The small bell above the door rang out announcing the arrival of two new customers. The staff in the small diner barely looked up as the familiar sound had grown into just a background noise over the years. It just so happens that the younger waitress, standing behind the counter, glances up to smile at the new visitors when they enter. She has to take a second look as two tall men strode into her workplace. She blinks at them dazed as they move through the diner and take a booth by the window. They very rarely get strangers in the small town, let alone handsome, well-built strangers.
Their clothes stretch over all the right places accentuating the firm muscles beneath. They both smile and laugh as the shorter man with cropped hair says something funny. Their smiles make the waitress' stomach flip slightly at the anticipation of meeting these obviously well travelled men. The taller man seems to hunch over slightly while in the booth as though he is self conscious of his gigantic height. The small woman was unsurprised as he was super tall especially compared to her.
Her boss slid next to her where she was resting her head in her hand on the counter. She had the look of an awe struck teenager on her face, "What's the new eye candy, Jennifer?"
Her boss smiled down at her mischievously. She was always pushing the girl to speak with guys and go on dates and once done, she was always first to ask for the details.
"Two guys over there. Don't think they're from around here." Jennifer said as she kept a hawk like gaze on the men. Her boss followed her eyes and gasped at the sight of the men.
"Damn girl."
"My thoughts exactly." Jennifer mumbled beneath her breath.
The boys at the table began to glance around the diner in search of their server making the two women at the counter have to suddenly act natural.
Jennifer's boss places a hand on the young woman's shoulder and gently shoved her off in the direction of the table. She kept watching as the waitress approaches the table. She only wishes that she could hear the conversation.
"Um, hey. Welcome to Judy's Diner. What can I get for you today?" Jennifer mumbled out her well practiced lines.
The shorter man shot a disarming smile at the waitress making a blush creep up her neck. Was it getting hotter in here?
"Hey, could I get a coffee and a double bacon cheese burger?" His voice was rough but very authoritative. She took a note of the order before turning to the other man.
He was smiling up at her too but his smile was cuter; it had less of a harshness not it. The type you could just open up to and tell all your worst secrets without worry of being judged. His smile widened slightly causing dimples to form in his cheeks. Jennifer could feel the red rising up her neck as she admired the man's smile.
"And you?" She finally spoke.
"Just the salad and a coffee, thanks." The smile went all the way to his eyes creating happy lines on his face. This kind of smile always made Jennifer smile too. Smiles like that often made her day as many customers didn't care much for who was serving them. These friendly faces were a nice change for the girl.
"Sure thing. I'll be back in a moment with the coffee." She smiled and scuttled away.
Why am I being so pathetic? I'm a grown woman. I need to act like one. They're just two guys... two incredibly hot guys. She gave herself the silent lecture while pouring the dark coffee into the cups. Jennifer was so distracted that she didn't notice the owner, Judy, approaching her.
"So?" The elder lady enquired.
"So what?" Jennifer pretended that she didn't jump but the coffee that spilt across the counter proved otherwise. She decided to play dumb for now.
"The men! Who are they?!" The boss' voice raised slightly causing customers to glanced over in curiosity.
"I don't know. They're just normal customers." The waitress mopped the hot liquid up in a cloth and lifted the two cups, "and if you don't mind, I've gotta go see to them."
"Bag the tall one!" The woman hissed after her.
"Mmm, thank you." The elder man took his coffee from the waitress and took a sip straight from the scalding drink.
"Careful. It's still real hot." She warned with a smile as the long haired gentlemen took his too.
"Thanks." He smiled gratefully to Jennifer. It felt nice to be appreciated every once in a while.
She flushed at the attention he was paying her before quickly scuttling back to the safety of behind the counter. She watched from a distance as the boys both studied an old notebook/journal that lay between them. They spoke quietly while keeping an eye on the other customers in the diner. They behaviour was slightly out of the ordinary in comparison to what most people do: eat, drink, pay then leave.
The food was ready faster than she'd anticipated but as they say, time flies when you're having fun and she really was enjoying her hot man watching.
She grabbed the hot plates and made her way over to the booth where the large men were situated. The elder man noticed her approach so whipped the journal off the table and onto the bench next to him. He pushed the book up against the wall as his green eyes met with Jennifer's brown.
"Here you go. Sorry for the wait." The men waved off her apology as they accepted their meals with eager eyes.
"Thanks." They both muttered as the already started to dig in to the food.
The waitress backed away with a "If you need anything, just call."
The two guys ate quickly; it was a speed that she didn't expect from them. Within 10 minutes they had both finished, paid and left her tip. They didn't hang around afterwards either, much to Jennifer's disappointment.
She strolled over to the booth with her damp cloth and cleaning spray. After collecting the plates, she began to wipe down the table when something on the booth's bench caught her eye. Jennifer lent down and scooped up the worn journal and dropped it into the large front pocket of her apron, where her order book and pen lived. She decided that she'd search through it later for a number or an address for the owners.
She cleared the table and returned to behind the counter to wait for other customers orders. While she waited she pulled the leather book out to flick through it. Her eyes widened as a variety of symbols, some she recognized others she didn't, were sketched onto the old paper. Scruffy writing filled up most the pages with those symbols scattered around the edges and on separate pages. She had watched enough TV to know that they were associated with devils and evil spirits. The waitress dropped the book down onto the counter with a look of fear etched onto her features.
Sudden movement outside the diner made her look up and out of the window. A old and dark car had pulled to a stop directly outside the eating establishment. Jennifer swallowed as the familiar tall man hauled himself out of the passenger seat and began to walk towards the door.
She looked down at the book and almost wanted to throw it away so they couldn't get it back. With barely a moment of thought, she grabbed the book and jogged to the front door while nibbling her lip nervously.
The large man seemed surprised to see the waitress bursting out of the door but gave her a polite smile anyway. He began to ask if she'd seen an old journal when the woman quickly thrust it at him and quickly backed away. Her eyes remained trained on him as she fled back into the diner.
That's odd. The man frowned at her sudden change in attitude. She'd been perfectly okay with him earlier. Now she just seemed scared.
Jennifer returned to her station feeling visibly shaken. She tried deep breathing exercises but couldn't even start to calm down until the sleek car had pulled away. The larger man made eye contact with her as they drove away but Jennifer couldn't bring herself to return his smile. A shiver fell down her spin.
"So..." Her boss started, making her jump for the second time today.
"What?"
"Who were those guys then?" She lent her head curiously.
"... I think they were devil worshippers." She whispered.
Her fingers fiddled with the cross that dangled from her necklace as she tried to control her breathing.
"Damn girl." The elder woman cursed.
"My thoughts exactly."
