CHAPTER 2 - what's for dinner?

5.9K 243 7
                                    

a/n - and we meet liv!! please vote!!!

i lean my hands on the edge of the counter, watching a girl walk in. the brunette wore a brown leather jacket, brown turtleneck and brown skirt. i study her facial features. huh, olivia rodrigo. a celebrity who hasn't been here yet.

she looks around, walking to the counter. she looks at me, smiling warmly. "hi, are you dining in or taking out tonight?" i ask, giving back a matching smile. "um, dining in for 2 people, please," she says. i go to talk, but she drops her phone. "shit," she says, bending down. i lean over a little, covering the edge with my hand in case she were to hit it.

she stands back up, and i take off my hand. "of course," i walk out of the counter, "follow me." she sits down, and i hand her a menu, placing the other one on the table. "press this button when you're ready to be over, we'll be over," i say, pointing to the digital button on the screen that was held up by a slim stand that was clamped on the table. "okay, perfect. thank you," she smiles again.

i start to wipe down a table after a couple left. "hey," julien says. "hey, how was your third break this shift?" i ask. "great," he says, "best 1 hour spent in the back. i've been working since the morning, give me a break." i chuckle, tucking in the chair. he tucks in the other one, "hasn't that girl been sitting there for a while?" "what girl?" i ask. "that one," he subtly nods his head to olivia rodrigo, "she's been sitting there for an hour, came in when i went for my break." "i guess she has," i realize, looking back at him. he hums, walking away. i walk back to the counter, glancing at the girl again. she was on her phone, eyebrows almost connected as she typed quickly.

another 15 minutes pass, olivia rodrigo still sitting there. the cafe restaurant had died down, as it was almost 10. a few people were still eating, about 6 others. i start to clean the tables, getting to the table next to the brunette. i look at her, and she was staring at the table, tracing over the light wood marks. "hey, you've been here a while," i note, spraying the table. "me?" she asks. "yeah," i say, wiping it. "yeah, just waiting on my date," she says. "for an hour?" i ask. she hums, "guess so. he said he'd be a little late." i try to get out of my head the fact that she could be getting stood up right now. "want anything while you wait?" i ask, tucking in the chair. "a glass of water would be nice," she smiles. "anything else?" "no, thank you," she says. i smile, walking to get water.

i place the glass of water in front of her, and she gives me another smile. "thanks. how much would that be?" she asks. "for free," i chuckle, "it's just water." "oh, thank you," she laughs. i see a guy walk in, and i assume it was her date, but he walks right past her, to the counter. he talks to julien, gets a coffee, walking out. 

olivia picks up the glass, taking a sip. i walk away, back to the counter. "hey, i'm clocking out now," julien says. "okay," i smile. "you'll be okay by yourself?" he asks. "yeah, it's just three people here, and that couple's just about to leave," i say. "okay, see you tomorrow," he says, hugging me shortly before walking to the back.

twenty minutes pass, the couple leaving. it was now olivia rodrigo, me, and the few chefs in the back. i clean their table and i look at the girl, and she sighs, leaning back on the chair. she definitely got stood up. i felt bad, i've seen this happen before. i close the front door. i take a deep breath, walking up to her.

i sit down in the chair in front of her. she looks at me with a confused face as i pick up the menu. "so, what do you want for dinner? i'm starving," i say. she chuckles, "i got stood up, didn't i?" i give a sympathetic smile, "i kinda... hate to say it, but probably." she sighs, shrugging and looking down. 

i slide the menu to her, and she looks up at me. "we don't have all day, olivia rodrigo," i say. "you know who i am," she mumbles, picking up the menu, "makes it even more embarrassing. olivia rodrigo, the girl got stood up for her first date with a guy." "it's embarrassing for whoever this guy is, not you," i answer truthfully, "but, it doesn't matter. guys suck anyways." "yeah, they do," she smiles at the menu, flipping to the next page. "what do you recommend?" she asks. "honestly, my go to is either steak with mushroom sauce with a side of chips or the fettuccine alfredo," i say. "i'll go with the steak tonight," olivia decides, "feeling like a steak."

i stand up. "i'll be back," i say. "okay, thank you..." her eyes trail down to my pin, "y/n." i smile, walking to the back.

after a few minutes, i walk back with our food, the chefs going home. i do a double trip, grabbing the drinks too. i sit down, picking up my fork and knife.

i poke into a fry, eating it. "won't your manager get you in trouble for doing this?" she asks. "i'm the manager," i laugh, picking up my drink, "and we've closed." "oh," she laughs too, "are you sure you're okay with doing this?" "yeah, it's no problem," i smile, unable to tear my eyes away from olivia's practically sparkling brown eyes. There was something about her that i found captivating, and i felt drawn to her in a way i couldn't explain. "okay, tell me about yourself, y/n."  i think for a second, "well, my name's y/n l/n, i'm 19, i've worked here since it opened, which would be a year and a half..." i tell her more, and she nods at everything i say, engaged. "tell me about you," i ask the same question. "okay," she sighs, leaning back with her drink in hand, "i'm a singer songwriter, i'm 19 too, just went on tour about 2 months ago, and got stood up almost 2 hours ago." i laugh, shaking my head, "it happens. i've seen people get stood up here." "do you sit down and have dinner with them?" she asks with a smile, eating the last fry. "no, actually. normally they just stand up after half an hour and leave," i say, "you've got commitment, staying here for almost 2 hours." "yeah, well, thought he'd show up," she shrugs, placing her napkin on the plate, "have you ever been stood up?" "no, i haven't dated in a while," i say. "how long?" "i don't know... like three years?" i estimate, "and running." she nods, and we continue the conversation.

we end up talking for another half an hour after we finish our food, the time was now 11. "i should get going," olivia smiles, placing her empty plate on top of mine, "how much was the meal? it was amazing, by the way. wish i would've tried this place earlier." "oh, don't worry about it," i say, both of us standing up, "it's on me." "don't do that," she chuckles, tucking in her chair. "it's on me," i repeat, smiling, "don't worry about it." "okay," she gives up. she smiles, and we look at each other. i study her face, she gorgeous in the pictures, but even prettier in person. "thank you for this," olivia says, "really. you made my day a lot better." "of course, no one deserves to get stood up," i nod, "any time." "thank you again."

i watch as she opens the door, looking over her shoulder. i smile, and she waves, walking out. i let out a sigh of contentment, turning around. i feel my cheeks heating up, so i place my fingers on them to try and get rid of the heat rushing through them. 



𝐜𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡 || 𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐨 𝐱 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫Where stories live. Discover now