middle of a blizzard and my grandma almost didn’t make it to the hospital Astrid said in a monotone voice Fascinating stuff It’s a great story Mr Vega protested Wait until you hear the part about our car spinning out on the freeway Mrs Vega smiled as she gently patted her husband on the shoulder Why don’t we skip ahead about twenty years to the part they actually asked to hear about Mr Vega crossed his arms and shrugged Okay but then they’re going to miss the part about me hitting a grand slam in Little League when I was nine and getting the lead in my high school’s production of Fiddler on the Roof I think they’ll survive Mrs Vega told her husband before turning toward the foursome The story of how we ended up in Somerville began the summer we graduated from college she
told them We got married in June and decided to relocate to San Francisco where some of our friends were moving Even though we had never been any farther west than Chicago we were excited about starting our new lives in a new city We packed up everything we owned and hit the road in your dad’s old pickup truck That thing was so ancient It’s a miracle we made it out of New York That old truck was the best Mr Vega said Besides if we didn’t need to stop for gas and to check the oil every hundred miles we might have driven right past Somerville That’s true Mrs Vega nodded And if Earl at the gas station hadn’t suggested we get a bite to eat at the diner we never would have met Mick Mick was such a character Mr Vega told them We sat right at this very counter and listened to his stories as we ate the most amazing meal
Before we knew it several hours had passed and it was dark out We decided to stay the night and head out of town the next morning We checked in to Mrs Cheever’s hotel across the street Of course we couldn’t leave without breakfast Mrs Vega continued Of course we came back to Mick’s for breakfast the next morning I’d never had such delicious eggs Mick told me if I stayed around until the breakfast rush ended he’d show me how he made them Mick knew how to make everything and he kept teaching me new tricks I hung out with him in the kitchen right up until the lunch rush started I was having so much fun I stayed and helped him And you know how friendly the people in Somerville are Mr Vega added I stood at the counter all day chatting and refilling coffees By the end of the day Mick had offered us both jobs and we decided to stay for a while
The other customers began listening and soon they were reminiscing about Mick He sure was a great guy Mr Goodwin said He had customers who only came through town once or twice a year and no matter how long it had been he greeted them by name It was as if they’d been in the day before Mrs Chen nodded and added Mick was so kind If he knew a family in town was struggling he always made sure they had something to eat and without calling any attention to it He was also a matchmaker Mrs Studebaker said with a grin on her face I think half of the marriages in this town started when Mick sat people near each other at the diner Even though we went to school together I had never even spoken to my husband until Mick introduced us at this very counter He was such a romantic So where is Mick now Jace asked innocently
