The Paper Lantern
When you work in restaurants, you see a lot of colorful people. Sure you don't remember most of them, after you have so many of them a day. But there are always a few people who you remember. The easiest ones to remember are the ones that are waiting. You go up to a table and ask them if they'd like something while they wait, the look down mumble that they'll wait the person will be there soon.
Working at a Chinese restaurant you have to think there are the stereo typical workers. Me probably being one of them, the waitress who is a niece of the owner, come over seas supposedly to go to college, but instead ended up working. There are a couple of interesting workers though, like our Bus boy. Firstly, he's not completely Asian, that's just not normal. Second is that he's not the beat up looking scruffy type. He just looks tough, and with a name like Warren you have to be.
That brings me to the present time, the girl sitting with Warren; she had been waiting for an hour. Great patience she has. Imagine sitting and waiting that long for someone. They were smiling at something and I'm glad she was finally smiling at something. The worried look on her face was disappearing slightly, but never the less you could tell it wasn't Warren she was waiting for.
After she had left, I inquired who she was. Warren gave me his 'tough guy' look, and then mumbled that it was just someone from school. He finished his work quickly then left without saying another word.
skhskhskhskhskhskhskhskhskh
Today it happened again, more waiting. Not the girl this time though, a boy now. More distraught then the other, he would use his cell phone to call someone, then hang up, and hang his head. He stuck out because of the nervousness is his stature, he barely noticed when I stopped by his table, I had to repeat questions, do you want anything to drink, appetizers while you wait? He would look up with a blank face, shake his head then look back down, or check his phone.
The big surprise though is when Warren sat down next to him. They conversed a bit, and then he paused and cracked a little bit of a smile, but the look in his eyes never changed, they were still worn out sunken look when he walked in.
It really made me wonder about Warren, what kind of person was he really? If he could have random people come in and give them advice of some sorts, no matter how worried or distraught. That he could calmly sit down and console people maybe he was more sensitive then the bad guy look he put on. With the clinking of the glasses I looked up, Warren was walking away and the boy stood up put a couple of dollars down and practically ran out.
skhskhskhskhskhskhskhskhskh
Today there was no waiting. On my shift I saw Warren's friends, this time though they weren't waiting, they were together. Talking quietly, I smiled to myself well at least they finally were here at the same time. Their hands were linked over the table heads bowed were talking quietly. They seemed as though they were enjoying their time and then walked out hand and hand with identical smiles. It looked like what ever argument they had was over with and they no longer needed the advice of Warren. He was working but he stayed in the back when he saw them, doing the dishes, pretending to be busy. When I inquired on why he was not talking to his friends, he simply stated that they needed their alone time, he would see them later.
It felt good to see happy couples when you serve them. That are so involved with each other that the world could pass them buy and they wouldn't care as long as they were together. People like that are rare in theses times. Looking down I sighed, no matter how in love they were, teenagers were still crappy tippers.