WELCOME TO S&S

Date: Dec. 26th
Time: 6:28 PM
Location: Moonlight Serenade
Tag: Nikki

David had entered a restaurant called moonlight Serenade. It was the day after Christmas and for whatever reason he was sore for whatever reason and found himself in a bad case of the chills. He was cold, apparently from having his feet wet, however he had no memory of such an occurrence but instead had a strong urge to go to this particular restaurant. The tables were decorated in a white cloth and each had a center piece of a glass vase and in each vase was a single red rose.

David smelt the flower as he was instructed to his seat by the hostess, finding the booth in the back corner of the restaurant very cozy and comforting as it kept him out of view from other people. His shyness was getting the better of him and he found himself more and more tired each and every day. For some reason it’s like he’s restless almost as if he didn’t get enough sleep at night. He waited for his assigned waiter or waitress.

David studied his surroundings, the place was nice but it wasn’t too fancy. David felt a little too classy wearing a black dress shirt with a white tie and black slacks to go along with it. He decided that it was his reward for all the stress of the holidays, so much present and gift preparation for others he had hardly time for himself. He thought a day off his wrestler’s diet would do him some good. Saying not a word to anyone he was only pulled out of his thought process by the arrival of his waitress.

Nikki was playing with the hem of her uniform's skirt when she was jostled out of her day dream. It had been a wonderful day dream too. That handsome man from her dreams and her had been at a beautiful ball at the palace. He had been dressed in his princely garb, crown on his dead and everything... She knew that would never happen in her dreams though. In her dreams, not day dreams at least, they were always sneaking around. Sometimes the same dream, over and over again... There had to be a reason for it... right?

"You have a customer over there, Nikki. Cute one at that. If you don't want him, I'll be happy to serve him..." Nikki laughed at her closest friend at the restaurant. The girl had saved her from getting lost in her day dreams during the hours when nothing was going on but a few customers here and there. "Thanks." Nikki grabbed her pad of paper and pen from under the counter and started over to her assigned section. So, she had a cutie on her hands did she?

Nikki froze in place and tilted her head a bit, the smile that had been growing on her face fading. He looked so much like the prince from her dreams... He wasn't exactly the same, but... it was so close. It was like he had leaped from dreams to reality to come and haunt her at work now. No, perhaps she'd seen him on the streets somewhere and that's why his face was in her dreams. She had thought he was really cute and the way he dressed looked like a prince so that's why he looked like her dream prince... Nikki regained her smile and practically skipped over to the table, now that her mind was at ease. "Hello, Welcome to Moonlight Serenade. My name is Nikki and I'll be your server today. Can I get you anything to drink?" Nikki finished talking so she finally let her heels touch the ground. She had just wanted to get all that talking out of the way and hadn't even realized that she had been standing in such a funny way... Oh, muffins, she was nervous already...

David shared a smiled at the waitress. He was not at all the social type, however it wasn’t anything big. He was simply placing an order. He mumbled something under his breath, laughing it off. After a few seconds had passed he realized she had not quite heard him. “Um… just Lemonade thank you.” He smiled. He must’ve imagined how odd it might’ve looked for a lone male by himself at a classy restaurant, and to top it all off he was breaking normal male routine by skipping out on the alcohol, though to be honest he hated the hard flavor it carried.

He went to scratch his forehead when his elbow knocked over the centerpiece containing the rose. With it the small amount of water it had spilled over. “Oh! I’m so sorry! Let me get that…” At a crucial moment when their hands touched he felt a sensation in his chest. Then it was like a roaring sound of water and thunder, memories of an era long ago came flooding back.

There was a flash of images, each one as diverse and different to interpret as the last. David remembered a scene of himself looking at the moon, hearing sweet and gentle harmony of a beautiful ballad.

I don’t know, what words I can say…
The wind has a way,
to talk to me.
Flowers sing, a silent lullaby,
I pray for reply.
I’m ready…
Quiet day, calling…
Oh Serenity….
Hmm…. What is it they say?
Maybe I will know one day.
I don’t know, what words I can say…
The wind has a way,
to talk to me.
Flowers sing, a silent lullaby,
I pray for reply.
I’m ready…

With those words sung to a tear run down his cheek at the beauty of those words. Then more images came, a rose garden and a sudden kiss from a woman in a white gown who shared much similarity to David’s waitress. Another image, dancing with her in a crowded room. He felt beads of sweat on his face like he shouldn’t have been there. A mask he was wearing falls to the ground. More images… violence, men around him are locked in duals. He sees woman glowing with the light of the sun, and then…. Nothing…

He wakes up to reality and finds himself holding the red rose from the center piece. His other hand is laid on top of the blonde haired woman. He thought to himself… “What was all that?” his hazel eyes returned to focus from his apparent daze and he looked up at the waitress as he sat back down. “Sorry Princess, I was just…. I’m just clumsy…” he admitted. Turning away to hide his glowing pink face. Now more embarrassed than ever. “Princess?” he thought to himself. What was he? A womanizer? He meant to say Miss or something but princess was just over the top. He buried his forehead into the center of his palm in embarrassment.

Nikki held her pen up to the pad and frowned when she missed what his order was. He really had a nice smile... but he seemed shy. He also must have thought of something funny because he seemed to laugh at himself.... Wait did he have a bluetooth or something in? She checked his ears... not that she could see. He finally gave his answer and she scribbled down lemon on her pad, a short little thing that she would know what she was talking about... hopefully. She wasn't going to bring him a lemon to drink at least.

Nikki was just about to turn around and get his lemonade when the man, who seemed about as clumsy as her now, knocked over their lovely vase. Well the vase hadn't broken, but Nikki pulled out her little towel with one hand and went to reach to pick up the vase with the other. He had beat her to it though, and instead of grabbing the vase she had laid her hands on his while HE was picking up the vase. There wasn't even a second after the slightest touch that Nikki was sent back into her dreams.

There were flashes of something that looked like a stilled movie. Some of these stills, she wasn't sure what to make out of them. Then there was a song, it's melody one she used to hum when she had been little. She never knew where she got the melody from. Perhaps it had been whispered to her by one of her nannies or something... There was kissing, between the princess and prince from her dreams, and then even fighting. She never liked the fighting part of her dreams. Fighting was like fighting fire with fire. It only got people killed.

It took a moment for Nikki to come out of her daze, and at that she was blushing. She was still holding the vase, but he was holding the rose now... It really was a beautiful rose. They had gotten red roses here instead of the white ones they usually had since the moon WAS white after all, but red was the Christmas spirit. She liked the red roses more... Nikki's eyes widen when the costumer, she didn't even know his name, apologized and called her PRINCESS. She turned an even deeper red. Princesses didn't wait on people... but he'd called her one. She had never told anyone she thought she resembled the princess in her dreams, and she had no idea why this stranger was calling her one. "You're... you're fine sir. Let me just get you that lemonade...."

Like the coward she was, she raced to get him his lemonade. Well, scampered really was a better description. She filled it up and realized she was still clutching the white little towel she was supposed to be cleaning the table up with. Scampering back, she gave him his drink and a straw before using the white towel she had previously forgotten. "Have you.. decided what you wanted to eat?" Nikki asked, still blushing a bit but not quite as red. The entire table sheet needed to be changed... and the flower needed more water... "I'm sorry, but I"m going to have to take this sheet away. I'll bring you another one right away, though." She tried to motion for him to pick up his drink and menu so she could do just that.

David remained silent when he picked up his drink and menu. He bit his tongue in fear of what other idiotic thing would come out of his mouth next. “I’m sorry about that bit. I just am a klutz, that’s all.” David said trying to beam the beautiful blonde haired woman a friendly vibe. “I didn’t mean to call you that earlier… Nikki…” he said reading her name off her name badge. “I meant no harm to it. Honest. I don’t usually call women pet names like that. I personally like to say their name when I talk to them." He said beaming a warm smile at her.

He let her walk off and buried himself in his head once again, feeling nothing short of foolish after his moronic chance to talk to her he decided to simply brush it off and start over when she came back. Take the few seconds of silence as a way to gather his thoughts, he calmed himself and took a breather. He felt himself relax and sink back into a nice eased up state. When she would return with a new dinning cloth he would repose himself as a normal civilian. He hated standing out as something special, well when he didn’t have his mask on that is.

He peered over his glass looking at his reflection. He couldn’t help like he remembered her from somewhere, did he go to school with her? Maybe, it is a possibility. Why did he have flashes of such random events when their hands touched? Would it happen again if they touched hands once more? David decided he would test this theory once she had returned from the counter.

Nikki began to gather the sheet up, smiling as politely as she could while balling up the pretty sheet that now had lemonade all over it... He apologized and Nikki smiled at him, knowing exactly how he felt. "Don't worry about it. Every girl wants to be a princess...I'll take it as a compliment." Well, not exactly but it would make him feel better about the little slip... Perhaps he had a girl friend that looked like her, and that was her nickname? That thought made her extremely sad... He had every right to have a girl friend, no reason she should feel sad.He still was very cute...

She left and put the sheet in the laundry pile. It was a typical procedure. This was hardly the first time something had spilled on their table sheets. She pulled a fresh sheet up and shook it open. She began to walk back, smiling at him. "Here we go, nothing happened." She winked at him as she settled the sheet back on the table. She smoothed it over the table before straightening back up.

Nikki held her hand for his glass. "I'll get you another lemonade if you want to hand me your cup." She smiled at him and hoped he wasn't still beating himself up about spilling it. She knew that she would be. Accidents seems to follow her around, and they weren't always hers. It was like something in her skin caused the universe to create chaos. That would be horrible. "I'll get you your drink and you can see what you want to eat this afternoon. Sound like a plan?"

“Deal!” David grinned at the cute blonde haired waitress. He handed her his cup and allowed her to get him a refill on his drink. “What would you recommend to eat here by the way?” David said with his eyes twinkling at his waitress.

For a moment their eyes met, it was a sensation David had never felt before. It was a sensation in his chest, it was warm but yet it was also not painful and didn’t burn him at all. Imagine the light of the sun and staring straight into the heart of it without the glare, or the cool crisp feeling of ice and cold without being chilled. It was that pure feeling of something that made David think to himself. “Do I know you?”

The thought crossed his mind, trying to remember all the blondes he had met in his lifetime but none quite matched up to the waitress’s appearance.

Meanwhile, there were pitter patters on the window. If you looked back outside it would be clearly visible that it began hailing pea sized chunks of frozen ice and frost down onto the Earth. David looked out the window near his seat and rolled his eyes, hoping that his car would come out unscratched by this event. “Nice weather huh?” he remarked sarcastically.

Nikki laughed at his enthusiasm for a deal and took his glass. He was really nice, and cute to boot! Now she had to figure out what was wrong with him. She was beautiful and amazing, but for some reason she had noticed that she attracted some of the weirdos with her sort of beauty. "I'm not sure what you're tastes are, but my favorite is the gravy and biscuits for breakfast, lunch I like the BLT Burger, and for Dinner I like getting a steak. Considering it's lunchtime, I suggest the burger." Those were her favorites, but that day she had actually opted for pasta instead of anything meaty. Wait, no there had been chicken in there. She had white meat.

Nikki looked into his eyes, LOOK AT HIS EYES, and tried to calm herself down a bit. Her heart seemed to sky rocket into a pattern of rapid beats almost like a pop song and she couldn't help but smile. She felt... warm and safe. That was definitely not something she should feel. This was a complete stranger. Of course, it had been rather strange for him to ask if he knew her... Oh, she did remind him of some old girlfriend! She almost wanted to pout. "No, I'm fairly certain I would remember you if I'd met you before." She did have to admit that once the words were out of her mouth, she did seem to feel a bit of a lie in there somewhere. It wasn't a lie though! He was cute and obviously interested in her. There would be no way she forgot that.

She hurried to get him a refill, or rather exchange drinks with a fellow waitress, as... She didn't even know his name did she? She hurried back to Mr. Cutie before he ran away. She got back when he started to comment on the weather. She was glad she didn't have a car. She didn't have to worry about her car getting hurt in something like that. "It's amazing, don't you think? It can be so hard, yet defeated by something like room temperature. It hurts like hell though if you're out there..." She had gotten a bruise by the hail once. It hadn't been too fun...

David gave a warm smile, “Well… now that you mention it, it is kind of funny once you think about it that way.” He responded looking out the window. The hail seemed to continuously downpour outside, the pitter patter on the window made David a little anxious about the car, he had just got new paint. He had gotten his mustang a nice and shiny black color and he would be simply crushed if there was a scratch on it.

“You know, for some reason you remind me of someone. I just can’t figure out who.” David said making simple small talk. His eyed his waitress cautiously, sure she was attractive but he wasn’t really sure how to talk to her outside of the realm of customer and waitress. He pondered for a moment and decided he needed to plan out what to say otherwise he would say something idiotic to embarrass himself. The mild mannered male cleared his throat and stated his order.

“Hm… I’m usually a fan of burgers but I feel a little adventurous today, sign me up for some pasta!”David answered with some zest. He didn’t want to chance something spilling on his good shirt and the look of the picture to promote the pasta did it’s job as David now yearned for that zesty feeling. He was beginning to ponder how she seemed so familiar; he had seen no one like her in all his life. Well, in reality anyways. In the constant flow of flashbacks he received her image and likenesses are very well familiar

Nikki shrugged off that it was kinda funny about hail being defeated so easily by hail. What was funny about it? Perhaps she was just being dense... but having to clean up piles of water or the fact that the sun would cause the water that came from it to evaporate just didn't seem funny to her. It seemed boring and very school like, and she wasn't very interested in school. She was enjoying her freedom of not having papers to turn in, or having tests to do, or having to go to class and try staying awake. Not funny... but perhaps he was more scholastic than she was... that was a word right?

Nicolette smiled a bit and almost wanted to sigh. "What's your name sir? Perhaps if I know your name I can place you... somehow..." She stared at him carefully and tried to place him in her memories herself. Had she known him when she was little? Or perhaps just passing in the street, said hi and bye, then continued on. Still, he looked familiar to her in a way... Perhaps him not being able to place her was also a good thing. What if she had embarrassed herself or he'd thought she was some idiot?

Nikki pulled out her pad and wrote down his order. She grinned at him and slide the pad back into her waitress pocket. "Pasta it is. I'm just going to give the chef you're order." Nikki looked around her section of the store and noticed that her costumer was one of two people that were in the restaurant... and the other person was in someone else's area. She quickly went to give the chef his order and went back to her customer. She would be alerted when his pasta was done. "You're order is in. Do you need anything else? An appetizer maybe?"

David thought to himself. “Nope, no appetizer needed but thank you.” He stated, “And since you asked… the name’s David, but I also go by Dave if you’re more comfortable with that.” He winked. “Quick question, but how long has this place been open?” he asked.

“I’ve heard tons of good things about the place but it’s my first time actually dinning here.” He said as he gave a roll of his eyes and sighed as he placed an elbow on the table to rest his head. “I work almost every day so times like this are a extremely rare treat for me.” He mentions feeling a bit more confidence as he spoke. He casually sipped his lemonade as he silently admired how beautiful the young woman was, he was absolutely sure they had met before.

“How do you feel about sports?” He randomly asked. Making light of conversation, the more they talked the more open and secure he felt in the conversation, perhaps that shy and quiet shell David kept around himself was starting to chip, of course it was only momentarily, who knows if he’s ever going to see the blonde again outside the restraunt?

Nikki smiled at... Dave. It was a nice name. She looked around at the tables that didn't need her assistance and then smiled more to herself than at him. This was fate! No one to bug her while talking to a cute guy... finally the world wasn't against her! "It's been open for about five years I think... There is actually several restaurants in different parts of the States, but this is the only one in Pennsylvania. In a whole, the owners opened the first one in 1951 in a small town in Iowa." She was practically reading one of the little 'pictures' that were hanging on the wall, but this guy could think she was brilliant if he wanted. It wasn't like she said she remembered all this information.

She gave him a sympathetic smile as he said he worked everyday and wondered what he did for a living. "What do you do for a living?" It was a bit blunt, but she didn't feel like going around the bush. She hoped he wasn't training to be a lawyer or anything. That was boring... Perhaps he was a video game store cashier or something. A full time one, so he was always there. That would be fun.

Nikki made a slight face as sports was brought up. She hated sports... She always made a fool of herself when she played. "I can't play..." She looked down at the god awful shoes she was forced to wear at work. He was going to laugh at her or stop being so... flirty with her. "I can't hit a ball, or throw it into a basket, or even throw the ball. No matter what sport I've had to try, I have failed. I haven't tried Hockey though, and don't think I EVER will. I do like ice skating though..." That was a sport right?? Weren't they in the Olympics or something??

David gave a slight chuckle at her response regarding sports. “I can almost say the same thing, I am horrible at running, I am slow but I can run forever without breaking a sweat.” David said trying to keep his tone in check to make sure he wasn’t down right bragging. “And it’s fine if you’re not athletic, Everyone has something there good at! Sports was just something I really enjoy watching. Typical for a guy right?” He said flashing her a smile.

“And for my job… well let’s just say my job involves a lot of hands on work.” He said. The thing about being a masked wrestler was that it protected your true name and face from stalkers and over enthusiastic fans. “I am in the sports entertainment business.” He flat out said. Anyone who knew better would just assume he sells sport equipment and merchandise at a shirt but it was a clever code word coined by the professional wrestling industry to sell itself. That and it gave an easy cover up answer for the casual question that is so frequently asked.

“Do you have any other jobs or do you just waiter?” David asked raising a curious eyebrow.