ELLA (completed)

Chapter 5

Chapter by syaminhazam

[EDITED]

Unlocking the locker assigned to me, I put in my bag and my clothes inside the locker.

The uniform is a three-piece suit, which consists of a long sleeve white shirt, a black and white sleeveless jacket and knee-length black a line skirt.

It is quite a modest waiter uniform, I thought to myself. A low humming voice beside me attracted my attention as I’m about  to close the locker.

A woman who is in the same uniform as I am was humming a song with her left leg rested on the wall on the side while standing on one leg. Her mouth is chewing something.

Her gaze falls on me as I turn my key to lock the locker.

“New waitress?” her eyes bored into mine.

“Yes, Ella” I shake her hand.

She nodded her head, her lips pressed together into a thin line.

“Melissa, Mel” she showed me the nametag pinned to her uniform.

Smiling to her, I turned my heel toward the door, but she stopped me again by calling out my name.

“Joe asked me to teach you, that’s the reason I’m here,” she showed me a tablet.
Her fingers move expertly on the tablet, punching here and there while showing me how to take an order and enter the order on the tablet.

Apparently, there is a link between the tablet and the kitchen, so the chef in the kitchen will prepare the food as entered in the system.

Mel then showed me the menu and explains about the food. She also told me the house speciality and lastly, she told me to smile and to bow head every time greeting a new customer.

As Joe told me, my job is to take orders, the servers come and serve the order once the food is ready.

She patted my back, gestures me to walk out, and starts working. Working, a new word in my dictionary, which sound so strange before. Sighing, I walk outside, feeling nervous.

I was amazed by the sight that greeted me when I walk out of the locker room, which is also the staff room. My eyes appreciating the sight in front of me, the restaurant is huge.

There is a magnificently carved staircase to the second floor on the sides. My gaze then shifts to the elevated stage at the centre, a red satin covering the grand black piano.

Mel was right, the crowd would build up with time. The morning crowd consists of few executives who made arrangements for meetings here and a few women with kids.

By lunchtime, the crowd grew larger and I was walking between tables to greet and serve the customers. I did what Mel taught me, smile and bow first and introduce myself before asking for their orders. The tablet was quite easy actually.

My feet were already aching by the time I took a rest. Leonard was with me during the rest time. I took the rest time to change Leonard’s shirt and singing him a lullaby, to make him sleep.

I was kissing his forehead when suddenly someone clapped his or her hand behind me.

As I turn my head, my gaze met with the grey eyes, like the colour of the last ashes on fire, or like pale smoke. I hold my breath back, as I didn’t expect an audience while putting my son to sleep.

Standing up, I straighten my uniform, dusting it here and there, trying to avert his gaze. He was leaning on the door frame as his eyes studied my face with his leg crossed and his right arm falls on the side and his left arm on the waist.

I gulped, thinking that I somehow have messed up my first day.

“You have such a sweet voice,” he said breaking the pregnant silence between us.

“Thank you,” I gave him a faint smile.

“I’m sorry, I will continue my work, I just have to make him sleep first,” I said, apologizing if I have overstayed my rest time.

Glancing at my watch, I realized that there were five more minutes left before I had to resume my work.

He paced the short gap between us and stopped just in front of me. I was about to open my mouth again when his fingers fall on my lips, silencing me.

“Shh,” his hand on my arm.

“Why are you always tense, relax,” he whispered.

Taking a step backwards with both his arm now folded on his chest, “I was just walking out when I hear a soft sweet voice singing, I came here just to check, who is the owner of the sweet voice,” he said, cocking his head to left and shrugging his shoulder.

I don’t know why, but my heart always pounds like a hammer every time this man stands near me.

I shouldn’t like him, he is my employer, but the way he speaks makes my heart beats in another crazy rhythm. Being close to him, like this only makes it worse.

“One day, I might want to hear you sing, but tonight, just play the piano and don’t fail,” he turned his heel and walks out of the small room where Leonard is right now sleeping soundly.

When I walk out of the room, I look around just to make sure nobody saw us. When my eyes couldn’t find anyone, I let go of my breath, relieved.

It was nearly evening when the crowd got bigger. According to Mel, the second floor is a private balcony, designed for the VIP.

I could be there in my past, but now I’m serving people. Closing my eyes, I thought to myself, that my past doesn’t define me now, it is a small fragment.

The lunchtime passed quickly, as now the suns already setting down with orange glow brightening the sky.

Joe then walks to me, grinning, “Your performance is in an hours time, you need to get ready. Mel will help you change and put some make-up on your face.”

My body trembles with anticipation. It has been ages since the last time my fingers on the piano key.  I just nod and stride towards the locker room.

Mel already waiting for me. I think she has this habit of popping chewing gum in her mouth, as she is doing now.

My gaze then falls on the off-white one shoulder floor length dress. The dress flows down nicely on my body once I change from my uniform.

As Joe said, Mel then put some colours on my face and red lipstick on my lip. I almost didn’t recognize the woman looking back at me on the mirror. The dress holds my body nicely, accentuating my curves.

The restaurant was full as I re-enter. The black beauty caught my attention as I marched towards it. The red satin veil covered the beauty from my sight. As my fingers grazed the ivory and ebony keypad, I felt my body shiver as if I’m touching something divine.

Looking up, my eyes scanned the crowd in front of me, men and woman dressed in their fine outfits sitting on the table chatting with each other. An old couple eating side by side, with one glass of wine in their hand, bending over their meal.

Squaring my shoulder, closing my eyes, I let my fingers dance across the keys. Gliding on the ebony and ivory keys. This is one of my dreams, I told myself. Let the dream becomes alive for tonight.

The notes swirl around my head and flows down to my veins and ends up on the tiny nerves on my fingers. Letting the notes transform into beautiful music soaring high up like an eagle with hope that it takes the soul of the listening audience with it.

Opening my eyes, I saw the audience looking directly at my direction rooted in their position. Some of them swayed to the music, enjoying every moment. As the final key pressed and the lovely music ended, I stand up, crossed my leg and bowed to the audience.

No one clapped as I look up again. then a single clap sounded, coming from the second floor. looking up, my gaze falls on the same eyes. With a microphone on his hand, his clap resounded all through the restaurant.

Lifting the microphone up, he speaks “Ladies and gentleman, introducing our new pianist, Ms Ella Maria,” followed by thunderous clap from the crowd.

Sitting down again, I played another song from Beethoven with renewed energy.

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Another chapter is here, guys.

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