Need You

Chapter 5

I was yanked awake as my back hit hard against the steel bars. I winced. "What do you think you're doing?" One of the guys that surrounded me at the cafeteria earlier said through his teeth. He raised me of the floor slightly by the collar of my uniform. "Were you sleeping?"

Unfortunately, I shared a room with him and another friend of his. "In here, you don't sleep till you hear the siren. Got it?" I nodded and he let go.

He walked to my bed and laughed as he took my mattress, sheets and pillow to his bed. "If you sleep —" He warned.

I was so tired. I sat, leaning against the steel bars. The weather was very cold. I understand why he took my bed sheet. I rubbed my hands across my forearms. My head bowed as my eyes shut.

"What did I tell you!?" I heard immediately as a kick went to my ribs.

"Ow!" I groaned, my hands against my left side.

"Get up!"

I sat up in the couch. That dream couldn't have been more real. My first year in prison was hell.

I rubbed my hands against my forehead and a heavy sigh came out. I looked behind me when I heard a door opening. It was Ethel, the older woman who had given me a place to stay.

"Good morning." She said sweetly.

"Good morning." My voice was just groggy.

"Did you sleep okay?"

"I did. Thank you."

"Okay. I need you go get ready for work. It's almost 5:30. Shower and, there's a new toothbrush by the sink."

"Oh. Thank you."

"When you're done, the dress shirt hanging on the door is yours. You can wear it to work."

"Oh you don't have to do that." I said. Of course, I wanted to get out of these dirty clothes but I didn't feel okay accepting it so quickly. "I can just wear what I'm wearing right now."

"It's dirty. Leave it in the laundry basket." Ethel said. "Hurry up and go get ready. The bathroom is there." She pointed to the room next to the she came out from.

Ethel entering what I now presumed as the kitchen, I went into the bathroom. It was very clean. The black and white patterned tiles on the floor and the white tiles on the walls matched well.

I saw the dress shirt she was talking about. It was a blue and white striped shirt. I wondered if it belonged to a husband or a son.

The sink was to the left, a few feet away from the door. I realized that there was another that led into the bathroom — it was closer to the sink.

A wall behind the sink gave privacy to the toilet which was opposite to the spacious shower space.

I did as I was told and got ready. The shirt was nice.

"Auntie, can I take your car to work?"

"Why?"

"I'm late."

"Why?"

"Come on." She whined. "I need to take it or else  I'll be very late. They've already started working. I need to get there quickly Auntie."

"Okay." Ethel chuckled. 'Let me go and get the keys."

"Thank you."

She came out of the dining area and asked, "Are you ready?"

"Yes."

"My niece is here. She can take you to the restaurant."

"Okay." She went to the room and I closer to the dining area. We spotted each other at the same time. "Nikki?" "Harry?"

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"Um..." What was I supposed to say?

"He's having some slight problems with his accommodation so I decided to help him out."

"Oh." She gave me a pitiful look and then a sympathetic smile. That definitely made me shy.

"Here's the key." Ethel stretched it to Nikki. "Leave it in my office when your shift is over."

"I can't bring it back here?" She drawled.

"No, Nikki." Ethel drawled too. It was amusing.

"Okay. Thank you Auntie." Nikki gave Ethel a hug and I said bye to her before leaving with her niece.

"Amanda, are you ready?"

"Yes." The lady who responded looked at us and I'm sure that I mirrored the surprised look on her face.

"Amanda this is Harry. Harry, Amanda." Nikki said.

"Good morning." I said.

"Good morning." She said, clearly wondering why I came out of Ethel's house with Nikki.

The red sedan unlocked and Nikki and Amanda got into the front seats. I went to the back.

The two of them started a conversation soon after we were on the road while I enjoyed the music being played in the car.

Amanda left the car a few moments before we reached the restaurant. I guessed she worked around that area.

We pulled into the back of the restaurant and it seemed Leo has just put something into the trash.

"Good morning Nikki." He said with such a big grin. It reduced when he saw me come out of the car.

"Good morning Leo."

"Good morning." I thought it was polite that I greeted too.

"How's the setup going?" Nikki asked as she made her way into the kitchen.

"It's going well."

I stopped at the busboy station, noticing there were dishes in it. I grabbed an apron and got to work.

Later Leo came to me and asked, "Do you work here now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Yesterday you were just helping out."

"Oh. I do work here now." I replied.

"Okay so did you get a lift from Nikki or..."

"She drove us from the house so I guess you can say she gave me a lift." I said nonchalantly.

"The two of you stay together?" He asked.

"Leo, come and take the food out!" The chef yelled.

"Yes chef."

Why he was asking, I didn't know but he left.

The day passed by quickly. Gradually, the staff left. I couldn't though because Ethel was taking me home and she was busy in her office.

There was a clock in the main dining area, above the bar. It was almost 11 P.M. I sat by the windows in the main dining area and thoughts of what I was going to do with my life run through my brain.

I wasn't going to be a busboy for long and neither could I stay long in Ethel's house. I needed to get a job which paid more than what the restaurant would pay me so I could get on with my life but without Derrick, I didn't think that would happen.

"Harry." I heard Ethel call my name. I went to the back and she was standing in front of her office. "I thought you'd left. Why didn't you come and call me?"

"I didn't want to disturb you."

"Oh. Sorry." She said and I followed her out. "I was looking at the end of this month's accounts. Some things weren't adding up but I sorted it out. Sorry."

"It's fine."

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