Moments | Sal Vulcano

Chapter 28

12:11 PM

My eyes must be deceiving me. Here I am telling my friends about me and Sal, and then the next thing I know, Joe and his family waltz inside the café that I work in. This feels like a dream. If it is, then I never want to wake up.

"Hi Joe! Welcome to Susie's Sauces!" I welcome Joe, his wife Bessy, and their daughter Milana as they walk towards me after noticing my voice. My tone sounded as if I'm a friend, not a fan. Zoe, being a fan of the Impractical Jokers, couldn't keep herself together.

"Oh my god! Is that the Joe Gatto?" Zoe gasps. "Oh my! It really is you! I am such a huge fan of your show!" Zoe tells him cheerfully.

"Awe, thank you sweetheart. You're friends with Mel?" Joe pointed at me. Zoe nodded and went around the counter to give him a hug. I doubt that Bessy got jealous. Of course she wouldn't. She's married and has a kid.

"She's also my co-worker!" Zoe adds as she returns to the counter. "She must be very lu-"

I quickly stomp her foot, intentionally stopping her from spilling any details about me and Sal. "Yeah, I'm lucky to have such awesome neighbours. What are the chances of that happening?" I filled in for her before adding a fake nervous laugh at the end.

Zoe expressed confusion, but thankfully, she lets it slide and I have a feeling that she's going to ask me about this later. Zoe told us that she's going to proceed working, and so she did as she checked on a table.

"Oh! Who's this handsome fellow? Another one of your friends?" Bessy observes Patrick. Patrick creeps in a broad smile, opening his hand before quickly waving at her.

"I've seen you before! You were at the mall the other day!" Joe remembers. "Did Sal ask you to help him too?"

"No." Patrick answers firmly, but it didn't sound convincing, despite it being true. He made it sound like a question, or uncertainty. Perhaps I'm having second thoughts about him becoming an actor. Maybe he should stick to being a doctor like he said.

"He didn't. It was just me." I added.

"I'm Patrick, by the way." Patrick reached his arm out to shake Bessy's hand, then shakes Joe's hand.

"Nice to meet you Patrick. I'm Bessy." Bessy introduces herself. "Are you two together?" Bessy asks.

For a brief moment, Patrick and I looked into each others eyes, instantly knowing the answer to the question.  Honestly, it's pretty understandable if you look at it from another perspective. You see a handsome man who happens to be friends with a very attractive woman. First thing that comes to mind is that they're dating, secret or not, but the reality is that you can't read peoples minds.

"We're not, I'm afraid." Patrick and I answer in unison, weirdly enough.

"That's a shame. You two would make a great couple." Bessy added with a small smile.

"Actually, we did date for a short time, but at the end, it just wasn't meant to be." Patrick explained.

"Why don't you go find a table? I'll be with you shortly." Joe asked his wife.

"I'll join you, if you don't mind." Patrick got up from his seat. Bessy wonderfully agrees to Patrick's request, and both went to a table next to the window.

Then, Joe made himself comfortable as he places himself on a tall stool. He rests his elbows and gives me a saddened expression. "How's Sal doing? Have you heard from him?" Joe asks.

I froze for a short second, as flashes of yesterday's attempted robbery emerged in my head. I eventually replied. "I have, actually. He's doing fine since we last saw him. Still breathing, but...that's all that matters, right?"

"Hey. It's gonna be okay." Joe assures me, sensing how sad I am.

"I know. I just can't believe I went through something like this before. I really thought this was the end for me."

"Don't say that. It could've happen to anyone. And no one would have seen it coming. The future is a mystery."

I stayed quiet, letting Joe's words sink into my mind. After controlling my emotions, as I was close to having a breakdown, I take a deep breath and the bad thoughts had gone through the window. Just like that.

"Thanks Joe."

"You're welcome." Joe smiles gracefully, knowing he made me feel better.

"So, can I take your order?" I ask Joe, getting back to business.

"I'll just have the coffee for now, thank you."

"What kind?"

"Whatever you recommend." Joe answers. "I'll let you get back to work. I'll be over there if you need anything." Joe moves away from the counter and quickly joins Bessy and Patrick.

As I grabbed the mug from the shelf, which has its own Susie's Sauces logo on the side, I placed it under the coffee machine. I took a quick glance where Joe and the others were. Bessy and Joe are smiling, laughing about whatever they're talking about. Something about his job maybe, or maybe Bessy saw something that made her laugh so hard it made her tear up. And Patrick is watching baby Milana. Just as I was about to choose what kind of coffee Joe would like, my friend Zoe creeped up behind me like a shy person. "So..."

"So...?" I repeat what Zoe said, despite knowing what's coming.

"You want to tell me what's going on? Something about Sal 'still breathing' and you going through something?"

I sigh. I figured that she'd find out. Just not that quick. "You were eavesdropping, weren't you?" I cross my arms.

Zoe stayed quiet for a short second before speaking up again. "Not long enough to know the full story. What's going on Mel?" Zoe asks again, this time sounding a little more confused and concerned.

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Hi guys! It's been a while. So sorry to keep you waiting. I needed a break and clear my head because a lot has been going on for the past few months. But I'm back and ready to write again!

I'm sorry if this chapter's shorter than the others, but if you enjoyed reading it, don't forget to leave a comment and drop a vote. Also feel free to spread the word to all of your friends about my story. Zoe belongs to CaitlynHeddle so be sure to follow her and check her work. I'm going to write the next chapter shortly, and hopefully that won't take too long.

Also, I have Instagram! My account is impracticalinda.