A Necessary Struggle: Fall Semester

Part 5

Lela stood behind the counter of Jolt in her yellow and brown apron smelling of French roast and Sencha. A low hum chattered in the atmosphere as she stared at the coffee cup shaped clock straight ahead slowly ticking like a sloth climbing up a Cecropia. Everyone in the cute, corner café littered with the under-thirty crowd had their brewed beverages. 

In her peripheral she viewed Harmony, Alyssa, and Safiya around a little black metal table in the corner talking, sipping lattes over their stack of the daily mail. Time ticked slower. Trevor was lying out on a super, soft salmon-colored sofa reading Entertainment Weekly, while Cairo was sitting on an over plush chair playing on his new iPhone.

When the hour hand and minute hand crossed each other on the twelve Lela ripped off the little linen apron. She pranced to the back to the locker room. She spun in the combination 3-6-9; a combination that was hard to forget and easy to break. The locked clicked open; she yanked the door open and threw the apron in with a fling of her wrist. She pulled out her black Michael Kors duffle with a smile. She basked in her aptitude for hard work, which she had to do to collect all the funds to purchase this season's purse, before Safiya.

"Lela cover Maureen's shift. She can't come in." Larry barked standing in the doorway.

"No." Lela slammed the locker closed. "I can't. I worked ten hours yesterday after class. I gave you my schedule. You know I have class at two" She pushed him out the doorway. "I'm not in grad school like you, Larry. I have the education to earn. I can't pour coffee my whole life."

Larry scratched the beard that was slowly taking over his face, "Then I guess I'll call in Jeff."

Lela walked behind the counter "That would be a good idea, Larry! You should've done that before you did this." She picked up a red mug hanging from the rack.

"One more thing, can you make me some more of those mini cinnamon rolls, chocolate chip sandwich cookies, two blueberry pies, and two sour cream pound cakes for the weekend rush." Larry tipped up his fedora and rubbed his itchy forehead.

Lela stopped pouring soymilk in the steaming cup, "No! Hell no! I can't, not with receiving just fifteen percent of the profits."

"Okay, I'll give you five percent more and I need it by Saturday." Larry pushed the hat back down glancing at an incoming customer.

Lela stirred the coffee and milk together doing the simple math in her head. "A whole twenty percent let me drop out and plan that vacation to the Bahamas." She deadpanned. "I want fifty percent. I buy the ingredients. I bake it all to perfection with love and care. And you want eighty percent for allowing me to place them on your pristine, dollar store, lead-traced crystal plates. Hell No!"

"Thirty percent." Larry bargained quickly before the man reached the counter.

"Thirty percent affords you chocolate chip sandwich cookies and either pies or cakes; not both. I'll have it here Saturday morning." Lela swiped the spoon across the rim of the mug and tossed it in the sink.

"Cake". Larry shouted as Lela took a sip of coffee trotting over to her friends sitting in what has become the loudest corner in the café.

Lela collapsed in the empty chair next to Harmony sitting in front of the massive window while people bustled by on their everyday excursions. Alyssa was sitting next to Lela with a biology book open taking up half the table. Safiya stared in the distant pondering about what to do with the foreigner calling her body home.

"Lee, where were you this morning." Alyssa cleaned the lens of her metal-framed glasses with the sleeve of her cardigan. "I went to wake you for class and you weren't there."