Lights, Cameras, Maze Runner! (completed)

one

Usually, the snobby rich kids from my high school come here to eat at the end of each school year. I hate this because that means I have to wait on their every minuscule need with a smile on my face, even though I'd rather be anywhere but at work.

But this year, surprisingly, is different. Not that I'm complaining.

"Where do you think they all are, Kels?" I hear a voice behind me ask. I turn to see my best friend, Mallory Greene, standing behind me. She looks almost as dumbfounded as I do to not see the wealthy high school kids crowding our restaurant.

I shrug. "Your guess is as good as mine. But I'll take a nice and quiet Thursday evening over a busy one any day."

Mallory nods. "Same here. Alright, I'm going to go wipe down their table." She looks in the direction of a middle-aged couple leaving the dining room.

"Go ahead. I'll stay here," I respond. At this moment, a woman of about forty enters the lobby, holding the hand of a young boy of about eight or nine.

"Hello, welcome to the Waterfall Restaurant," I say with a genuine smile. The woman and her son seem to be in a great mood. "Will it be just you two eating today?"

The woman nods. "Yes, it will be just us. Ryan here had an outstanding year at school, so we're celebrating with dinner here!" She rubs her son's back, and Ryan grins.

I smile. "Congratulations! That's great news!"

"Thank you, Kelsey!" Ryan exclaims, reading my name tag.

I'm happy to see a younger child here at the Waterfall. We're a pretty fancy restaurant, so it's refreshing to see some guests under the age of forty eating at a table. "Here, let me show you to a booth," I say to Ryan and his mother, stepping out from behind my hostess podium. I gesture for them to follow me into the dining room, and get them situated in a booth near a window. I walk back to my podium, waiting for customers to come inside.

I wonder what Connor's doing right now, I think to myself. Maybe I should go into the kitchen and see what's up.

Not wanting to leave the entryway if customers are on their way inside, I scan the parking lot for cars pulling in. The lot has a total of seven cars in it.

Yep, it's a pretty slow night.

I walk into the kitchen to talk to Connor. He's over washing wine glasses at the sink. I pull up a stool and sit next to him, praying Mallory can keep her head above water with welcoming customers and waiting three tables. "Hey, Kelsey," Connor says when he sees me. He finishes washing the glass he's holding and dries off his hands. "How's it going out in front?"

I smirk at him. "There's no Cordice preppies eating here tonight."

My boyfriend's eyes widen. "Seriously? But today was the last day of school! They always come here to eat dinner on the last day!"

I nod my head vigorously in excited agreement. "I know! Isn't this spectacular? I mean, this is the first night in four years that we haven't had to deal with their petty complaints about every little thing!''

He chuckles, putting his arm around me. "You're right on that one. I'm so happy we got out of that awful school last year."

I think back to high school graduation day back at Cordice. Connor, Mallory and I were so relieved to have made it through the hell called high school. Connor went on to attend the local community college, while Mallory took a gap year in order to "find herself.'' I went to the University of Patrick Carlson, about two hours away from home.

I snap back to reality. "I'm happy to be in college too, Connor. So, what's the plan for tonight? We're off at seven, but Mallory doesn't get out of here until eight."