“Hey, babe.”

“Angel?” She sounded odd, and immediately it made him uncomfortable.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she said. “Well, something’s come up. The neighbors up the street, the uh…..Gleason’s, they had an emergency and they need me to come over immediately to babysit. They’re desperate, Angel. I couldn’t say no.”

Feeling disappointment, but at the same time warmed by her sincere concern, Angel sighed. “Is it for the whole night?”

“I’m not sure,” she said. “But I’ll call you as soon as I know something.”

“Alright.” He turned the opposite direction, back toward the restaurant. “I love you.”

There was a long silence then he heard her again. “Okay, bye, Angel.”

He’d been back at the restaurant for a little over an hour when his phone rang. He answered it immediately without even checking who it was, thinking it’d be Sarah.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Angel.”

He was quiet for a second. “Dana?”

The only times she’d called him since the day he told her off, was a few times to leave drunken messages. But he hadn’t actually talked with her since. Now he regretted not answering.

“Yeah, it’s me.”

“What do you want?” It wasn’t his thing to be rude, but he wasn’t about to get in hot water with Sarah. The last thing he wanted to do was encourage Dana.

“I’m not calling to rub it in or make you feel worse, if that’s what you’re thinking. I’m just calling to tell you, I’m here for you.”

Angel rolled his eyes impatiently. He had no clue what she was talking about and, really, no interest.

“Dana, I don’t need you here for me, Okay? I’m working right now, I gotta go.”

“Angel, I know I pissed you off, but before anything ever happened between us, we were friends. I don’t know what happened with you and Sarah, but I know you were really into her, so if you need someone to talk to now, remember I’m still your friend.”

Her words were all over the place and still Angel couldn’t make anything of them. He decided to just humor her. “Alright, thanks. I gotta go.”

No sooner had he hung up with her when the phone rang again. He picked it up a little annoyed thinking it would be her again. It wasn’t. It was Eric.

“Hey, dude. Where are you guys?” Eric asked.

“I’m working.”

“Working?” Angel heard Romero in the background. “Ask him, ask him!”

Angel smiled. “Ask me what?”

“Is Sarah with you?”

“No, she had to work. The restaurant was busy so I just came back.”

“Oh, so Sarah's not with you?”

Then Angel heard Romero again, “I told you! Didn’t I tell you? That was her. I know it was.”

“What’s he saying?” Angel asked.

Eric told Romero to shut up. “Nothing, man, this guy’s just tripping. He thinks he saw Sarah a little while ago.”

Angel was undaunted. “Nah, she’s babysitting.” He stood there smiling, listening to their conversation. He couldn't tell if Romero had been drinking, or was just being obnoxious.

Eric and Romero went back and forth for a few minutes, then Angel heard a struggle, the phone got muffled, and the horn honked. He chuckled, Idiots.

“Alright, man,” Eric said to Angel.

Angel laughed. “Is he wasted already?”

“No,” Eric said. “But you wouldn’t know it by the way he’s acting.”

Angel's other line beeped.

“Don’t answer your other line, it’s just dumb ass,” Eric said.

“Answer it!” Romero yelled in the background.

“Hold on.” Angel chuckled, clicking over to his other line. “Wadda ya want, ass?”

He stood at the hostess stand at the entrance of the restaurant, looking back in to see how many customers were left. It was early, but most of the guys in the kitchen were on overtime now and his dad had told him if it slowed down enough to close early and let them go home.

“It was her, man,” Romero said.

He walked back casually sneaking a peak in the second dining room, it was empty. He knew Romero couldn’t be right, but he went along anyway. “Yeah, where?”

“In a car; a f**ken yellow Chevy Impala, one of those old ones, all cherried out, with a dude.”

CHAPTER 20

Sarah was both, shocked and overwhelmed with joy when she saw Sydney. She hadn't realized how much she'd missed him until she felt the emotion in his hug.

She had had so many questions for him she almost forget Angel was going to be there any minute. She’d felt so rotten having to lie the way she had. But she knew there was no way Angel was ready to meet Sydney, not like this. It would be a slap in the face. She needed to explain everything to both of them before she could have them meet.

This whole mess was her fault and now it threatened to blow up in her face. She was a nervous wreck all day and now she felt on the verge of a meltdown.

Sydney said he wanted to talk to her and she had a feeling it wasn’t going to be a short conversation. The only places she knew were places Angel had taken her. All of them were places frequented by everyone from school.

There was no way she was taking him to her and Angel’s special place. So, she decided to go to a place further down the beach where she’d never gone with Angel. She figured it was safe.