Chapter Two

Priestly stormed through the archway into the back room, stalking over to a row of shelves and leaning his hands on them.

It can't be real…It can't be…

This whole time, he'd waited, and now, they just…What right did those two have in just showing up after they abandoned him?

"Priestly, what happened?" asked Tish, walking over to him and placing a hand on his arm. "Are you okay?"

Priestly didn't respond. He wasn't really sure what he'd tell her in the first place.

"Priestly, did you know them?" asked Jen from behind him.

Priestly hesitated before sighing. "I don't know."

"You don't know?" asked Piper. "What do you mean?"

Priestly slowly turned towards the door, finding his four friends in the storage room with him. He never thought he would be telling them about his past.

"Two years ago, I woke up in a hospital room," Priestly told them. "I was hurt pretty bad, but…I couldn't remember how I'd gotten hurt. I couldn't remember anything. I still don't."

"You have amnesia?" asked Tish.

Priestly looked over at her and nodded. "The only thing I knew was my name. I got it from the doctors who found an insurance card on me. I spent two months in that hospital. I kept waiting for someone to come through that door and hug the life outta me, but…no one came. When I was released, I shacked up in a shelter. Didn't know if I had a home or a job, so…"

Priestly tilted his head towards the dining area. "Then, one day, I walked through that front door."

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Priestly stepped through the door to the Beach City Grill, looking around the dining area. It was a small little joint filled with surfer/fishing décor. A blonde girl sat at the counter on a computer, typing away. Priestly glanced over to see the back of a brunette girl heading into the back.

The blonde girl took in his bizarre appearance quickly before smiling. "Hi. What can I get for you?"

Priestly was starting to get used to the stares. He had expected people to start giving him looks when he had decided to go with his new look. But he didn't care; he liked his new look.

"Um…" mumbled Priestly, digging in his pocket for the five dollar bill he'd found in the street this morning. "How much will this buy me?"

"A six-inch with fries," the girl told him, tucking some of her short blonde hair behind her ear.

"I'll take it," he told her, passing the bill over to her on the counter.

"What kind?" she asked while depositing the money in the till.

"Uh…what's good?" asked Priestly. Even after the three months since waking in the hospital, he still didn't really know what kind of food he preferred.

"Well, I make a mean tofurkey," the girl told him.

Priestly grimaced in disgust at the thought. "Ugh. How about a…spicy Italian with jalapeño?"

The girl chuckled. "I can do that."

"Thanks," said Priestly, heading and sitting down at a table.

He glanced over to see the guy at the next table had stacks of paper in front of him. His hair was mostly short, but he did have a thin, braided ponytail that fell a little past his shoulder. Priestly wasn't a hundred percent, but he was pretty sure he was looking at a hippie.

Footsteps sounded from behind the counter, and Priestly looked up to see a brunette girl walking in from the back room. He felt his jaw drop slightly as he stared at her. She was amazingly beautiful, and he wasn't just saying 'cause of her looks. There was just something about her that he found attractive. It was the eyes. Her eyes spoke wonders about the person inside that bombshell of a body; the eyes told him there was more than some superficial babe in there.

"Hey, Jen, can you close tonight?" asked the brunette.

"Yeah, sure," said the blonde—Jen—as she worked the stove. "Got plans?"

"Oh, yeah," said the brunette with a coy smile. "Got a date with Alex."

Priestly's heart dropped a little. Well, there goes my plan to ask her out.

"You think this one will last?" asked Jen.

"I hope," said the brunette as she dried some plates. "He is so hot."

Priestly inwardly scoffed a little. Okay, maybe she is superficial.

"Just make sure he doesn't have a motorcycle this time," the man at the next table told them. "'Kay, angel?"

Huh, he works here, Priestly thought, looking at his paperwork. Must be the owner. And what was that he'd called her?

Does that mean the brunette's name was Angel? It was an incredibly beautiful name that suited her perfectly.

The two girls giggled at the obvious inside joke. This place seemed to be like one big family.

Priestly's gaze turned to the table in front of him. Must be nice…

In the two months of his hospital stay, he hadn't had a single visitor. Not once did anyone come looking for him. What kind of family did he have that they wouldn't visit? Or…what kind of person was he that no one visited?

"Here you go."

Priestly smiled up at the brunette as she set the plate of sandwich and fries down on the table. "Thanks."

"No problem," she said. "Enjoy." She headed back to the counter to finish the dishes.

Priestly picked up the sandwich and took a big bite, groaning in delight at the meaty goodness. This was easily the best sandwich he'd had in his entire life. Well…the last three months.

"You're hungry, huh?" said the owner at the next table as Priestly stuffed some fries into his mouth.

Priestly looked at him and swallowed the majority of the mouthful. "I can't remember the last time I had a meal this good."

Literally, he added mentally.

He dug back into his meal with gusto. After a few bites, he glanced up to see the guy watching him.

"What?" asked Priestly.

"You doing okay?" asked the guy.

Priestly frowned. "Why would you ask?"

The guy shrugged. "Just a feeling."

Priestly looked down at the table, not really wanting to open up to a complete stranger. "I've, uh…been going through some hard times lately."

"How hard?" asked the owner, putting his pen down.

Priestly looked back up at him, deciding if he should trust this guy or not. The decision came to him as those reliant eyes stared into his.

"Homeless shelter," Priestly told him.

The guy's brows contracted in concern. "What happened?"

"Hospital bills," Priestly shrugged. "Had to move out of the apartment. Still trying to find a job."

"Oh, that sucks," the owner said. He glanced over at the two girls at the counter, a contemplative look on his face.

Priestly polished off his sandwich as the owner finally spoke up again.

"Tell you what," said the owner, pointing at the stove. "You get over there and make me even a halfway decent lunch, you got yourself a job."

Priestly's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah, why not?" said the guy. "You seem like a good guy. I even have an extra room at my place. You're welcome to stay till you can get your own place."

"That's…thank you!" said Priestly, overwhelmed.

"But only if you can cook," said the guy, nodding at the stove with a smile.

Priestly shrugged. "I can try. Anything specific?"

"Surprise me," the guy told him.

Priestly tossed the last of the fries into his mouth and got up from the table. The two girls watched with smile as Priestly walked behind the counter, looking through the ingredients to pick something.

"Welcome to the team," Jen told him.

"Well, I don't know if I have the job yet," Priestly told her, filling a pot with sauce.

"Well, how hard can cooking be?" said the brunette with a smile. "Even if you are a guy."

Priestly smiled over at her. "I'll let you know, Angel."

The brunette laughed as the other two joined in. "Not Angel. Tish."

And yet, still a beautiful name, he thought.

"Priestly," he told her.

Tish smiled at him and gestured at the stove. "Let's see what you got, Mohawk boy."

Priestly glanced upwards at his blue Mohawk as he chuckled. This place might just work for me, after all.

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"So, that's why you didn't fill out an application," said Piper.

"Good thing," said Priestly, looking at Trucker. "I don't know what I would've put on that thing if you'd given me one." He chuckled lightly as the others joined in.

"So, does that mean those two really are your family?" asked Trucker.

Priestly shrugged with an unsure frown. "I mean, they knew stuff that no random stranger should know, but…" his frown deepened, "where the hell were they? At least out of curiosity, they had to wonder when I suddenly wasn't there anymore."

"Well, that one guy said they'd been looking for you for two years," said Jen.

"They must not have looked very hard," Priestly muttered. "I mean, they're obviously locals. How could they have not found me in this town in two years? It's not like I was trying to hide." He gestured at his clothes and hair.

Then again, Priestly wasn't too sure he used to dress and look like this. It was after the hospital when he'd decided to go with the new look. Maybe he had run into those two at some point, and they just hadn't recognized him.

"I just wish…" began Priestly.

"What?" asked Tish.

"I wish I'd thought to ask 'em some questions, you know?" said Priestly. "Not just…punched and yelled at 'em. It was just that…I spent every day waiting for someone to visit, and as the days went by and no one showed, that hope slowly changed to anger. Hell, I've spent the last two years angry at whoever didn't come."

"Tell you what," said Trucker. "Let's all close up for the night and go home to get some rest, see what tomorrow brings. If these two really are family worth having, I'm sure they won't give up just 'cause your amnesiac self punched 'em."

Priestly smiled a little. "Yeah, sounds like a plan."

Tish stepped in front of him, pulling him down into a hug. He gripped tight onto her, knowing she could feel the fear and anger shaking him.

"It's okay," Tish told him softly, a hand on the back of his head.

Priestly took a breath to calm himself and pulled away, looking her in the eye. "Thank you." He gave her a kiss before turning to follow the others back up front. He stopped, though, before getting to the doorway.

"What is it, Priestly?" asked Tish as the others looked back at him.

Priestly shuffled nervously on his feet. "Could you, um…look to see if they're somewhere on the street watching for me?"

Piper nodded. "Sure."

She and the other two headed back up to the front. Tish elected to stay back with him.

"Everything's gonna be okay," Tish told him, taking hold of his hand. "I promise."

Priestly smiled at her as he tightened his grip on her hand. His emotions were so mixed about what would come tomorrow. Terror filled him at the idea of facing the two strangers, and yet, anxiety competed at the fact that maybe he'd found his family at last.