She looked terrified.
“Are you sure?”
I nodded.
Then I turned toward Ed.
“I’m sixty-three now. Someday I won’t be here at six-fifteen. I want you to know someone else will remember your coffee.”
Ed looked at Madison.
She held the pot carefully.
After a long moment, he moved his hand away from his cup.
And let her pour.
Not a drop spilled.
“Thank you,” he said.
Madison smiled through tears.
“See you tomorrow, Mr. Kessler.”
He looked at her.
Then at me.
“Tomorrow.”
When he’d finished, he placed his familiar coins on the counter.
One dollar and eighty-five cents.
Chad rang it up without hesitation.
He had created a special entry in the register.
*Ed’s Breakfast — $1.85.*
He told me that price would never change.
Because some things mattered more than money.
***
People still ask why I didn’t walk away when Chad moved me to the dishwashing room.
