OUR BOOK

PILOT- CHAPTER 1

Do you ever wonder what your future holds? Ever wonder how your life would be different if you took the later bus? Or if you slept in till 11 am, rather than 10? My whole life, I always wondered the answers to those simple, yet complicated, questions. My life after high school seemed to make sense. The answer to those questions were easily answered. At the time, I thought high school was the most confusing part of my life. I didn't have a lot of friends, and I never made the best grades. Eating lunch alone became a daily occurrence. Almost everyday, my mom asked if I was getting bullied, my answer was always the same; straight forward and monotoned. "No Mom, I don't get bullied." She would always nod and smile. I never did. Truth is, as bad as it sounds, I wish I was getting bullied. It would finally give us something to talk about. It would give her something to fix. Even then, I stayed out of people's way, so they stayed out of mine. Is it so wrong to enjoy my own company? However, after high school, I felt like I was starting to find myself. I got a job at a small diner across town. I would wake up in the mid-morning, have my green tea, get ready, and then head onto the appropriate bus that would take me a block from the diner. Walking the block always cleared my mind, helping me relax before I step into the threshold of work. If you asked anyone, they would say my life seemed content, that I was happy even. I became use to the routine of my little happy, content life. Routine made things easy, doing the same thing every day really helped sort out and keep my mind clear. Like I said, my life seemed to make sense after high school. Later do I find out, I am wrong.

I made a few friends, mostly from work. They weren't my co-workers, they were regulars at the diner. I waited on their table on my first day working there, they made a Lord of the Rings reference, and we have been friends ever since. They always come into the diner at around 3 pm, almost like clock work - that is probably why I get along with them so well. Charlie was the first one to talk to me, mostly since she was the first one I asked to order. She seemed really hyper and outgoing. Now that I know her more, it is more of a front, a defense, if you will. Her dark shoulder length hair seemed to always look perfect, as if it was painted onto her head. Her eyes shone a bright green emerald, especially when she smiled. She was beautiful and she definitely wasn't modest about it. Getting attention from guys was something that happened frequently. As I was wiping the table down from the single mother and her two young boys, Charlie was smiling with bright eyes and flipping her hair while talking to 'some guy'. Knowing he just gave her a compliment, her voice goes really soft and high, and her face gets flushed. I don't envy Charlie, I just wish it was easy for me as it is for her.

Mason, on the other hand, he was something different. Charlie and he are related, but by marriage, not by blood. They get mistaken for being brother and sister all the time. Even though they act differently, they look like twins. Since it gets mistaken all the time and they are tired of telling the long story over and over, they just admit to being related. It's just easier that way. They do look alike, but they are two completely different people. Mason, like Charlie, has the dark brown hair and emerald eyes. Height is the only different physical attribute that they don't share. Charlie is my height, no taller than 5'5, but Mason is at least 6 feet. When I first waited their table, Mason caught my eye. He was attractive and confident, but he appeared to be modest and accepting. Something about him was attractive. Knowing me, I would never try to pursue anything, and I was correct. Mason's booming laugh could be heard across the whole diner. He liked to make people laugh, but mostly just ends up laughing at himself. He always calls me over to their table pretending to order some more food, instead he would just tell me another joke. He would wink and it became my cue to laugh and smile back to him in reply. After my 8 hour shift, they would still be sitting at their table. Charlie studying for her mid term and Mason on his laptop writing on his blog. Taking off my apron, folding it, and placing it in my bag to be washed at home, I look at my friends. Something comforting swells over me, I feel good tonight. They both notice me staring and laugh. Mason waves his hands over towards the two of them, motioning me over.

After every shift, I always grab my cell phone and text my mom. She always wants to know where I am, what I am doing, and who I am with. Charlie always asks if it annoys me, and of course it does annoy me. I had to do it since I was little and I am now almost nineteen. I told Charlie that it is just what mothers do, she scoffed and told me a story about her mom. Thinking she enlightened me, she patted my shoulders in what seemed to be sympathy. Although, she only made me feel sorry for her that she didn't have a mom who at least wanted to make sure she was safe. Sure, my mom isn't the best. We never really talk, we small talk, but we never have any good 'mother-daughter' bonding experiences. Which, for me, I am use to. Do I wish that we were closer? Of course. It is in everyone's human nature to want to be loved and accepted by their parents. I don't thrive on it, I just made the assumption that all mothers are like that and that is how it is. With Charlie telling me about her mother, it made me realize that maybe my mom wasn't so bad. That maybe I wasn't giving her enough credit. I remember on my tenth birthday, she threw a huge birthday party for me. Everyone from my grade class was there. Out of the twelve kids that did attend, I only knew two, by name anyway. A week before my birthday, she asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday and I replied, "Nothing, just family stuff is good." and then I went back to playing House by myself. A week later, I was surprised with a bunch of random kids at my house. I didn't fuss and I didn't cry. I smiled, because I knew my mom would want that and I wanted to make her happy. My mom did a lot for me, but I did even more for her.

An hour after my shift, Charlie looks up from her books and nudges my shoulder. Nodding her head in the direction of the diner doors, I glance in the same direction, then back towards her. She gives me a doubtful look and goes back to studying. I smirk and look back to the doors, nothing is there. Confused, I look at the host stand. Now I know why she made me look. Standing, waiting to be seated, was a tall blonde guy. He looked about my age, but I have never seen him around. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, his finger tips tucked in, but his palms were hanging out in a relaxed way. Why would someone as handsome as he be eating dinner alone? My co-worker greeted him and sat him in a booth on the other side of the diner. My eyes followed them. He smiled at her as she handed him a menu, making her smile and blush a little. She quickly turned her head and scurried away. When he smiled, his eyes gleamed, and his laugh lines made the perfect lines and dimples. Just him smiling made myself smile also, as if it was contagious. While he was looking at the menu, he ran his hands through his thin dirty blonde hair. Then he automatically flicked his head to fix his bangs that, like Charlie, looked as if they were painted perfectly. I then became aware of my hair, touching it to make sure it felt the same as before. When the waitress returned, he told her what he wanted by pointing to the middle picture, and handed her back the menu. I could see that their hands grazed and she jumped as if she was shot with electricity. Unlike her, he seemed to be completely unaware. She nodded and turned away again, blushing like the last. I started to giggle, as if I was watching a film, like I knew exactly what the characters were feeling. Mason looked up from his laptop, he pulled his glasses up with his middle finger, looked at me, and returned to his blog.

Once the waitress returned with the blonde guy's order, he ate as quickly as it came. I saw how delicately he cut his steak; in half, then in quarters, and then in small edible bites. Even though he ate very modestly, it was gone quickly. I laughed a little at myself. Slightly aware of my surroundings again, I coughed covering up my giggles. Finishing his meal, he took a swig of water and motioned for the waitress. She scurried over and they exchanged dishes for the bill. He said something to her, something I couldn't hear. However, it must have pleased her ego, she blushed a bright red and walked back to the kitchen in a daze. I felt anxious, as I was guessing what he said to her, it obviously was a compliment. If not, the fifty dollars was a compliment in its self. He stepped out of the booth and walked towards the doors, just the way he came in. He nodded at the hostess before closing the door behind him. Something hit me once he left. I felt my pace quicken and I felt hot, like I needed air. Charlie looks up at me and her face falls. She asks me whats wrong and looks at Mason, looking for help. I put my hand on the left side of my chest, as if I was holding my heart in my hands. Both Mason and Charlie look at me with confusion. I took a deep breath and said, "I think I just made the biggest mistake of my life."