Saving Ariel

Chapter One.

• Chapter One •

Ariel

The familiar sound of the bell above the door rings, letting  me know that another customer is ready to be served.

"Hi! Welcome to Stevie's! My name is Ariel. How can I  help you today?"

"I'd like an iced caramel macchiato."

I nod and write down his order. "And what size would  you like that to be, sir?"

He doesn't look up from his phone when he replies,  "Large." He continues to ignore me.

Sighing, I fill out the rest of the order and prepare to give  him his receipt. "That'll be $4.45. What is your name, sir?"

He finally spares me a glance to hand me five dollars  and mutters, "Cordon." He goes back to staring at his phone  and waiting for his change.

I grab his cup and write his name down. "Okay, your  change is fifty-five cents, and your drink will be ready soon.  Please wait for your name to be called." He nods at me in  acknowledgment and walks off to a table in the corner of  the store. 

I busy myself preparing his coffee, listening to the soft  sounds of people talking and the music playing overhead.

I finish and head over to the counter again, yelling out,  "Cordon!" on the way. The man comes back over and  gets his coffee, mumbling a quick "Thank you" under his  breath.

As people continue to come and go, I relax against the  counter and simply take it all in. One thing I love doing is  sitting here and watching people. Each person has their own  life and their own problems. To think that I am only a part  of so many people's lives, that there are so many others out  there you don't even know, is just amazing to think about.  So many different lives and so many different lifestyles; it  keeps me busy to think about it all. It's why I try to smile  at everyone. You never know what each person is going  through and what effect you could have on their day, so  why not try to make it a good one?

For example, I look at the man in the corner on his  phone. He could be a very busy business man running a  company, with some family issues that are making him feel  a little sad and stressed. Or, he could just simply always  be like that because that's the way he is. Nobody knows  but the people in his life. Crazy, right? A happy smile  slides back onto my face as I think about all the different  possible lifestyles of this man, but it quickly fades away  when I hear yelling coming from the back room. The  manager's office.

For a while the other worker, Kelly, has been having  some issues with her work ethic. To put it simply, she  absolutely hates this job and everyone in it. She usually  works nights, so I don't see her often. When I do, she never  acknowledges that I exist, or she does and I just don't notice.

The yelling only gets louder and I can tell some of the  customers are starting to hear it, too. The office door opens and slams against the wall. Kelly storms out and walks up to  the counter. Steve, our manager, comes storming out behind  her. Glaring daggers at her back as she grabs a coffee cup  and starts making herself a drink.

"Put that down. You're no longer allowed to get free  drinks!" Steve's glare intensifies.

Kelly smirks in his direction and finishes mixing up the  drink. "Awe, that's too bad. Good thing I don't care then,  right?" She rolls her eyes and takes a long sip from the  drink, making Steve's face turn beet red with anger. Oh my  gosh, the man looks like a tomato. If this wasn't so awkward  for me, I'd probably be laughing along with the group of  teens in the corner of the shop.