BELGIAN WAFFLES / a short story dealing with discrimination

Belgian Waffles

I was worried about eating at the diner. The whole place reeked of discrimination, management and patrons alike simply didn’t like having my kind around, but then as I lingered, trying to decide what to do, this young couple smiled and held the door open. I thought, "this is a breath of fresh air," and followed them in.

The couple sat in a booth by the window. I also enjoy window seats, but instead I moved to the counter, to a spot that had just been wiped clean, next to a big burly man wearing blue dungarees and a Lynard Skynard t-shirt.

He was eating a donut. Sweet gobs of frosting were sticking to his beard. His lantern green eyes watched me approach and rolled in their sockets. He shifted his weight to the opposite side of his stool like an actor who was emphasizing a critical line.

The counter man was delivering two burger baskets and chatting with cops who were breaking for lunch. When he saw me he bristled like the hair on the spine of an angry dog, then tucked in his apron and swaggered up to me.

I was fearful and didn't know what to expect. I wanted to leave. I wanted to just disappear. He only stood there and stared with eyes that were burning like crosses. I thought about my rights and I thought about courage. I decided to stay.

I could feel his hot breath on my face. My mind started to flash images of what he might do. I felt as it everyone was watching.

The donut man waved his fat finger and whispered to the counter man, "get him." The counter man nodded and drew back his fist. Time stopped in the seconds before his punch landed. I could hear the sizzle of bacon, the clanking of spoons stirring coffee, and the innocent laughter of the young couple who smiled and held the door open.

The next thing I know I was jolted backward, knocked to the floor, immobilized as though I had been put into shackles. Then I remember him saying, "It’s hard to run a business with vermin like you hanging around."

I wasn't sure what to do. I was angry and stunned, pissed off and outraged, but mostly I was frightened and disappointed that everyone who witnessed what happened, including the cops, acted as if it was nothing.

For part two CLICK HERE.