"Do you mean anything?" he asked.
Taking a big gulp, I responded. "Yes...Anything. Anything is possible. Just please don’t fire me!"
He gave a sly grin at me, and that made my heartbeat quicken, nervous. Oh no.
What in the world have I gotten myself into? I’m dead. I’m not even exaggerating. I’m literally in trouble.
“Are you sure about that?" he inquired and I gave a nod to him in answer.
"Then turn around, walk away, and stay as far away from me as you can," he said.
I came to a halt at that point, knowing exactly what he meant. "Wait, are you making fun of me? Would you like me to leave?"
He gave a nod.
I blinked at that. Wow. Just wow.
I couldn't believe it. Does he even have a heart? How heartless of him.
I couldn’t help but laugh at that, wiping away my feigned tears.
Strawberry guy looked at me as if I were a bother. "Why are you laughing?" he asked, quite alarmed at my state. "You're going insane."
Yes, I really am. And I don’t bother hiding it. "Yes, you do realize I'm going insane just talking to you?” I responded. “Are you finally happy, looking at me helplessly? Strawberry guy, I am serious. This job is very important to me. You don't have the authority to fire people out of nowhere for petty reasons." I said confidently, clearly angry at him and throwing daggers at him with my eyes. I breathed in and out, feeling my head exploding in anger.
Oh to hell with it!
Glancing at the envelope at the table that was my paycheck for the month, I yelled at him. "Fine, if you won’t accept that, then I’ll leave. I quit!”
Changing into my normal clothes back at the locker's office, I slung my backpack on my shoulders before giving him the keys to the shop. “Close the shop yourself!”
And with that, I rode my motorcycle and drove home. I can't believe I'm dealing with guys like him! What a jerk!
You know what? I'm relieved to be leaving that place. Maybe the heavens are warning me to stay away from that guy. I'll never go back there again. I'll just focus on the fact that I won't have to deal with a guy who has worse PMS than any girl.
I wiped away the tears that streamed down my cheeks, muttering a curse under my breath. Damn it. And damn him!
"Are you okay, dear?" Mom asked once I arrived home. She had a concerned look in her eye and I smiled at her, pretending to be fine. "Yes, mom, I'm just exhausted from work."
She gave me a worried look. "Are you sure it’s from work?" She asked hesitantly. I just nodded and went up to my room. I laid at my bed, blankly staring at the wall. It didn’t take long for mom to follow me as I heard a knock on my bedroom door. “Snow? Can I come in?”
Wiping away the sweat on my forehead and making sure my eyes weren’t that red, I called out for her. “Yes, mom.”
The door opened, revealing my mother holding a tray of cookies with her hands. She offered me a small smile before sitting beside me on my bed, her gentle expression calming me. She stroked my hair and asked, "Are you sure you want to work at that ice cream shop?"
I have to give it to her to immediately sensing what I feel…Moms really know what their children are hiding. But I’m not prepared to tell her that I just recently left my work. She’ll be anxious and probably pull up all-nighters at the hospital, working overtime and thinking about how she could pay the bills on time. I won’t let her do that.
"Yes," I replied, smiling a bit to convince her. "I'm certain of it."
"You can stop working, Snow. I'm fine now, I can work, and-" she began to ramble, but I cut her off, not wanting her to feel guilty…
I put a hand on her shoulders. "I do it willingly, Mom. Don't be concerned," I set my eyes on her, giving her a reassuring smile and demonstrating my sincerity.
She sighed, still unconvinced, but nodded her head, knowing there was nothing she could do to persuade me otherwise. I kissed her on the cheek, and she stood up and left me alone.
I know it's difficult for her to support me and Nathan on her own without a dad. And I have to help her.
What now that I've quit my job? I need to find another one quickly before telling Mom. I don't want to frighten her. I grabbed my laptop and went online to look for available jobs. I'm hoping to find one soon.
**
The next morning, I was awakened by a phone call, with an unknown number. "Hello?" I inquired. Who was the moron who called me so early in the morning? Is this Emma?
"Come on over to the store. Don't think you can get away from anything."
I scowled, hearing a guy’s voice instead of a girl. I don’t remember making friends with anyone other than Emma….
Wait…Don't tell me it's the person I least expect to hear from...the one I despise the most.
“Hello? Are you there?” The guy asked again from the other line of the phone. I cursed. Damn, I was right judging from the voice. It was the Strawberry guy.
Didn’t he already fire me yesterday? I mean, I quit working at that shop?
"Are you nuts? I resigned already. I don't want to deal with people like you." Just hearing his voice makes me want to sever his head.
He sighed, "But-"
"No buts, Bye," I quickly say as I hang up the phone.
Sure, he could have called and asked me to return there, but not in a million years. I already made up my mind. I'm irritated just thinking about talking to him. Plus, I don't think I can stand a boss like that.
I got up and went to watch cartoons in the living room, seeing that I couldn’t go back to sleep now that I’m fully awake. I look at the time, 7 a.m. Nathan is still sleeping, and Mom has returned to work by this hour. When the doorbell rang, I got up to open it.
A delivery man greeted me and asked me to sign a paper before handing me a box. I scowled at this. "I believe I did not place my order online, sir. You were given the incorrect address." I said to him.
"It says Snow Waterstrings here, miss. And the address leads me to your house.” The delivery man said, confused as she was.
Wow, is it from Mr. Tim? Or Emma? Seems suspicious. Aren't orders given to wrong addresses made by criminals prevalent these days? It’s their new way of catching their prey. Looking around in alert, Snow just raised her eyebrows.
“Someone may have forwarded it to you, ma'am." Added the delivery man.
Sighing, I just signed it so that the delivery man could leave. She frowned, making sure it wasn’t a time bomb or anything. Who knows, there was someone who wanted her to get killed or something. You’ll never know.
Opening the box, there was a chocolate cake inside. There was a piece of paper beside it and I read it, 'Come to the store or else,'
There was no name to indicate who gave it to me, but I already knew who it was. It’s clearly obvious who sent it, I don’t have to be a genius to guess it.
Sighing, I rolled my eyes. I really couldn't understand that strawberry guy. Is it a gesture of goodwill or a threat? How did he even know my address? Did he ask Mr. Tim about it? Or read the application form I filled up when I applied for the shop?
Gosh. I gave myself a facepalm. What a moron.
Suddenly, my phone rang again, and it was the same number. I avoided it for a minute, but it kept on ringing that I didn’t have a choice and answer.
“Have you received the chocolate cake?” Said Strawberry guy from the other end of the phone, not even greeting me.