Mary and Erica had a cute little house in the suburbs of their town, it was beautiful, and everything about it felt warm and homely. Neither Mary or Erica were about extravagance, their home was big enough for them, and one spare, that spare was now me. We three fell into a smooth rhythm of figuring out our life together pretty quickly, they were easy to get on with, supportive and kind. I loved to sit and watch them go about their days, two people who had been together over a decade, and they clearly were each other's right hand, they just flowed effortlessly together in their space. Erica had mostly retired from her landscaping business, she was older than Mary, she now volunteered part time to drive the elderly to appointments and help them clean or tidy etc. Mary worked at the hospital full time, she was a nurse and she loved it.
Both had made it clear to me that they were here to get my life back on the track it should have been on, before my father had put up the road blocks. Mary called the local university, it was one of the few I had gotten into with my scholarship. It was not the one I had chosen however. I had to let go of that one. She had set up a meeting about getting me in the year after, she had to fight for it but of course we came out of that meeting with an assurance of my place. The only requirements were that I had to keep my skills up, and come and train with the team until I joined the spring after, which I of course did. With my parents withdrawing all financial support it was clear that it was on me to support my life from that moment on, and even though Mary assured me I wasn't a drain on their income, I couldn't have her pay my way. So I got a job, my first proper job at a little Greek restaurant in town, Stygos... where I would meet Calliope Nomikos.
***
"First shift huh" came the voice beside me as I tied my white apron around my waist. It was a girl who looked about my age with thick dark hair and brown eyes, she was naturally pretty, didn't wear much makeup and had a lovely complexion.
"Yes my first day" i say shyly.
"My first day was eight years ago" she muses gathering the menus and shuffling them neatly into a pile.
"How old are you" I ask with a frown.
She looks to me and laughs "eighteen" she returns "my family own the restaurant" she adds with a flicker of amusement "I started when I was ten... basically a form of slave labour at this point"
"Callie" a small voice calls as a little girl runs through the tables, her wild curly hair seen above the tables before you caught sight of her large brown eyes and dimples.
"This" she says reaching down and picking up the little girl who had thrown herself at her legs "is my little sister Teddy" she says turning back to me.
I can't help but grin at the little thing looking back at me, she is adorable.
"don't be fooled" Callie says "Theodora is quite the menace" she adds, tickling her.
"Am Not" the little girl returns with a cute raspy voice.
"You are Teddy... you're a menace. She's three years old going on sixteen" she says, with an eyebrow raised at the cheeky grin on the little ones face.
"And what's your name?" I ask her "Callie is it"
She shakes her head "Calliope" she returns "but yes you may call me Callie... it's what I go with at school"
I nod "nice to meet you Callie...and Theodora"
"Teddy" the little girl corrects.
"Teddy of course" I add reaching out and shaking her little hand.
"Theodora Nomikos" came a voice with a thick Greek accent "Get your little butt back here" she called out.
"My momma" Callie informed me, placing Teddy back down on her feet.
"Willa Jameson" her Momma called, spotting me at the front of the restaurant "welcome to Stygos... my name is Maria ... and I see you have met my terrible twosome Theodora and Calliope... there is also Thea and Demitra who you shall meet next week ... yes god blessed me with daughters, much to my husbands distress. Can you imagine four daughters... all the hair... all the talking... yap yap yap" she says with her hands "anyway you will fit right in my love" and she comes over and brings me into a warm hug before acknowledging the first guest "Kalispera" she calls out with a large smile "afternoon" she adds.
"Okay, Calliope show Willa the ropes for the rest of the shift please" she asks, and she lifts Teddy onto her shoulders and takes off through the restaurant, singing as she goes. Maria Nomikos was a complete joy, she is dark haired, has lot of curls, large brown eyes that take you in warmly, and she is pretty short compared to Callie who must have her fathers height, at five foot nine or so.
"I think I love your momma" I say looking back at Callie.
"Oh everyone does... she won't have it any other way"
"Where is your dad" I ask.
She points back to the kitchen area at the back "my dad is Christos, he works the kitchen quite quietly. My dad is a loving man of few words... he and my momma work this entire place together with only one extra chef, Niko, who is my cousin."
"Quite the family you have" I return "I love that you all work together" I say looking around the restaurant, and taking it all in.
"Oh you wouldn't if you had to live with them too" she returned. "I can't wait to start college and ditch all these extra shifts"
"Where are you going?" I ask.
"The O here in Oregon... I play basketball and will be studying in education" she says, and my face must light up, because she laughs "do you too" she asks, from my obvious delight.
"Yes... I go next year too" I add. "I want to coach eventually" I say, picking up a pen to take the order of the family who had been sat not five minutes ago.
"No way... oh this is great" she muses as we walk across the restaurant to the table and take their orders. Once done, we head to the back of the restaurant where Callie hands the order through the hatch to her father, he says something in Greek and Calliope speaks fast back. I have no idea what she says but it sounds impressive as her father chuckles deeply at the last word that leaves her. The Greek makes her voice sound more intense... and I have to admit, I didn't know languages could be quite so attractive, to hear so fluently and confidently. "BaBa" she teases with a laugh.
"Okay let me show you the drinks" she says leaving her father laughing at whatever it was they had discussed.
I made a mental note to learn some Greek, incase they were laughing at me. Callie shows me the soda machine and the drinks menu. She explains the volume of ice to drink ratio they use, which was more complicated than I had ever expected. "Got it" she asks as we fill the tray with drinks and take it over to the family in the front.
"Got it" I return, trying to hold the heavy tray and look professional, but coming across more like a giraffe on skates. "Willa" Callie acknowledges "you sure you're okay" she asks amused at the wobble in my wrist below the trays centre.
"I am stronger than I look" I return.
She raises her eyebrows " okay" she returns. without confidence. She watches me slowly rest the tray on the table and hand out the drinks, luckily with no dramas or spills.
"Good job" she says proudly. "So" she says as we return to the hostess stand "What brought you to town" she asks "you're not local are you"
I push my hair behind my ears and contemplate my response " I'm staying with my aunties... I come from Utah... and I... well I had to leave my family" I reply honestly.
Calliope's eyebrows knit together "why" she asks confused by that answer "You're not like, out of juvey or anything, are you" she questions, one eyebrow cocked.
"No" I say quickly "oh no, nothing like that... I'm not that interesting..."
"Why did you have to leave your family" she asks again.
I stumble a little, my answer something I had learned to never reveal, and yet, in this new world I never wanted it to be a secret. "I'm gay" I admit confidently.
Callie nods " Willa, did they make you leave because you are gay" she asks me, pained by the thought.
I nod silently.
Shit... that's sickening" she says crossly.
"I'm sorry that happened to you" she says genuinely concerned, and she reaches out for my hand and squeezes it, a familiar feeling, but not a familiar hand.
Two months had passed, and it was all still raw, days spent wondering how she was, if she was okay, if her and Ben were happy and enjoying marriage and college. I hoped she didn't hate me, that she wasn't spending days writing lists of all of the ways she now cursed my existence, for leaving her. I wondered if she knew now... the truth of what happened. Did she know I was gay?! And what if anything did she think about that fact... did she see it now? A little differently? That look in my eye or that erratic heart thump when her hand took mine? I wondered if it made her uncomfortable to think how close we once were, and now with the knowledge I was gay. Did she wonder if it all went a little far at times? Our relationship, our intimacy?...
Oh, Allie.
***
I will take those odds
That you sometimes think of me
That your fingers tingle time to time,
and sense that it was me
That the sunsets linger in your mind
wondering where I am
If I think of you too
A certainty, I do
Oh, I am