From behind the coffee bar, a familiar redhead was observing the scene
and decided that, since it had been a good fifteen minutes, perhaps the
gang was now ready to order. She picked up a notepad from beside the
cash register and approached their table.

“Is everyone ready to order?” Lara asked, a genuine, ready-to-serve
smile on her face.

Everyone at the table looked up at the sound of her voice. And once
they saw who it was, everyone but Howie looked back down at their menus
again, pretending to not notice the nervous tension which was obviously
being felt by Alice, who was now quiet as a mouse, and looking intently
at the dessert menu, while she fidgeted with a lock of her hair. Howie,
on the other hand, oblivious to all this, was ready to make his
“special” order.

“Um, well, I was wondering… your Chicken Salad, can I get it with
avocadoes mixed in?” he asked, gesturing with his hands how exactly he
wanted his craving to be mixed with his sandwich.

“No problem, I’m sure I could arrange that somehow. Anyone else?” the
chef asked, looking questioningly around the table. While everyone else
placed their orders, Dana looked at Alice and tried to catch her
attention.

“Al, honey, are you ready to order? Do you know what you want?” To
anyone else, Dana’s questions may seem ordinary, but Alice knew there
was more to her words. Still, she could not help but be unsure of
herself when it came to the redhead’s presence around Dana. Sure, they
had talked about it, but Dana and Lara hadn’t and Alice couldn’t help
but feel as if the two of them needed at least some sort of closure.
She needed them to have closure. It’s selfish, yes, and it isn’t really
her decision, yes, but she needed it anyway.

“I’m not quite sure what to decide. Do you know what you want?” She
looked back at Dana, pleading with her eyes for her girlfriend to know
how to handle this because she sure didn’t!

Dana squeezed her hand and replied with all the sincerity she could
convey in simple words. “Yah, I’m sure. I know what I want.” Winking at
Alice before giving her order, Dana turned to Lara and said, “I think
I’ll try that Calamari Salad you’ve got …without avocadoes.”

Alice calmed at Dana’s words. She looked at the menu again and finally
decided she wanted to prove Howie’s “lemon-y” comment wrong. “I’ll have
the same …WITH avocadoes.” She winked at Howie, who only gave another
scoff at her choice. Remembering her earlier inspection of the dessert
menu, Alice called out to Lara as she was about to walk away, “Ooh!
Your Custard Crepe …do you think I could get one with a biscotti
wrapped inside?”