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Changing Skins
I pushed open the door of the bar, wincing as I got a good look of what lay inside. Merlotte's seemed like such a harmless quaint name for a bar but the insides just screamed hick, and in that instant I realized I might have overdressed, even though I was wearing jeans and a shirt. I shook my head at my thoughts and quickly scanned the patrons, no one I knew and no one that seemed important enough to talk to.
I settled myself at the bar, knowing it would only take a second for someone to saunter over to me and take my order. Say what you like about small towns but from what I surmised, they were always willing to help out.
"Can I help you?" A man asked with a heavy five o'clock shadow beard and sandy colored hair.
I placed my happy, optimistic smile on my face, "Yes, you can. Can I have a beer?" Not that I really drank beer or anything for that matter. You never know when someone could attack you or you find the person you're looking for, and you needed a clear head for that. I accepted the beer and slid a fiver his way; even I had to admit, he wasn't bad on the eyes. His pants were a wee bit tight and so was his cowboy style shirt but I wasn't complaining.
"Where you from?" He asked, his drawl slowing the words down. One thing that always got me was how slow they spoke, or so it seemed with their accent.
Thankfully mine was paved by none, I traveled too often and learned to tone down any traces of where I've been; it was safer that way. "Here and there. What's you name?" I asked trying for my prettiest doe eyed expression.
"Sam. Sam Merlotte." He extended his hand and I grasped it shaking his hand, ignoring the familiar pinprick sensation. He didn't even seem to notice and I knew from experience the other person rarely felt anything, it was always me that felt the knots in my stomach. I knew what the cause was and I knew immediately what he was. I might not know what kind of supernatural thing he was but I knew there was something supernatural to him.
I normally would call him a freak but then what would I be with my powers too? Even the word powers made me want to gag at the over dramatic edge to it. What I did certainly wasn't over-the-top but it certainly wasn't normal.
"Erin. Erin Doyle." I exchanged, grasping another name out of the hat. I never gave anyone my real name, I never wanted to give someone the power to truly know me and I always felt that giving someone your name gave them power over you. And I'd be damned if I gave anyone permission to go power crazy on me.
I leaned closer, "Can I ask you a question?"
Sam nodded leaning closer to me also, not even a hint of wariness in his gaze. Were people in small towns so trusting or was it just him? "Sure you can."
"Do you know where I can get a job?" I asked trying to make myself sound in distress, "I just moved here and I really need to start bringing home the bread and butter. I can cook and—"
I knew I hit the jackpot when he looked at me hesitantly and quickly glanced around the bar before letting his eyes settle back on me, "Can you cook well?"
I nodded, knowing this was the one truth to my entire life of lies, "Yes, in an other life I went to cooking school and passed with honors."
Sam seemed impressed with that and nodded more to himself than anything, "Okay, you can wait tables as a trial run and if I like you, you can move to the kitchen."
I smiled triumphantly, "When can I start?"
Sam pushed a platter of drinks over to me, "Right now. Bring that to the table in the corner."
I nodded and grasped the platter, not even wincing at the weight of it. It must have impressed Sam because his eyebrows lifted a fraction. What can I say? Lifting dead weight sure built up body strength.
The rest of the night passed by without a hitch. I memorized every name and face along with his or her personal ticks, got to work besides a woman named Dawn and another one named Arlene. I could have cared less about the girl named Dawn; she seemed like any other petty insecure nymphomaniac. But Arlene I could handle, she asked questions I knew were going to be asked and I deftly dodged; all along her head was in the clouds and she was chattering away.
I found myself in Sam's office with him watching me and me watching him. I was never one to complain about silence so I waited for him to break, "You did good out there."
"Thanks. It was easy, actually." I smiled lightly. Waiting tables would only help me in the long run, it would be easier for me to spot an outcaste and sift through the hunted and hunters.
Sam smirked, "Well, I don't know about that. But you got natural talent…" He waited and I realized he wasn't so much as studying me as deciding if I should either wait tables or work in the kitchen. I still preferred the kitchen; people could always leave me alone there. "I guess I should call in your coworkers so you don't surprise them. I doubt you'll be working with both at the same time; the kitchen ain't that big enough for those two already."
I nodded and waited for the other two people he called in to come. Lafayette and Terry. Hmm, interesting names and before I could really start to web out who I thought they would be, two men walked in. Well, one man walked and the other flaunted in. My eyes settled on the quiet one of the two, or the most introverted.
"Hmm, who's this fine piece of—" The other man asked. I didn't dislike him for it, we all had our roles to play and he was simply playing his. Plus, I doubted he was attracted to me, he was probably attracted to the other two in the room.
The other man elbowed him but didn't take his eyes off of me. He nodded and glanced waiting impatiently for Sam to introduce us. I started tapping my toes earning me a smirk from both of the men.
"This here is Erin. Erin this is—" Sam begun.
Lafayette swept in and bowed, "This here is Lafayette at your service."
I nodded and let my eyes settle on the handsome man, "And you?"
He swallowed audibly but didn't dare tear his eyes away from mine, "Terry."
"And she's going to be working in the kitchen with you guys." Sam broke the news.
Lafayette snorted and Terry looked ill. It took me a minute to realize I wasn't in a city but a small town with traditional, small ideals. What kind of mistake did I make again? "What's the problem?" I snapped.
Lafayette rolled his eyes on me, "You, my girl are so skinny you probably couldn't lift a feather. And we wouldn't want to break your nails."
I sighed and flipped him the bird for him to inspect, "I bite my nails. And try fifty pounds in each arm."
"I like her." Lafayette commented to Sam who only nodded and turned his back on us to count bills at his table opposite his desk. Who needed two desks?
Guessing we were dismissed, I shrugged and moved forward angling myself away from my other co-workers to the door but almost bit out a curse when Lafayette grabbed me from my wrist. I had to literally force myself not to attack, what could I say? My instincts were strong and he pushed my limits.
"Who gets the shift with her tomorrow?" Lafayette asked loudly to Sam.
"Terry." He answered not even budging away from his desk to glance up at us.
Lafayette smiled mischievously at me and tried kissing my hand but I snatched it away from him. "I'll see you the next day then, dolly."
"You know, I would be so freaked out right now if you liked women." We both smirked and I shoved him lightly away from me, "Eat shit and die, Lafayette."
"You too, honey." He called back to me, both of us quietly laughing to ourselves. All the tough words but I knew I would have fun working with him. I might even like working here.
I barely noticed I was being followed but I made my way to the kitchen to scope out what I had to work with. I winced when my eyes settled on dirty chaos scattered everywhere.
"He makes messes but he's fast." I heard a voice behind me quietly say.
I whirled around bumping my hip on the counter and felt Terry's warm hands grasp onto my arms to settle me, "It's small."
He shrugged and reluctantly removed his hands from my now cold arms, "It makes do."
I nodded and turned back, righting myself. Terry was dangerous, with his tall stature, five o'clock beard, light brown hair that almost reached his shoulders and his damn quiet enigmatic silence that he exuded. I bet if he smiled, it would melt an iceberg.
"Why did you look disgusted when Sam said I would be working in the kitchen?" The question slipped out before I could help myself.
I heard a sigh, "Are you working in a kitchen because you think you should be?" He asked and before I could help myself I let out a little laugh.
I turned around and smiled at him, "What?"
"It's just…you're a woman and I don't want you to think that you have to work in a kitchen." He shrugged.
I tried not rolling my eyes; he was sweet, in an awkward displaced way. I wondered what he would do if I told him what I really do for a living or what I could do with my mind. "I'm working in a kitchen because I like to cook and I need a job. Plus, I don't think it really matters what you think." I said kindly. I liked him, but that was all I would allow myself. "I'll see you tomorrow night, big guy." I moved around him and out the door, any longer and I wouldn't have made it, any closer and we would have been indecent.
I pulled my keys outside of my pocket and stepped outside of the stifling bar, inhaling the night air deeply. Walking to my car, I let my mind wander. Who would have known I'd be working for a boss who had secrets and was hiding what he really was. It was nice with my powers that I could easily pick up on anything supernatural, but the best part was what I could really do.
I stopped two feet away from my car door and focused on the lock through my window. I remember there was a time when it would take hours for me to move something without touching it but now it only took a second with minimal concentration. I forced myself not to blink and stared a second longer at the lock and smiled triumphantly when the doors unlocked. There were some ups to my telekinesis and my only down was that no one must know. I mean, I thought Sam was a freak but what would I be with what I did for a living plus my powers? I'd be hunted faster than a fang.
I've already started settling myself here and changing skins came easily for me. I didn't know my plans or future promises and I learned from an early age to make due and live each day as it came. So tomorrow, I would do something I've never done before. I would sleep in.
