Member-only story
The Space We Leave Behind
Some voids are impossible to fill
We are all creatures of habit, and Rebecca Jenkins was no exception. The diner waitresses and cooks would share a private joke about the woman who arrived at the restaurant at the same time every day. The workers didn’t even know her name, but this didn’t stop them from laughing behind her back. Little did they know that they, too, were stuck in a loop inside a purgatory of their own making.
The blonde waitress with the pigtails would chew her gum like a deranged camel while the cook inside the kitchen would tap away at the table, mimicking the beat of a song he couldn’t remember the name to. An older server was sitting out of the way on one of the back tables. She would dive headfirst into a collection of gossip magazines hoping never to resurface.
The staff were brought out of their funks by the bell’s chime as the diner door was pushed slowly open. The woman they had expected turned to see if anyone was behind her before letting the door gently close. A shy smile formed at the corners of her mouth as she hid partly under a diagonal fringe. The one eye not curtained off from the world glistened momentarily before losing its shine.
Rebecca predictably walked over to the fourth booth next to the window and plopped herself down on the red synthetic leather. Taking out…
