CHAPTER TWO

It was almost a month later before Andrea saw Happy walk into the diner again. Andrea was having a later shift now, getting off an hour later or so than last time, but she started an hour later so it gave her more time for the day. She was lucky that the diner was open all night or else she didn't know if she would have been awake the rest of the way home.

This time, she was just finishing the word puzzle, drinking her coffee when she heard the motorcycle come up. Andrea gave the table a bit of a weird look and looked up at Tiffany, this week's waitress as she was cleaning the tables. Tiffany looked up when she saw the man stop in a parking spot and get off the bike.

Andrea didn't look up when the door opened, thinking that it would be rude. She also felt in the back of her mind that she knew who the biker was anyway. When she saw in the corner of her eye the solidly built man, she knew that she was right. She wondered if he came in again at a different time than when she would stay here, but according to the waitresses, he hadn't shown his face again until now.

In the corner of her eye, she saw him sit a little bit closer to her than the last time, but he didn't try and look at her purposely. She heard Tiffany walk up to him and ask, "what can I get you?"

"Black coffee. Do you have any pie left?" he asked, his voice just as low and gravel-like as the last time Andrea heard it.

"We only have apple left today." Tiffany answered him.

He nodded and I heard Tiffany go off to get what he wanted. Andrea took a drink of her coffee, staring at what she had left to answer. She had five left to go and she was stumped, looking over them over and over again to try and figure out the words. There were always those last bunch that took her a bit to answer.

Andrea sat in silence and so did the other man, but it made me jump when his voice cut through the silence, "you seem to be lost in thought."

Andrea turned up to look at him before she answered, laughing a bit from her fear, "Yeah. Five more to get, then I can head home."

He nodded and moved his head to look more at the sheet that she had in front of her. She raised her eyebrows and she pushed it a bit towards him, inviting him to come over. He seemed a bit surprised by her actions and Andrea forced herself not to smile. She didn't know she could make someone like him surprised.

The man came over and he sat down on the opposite end of the table Andrea was at. She looked back down at the paper and she asked him, "I'm trying to figure out number three vertical. A place in heart of sadness, the waves of rushing time and renounced and renew fictional time. Five letters."

Andrea saw him look down at the paper, reading it for himself. Both of them were quiet, trying to figure out the riddle. The man asked, "what letters do we have already?"

"Second letter is an A." Andrea answered.

He asked, "water? You cry and they say that water is like a rebirth."

Andrea nodded and wrote it down, "it seems to fit at least."

The man nodded and Andrea saw Tiffany come back out with the coffee and pie for him. She set it in front of him and he gave her a nod of thanks before he took a drink of the coffee. Andrea looked down at the next one that she was having trouble with. He looked at it as well after setting the steaming mug down. He told her, "the next one is book. A printed way of life in the way of telling a story."

Andrea almost kicked herself that she didn't get that one. She shook her head and wrote it in, "I'm actually embarrassed that I didn't get that one."

"I'm sure that you would have gotten it eventually," he assured her as he began to eat his pie.

Andrea looked down at the paper again, looking at the next one. She stared at it and she asked him, "you hold it in the palm of your hand and hold it over people. Five letters. It ends in an R."

He stared at it, still eating his pie, and Andrea could tell from the concentration in his eyes and how his lips were tight that he was thinking about what it could be. Andrea clicked the pen against the table as she thought. She held up her hand and made it look like she was holding a ball and she stared at it. His eyes adverted up to her and stared at her hand as well. Andrea let go of the pen and she took a drink of her coffee, finishing it before she set the mug down.

"You hold it in the palm of your hand and you hold it over people." Andrea whispered as she looked at her hand before she suddenly got excited, "power!"

She said it loudly and excitedly that immediately afterwards, she felt self-conscious and she put her hand over her mouth. She looked at him, a smile on her face only at herself as she mumbled, "I'm so sorry."

Andrea was surprised to see the smile on his face. It seemed a bit foreign and one that didn't seem like it came out that much, but it was there and it was kind of sweet. Andrea giggled a bit and he shook his head and told her, "it's fine. Makes sense and it fits well."

Andrea nodded and took the pen before writing down the word. She told him just as she finished, "two more to go."

She watched him eat the rest of his pie before he asked her, "what are the other two?"

She looked down at the paper and she told him, "it can be happy and it can be sad, it reflects your childhood and it it's the stories that you share. Six letters, ends in RY. The last one is something that the old with they had, what children wish they weren't. Five letters."

He thought for a moment and Andrea watched him before he answered, taking a large sip of his coffee, "the second on is young."

Andrea nodded and wrote it down, "that makes sense." She wasn't getting ones this easy. She wanted to kick herself.

After she put down the letters, she stared at the last one, trying to hope that something would go off in her head like before. She frowned and looked at the man sitting with her. She asked him as he drank more of his coffee, "any ideas?"

He shook his head, staring at the paper too. He suddenly stopped and asked, "memory?"

Andrea nodded and said, "you are good at these. I should have gotten that one too."

He shook his head, "nah, you got the rest .You're really good at these two. Takes another thinker of that time to try and finish it I guess. I probably wouldn't be able to get some of the ones that you could answer."

Andrea nodded and saw Tiffany coming to them. She gave the waitress a smile and Tiffany asked as she took the mug, "cheque?"

Andrea shook her head and she took out her wallet and put down five dollars, "this should be enough, right? Keep the change."

Tiffany smiled and told her, "thanks." She looked at the man's plate and asked, "are you done with that?"

He nodded and handed her the plate. She gave him a smile and asked, "refill for the coffee?"

He nodded and Tiffany told him that she would be right back. Andrea looked at the mysterious biker and told him, "I have to get going. It's getting pretty late. I don't want to sleep in too late tomorrow."

The biker nodded, "that sounds fair. Pretty early right now anyway."

Andrea saw him nod again as she got up and put on her coat. He watched her silently and Andrea grabbed her purse before she stood and stared down at him, both of them look each other. After a while, Andrea got back her wits and she gave him a small nervous smile, "I don't think I introduced myself. I'm Andrea by the way."

He nodded and told her, "Happy."

Andrea gave him a weird look, not really knowing how to take it that a person had a name such as 'Happy', especially since he had such a serious tone and attitude about him. She gave him a smile and told him, "maybe I will see you soon."

"Maybe." Happy answered.

Andrea gave him one last nod before she walked out, her heels clicking a bit against the floor as she left the diner. She made her way to her car and sat in the front seats for a few seconds before she finally started her car. She knew that she should be scared of him, a biker who had a menacing face, tattoos and dark eyes. The strange thing was though, she wasn't afraid.

Not at all.