Lonely Hearts Club Valentine
You’d
think that after coming here for years he would be on at least a nodding
acquaintance with some of the regulars; but no, no one pays him any mind and I
doubt if he’s about to become anybody’s buddy any time soon.
He
comes in quietly around 6:15 or so and takes a seat in her station. You would
think for a guy his size that you’d notice him more; but no, it’s almost like
he materializes at the table. He quietly orders his dinner, never asking for
anything special, usually drinks ice tea, eats slowly, pays with cash and
leaves. There’s no evidence how he gets to or from our little restaurant haunt and
his manners and tips are always… gentlemanly. No one at The Top Hat Diner knows
his name or where he lives. He’s just some guy that comes in and doesn’t bother
anyone; that’s good enough for everybody. When the staff refer to him at all
it’s just to get his order and get him taken care of, they call him “Sergeant
Pepper”
She
works part time and sees him on her days there. She treats him with the respect
deserving of a customer who knows what he wants, causes no waves and is
respectful of her and the duties that she has to perform. He doesn’t waste her
time with idle conversation and isn’t glued to the stupid television watching
dumb sports like the rest of the guys who frequent the place or hang out at the
bar; whoopin’ and hollerin’ when some fool catches a ball or knocks somebody
down. Not at all like her husband (ex-husband now) does; did.
And,
so he’s overweight, wears glasses and his hair is thin. So he has a silly
mustache and doesn’t smile much; who is she to judge? He’s nice enough in his
own way and who would she be to talk anyway; she’s no homecoming queen herself,
right?
Sure,
she tries to cover up her gray hair and wear smart saucy dresses like the other
waitresses but, if truth be told, she’s past the knowing how. It took her a
while before she understood what the other waitresses were talking about when
they said to ‘let the girls out’ for bigger tips from men customers. Then
Lucille, the server that had been there the longest, showed her how if you show
just a wee bit of cleavage that men
will give you more money. At first she was taken aback, but soon saw the truth
about it when the other girls told her how much money they made by doing that.
Not that she needed a lot of money; after all, she had gotten the house after
the divorce and her two almost grown boys had gone to live with their father.
She had taken her mother in and they lived quietly in the suburbs and had few
expenses; however, she would like to feel
attractive to somebody sometime,
maybe even a little sexy. But, she had been out of that kind of circulation for
so long, she kinda didn’t know how to… or even how to know if or when she was. She thinks she kinda knows how he
feels. Alone.
Actually,
Sergeant Pepper’s name is Gene and he lives just up the street from the diner
and is, in fact, alone. He lives in the garage apartment of the house that his
parents left him when they passed and he rents out the main house to cover just
about all the bills that he is likely to incur. He works at the library in the
reference department and pretty much keeps to himself. His apartment has all he needs for his
solitary existence, bedroom, bath, kitchenette, and a sitting area for his
reading. He takes most of his meals out and has an old one eyed tom cat named
Mr. Whiskers. He learned at an early age that he was not good looking, strong,
agile or charming. He was, he thought, from birth, clumsy, fat and unattractive
to any but his mother. He was not invited to parties or outings and was not
good at any sport. He lacked the ability to be glib or quick witted and
couldn’t tell a joke to save his life. At an early age he resigned himself to go
through life unaccompanied (except for Mr. Whiskers) and to die alone. He
figured that if he didn’t expect much from life that he would never be
disappointed. He liked the waitress that served him sometimes and was glad that
she didn’t wear low blouses like some of the others; it embarrassed him when he
looked up to request dinner and found himself staring into a woman’s cleavage.
He had gathered that her name was Loretta.
The
Top Hat, as well as other places is closed on holidays; and so, here we have
Gene and Loretta who will, unless something out of their ordinary existence and
relationship happens, spend the holidays alone except with their ordinary
companions; and older parent and a one eyed cat named Mr. Whiskers. Nothing
special will happen to these two seemingly ordinary people unless something out
of the ordinary occurs to disrupt their ordinary lives.
It’s
as if they’re shadow dwellers; the last people that you would think of inviting
over or out; however Gene and Loretta have a lot to say, if someone would take
the time to listen. Perhaps one day they’ll start by talking to eachother. They
might go out for a walk, maybe they’ll like the same movies, the same flavor of
ice cream, the smell of the fresh cut grass after the rain. Maybe, if you wish
it for them, they’ll spend the holidays with eachother.
