I have to admit--I was *extremely* nervous about going back to work last night. I'd had five days to get my head on straight as far as Kimmy was concerned, and it was good to be away for so long. But I had no idea what the vibe would be like once I got to work. Honestly, I was kind of scared--of what, I do not know, but I had that sense of foreboding going on in the pit of my stomach. And it kicked into high gear as soon as I pulled into the parking garage--the only open spot near the elevator was right next to her SUV. Coincidence?
Right after I clocked in, I found out that I wouldn't be dealing in her section at all--no Chinatown for me last night--I would be in the main pit for the entire evening. As much as I hated the string I was on, I was kind of relieved that I wouldn't be in her area. I was afraid of the awkwardness.
But during my first hour, I could hear her voice over the din of the casino action. I guess you could compare me to a dog recognizing the sound of his master's voice in a crowd, but I've become very attuned to her voice over the past several months. And it's still like music to my ears, so I knew it every time she came near and was serving the tables behind me.
My second table was a blackjack game where I was just killing everyone, so I had some dead time here and there. So about a half hour into my game, I saw her walking towards me out of the corner of my eye. She gave me her usual Hiiiii Mikey! with that little semi-wink she does that just turns me to mush, and asked me how my week was. I said, Well, it started off kind of shiatty, but it got much better. She smiled, gave me a nod that told me that we'd be ok, and said she'd talk to me later...
Unfortunately, that was her only rotation in my pit, and we didn't have any breaks together. But I caught up to her as I was going on my midnight break and she was heading out the back door. She asked me how I was doing, and I said that I was scared shiatless to come back to work, afraid of how she might treat me.
The truth is, walking back into Teddy KGB's place, I felt like Buckner walking back into Shea...
She said not to worry, and that we were still good, and I thanked her for being so cool about everything. And then we said goodnight. And my nervousness instantly disappeared. But I could tell that our little drama may have taken a bit of a toll on her. When I first saw her, she had that tired look around her eyes and I thought she looked like she aged five years in the past five days. Of course, I would never tell her that, just because it sounds like sour grapes. But it's not--it's me seeing things in a different light now. (Besides, if I were going for sour grapes, I'd say something like I hope she gets her period on Thursday night--just before she heads off for her romantic weekend getaway with some other dude. But I'd never say that. Out loud, I mean...)
Anyhow, this whole situation is behind us, we're cool, and we remain friends. Next weekend may be a little tough on me, but somehow I'll survive it. Maybe I'll go out with one of the other cocktail waitresses or something...
That would help me keep my mind off of her...
Mikey
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