Theft

 

(The Waffle Princess ripped me off.)

On Sunday, I got to the restaurant at 9 p.m. I was the only server on the floor for about an hour, and the joint was pretty full. I had to handle seven tables on my own…which might not seem like much to a regular waiter. But you have to remember that this is the Waffle House. So I’m also the busser and the dishwasher.

With that said, I handled the situation pretty well. I’ve been at the gig for a few months now, and I’ve pretty much got the hang of it.

Dwayne the Dwarf yelled at me in front of the manager. He didn’t like the way I was making my calls. Yet my boss never said a word. The employees often scream at one another. I guess everybody is used to it.

At 10:30 p.m., a cop car pulled into the parking lot and a woman got out carrying a shitload of her belongings. A purse. An overstuffed backpack. A small suitcase. And a blanket which was draped around her shoulders.

She walked inside and took a seat in one of the booths. The girl was in her twenties. She wasn’t ugly, but a caution sign might as well have been flashing above her head. Hard bitten. That’s the best way to describe her.  She was covered in tats and was sporting a pair of denim shorty shorts.

I smiled at her. “Can I get you something to drink?”

She smiled back. “No. I don’t need nothing except to charge my phone.”

“Want to rest your feet for a while, huh?”

“Yes, sir. I just got out of jail. I was in there for three weeks.”

“What the hell did you do?”

She smirked in a snotty fashion. “Those stupid cops said that I beat up my boyfriend.”

“Did you?”

“Fuck right I hit him. But he hit me, too.”

“Did they arrest him?”

“No, he didn’t leave any marks.”

I decided to completely ignore her. I was involved in an abusive relationship for years and years. In fact, the Dragon Lady would often get physical with me. I’ve even been kicked in the nuts a couple of times. Plus she would hurl plates and dishes at my head.  It sounds funny, but it really isn’t. Because there isn’t a damn thing you can do. If you fight back, you get labeled as a wife beater. It’s really nice to have a little peace in my life.

At midnight, a huge to-go order came in through the internet. I spent a lot of time putting the food into all types of plastic containers and bagging them up in an orderly fashion. Then I had to throw in all the syrup and butter and plastic cutlery.

About fifteen minutes later, the guy came to pick up his vittles. The Waffle Princess handed him his order, and the man handed her a ten-dollar tip. She quickly put the money in her pocket without saying a word to me.

Needless to say, her actions grated on my nerves. She pretty much stole my money. Yet I managed to control my anger and remained silent. It was my best option.

The Waffle Princess is only seventeen. So it would be a bad visual if an old man bullied her for such a small amount of cash.

However, I have to say this. When you work at the Waffle House, you really have to keep an eye on the other servers. Many of them have criminal records.

At 6 a.m., the lady who had just got out of jail found a ride to West Virginia with a complete stranger. Many of the customers were worried, fearing that she was putting herself in danger. Yet I felt bad for the dude. He had no idea what he was getting into.

Overall, I made $210 for the shift.