"So two things." The general said as the car parked in the back of the Otto-Time Diner.
"Hm?" The girl asked though it didn't seem like she was paying any attention, her grey eyes glued to the sky watching as the puffy cloud separated.
The man was silent for a second. He had to be sure to play his card right because he knew the grey girl might just throw in the towel right then and there if he didn't.
"Perry's out and Brandy can't make it in so ill be working in the kitchen" he started as her finger lazily picked at the leather on the door. "And a new girl will be starting today," the sound of nails scraping against the leather forced him to trail off and rethink his words.
"So she'll need to be trained." Blink had already taken the liberty of finishing the sentence, her monotone voice becoming more bitter.
"Well that's the jist of it. You see I was going to have Bubbles do it but she set her sight out for today so no other choice." He watched her as he spoke, watching as she fiddled with her king's crown ring. He hoped beyond hope that the king and queen rings would be enough to keep her from lashing out.
Either way they got out of the car, walking into the restaurant. He found that karma was taking refuge at his side today rather than lady luck. The diner was packed and the new girl was rushing around doing whatever she could to pick up with the demand of the customer.
It was chaos with a dirty blonde girl at the center of it all. She was tall, taller than Blink and while this made her faster it did nothing for nimbleness this was more than evident when she bumped into someone's glass. She seemed to panic, apologizing profusely before declaring to go find a mop while forgetting why she was going that direction in the first place. She was intercepted by an impatient mother wondering where her daughter's drink was.
Then finally she noticed the girl at the door grey met hazel and she stalled. It seemed in her haste she didn't notice that both the boss and his 'granddaughter' had entered.
"Julie, will you please come here for a moment." Raven called over to the frazzled girl who jumped a bit but politely excused herself from the table while the mother scoffed looking less than pleased. The diner was packed, which wasnt just bad luck for her first day but Blink could only see frustration in the 'training' she'd be having to do.
"What did you need Mr. Utonium? I still need to get table 3 there order and booth 4 there drinks." The blonde was wringing her hands together, nervous from how much she had to do.
"Calm down for a moment. This is my granddaughter. She will be helping you out for the rest of the night. She will also be dealing with both the register and table and so you will just focus about the tables and learning the menu." The girl's eyes widened as a grin crossed her face. Raven seemed to find the perfect time to excuse himself quickly escaping behind the counter.
"Just the tables? I can definitely do that!" She called after him as he fled away from the crowd going to the kitchen where an overworked Bertha was awaiting his arrival.
"Uh, your Mr. Utonium's granddaughter?" She asked, surveying the grey girl.
Hazel clashed with an odd silvery grey and Julie stiffened; the girl looked like she would rather be anywhere else, her eyes half lidded and bored. Shadows were cast under her eyes like she hardly ever slept. Her hair was a strange dark grey, a color she had never seen on someone before. She in some way looked unhealthy; it left Jules a bit unnerved.
"I'm Julie it's nice to meet you...uh" she had realized that her boss had never said the girl's name. Though the girl seemed in no mood to talk to her bluntly ignoring her in favor or looking around the Diner.
"Blink." Her grandfather called in a stern voice from the small window causing those strange silvery eyes to drift over to the kitchen, her head never moving. Soon her eyes drifted again to the girl in front of her whose hand was still stuck out awkwardly. Though her waiting wasn't completely in vain as a pale thin hand took her own tan larger one.
The strange girl despite her appearance had a grip Juile came to find as she clasped her hand. On the girl's finger ,Julie noticed, where two rings one a metallic crown the other a silver tiara. The girl let go quickly and stayed still, her eyes drifting once again around the diner.
The process of just meeting the girl seemed like it had taken hours though it had just been a minute.
Blink's eyes moved across the diner. Most of the people were regulars with certain tastes. In their regular booths were the Hawkins whose orders were usually the same other than their middle child who sometimes liked to change it up. Looking at the tables she noticed most of them were gradually sipping on drinks rather than eating, meaning the food wasn't coming out as fast as it should. There were tables that were not cleared off yet the dish tub on the chair told her that the blonde was working on it when she got called away.
"This is a dumpster fire." She murmured, allowing her new coworker to hear her as she moved behind the counter.
The woman was obviously caught off guard by this, maybe she didn't expect to hear it said so bluntly.
"Well it's my first day and the other waiter didn't want to stay and wait for you to shift change. I was all alone." The woman said In her defense following after the younger girl.
"Betty? Yeah she does that." Blink shrugged, walking past the register she went to the coffee machine pouring a cup. She picked up her flavorings, giving them a little shake to check how full they were before pouring some of one into the mug.
"Uh I was told those weren't supposed to be used." The woman explained, completely forgetting that she still had tables to serve.
"Yeah? That's because they're mine." Blink explained dully picking up the mug and taking a long drink.
"Not the whole pot Blink, your grandpappys here tonight so you cant get away with it." Bertha's stern voice went in one ear and out the other as she stepped out of the kitchen door.
"He is, huh? What happened to Perry?" Blink asked, leaning against the counter taking another long drink.
"Like you couldn't guess she didn't live up to Buttercup or my standards of keeping the kitchen." The much older woman said she was as tightly wound as her hair.
Blink only nodded while draining her cup. Bertha was the assistant manager and usual chief when Buttercup wasn't running the kitchen. They were both specific on how they wanted the kitchen to look by the next morning and were so picky they could only be the others' Sue chief.
"You know dearie there's still some tables that haven't been fully cleaned off and the ice cream is going to melt before it can even make it to table 8." Bertha nodded over to Julie who jumped rushing to the little window grabbing the cookie skillet. "She's a little fidgety but she's got spirit."
"I guess."
"Oh come on now don't be like that. Give the girl a chance, she's new to Townsville you know."
"Really? How do you guess?" Though the girl seemed disinterested in the conversation, Betha knew that she was listening.
"Well i interviewed her of course goodness Blink did you think it was that useless grandpappy of yours running this ship?" The woman declared, giving the girl her usual small smile.
"So what's the story?"
"Oh, well she moved here from Cityville looking for a new start for her and her fiancé. She apparently has custody over her little brother. He's about the same age as you, I think she said." The older woman said mischievously, nudging her shoulder into the grey girl her innuendos not going over her head.
"Yeah?" This time Bertha rolled her eyes seeing that the disinterest was genuine.
"I'm just throwing it out there. I told her that we always needed extra hands but she said that he's apparently some wrestling star back in Citysville high and was only focused on that." Stopping for a moment she grinned. "I don't think he'd be your type anyway, all that effort put into the gym would just drive you away."
"No, you just finally realized you don't want to live vicariously through me." Blink smiled a cat-like grin spread across her face, her eyebrows furrowing unpleasantly. A look that Bertha could only describe as amused mocking.
"You know kid sometimes I wish your face would get stuck like that. Then people might know what's beneath that nonchalant facade." The girls face returned to passive as she took another long sip, the sound of the kitchen bell tooled once twice then three times before the older woman even noticed.
"Blink, are you still not clocked in?" The girl had poured herself another cup completely ignoring the whole reason she was in the diner.
"Oh right, I'm working today." Her voice was unapologetically calm, Bertha knew she was just trying to push limits.
"I'm clocking out boss man you got the kitchen?" She asked, raising her voice a bit despite the fact that she was already clocking out as she offered help.
The bell in the window tolled again signaling food was ready. The girls punched in her numbers before tightening her half up twin tails and getting to work.
"Heyo Blink your sisters not working today?" Mr. Cooper asked as she went to his table.
"Not today they decided to ditch." She told the man not even asking for his order. "The usual i'm guessing?"
"You got it! Wait who's in there?" The man's eyes flashing towards the little window with the constant chiming bell of course it was a usual question, regulars were picky if it was someone new.
"Grandpa." She watched as the man perked up.
"That's good I hate to say it but whoever that new girl was just didn't hold a candle to Bertha."
"So the usual?"
"Yeah and can you add a root beer float for the road Mary just loves the way you guys make those."
"Yeah no problem." Nodding, she wrote down what the man usually got: a bacon cheeseburger with crushed avocados fries and a root beer.
After clipping the paper to the wheel she headed to the cash register the people from table six were ready to pay.
A ringing penetrated the chatter of the restaurant, a familiar ring that made Blink want to bang her head into the cash register.
"Don't worry about it, I got it." Julie may have thought that she was being helpful as she neared the red phone ringing off the wall.
"Blink, get the phone." Raven barked from the window instantly like she didn't already know as it continued to ring off the hook.
Blink got to it before the blonde picked it up for a moment, her eyes shut tightly as she listened to whoever was on the other side.
"Uh huh? Yeah I got it."
"Why did you have her get it? She was with a customer and I was more than free." Julie asked though it sounded more like a demand.
The man in the kitchen didn't answer. Instead, a phone started to buzz, then another, then another, and soon every phone in the building was going off.
"Attention citizens of Townsville we are now under lock down and or evacuations. Anyone in sections F, E, or D please follow procedure. A,B and C are now under lockdown." A woman's voice echoed even being heard outside.
"What's going on?" Julie asked, her voice panicked and Blink rolled her eyes.
"It's nothing we should worry about being on B block of the town."
"What does that mean, why does that matter?"
"You're new here aren't you?" One of the customers asked.
"We get earthquakes but it hardly ever really damages the town or anything it stays on the coast." Mr Cooper explained to the still frigid girl.
"Why are you guys so nonchalant about this? It's an earthquake!"
"It comes and goes, we'll be fine."
…