FYI: The scene between Dave and the kids actually did happen that night at the restaurant. But instead of the little girl in the story uttering the lines said to Dave, it was the little boy (Maury) who said them to me. After I went back to my hotel room that night, I replayed the scene and this is what came out.
Nature Boy
Getting out of the car, he pocketed the keys and walked into the building.
"Hi sweetie," the young pretty waitress greeted from behind the counter.
Dave nodded in return. "I'll be back in a minute."
The waitress smiled. "Take your time; it's a slow night."
A few minutes later, Dave sat down in the booth nearest the register and adjacent to the door - just in case of an emergency. Looking at the menu lying on the table, he scanned the items. Nothing really appealed to him, but he did need to eat before he headed back into the night.
"Are you ready to order?" The waitress stood with her pen poised above the ticket pad.
Dave glanced down at the selections. "I'll have the Angus burger. With a coffee."
"Anything else?" She wrote quickly, then waited.
"That will be all…" He looked at her name tag. "Charmaine."
Quickly the menu was taken and a cup of strong coffee was set down. "It will be just a few minutes."
Dave looked around the space. In the last booth sat three children - two girls and one boy. One of them waved. He waved back politely. One of the girls played peek-a-boo from behind her hands. He returned the gesture. A smile tugged at his lips.
"If they are bothering you, I'll tell them to stop," Charmaine spoke up to bring him back to the moment. She set the plate down
"Huh?" Dave blinked.
"The children. I had to work a double shift today and they came here after school. So far, I've been lucky that the usual crowd has been small, but I know that they are restless." She laid the silverware on the table. "Will there be anything else?"
"Everything looks good." Reaching for the condiments, Dave readied his burger. "Thanks."
"Let me know if you need anything." She returned to working the grill.
More hungry than even he realized, Dave practically inhaled his food. As he scrapped his plate, he looked up to see a pair of brown eyes staring at him.
"Do you know how to play Mario Brothers?" the little boy asked. In his hands was something that resembled a blackberry.
"I…" Dave swallowed quickly. "Mario Brothers?" he asked stupidly. "No. No I don't."
"Will you play with me?" Before Dave could answer, the little boy pushed himself into the booth and placed the game on the table. "I'll show you. Watch." Very quickly his tiny fingers moved over the buttons to start the game. "You have to speed really fast and win. Or the bad guys will get you," he added as an afterthought.
"Really?" Dave watched in fascination. "Watch out for that…"
"I see it." The car was maneuvered around the post and other objects. "Oh man. I got inked."
Inked? Dave wondered what he meant but before he could ask, the game was over.
"I lost."
"You got second place," Dave observed politely.
The little boy frowned. "That was a hard one. What's your name?"
"Dave."
"I'm Maury. Now it's your turn." He thrust the game into Dave's hands. "Press those buttons. Watch out or you're going to crash!"
Dave tried to do as he was told but he still ended up in fifth place. Maury shook his head. "That wasn't very good."
"I know. Your turn." Dave handed the game back. "How old are you?"
"I'm six." Maury guided the car with expertise.
"And those are your sisters?" He nodded toward the girls staring unblinking at him.
"Yep." Maury only had eyes for the game.
"Come on over," Dave mouthed. Almost instantly the girls ran over and sat on the opposite side of the booth.
"Maury is really good," the older girl observed proudly. "He once got a hundred."
"And I'll do it again." Maury muttered as he concentrated on the fast paced game.
"How old are you?" Dave wondered.
"I'm seven," the one girl announced, "and my sister is eleven."
"Do you have any kids?" the older girl asked.
Dave thought for a moment. "No. Not yet."
"Maybe someday you will and you can teach them to play like Maury is teaching you," the little girl remarked innocently.
"Maybe," Dave returned hollowly.
"Here. Your turn."
For the next hour Dave tried to beat the score but kept coming up short. Eventually, he let go and concentrated on the scene. He barely noticed as his car zoomed past the ink spots and lava traps. He didn't even know he was holding his breath as the car sped over the checkered line.
"You did it! You got first place!" Maury cheered loudly. "I knew you could do it!"
"We did it!" Dave raised his hand for a complimentary fist bump of victory.
"You got a hundred. That's really good because you never played before." Maury patted Dave on the back.
"Come on, kids," Charmaine called out.
"Aww Mom! Can't we stay!" the children whined. "Dave finally won."
Charmaine smiled sweetly. "You have school tomorrow. Besides, I'm tired and I'm sure Dave is tired too."
Muttering and shuffling, the children moved slowly to get their coats and back packs. Dave stood up and stretched his legs.
"Thank you for a delicious dinner." Dave handed her his credit card.
Running it thru, she handed it back with the receipt and a pen. "No. Thank you," she corrected. "I had to work a double shift because my relief didn't come in and I was trying to keep them calm and…" She ran a weary hand over her eyes. "I've never seen them so quiet. You have the magic touch."
"I tried." Dave signed his name and left a generous tip.
"You worked a miracle. I know you don't have kids, but you would make a great father. The kids seem to like you." Charmaine closed the register and reached for her purse under the counter.
Before Dave could speak, a small force crashed into his legs. He looked down into the pretty face of the youngest girl.
"Thank you, Dave," she said shyly. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"Will you marry me when I grow up?"
"Ummm…" Dave searched for the right words to let her down.
"I really like you." She smiled broadly to show two missing teeth.
"I bet you already have a boyfriend."
"Uh huh," she said. "It's you." She hugged his legs tightly.
Dave opened and closed his mouth. "Thank you." He blinked back the sudden rush of tears as something he couldn't explain pierced his heart. There was a light in the little girl's eyes that shined with happiness for him. Before he could say anything else, Charmaine was ushering them out the door. He watched as they waved happily to him. In an instant, they were gone and he realized he never caught the girls' names.
Picking up his coat, he slipped his arms inside. The clock on the wall let him know that it was time to go home. It was time to confess all…if Ashley was still there.
He sighed and headed out the door to the car. And his fate.