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I shook my head and shrugged. ‘It’s strange, isn’t it? Guess no one felt like pizzas today.’
‘Everyone was surprised. That hardly ever happens. Usually, your pizzas are bringing in the flocks.’ She looked puzzled as she stared at me.
I smiled. ‘Yeah. Oh well. Gives me a break, at least.’ I tried not to overthink or draw attention to the situation, but underneath, my fingers were crossed, hoping Daniel wouldn’t abuse me over it.
‘Yeah. So, anywho, I am catching up with a mate tonight after work, so don’t wait for me,’ Deb said in a casual, sassy tone.
‘Alright. Seb is coming over, and we’ll probably watch movies again.’
‘You’re so PG.’ She stood, reached for the broom against the orange wall, and began sweeping the floors.
I noticed Daniel peering at me over the coffee machine, so I downed my coffee and walked over to the sink in the kitchen. Once I was through the first load of dishes, I had one final stock pot to do. I bent down and reached for it, and as I was lifting it, I felt a pair of eyes watching me. The hairs on my neck stood up, and as I glanced over my shoulder, I could have sworn Daniel was checking out my arse.
He cocked his eyebrow and leant his long arm on the doorframe. ‘Naomi, what did you do all service?’ he asked in his condescending tone while eyeing me.
‘I did some prep, put away food, and now I’m doing the dishes again.’ I lifted the massive pot into the sink and grabbed the sink sprayer. A high-pressure water sound echoed against the stainless-steel pot.
He peered down at the sink and saw that the only thing left in the sink was the pot.
I held my breath, waiting for his response, and hoped I wouldn’t cop it hard over the lack of pizza orders.
‘I see. Well, as long as you’re doing something and not twiddling your thumbs.’ His tone was sharp and serious again.
‘Of course.’Oh, piss off, Daniel. As if I’d just stand there doing nothing.
He turned around in a weird pirouette and paced back to his section behind the drinks area.
Just before night service, Joel arrived and began scrubbing the pots and pans to prepare for dinner. His pug-like face looked red and exhausted, and it jiggled as his hand scrubbed fast with a scourer to get the pots clean. He was a shy fella, so he would often just give an awkward smile unless Daniel or Paul were giving him orders.
Kelly never returned, which surprised no one. We would be okay without her, with the dishy on and Tyren to pick up the slack.
Pizza orders came flying in, unlike during lunch service, as a Swedish waitress with a loose blonde ponytail hung dockets. I was flat-out in my section, running back and forth to the oven with pizzas on boards. The mains came through at a steady but less frantic pace, which was a relief for Paul and Martin, who had been flogged during the lunch rush.
And then, two hours into service, every chef’s nightmare came true as an eye fillet was returned. My heart pounded in suspense as I swallowed down a lump in my throat. Was this really happening? Had Paul really stuffed up?No, this must be a mistake. Paul never buggers up his steaks.
Daniel stormed into the kitchen, slammed the meat down on the main bench, and called me over with his hand.Huh,why me?I didn’t cook the thing.
He was staring at my hair and a shiver of fear ran through me as I walked to him.Oh no, I thought.Please not that.
‘Naomi.’ His expression was stone-cold. ‘This is why we wear hats in the kitchen.’ He pinched his thumb and pointer finger together like tweezers and extracted a blonde hair from the smashed potato.
I had no words and felt nothing but total shame until I took a second look at the strand of hair.Wait a minute.There were two blonde waitstaff who wore their hair loosely in a ponytail, and yet, of course, Daniel blamed me even though my hair was in a tight bun.
‘Don’t you think that’s a bit short to be mine?’ I asked in an innocent voice.
‘Huh?Are you seriously going to try to deny this while we’re this busy? Anything to get out of work,’ he said mockingly, then scoffed.
My heart stopped as I just stared at him blankly and swallowed again. This wasn’t worth the argument. No matter what I said, he was going to accuse me. That was Daniel. He loved to be right, and it was impossible to defend myself when my only source of income was at stake.
‘I’m sorry, Daniel. I will make sure that this won’t happen again. I forgot to put on my hat.’ I looked down at the floor and nodded.
‘Good.’ He slid the food into the bin, then walked back out to his area.
This time, I was the one feeling nauseous, except I didn’t hold my hand over my mouth and just dealt with it roiling inside my tummy and creeping up my throat. After a few deep breaths, I calmed myself and then faced Paul, who was staring at me with an unreadable expression on his face. He shook his head, grabbed an eye fillet from the container, and placed it in the sizzling pan.
***
On the drive home from work, I instinctually turned to talk to Deb, but she wasn’t there. The only thing next to me was an empty seat and the faint smell of cigarettes and her patchouli perfume. God, I missed chatting to that sassy girl after a never-ending Saturday shift. I looked at the time on the dashboard again: 11pm. No wonder my stomach was growling like a feline – I’d forgotten about dinner again. I didn’t want seafood from the freezer, and the Greek was shut, so reheated leftover chicken would have to do.
