thought and heard Johnny making a loudly whispered comment to the group, about someone at another table.

Johnny was pointing out a girl, sitting at a nearby table with another girl and an adult lady.

"... the brown haired one in the dress." Taylor heard Johnny say. "The other girl is best friends with Mike's sister."

"Who's Mike," Kaylee asked for clarification.

"Our star quarterback," Butch filled her in.

"He's good, really good," Johnny added. "Anyways she says the one wearing the dress is actually the other girl's brother. Yeah, no kidding that's a creepy weird sissy dude."

Kaylee did a double take, "Wait, what? That's a boy? No, no way."

"Yeah, apparently the guy was always weird, even before he decided he wanted to pretend to be a girl and started wearing his sister's clothes. She said he got picked on all the time and beat up a lot before he moved to a different school."

By this time, Butch was laughing pretty hard, but Kaylee felt sorry for this person.

"Awww, that's so sad." She then punched Butch again. "What are you laughing at? Is he making this up?"

"No, it's all true," Butch assured her. "Story around the school was that the only reason he came out is because he was caught by Mike's sister, and the other girl over there, his own sister."

"Caught? What do you mean?" Kaylee inquired.

"He was pleasuring himself," Johnny began, picking the story back up. "in his sister's room, in front of the mirror while wearing his sister's dress and underwear. Mike's sister told Mike, and he told everyone on the team."

Johnny and Butch began laughing again and Johnny asks, "How could any guy ever want to do that, it's weird and creepy and perverted and, well, gross."

"But it's funny too, right?" Johnny added, looking over at Taylor and poking him with his elbow.

Taylor nervously laughed with them and almost agreed out loud with Johnny, but then caught himself before he did.

At this moment, Taylor wanted nothing more than to disappear. He wanted to be anywhere but here.

Kaylee asked Johnny why he thought it was so weird and all that and tells him he might change his mind if he got to know her.

"Right, Taylor," she asked, looking for support.

"That's not possible," Johnny shot back. "since he's just a pervert and I would never be caught talking to a dude dressed as a girl, ever. No guy's ever gonna trick me like that."

Hearing Johnny's statement, real fear came over Taylor.

"Don't be so sure, Johnny," Taylor told him. "You probably wouldn't even know."

"Oh, yeah I would."