A Japanese visitor named Higashi went into a restaurant hoping to get a warm lunch. However, veteran server Andy had a clever strategy for foreign patrons who couldn’t communicate in English.
He cheated on Higashi by giving him reheated leftovers. Andy was gravely mistaken the last time he imagined he’d get away with it.
Sizzling Steak was bustling with diners heading for dinner. With a rehearsed smile, Louise, a rookie waitress still getting used to her routine, slid between tables.
At that moment, she noticed a perfectly groomed middle-aged Japanese man wearing an overcoat and kimono.
He took in his surroundings and decided on a corner table. With her menu in hand, Louise ran over. “Hello, and welcome to Sizzling Steak,” she said. Higashi, the guy, grinned back, crinkling his eyes with pleasure.
He gestured at the image of a succulent steak while speaking quickly in Japanese. He said again, “Steak,” and then, “With rice… rice bowl!”
Louise, whose knowledge of Japanese was restricted to simple greetings, understood the difficulty. Brightly, she exclaimed, “Of course, sir, we have a delicious steak option!” “We don’t have rice bowls, but would you like fries with your steak?”
Higashi gave a forceful nod. “Cheddar! Alright, alright.”
Louise felt nauseous as she turned to go. A half-eaten steak sat cold and unappealing by the counter. With a frown, she grabbed a plate to remove it.
A harsh voice suddenly yelled, “Hold on there, child! What are you doing, in your opinion? Why throw away delicious food?”
It was Andy, the older server, who always had a frown on his face. With a sly smile playing on his lips, he glanced at the plate and then at the unwary client.
Grabbing Louise’s plate, he growled, “Waste not, want not!” “Serve it to him!”
Louise felt her stomach churn. “Mr. Miller, we are unable to serve that!” she exclaimed. “It’s cold and…”
Andy cut him off, waving a dismissive hand and saying, “Relax.” “New guy in town, probably won’t know the difference.”
“But it’s wrong!” Panic started to seep into Louise’s voice. “What if he complains?”
Andy chuckled and turned his head back, attracting unwelcome attention. “Louise, come on,” he said. “He is merely a traveler. doesn’t use any English at all. You have to admit, easy pickings.”
Louise’s mouth tightened. It went against all she believed in to serve leftover food. However, Andy, who was now her lone supporter, was exerting pressure on her, and the thought of losing her work was a cold, heavy weight in her stomach.
“But I’m unable to! I can’t give him rubbish. It’s not allowed to do that,” she exclaimed.
“Look at it this way: you’re saving food from going to waste,” Andy replied.
“If you don’t follow my rules, I can get you kicked out. I can say you stole the steak, and no one will know it went in the bin.”
Louise’s cheeks burned with shame. She took up the platter with shaky hands and gave it to Higashi.
“This isn’t what I ordered,” Higashi stated, gesturing to the dish. “No, I don’t want this.”
Andy appeared beside the table, his expression darkening, before Louise could reply.
He said, “What’s going on here?” Disregarding Louise’s beseeching expression, he grabbed the plate from her hand and forcefully set it down again.
He growled, “Hold on a second, Jackie Chan,” at Higashi. “I take it this is your order? Consume it!”
“Mr. Miller, stop it!” Blurted Louise. “He is a client! Show consideration!”
Disregarding her, Andy persisted in making racial jokes and pressuring Higashi to consume the cold steak. Perplexed and in pain, Higashi got up from his seat and obviously wanted to go away.
However, as he turned, hundreds of dollars were exposed when a wad of cash fell out of his wallet. After placing a hundred dollars on the table, he started to walk away. Andy’s eyes briefly flashed with avarice at that time. He made a sudden move to stop Higashi’s escape.
His voice had become oily as he exclaimed, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on there!” “That’s… That’s a lot of dough you got there, buddy!”
As Andy conjured up a false story to hold onto Higashi and his money, Louise watched, her gut churning. Louise was aware that his promises of an opulent experience and a great lunch were all lies. Louise was forced to play along with Andy’s charade as he thrust the $100 money into her hand.
Things were getting out of control. Louise needed to figure out how to keep herself, her career, and Higashi safe. But she didn’t know what to do next because Andy’s urgency was getting stronger.
Higashi looked over the warm meals Andy had brought out, a look of relief on his face. The smell of teriyaki chicken and grilled salmon filled the room, a welcome contrast to the chilly, reheated steak. The unplanned feast was finished with a bottle of sake, its exquisite label indicative of his homeland.
“Free for our esteemed guest!” Declared Andy, his tone brimming with fake happiness. “A token of our appreciation!”
Higashi gave a blink. “Free?” he enquired.
“Absolutely!” Andy let out a loud cry. “Not a penny out of your pocket, my friend.”
Andy’s hand jerked as he reached for a dainty sake cup to pour, splattering rice wine all over Higashi’s immaculate topcoat.
“Oh, no!” Andy cried out, scrunching up his face like he was apologizing. I apologize so much, my friend. You should not fear; I will quickly clean this up. Here, we provide excellent dry cleaning services.
Higashi dove as he reached for the coat, holding onto it securely.
“No… okay,” he stumbled to himself. “It’s alright! Alright.”
“You cannot be seen wearing a stained article of clothing. Come on, Andy insisted, let me handle this.”
With an aggressive gait, he lunged at the overcoat once more. Louise interjected after spotting the struggle.
She yelled, “Mr. Miller, stop it!” “The coat will dry on its own.”
“Shut up, girl!” Andy gave a hiss. “This is none of your concern!”
Andy grabbed the coat from Higashi’s hand before Louise could respond any further, and he vanished behind a swinging door that said “Staff Only.” Higashi followed him with his gaze, his bewilderment transforming into fear.
A knot of fear tightened in Louise’s gut. She got up from the table and ran after him without hesitation.
Andy entered the room and took Higashi’s topcoat out of his pockets. He took out large amounts of cash from it, much to his surprise.
“What are you doing?” Louise came up to him. “This is not permitted. No way can you take his money!”
“Go outside!” Andy yelled.
“And don’t worry about this. Everything’s under control. You know this money can change our lives.”
“Mr. Miller, no. You ought to return that money,” Louise remarked.
“Are you serious? Louise, here’s your chance to make a change in your life!” Andy gasped. “Come on, take this money!”
“No, I won’t!” Louise objected.
“We grabbed this money from him, and he won’t even know it. That Samurai Jack is quite wealthy. He is a wealthy man. A few lost dollars won’t have an impact. Louise, believe me. Accept this cash!” As he gave Louise a bundle of cash, Andy remarked.
She grabbed the money from him under duress. She answered, “All right, I’ll take it.”
“That’s the spirit!” Andy gave a cheer. “Please just see to it that he finishes his food quickly. I’m going to mend this overcoat.”
Louise took a hairpin out of her own hair as soon as Andy exited the staff area and opened his locker. She would not allow him to keep the money that was taken. She wanted to give Higashi all of his money back.
“Excuse me, sir?” Louise ran to the table and blurted out. She inhaled deeply before extending the wads of cash. “Please accept this. You have the money. Accept it.”
He uttered, “I don’t understand.” “I apologize.”
“You own this money. Your money,” she murmured, gesturing to him. “You were taken advantage of. Mr. Miller, my senior waiter, stole your money. I’m returning it to you.”
With an unreadable face, Higashi fixed his gaze on her. The obstacle of language stood out, causing frustration as it stood between them.
Louise didn’t give up and instead pulled out her phone to utilize an app for translation. When Higashi realized what had transpired, he was astounded.
There was a tense silence, but then the restaurant door banged open. Andy was walking in with a police officer. Andy pointed at Louise and Higashi, virtually bouncing with delight.
He said, “There they are, officer!” in a loud voice. “The offenders! They stole my money. I’ve got evidence.”
Louise felt her heart thump in her chest.
She stumbled and said, “No, officer, it’s not true!” “He’s the one who’s been stealing!”
With a cunning look on his lips, Andy pulled out his phone before she could give him an explanation. A video flared to life as soon as he tapped the screen.
With her back to the camera, Louise was seen stealing cash from a locker and putting it in her purse. Louise’s face was devoid of blood.
“She took out money from my locker and gave it to this man!” Andy told a falsehood. “She’s a criminal!”
She yelled, her voice trembling, “It’s not what it looks like, officer!”
The policeman looked at the footage without emotion. He turned to Louise when it was over. “Please move aside. You have some questions to respond to.”
“No, officer,” Higashi stated in a firm voice. “Not her. You ought to question that man.”
With calm rage burning in his eyes, he turned to face Andy. “Because he’s the real thief, not us!”
Higashi proved to be an excellent English speaker. He was still aware of what Andy had said in the restaurant earlier.
He extracted a business card from his pocket. “You don’t know who I am. I’m a journalist and I’m here to write about this place specifically.”
“I can also prove the money belongs to me. I can prove Andy stole it from me,” he said. “My cash is marked blue. You just need to soak it in water to see the mark. Would you bother giving me one of the bills that you stole?”
“I didn’t steal anything!” Andy objected, trembling in his voice. He was aware of his problems.
The officer told Andy, “Do as he says!”
Higashi immediately soaked one of the bills in water after Andy gave it to him, exposing a blue mark. “Observe, policeman. That’s what I was referring to.”
The officer was then certain that Higashi was not at fault.
“And what about this waitress? This video shows she’s stealing money.”
“I didn’t steal anything,” Louise said. “Please come with me so I can show you the entire CCTV footage of the staff room. Mr. Miller entered before me to steal the money from Higashi’s overcoat. I just wanted to return it to our customer.”
It was quickly evident that Andy was the one at fault. The officer swiftly handcuffed Andy and then led him outside the restaurant.
“Thank you so much, sir!” Louise gave Higashi a hug.
“Louise, I appreciate your courage and honesty,” Higashi grinned. “I have an offer for you.”
“If you’re ever looking for a job, I might have a position for you in our New York office,” he said. “You’re an honest worker, and we need more individuals like you in our organization. If you’re interested, you can get in touch with me or visit our website.” He gave Louise his business card.
“I’m grateful. I really appreciate this,” Louise remarked.
“Consider it a reward for your bravery!” Higashi gave a wink. “You deserve it!”
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