Shortcuts

Al and Maggie opened All-Nighters shortly after they wed. An instant hit with local office workers for their guaranteed 5-minute lunch service and the after closing time bar patrons for their greasy fries and free coffee, Al and Maggie were never short on customers. No corners cut, no shortcuts taken, they worked diligently as they seasoned their meats to perfection. At first, it was easy to keep up with demand, but soon their reputation grew and so did special requests. They didn’t want to disappoint their customers but also didn’t want to lower the quality of their selection. Maintaining that delicate balance between supply and demand proved too much for Al and he passed, leaving Maggie to decide what to do next. The old place held too many memories for her. Armed only with Al’s cookbook and money from his insurance, she closed up shop and moved. Local diners were disappointed, but it was the customers who were most disappointed. It would be six months before the next meat supply would be ready for harvest, and even then, it would be years before seasoned to perfection.

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I took a shortcut (ha ha) and used both Fandango’s Flash Fiction picture prompt and their one word challenge today.