The Bucket List

30

"Have you guys, like....done anything?" she asked.

"No, no. Just hugged. Reminder that I've known him for less than 36 hours. But he's really sweet. I think you'll like him. Oh, and get this, he was at the playboy mansion party the other night!" I said.

"Wait, who invited him?" she asked.

"Huh? I don't know. Why?" I asked.

"What if someone at the Traphouse knows him? What if one of our friends invited him?" she asked.

"That'd be even cooler! I doubt it, though. Colby saw him and clearly didn't know who he was, so...," I trailed off.

"Hm. Interesting," she replied. "Changing subjects, are you ready for your birthday party tomorrow?" she asked.

"I am! I'm super stoked," I said. "Oh, and reminder that I work until 7 tonight."

"I know. Also, Krystal's flight should be arriving at about 6."

"What?" I asked.

"Surprise," she said with a small smile. "Colby and I paid for her to fly in so she didn't have to drive."

"But she said she likes driving more," I pointed out.

"She agreed," said Jess with a shrug. "So she'll be here tonight. Meanwhile, the Traphouse needs some serious cleaning work if it's going to be where your party is being held, so I think I'll head on over there so you can get ready for work."

"Okay. I'll text you when I get home so you can bring Krystal over. I assume you guys can pick her up and everything?" I asked.

"Yup. Later, girly," said Jess.

"Bye," I replied, waving as she walked out of the door. I quickly got changed into all black and threw my hair into a bun before slipping on my Vans and heading out the front door.

I felt my phone begin to buzz in my pocket. A lot. Continuously. I wondered what the notifications were, but I was running a little late already and reading my phone while I drove was an awful idea. Since it wouldn't stop buzzing, I just tucked it into my glovebox and ran inside to clock in, barely making it in time.

The second I stepped out from the back, we were overwhelmed with customers. I hardly got a break for nearly two hours when my manager came to talk to me. There was a new girl working that day, but we never caught a break to talk. I wondered why she was here. I'd always done the 4-7 shift by myself.

"Hey, Rose, can we talk?" Tori, my manager, asked.

"Of course," I said. I followed her into her small office, where she shut the door behind me. Uh oh.

"You know, Rose, when I came back from my lunchbreak I found the handle to the backdoor completely ripped off," she said.

"I...oh?" I replied. Huh?

"Rose, you're good at what you do. Very good. Clean work ethic, healthy habits, friendly to the customers," she listed.

"Thank you," I said. "You gave me that opportunity."

. We sat there for a minute, not talking.

"So who's the new girl? Help from another store? It's super busy out there," I asked.