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Tamia was on her way to a little diner called Oscar's Diner, she tried to invite Chrissy but her girlfriend told her that Laura wanted to fix her cheerleading costume again so instead of fighting it like Tamia would usually do Tamia let it drop and wished Chrissy good luck and left her with a kiss on her cheek.
It was only about an hour out of Hawkins and she promised to use the restaurant phone to call her Mom once she reached the restaurant just to let her know that she had made it. Tamia's fingers tapped to the beat of the music when her mixtape started to play 'I Was Made For Loving you' By KISS. The song was short-lived because soon she was driving into the parking lot and had to get out, Tamia made sure to lock her car and grab her wallet before walking towards the entrance.
The diner was empty like it always was, Tamia was tempted to ask how they stayed afloat but she didn't. She walked towards the phone and input the coins before typing the phone to the library in the phone. "Hi, Can you let Francine Nelson know that her daughter Tamia arrived at the diner?" Tamia leaned against the phone and waited for the other librarian to give her confirmation that she would pass on the message. "Thank you," Tamia said as she rolled her eyes when she hung up. "Hey, hottie." One of Tamia's best friends and server of Oscar's Diner, Gabrielle Ríos said as she noticed that Tamia was sitting in her spot.
"Hi Cutie, can I have some coffee please?" Tamia questioned propping her chin up with her hand as she batted her eyelashes at Gabrielle cutely. She rolls her eyes but grabs a coffee cup from under the counter and places it in front of Tamia before she starts to pour it. "How's your girlfriend, Chrissy right?" She asks handing Tamia some creamer knowing how Tamia likes her coffee.
Tamia nods before she pours the creamer into the cup. "She's alright, I can tell something has been weighing on here lately but I haven't pushed. I want her to come to me. How have you been lately?" Tamia felt open here, the diner was a safe space for people like Tamia and Gabrielle to come and have a community. They even had a buff chef named Dom in case someone threatened someone in the diner. "It's been a lot, it's hard to see people I love going through it. You know I've been to two funerals this month alone? I don't want to have to go anymore." Gabrielle sucks her teeth as she looks over to the wall with pictures of the workers that they've lost to AIDS.
Tamia didn't know them well but they were always nice to her and she was always nice to them. "God, I'm sorry Gabi. Can I do anything to help?" Tamia knows that it's weird for a 17-year-old to be asking a 20-year-old if she could do anything to help but it's worth a try. Gabrielle chuckles slightly before shaking her head. "No, just stay healthy. Do you want anything or just coffee?" Gabrielle asks crossing her arms and letting them rest on the counter in front of Tamia. "Wanna share a milkshake?" Tamia raises her eyebrows looking at Gabrielle pleadingly.
"Fine, I'll make one and put it in two different cups." The just in the case went unsaid but Tamia knew what Gabrielle was getting at so she nodded and started playing with her fingers that were resting against the counter. She took the time to look around, she's been here so much but it feels like every time she comes she finds something new that's going on in the diner. She couldn't help but smile when she saw something new, it was a mini version of the flag that was flown on June 25, 1978, at the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day parade, it seemed that someone donated it to be displayed in the diner for everyone to enjoy.
"Here you go, hey I'm going to 'Our Place' next Wednesday if you wanna come. It's a bar for people like us, it's in Indianapolis if you want to check it out. I know you're underage but I can get you in." Gabrielle winks as she moves across to the other side of the counter and takes a seat next to Tamia to start to drink her milkshake. "Can I bring a friend?" Tamia knew precisely who she was going to bring and it wasn't her girlfriend. "Of course, just wear leather." Gabrielle winks at Tamia who rolled her eyes because she was wearing a leather jacket so it wouldn't be too much trouble for Tamia to follow the dress code.
"Sounds like a plan, we'll meet you there around 8. Does that sound okay?" Tamia asks as she sips her milkshake. "Yep, sounds perfect. Now I gotta get back to work so I don't get in trouble. Stay safe." Gabrielle winks at Tamia before patting the counter as she stands up. "Here, let me give you the tip." Tamia grabs her wallet and handed Gabrielle a 5-dollar tip which was more than her milkshake cost, Gabrielle rolled her eyes but pocketed the tip anyway and blew Tamia a kiss before she disappeared to a table to grab someone's order.
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NOTES:
Hiya! So the bar 'Our Place' is a real bar located in Indiana. It's now called Greg's Indy (or Greg's Our Place) and back when it was created it was originally a gay levi-leather bar so it was only for men (I'm pretty sure) but for the sake of this story I'm making it a safe space for everyone.
