Chapter Six: Shane:

Kathy had managed to slip out and go to the next house on her list. Seven more to go and it was about close to noon already. She probably should take a break and wait for the food truck to come around. Let’s see… What day was it? Kathy looked at her phone. Monday. The food truck should be pulling in at about ten minutes from now. The carer reached into her pocket and counted up her money.

Thirteen dollars. That should be enough for a sandwich. Kathy looked at the darkening sky. She made a face as she weighed her options. It wouldn’t good to eat outside today. Maybe she could eat on a porch or inside one of the remaining houses. Kathy looked up when she heard a bell ringing on the street. A grey truck pulled up to the curb that she sat on. She stood up as she tried to look at the driver inside.

“Shane?” she asked. “Shane, is that you?” The driver turned off his radio and stuck out his head.

“Kathy?” he asked. The carer covered her mouth.

“It’s really you!” she said.

“How have you been, girl?” Shane asked.

“Good, I’m on my first day of being a carer.”

The man with the wild hair whistled. “I wish you luck.”

“Thanks. You’re now a food truck driver now?”

“Yeah, I’m on my third week.”

“Where are you living now?”

“The city.”

Kathy’s eyes widened. “The city?”

“That’s all that I can afford at the moment.”

“But isn’t it dangerous?”

“Not really. I live on the outskirts. The inner city is the dangerous part.”

“I see.”

“How are you liking your job so far?”

“It’s okay. I never knew how they suffered.”

“Yeah. Can I get you anything?”

“Uh… yeah. What do you have?”

Shane pulled out his tablet and looked at the truck’s menu. “Let’s see… Italian BLT, ham, pulled pork, turkey, chicken, PB&J, and cheese.”

Kathy thought about her options. “I take the turkey.”

“Okay. Hang on.” Shane turned to his right and opened a blue cooler. He rummaged through and pulled out a turkey sandwich.

“$2.99,” he said. Kathy paid him three dollars.

“How many rounds do you have left?” Shane asked. She did a quick count on her hands.

“Seven more,” Kathy said. “I was on my way to the next house when I met up with you.”

“So you decided to stop for lunch?”

“Exactly.”

“Hey, my girlfriend and I are having dinner this Saturday. Would you like to come out and hang out with us after you get off work?”

Kathy nodded. “Sure.”

“Alright, I’ll let you get back to work.”

“Take care.”

“You too. And you might want to wrap up your rounds as soon as possible because it looks like it’s going to rain.”

“Thank you. I’ll see you later.” Kathy waved at the truck as Shane drove off making his delivery rounds of fresh sandwiches. It felt good to see an old friend again. Maybe this job didn’t have to be so bleak as her employers described it to be.