Slater | Nick Goode

A Taste Of Time

(1990)

"Sabrina!" Cory called, peeking his head through the window and handing her a plate filled with hash browns, "we're out of jalapeños."
"There's some in the back, go get them," Ellie ordered, taking the plate in one hand and walking over to the woman who ordered them. She quickly walked back.
"I can't, I'm flipping pancakes," he argued, pointing towards the stove which, indeed, had a couple of pancakes.
"You can, and you will. These customers want their stupid fucking jalapeños, so go get their fucking jalapeños. Please, or I'm going to have a heart attack right here, in the middle of the diner," Ellie scolded, turning back to the counter and giving the next customer in line a fake smile.
"Hi, how can I help you?" She asked, grabbing her notepad and pen.
"Yes, I ordered jalapenos on my hashbrowns. We didn't get any," the woman arrogantly stated.
"Yeah, I'm sorry about that, I'll get them for you in a second."
The woman took a moment and studied Ellie's face, and for a second, she could've sworn that the lady recognized her. But she just gave a fake smile and sat back down at her table.
Ellie let out a breath, turning on her heel and grabbing the coffee pot. Three customers saw this and raised their hands. The bell to the cafe rang again, and a loud voice boomed in Ellie's ear, "hey Ms. Sabrina!"
Ellie flinched, the voice catching her off guard. Nobody called her Ellie anymore. Her name tag said 'Sabrina,' it was the only way Jody would hire her. He knew what she had been through, but he couldn't risk losing business because people were afraid of the only waitress that would show up for work. This man was a regular, his name was Jacob and Ellie knew that he always got a black coffee and a glazed donut.
"Morning, Jacob. Your usual?"
"Yes ma'am, thank you," he smiled and sat at the counter. Ellie poured one last cup of coffee before returning to behind the counter, where she poured Jacob's cup, "did you hear about the accident last night?"
Ellie furrowed her eyebrows, "no, i've been working. What happened?"
"Not sure exactly, but the Sheriff has been out there all night. Two people are dead."
"Jesus," Ellie mumbled. Deaths weren't uncommon in Shadyside, but they were still heartbreaking. The thought of Nick having to investigate two dead bodies made her skin crawl. She pushed the thought of him back, "two Shadysiders, huh?"
"You know it. It's like some kind of curse."
      Ellie sucked in a breath, going unnoticed by Jacob. She smiled and shook her head, "don't believe in that fairytale, Jacob."
As if on cue, the bells on the door rang. Ellie didn't bother looking up, until Jacob spoke again, "Sheriff! It's good to see you."
She didn't look up, she just stayed in the same position, hoping he didn't see her yet. Maybe he wouldn't recognize her. Her hair was different, she had changed it to a dark red, her name tag wasn't her actual name, and the most important one, she hadn't seen him face to face in what felt like forever. Of course, she'd seen him, he'd seen her, too. It was hard to avoid someone in such a small town.
Her head stayed down, and she went into the back. Cory's eyebrows furrowed when he saw her, "shouldn't you be... working?"
"Can you cover for me? Just for, like, thirty minutes."
Cory looked out into the crowd, "the Sheriff is here. I can't, he'll arrest me."
"The fuck do you mean he'll arrest you? Is there a warrant out for your arrest?"
He didn't speak, and Ellie's eyes went wide, "Does Jody know that?"
"Yeah, yeah. Chill out, it's nothing big."
Ellie sighed, "is Charlotte here yet?"
"She's late again."
"Fuck..." Ellie mumbled, wiping the sweat from her forehead.
"Why do you need to leave all of a sudden?"
"Nothing, nevermind."
Before leaving the safety of the kitchen, Ellie took a moment to breathe and put on a fake smile. "Maybe I should do a fake accent. Or put on a gas mask so he can't see my face," she thought. She shook her head, taking one last long breath before swinging open the door.
She walked over to where Nick and Jacob sat, pulling out her notepad, "good morning, Sheriff. What can I get you?"
Nick looked up to her, and that familiar feeling of wanting to be anywhere's but here came back to her. But he just smiled and greeted, "good morning, i'll just have a black coffee and a bagel."
Ellie let out a shaky breath, grabbing a coffee cup from underneath the counter and placing it in front of him. She grabbed the pot and poured his drink.
      He stared at her, longingly.
"I better get going," Jacob announced, "thank you for the coffee, Ma'am. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Anytime, Jacob."
He got up, and Nick was alone. Ellie was about to walk away, but he stopped her.
"Long time no see, huh Ellie?"
She sighed and turned back around, facing him and whispering, "you can't call me that here."
"Am I supposed to call you Sabrina?" he chuckled, glancing down at her nametag.
"Yes, you are."
"You know, faking your identity is a crime."
      "So then arrest me," Ellie dared, still not looking him in the eyes.
      He was silent for a moment, and Ellie wrote down a couple of orders that she was behind on, "I like the new hair. Brings out your eyes."
      "You want that toasted?"
      "What?"
       "Your bagel, smartass. Do you want it toasted?"
       Nick was obviously flustered, he stumbled on his words, "uh, I, yeah, uh, toasted."
       "I'll have that right out for you, Sheriff," Ellie slammed into the kitchen door, letting out a groan as she handed Cory a paper from her notepad.
        "Yo, Sab, are you friends with the Sheriff? You guys went to the same high school, right?You think he could wipe my record?"
        "Nope, I don't know him."