Alissa stares at the food truck sitting in her uncle’s driveway. It has been sitting since he had his heart attack. When he died, he had left her all his possessions. He was the only one that supported her and didn’t turn his back on her when she came out being transgender. He paid for her to attend L’Academie de Cuisine to get her Culinary Arts Degree.

“Well, its going to need some work, but I think we can get it up to standards.” Gregory comes walking out of it.

“How much do you think it will cost to get it up and running?” Alissa really wanted to put it back on the road.

She already had a few companies that were excited about her getting her own truck. She had a small catering business she operated out of a converted garage. Her uncle had turned his garage into a kitchen for her to run the catering business from. Her and Gregory had built up the clientele while going to school.

Gregory does the math in his head. If he and his cousin Jimmy could get the truck down to his garage. They could get most of it done within the week. He knew they still had to get it inspected by the health inspector and get their food peddler license. Since, the truck was going to be
named differently from their catering business. They would need to get a business license as well.

“We’re looking at fifty thousand dollars. That’s with a complete motor rebuild and a new generator. Since we already have a business license for the catering business. We could make the truck business a subsidiary.” Gregory figures he would handle the licenses, while Alissa put together the menu.

He had a degree in business and handle all their business matters. He had helped her start the catering business. She was a first-class cook and could had gone to work for any of the five-star restaurants, but she wanted to start her own business.

She had told him her uncle had inspired her to start the catering business. He had seen how determine she was when she came to class half asleep from staying up long hours to prepare everything for her clients. That was when he knew she was the right partner for him.

“Fifty thousand.” Alissa had most of it already from the catering business and from the life insurance policy her uncle had taken out.The money left over from burying her uncle and his investments.

“I have the money. How soon do you think he could get started on it?” Alissa walks over to look inside the van.

It was going to take a lot of work to get it up to standards, but she was willing to put the work in to accomplish it. Alissa turns around to face Gregory.

“Thanks for everything Gregory. Tell your cousin, him and his employee’s will get free lunches from us.” Alissa figures that was the least they could do for them.

“Oh, you just made a big mistake. Those guys can put away some food.” Gregory knew his cousin’s employees could put away some food.

“Don’t forget, we have a big event tomorrow we need to start on. I think it’s going to be an all-nighter. I called Jessie to come in and help. He said that he had a cousin that needed some work. I told him to bring them in to help out.” Alissa knew even with four people cooking and packing everything, they were going to be cooking all night long.

Alissa walks over towards the door and heads inside. She turns the lights on and put some music on. A few seconds later, Gregory comes walking in. Both scrub up and put hairnets and gloves on as they start pulling everything for the meals they were going to prepare.

Alissa was going to make the home-made noodles, while Gregory cut up the meats they needed for the goulash. There was a knock at the door.

“Come in.” Alissa hands were messy with the dough she was mixing.

Jessie walks in with a short brown hair young woman walking behind him. Jessie notices Alissa mixing dough and Gregory cutting up meat and vegetables.

“You guys could have waited on me.” Jessie hangs his coat up on the hooks.

Bobby follows behind her cousin. She was lucky he was still talking to her. She came out to her parents and friends about being transgender.
Most of her friends didn’t have a problem with it and were willing to help her. However, her family was a different story. Her parents threw her out of the house, literally. Her step-father had picked her up and tossed her out of the house head first. She had hurt her wrist when she landed. He then proceeded to toss her stuff out from her bedroom window.

He broke her laptop and the one art piece she had been very proud of. All her things were littering the ground. She had called Jessie and asked him to come over and help her.

She lost her job at the auto parts place because her father was pals with her supervisor. He was the reason she had gotten the job in the first place.

When Jessie told her that a friend of his needed some help with her catering business. She jumped on the chance to work with him. Jessie has always been a wonderful cousin and treated her right.

“What do you want me to start on? Oh, this is my cousin Bobby. She’s real artistic.” Jessie was proud of his cousin.

“You can start on the schnitzel. We need two hundred of them. She can help you with those.” Alissa glances over towards Bobby to see if she had a apron in her side.

“Give her an apron from storage to wear, Jessie.” Alissa made sure everyone wore proper attire while they were cooking.

There was one health inspector downtown that didn’t like her. She wouldn’t give him any kickback from her catering gigs. He tried to shut her down several times, but if it wasn’t for the mayor stepping in the last time to protect her. He would had succeeded in shutting her down.

He now makes spot inspections, but she makes sure to record his visits.

All night long they prepare everything for the event. It was all German food, including the beer. She had a person at the local beer distributor that sold her authentic German beer. She had a license to buy wholesale and serve it at the event.

By the time morning came. None of them could keep their eyes open. Bobby had fallen asleep on a portable cot around five in the morning that Alissa kept in a backroom. Jessie was going to stay and sleep on the other cot that was in there.

Bobby had asked if she could come along and help serve during the event. Alissa had said she would think about it. She peeks in on Jessie and Bobby to see how they were doing. They were sound asleep.

Alissa and Gregory head inside the house and lay down for a few hours. They had everything prep and ready to go. Alissa takes a nice relaxing shower in the Master bedroom bathroom, while Gregory takes one in the main bathroom.

Once Alissa was done with her shower, she sets the alarm clock and fall onto her bed. It doesn’t take her long to fall asleep. By noon time she is woken-up by her alarm clock and slowly get dress in her catering uniform. When she steps out of her bedroom, Gregory meets her, and they head outside to the catering kitchen. Jessie was up fixing some brunch for himself and Bobby.

Alissa grabs a spare catering uniform for Bobby to wear.

While Alissa was loading up the catering van with the food with Jessie and Gregory’s help. Bobby was getting dress and ready. Jessie told her what she was going to be doing at the event. She comes out of the bathroom and help load the rest of the food and beer onto the van.

The food smelled heavily. As she takes a seat in the back behind Gregory. He was driving, while Jessie acted as navigator.

The place they were setting up at was a conference room in a fancy hotel. The place didn’t like that they didn’t get the catering contract, but Alissa didn’t care. The organizer of the group they were catering for wanted authentic German food. The hotel didn’t have any one to do it. Her catering company knew how, and they got the contract.

“So, Bobby are you an artist?” Alissa had turned around in her seat to look at Bobby.

“Yes ma’am, but I’ve only manage to sell a few of my pieces. I mostly do logo’s or drawings of characters for people on the web.” Bobby enjoyed drawing, painting and sculpting, but couldn’t afford any of the art schools. So, she used video’s off YouTube to learn how to do things.

“I might have a logo for you to draw for me. It’s going to be on our new lunch truck. Do you think you can do it?” Alissa wanted to see what the girl had.

“Yes ma’am. I’ll do a few test drawings for you.” Bobby couldn’t believe she was getting a shot at doing some art that would be seen by everyone.

They arrive at the hotel and park. A few staff members help them unload and take everything up to the conference room. The staff had set the tables up nicely for the event.

Alissa, Bobby, Jessie and Gregory get everything setup as a buffet style so, people could have whatever they wanted. Gregory was serving the beer, while Jessie, Alissa and Bobby served the food and refill any containers that go empty.

The event starts and for the rest of the night Alissa and her crew are kept busy. Once everyone had left. Anything that was left over was shared with the hotel staff. Alissa and her people took a plate each.

By the time they get home. It was late. Bobby goes home with Jessie, while Gregory and Alissa put the dirty utensils in the dishwasher to clean before heading to bed.