07-01-2009, 11:59 PM
![[Image: 15o9y05.png]](http://i40.tinypic.com/15o9y05.png)
"Ah, adolescence. The years of High school, drama, love, changes, fighting, angst, rebelion, and responsibility."
Welcome to Aldertown, population: 500.
A place of relaxation. A place to hang out with friends. A place to chillax at the local coffee shop. A place of new beginings.
This is the story of the events that happen in this very Coffee Shop. Follow a group of teenagers through the course of one year, and the drama that occurs. Experience the drama. Experience the laughs. Experience the hook-ups and the break-ups. Experience the romance. Experience the friendships. And most important, experience the hormones in these angsty teenagers!
What more could you want?!
1:God I hate my job, (Click to View)
Monday
“Ugh! When is he going to get here? He’s thirty minutes late!” growled a girl between clenched teeth. She sat at a wooden table on an uncomfortable chair. Her acrylic fingernails tapped along to a gushy pop song playing from the speakers above. She glanced at her cell phone. It was 5:30.
“Fan frigging tastic,” she thought to herself, watching as the hands on the clock ticked by, “He’s so going to get it if he even thinks of showing up now……” she huffed. Her fingers then moved their way to her tan short-shorts. She fumbled around in her pockets till she found what she needed. She pulled out a ten and held it in her hand. Then she made her way to the front counter, it was rush hour so the line was a bit long. As she waited in line, she played with a strand of her long strawberry blonde hair. She glanced again at the clock. 5:34.
“He had better have a good reason for being late…..” She muttered under her breath as she now approached the counter. The cashier had a glum look on her face. She obviously did not want to be here. Her hair was a bit messy and hung loosely on both sides of her face. She wore a green apron over a plain black tee-shirt. On her right breast she had a pin reading, “Greetings Customer, My name is Haley.”
“Good god, her bags could fit my groceries,” the girl thought with a shudder. She then cleared her throat.
“Yeah, I’ll have one small coffee,” She muttered, gazing at the board above the cashier. The cashier, named Haley, looked at the girl with a bored expression. She made a guttural sound in her throat before responding to the girl’s order.
“That’s it? No caramel, no late, no foam, no certain temperature, no sugar, no decaf, no wet or dry, no chocolate, no flavor, no ice, just a plain Jane coffee? Where do you think you are, Dunkin Donuts?” She scoffed. She then went to making the girl’s drink. As Haley brewed up her small coffee, the girl decided to sit back down at her table. Another song started to play in the speakers. This one, she actually liked. She sang along to it.
“I know you want me; I know I want ‘cha. ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR! UNO! DOS! TRES! QUATRO!” She shouted out, getting into the song. She was getting odd stares now.
“What a messed up child,” said a business woman with an air of snobbishness. She held a cup of extra decaf in her hands. The girl gave a sneer to her, giving her the finger when she looked away. The girl then heard a ring from a hand bell. Her order was ready. She rushed over to the counter, starving for her beverage. When she got to Haley, she placed the coffee on the marble counter.
“There, one old school rinky-dink same ol’ lack-luster cup o’ crap.” Haley sighed, some of the drink spilled on the counter, she had forgotten to place a lid on the coffee cup. The girl scowled at Haley, her fingers had been scalded by coffee!
“YEOCH!” She screamed a bit contained, she held her fingers in her hand. Haley looked impressed with her work.
“Oops, looks like you forgot to ask for a lid,” Said Haley, enjoying every second of the girl’s torment. The girl then noticed something odd about the cup of coffee. She picked it up, her temper rising.
“What the hell is this?” She asked Haley curtly, pointing to her cup.
“That’s the most boring order you could have possibly chosen,” Haley said, yawning a bit.
“Not that,” the girl muttered, “I ordered a small, what the hell is this?” She asked, pointing yet again to her coffee, emphasizing on the “small”.
“It’s your order. A tall coffee,” she said, losing interest.
“Tall? I asked for a small-“
“We don’t sell small here, we sell short, tall, Grande, and venti.” Haley said, pointing up to the order board above her.
“What the- I ordered a SMALL,”
“No, you ordered a TALL”
“SMALL!”
“TALL! You are in S-T-A-R-B-U-C-K-S! There is no small, there is only tall. No small here. Never was, never will be! Now take your coffee before I call the manager on you....” Haley was starting to lose her patience; there were always these types of customers.
“Why you….” It was the girl’s time to speak up, and she had a couple of choice words for her. She took a deep breath.
“Oh, but before you b**** out on me, you forgot your cream,” Said Haley, taking a whipped cream bottle and spraying it all over the girl’s chest, “that’ll be a buck twenty five.” Haley said with a nod. It was the end of the line. Before the girl could even lunge at Haley to strangle her, she heard a bell from the front of the shop. Someone had entered the shop.
“There you are!” A boy with shocking pink-red hair raced up to the front counter. He put his right arm around the girl’s waist. “Sorry I’m late, the coach kept us in for- what the hell happened to you……” He asked confused, noticing his girlfriend’s creamed cleavage.
“Ugh! Let’s just get out of here!” The girl cried out, grabbing the collar of the boy’s shirt and dragging him towards the exit door.
“Hey hey hey! What has gotten into you today, Claire?” The boy asked the Girl named Claire. He took his other hand and wiped the cream off of Claire’s skin.
“Nothing, just hit a little snag……that’s all,” Claire sighed. She then glared at her boyfriend.
“You are nearly an hour late! Good god Zac, you really need to keep track of time!” She began to chew him out.
“Why do I even bother? All she does is nag, nag, and nag. But I can’t ignore those leading ladies of hers……and I guess she can be a sweet-heart,” thought Zac, nearly tuning out what his girlfriend had been saying.
“-and that’s why I really want this to work out!” Claire finished, putting her hand on Zac’s shoulder.
“Yeah, I guess so.” Zac said with a smile.
“You didn’t hear a damn word I said, did you,” Claire said monotonously. Zac shrugged his shoulders awkwardly, “Ugh! Just listen for one second Zac! I really do love you, but you don’t seem to be placing your side of the bargain! It seems to be like this every day with you, and I just don’t…….” She continued to ramble on as she dragged her boyfriend out of the shop, walking briskly out the door.
“Kill me……..” Zac thought with a sigh, and followed her out.
Haley stood at the counter. She took a rag from her apron pocket and cleaned up the spilt coffee. She then picked up the cup left over and took a sip of it. She then sighed and lay back, resting on the wall of the Starbucks shop.
“Why me?”
“Ugh! When is he going to get here? He’s thirty minutes late!” growled a girl between clenched teeth. She sat at a wooden table on an uncomfortable chair. Her acrylic fingernails tapped along to a gushy pop song playing from the speakers above. She glanced at her cell phone. It was 5:30.
“Fan frigging tastic,” she thought to herself, watching as the hands on the clock ticked by, “He’s so going to get it if he even thinks of showing up now……” she huffed. Her fingers then moved their way to her tan short-shorts. She fumbled around in her pockets till she found what she needed. She pulled out a ten and held it in her hand. Then she made her way to the front counter, it was rush hour so the line was a bit long. As she waited in line, she played with a strand of her long strawberry blonde hair. She glanced again at the clock. 5:34.
“He had better have a good reason for being late…..” She muttered under her breath as she now approached the counter. The cashier had a glum look on her face. She obviously did not want to be here. Her hair was a bit messy and hung loosely on both sides of her face. She wore a green apron over a plain black tee-shirt. On her right breast she had a pin reading, “Greetings Customer, My name is Haley.”
“Good god, her bags could fit my groceries,” the girl thought with a shudder. She then cleared her throat.
“Yeah, I’ll have one small coffee,” She muttered, gazing at the board above the cashier. The cashier, named Haley, looked at the girl with a bored expression. She made a guttural sound in her throat before responding to the girl’s order.
“That’s it? No caramel, no late, no foam, no certain temperature, no sugar, no decaf, no wet or dry, no chocolate, no flavor, no ice, just a plain Jane coffee? Where do you think you are, Dunkin Donuts?” She scoffed. She then went to making the girl’s drink. As Haley brewed up her small coffee, the girl decided to sit back down at her table. Another song started to play in the speakers. This one, she actually liked. She sang along to it.
“I know you want me; I know I want ‘cha. ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR! UNO! DOS! TRES! QUATRO!” She shouted out, getting into the song. She was getting odd stares now.
“What a messed up child,” said a business woman with an air of snobbishness. She held a cup of extra decaf in her hands. The girl gave a sneer to her, giving her the finger when she looked away. The girl then heard a ring from a hand bell. Her order was ready. She rushed over to the counter, starving for her beverage. When she got to Haley, she placed the coffee on the marble counter.
“There, one old school rinky-dink same ol’ lack-luster cup o’ crap.” Haley sighed, some of the drink spilled on the counter, she had forgotten to place a lid on the coffee cup. The girl scowled at Haley, her fingers had been scalded by coffee!
“YEOCH!” She screamed a bit contained, she held her fingers in her hand. Haley looked impressed with her work.
“Oops, looks like you forgot to ask for a lid,” Said Haley, enjoying every second of the girl’s torment. The girl then noticed something odd about the cup of coffee. She picked it up, her temper rising.
“What the hell is this?” She asked Haley curtly, pointing to her cup.
“That’s the most boring order you could have possibly chosen,” Haley said, yawning a bit.
“Not that,” the girl muttered, “I ordered a small, what the hell is this?” She asked, pointing yet again to her coffee, emphasizing on the “small”.
“It’s your order. A tall coffee,” she said, losing interest.
“Tall? I asked for a small-“
“We don’t sell small here, we sell short, tall, Grande, and venti.” Haley said, pointing up to the order board above her.
“What the- I ordered a SMALL,”
“No, you ordered a TALL”
“SMALL!”
“TALL! You are in S-T-A-R-B-U-C-K-S! There is no small, there is only tall. No small here. Never was, never will be! Now take your coffee before I call the manager on you....” Haley was starting to lose her patience; there were always these types of customers.
“Why you….” It was the girl’s time to speak up, and she had a couple of choice words for her. She took a deep breath.
“Oh, but before you b**** out on me, you forgot your cream,” Said Haley, taking a whipped cream bottle and spraying it all over the girl’s chest, “that’ll be a buck twenty five.” Haley said with a nod. It was the end of the line. Before the girl could even lunge at Haley to strangle her, she heard a bell from the front of the shop. Someone had entered the shop.
“There you are!” A boy with shocking pink-red hair raced up to the front counter. He put his right arm around the girl’s waist. “Sorry I’m late, the coach kept us in for- what the hell happened to you……” He asked confused, noticing his girlfriend’s creamed cleavage.
“Ugh! Let’s just get out of here!” The girl cried out, grabbing the collar of the boy’s shirt and dragging him towards the exit door.
“Hey hey hey! What has gotten into you today, Claire?” The boy asked the Girl named Claire. He took his other hand and wiped the cream off of Claire’s skin.
“Nothing, just hit a little snag……that’s all,” Claire sighed. She then glared at her boyfriend.
“You are nearly an hour late! Good god Zac, you really need to keep track of time!” She began to chew him out.
“Why do I even bother? All she does is nag, nag, and nag. But I can’t ignore those leading ladies of hers……and I guess she can be a sweet-heart,” thought Zac, nearly tuning out what his girlfriend had been saying.
“-and that’s why I really want this to work out!” Claire finished, putting her hand on Zac’s shoulder.
“Yeah, I guess so.” Zac said with a smile.
“You didn’t hear a damn word I said, did you,” Claire said monotonously. Zac shrugged his shoulders awkwardly, “Ugh! Just listen for one second Zac! I really do love you, but you don’t seem to be placing your side of the bargain! It seems to be like this every day with you, and I just don’t…….” She continued to ramble on as she dragged her boyfriend out of the shop, walking briskly out the door.
“Kill me……..” Zac thought with a sigh, and followed her out.
Haley stood at the counter. She took a rag from her apron pocket and cleaned up the spilt coffee. She then picked up the cup left over and took a sip of it. She then sighed and lay back, resting on the wall of the Starbucks shop.
“Why me?”
2:Just another day.... (Click to View)
Wednesday
“Just another boring day. Serving coffee to boring people, getting below minimum wages. Woopty freaking doo,” Haley stood at the counter off the Starbucks coffee shop. She pulled away a strand of her long raven hair away from her eyes. She walked back to the coffee machine and put the ingredients in for her order. She then handed a finished Mocha Cappuccino to a teenager with large headphones. She handed her one dollar and ran off, giggling. Haley looked at the single dollar and was furious.
“HEY!!! YOU STILL OWE ME ANOTHER DOLLAR!!! Come back you sneak!!!” She shouted to the thief. The girl ran so fast, she didn’t see where she was going.
“Waaaaa!!!!” The girl ran right into a pretty girl just walking into the shop. The collision was so big; it caused the headphone girl to spill her coffee all over the second girl. It also made the pretty girl drop everything in her hands. Her papers clattered along with a paintbrush and paints. The lid of the paints popped open and spilled their many colors onto the floor.
“Oh dear!” The pretty girl cried out as she quickly fumbled on the floor for her materials. Luckily the paint didn’t stain the floor. She blushed, embarrassed and made her way to a table. She set her papers, paints, and brushes on the table. She let her fingers drum on the pad of paper she was carrying. A nice song was playing as she took out her paintbrush.
“This is the story of a girl. I cried a river and drowned the whole world! Well she looks so sad in photographs. I absolutely love her, when she smiles!”
The girl tapped her foot along to the nice tune. As she tapped, she placed her fine brush in the blue paint. She made a symbol on the paper with beautiful, graceful strokes. Her foot tapping became more graceful, each heel tap creating a soft “tak” sound. It blended naturally with the current song playing.
“What is that annoying tapping?!” Haley thought, covering her ears with coffee filters. The harder she pressed on the filters, the louder the tapping got.
“Tak, tak, takkity-tak, tak. Tak. TAK, TAK, TAKKITY TAK!!!!” All she heard was the monotonous sound coming from inside the shop. She finally lost it.
“SHUT THAT BLASTED TAPPING!!!” She screamed, tossing her coffee pot to the side and spraying the customer in front of her with decaffeinated beverage. His silvery black hair was soaked, along with his matching black get-up. He didn’t really react too well from the little splash.
“YAAAAAAAH!!!!! Holy hell of a mother sugar shiz muffin!!!!” The guy screamed out dramatically. He ran out of the shop in a tizzy.
“Ah well, one less customer. He’s just acting like a drama queen. He’ll be back.” Haley thought with a sigh. The tapping had stopped. She then went to polishing her nails with a file in her pocket. She was so into her work, she heard a bell sound. She looked up to see a very pretty girl smiling at her.
“Oh great…….another smiley…..” she muttered looking at her.
“Welcome to starbucks, what would you like today?” She asked the girl half-heartedly.
“Oh, hi….Haley,” she said reading Haley’s nametag, “My name is Stephanie, oh, um sorry about the tapping…..that was me,” She said, looking down a bit.
“That was her?! Why I ought a…..” She thought angrily, but she kept it inside, “Oh, no problem at all,” she lied behind her teeth, a fake smile plastered to her face, “A ha ha, so what can I get you today?” She asked Stephanie. Stephanie then did what every other newcomer to the shop did.
“Ummmmmm……….uh………..oh shoot.” She muttered, looking at the menu board above Haley. Haley then sighed.
“Would you like to try today’s special?” She asked pointing to the chalkboard reading today’s special.
“Uh, no……I don’t really fancy frappuchinos……” Stephanie said slowly, looking at the menu.
“Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Make up your freaking mind already!” Haley shouted to herself. Stephanie then gasped and smiled.
“Oh! I’ll take a tall cup of Citrus Tea!” She squealed with joy and spun around in a graceful turn.
“What the hell is this chick on? At least she got the ordering right….not like that idiot a few days ago…..” Haley thought as she smiled at Stephanie, “sure, I’ll have it for you soon.” Haley said, and she went to make the tea. As Haley was working, Stephanie went back to painting. She then dipped her brush in the black paint. She continued to stroke her brush to the beat of the music. By the end of the song, she had a beautifully painted picture of an elegant pattern. As she was about to put it away to start another painting, Haley came back with her tea.
“Ok, that will be two dollars please………oh….my god. Did you paint that?” Haley asked astonished, pointing to the beautiful piece of art. She set the cup of tea on the table.
“Why yes……yes I did.” Stephanie said with a smile. She took a sip of the tea and smiled, “here you go,” she said, handing Haley two dollars. Haley looked very impressed, and she usually did not.
“Wow, that’s the most amazing act of artistry I’ve ever seen.” Haley said, really meaning it.
“Oh, why thank you, I’m aspiring to be a great painter someday.” She said with a smile. She took another sip of tea, “this is so delicious! Wow you are great at brewing,” Stephanie said with a smile. Haley was flattered, it wasn’t everyday when she was complemented on her skills.
“Oh why thank you, I-“
“Ba ba ba ba BITCHSLAP!!!!!” A familiar guy with silvery black hair ran into the shop and slapped Haley across the face. She fell onto the floor. Stephanie screamed out and ran out of the shop, taking her things with her. She hated violence.
“That’s for this morning sucka!!!” he shouted triumphantly. He then yanked the two dollars out of Haley’s hand and ran off out of the shop.
“Hey!! Where are you going?!” Haley shouted. “That’s the second thievery today!” she thought. She was still on the ground.
“Hello?! Is anyone going to go after him?!” She asked the other people in the shop as they ate and drank. They just shrugged and kept eating.
“Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” she shouted. She banged her fists on the floor.
“HELP!!!!” She shouted out angrily. People just kept eating.
“God I hate this job........."
“Just another boring day. Serving coffee to boring people, getting below minimum wages. Woopty freaking doo,” Haley stood at the counter off the Starbucks coffee shop. She pulled away a strand of her long raven hair away from her eyes. She walked back to the coffee machine and put the ingredients in for her order. She then handed a finished Mocha Cappuccino to a teenager with large headphones. She handed her one dollar and ran off, giggling. Haley looked at the single dollar and was furious.
“HEY!!! YOU STILL OWE ME ANOTHER DOLLAR!!! Come back you sneak!!!” She shouted to the thief. The girl ran so fast, she didn’t see where she was going.
“Waaaaa!!!!” The girl ran right into a pretty girl just walking into the shop. The collision was so big; it caused the headphone girl to spill her coffee all over the second girl. It also made the pretty girl drop everything in her hands. Her papers clattered along with a paintbrush and paints. The lid of the paints popped open and spilled their many colors onto the floor.
“Oh dear!” The pretty girl cried out as she quickly fumbled on the floor for her materials. Luckily the paint didn’t stain the floor. She blushed, embarrassed and made her way to a table. She set her papers, paints, and brushes on the table. She let her fingers drum on the pad of paper she was carrying. A nice song was playing as she took out her paintbrush.
“This is the story of a girl. I cried a river and drowned the whole world! Well she looks so sad in photographs. I absolutely love her, when she smiles!”
The girl tapped her foot along to the nice tune. As she tapped, she placed her fine brush in the blue paint. She made a symbol on the paper with beautiful, graceful strokes. Her foot tapping became more graceful, each heel tap creating a soft “tak” sound. It blended naturally with the current song playing.
“What is that annoying tapping?!” Haley thought, covering her ears with coffee filters. The harder she pressed on the filters, the louder the tapping got.
“Tak, tak, takkity-tak, tak. Tak. TAK, TAK, TAKKITY TAK!!!!” All she heard was the monotonous sound coming from inside the shop. She finally lost it.
“SHUT THAT BLASTED TAPPING!!!” She screamed, tossing her coffee pot to the side and spraying the customer in front of her with decaffeinated beverage. His silvery black hair was soaked, along with his matching black get-up. He didn’t really react too well from the little splash.
“YAAAAAAAH!!!!! Holy hell of a mother sugar shiz muffin!!!!” The guy screamed out dramatically. He ran out of the shop in a tizzy.
“Ah well, one less customer. He’s just acting like a drama queen. He’ll be back.” Haley thought with a sigh. The tapping had stopped. She then went to polishing her nails with a file in her pocket. She was so into her work, she heard a bell sound. She looked up to see a very pretty girl smiling at her.
“Oh great…….another smiley…..” she muttered looking at her.
“Welcome to starbucks, what would you like today?” She asked the girl half-heartedly.
“Oh, hi….Haley,” she said reading Haley’s nametag, “My name is Stephanie, oh, um sorry about the tapping…..that was me,” She said, looking down a bit.
“That was her?! Why I ought a…..” She thought angrily, but she kept it inside, “Oh, no problem at all,” she lied behind her teeth, a fake smile plastered to her face, “A ha ha, so what can I get you today?” She asked Stephanie. Stephanie then did what every other newcomer to the shop did.
“Ummmmmm……….uh………..oh shoot.” She muttered, looking at the menu board above Haley. Haley then sighed.
“Would you like to try today’s special?” She asked pointing to the chalkboard reading today’s special.
“Uh, no……I don’t really fancy frappuchinos……” Stephanie said slowly, looking at the menu.
“Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Make up your freaking mind already!” Haley shouted to herself. Stephanie then gasped and smiled.
“Oh! I’ll take a tall cup of Citrus Tea!” She squealed with joy and spun around in a graceful turn.
“What the hell is this chick on? At least she got the ordering right….not like that idiot a few days ago…..” Haley thought as she smiled at Stephanie, “sure, I’ll have it for you soon.” Haley said, and she went to make the tea. As Haley was working, Stephanie went back to painting. She then dipped her brush in the black paint. She continued to stroke her brush to the beat of the music. By the end of the song, she had a beautifully painted picture of an elegant pattern. As she was about to put it away to start another painting, Haley came back with her tea.
“Ok, that will be two dollars please………oh….my god. Did you paint that?” Haley asked astonished, pointing to the beautiful piece of art. She set the cup of tea on the table.
“Why yes……yes I did.” Stephanie said with a smile. She took a sip of the tea and smiled, “here you go,” she said, handing Haley two dollars. Haley looked very impressed, and she usually did not.
“Wow, that’s the most amazing act of artistry I’ve ever seen.” Haley said, really meaning it.
“Oh, why thank you, I’m aspiring to be a great painter someday.” She said with a smile. She took another sip of tea, “this is so delicious! Wow you are great at brewing,” Stephanie said with a smile. Haley was flattered, it wasn’t everyday when she was complemented on her skills.
“Oh why thank you, I-“
“Ba ba ba ba BITCHSLAP!!!!!” A familiar guy with silvery black hair ran into the shop and slapped Haley across the face. She fell onto the floor. Stephanie screamed out and ran out of the shop, taking her things with her. She hated violence.
“That’s for this morning sucka!!!” he shouted triumphantly. He then yanked the two dollars out of Haley’s hand and ran off out of the shop.
“Hey!! Where are you going?!” Haley shouted. “That’s the second thievery today!” she thought. She was still on the ground.
“Hello?! Is anyone going to go after him?!” She asked the other people in the shop as they ate and drank. They just shrugged and kept eating.
“Help! I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” she shouted. She banged her fists on the floor.
“HELP!!!!” She shouted out angrily. People just kept eating.
“God I hate this job........."
3: "Whatever, Sir" (Click to View)
Saturday
“HALEY FELICITY MARSHAL!!!” A sound like nails on a chalkboard rang through the coffee shop on a fine Saturday morning. Haley at that moment was holding a full pot of freshly brewed decaffeinated coffee. The sound was so high pitched, that she seriously thought that the pot would shatter right then and there in her tightly gripped hands.
“Coming Mr. Beauregard…….” Haley grumbled, pouring a happy couple a cup each of her special decaf blend.
“Why thank you miss,” The girl said with a smile. She gave her a tip of one dollar. Haley looked at the one lone dollar and grumbled.
“Oh the pleasure is all mine….really,” she said a little more flat than she should have. The couple then kissed each other, quite passionately for a public affair.
“Hello sailor…..” Haley muttered, watching the two go at it. Ugh, she HATED public displays of affection; it made her sick, “Ahem!” She cleared her throat as the girl was about to take off her shirt. The girl then giggled.
“Sorry, it’s our month-aversary,” She said with a smile. They had been together for a month. The couple then went back to sucking face. It was too much for Haley to take.
“Oh how touching. I’m just going to go throw up now……” Haley thought while wearing one of her many faux smiles.
“RIGHT NOW MISS MARSHAL!!!!” The sound this time was deafening. Customers had to cover their ears over the decibel-pounding noise. Once again, Haley smiled uncomfortably, her teeth gritting painfully.
“Alright already, don’t get your thong in a bunch…..” Haley muttered as she made her way behind the counter and through a door on the far right of the shop. She was greeted by a long hallway with doors on either side of her. She hated the color of the walls in this hallway, bile green. As she walked past each door, she grew even tenser. She passed by the door to the staff lounge, the door to the staff bathroom, and the door to the inventory room. She finally came to the last door in the hallway. She used her right hand to grasp the gold doorknob; her uneasy reflection stared back at her.
“MISS MARSHAL!!!!” Screamed Haley’s boss as she opened the door to his office, “You are twenty seven seconds late! That’s 27¢ off your paycheck,” he tisked, writing something down on his clipboard.
“I’m sorry Mr. Beauregard, It won’t happen again,” Said Haley, biting her tongue. She knew when to shut up and bow. Mr. Beauregard was one of the most uptight, organized, and bring person Haley had ever met. Every day he would come to work in the same attire; White buttoned-down shirt, Black suit with matching pants, shoes, and socks. The only thing different about him every day was the ties he wore. Haley (or all of Aldertown for that matter) had never seen him with the same tie on. Today he was wearing a blood red tie with white diagonal stripes across it. Mr. Beauregard cleared his throat. He tapped his fingers on his ivory desk. He did this for a good thirty seconds, just staring Haley down. Haley’s eyes wandered around the room. As usual, she couldn’t spot a single nit out of place. Mr. Beauregard liked to keep his room clean. Maybe it was his germ phobia talking or just a ploy to impress the big cats, but his room was spotless. You could eat off of his tiled floor. That’s right, tiled. Haley’s boss is so scared of germs and dirt that he ordered that the employees tear up his carpet and replace it with linoleum tiles (this of course came out of their paycheck). Mr. Beauregard then cleared his throat again.
“Miss Marshal, I have a favor to ask you if you will.” He said, folding his hands on his desk, looking at Haley with a neutral expression.
“What is it this time?” she thought with a groan, “clean his office? Protect him from the evil of nature? Massage his revolting feet?”
“I want you to hire some new employees,” He said with a sigh, looking at his clipboard. He tisked again and wrote something else down on the paper.
“Excuse me?” Haley asked, a bit confused at what her boss had just said. He then sighed and rolled his eyes at her.
“Did I freaking stutter? I said, go hire some more broke little teens who want to buy a car.” He muttered, again checking his clipboard. He apparently didn’t want to say anything else to her.
“I’m sorry sir, but how exactly do you want me to go by this?” Haley asked, using her fake sugary voice to woo her boss. He, of course wasn’t buying it.
“I don’t know. Make posters, call your friends, create ads in the paper, give them raises- actually don’t give them raises. Just use that minuscule mind of yours and cook up a scheme to reel in some suckers. We need more people working here; it’s a ghost town if you haven’t noticed. That, and the cash flow has declined this past week,” he said absent-mindedly, glancing at the statistics on the clipboard.
“We’re down ten dollars!” He yelped, sounding upset.
“Ten dollars? What ever shall we do?” Haley thought, smirking.
“So go do it. Do it right away or you’re fi-“Mr. Beauregard stopped in his tracks. He had a funny look in his eyes. He then reared backwards, dropping his keyboard on his desk. He looked a bit crazed. Haley looked at her boss, a bit confused at what was going on. Mr. Beauregard then lurched forward, stifling a sneeze in a handkerchief by his desk.
“Hih’tchsh!” he garbled uncontrollably. Haley made a disgusted face; she knew what was coming next.
“AHHH!!!! GERMS!!!” Mr. Beauregard’s bored expression changed to a frenzied face of a frightened little girl. He ran to a corner of his office and started spraying the place with fabreeze. He covered his mouth with his free hand.
“Ok boss, recruit employees. I’m on it,” Said Haley with a faded smile, her façade turned off. She turned on her heel to exit the room. She heard her boss gasping for breath and hyperventilating like a maniac as she shut the door to his office.
“I’m surrounded by psychopaths,” she thought with a groan, “I can’t believe he wants ME to go rustle up some team players. Who does he think I am, his secretary? No! I’m a barista, and that’s it. I didn’t sign up for babysitting a scared little girl.” She thought, opening the door to the front counter of the shop.
“Besides, who would ever want to work in a hell hole like this?”
“Um, Hi. It’s Claire. We met on Monday. I’d like to apply for a job here.”
“Apparently miss annoying does.”
“HALEY FELICITY MARSHAL!!!” A sound like nails on a chalkboard rang through the coffee shop on a fine Saturday morning. Haley at that moment was holding a full pot of freshly brewed decaffeinated coffee. The sound was so high pitched, that she seriously thought that the pot would shatter right then and there in her tightly gripped hands.
“Coming Mr. Beauregard…….” Haley grumbled, pouring a happy couple a cup each of her special decaf blend.
“Why thank you miss,” The girl said with a smile. She gave her a tip of one dollar. Haley looked at the one lone dollar and grumbled.
“Oh the pleasure is all mine….really,” she said a little more flat than she should have. The couple then kissed each other, quite passionately for a public affair.
“Hello sailor…..” Haley muttered, watching the two go at it. Ugh, she HATED public displays of affection; it made her sick, “Ahem!” She cleared her throat as the girl was about to take off her shirt. The girl then giggled.
“Sorry, it’s our month-aversary,” She said with a smile. They had been together for a month. The couple then went back to sucking face. It was too much for Haley to take.
“Oh how touching. I’m just going to go throw up now……” Haley thought while wearing one of her many faux smiles.
“RIGHT NOW MISS MARSHAL!!!!” The sound this time was deafening. Customers had to cover their ears over the decibel-pounding noise. Once again, Haley smiled uncomfortably, her teeth gritting painfully.
“Alright already, don’t get your thong in a bunch…..” Haley muttered as she made her way behind the counter and through a door on the far right of the shop. She was greeted by a long hallway with doors on either side of her. She hated the color of the walls in this hallway, bile green. As she walked past each door, she grew even tenser. She passed by the door to the staff lounge, the door to the staff bathroom, and the door to the inventory room. She finally came to the last door in the hallway. She used her right hand to grasp the gold doorknob; her uneasy reflection stared back at her.
“MISS MARSHAL!!!!” Screamed Haley’s boss as she opened the door to his office, “You are twenty seven seconds late! That’s 27¢ off your paycheck,” he tisked, writing something down on his clipboard.
“I’m sorry Mr. Beauregard, It won’t happen again,” Said Haley, biting her tongue. She knew when to shut up and bow. Mr. Beauregard was one of the most uptight, organized, and bring person Haley had ever met. Every day he would come to work in the same attire; White buttoned-down shirt, Black suit with matching pants, shoes, and socks. The only thing different about him every day was the ties he wore. Haley (or all of Aldertown for that matter) had never seen him with the same tie on. Today he was wearing a blood red tie with white diagonal stripes across it. Mr. Beauregard cleared his throat. He tapped his fingers on his ivory desk. He did this for a good thirty seconds, just staring Haley down. Haley’s eyes wandered around the room. As usual, she couldn’t spot a single nit out of place. Mr. Beauregard liked to keep his room clean. Maybe it was his germ phobia talking or just a ploy to impress the big cats, but his room was spotless. You could eat off of his tiled floor. That’s right, tiled. Haley’s boss is so scared of germs and dirt that he ordered that the employees tear up his carpet and replace it with linoleum tiles (this of course came out of their paycheck). Mr. Beauregard then cleared his throat again.
“Miss Marshal, I have a favor to ask you if you will.” He said, folding his hands on his desk, looking at Haley with a neutral expression.
“What is it this time?” she thought with a groan, “clean his office? Protect him from the evil of nature? Massage his revolting feet?”
“I want you to hire some new employees,” He said with a sigh, looking at his clipboard. He tisked again and wrote something else down on the paper.
“Excuse me?” Haley asked, a bit confused at what her boss had just said. He then sighed and rolled his eyes at her.
“Did I freaking stutter? I said, go hire some more broke little teens who want to buy a car.” He muttered, again checking his clipboard. He apparently didn’t want to say anything else to her.
“I’m sorry sir, but how exactly do you want me to go by this?” Haley asked, using her fake sugary voice to woo her boss. He, of course wasn’t buying it.
“I don’t know. Make posters, call your friends, create ads in the paper, give them raises- actually don’t give them raises. Just use that minuscule mind of yours and cook up a scheme to reel in some suckers. We need more people working here; it’s a ghost town if you haven’t noticed. That, and the cash flow has declined this past week,” he said absent-mindedly, glancing at the statistics on the clipboard.
“We’re down ten dollars!” He yelped, sounding upset.
“Ten dollars? What ever shall we do?” Haley thought, smirking.
“So go do it. Do it right away or you’re fi-“Mr. Beauregard stopped in his tracks. He had a funny look in his eyes. He then reared backwards, dropping his keyboard on his desk. He looked a bit crazed. Haley looked at her boss, a bit confused at what was going on. Mr. Beauregard then lurched forward, stifling a sneeze in a handkerchief by his desk.
“Hih’tchsh!” he garbled uncontrollably. Haley made a disgusted face; she knew what was coming next.
“AHHH!!!! GERMS!!!” Mr. Beauregard’s bored expression changed to a frenzied face of a frightened little girl. He ran to a corner of his office and started spraying the place with fabreeze. He covered his mouth with his free hand.
“Ok boss, recruit employees. I’m on it,” Said Haley with a faded smile, her façade turned off. She turned on her heel to exit the room. She heard her boss gasping for breath and hyperventilating like a maniac as she shut the door to his office.
“I’m surrounded by psychopaths,” she thought with a groan, “I can’t believe he wants ME to go rustle up some team players. Who does he think I am, his secretary? No! I’m a barista, and that’s it. I didn’t sign up for babysitting a scared little girl.” She thought, opening the door to the front counter of the shop.
“Besides, who would ever want to work in a hell hole like this?”
“Um, Hi. It’s Claire. We met on Monday. I’d like to apply for a job here.”
“Apparently miss annoying does.”
4: "Miss Perfect's little test (Click to View)
Saturday (Cont.)
“I’d like to apply for a job here please,” Claire said, brushing a strand of her strawberry blonde hair out of her eyes. Haley looked at Claire, the gears already turning in her head.
“He said recruit people…..but anyone but her.”
“Miss Marshal, recruit this young lady right now!!!”
“Mr. Beauregard? You’re even in my thoughts? Ugh that is so wrong,” Haley thought, shuddering uncomfortably. Claire took notice of this and tilted her head to one side, looking concerned.
“Everything alright?” She asked innocently. Haley then shook her head to clear her mind.
“Huh? Yeah, just a nightmare I had. You said you wanted a job?” Haley asked, leaning forward on the counter, looking at Claire intently.
“Well yeah, my boyfriend has been nagging at me to get a job. He’s sick of always having to pay for me when we go places. I mean, he knows that he’s the guy and that’s what they do. But there’s only so much he can take and I-“
“Ok Chatty Cathy, I asked if you wanted a job, not explain your whole love life,” Haley said, standing up again to prepare a new pot of coffee. She took the coffee beans and poured them in the machine.
“Just like my life, a bunch of beans scrambled around in different directions. All headed to one location……..the slaughterhouse.” Haley then pressed a button on the machine, and the coffee beans were grinded.
“Tch, it doesn’t look that hard,” Claire said with a laugh. She hopped over the counted and stood next to Haley.
“Alright then, I’ll make you a deal. If you can figure out how to make one cup of coffee and sell it to someone, I’ll hire you and promote you to assistant barista.” Haley said with an unexpected smile, “however, if you lose……you’ll become the clean up lady. You know, sweeping, cleaning up spills, stuff like that.” She finished.
“Really? That’s it? Too easy,” she said with a fiery look in her eyes.
“Alright then, deal?” Haley asked, extending her hand. Claire looked at it for a moment, and then looked around the shop. The place was pretty packed today; it wouldn’t be hard to get a customer to buy her coffee.
“Deal,” Claire said with a smile. She shook Haley’s hand firmly and giggled. The completion had begun. Haley then smiled at Claire.
“Well that’s a great little set up for me. I’ll leave the customers to you,” She said, grabbing her things from beneath the counter. She then gave Claire a friendly wave as she started for the exit.
“Wait! You’re leaving me to run the shop?!” Claire gasped, now realizing how unfair the bet had REALLY been.
“Hey, you said it was easy,” Haley said shrugging, “See you in a few hours,” she said, finally leaving her stressful job for at least a little while.
**************************************************
Claire was so lost. She looked over at the coffee machine. It appeared to be a hunk of ancient gibberish. She pressed a random button on the machine. A torrent of scalding coffee poured out and splattered the floor, and all over Claire’s person. The reaction was quick.
“ACK! Burn! It burns! It burns! IT BURNS!” She screamed out, doing a little seizure-like move. As Claire predicted, no one came to help or even react to Claire’s yelping. She then heard a ring from the front counter. It made her jump and turn around to face the cause of the noise. She was then face to face with a male. He had shocking red hair; sort of styled like that Brooklyn accented character from that card game show. He wore a green jacket with blue jeans. The Jacket was zipped down a bit, revealing his chest. Around his neck was a necklace made of wood, string, and metal beads. He had a smile on his face and a book in his right hand. Claire was able to glance at the title, “The secrets of Ancient Egypt”.
“Oh my god….he’s so dreamy. He seems smart because he’s reading a textbook, and he is to DIE for with those looks of his. Oh I don’t think Zac will mind if I just get a taste of him……oh yes…so handsome…so dreamy…..so…….so…….so,”
“Um, hello?” The guy asked confused. He had a screwed-up look on his face, as if Claire was sporting an extra two heads on her shoulders. Claire finally snapped out of her daydream.
“What? Oh, sorry. Eh, welcome to Starbucks…..can I take your order?” She asked him awkwardly. She had no idea how to greet a customer, especially in a coffee shop. The boy nodded and flashed Claire a smile. She nearly melted looking at him.
“Sure, I’ll have an Iced Caramel Latte, medium crème, with en extra dab of lemon. “ He said quickly, numbering off his order. Claire was so lost. She gave him a curt nod, still lost with the order he gave.
“Um, alright…..I think that will be,” Muttered Claire, glancing at the menu board behind her. She didn’t even know how much he had to pay her! She threw a guess, hoping it was right.
“That’ll be a dollar seventy five.” She finished, holding out her hand with a smile. The boy blushed slightly. He looked at Claire’s sweet face, and then his gaze drifted a bit lower. Finally his eyes caught her hand.
“Th-thank you miss. Uh, might I say your hair is most lovely today,” He complemented her, his gaze now on Claire’s near perfect blonde hair. The boy blushed even more.
“Ahhhh, she’s a blonde. So pretty. She even gave me a discount on my coffee,” The boy thought, still glancing all over Claire, examining her.
“I can feel his emerald eyes harvesting my body,” Claire thought dreamily again, “and who am I to stop him? Oh gawd take me away oh Egyptian scholar,” Claire thought as she leaned in closer to the boy. He did the same.
“She’s leaning forward, does she want a kiss? Oh my…..what do I do?” The boy thought, leaning forward for a kiss. They were about to embrace…..until,
“HEY! WHAT’S THE HOLDUP FOR?!” Claire and the boy broke from their trance. Now Claire could see that there was a huge line behind the boy. They were all holding their balled up fists in anger, shouting and cursing at her.
“Hurry up already!!” Shouted a woman holding her newborn baby. It was crying in her hands.
“We have lives you know!!” Argued a man in a suit. He was holding a briefcase.
“Where’s my morning wake-up?!” Screamed a girl in a pink dress. She looked cranky and tired.
“Burn her!!!” Shouted a grimy old hobo. He had a long white beard showing his age, “Burn her to the stake!” With this, everyone else stopped and looked at the hobo.
“What? We did it all the time in the 1930’s.” He responded with a shrug. Everyone else shrugged too. They sighed, and went back to shouting at Claire. She panicked, not knowing what to do.
“D-don’t worry everyone! I will attend to all of you shortly!” She answered, still terrified. She went to the back of the counter; she was going to create a cup of coffee. She was going to make food for the first time since she was six.
“Ok, where are the coffee beans?” She asked, not really expecting an answer. She franticly searched behind the counter. She had to work though the shouting and jeering of the angry customers. Finally, she found the beans underneath a shelf. She took the beans and poured them into the mixer. As she pressed the button, the beans began to grind into the nice powder. She collected it in a filter. She then put the filter into the coffee blender. She spilt some of the coffee grinds on the tiled floor.
“Good god, I’m making a total mess!” She gasped worriedly. Finally the coffee came out into the Starbucks cup. She then ran with the coffee to the flavoring station. However, she was spilling some of the scalding coffee all over the floor. Puddles of brown liquid stained the white tiled floors of the shop. At the flavoring station, she fumbled through the different additives. The angry crowd of customers continued to shout and bicker. They had all formed into one loud repetitive chant.
“Hurry up! Hurry up! Hurry up! HURRY UP!” The sound was deafening. It made Claire messily speed up her progress. She fumbled around with the whipped crème. She unfortunately misjudged how strong the spray really was. She jammed on the nozzle for the crème. It went haywire, spraying all over the place. The white foam got in her hair, coating the floor, and nearly fully coated the cup of coffee. But the order wasn’t done yet. She grabbed for the Caramel bottle. She squeezed on the bottle. Nothing came out.
“Oh COME ON!” Claire groaned loudly over the crowd. She squeezed again. Nothing at all. Not even a drop. She then shook it, and squeezed it even more. It wasn’t coming out! She then turned the bottle upside-down, looking up at the nozzle. Sure enough, now the caramel came out, like a blast of sugary tasty wind. It drenched Claire in thick, brown caramel. She was covered in it, her hands, her feet, her apron, her hair. She let out a scream of terror.
“MY BEAUTIFUL HAIR!” She shrieked out, taking her hands and smearing them on the whipped crème. The order was finally complete. Now she just had to deliver the order. In only a matter of minutes, she had been covered in coffee, whipped crème, and caramel. She was a mess. She looked more like a caramel iced latte. She added a sprinkle of chocolate powder and three ice cubes. The boy smiled and laughed.
“Looks like someone got a little messy.” The boy said giggling. Claire was about three feet from the counter. All she had to do was walk three steps, hand the boy his order, and she would become assistant Barista. She was gonna do it. She only took two steps before she slipped. She had stepped in a puddle of coffee and crème. It made her lose her balance, dropping the latte.
“NO!!!!!” It happened in slow motion. She had slowly fallen to the ground. She lost her grip of the cup, dropping it. She watched it slowly fall. Then, out of the blue, she was pushed out of the way by an unknown behind. The cup was picked up in mid air and placed on the counter. The speed of the world went back in motion. A little “ping!” was heard, announcing an order made.
“Here’s your Latte, which will be two fifty.” Said a familiar voice curtly. She held out her hand for the money. The boy was confused about the sudden price bump, “sorry for the mediocre order, I can remake it if you want-,”
“No, that will be alright. I have to go anyway,” Said the boy, handing the money to Haley. With the transaction, Haley handed the boy his Latte. He swiftly left the counter, picked up his textbook, and left the shop.
“I will take anyone who’s next,” Haley called out, before being yanked to the side by the arm.
“HEY! That was my order!” Claire growled at Haley, “What are you doing back so soon?” She protested, furious.
“I knew you would get into trouble and screw everything up, so I came back to make sure you didn’t blow up the place.” She said with a curt sigh, “and sure enough, here you are, looking like the Tuesday Special,” she answered with a giggle.
“But….but……that was my order! I made it!” Claire argued to her.
“Yeah it was a crappy one too. Be glad I didn’t throw it out.” Haley replied quickly.
“But it was my order!”
“But I sold it, meaning you lose the bet.” Haley said with a shrug, “Better luck next time Claire.” She said, turning back to the customers to take their orders. Claire was dumbfounded, furious.
“But…you cheated!” She blabbered back to her.
“It’s not cheating if you knew you were going to win,” Haley replied with a smile, “now get yourself cleaned up, you’re scaring away the customers.” She said with a small shooing wave. Claire grit her teeth in detest. She walked carefully to the back of the shop for the door.
“Oh, and clean this mess up too,” Haley added absentmindedly, still taking orders like the head Barista she was. Claire sighed, defeated.
“Well, better get started. Because from this day on, I’m….I’m……the cleaning lady!” She whined, knowing the bet was still unfair.
“Curse you Haley!!!!” But as usual, no one in the shop listened.
“I’d like to apply for a job here please,” Claire said, brushing a strand of her strawberry blonde hair out of her eyes. Haley looked at Claire, the gears already turning in her head.
“He said recruit people…..but anyone but her.”
“Miss Marshal, recruit this young lady right now!!!”
“Mr. Beauregard? You’re even in my thoughts? Ugh that is so wrong,” Haley thought, shuddering uncomfortably. Claire took notice of this and tilted her head to one side, looking concerned.
“Everything alright?” She asked innocently. Haley then shook her head to clear her mind.
“Huh? Yeah, just a nightmare I had. You said you wanted a job?” Haley asked, leaning forward on the counter, looking at Claire intently.
“Well yeah, my boyfriend has been nagging at me to get a job. He’s sick of always having to pay for me when we go places. I mean, he knows that he’s the guy and that’s what they do. But there’s only so much he can take and I-“
“Ok Chatty Cathy, I asked if you wanted a job, not explain your whole love life,” Haley said, standing up again to prepare a new pot of coffee. She took the coffee beans and poured them in the machine.
“Just like my life, a bunch of beans scrambled around in different directions. All headed to one location……..the slaughterhouse.” Haley then pressed a button on the machine, and the coffee beans were grinded.
“Tch, it doesn’t look that hard,” Claire said with a laugh. She hopped over the counted and stood next to Haley.
“Alright then, I’ll make you a deal. If you can figure out how to make one cup of coffee and sell it to someone, I’ll hire you and promote you to assistant barista.” Haley said with an unexpected smile, “however, if you lose……you’ll become the clean up lady. You know, sweeping, cleaning up spills, stuff like that.” She finished.
“Really? That’s it? Too easy,” she said with a fiery look in her eyes.
“Alright then, deal?” Haley asked, extending her hand. Claire looked at it for a moment, and then looked around the shop. The place was pretty packed today; it wouldn’t be hard to get a customer to buy her coffee.
“Deal,” Claire said with a smile. She shook Haley’s hand firmly and giggled. The completion had begun. Haley then smiled at Claire.
“Well that’s a great little set up for me. I’ll leave the customers to you,” She said, grabbing her things from beneath the counter. She then gave Claire a friendly wave as she started for the exit.
“Wait! You’re leaving me to run the shop?!” Claire gasped, now realizing how unfair the bet had REALLY been.
“Hey, you said it was easy,” Haley said shrugging, “See you in a few hours,” she said, finally leaving her stressful job for at least a little while.
**************************************************
Claire was so lost. She looked over at the coffee machine. It appeared to be a hunk of ancient gibberish. She pressed a random button on the machine. A torrent of scalding coffee poured out and splattered the floor, and all over Claire’s person. The reaction was quick.
“ACK! Burn! It burns! It burns! IT BURNS!” She screamed out, doing a little seizure-like move. As Claire predicted, no one came to help or even react to Claire’s yelping. She then heard a ring from the front counter. It made her jump and turn around to face the cause of the noise. She was then face to face with a male. He had shocking red hair; sort of styled like that Brooklyn accented character from that card game show. He wore a green jacket with blue jeans. The Jacket was zipped down a bit, revealing his chest. Around his neck was a necklace made of wood, string, and metal beads. He had a smile on his face and a book in his right hand. Claire was able to glance at the title, “The secrets of Ancient Egypt”.
“Oh my god….he’s so dreamy. He seems smart because he’s reading a textbook, and he is to DIE for with those looks of his. Oh I don’t think Zac will mind if I just get a taste of him……oh yes…so handsome…so dreamy…..so…….so…….so,”
“Um, hello?” The guy asked confused. He had a screwed-up look on his face, as if Claire was sporting an extra two heads on her shoulders. Claire finally snapped out of her daydream.
“What? Oh, sorry. Eh, welcome to Starbucks…..can I take your order?” She asked him awkwardly. She had no idea how to greet a customer, especially in a coffee shop. The boy nodded and flashed Claire a smile. She nearly melted looking at him.
“Sure, I’ll have an Iced Caramel Latte, medium crème, with en extra dab of lemon. “ He said quickly, numbering off his order. Claire was so lost. She gave him a curt nod, still lost with the order he gave.
“Um, alright…..I think that will be,” Muttered Claire, glancing at the menu board behind her. She didn’t even know how much he had to pay her! She threw a guess, hoping it was right.
“That’ll be a dollar seventy five.” She finished, holding out her hand with a smile. The boy blushed slightly. He looked at Claire’s sweet face, and then his gaze drifted a bit lower. Finally his eyes caught her hand.
“Th-thank you miss. Uh, might I say your hair is most lovely today,” He complemented her, his gaze now on Claire’s near perfect blonde hair. The boy blushed even more.
“Ahhhh, she’s a blonde. So pretty. She even gave me a discount on my coffee,” The boy thought, still glancing all over Claire, examining her.
“I can feel his emerald eyes harvesting my body,” Claire thought dreamily again, “and who am I to stop him? Oh gawd take me away oh Egyptian scholar,” Claire thought as she leaned in closer to the boy. He did the same.
“She’s leaning forward, does she want a kiss? Oh my…..what do I do?” The boy thought, leaning forward for a kiss. They were about to embrace…..until,
“HEY! WHAT’S THE HOLDUP FOR?!” Claire and the boy broke from their trance. Now Claire could see that there was a huge line behind the boy. They were all holding their balled up fists in anger, shouting and cursing at her.
“Hurry up already!!” Shouted a woman holding her newborn baby. It was crying in her hands.
“We have lives you know!!” Argued a man in a suit. He was holding a briefcase.
“Where’s my morning wake-up?!” Screamed a girl in a pink dress. She looked cranky and tired.
“Burn her!!!” Shouted a grimy old hobo. He had a long white beard showing his age, “Burn her to the stake!” With this, everyone else stopped and looked at the hobo.
“What? We did it all the time in the 1930’s.” He responded with a shrug. Everyone else shrugged too. They sighed, and went back to shouting at Claire. She panicked, not knowing what to do.
“D-don’t worry everyone! I will attend to all of you shortly!” She answered, still terrified. She went to the back of the counter; she was going to create a cup of coffee. She was going to make food for the first time since she was six.
“Ok, where are the coffee beans?” She asked, not really expecting an answer. She franticly searched behind the counter. She had to work though the shouting and jeering of the angry customers. Finally, she found the beans underneath a shelf. She took the beans and poured them into the mixer. As she pressed the button, the beans began to grind into the nice powder. She collected it in a filter. She then put the filter into the coffee blender. She spilt some of the coffee grinds on the tiled floor.
“Good god, I’m making a total mess!” She gasped worriedly. Finally the coffee came out into the Starbucks cup. She then ran with the coffee to the flavoring station. However, she was spilling some of the scalding coffee all over the floor. Puddles of brown liquid stained the white tiled floors of the shop. At the flavoring station, she fumbled through the different additives. The angry crowd of customers continued to shout and bicker. They had all formed into one loud repetitive chant.
“Hurry up! Hurry up! Hurry up! HURRY UP!” The sound was deafening. It made Claire messily speed up her progress. She fumbled around with the whipped crème. She unfortunately misjudged how strong the spray really was. She jammed on the nozzle for the crème. It went haywire, spraying all over the place. The white foam got in her hair, coating the floor, and nearly fully coated the cup of coffee. But the order wasn’t done yet. She grabbed for the Caramel bottle. She squeezed on the bottle. Nothing came out.
“Oh COME ON!” Claire groaned loudly over the crowd. She squeezed again. Nothing at all. Not even a drop. She then shook it, and squeezed it even more. It wasn’t coming out! She then turned the bottle upside-down, looking up at the nozzle. Sure enough, now the caramel came out, like a blast of sugary tasty wind. It drenched Claire in thick, brown caramel. She was covered in it, her hands, her feet, her apron, her hair. She let out a scream of terror.
“MY BEAUTIFUL HAIR!” She shrieked out, taking her hands and smearing them on the whipped crème. The order was finally complete. Now she just had to deliver the order. In only a matter of minutes, she had been covered in coffee, whipped crème, and caramel. She was a mess. She looked more like a caramel iced latte. She added a sprinkle of chocolate powder and three ice cubes. The boy smiled and laughed.
“Looks like someone got a little messy.” The boy said giggling. Claire was about three feet from the counter. All she had to do was walk three steps, hand the boy his order, and she would become assistant Barista. She was gonna do it. She only took two steps before she slipped. She had stepped in a puddle of coffee and crème. It made her lose her balance, dropping the latte.
“NO!!!!!” It happened in slow motion. She had slowly fallen to the ground. She lost her grip of the cup, dropping it. She watched it slowly fall. Then, out of the blue, she was pushed out of the way by an unknown behind. The cup was picked up in mid air and placed on the counter. The speed of the world went back in motion. A little “ping!” was heard, announcing an order made.
“Here’s your Latte, which will be two fifty.” Said a familiar voice curtly. She held out her hand for the money. The boy was confused about the sudden price bump, “sorry for the mediocre order, I can remake it if you want-,”
“No, that will be alright. I have to go anyway,” Said the boy, handing the money to Haley. With the transaction, Haley handed the boy his Latte. He swiftly left the counter, picked up his textbook, and left the shop.
“I will take anyone who’s next,” Haley called out, before being yanked to the side by the arm.
“HEY! That was my order!” Claire growled at Haley, “What are you doing back so soon?” She protested, furious.
“I knew you would get into trouble and screw everything up, so I came back to make sure you didn’t blow up the place.” She said with a curt sigh, “and sure enough, here you are, looking like the Tuesday Special,” she answered with a giggle.
“But….but……that was my order! I made it!” Claire argued to her.
“Yeah it was a crappy one too. Be glad I didn’t throw it out.” Haley replied quickly.
“But it was my order!”
“But I sold it, meaning you lose the bet.” Haley said with a shrug, “Better luck next time Claire.” She said, turning back to the customers to take their orders. Claire was dumbfounded, furious.
“But…you cheated!” She blabbered back to her.
“It’s not cheating if you knew you were going to win,” Haley replied with a smile, “now get yourself cleaned up, you’re scaring away the customers.” She said with a small shooing wave. Claire grit her teeth in detest. She walked carefully to the back of the shop for the door.
“Oh, and clean this mess up too,” Haley added absentmindedly, still taking orders like the head Barista she was. Claire sighed, defeated.
“Well, better get started. Because from this day on, I’m….I’m……the cleaning lady!” She whined, knowing the bet was still unfair.
“Curse you Haley!!!!” But as usual, no one in the shop listened.
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