lady luck

Chapter twenty-one 

Lin wei decided to leave worrying for the middle of the night and use her mornings and afternoons for a much better prospect. 

She was in the middle of cursing Biggy to eternity when she heard her name hollered from outside. 

"Lin wei!" Yuqi called. Her voice quivered slightly and pang of alarm lurched through Lin Wei's blood. 

Why? Did something happen? Her mind whirled and swirled with different scenarios, and she squared her shoulder. Life wasn't going to end. 

Or so she thought 

She marched straight outside, her fingers slimy with soap and her throat clutched together into a tight fist. She was in trouble, she could feel it deep in her veins. 

Until she saw the huge silhouette inclined against the door. Her heart leapt off and ran straight into the dark abyss, her mouth turned suddenly dry. 

"Ye.. yeah?" She croaked and turned to Yuqi. 

She shook her head and tried to cover her face with her hair. She ended up looking like a squirrel whose fur had been shaved off.

"The place is bursting with customers." She leaned down to whisper into Lin Wei's ear, "Biggy thinks some big shot is here. He think you should serve him." 

Even the soft whisper of Yuqi against her ears felt like bazooka, or a nuclear detonation. She swallowed, and her brain finally found their correspondence.

"But I'm not a waitress!" She hissed under her breath.

"I don't make the rules." Yuqi shrugged and stalked off, to deliver someone's order. 

Lin wei stood rooted to the spot, wondering if this was the closest she was going to get feeling like a rat facing a cat. 

That wasn't an accurate illustration. She felt like a lamb, blindfolded and led straight to the wolf's den.

"What are you doing?" Biggy barked. Amidst the roaring afternoon crowd, his spit still managed to land on Lin Wei's face. 

She grimaced and hurriedly wiped her face with the back of her slimy hand. More yuck. 

"I can't serve him." She hissed to Biggy. Her desperation lending her much needed spine. 

Biggy's beady eyes widened, his pupils dilated and his jowls quivered, spittle rapidly forming in the corner of his mouth as he worked his teeth furiously. 

Lin wei took a cautious step back. 

"You'll do what I tell you to, or leave the job. There are plenty people out there that'll kill to be in your position." He pointed a studgy finger to Lin wei. 

She bobbed her head in acquiescence. She wasn't sure how many would want to be in her pinched shoes, forehead slicked with sweat and armpit dripping and about to face impending doom. 

Her luck had always been shitty. That lady hates her to the core but Lin wei has no choice. She would bet her meager (non-existent) fortune that Ezekiel Wang and his cousin were seated at that table she was supposed to serve. How though? 

Why did they decide to eat at her restaurant that was greatly below them like the earth core mantle? And why did that restaurant had to be the one she was working at?

How rotten was her luck?she wondered absentmindedly as she trudged to them. 

Were they perhaps stalking her? Maybe rich people don't like when their feelings had been toyed with. 

But who could blame her, really? She only needed a bit out of his money. It He wouldn't even feel the impact. 

She snatched a table cloth and tied it around her head and face and smiled widely as she dared. Her feet were cold and her heart slammed itself against her ribcage, wanting to escape it confines. 

Honestly, the feeling was mutual.

"What would you like to order?" She asked shrilly. 

Sure enough, Ezekiel's glacier blue eyes stared straight at her, as if he could peel the secret off her bone. He said nothing. 

He flicked her a glance and proceed to scrutinized the menu. 

Lin wei breathed a relieved sigh. She was glad to not be the recipient of such scrutiny.

Her sigh caught halfway through her throat, when Lu Chen stared thoughtfully at her. 

"Is something wrong miss?" He asked, a concerned smile splaying on his lips. 

The man was the polar opposite of his cousin. 

Everything was the answer on her lips. Everything was wrong down to the blood flowing inside her veins. It was bubbling as if placed on a stove. 

"Nothing's wrong at all. Not in the least. Just some head cold is all." Her voice had sunk low.

"I'll take the wheat Ramen and some pickled salad. No coriander, oh and some beef stew." Ezekiel recited. 

His voice was perfectly flat and totally unconcerned. His eyes kept staring at her in that way that send tingles racing down her spine. 

She wasn't sure it was the aura surrounding him, or if she was down to one life. Perhaps her skin had stopped working. 

"I'll have the same thing as him. I don't mind coriander." Lu Chen smiled serenely at her. 

It was those smile that was usually characterized by pant falling off from women's legs.

"You look really familiar." Ezekiel drawled. 

He made an absent motion and tried to grab the makeshift veil from her face.

"I'll get your orders now sirs." She bowed so low her face was literal inch from colliding with the table. 

She yanked the veil back and scurried off. She couldn't belief she had escaped from that unscathed. 

Perhaps her luck was has rotten as she thought. She patted her thumping her and poured herself a glass of cold water. 

"Rice Ramen and pickled salad with coriander." She relayed the message. 

"Rice Ramen and pickled salad with coriander." She relayed the message. 

She couldn't stop the slow tendril of misgivings that snaked through her. Had she gotten their order wrong? It was a common happenstance for her. Especially when she's dead ass nervous. 

It couldn't be. No matter how rotten her luck was, it couldn't be that bad. 

She shook herself and collected the tray. 

"What's with the table cloth?" The new girl asked. Her apron was stained with soup and sauces. 

"It's nothing." She grunted and adjusted her veil before carrying the tray. 

As luck goes, hers was truly unsalvageable.