The One With Whisky Eyes

Small Wonders

Iris was blissfully distracted for most of the day, running between the front counter and the back door as the first of several shipments arrived. Jessica, Chris and Alexandra were the main workers with her that day, and she was so thankful to have at least one guy since majority of the boxes weighed more than Iris's total body weight. Alex had been the only one to really react when she'd spotted Iris's soulmark on the back of her hand, but Jessica had been quick to shoo her away. Her work gloves had been pulled on after that, since they would be dealing with boxes and books and Iris would rather go without any unnecessary cuts than prove a point to her parents.

Alex had even shown up later on, looking thoroughly chastised, and apologized for her reaction to Iris's mark. When she'd glanced into the aisles, she'd spotted Jessica watching Alex with an intense stare and was overwhelmed with gratitude toward the other woman.

"Have a great day," Iris called as she waved to a mother and son on their way to the exit, "Hope to see you soon!" The mother turned back with a smile as her son darted outside to show his father his new book, cheering about superheroes.

"Finally quieting down?" Jessica called from her place on a ladder, neatly organizing the new displays that they were putting up around the front entrance and registers. "Of course the busiest day we have in a month is the same day we get a huge shipment."

"Fate plays cruel games," Chris teased from the other side of the shelf, out of view but still clearly heard due to the natural strength and volume of his voice. "At least you two are almost done!"

Iris shook her head with a smile as she resumed scanning through the new books and inputting them into the system, or recording the increased number for the items they already had. "You're the one who never wants to do the opening shift because you'd rather sleep in," she called back, getting a snort from Jessica as the woman got off her ladder to move on to the lower shelf.

"Hey, I am a night owl, okay? I work better when it's dark."

"It is dark when we get here," Jessica snapped back. "And Iris usually beats me by half an hour most days."

Pushing the finished box aside for Alex to pick up when she finished organizing free space on the shelves, Iris grinned into her work. "Are you guys still jealous of the perks of being a manager?"

"No," the chimed in simultaneously, with Chris poking his head around the shelf.

"Thought so," Iris mumbled smartly while carefully slicing her x-acto knife through the tape atop a new box, parting the folds of cardboard while dialing the blade back so she didn't cut herself when slipping the knife into her pocket. "Alex, new box for you!"

"Jeez, slow down!" Alex called from deeper in the store, before she rounded the shelves with a tired expression. "Give some to Chris, would ya?"

"These are for your section," Iris explained with a grin, pushing the finished box closer to Alex's approaching form. "And it's a small box, see?"

Sighed in withheld complaint, Alex hefted the new box into her arms and turned back to her own work as the bell over the door chimed with a new customer. Iris called her usual greeting as she looked up to the older man that entered, walking carefully with a cane as he smiled back. "I'm hoping you sell journals; my granddaughter's birthday is coming up and she has about a dozen of those things."

Smiling at the man's thoughtfulness, Iris pointing down the far aisle that had 'Journals, Sketchbooks, Creative Paper' hanging at the front. "You can find all you're looking for down aisle one, and we even have an assortment of pens and other writing utensils she might like. They're at the back wall at the very end of the aisle."