Over The Weekend

by Rachel Lenna

  Chapter 5

  “You okay?” He asks instantly at attention.

  “Yes. These babies just like to kick me a lot and sometimes it hurts.” I wipe the tears away just as the waitress from before brings me my food, giant tomato sauce bottle and all. “You are my new best friend.” I grin up at her as she puts the food down I dive straight in.

  “You brought the bottle?” Hugo looks at her funny.

  “Boss said.” She shrugs pointing at me and looking over at Jaydan who is serving customers down the far end away from his girl. That’s not the plan boy. I silently send him. The waitress eyes me funnily and I stare back.

  I have gotten used to accuser stares from complete and random strangers thinking they somehow have a right to judge me. I meet her eye for eye and all with a look dare her to say something. “I asked Jaydan to drown my chips in sauce.” I inform Hugo. “I guess he decided I could have the entire bottle.”

  “Oh.” Hugo chuckles.

  “His idea not mine.” I goad, stuffing more chips into my face continuing to stare back at miss nose-out-of-joint-cos-I-got-a-crush-on-my-boss-n-he’s-with-the-pregnant-whale-and-not-me. I just smile sweetly at her, mouth full of chip and all. I think she is turning green.

  “Tammy?” Hugo looks slightly annoyed, finally catching on to what is happening.. He waves his hand in her face.

  “Yes sir?” She says not bothering to pull her eyes from me. I don’t back down either.

  “You can go now.”

  “What?” She says as she openly moves her gaze to my stomach.

  “Tammy you have the rest of the night off.” Hugo says in a tone that gets her attention instantly. “And you need think real hard about whether or not you want to be a waitress here or not because we don’t discriminate our customers got it?”

  “What? Huh?” She seems confused.

  “You’re staring at my friend like she has two heads.”

  “I don’t… I’m not…” She stutters.

  “I don’t.” I add because I can’t help myself and she shoots me an evil look. “Just two babies growing in there.” I point to my stomach and give it a little shake for effect. Hugo hides a smile.

  Tammy gasps. “I…”

  “Go home tammy.” He instructs.

  “Yes sir.” She sighs and walks away without another word.

  “I’m sorry.” I laugh at the same time Hugo says “I’m sorry about her.”

  “Don’t be silly!” I say as he says “You have nothing to be sorry about.”

  We both stop and stare at each other a moment before bursting into laughter.

  “I couldn’t help myself Hugo I’m sorry.” I choke out through laughter.

  “Don’t be silly.” He coughs. “I won’t put up with that behaviour from any employee.”

  “Still.” I say sobering up pretty quickly. If only you knew sweetheart. If only you knew. “I’m getting tired so I may finish this and go anyways.”

  “But we haven’t had a chance to talk properly!” Hugo panics.

  “I know but there’s always tomorrow.” I say through a mouth full of chip.

  “But I have so many questions.”

  “I’m sure you do.” I say. “But it’s been a long day, the bus ride took forever and I hurt.”

  “See that’s what I mean!” He says almost whining. “You randomly appear out of nowhere and drop that grenade on me without so much as a warning for eight months?”

  I bristle at his tone and food is no longer my friend. “Hugo I get your in shock, and although pregnancy is a big thing it is most certainly not a grenade. So it will do you good to remember this.” I take a gulp of water as the potato suddenly gets lodged in my throat.

  “You kept it from me for eight months!” He says a little sharply.

  “You told me that it was just a week for you and to never expect anything from you ever again.” I say coldly, still remembering how much that stung. I wasn’t expecting a marriage proposal but we could have become friends.

  In the end I figured a guy like him must have had someone waiting for him when he came back home. There was no way a guy as great as him would be single. But then if he really was a great guy he wouldn’t be like that. The thought was only there for a microsecond but I know he’s not. A ladies man for sure, but a douche bag who cheats? I don’t think so.

  “You lied to me about your age!”

  “So what?” I bark, tired of the same line. “I said nineteen when I was turning eighteen that week. It’s not that big a difference.”

  “Uh yeah it is!” He says crossing his arms over his chest. “For starters seventeen year olds shouldn’t be in clubs, drinking alcohol.”

  “Oh please!” I scoff. “I was eighteen in like a few days. The resort didn’t care and neither should you.”

  “You were a minor and I was buying you alcohol! I have liquor licences here that could be cancelled because of that!”

  “Oh.” I say, crossing my arms over my chest now. “So that’s what this is about. You’re angry at me because you were worried that you would lose your stupid little club!” I shouldn’t feel hurt but I do. “I don’t have to deal with this. Your being a jerk over something that could have been a what if and turned out to be a what not.” I grab my bag and waddle my way out of the seat. “Yes I lied, but it’s not as big as your making it out to be.”

  “Where you going?” He demands, getting up trying to block my path.

  “None of your damn business!” I hiss at him as I turn towards the ladies room. Pregnancy sucks! “After all we don’t want you losing your licence for knowing that legally able adults need to use the bathroom now do we?!”

  I waddle-stomp into the bathroom and look at myself in the mirror, “Men!” I bark at my reflection. “Who bloody needs them?”

  The bathroom has the radio playing instead of the band’s music pumping through the speakers and Willow Greene’s song is playing again on a different station this time.

  “I trusted you, I liked you, I let you share my secrets and feel my intimacy... You said those first few doubts I had were nothing but jealousy… What was I thinking? Thinking? You fooled me, and you went all out... You really showed me what playing is all about…”

  “You tell ‘em girl.” I say to the speaker. “I can do this on my own. I don’t need him.”

  “You okay there honey?” An older girl, probably mid-twenties taps my shoulder.

  “Yeah.” I sigh. Then look at my haggard reflection. I have big bags under my eyes and I'm leaning a little to my right because my feet hurt and taking the pressure of one foot is better than no feet. If only I could rest them both at the same time and still be mobile. “No.” I concede.

  “You know whatever he's done,” She says as she applies new mascara. “If you love him it won’t matter, you will always forgive him.”

  I so don’t love him. “Even when he’s being a total douche?” I still don’t love him!

  “Especially then.” She smiles at me through the reflection of the mirror. “Because if he wasn’t being a douche then he wouldn’t care.”

  “Fair point.” I concede after a moment. “Still doesn’t mean I don’t want to ring his neck but.”

  “That’s the thing about our men,” The girl grins, putting her mascara away and taking out her lipstick. “You can’t live with them but can’t live without ‘em either. They drive us up the wall but they are still so adorable when they do really cute things.”

  “It sucks.” I nod, agreeing. “But so true.”

  “Yep.” She agrees, popping her lips against her lipstick.

  “Thanks.” I smile sweetly at her and she nods. “Have a good night.”

  “You too honey.”

  I waddle out ready for battle again only to run smack bang into Hugo right outside the door. “Hugo!” I gasp, wobbling a little.

  “Anna I’m sorry!” He says pacing. “You alright?”

  “Yes.” I lie. He lifts an eyebrow. “Okay fine no. I’m sore. A
nd you pissed me off.”

  “I’m sorry.” He repeats looking sheepish and keeping a steadying hand on me. “I just don’t know how to do this. I’m no good at it.”

  “No good at what?”

  “Dealing.” He answers honestly.

  “You run a pub. You got to be good at dealing.” I reply, deliberately misinterpreting his statement.

  “I mean stuff like this,” He gestures to in-between us with an eye roll. Clearly he caught onto my feigned innocence. Smart cookie! “I am no good at relationship stuff.”

  “And you think I am?” I scoff. “As you so often like to point out I’m eighteen and have had sex a grand total of one time in my life. It’s not like I have heaps of experience either you know.”

  “Still one time really?” He says stopping to stare at me in open disbelief.

  “Out of everything I said you zone in on that?” I laugh. “Typical.” I waddle away this time intending on going home to the Bateson’s regardless of what puppy dogged eye look he gives me.

  “Anna stop!”

  I ignore him.

  “Marry me!” He blurts out.