Second Hand Waitress

"Give my cousin a hug from me and let him know I'll see him soon," Kira said as she stood up from the table, eager to leave before Tesah and Lexington arrived. It felt strange that after years of friendship between the two men, she had almost run into Tesah in their family home for the first time. Then again, before her accident, Kira had rarely visited the house. She had always been unhappy there. She hated how strict their grandparents had been—how she and Lexington were never allowed out past seven on a school night and nine on weekends, even when they were older. Lexington had always been the obedient one, while Kira was the rebel, constantly getting scolded by their grandparents.

As soon as she turned eighteen, Kira left home and moved in with a small group of fellow bakers while attending a baking class at the University of Median City. Her decision had disappointed their grandparents, and every time she came home—usually because Lexington insisted—she would end up arguing with them. Eventually, she started making excuses not to visit. Now, she regretted that.

She walked over to hug Becky, who was still cursing over her burned onions, then quickly left before Becky could try to convince her to stay.

Tesah parked his car in front of the large, old house at the same time Lexington pulled up in his older, well-used Ford. Tesah grinned when he saw his friend, and Lexington responded with a wide smile as he got out of the car.

"Hey, how's it going?" Lexington greeted, giving Tesah a quick handshake before pulling him in for a one-armed hug. "Good to see you, man. Ready for the match tonight? Barcelona is definitely going to crush Real Madrid."

Tesah laughed, shaking his head. "Stick to basketball, my friend. You clearly don’t know anything about football."