I was standing in line at the foodcourt at my favourite taco place waiting to place my order. It was a little after 1 PM so I had missed the lunch rush which was good because I was hungry.
Amy, Rachel, and another girl I hadn't seen before were working. Amy and the new girl were busy cleaning up and Rachel was working the till.
Rachel saw me in line and gave me a quick smile before returning to her work. Rachel was a pretty woman but she was ragged around the edges.
Over time I had learned she was a single Mom working two jobs trying to make ends meet. She was gorgeous but the stresses of life had been hard on Rachel. She had just turned 40 but she did take care of herself.
As I neared the front of the line I noticed that all the staff were wearing black T-shirts. I read Amy's back, "How do you eat your taco? Head tilted left or right?"
I chuckled to myself.
"What's so funny," Rachel asked? She looked exhausted but her blue eyes twinkled.
I looked at her for a second and said, "I was admiring the new shirts", I said.
"Oh", Rachel giggled. "And how do you eat your taco?" she smiled and asked.
I looked at her boldly and said, "I eat mine head straight and up and down."
She looked at me and her face flushed. She fidgeted nervously for a moment before asking what I wanted for lunch. I couldn't tell if she was angry or not so I decided not to pursue it and placed my order.
Amy saw me and said hello and introduced me to the new girl, Jenny. We exchanged pleasantries and I paid for my food, thanked Rachel (who was still flushed) and headed for the parking lot and my work truck.
The rest of my day was uneventful and I had managed to get finished my outside work before the sky opened up and the rain fell.
As I drove home past the mall I saw Rachel at a bus stop. She was drenched. What happened to her car, I wondered?
I circled the block and came back around to the bus stop. I rolled down the window and asked if she wanted a ride. She looked at me for a moment with indecision on her face before she said yes.
"What happened to your car. I asked her as she climbed in.
"The fucking fuel pump went on it yesterday", she replied.
I winced. That would be an expensive fix. "Do you have a place to take it for repair?" I asked.
"Yes," she said, "My cousin has an auto shop and said he would fix it for just the cost of the parts" She shivered as I drove so I turned up the heat for her.
"Well that good news", I said. As we drove traffic started to slow and I saw police and fire trucks with flashing lights up ahead. "Great," I muttered, "an accident".
"Look," Rachel said suddenly. "I can go and grab another bus".
I looked at her and said, "No, it's fine. Besides it's still pouring rain outside. I'll see if I can cut off down alley and find another route."
Rachel looked at me and went quiet. I turned on the radio as we slowly inched forward through traffic. "So where do you live?" I asked.
"About 10 minutes away in a townhouse complex near the hospital," she said, giving me the address. She still shivered even though the heat was up.
The traffic came to a complete halt and I sighed.
"Where do you live?" She asked.