Ghosts were everywhere.
At least, everywhere outside. I wouldn’t mind them so much if they didn’t look like zombies. But they did.
Early on I figured out their appearance was based on how their actual body looked like. Those who had recently died still looked somewhat human.
However, not all ghosts were bad. There was the kid from the cafe who still hadn’t decomposed enough to be nasty. He kept following around the youngest male barista. They both had similar facial structures. A family member, perhaps?
I felt my lips rise a little when the ghost stumbled and broke a coffee pot in the barista’s hand. The barista flushed and immediately headed to the back room, presumably to grab a broom. The ghost followed him and tripped over something, causing him to bump into the young man. I giggled when the barista fell, disappearing behind the counter.
Ghosts with too much energy were the best.
“Something entertaining?” Mr. Alan asked, walking up with a customer at his side.
I smiled. “Just enjoying the view outside, Mr. Alan. It’s a nice day out.”
“Agreed,” he said. “Would you mind ringing up our customer?”
“Not at all!”
I took the items from Mr. Alan’s hands and he spoke with the customer briefly as I rung up his things. Mr. Alan left and the man took out his phone. I bit my lip, wondering whether I should try to talk or not. I didn’t want to come across as rude.
“Did you have a good shopping experience, sir?” I asked politely.
Nothing.
“I hope you found everything you needed.”
Silence.
I pursed my lips as I finished ringing up his items. He swiped his card as I put the things in the bag and handed them to him.
“Thank you for shopping at NY Sights. Have a wonderful day!”
My smile twitched as the man walked away without a word, barely even glancing away from his phone.
Mr. Alan walked up to me. “Venus, your shift is almost over. Would you mind doing the counts for me before you leave?”
Smiling, I nodded my head. “Sure. I can do that.”
I took the money from the register box and put them in a pouch so I could easily transport it to the back.
In the middle of the back room sat Mrs. Millie with the TV on in front of her. The screen was showing static. I frowned.
“Mrs. Millie, did your video end already? Here, let me put a different one for you.”
I placed the pouch down beside her as I moved to crouch in front of the screen. Looking down, I spotted the VCR and changed the cassette. I stood back up as the video started and the words, “NY Trip,” came up on the screen.
“Oh, look at you two,” I said when a younger Mr. Alan and Mrs. Millie came up on the screen. “Too cute.”
“Alan.”
I turned and moved to stand by Mrs. Millie.
“On the screen? Yes, that’s Mr. Alan. He’s your husband. Do you remember him?”
She chuckled and her eyes softened for a moment. Mrs. Millie had been more active in her role as owner when I first started almost five years ago. Then her memory started failing her and now she could barely remember anything.
It was always heartwarming and heartbreaking when she did remember things.
“Alan, my fiance. We’re getting married, y’know. We went to New York a couple of weeks ago. A test run to see if we could still stand each other by the end of the trip.”
“Yeah?” I laughed. “That’s actually quite smart. I’ll definitely have to do that before I marry someone.”
“Alan is my fiance.” Her voice was cold.
“Yes, of course. He’s all yours, Mrs. Millie. You two are perfect together.”
That seemed to do the trick because she went back to watching the TV, which showed them kissing at the feet of the Statue of Liberty.
It was sweet how long they’d been together, and how they remained together despite the hardships. They were both in their sixties now and I couldn’t imagine it would’ve been easy for them when they were younger— to be an interracial couple.
Still, they’d made it.
I picked up the money and went to the office, which was just a small closet. I counted the money and put it away in the safe, updating the log sheet.
I walked back out and kissed Mrs. Millie on the forehead before moving back to the main store area. My footsteps faltered when I saw Evelyn talking with Mr. Alan.
“Oh, Venus, I’d like you to meet Evelyn. She’ll be our newest employee”
I could feel my eyes growing wide.
“Oh. We actually already know each other.” I turned to Evelyn. “But, uh, welcome to the team. I’m sure you’re gonna love it here. Will you be working evenings?”
“Nope, mornings in between classes.”
“Isn’t it great?” Mr. Alan asked.
Sure. Great. I got to work with someone I was sure hated me. For no apparent reason either. I could already feel myself getting stressed out and I hadn’t even worked with her yet.
I placed a smile on my face anyway. “It’ll be great. I’ve gotta go, though. My parents are expecting me. See you tomorrow Mr. Alan!”
I reached down to grab my backpack from under the counter and walked towards the exit.
“Evelyn,” I said, so as to not be rude.
We all jumped up in surprise when Dash jumped down from a shelf and started hissing at Evelyn. I quickly left the store before they could see the smirk that was trying to fight its way onto my face.
Once home, I ate and went into my bedroom to get ready for bed. I wrapped my hair up in a messy bun and dressed in an oversized t-shirt with shorts underneath.
I made my way over to the fish tank.
“Why does she have to go work there?” I asked Kevin as I dropped some food into his tank. “Not that I don’t like her or anything, but she seems to not like me. She also gives off a strange vibe.
“And she could’ve done work study! Why did she go there? She knew I worked there!”
I sighed and watched Kevin try to eat the bubbles in his tank.
“Am I bad for not wanting her there?”
He glubbed.
I flopped back onto my bed and stared at the ceiling.
“Yeah, you’re right. I’m judging her without knowing her.”
I thought about trying to get along with her, but I just couldn’t wrap my head around the idea. She was pretty with bleach blonde hair and dazzling green eyes. Except they were hooded most of the time and I could never tell if she was glaring at me or just bored with everything. She had major RBF and she did nothing to make herself more approachable.
I mean, I knew I also had a face like that but I at least smiled to let people know I wasn’t completely heartless.
“Ugh!” I groaned, rubbing my eyes with my palms. “She just rubs me the wrong way!”
I pulled my hand away from my face to sneak a glance at Kevin. He was staring straight at me.
Glubbing.
I sat up and released an annoyed breath.
“Fine. Whatever. It’s time for bed anyway. We’ll save this conversation for another day.”
I went to turn off the lights and climbed back into bed. The water flowing from Kevin’s fish tank relaxed me into a deep sleep.
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