The Brief Début of Tildy

At Bogle's Chop House on Eighth Avenue, two waitresses named Tildy and Aileen served the same rows of tables every day.Aileen was tall and graceful, and every customer who came in seemed to fall a little in love with her.Tildy was plain and plump, with hay-colored hair, and most customers never looked at her twice.

Men brought Aileen small gifts and invited her to the theater, while Tildy only refilled their coffee cups.Tildy never complained, but she quietly wished that someone, just once, would notice her the way they noticed Aileen.One evening, a thin, shy customer named Mr. Seeders came in, and it was easy to see he had had too much to drink.

As he was leaving, Mr. Seeders suddenly put his arm around Tildy's waist and kissed her cheek, then hurried out the door before she could say a word.Tildy stood frozen for a moment, her face bright red, and then she felt something she had never felt at work before: she felt chosen."A gentleman paid me a great compliment today," she told the other waitresses proudly, and for the first time, they all turned to listen to her.

That night, Tildy bought new ribbons for her hair and stayed up late imagining that Mr. Seeders was secretly in love with her.For three days, she rearranged her hair before every shift and watched the door every time it opened.She imagined he would return any moment, take her hand, and tell her he could not stop thinking about her.

On the third day, Mr. Seeders did come back — sober this time, his face pale with embarrassment.He walked straight to Tildy's table and, twisting his hat in his hands, began to apologize."I had far too much to drink the other night," he said quietly. "I would never treat a lady that way if I were sober. I hope you can forgive me."

Tildy's happy dream broke all at once, and she turned and walked quickly to the kitchen so no one would see her cry.Aileen followed her, and instead of teasing her, put an arm around Tildy's shoulders and let her cry among the stacked dishes.In that small, steamy kitchen, Tildy learned that even the prettiest girl in the room could still be a true friend.