in which I spend quality time with hail

Last night, the Roadhouse was full of high school students dressed up like it was prom night. I don't know where they were going, but there were hordes of them- the girls uncomfortably stylish in their strappy dresses, and the guys wavering between acting gentlemanly to impress their dates and chucking peanuts at each other. It made for a fun night, partly because I didn't have any in my section. Watching them was fun; cleaning up after them would not have been.

It was a busy night overall, and the stress level was raised by the weather. Every time we get a hard rain, the music shorts out and the computer terminals go down. Orders can't be placed, and the guests' moods are not improved by the incessant "bish-bish-bish" from the speakers.

In the middle of this, a well dressed boy who looked just like my cousin Levi came up to me. He was agitated in an unaccustomed way, as though he wasn't very good at not being laid back. He had left the lights on in his car, and now needed a jump- did I know of anyone who had jumper cables?

"Gracious," I thought to myself, "I'm too busy for this. But I do have cables... and he looks just like Levi." We went to find Derrick, the manager on duty, and he told me to finish what I was doing and then I could go jump the car. Levi's doppleganger started to look a little less nervous and said he'd meet me outside.

I delivered some cokes and ran out into the rain. Employees don't park in the regular parking lot- there are designated areas, I guess, but most of us park in an abandoned gas station in the same plaza. I dug out my jumper cables and drove back to the Roadhouse, peering past the neon glare on my windshield to find this kid and his car.

No luck. It started to rain harder as I pulled on the emergency brake and left my truck in the lot, running back in to ask the hostesses if they had seen a boy with curly brown hair in a long-sleeved blue shirt. "Nope," said the hostesses, also helpfully pointing out that I was wet.

Back out into the rain, which quickly turned into hail. Now, I'm no stranger to nasty weather- I can easily drive through blizzards that would shut down entire towns in Indiana- but hail this large isn't a big part of my weather experience. Me on a more sensible day would have said "Levi's doppleganger is probably waiting this out in his car, so I'll just go sit in my truck."

This, however, was not a sensible day... and he looked so much like Levi! I ran through the hail, trying to be sure that he wasn't waiting outside his car for me. Once around the restaurant and back again, by which time the hail was melting back into a soft rain. Behold, Levi's doppleganger appears, saying in a very Levi fashion, "You weren't out in the rain and hail, were you?"

No, Levi's doppleganger, I just took a quick shower before coming to jump your car. In my clothes, jacket and all.

Levi's doppleganger's name turned out to be Preston. He was accompanied by an older fellow who looked like he could have been his father, who climbed out of the back seat. I can't imagine anything more boring than chaperoning your son from the back seat of the car, but this man seemed relatively uncranky. He let Preston handle hooking up his end of the cables, just shouting directions over the now-functioning music (with which we bless the entire parking lot, because we're good-hearted like that).

It was still raining, so of course we couldn't get a decent connection. I got sparks on my end, which means that the circuit should have been good, but Preston's engine didn't even try to turn over. More shouted directions, more fiddling was the clamps, and still nothing, and I noticed the girl in the car looking colder and colder in her strappy dress. Not that she'll ever read this, but I should add that hers was one of the more modest dresses I saw last night. They just seemed like good kids overall... and did I mention that he looked like Levi?

Third time was a charm, and Preston jumped back out of his car to undo the clamps and thank me. He shook my hand- again, just like Levi would have- and I told him to have a great night. Parked my truck back at the gas station and ran through the clearing rain back to the Roadhouse with my apron in hand, full of straws in soaked wrappers.

Of course, Derrick had been too busy with trying to get the computers up to check on my tables, so I entered the kitchen to shouts of "has ANYONE seen Julie?" My tables got a good story, though, authenticated by my drippy wet hair and sloshy shoes.

It felt good to do something purposeful at work, more than delivering beer and steaks. Preston said they'd have to come back and leave me a ten dollar tip- I don't know about the tip, but I hope they do come back. I never did get to ask anyone what all the dress up was for, and I'd love to know how the rest of their night went.