Dinner for Two

I have written this short story for https://fivedotoh.com/2022/10/25/fowc-with-fandango-insubstantial/

An insubstantial meal for a person, but he always shared with his dog.

With the pound in his plastic container, he got a free coffee, from Costa, and a pack of out-of-date chicken to eat with his dog Mitch.

Many looked at him with disgust in their eyes.

He would watch them walk out of the restaurant with full bellies, not understanding his life. An observer, most would ignore him. He wasn’t important enough to speak to, and it was their understanding he would keep quiet.

‘Would you like this soup, cake, and chicken for your dog?’

She knelt down in front of him, was the first person to show him kindness.

‘Thank you Miss.’

Taking what was offered, it was a handsome meal. He smiled as she sat down beside him, stroking Mitch.

‘I’m sorry it isn’t more,’ she said.

‘It’s more than enough Miss, but you don’t have to stay.’

‘What is a meal without the company of someone to share it with,’ she said, eating from her own sandwich.

‘True Miss.’

‘My name is Sarah, what’s yours?’

He hadn’t spoken his name, since he walked out of his home at the age of eighteen.