Behind the kitchen doors; Snippets of a life behind hospitality
Behind the kitchen doors
Part One…. There is never a beginning only what is actually happening.
Miranda walked into her small manager’s bed/living room where she found a tall blond in a long navy blue dress on top of her boyfriend. They were kissing. His hands where on the tall blonde’s waist. Miranda was in shock and slammed the door.
“What the hell! Get Out Now”!
Miranda yelled as loud as her voice would go. She blinked and saw white light; she thought she was going to pass out.
The tall blonde who she now recognized as one of the server’s in the Poppy Café, the one food and beverage dining rooms that most servers didn’t want to be a part of. It was mostly for families and was known that there were no tips to be made. The Poppy Café’s staff was a little different than the rest of the four dining rooms at the beautiful Jasper Resort resting on Lake Beaufort.
“Get Out bitch! You make me sick”!
Miranda pointed first at the tall blonde who was smiling and then to her cheating boyfriend. He wasn’t smiling, he was drunk. Again. He was swaying and looked confused. Again.
“Shut up Miranda”.
The tall blonde knew her name that made Miranda feel even sicker. She lunged towards the blonde. Miranda’s hands went on the blonde’s shoulders and swung her around and pushed her up against the wall.
“How could you do this to another woman? Why would you try to steal my boyfriend!”
Miranda could smell the booze on the blonde; she was drunk and probably didn’t even hear Miranda.
The blonde laughed in Miranda’s face. Miranda opened the door to the room and pushed the blonde out into the hallway. The blonde hit the wall and stumbled around a little. Miranda could hear a few of the other doors in the manager’s cabin slowly creek open.
“Get out you slut!” Miranda was shaking with anger. She turned around and ran towards her boyfriend.
“You asshole!” Miranda started to hit him repeatedly on his cheat. It's what would have happened in a dramatic romance movie. This was no movie. Terrance was six foot four and he was looking down at his girlfriend try to hit him hard. First he smiled and thought it was funny. She didn’t have any strength at all.
“Okay, that’s enough” Terrance took Miranda’s wrists and held them above her head, she was fighting back. For the first time.
“I hate you” There was silence.
“I hate you Terrance, you’re an asshole! How could you cheat on me?” Miranda could hear the laughter of those who know he was cheating on her. Only an hour ago at the summer ends party for the staff, was she confronted by someone telling her that her boyfriend was a cheater. She didn’t want to believe it, Terrance said he loved her, after two years they made some mistakes but she thought they got past those infidelities. What was keeping her in Jasper again? The job? Terrance? She couldn’t bear to be alone or find her way back to Nova Scotia. The job was great, she was a manager now and making some good money and thought she had a circle of friends. Tonight she found out that they were more Terrance’s friends and only tolerated her.
“MIRANDA. Stop”! Terrance’s words were not as slurred as the blonde’s but he was drunk and Miranda hated him when he was drinking. He was a different person. She managed to get her wrists free and slapped Terrance across the face.
“Asshole”! Then in one quick motion Terrance put hands on her waists and slipped his leg around one of her legs and they fell to the floor. Miranda’s eyes couldn’t keep up with the quickness she felt like she was spinning.
“No!” Her fear was rising. What was he going to do now?
“Calm down” Terrance put one hand on her wrists to pin her down and then as he placed his other hand over her mouth she managed to scream out
“FIRE!” It was the one word people would respond to, their door was still open and she didn’t just yell, she shrilled that the high pierce went through her own ears. Miranda looked around as Terrance was telling her to calm down, but what was he thinking? He was six foot four and he could out weigh her into calming down? Miranda saw two set of feet and she tried to bite Terrance’s hand.
“Terrance get off her now” It was their neighbor, one of Terrance’s co-workers in the kitchen.
“It’s okay Jay, it’s all under control”
“Doesn’t look like it”
Terrance took his left hand and slowly moved it down to Miranda’s throat and then off her body completely.
“Miranda, you okay?”
“She’s fine”
“No, I’m not, get off me” Miranda squirmed underneath Terrance as he leaned back onto his knee’s. Jay and his girlfriend stood at the door and looked at Miranda. Their eyes were screaming at her to get out of the room and run away from Terrance. Miranda couldn't hear what they were trying to say.
“Do you need any help”? Jay wanted to go over and hit Terrance for being such a dumb ass when he drank. He was glad that Terrance wasn’t directly his boss in the kitchen, but they did have to talk to one another during the day and no one wanted Terrance to be on his sore side.
“No, not now. Thank you” Miranda stood up and looked at Terrance who was now standing and swaying.
“I’ll knock if I need any more help. Thank you” Miranda was happy that at least Jay and his girlfriend cared to see if she did need any help. She was also surprised no one else came running when Fire was being yelled.
Miranda closed the door and turned around. Terrance was taking off his suit jacket and hanging it over a chair. Then he swayed towards the bathroom and shut the door. Miranda stood in their twelve by twelve room where she just kicked out a tall blonde that Terrance brought home with him. He was going to have sex with someone other than Miranda, how many other tall blondes, brunettes had he slept with? Miranda felt sick but she needed to be strong. She was glad she didn’t have to work in the morning. It was already two in the morning and she felt like her third wind was about to begin.