The Silent Room

My broken fuel indicator wavered nervously, bouncing up and down several notches as my front wheels cleared a speedbump right before a McDonald’s Drive-Thru window. I rolled down the power windows and the cool evening breeze swept in, making an instant mess out of my voluminous wavy hair.

After combing back several strands off my face with my hands, my eyes met with that of an adorable young lady who greeted me behind the cash register. Her training in customer service really paid off that time.

“Welcome to McDonald’s. What can I get you, sir?” she said to me as her soft, pink lips formed a gentle smile that gleamed like a beacon below her prim nose and bright, cheerful brown eyes. Her thin eyebrows perfectly complemented her smooth forehead and her slightly oval-shaped face was beautifully framed within a black tudung, decorated by a headband with little green ogre ears.

“Hmm…” I thought out loud for a while. “I’ll have an apple pie…”

“One apple pie…” she parroted while she keyed in the order.

“…a Coke Light, regular size…” I continued.

“One regular Coke Light…” another keystroke followed her words.

“…and your phone number, please?” I gave her an instant ‘hey, babe’ smile.

She let out a slightly amused chuckle. “Very cute, sir. That will be RM3.15*”

“Aww,…here you go.” I kept my smile and handed her a RM5 bill. I wasn’t too disappointed, though.

“Thank you, sir. Please wait by the next window to claim your orders.”

She gave me back my change and receipt, this time with a very wide smile.

“Better luck next time!” she said before sliding shut the glass window and waved me a cheerful goodbye. She slowly shook her head and went back to the cash register, still smiling. She probably took my gesture as a simple, well-meaning compliment.

I drove back home with the apple pie in my mouth, still amused at what just happened. For that short fleeting moment, apple pies have never tasted so good. It’s a shame that I didn’t even catch her name.

*I don’t remember the price. It was a tea-time offer or something.

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Small Talk:
Now that my classes have started, I guess I won’t be having so much free time anymore. Oh well. Welcome back to campus life, everyone! I’ll be in Cyberjaya more often, so I’ll be seeing you guys around more :D

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