'That can't be sanitary,' Kyle said, shaking his head as he watched Michael and Maria.
The guy on the stool next to him laughed. 'Well, they clearly put a lot of love into the food here,' he joked.
Kyle nodded. 'Best burgers in town. And I should know… I used to date the owner's daughter.'
'So you pretty much ate here three meals a day,' the guy said.
'You know it,' Kyle answered. 'By the time she dumped me, I was hooked on the onion rings, so I had to keep coming.'
The guy shook his head. 'You're unlucky in love, just like me.'
'Well, I don't know about that,' Kyle said quickly. 'I was just unlucky with her. But I do okay.'
'Not me,' the guy said, sighing. 'I just broke up with someone I really liked.'
'Dumped you, huh?' Kyle said, taking a swig of Coke.
'No, I dumped her.'
Kyle snorted. 'Okay, what's your name?'
'Jesse. Jesse Ramirez.'
'Well, listen, Ramirez,' Kyle said, 'Rule number one of dating: Don't break up with someone you like. What are you, a masochist?'
Jesse gave him a lopsided grin. 'No, man, I was just too old for her.'
'Oh, so you were doing her a favor by dumping her?'
'Um, yeah,' Jesse said. 'Though when you put it that way, it sounds kind of stupid.'
Kyle emptied his Coke glass. 'Hey, Maria!' he called.
Maria waved him away without breaking her liplock on Michael.
'I need another Coke,' Kyle yelled, undeterred. 'And one for my masochistic friend here.'
Liz pushed open the door of the Crashdown and glanced around. Maria and Michael were hanging out at the door to the back room. Kyle sat at the counter chatting with some guy in a suit. It all looked normal, yet something seemed off.
It's the lights, Liz thought. The hanging lamps were LOO bright. She squinted up at them. That's weird. I didn't even know they had a bright setting.
'Liz!' cried Maria. 'What are you doing here in the middle of the day?'
'She lives here,' Michael put in. 'Duh.' He disappeared through the swinging door and went back into the kitchen.
Maria approached Liz, talking a mile a minute as usual. 'Aren't you supposed to be at Meta-chem? Wait, is today your day off? You didn't get into a fight with that doctor guy, did you? I told you to use my mantra if he was acting like a jerk.'
Liz winced. Was Marias voice always this loud?
'You got a real death grip on that thing,' Maria added.
'What?' Liz said. Why was she so confused all of a sudden?
'Water bottle.' Maria pointed at the plastic bottle in Liz's hand.
Liz glanced down in surprise. She'd forgotten she had it. 'Oh, yeah,' she mumbled. She opened it and took a swig. The water tasted funny. 'I think I'm coming down with something,' she told Maria.
'Is that why you came home from work?'
Liz shook her head. 'No, Dr. Sosa had a little freak-out and sent me home. I feel bad about it, actually. He was trying to be nice to me, but he had a coughing fit and I accidentally made him spill some chemicals.'
For once Maria was silent. She stared at Liz with big, frightened eyes.
'Not like a huge chemical spill,' Liz said. 'Just a little one. I cleaned it up, and Dr. Sosa said I could have the rest of the day off.'
The bell over the door jingled, and Liz jumped. Usually she could barely hear that thing, but today it seemed especially loud and harsh.
'I'd better go check on the oldsters,' Maria said, heading off to the elderly couple in the corner booth. Liz walked slowly over to the stool next to Kyle.
'Check it out,' he said. 'A mini-Maria.' He gestured with his head to the little girl who'd just come in.
Liz looked at her. She had her hair in two braids, just like Maria did today. And she wore shiny lip gloss in the same shade as Maria's. In fact, she looked a lot like Maria. 'Weird,' Liz commented.
The girl hopped up onto the stool nearest the order window and gazed adoringly at Michael.
'Really weird,' Kyle agreed.
'This cook is quite the stud,' the guy next to Kyle joked. 'First the waitress, now the kid.'
Kyle snorted.
Liz couldn't help herself… she jerked away from him. Why was everything so loud all of a sudden?
'So, anything new at Meta-chem today?' Kyle's tone was casual, but Liz knew what he was really asking.
'I was only there for half an hour,' she told him. 'Dr. Sosa was arguing with Maris Wheeler about something. Then I knocked him into some chemicals in the lab, and there was a spill. He sent me home early.'
Kyle sighed. 'Well, at least you didn't draw any attention to yourself,' he said sarcastically.
Liz shrugged. Somehow she just didn't care about Meta-chem right now, even if they did have alien cells in their laboratories. She was too busy trying to figure out why the lights were so bright and the sounds so loud.
'I'll ask Michael to meet me at Meta-chem tonight,' Kyle said in a whisper. 'He can open the door to that closet.'
Liz stared at him in a panic. His voice was so loud, she was sure the guy next to him would overhear. But the guy just kept eating his fries, and Kyle didn't seem fazed at all.
'I need to go lie down,' Liz said. She jumped off the stool and went through the swinging door into the back room. She made her way into the kitchen to grab a snack, figuring she'd take it upstairs. She dropped her backpack
and the water bottle on a counter and pushed past Michael, who was stirring soup.
'I like your hair. It's really long.' The little girl was talking to Michael through the order window. Liz smiled as she pulled open the fridge and began hunting for the baby carrots they used as garnish.
'Yeah, thanks,' Michael answered gruffly.
'How come it's so long?'
'Because I'm too lazy to cut it.' Michael halfheartedly stirred the soup on the stove.
'I think boys with long hair are cute. My father doesn't like them, though. He says long hair is undisciplined.'
'Discipline is overrated,' Michael said.
The girl laughed loudly. Liz clapped both hands over her ears and stood up, glaring at Michael. He looked back at her, a big wooden spoon in his hand. 'What?' he said. 'I didn't do anything.'
Liz shook her head. This whole sound-distortion thing was getting on her nerves. She snatched a bag of carrots out of the fridge and closed the door. Then she pushed past Michael again.
'Touchy,' he muttered behind her. The girl laughed again.
Liz turned around and peered down into his pot of soup. 'That's a little clumpy for chicken noodle, don't you think?' she asked pointedly.
Michael glanced into the pot at the congealed mess. Then he reached out, grabbed Liz's water bottle, and poured the rest of the water into the soup. 'Happy?' he asked.
Liz rolled her eyes and turned to go upstairs. She really needed to lie down.
The little bell over the door tinkled, and Maria glanced up to check out the new customer. Unfortunately all she saw was her mother. 'Great,' she muttered. 'The nag patrol is here.'
'Maria!' Amy called in her high-pitched voice.
'Hi, Mom,' Maria said with a sigh. 'You here for lunch?'
'Nope. I just wanted to drop off the list.'
Maria pretended not to understand her. 'What list?'
'The list of errands I need you to run. For the business,' Amy replied.
Just look confused, Maria told herself. Maybe she'll give up and go away.
'Maria, I know you know what I'm talking about,' Amy said.
'Fine.' Maria stuck out her hand for the list. It wasn't fair that her mother could always tell what she was
