The morning had been a busy one, much more so with people having to go to work and stopping in for a quick coffee and a bite to eat. Raven still felt dead on his feet, another sleepless night weighing down on him. He didn’t know what was causing these dreams and last nights had been particularly harsh. He used to have nightmares about the boat accident when he was younger but they had stopped bothering him. Until last night. He honestly didn’t know why he had dreamed about his parents last night so suddenly. And that black shape had been there too. He wondered why. 

Gah, so many questions and not enough answers. Raven shook his head sharply, scolding himself. Now was not the time to get lost inside his head. Sal had called in sick and Jack had been unable to get Sarah and Ryan to come in early because they had school or other business to attend to. Jack himself was buried under paperwork and so it all fell onto Raven to wait the tables. And of course it seemed like every person that normally came in for a coffee all decided to come in at the exact same time. 

If Raven thought he had ran around like a chicken with its head cut off yesterday he was sorely mistaken as he struggled to carry a tray laden with mugs of hot coffee. He had to walk slowly so he wouldn’t spill anything and he was given grief about it when he arrived at the tables. The customers were cranky at having to be up so early and they all seemed to think that they were the only one he was serving. Thankfully after the morning rush was over things calmed down. He was able to take a breather and eat a quick bite to eat since he hadn’t been able to eat breakfast in his mad rush to get out of the house. 

He then groaned when he realized he had forgotten to feed Blaze. The kitten wasn’t going to let him forget it anytime soon. The last time Raven had accidentally forgotten to feed the feline, Blaze had shredded every magazine in the house as well tear up a pair of his favorite socks. From then on Raven learned to feed his pet or risk the destruction of anymore of his clothing. Hoping his wardrobe would be safe from Blaze’s wrath, Raven threw away the peel of the banana he had been eating and drank a glass of water before getting back to work. The lull didn’t last long as the lunch hour grew nearer and soon Raven was once again running around. Thankfully Ryan and Sarah arrived but the place was packed and so all three of them weren’t given a break. 

Lunch hour was usually chaotic but Raven didn’t think he had ever seen it this crazy. Did the whole city deicide to come to The Silver Dragon for lunch? It sure looked that way. Thankfully he had yet to run into anyone today and he was hoping it would stay that way and he would avoid getting soaked. Of course Fate always had to get a laugh at his expense. 

[color=violet]”Here you are sir.”[/color] Raven said as he set a hamburger and a glass of coke in front of a man dressed in a suit with a Bluetooth piece in his ear. The man took one look at the food in front of him then glared at Raven. 

[color=lightblue]”What kind of fool do you take me for? I didn’t order this garbage! I asked for a water and a salad, are you [i]trying[/i] to make me fat?!”[/color] Raven blinked in surprise because he distinctly remembered this man ordering no such thing. Raven then apologized and said he would take it back. Clearly it was not what the man wanted and so he then began to rant at Raven. The boy’s facial expression into a neutral visage, turning into an emotionless mask as the man continued to explain in great detail how Raven was such a stupid and incompetent child. The man didn’t seem to like the fact that he wasn’t getting a raise out of Raven and so he stood, face very red. He then snatched up his glass of coke and upended it over Raven’s head. 

His mask slipped, revealing a stunned expression as the man shoved past him and stalked towards the door. Raven stood there, soda plastering his hair to his head and dripping down his face. He slowly turned, aquamarine eyes tracking the man as he headed for the door. Rage, swift and hot, surged through his body and his fists clenched. As he retrained himself from going after the man, the customer passed next to a shocked Sal standing there holding a tray full of glasses of water. Suddenly, the glasses tipped over. The water would have just splashed to the floor but somehow covered the man’s suit. He cried out, staring down incredulously at his soaked clothing. A little boy sitting with mother started laughing, the woman trying her best to quiet her son as he pointed at the business man. 

Said man’s face grew red and he stormed out. Raven continued to stand there, having no clue what just happened. The water should just have fallen to the floor but it landed on the man. How? He hadn’t been close enough for it to soak him so. Perplexed and confused he jumped slightly upon feeling a hand on his shoulder. He glanced up into Ryan’s sympathetic eyes. 

[color=lightblue]”You okay man? That was rough. I have a spare uniform in my locker if you want to borrow it. You can just give it back to me tomorrow.”[/color]

Raven nodded in agreement and followed along as Ryan led him to the back. Sarah lent him a pack of wipes and so with that and the uniform in hand Raven locked himself in the bathroom to get cleaned up. Thankfully the coke missed his pants but his shirt was absolutely sopped. He threw it off and it hit the linoleum with a wet slap. He turned on the facet and ducked his head under it, running his fingers through it. He pumped some hand soap into his hand and lathered it through his hair. He knew it wouldn’t work as well as shampoo but hopefully it would help rid his hair of the stickiness the soda caused.

After rinsing his hair out thoroughly, he then got down to business of ridding his skin of the rest of the soda. After going through most of the wipes he finally was soda free. He shrugged on Ryan’s uniform shirt and fingered the ends of his hair. Drying it was out of the option unless he felt like trying to use paper towels. Deciding it could just air dry he shoved his soda soaked shirt into a plastic bag that was used for food deliveries, Raven exited the bathroom and stowed the bag in his locker to take home later. He took a deep breath and entered the main room again. He shot Ryan and Sarah grateful smiles, turning to survey the room. He heard the bell over to door chime and he turned to the door to welcome the new customer and show them to a seat.

A jolt of surprise ran through him as he recognized the girl from the flower shop. He blinked before mentally slapping himself and running through the rehearsed lines. [color=violet]”Welcome to The Silver Dragon. Table for one?”[/color] He asked, grabbing a menu and some silverware.