The next morning, I got up with the sun. I lazed about for a few mintues, then dragged my feet out of bed. I splashed cold water from a provided base on my face, and dried it. I looked up in the mirror. It took me a second to recognize the image. I mean, I looked at me, but didn't at the same time. I still had my long blonde hair, by gold speckled green hawk eyes, lined eyebrows, long eyelashes, curved lips and a cute nose. But I looked… meaner. Tougher. Like my personality was one thing you didn't want to mess with. I had a dark tan from being out in the sun, and I decided I would get a hat right away. I also looked… rough. Like I hadn't lived in a right home for years. My messy hair added to that theory. I brushed it out, and pulled it back into a pony again. I straightened my shirt and fixed my vest, before heading downstairs. I meat Lou at the bottom.
"We have a customer already." She said, "Said he smelt something coming the heavens, and tracked it here." she was looking at me oddly.
"Did I do something wrong?" I asked, worried.
"Oh, no." she said. "Nothing at all." She picked up her red satin skirts and walked off. I watched her go. What had I done? Nothing bad I hope. I didn't want to get fired. I came down, and found a young looking man resting at the bar table. I walked behind the counter, and up to the man. He was maybe in his early twenties.
"What can I do for ya?" I asked. The man looked up at me, his dark brown eyes starring right through me. He hesitated.
"Well, I'd like some whisky." He said kindly. I nodded, and pulled a glass from the shelf under the table. I made sure it was wiped clean and filled it with whisky. I set the glass in front of me, and set the bottle by the mirror. The two men from yesterday playing cards walked in, and picked there table.
"Whisky." They called to me. I nodded and brought them all over cups and there own bottle. They flipped me the change, and I counted it.
"Five more cents please." I said, counting five cents less then it was. The man looked up at me, his eyes hard.
"Excuse me?" the man said, his voice cold. Now, I had seen movies with men in them like this. They thought they could take an advantage of the new kid, and scare him off. They thought they were better. But I was no normal kid. I gave him a glare that told him I wasn't going to mess around. I could go easy and say, you were five cents off, but he would just get madder. So I would take it to the top first.
"What ya can't count?" I said, my own voice icy. "Your five cents short, old coot." The man stood up, maybe about an inch taller then me. I looked at him straight and hard, not backing down.
"You saying I'm cheating?' the man asked. My eyes flared, and my heart fluttered when I saw a speck of regret in his eye.
"I hope you ain't cheat'in." I said, my voice low and cold, "I don't like cheaters." The man hesitated, then sat back down. He dealt the cards, without a word. I stood there watching for a while, waiting for the last five cents. I opened my mouth to tell him again, but the other man suddenly flipped his hand up. At first I expected a gun, but his hand was empty. Instead he through the last five cents. I caught it out of reflex without flinched before it hit my face. "Thank you gentlemen. Enjoy your drinks." I said. I walked back behind the counter. The young dark haired man at the bar was starring at me. I said nothing as cleaned up the counter, and wiped down a few more glasses for upcoming customers.
"Who's the cook around here?" the man asked. Without looking up from the glass, I answered.
"Aunt May. She's outta town for the week, so I took up the job." I said, "Need anything?" I looked up at him, his brown eyes shimmering.
"The freshest thing you've got." He said, his voice hiding something. I thought about it. Alright, he seemed like a nice man, but I wasn't going to judge. I went around to the kitchen in the back, and pulled out the box. Which would I give him? The cake? Brownies? Or the seven layer cookies? He said freshest thing I had… that would be the cookies. I pulled the tray out, still warm from last night's baking, and cut the cookies into half dollar quarter sizes. I pulled out four, and set them on a paper napkin. I walked back into the front, and set the napkin in front of him with only two. The other two were set aside.
"That'll be twenty cents." I said. The man looked at me, a bit hesitant. If he tried to fool me like those beggars over there, he'd be sorry. My eyes flared once, warning him. He considered it, and dropped the money on the bar. I gathered it up and put it in the register along with the rest. I couldn't help but watch from the side of my eye as he bit into the cookies. He slowly chewed, his eyes closing slightly, concentrating on the taste. He took another bite, and slowly chewed. He sat there at the bar eating slowly, while I watched behind my eyelashes while cleaning glasses. There was a clumping outside, and instinct told me to look. An elderly man, maybe in his fifties, was walking down the board walk. He passed the hotel without so much of a glance. But then the clunking suddenly stopped, and backtracked a little faster. I turned my head in the direction of the door. The elderly man was holding the swinging doors open, his feet spread, and his mouth agape. His wide eyes were staring intently at the man, eating the cookies.
"two more please." The man said, slapping another twenty cents on the bar. I gave him the other two, this time noticing even the men playing cards looked up, gazing in amazement at the man. The old man at the door, closed his mouth, and opened it again, swinging as if on a hinge, trying to figure out what to say. Finally, he left the hotel, puzzled. The men continued playing there game, every so often glancing up, with an unsure look on their face. The man quietly finished his second two, licked his fingers and looked up. His glance caught my eye, soft and unique. He reached in his pocket, and pulled out ten whole dollars. He set in on the table, and stood up. As he began to walk away, I spoke.
"Sir, you forgot your money." I said. He stopped and slowly turned around to me.
"That's your tip." He said. I looked at the money. Ten dollars was a LOT in this time.
"Sir? Ten dollars? I can't take that much from you." I said.
"Oh yes you can." Came Lou's voice. "Thank's Jeff. See ya tonight, eh?" Jeff, the man with the overdrive tip, nodded. He starred at me a bit puzzled. Lou, seeing the odd gaze filled in. "She's new. Just came into town yesterday. Tired thing she was. Spent almost all night cooking those." Jim nodded and walked out of the hotel silently. I looked at Lou confused. "What did you give him?" Lou asked instantly. "What did he pay for?' She walked over getting in my face.
"Just some whisky…" I said.
"Anything else?" she interrupted.
"Y… yeah. He ate my cookies I made last night." I said. Lou's eyes widened.
"Show me." She ordered. I set down the glass, and started to walk to the kitchen.
"I'm sorry if I did…" I started.
"No, no. Just show me the cookies." She said. I did. I pulled one out and gave it to her in a hurry, so she wouldn't bet mad from waiting. She held the cookie up examining the different style. She smelled it, her eyes flashing. Then slowing and carefully she took a bite. She stopped in mid chew, and looked up at me. "YOU made these?" she said.
"Yes. I tired not to burn them, but I might have made a mistake." I said, feeling my gut turn. She shook her head.
"There's nothing wrong with these. Absolutely nothing." Lou said, "Jeff Watson, the man that gave you the bizarre tip, is picky on what he eats." I looked at her, confused.
"He'll eat almost everything yes, but never something he didn't like twice. We're having trouble keeping him fed. We have a annual fair contest where everyone makes the best goods they can. Jeff tests them out, and picks the one he likes. The winner get the money he's saved up for that special food. We haven't had a winner for nine years." Lou explained. I looked at her, almost horrified. "How many did he have."
"Um… four." I said. Lou looked at me.
"Incredible." She said. "I thought I smelt something incredible from the kitchen. I just never dreamed it would coax Jeff Watson in to FOUR servings!"
"Actually, it was only two servings, it was just…" I started. But I was interrupted by a ring. Lou looked up startled. We both headed out to the bar. There were four men, included the elderly man that stopped at the door, standing at the bar.
"What did Jeff have?" the men asked. "How much is it? When was it made? What's it called?" Lou hushed the questions.
"Gentlemen, I'm not the person to ask. I hired on a new hand… Elisha. She's the one who took Jeff's order. She's the cook." Lou stepped aside allowing the men to see me starring back at them blankly.
"We want some." They said. I nodded, and headed back. When I came back with the cookies, two more men came in, followed by three women. They all wanted the cookies.
"What do you call them?" one lady asked.
"Seven layer cookies." I said.
"S…L…C… Slc's. Elsy's… Eli's!" cried out a kid who had rushed in, with his mother. "I want an Eli's mommy!" Soon everyone was ignoring the name 'seven layer cookies,' and called them Eli's. Gimme Eli's! Eli's down here! A few Eli's Please! An order of Eli's down here!" Lou was forced out of the back room and come help serve. We were soon packed with people, and running out of Eli's. I moved to the cake and brownies, and they were just as good of a success. Lou moved around with a wide smile and try full of whisky, while I tried to keep up with everyone's order of the sweets. When we were out, we started to have people order for later, even pay ahead of time to get the first piece. The cash register was full within the day. I was sent back to the kitchen to bake some more, while Lou tended out front. I made the good quickly, and brought them out when there were done. Every time I brought the cookies out, there was a yell across the crowded room, and soon the bar was rushed in full of people with their money ready. Again and again I was sent to the back to make more. When the day began to slink away into night, the people began to separate out. We had seven card games going, but all the other nineteen tables were full of men, and a few women. The kids all left, and the bar was full. I made the last two batches of cookies and brought them out. Both tray's were gone within the minute. Lou raked in the money, and cashed it in. As she shut the cash tray, she looked at me, her eyes sparkling, her face in a wide grin. I bit my lip.
"You're a blessing to the De Luna name!" she said. She walked up to me and gathered me in a hung. I went stiff, and waited until it was over. Lou was nice, but I didn't know her that well. She pulled back, a grin still on her face. "You poor thing. You look exausted! Tell you what. You play a round of cards with me, and I'll give you a day off tomorrow."
"Tomorrow? But I only started work today." I said. She chuckled.
"You brought life in this hotel again! And a smile back on my face! And money in the boot! All on your fisrt day. You do it again tomorrow and I'll break down. Take a day off. For the good of both of us. What do you say?" I thought about it. Well, a game of cards couldn't hurt.
"I say let's deal out." I said. Lou smiled brightened, and she lead me out and around to a table. There were three other men there, and they dealt out the cards. I watched the man's hands carefully, making sure no one cheated. My eyes flickered over to the other players, then to my own pile. I picked my cards up, and spread them. As I calculated the plays… I smiled.