Writing this because I have an unhealthy obsession with rich, handsome, assholes, and strong female leads who don't really a -bleep-. Only in my head though. I promise.
And I know this story is shitty. But if you still want to read, you got a warning.
When Katniss opened the door of her tiny apartment, the smell of pasta filled the air.
Flitch was cooking again. For the fourth time, this week they were going to be eating pasta.
"You're home early." Flitch leaned out from the kitchen to take a peek at Katniss as she walked through the door.
"Yeah, I can't work tonight." Katniss moved towards the kitchen and refrigerator.
"Can't?" Flitch raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, it's Tuesday. It's an easy night, so they don't need many waitresses tonight." Katniss grabbed the last beer from the fridge. Opening it up, she held it out as an offer to Flitch, who shook her head and continued stirring the pot half-cooked pasta. 'You?"
"Oh, I might have a shift later around 10." Flitch leaned back to look at the tiny round clock that hangs off their off-white wall. It was eight already. "But, I am off tomorrow, we should do something."
'Like what? Stay in and make more pasta, and make those little craft necklace from pasta rings." Katniss jumped up to the counter, as she would often do when she watched Flitch cook.
A small smile appeared on Flitch thin lips.
"We hardly have money to pay the rent, Flitch." Katniss continued.
"I know, but we still have the right to have fun you know, to live a little." Flitch expressed.
Katniss stared at her face.
"What?" Flinch laughed, as she turned towards Katniss.
"Who are you? And what have you done to Flitch Fletcher?" Katniss questioned. She had been friends with Flitch for 5 years now, they met in the overnight sleeping shelter when Katniss first came to the city. Flitch was an extreme introvert. Katniss recalled she they would barely talk when they first met in the shelter, which was a relief to Katniss since many of the other women there seems not understand that she didn't want to share her life story or 'how she got there' with them.
In the daytime, when the shelter would kick them out, she and Flitch would roam the city. Standing on the street side from time to time, walking aimlessly, sitting on park benches, until it was 6 pm and the shelter was open to them again. During, those days, the conversations they had were numbered and rare, however, Katniss found herself enjoying the redhead company. Flitch never probed her, yet was very understanding when Katniss would share a detailed about her life. She would always answer in a nonchalant manner, expressing care but not enough to try and give her unneeded advice.
It was Flitch idea, that they try for the waitress position at the high-class Italian restaurant downtown. It was the first time Katniss realized that she didn't have any plans, and considered that she didn't want to continue having to sleep in the shelter at night and roaming the street at night.
Katniss got the waitress position, but Flitch didn't. However, there were no hard feelings, and at times it was Flitch waking her up at 7 in the morning for work, that kept Katniss from losing her work.
Katniss started to look for a room a few months later, a place to call her own, and to sleep in whenever she was off from work. She found a small studio, and although the walls were in between off-white and yellow because of dust, and there was no heat, she thought it was perfect.
As a gesture of kindness, she offered Flitch a place to stay, guaranteed that she found work soon and could contribute to rent and other living needs. Flitch found a job as a stocking girl at a convenience store, not long after, that paid modestly, but was enough to cover the cost of food.
They have been living together ever since, and at some point, Katniss started to consider Flitch her best friend. After all, she was the only one in this city that she had. In some ways, she was the only person she had or cared about.
"You?" Katniss pointed. "What to go out?"
"I didn't say out.I said we should do something fun. Staying in play cards or reading books is fun."
Katniss made a face of confusion before shaking her head. "Only you would find reading fun."
"Did you pay the rent?" Katniss remembered that the bills were due today. She didn't want creepy old Mr. Hennelly, knocking on her door tonight asking her to pay the bill, in one way or the other.
"Already did it. Plus we have money left over from our monthly budget.' Flitch turned off the stove.
"Really, how much?" Katniss asked, still perched on top of the counter.
"About $150," Flitch replied.
Katniss almost spit out her beer. "$150?"
"Yeah" Flitch smiled.
"Have you been doing triple shifts or something?" Katniss asked bewildered.
"Yeah, something like that," Flitch replied nonchalantly.
"Please, don't burn out yourself. Flitch, you don't have to-"
"No. I wanted to. I love to stay busy." Flitch replied cheerfully. "It's time for me to get ready."
Katniss raised an eyebrow. There was no way that she could be that happy about work, especially work that include restocking shelves. However, Katniss shook her head. It was Flitch after all if there were to be anyone who was excited about going to work it would be Flitch.
Katniss ate the pasta that Flitch made, before going to lie in the tiny bed in the corner of the room. Flitch saying that she was leaving now was the last thing Katniss remember when the sound of her cell phone vibrating woke her up from her doze. Her eyes still filled with sleep tried to look at the caller ID.
"Hello." She answered, her voice filled with tiredness and sleep.
"Katniss. Hey, I know we said that we didn't need extra waitress tonight, but the crowd here is bigger than we expected. Do you think you could come in? Effie said that she would pay you extra."
'Yeah, sure." Katniss sat up, rubbing her eyes.
'Thanks, babe.'
With the end of the call, Katniss got up to get ready.
Katniss entered the restaurant from the side door and was immediately bombarded with orders. It was indeed a really busy night for a Thursday, and Katniss looked out to the seating area to see that most of the seats in the restaurants were indeed really full.
"Katniss, you have table 65,67 and 68." Jamie, shouted at her, from around the front. "65 already ordered, please get the order for 67 and 68.'
Katniss nodded before taking a notepad and pencil and going through the door towards the seating area. The room was filled with chattering, and sounds of utensils over the soft jazz music played from the band in the background.
She made her way over to the section that held table 67 and 68, and introduce herself to the guests. She wore her made-up smile well and tried to put a sweet tone in her voice, as she asked them what they wanted to order from the high-priced menu. Table 67 was a table for 2 with a mid aged man, who was obviously suffering from hair loss, and with a woman- girl- who was young enough to be his daughter, but from the dress, she was wearing and her make up, clearly wasn't his daughter.
Over the years, katniss have ground to find amusement in the guests, and although the first rule of the customer service, was never to judge the customers and at least never express your judgment. Katniss could not help but imagine how their lives were.
La Burton was a high-class Italian restaurant, and it was always fun to watch the 1% trying to hide their problems over expensive, over-priced food. Katniss has tasted the left over multiple time and she didn't understand how the restaurant got voted one of the best in the city. Perhaps, it was because she wasn't 'cultured' enough.
She smiled at the people from table 67 and headed over to table 68, another table for 2, except the man here was much more handsome, perhaps in his early twenties, if even that old, who would be considered attractive by many. When she came over, he was in the middle of reading the menu in perfect Italian while leaning over and showing his date the words on the menu. His date that Katniss didn't look at clearly until she adjusted her head and found herself staring into the eyes of her best friend. Her best friend who was supposed to be at work, stocking shelves, but was here, having dinner with this man in an high-class restaurant.
Time seemed to be frozen, as they looked at each other, the shock clear on their face.
"I'll have the - " the voice of the man ordering broke the trance between them. "Flitch, sweetheart." He called over to her.
Flitch clearly still shaken up by the encounter, avoided Katniss's stare while lowly stating, "I'll have the same thing."
The man looked up, smiling, and reorder, "Two, Pasta e Fagioli."
"Graci" he added with a smile.
That was enough for Katniss to quickly jot the order on her small notepad, before leaving the seating area.
Katniss gave them no more attention than she would to the usual customer, when she carried their order out, or even when she dropped the check off.
She said nothing but a small 'thanks' when the man tips her a fifty dollar bill.