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Lita blinked furiously as she waited for her body to awaken.
Bone-weary and dead tired, she'd taken a Vivarin to keep herself awake during the rest of her tour of duty for the night. Trish always chastised her about taking such things, as the little blonde didn't believe in taking any substances that weren't 'natural.' And that was an understatement - the woman didn't even drink coffee, for crying out loud. How ironic that she worked in a diner - the number one selling item here was coffee.
"You look ready to fall asleep on your feet," Dawn Marie said as she passed by. The pretty brunette's face looked concerned as she eyed her friend. "Maybe you should have some coffee..."
Lita shook her head. "Already took one of these." She reached into the right pocket of her waitress uniform and showed the other woman the bottle of Vivarin.
"I haven't seen that stuff in years..." Dawn remarked. "I hope it's safe."
"I think it is, but Trish would tell you otherwise."
The two women walked into the kitchen, where the chef was preparing two small bowls of soup for a young couple sitting at one of Dawn Marie's tables.
"Here you go," he said cheerfully, and the brunette grabbed hold of the saucers upon which he'd placed the bowls of chicken noodle.
"Thanks, Chris..."
The moment Dawn left the kitchen, Chris Jericho eyed Lita with concern.
"No offense, Red - but you don't look so good..."
"Thanks, Chris...Really appreciate it..."
"I only meant you're obviously exhausted. Stephanie should've let you go home the minute your shift ended," the blond man elaborated.
"Oh...yeah, too bad Torrie is such a bitch," the redhead muttered as she ran a hand over her face sleepily and wearily.
"You mean, too bad she's such a whore," Jericho said. "Don't candy-coat it. She's been stiffing us for weeks now..."
Lita rolled her eyes.
"Listen, Red...I said this to Trish before she left - and to Dawn a few minutes ago - but after what happened to that guy last night, don't walk home using that alleyway, huh?"
The young woman met her friend's clear blue eyes and saw all the concern shining within.
"Oh, come on, Chris...Nothing like that ever happened until last night, and the report said Christian thought it might have been someone he knew that attacked him..."
"Well...even so..."
Lita forced a smile she hardly felt for the blond man's benefit. "I'll be fine..."
He didn't look convinced. If anything, the expression on his face said he trusted her to obey his advice about as far as he could throw her.
As Chris continued to stare at her with one eyebrow arched, the redhead sighed. "Okay, fine - you win. I won't use the alleyway. Happy?"
"Thrilled..." Jericho grinned and winked at her as evidence supporting that.
Lita refrained from rolling her eyes and sticking out her tongue, but she smirked, not bothering to hide it from him. Then, Dawn Marie shoved her way back into the kitchen via one of the double swinging doors. Her face was white as a sheet, and to the redhead, she looked absolutely terrified.
"What's the matter, Dawnie?" the exhausted woman asked, her weariness momentarily abated and giving way for concern.
"N-nothing..." the brunette said, and she raised a hand to her face, forcing a very obvious smile as though to cover up.
Lita and Chris both eyed the woman skeptically. While Dawn Marie was usually quite skilled at concealing her true emotions in certain situations, now was definitely an exception.
"We know you too well..." Jericho began. "So why not cut the act and tell us why you look like you've just seen the dead rise?"
"Look..." Dawn snapped, her brown eyes angry as they fixed on the blond man. "I said nothing was wrong...So get off my ass, Chris..." she hissed in a loud whisper.
Lita nearly winced, but she was shocked, as her brunette friend never really displayed a temper. One thing was certain - something was definitely wrong, and whatever it was, Dawn Marie obviously didn't want to talk about it.
Before any of them could speak again, the double swinging doors were pushed open and Stephanie stuck her head into the kitchen.
"Lita? There's someone at one of your tables waiting for service..."
"Oh...Sorry," the redhead stammered, and she ducked out of the room after giving her two friends a sheepish look.
Chris couldn't
help but note the still alarmed expression on Dawn Marie's face as she
watched Lita exit the kitchen.