By the time I stop to quickly grab food and take an Uber to Lucky- the store I work at- it's already almost four o'clock. I practically throw the money and tip at the driver, thanking him before rushing inside. As I throw open the door to the store, Madison looks up from the front counter.
"Oh thank God, you're here." she breathes. I nod vigorously.
"Yeah, I'm really sorry it took me so long. There was a-" I begin, but she cuts me off.
"It doesn't matter as long as you're here now." Madison says, walking out from behind the counter. "Can you take over now? I have to go, but I'll be back before the hour is up to take over."
"Yeah, sure." I say, but it's pointless for me to even respond. She's already heading for the back room to grab her stuff and leave.
I go behind the counter, putting my bag down on the ground. I pick up my name tag and pin it on my shirt. Madison walks out from the back room and back into the room, rushing to the door. She waves goodbye to me, and before I have the chance to return the gesture, she's gone.
I sit down at the stool situated behind the counter, looking around the store.
Considering it's a Saturday afternoon, the store is relatively dead. There's only three people looking around, and they're all talking quietly to each other. There's no music playing throughout the speakers, so I decide to stand up and turn the radio on. I flip through stations until I find one suitable for the store, turning it up just loud enough that I can make out what they're saying in the song without trying, but still low enough that I can hear whatever conversations are going on.
The door jingles as it opens, and I begin to turn around to greet the customer.
"Hi, welcome to Lucky. My name is Helaina if" I begin, but once I'm turned fully around, I'm greeted by a grinning Colton.
"Hey Helaina." he smiles. I can't help but smile back; it's contagious.
"Hi Colton." I grin, settling down into the stool. "How'd you know I was working?"
"I didn't. I was walking by and I saw you, so I decided to come visit you since I'm on my break." he says, and slides an iced coffee across the counter to me. "Here. For you."
"Thank you!" I smile, dragging out the last word. Colton smiles back and nods, sipping from a coffee of his own.
"I actually didn't even realize you worked here." he says.
"It's only been a week." I shrug, sipping my coffee through the straw. "Although, I've also only worked at the coffee shop for a week, too."
"God, I wish I've only worked there a week. I've been there for three years now." he groans.
"Three years?" I ask, and he nods.
"I got hired my first semester of my freshman year, and I'm a junior now. Kind of similar to how you got hired, actually. Who knows, maybe you're the next me, Helaina." he jokes, and I laugh.
"One can only dream."
"So, where's your boyfriend at today? He always seems to be hovering around you." Colton points out, and I groan.
"Yeah, that's probably a bit of an understatement. Shawn is like a seagull that keeps hovering over me at the beach." I say, and Colton bursts out laughing.
"Oh my God Helaina, that's terrible." he laughs. I laugh a little too, but I can't help but feel a slight pinch of guilt at making fun of Shawn.
"I mean, don't get me wrong; I love him a lot, but he can be really overbearing sometimes, you know? Sometimes I just need to be alone and I don't think he gets that."
Colton nods knowingly, but before he has the chance to respond, the group of girls in the back make their way over to the register and hover behind Colton.
"I should probably let you get back to work. Bye Helaina." he says, waving as he leaves the shop. I wave back, and the three girls move forward.
"Did you guys find everything you needed?" I ask, and they nod. They all pile their clothes onto the counter and chat quietly amongst themselves as I ring up the articles of clothing. As I ring up a shirt, the door jingles as it opens and more people walk in. I glance up quickly to see a large group of girls walk in.
"Are you friends with that guy who was just in here?" one of the girls in front of me asks. I look up, and all three of them are staring at me.
"Uh yeah, I guess you could say we're friends." I shrug, finishing up the order. I start to fold the shirts and pants, putting them in bags. "He's the manager at the coffee shop I work at."
"Is he single?" the girls friend blurts out. The third girl with them bursts into giggles, the girl who asked the question giggling too.
"Trisha! Stop!" the girl in front snaps, her face turning beet red.
"She thinks he's cute but she won't say anything to him." Trisha explains.
"Well, he's on his break right now, but he works directly across the street from here." I say, putting the final shirt in its bag. "If you want, you should pop over there in about twenty minutes or so and try something then. Also, your total is $125.43."
"Thanks, we will." Trisha smiles. They all hand me a credit card. "Just divide it evenly."
I nod, taking the cards and swiping them. I hand them back to their respective owners before handing them each a bag.
"Have a nice day."
"You too." they all chime, heading out the door.
I sit down in my chair, picking up my coffee and taking another few sips. I look over at the group of girls, watching them mill around the racks. The door opens again, and I look over as two younger girls- presumably freshman in high school- walk in.
"Hi, welcome to Lucky. My name is Helaina, let me know if you need anything." I say. They nod, immediately heading over to the rack of clothes directly next to the door. I stand up and go over to the group of girls and ask, "Do you guys need any help?"
"No thanks, we're good." one of them replies. I nod, heading back over to the counter. I sit down and sigh. Sure, working here is extremely boring when I'm by myself, but at least I'm getting extra money.
I pull my phone out quickly to check the time. I still have another forty-five minutes left until I can leave. Underneath the time, I see a notification for a text from Shawn.
S: Want me to walk with you home from work?
H: i mean i was just gonna take an uber home
H: it's kind of a far walk
S: I don't mind
H: but i do
S: Helaina
H: i'll just Uber back to campus. it'll be quicker and easier for everyone.
S: Baby just say yes
H: why
S: You'll find out soon enough
H: ugh ok fine
S: See you at 5 ;)
H: can't wait!!1!
Once again, the door jingles as it opens. I quickly shut my phone off and put it down, looking up.
"Hi, welcome to Lucky." I begin, but the girl is already too far in the store to hear me. I pick my iced coffee up and take a sip, wishing 5 o'clock would just arrive already so I can leave and be with Shawn. Sure, he might've been irritating me before, but I'd much rather be annoyed by him than bored from working.
More people file in the store, some leaving without buying anything. I greet them as they walk in, and soon enough, there's ten people shopping in a relatively small store. I survey the room, looking at the customers to make sure no ones stealing anything, when I turn my head to the left a little and see a head full of pink hair.
I stare at the back of the girls head, trying to see if it's who I think it is, when someone appears at the counter and catches my attention.
"Are you guys hiring?" the girl asks. She looks a little older than me, but not by a lot. Maybe a year or two.
"Uh, sorry, I don't know." I respond. "I just got hired here last week, so I'm probably not the person to ask. If you come back in about a half an hour, though, the girl who's working after me should be able to tell you."
"Okay, thanks." she says, and I nod.
I turn my head to look again to see the pink-haired girl, but when I look, she's gone. I sigh, picking my drink up and sipping from it. I need to stop being so paranoid and letting my imagination getting the best of me.
"Hi Helaina." a voice says, and I nearly choke on my iced coffee. I turn my head slowly and swallow hard.
"Oh, hi Alex."
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AN: finally updated!!!! sorry it took me so long to update, i've just been beyond busy this entire month and i've had actually no time whatsoever to write. i didn't even have time to do my school work for most of the month either. but yeah, i'm good now and i'll have time to actually update again.
hope you enjoyed this chapter, even though it was admittedly a boring one. don't forget to comment/vote/follow me!!