Helen smiled, “You’ve misunderstood me. I’m only here on business for two days. I heard that you started a shop and I was hungry. I couldn’t decide on what to eat, so I came here to have a look. It’s alright if you’re closing, I’ll leave.” Her heart softening, Arianne asked, “What would you like to eat?” Helen walked to the front desk and picked up a menu. She glanced through it and chose two desserts and a cup of latte, “Just these. I hope I won’t take up too much of your time. I’ll just have my order to-go.” Arianne didn’t answer. She simply put on her apron and walked into the kitchen. Tiffany quickly made Helen’s latte and packed it up. Once the desserts were done, Helen left after paying for the items. She did not say anything more to Arianne. “Ari, I have a feeling that your mom is truly here on a business trip. Just treat her like a normal customer. You’re always smiling at strangers, try to be a bit… nicer to your mother. Okay?” Tiffany suggested, unable to stop herse
Arianne had managed to fine tune her emotions into the best possible state by the time she returned to the shop. Tanya Anderson, the staff member in charge of deliveries, greeted her apprehensively, “Have I been too slow, Ari?” Arianne was taken aback. It took her awhile before she realized what Tanya meant. “No, I just happened to have some free time, so I helped you with a delivery. It’s fine, go back to work. I’m going into the kitchen.” Tanya was born and bred in the city. Her family’s financial situation wasn’t too great, so she could not continue her studies after getting into university. Instead, she started working very early. She had a senile old grandfather at home and was pretty down to earth. She had delicate and pretty good looks, although she was slightly tanned due to constantly being on the move. Tanya was much more earnest compared to the other employee, Regina McKaren, who was in charge of serving the customers. Regina did not even finish high school and had ent
Tiffany couldn’t be bothered to fight with her in front of the shop entrance. It’d affect business, after all. She took out her pay and counted it all out in front of her, saying, “Here, this is the full amount.” However, Regina was not satisfied with this. “That’s it? Are you kidding me? This obviously isn’t right!” Tiffany pulled out the daily timesheet and thrust it in front of her, “Have a good look. I mentioned this when you first joined the team, but a lateness means cut wages. You’ve been consistently late, every day. I didn't even charge you for the desserts and drinks that you freeloaded off of us. Is there anything else that you’re not satisfied with? If you’d like for me to do a more detailed calculation, you’d have to reimburse me!” Regina was completely upset, “You have so many leftovers and you’d throw them away than let your own staff members eat them? What have I been eating?” Tiffany had never met anyone as shameless as this girl, replying angrily, “Leftovers a
Arianne hadn’t expanded her vision to that stage yet. She was still feeling sentimental over the present. A calm and peaceful life like this was the best kind. “We’ll see. Besides, Christmas is coming up soon. We should have some kind of promotion and a small gift exchange to attract new customers and reward our regulars.” Tiffany patted herself on the chest, “Leave it to me! I can do it. It’s good to do these promotions, especially since they bring us minimal losses. By the way, I have something to tell you, but I’m not sure if I should.” Arianne stared at her, “Mm? What is it?” Tiffany hesitated for a moment before speaking up, “You have to promise not to get angry first.” Arianne curled her lips, “Our lives are pretty good now and I’m in a good mental headspace. Nothing could possibly anger me, unless you’re saying that the business has had a loss. Just tell me.” “Mark and Jackson have formed a partnership and started a financial company in the office building across the r
The shop was closed for a while during the Christmas season. Lynn and Tanya went back to their own homes to spend Christmas with their families, but Arianne and Tiffany only had each other. This was their first time spending Christmas in a different city. On Christmas Eve, Tiffany had an hour-long call with Lillian. Arianne was left staring out into the cold Christmas night. Suddenly, Arianne’s phone rang. She thought that it was a simple Christmas greeting and was not bothered. She picked up her phone and glanced at it, then realized that it was from Helen. The contents of the message may have been a greeting, but there was a bank transfer of 1,500 dollars into her bank account. Apparently, it was a Christmas present, to make up for all the presents she had owed her when she was younger. She felt nothing and simply replied to her with two words: Merry Christmas. Helen was standing in front of a window when she received the message and smiled. It was snowing heavily outside and h
Tiffany finally came to a realization, “Oh… I think I know who sent this. Then I don’t want it either. I’ll leave mine here too.” Many stalls in the market were not open during Christmas time. Arianne shopped for ingredients here regularly, and one shop owner whom she was well-acquainted with happened to be around. After choosing her items and making her payment, the shop owner suddenly pulled out a black plastic bag, “Here, it must be difficult for two young girls to be all alone during the holiday season. My son brought this back from another country. Have some, it’s my gift to you.” Arianne’s first instinct told her that it probably wasn’t anything too expensive. After declining a few times, she ended up accepting it anyway. Once they’d paid and left, Tiffany turned around and viewed their surroundings again. “It’s strange. Everyone’s packing up to go home after we’ve finished making our purchases.” Arianne turned around to look as well. It was true. It was still early, but
Arianne carefully went through the bad reviews. Soon after, she noticed a problem, “Something’s not right. These are blatantly malicious reviews. While most of them have complained or claimed that the products are questionable, or that they just don’t taste good, there's one review ridiculing the hygiene standards of our restaurant. It talks about how messy and dirty our kitchen is. No one but our staff could have been able to see this. But Tanya’s clearly been cleaning the kitchen every day, and the cups and cutlery have all been sanitized. This isn't a simple slanderous review, it’s personal!” Tiffany widened her eyes, “I’m pretty sure that Regina’s behind all of this! Look! The earliest date of these reviews is on the day after Regina’s dismissal. Then, we’d receive a few of these reviews every day, three to six on a steady average. I’m pretty sure that Regina’s asked a few of her friends to help out. She’s crossed a line!” Although their review page still had 90% of good review
At the dinner table, Tiffany was solely focused on inhaling her food. There was so much to do at the restaurant, that she and Arianne usually never had the chance to sit down for a good meal, and they rarely cooked their own meals. This meal was a rare treat, but she ended up getting full before eating much of it. Arianne and Jackson, on the other hand, had just started eating. Jackson was stunned when he saw her putting her knife and fork down, “Did it taste bad? There weren't a lot of condiments in your kitchen so I did the best I could. If it’s not good enough, I’ll buy all of the necessary ingredients and cook all of this again next time.” “She doesn’t have a big appetite anymore,” Arianne explained in Tiffany’s place. “This is how much she usually eats these days. No need to be alarmed.” Jackson did not tease Tiffany as he used to do in the past. Strangely, he felt bad, “I see that you’ve only got four people in your shop. Aren’t you exhausted? How can you live like this? Is