Chéz made his way to Toss after spending a good deal of the day with Merlot and he could not be late. As he made his way up to the front doors, he saw Oculus standing out front having a conversation with an earth pony stallion.
"No leave me alone … haven't I told you enough already?" Oculus stated flatly.
"Come on … you're doing this again? The stallion replied.
"Yes we are through … It's over for good I don't need you anymore!" She replied getting aggravated.
"No we're not. Now come home I'm not talking about this in public"
"No I am not going back to your place or anywhere with you. I'm done taking your abuse and your shit Macho!" Tears were starting to form in her eyes.
"Oh your coming home" Macho started to shout as he raised a hoof to hit her. That was the tipping point for Chéz he had seen enough and didn't need to see it carry on any further. He jumped in between the two at the last second and took the blow that was meant for Oculus.
"Ooof" Chéz gasped as he buckled slightly but stayed upright and glared down the other stallion.
"Alright buddy obviously you didn't hear the mare the first time leave her be and be on your way" Chéz growled.
"Whoa. Look at the big shot jumping in here! Thinking you can stand in between my girl and me? You looking for trouble or something bud?" Macho said sizing up Chéz
"No but I bet the guards over there would love to see you and me go at it." Chéz was a bit intimidated by the other stallion but was not about to back down. "Care to give them a show or are you going to leave?"
"Fine but watch your back from now on buddy the guards won't be around forever." And with that, Macho turned and headed down the street.
Chéz never took his eyes off him making sure he didn't pull any cheap shots or double back. When he was out of his eyeshot, he realized that Oculus was still behind him. He turned around to see her frozen stiff with tears streaming down her face.
"T-Thank you …" Oculus spoke softly trying to hide the tears in her eyes. "You didn't have to…"
"It's okay lets go in and we can talk about this." Chéz said attempting to comfort the broken mare in front of him.
Chéz got out the keys for the building and quickly unlocked the door. Once they were inside Oculus excused herself to use the restroom to clean herself up. Chéz took this opportunity to put on a pot of coffee and grab a couple pastries from the bakery cooler in the kitchen.
---
"Coffee?" Chéz asked once he saw Oculus returning from the restroom. She had cleaned her face off and had reapplied make-up that had run with her tears. For a pony so sad, she had a soft glow to her.
"Yes please. Thank you … for everything." She said quietly.
"It's nothing." Chéz responded.
"You're not going to ask about what just happened?" Oculus asked.
"Nope I learned a while ago that I need not pry into other people's business and focus on my own life, but I am always an open ear for others to voice their problems. If you ever want to talk I'm always here."
"Thank you… "There was a few moments of silence as they had their coffee and pastries before Oculus spoke again. "Well I guess we should get started on the day" Her voice was still a little shaky but they both knew that they had their own jobs to do and the other staff would soon be arriving.
"Alright I'll be in my office and roaming the kitchen if you need anything."
"Okay, and thanks again."
As Chéz started the equipment and overhead fans he could not get the thought of what had happened earlier out of his head. Was it the pain of taking a blow from the other stallion, or was it the pain he felt for the mare that he took the blow earlier for. He shook his head to try to hide the memories and ready himself for the night that was to come. Saturday was always a busy night in any kitchen, but he felt ready for it and the team was one of the best he had worked with.
"Chéz, you hiding back here?" Sear called from the hot line. Sear was always one of the first in each day. He took pride in this and Chéz had always poked fun at him about it.
"Oh is that the Overtime milking stallion?" Chéz replied. "Yeah I just got the equipment turned on come on back."
"So what ended up happening between you and Oculus? I asked her when I walked in but I got the hint at the shade of red she turned." Sear was always a stories or straight to the point guy.
"Nothing Sear I walked her home after leaving you in the bar –"
"Yeah, that wasn't nice either you just left me drunker than hell and take the girl… "Sear interrupted putting on a playful pout.
"Like I was saying nothing happened I walked her home and then I went home and passed out."
They left it at that with a quick wink from Sear. As the two parted to get changed and ready the thought of Oculus crept into Chéz mind again. 'Damn I need to get her off my mind' he quickly thought to himself.
---
An hour later the rest of the staff was finally ready and at their stations preparing for the dinner ahead. Kitchen was a blur to the untrained eye but Chéz loved watching the hustle and bustle of a professional kitchen. Every once in a while Chéz would walk up to one of his cooks and have a quick chat while assisting with whatever task they were doing. The hours ticked down until service and Sear was readying the hot line team. Going over reservation numbers, what the special was tonight and the usual cleanliness talks. As one of the cooks saw Chéz approach they nudged Sear and he spun around almost as if planned.
"Chef. Do you have anything to add?" it caught Chéz off guard at first and he took a second to recover.
"Yes actually … I do," it was Chéz's turn to catch Sear off guard. "I'm going to be on the line tonight if no one has any objections. I would like to see how this team works together and I would like you to see how I work."
"Decided not be an office Chef eh?" Sear replied with a bit of playfulness.
"No that was one of the thing I told myself in school was that I would not be and I would like to stay on the line as much as possible. Is this alright with everyone?"
The collective "Yes, Chef" gave Chéz a goofy looking grin. As the teams cleaned and readied their stations on the line Chéz got a quick rundown on the ordering system and was ready to go.
----
"BZZBZZBZZBZZBZZ" The first bill started printing at 7 o'clock sharp.
"Alright people lets have some fun" Chéz called as he ran off the first ticket. "Ordering one fish, one steak med rare, one salad, one Penne"
"One fish, one steak, one salad, one Penne, Yes Chef" The callback was crisp and out of every one of the nine ponies working the line.
As the night ticked on, the whole kitchen was in full swing when one of the wait-staff came to the line."Chef may I?" It was the easiest and best way to get any ones attention in a kitchen.
"One moment, Ordering one chicken, one fish, one soup" After the callback came Chéz continued. "Alright what can I do for you?"
"Table eight would like to see you if you have time."
Chéz rolled his eyes and nodded. "Sear take over your on ticket eighty-four"
"Yes Chef"
Chéz made his way out to the dining room and was pleased to see the faces of the happy customers enjoying the food. Doing a couple laps of the room, he made his way to the table that had requested him.
"Well, well, well. Look who made time to come out and say hi!" A voice called just ahead of Chéz. There sitting at the table he was heading for was Merlot and her friends Belle and Spring. At the sight of the two mares Chéz perked up knowing his two biggest critics were dining tonight.
"Ladies how is everything tonight?" Chéz questioned taking an empty chair at the table.
"Everything tastes fabulous. How did you manage to get the Chef's position here?" Belle replied.
"Ah that would be the secret 'Phone List' of the trade that landed me here." Chéz joked.
The group chatted for a little longer all the while Chéz was keeping an eye on the food and the staff to make sure everything was running smoothly.
"Sorry Ladies but I must head back in it was lovely to see you again. Feel free to stop by anytime." Chéz spoke as he rose from the table knowing that he was needed in the kitchen.
"See you around Chéz."
"Glad to see you again"
Chéz exchanged hugs with the group and headed back into the kitchen.
"Well, well, well look who decided to join us." Sear called out "You're on ticket 106 Chef!"
With that, the kitchen was back in full swing. The night carried on and soon the constant sound of the printer died to a small trickle.
"Good job everypony!" Chéz called out as the last order of the night left the kitchen.
"Thank you Chef." The few raged voices called back as the closing cleanup began.
---
The kitchen was quiet and empty, the cooks had gone, and the service staff had all left over an hour ago. Chéz slowly made his way out of his office after finishing the paperwork. Sighing he made his way to the front to turn off the lights and do his final checks. Making his way past the hot line, he heard the sounds of a pony crying. He moved through the dining room getting closer and closer to the sound. Turning around a booth he saw her.
"Chéz … I'm so sorry…"
"What … is everything okay?"
"I'm sorry…"
*THUNK*