The Food Truck - 5. Chapter 5

I told Donnie and Denny about Paul. Denny offered his room, “Where are you going to stay?”

“With Donnie” I looked at both boys, they were smiling as they nodded their heads yes.

On Wednesday I made several extra lunches. Denny moved into Donnie’s room after changing the bedsheets and I was surprised they even clean the bathroom. Wednesday afternoon, after lunch was served, I loaded the car and went to pick up Paul and deliver the lunches to the school. Mrs. Lawson was at the door to greet me when I arrived. “Do you want me to take these to the teachers lounge?”

“Let me have one first, just to be sure I get one.”

I delivered the rest to the teachers lounge, left them on the table with a thank-you note. Going back to the Office, I met Paul loaded down with books. “Here let me help you with those.” I took his books to the car and then came back to see if there was anything else he needed help with. When I went to say goodbye to Mrs. Larson I noticed she was already eating the chocolate chip cookie. I smiled and waved, she returned the smile and wave.

Paul was excited as we drove to his home. “Paul, did your mother say what time she was leaving today?”

“No, she said she was going to be picked up at four o'clock but didn’t say who was picking her up or when she was leaving.”

Arriving at the apartment building, “Leave your books and things in the car. I'll come and help you with anything you need to be brought down.” Locking the car I followed Paul to his apartment.

His mother had two large suitcases packed for Paul. “One of the suitcases contains his clothes and some household items, the second suitcase contains mementos, photos and some personal things from me to help him when I'm gone.”

I realized at that moment that this is one of those bitter sweet moments. I felt the suitcases, gave Paul the lightest one and I took the other. I left leaving Paul with his mother for a few moments. I placed the suitcase I carried into the trunk of my car and then waited for Paul. About twenty minutes later, I saw Paul leaving the apartment building carrying the other suitcase. As I took the suitcase to put it in the car, I noticed a few tears in Paul's eyes. I knew that this was hard for Paul and I knew he recognized that this was best for his mother.

Getting Paul settled was actually fun. Donnie and Denny welcomed him to our business. While Paul was getting sorted out, I went and bought a cake and ice cream. Upon my returning, we had a little welcome party.

The next morning I received a phone call from Mrs. Larson. “Jim, any chance of you delivering lunch at noon.”

I laughed, “So you enjoyed your lunch.”

“Yes, and guess who told them the name of the Chef?”

I knew it was my culinary teacher, Mr. Dubois. He could always tell when I changed an ingredient. He always told me never to be satisfied, always experiment and you’ll develop your own classic style. I chatted a little longer with Mrs. Lawson. I told her that Paul has been accepted by the crew and made very welcome. She was pleased and look forward to a marked improvement in Paul’s performance.

That evening I had another job for mom. “Mom, I hired another boy today that needs a health certificate. I'll bring him over after breakfast if that's okay.”

Mom didn't need to answer, she gave me a pat on the head and all was well.

Dad told me to tell Paul his mother has arrived at his aunts place and everything is okay.

“That's fast, so she didn't take a bus?”

“No, she flew. The bus would have taken fourteen hours whereas the flight only took two hours.”

“Was someone going to meet her at the airport? Her sister probably expected her at the bus terminal.”

“I phoned her sister with the flight details. She said that she would meet her at the airport.”

I turned the conference room which was adjacent to my office into a room for the boys to use as a study. Hopefully Donnie and Denny would also like to finish their education, utilizing the Internet. This meant I had to buy two more computers and one more printer along with three small desks. When I gave mom and dad a tour of the addition, they were quite surprise and commented me on my goal of getting the boys to finish their education.

Within a week, activities return to normal. Denny managed the delivery service, Donnie stayed at the truck and Paul did the deliveries. I was surprised on the following Monday when I received a phone call from Mrs. Larson asking if she could place an order and have someone pick it up. I told her we can certainly do that, “I’ll have one of the boys fax you a menu. Just give us a call and tell us what you have selected from the menu.”

“How’s Paul doing?”

I told her he has settled in well. “The boys have taken him under their wings. I think now for the first time he has friends.” I told Denny to get with Paul and get the information to send the menu to his school.