Night shifts black

Day Eight.

 

 

Luke isn’t alone today. At first I’m disappointed and wish I could disappear into the floor. I begin to anticipate the embarrassment when he will pause on his way by, apologize, and strand me at our table by myself.

I brace myself as he approaches, my mind trying to formulate a response that can help preserve my dignity by some impossible miracle. I can almost feel our morning audience’s curiosity about how the drama will unfold.

“Callie.”

“Luke.”

“This is Casey.”

“Hi. I’m Casey.”

Luke rolls his eyes and pulls out his chair. My breath returns when I realize I haven’t been rejected, I’ve been included.

I have trouble tearing my eyes away from Luke, like always, but I also realize there’s a limited window to evaluate Casey while he’s distracted with his own chair. He’s dressed like Luke. Same styled hair that’s meant to look like it’s not. Monochrome tattoos, jeans from some high-end store I don’t have access to. An air of confidence bred by more than unjustified ego. Casey has to be a band-mate.

Ailee is probably hyperventilating right now.

“Do you always get up this early?” Casey asks, a little teasing and a lot serious.

Luke shrugs. “If you come later you don’t get to eat. You know how it is once you’re spotted.”

Casey seems to understand, but I get the sense he’s not as bothered by the intrusive attention as Luke. Casey didn’t walk away from celebrity. Casey might still be silly. Casey doesn’t have a ghost chair.

“Welcome to our breakfast club,” I say, mostly because if I don’t say something soon I will lose my status in the group. I don’t want to be downgraded to Luke’s diner sidekick.

“Yeah, Luke was telling me about your little breakfast club. Pretty crazy story.”

It is, but I don’t want to discuss it. I don’t know Casey yet. “Then I’m sure he also told you about how incredibly witty and smart I am. I’m great company.”

Casey grins and casts a look at Luke that I don’t miss. “He’s told me some things,” he responds cryptically.

Surprised, I watch Luke, figuring I’ll get more information out of his response. Sure enough he doesn’t look happy about his friend’s confession. And of course, now I have to wonder what “things” Casey was told.

“How about you not be a jerk for twenty seconds,” Luke mutters, and Casey’s grin only widens. Our guest turns to me.

“Don’t let his puppy dog eyes and sob-story fool you. This man is no boy scout.”

“Casey, not now.”

“What? I know you, dude. You get lost in your head and shut down.”

Now, Luke is very upset. “Will you stop? It’s not your business. Not now!”

We’re starting to get more attention, and Casey’s smile falters. “I’m just looking out for you. You have to move on. You can’t keep doing this to yourself. You screwed up. We all do. That doesn’t mean everything that happens from that point on is your fault.”

Luke’s eyes narrow, and I think they might bore a hole through his friend’s brain.

“You agree with me, right?” Casey continues, drawing me into this for some reason. “He needs to stop punishing himself. It’s been a year. He can’t torture himself forever.”

“Casey!”

“What? I’m just…”

“She doesn’t know,” Luke hisses.

Casey looks startled. “What?”

“She doesn’t know, ok?” Luke repeats, and now we all feel miserable.

An awkward silence follows.

Casey figures out there’s a menu he can pretend to read, but isn’t good at that yet. He turns the pages too fast and doesn’t move his eyes enough. Luke abandons decorum altogether and glares through the restaurant, seemingly irate at some offense of the coatrack. For my part, I’m both haunted and fascinated by the new clues into Luke’s story and almost forget about my companions as I try to piece them together with the old ones.

Casey gives up on the menu. “Hey, man, I’m sorry. I just thought, I don’t know, after everything you said about her. I thought you were closer.”

Luke gives him a sharp look, and I catch my breath. I’m not sure what to do with that. Luke’s not either, and Casey finally catches on that he’s trying to tame a fire with gasoline.

“Um…ok, I’m go

“That would be a good idea.”

I need to intervene or this is going to be a disaster and I can’t afford for that to happen. I can’t be part of a circle that doesn’t exist.

“So, Casey. Are you in Night Shifts Black, too?”

Casey seems surprised at first, then the grin returns. Even Luke cracks a smile so I know I’m hilarious, but I don’t get the joke.

“What? What did I say?”

Luke shakes his head. “Nothing. You’re fine. It’s just a fu

“Why’s it fu

Luke shrugs. “I don’t know. It’s not, I mean, it’s just that we’re not used to hearing stuff like that except from old people trying to be nice at charity events.”

“Remember the Morning Star Senior’s Ball?” Casey laughs.

Luke’s eyes ignite. “Don’t!”

Casey ignores him. “So there’s this lady with a, what was that thing again? I don’t know, some huge hat and boa thing. Anyway…”

“Case!” Luke turns to me. “She had good intentions.”

“She thought he was the one benefiting from the charity because of the ‘dreadful condition of his clothing!’”

“I was wearing $300 jeans and a Julian Salitoni jacket.”

Casey smacks the table as his laughter hits a new decibel. “Oh man, I just about died when that happened. Dude, she was ready to take you home and give you a hot shower and cot in her living room.”

I squint over at Luke and do an appraisal of my own. “I don’t know. I kind of see it. I mean, there’s the messy hair, and the jeans may be $300 but they look like they’re one wash away from disintegrating. Your t-shirt could definitely use a bit of mending. I’d slip you a twenty as long as you promised not to buy booze with it.”

Luke grins, and there’s a strange dynamic heat that pulses through me. “I never would have promised that.”

I sit back and give them a wry look. “Ok, fine, so I’m guessing what I’m supposed to take away from this little tale is that it’s not often you encounter people under seventy-five who don’t know who you are.”

“Only because we don’t have time to come in contact with those people.” Casey realizes his mistake too late. I’m one of those people. “Well, you do, apparently,” he says to Luke, and I’m not sure how that fixes anything.

Luke doesn’t seem bothered by the comment, which surprises me.

I jump in anyway. “Alright, fine, so I get it. You’re a super famous rock star in Night Shifts Black. Then can I ask what you play? Or should I already know that, too?”

“Now, I get why you like her. She knows nothing about us, does she?”

Luke’s grin returns. “Nope.”

I don’t know if I’m blushing, but still manage to give them a stern look. “So, what, I’m supposed to grovel at your feet because you’re big rock gods? Sorry if I was the only person on this planet who didn’t know that.”

“No, but now that you know, you should be groveling,” Casey teases.

“Oh boy,” Luke mutters.

I raise my eyebrows. “Really? What if I’m the princess of Tanzania? Maybe you should be groveling at my feet.”

“If you’re really the princess of Tanzania, I will. You’d have to prove it, though.”

“Prove you’re in Night Shifts Black.”

Casey turns to Luke. “Am I in Night Shifts Black?”

Luke holds up his hands. “I’m not getting involved in this one. You’re on your own.”

“You’re not involved. You’re just verifying a fact.”