MY SAFE HAVEN | billie eilish.

there was a spark

tick tock tick tock....

i stare at the wall clock ticking loudly in front of me. 7:04 pm. 15 minutes left before my shift ends. thank god. today has been slow, we barely had any costumers since we opened, but honestly it doesn't surprise me because i'm sure people have better plans than to come to our diner on a fourth of july. for the past two hours i have been bored out of my mind, occasionally making small talk with donna and bill, the diner cooks, who left no longer than 12 minutes ago to be on time to enjoy the fireworks display with their kids and grandchildren, so now it's just me....

i sigh; picking the red nail polish off my fingers, feeling kinda envious of their plans for tonight. it's moments like this that i regret ever moving out of my parents house and finding my own place... in a different state. i've been living in long beach for 3 years now, and though i have a nice, decent, stable job, a loving family and a beach house with a view you cannot beat, i still haven't made much progress in the friends/dating department. so i am, what many would call... a "loner".

the sound of a firework coming from afar snaps me out of my thoughts, making me head over towards the back exit to take out the trash. it isn't until i'm throwing all the garbage in the dumpster that i notice a girl standing not too far from it, looking up at the sky completely fascinated by the fireworks popping one after the other. they really are beautiful, so i can't blame her for being in such a deep hypnotic-like trance. but what in the world is she even doing back here?

"happy 4th of july!" i say rather shyly, smiling at the stranger in front of me.

she immediately moves her gaze from the sky to where i'm standing. "i'm sorry, i have to go" she leaves it at that and walks away, mumbling something else i can't quite understand.

i stand there, feeling a bit confused as i watch her disappear through the dark alleyway towards the street. part of me wants to go after her and ask her if she's okay but today has already given me a headache and i don't feel like making it escalate to a migraine, so i rush back inside, grab my stuff and go home, thinking about calling in sick tomorrow morning, and about my brief encounter with this mysterious girl.