Jesse (jdelacroix) wrote in nevermore_past, @ 2013-04-25 10:18:00 |
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Current mood: | tired |
Who: Jesse Delacroix [Narrative]
What: Time to move on
When: Summer of 2009
Where: Charleston, South Carolina
Warnings: Not a lot, I'd expect. Also, this is one of those ideas born at 4 a.m. Jesse's just really loud right now, OK.
The cafe advertised good, home-cooked food for reasonable prices, and that was what had drawn Jesse in in the first place. The fact that they'd needed another waiter, that was what had encouraged him to stay on for a while. The owner was a 60-something lady, born and raised in Charleston, and she was a pistol. Jesse had liked her almost as soon as they met. He hadn't had much experience waiting tables, but she agreed to give him a two-week trial. At the end of it, he was a lot better than he had been, and she had a few new regulars who came by just to see him.
"Boy, that smile of yours is a lethal weapon," she'd said, laughing. And Jesse had just given her a cheeky grin and gone off to refill coffee cups, her laughter floating after him.
That had been four months ago, and he really liked the job, and the people he worked with. He even did a little cooking on the main cook's day off, nothing fancy, just eggs and toast and the like. (He didn't talk about the time he'd burned the eggs his first time and filled the kitchen with noxious smoke. No one liked to talk about that.)
One morning in May, he'd turned up for his shift, like every other morning, and Carolyn had called him into her office. "Have a seat, sweetie," she said. "Close the door behind you."
Jesse looked at her quizzically. "Am I in trouble?" he asked.
She waved a hand. "No, no, nothing like that. Which is why I hate to tell you this." She folded her hands on her desk and sighed. "I'm selling the cafe," she told him. "I'm getting up there, and none of my children want to take it over. And I was approached by a developer, who gave me a very good price." She leaned back in her chair. "Truth be told, I'd keep running this place until I expired in my chair. But I have my bad hip, you know, and sometimes, we can't always have it our way."
Jesse nodded. "When are y'all closing down, then?" he asked softly.
"A month from today," Carolyn said. "Gives everyone a chance to try and get something else lined up." She sat up straight again. "But something tells me we won't see you once the doors close."
Not for the first time, Jesse wondered if Carolyn wasn't at least a little psychic. "No ma'am, probably not," he agreed. "Not that I don't like it here, but there's not a lot holding me here besides this place."
Carolyn nodded. "Fair enough. You know, when you blew in my door, I wondered where you'd been that made you look so tired so young. You had old eyes."
"I've heard that," Jesse replied. "Life, and my daddy, had me growin' up faster than I'd like. Turned into a ramblin' man."
Carolyn got up and came around the desk, pulling him into a hug. "Gonna miss you when you leave," she said softly in his ear. Then she pulled back. "And so will most of the 20-something's around here." Jesse just grinned.
She swatted his shoulder. "Shameless. It's a good thing you're cute. Now get out there, we got people comin'." And Jesse had done just there.
The cafe closed down on a humid day in June, and all of the staff had gone out for drinks once the door had closed for the last time. They reminisced about the people and the place, and wished Jesse the best of luck for his moving on.
Carolyn had pulled him into a bone-crushing hug before they left. "Any idea where you'll go?" she asked.
Jesse shrugged, zipping up his jacket. "I thought maybe New York," he said. "Always wanted to see it, never had the chance until now. Big place, lots of people. Maybe something'll happen."
"Maybe something will," Carolyn agreed. She passed him a piece of paper. "Call me when you find someplace, you hear? Give an old woman some peace of mind."
"If you're an old woman, I'm the President," Jesse said, and she'd just laughed and hugged him again.
"You're a good boy," she said. "Take care of yourself."
"You too." And he'd watched her drive away, before getting on his bike to go back to his tiny apartment. The next morning, he set off for New York, wondering what, exactly, he'd find when he got there.