Odd companionship

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dragonesper

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Having passed the interview the young teen was entering her workplace for the first time as an employee. Short-cropped hazel-brown hair barely reaching past the ears combined with loose pants and an oversized hoodie gave her a look of ambiguity.

Entering the employees entrance the teen glanced around the room, light brown eyes alertly surveying the area once a pair of sunglasses had been taken off. Checking the time once more she realized that she was still 15 minutes too early. A point for a good impression perhaps.

Spotting another, slightly older girl in the room she casually walked over and introduced herself. "Hey, the name's Alexandra, but I prefer being called Xan. I'm starting here today." Smiling lightly there was a hidden mischief in her eyes, like she could think of pulling a prank at the next turn. It would've been true, considering that Xan was regularly the center of mischief at her school, the latest rumor having something to do with several people finding their lockers painted on the inside in very garish colors.
 
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'You're okay with training the new employee, right?'
Elise sighed. Why did she always get these jobs? Well, it was kind of obvious really. She never said no to a request, be it in school or at work. If only she could learn the word no, if only she could say that she had enough commitments on her plate at the moment. While this wouldn't give her longer work hours or anything like that, it would give her double the job for a while which would take more of her every day energy. But she had already agreed. There was no way she could opt out now.

The blonde haired girl turned her head as a brunette walked into the staff room. She glanced at the clock. It should still be fifteen minutes left. Which meant she would have to work with this girl for fifteen minutes extra. She mentally cursed her boss, but decided that there was no point in holding a grudge against this girl. She hadn't done anything wrong after all.

"Elise Rendhal." She smiled and held out a skinny hand for a quick shake. Some people might look at her with admiration for her slim body, but anyone with a bit of a brain would see that she was close to being unhealthily underweight. It wasn't on purpose really, she just wasn't very good at remembering to eat when she should and was easily distracted if someone asked her for help with something. At times she ate healthily while other times she ended up fainting in class because of undernourishment.

"There is a few minutes left before your shift starts, but if you want to I can give you a tour immediately. We don't have many customers at this time of the day, so we don't have to hurry much." Elise continued. There were only four customers in the cafe last time she had checked and everyone had already gotten what they ordered. They also sat in pairs which meant they probably would stay for longer than it took to eat since they would be busy chatting, and Adam was out there taking care of the counter and could also fix an order if someone went to sit down before they were done."Have you worked in a cafe before? Or any similar settings?" She asked just to make sure how much of a newb she was stuck with.
 
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"No, this is kinda my first job," shrugging lightly Xan then grinned lightly, "doesn't mean I'm planning on being a slow-learning idiot. Which reminds me..." Glancing around the staff room a little Xan saw some cupboards lining one wall, chairs gathered around a table in the center of the room where they stood and some lockers alongside another wall. There were also a table with a coffee brewer, water kettle and a small assortment of tea on a sideboard close to the table area.

"I was told I'm getting my uniform today too." Turning her attention back at Elise the younger teen smiled again, while it didn't look like it Xan had come prepared, something the older teen would realize soon enough.
 
First job huh. Which meant she would have to learn how to use the counter from scratch. Better not put her on counter duty during rush hours for the first few weeks then.

At the mention of the uniform, Elise picked up a key that was laying on the table before turning to the lockers and opened one of them. "This is your uniform and your locker. You can put bags, school stuff, valuables or clothes here while you're working, but try to make sure not to forget anything in here over night. Once we had an employee who decided to steal forgotten stuff when they were on laundry duty. While I don't think our current staff would do that, you never really know."

She handed Xan the key before continuing speaking. "Your personal key only goes to your personal locker, then we have a master key for the person on laundry duty, so it is easy to see who has stolen something if it happens after everyone has gone home. Laundry duty is always on the person locking down the store. Because of the thievery that went on for a while, we have taken some security measures for the lockers, so the master key lies in a locker of its own that can be opened with a few various codes. Every employee gets their own code for the master key lock and every time it's opened our computer tells us when and whom has opened it based on the code. So never share your code with anyone. The security guard will fix a code for you at some point during this week."

She wondered if she maybe was going a bit too fast on the girl's first day at work. There was a lot to learn, but everything didn't have to be taught in one day, especially not the code she doesn't even have yet.

"Do you have any questions about the job before I continue monologuing?" Elise asked the younger girl to give herself and Xan's brain a breather.
 
Taking note of the things Elise said Xan was making sure to remember the main points of the monologue. Personal locker to store stuff, okay that's pretty good. A former employee being a thief, sheesh that was a fast way to get fired from a job with steady pay. So not worth the risk. Accepting the key Xan was fairly sure on what was the most stupid thing to do on the job, besides stealing should only be done when necessary.

Accepting the key Xan returned to making cliff notes on what Elise was speaking about, the details wouldn't matter much in her mind. Laundry done by whoever locked, great, that meant she wouldn't have to do the laundry here just yet. Detergent always smelled funny. Master key was code-locked, nifty thought, just what stopped- Oh, personal codes. Nodding lightly to that Xan smiled a little, already seeing a challenge in learning the codes for everyone.

When it came to questions Xan shrugged lightly, most would be covered at work sooner or later, except... Thinking about it a little Xan nodded and smiled: "Yeah, could I get a copy of the menu to memorize? And would it be possible to do homework while on breaks?" Asking the two questions in quick succession Xan just hope she suddenly didn't seem like the studious type, that would be troublesome.
 
Elise was quite surprised by the questions, at least the latter. Most students didn't care to do their homework during breaks. Most of them preferred to take a coffee or tea and relax until they had to start working again.

"You have the right to do whatever you want during your breaks as long as it doesn't break the laws, disrupts the order in the cafe or makes you come back late. So study as much as you want." She definitely sounded encouraging when she said the last sentence. Now she thought of Xan as a good student who studied properly, got good grades and didn't get in trouble.

She moved towards the coffee percolator and opened the second drawer underneath it. "We have copies of the menu in this drawer in case some disappears or gets ruined to the point that we don't see them as presentable." Elise handed one of the menus to Xan for her to look over.
 
The thing about the breaks was useful enough so Xan nodded lightly, but she inwardly grimaced as the older girl clearly thought needlessly positive things about her. It was hard to miss the encouragement that came from Elise. Following her to the coffee machine Xan was already predicting some trouble with the girl.

Accepting the menu Xan glanced over it quickly, it looked basic enough to easily learn by heart. "Okay, I'm going to borrow this for a while." If there was one thing she hated then it was to be unprepared for something, learning the menu and the prices was just one of many ways she could be prepared for the work she had finally gotten.

Having gone to several interviews Xan had often failed due to her reputation being known by one of the people at that workplace, who would want to hire a potential troublemaker? So in this instance Xan had done her best to seem nice and friendly during the interview, even though it was straining to play so nice. "So what do you set the new people to do? Making sandwiches or what?"
 
"Oh, don't worry. We won't go easy on you just cause you're new." Elise reassured the other girl. "This first week you will mainly follow me around and see how everything works and test everything out, so you'll basically do everything I'm doing, and from next week on you'll be doing everything on your own. Of course we won't put you on cashier duty during rush hours before you've gotten used to that thing, but other than that, there really isn't any work here that's too hard for a newb after the first week, and if it is, it's just to ask for help."

She shrugged and thought for a bit if there was anything she had forgotten. "Oh right, since you're a student it would be good if you could give us your schedule later in the week, and if you happen to have any after school activities then we need to know about those too so your work hours doesn't accidentally overlaps something once your schedule changes."
 
"Eh, it just the regular school hours, I'm not a part of an activity either so I'm fine." Shrugging lightly Xan pulled out a folded piece of paper from one of the many pockets on her loose pants. She had come prepared, had asked all the useful questions on hours during the interview and about the basics regulations.

Having this job was an anticipated step forward, the more hours she could get the more money she could earn and the faster she could become independent. "And they told me to bring my schedule today so I'm good." Holding the paper between two fingers Xan was tempted to pull a trick just to tease the scrawnier girl. Not yet, and not at work. Patience, patience.
 
Elise took the paper and un-folded it so she could put it in their files. While she hadn't thought of looking at it, as she wouldn't be responsible for the girl's schedule, she couldn't help but catch a glimpse of something very interesting. Double checking just to make sure, she soon looked back on Xan with a smile.

"Hey, we're in the same school. What a coincidence." She chuckled. Xan was one class under Elise. It would have been two if Elise hadn't repeated a year because of some mental instabilities.

"I see you have Mrs. Stoneheart as a math teacher. Tough luck. I had her last year. She's a nightmare." Elise said as she put the paper into the folder. Of course the teacher's name wasn't stoneheart, it was just the nickname pretty much every class had given her.
 
"Eh, I manage. She pretty much hates everyone who isn't a genius so she's not worth caring about." That was a lie, it's just that Xan hadn't fully worked out the perfect prank to shut up the unbearable woman and get away with it. Plus it was the fact that the locker incident had happened just two weeks ago, no way she would risk getting caught just yet.

Other than the basic subjects Xan had opted for computers as an elective, it was interesting enough though some of those classmates did act like they owned the classroom just because they were ahead in the subject. Xan smiled a little as the after-effects of them finding their lockers garish on the inside had been the perfect morning treat. "Anyways, the rest of the tour? I'm not gonna chat about school all day."
 
"You better not if you want to keep the job. I doubt our customers would enjoy hearing about what you did in geometry class today." Elise joked with a high pitched chuckle. "Let's start in the kitchen." She suggested and showed the girl to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, Xan was introduced to the pastry chef Leonard and then instructed on what she might get to help out with in the kitchen. As she had suspected, sandwiches was one of the jobs, though sometimes they might need help with some of the easier cakes too. The dishes was mainly taken care of by their dishwasher, so all she would have to do would be to put it in and push the right buttons.

After the kitchen, they went to the cashier and greeted Adam. After a brief introduction to the counter, Elise started to explain how the tables were numbered and during busy hours they would have certain tables they took care of, while during calm hours they usually didn't have a strict table schedule.

There were a few things they didn't take on the tour, the washing machine for example. She would get introduced to such things when it was necessary.

"So, do you have any questions?" Elise finally said as she ended the tour. "Or would you rather just get into your work clothes and see how skilled you are with the customers?" There was definitely a slight challenge in her tone.
 
Greeting her coworkers while keeping up a friendly smile Xan remembered now what would be the most challenging thing about the job. Staying friendly, sure the teen was being capable of a degree of sociability but the rudeness and straightforward nature that was inherent in the teen would have to be tempered.

Taking mental note of all the information the teen was starting to get pretty tired of the information dump and began wondering if that was the reason it was always talk about having experience and offers of training. Ah, whatever, she would remember it more easily after a few tries.

Once done with the tour Xan almost sighed in relief but kept the reaction from the blonde. At the implied challenge she grinned lightly in return. "None, I'd like to work instead. It beats having to listen to monologues, I do enough of that at school."
 
Elise smiled, rather happy with the reply. "That's exactly what I wanted to hear." She said amused and excitedly. She was sure that they would get along great during the next few months, or however long they both would be working together.

"Go get your clothes on so we can start." Elise then told Xan and waved her hand to show her to hurry up. "Oh and I forgot to tell you that there's a bathroom just beside the laundry room, so in case you want any privacy."

She gave the other girl a see-you-later nod before turning and going out to the customer area to make sure everyone were happy. The customers happiness wouldn't only give them lots of tips, it would also give a good environment that both employees and other customers could enjoy.
 
Giving a light nod in return Xan headed quickly over to where the uniform was, her locker in the staff room. Finding the right locker and using the key she had been given by Elise the teen wasted no time in getting ready as fast as possible. Making her way to the bathroom it didn't take long before she was inside and locked the door after her.

Stripping off the loose clothing Xan then checked the bandages around her chest. Pulling slightly at it the teen nodded as it kept the desired tension. "Good." Satisfied Xan pulled on the uniform that was the standard uniform for all the serving staff. Pants, shirt and vest, it was a clothing combination she could agree to, at least she was spared from the skirts some other cafes preferred on their waitresses.

Done with the changing Xan unlocked the door and headed back to the staff room with her clothes, stuffing the clothes in her locker together with the bag she figured it would do to keep things safe while she worked. There was no way she would leave things in the locker overnight, not a chance in hell.

Heading out to the customer area Xan quickly found the blonde that she would be learning from, hopefully she wasn't naive, nosey, a goodie-two-shoes or anything remotely like a teacher's pet. They were... A bit annoying to deal with over time, and way too tempting targets for pranks. "I'm ready."
 
Elise walked around the cafe to check on the few customers that were there. Everyone were happy and had what they wanted, not much to do for the time being. Eventually a customer signaled that they needed assistance, and as expected, the two at that table were ready to pay and leave.

Once they had walked away, Elise took the dishes and started carrying them out, but was stopped as she ran into Xan on the way. At about the same time, a bell could be heard, which meant a new customer entered. "Good. You think you can handle the next customer on your own while I leave the dishes?" She asked, wondering if the girl would accept the challenge or if she wanted to see someone doing it first. She could remember her own first day and how nervous she was to talk to her first customer. She had tried to mimic the waiter whom had taught her, but she still stumbled on her words into infinity and beyond, or at least for the first couple of weeks.
 
Pausing thoughtfully Xan assessed the situation. If she did it well she'd get trust faster and would be left alone to do her work quicker, but if she messed something up there would be the annoyance of being branded as a useless beginner. Weighing out the pros and cons it was hard to make a decision, watching how Elise did it could be more useful and a lot more worth knowledge-wise.

Looking over the scrawny blonde Xan began to idly wonder if Elise was more impressive than her appearance spoke of or if it was just because the older girl was a softie easily saddled with tasks. There really was no way to know for sure. "Are there any special greeting to say or something?" Asking quickly the teen was looking for a catch in this sudden choice, there could be knowing her luck.
 
"Naah, we don't do that stuff." Elise reassured Xan. "Everyone here tends to have their own thing. I usually start with a welcome and then I continue with telling them about this weeks specials. Adam tends to immediately go into asking them if they have decided on what to order or if they want a recommendation. Sophie always starts with a welcome and asks if they want something to drink while looking over the menu." Sophie was a weekend only employee, whom more often than not was mistaken for a guy. She didn't particularly try to be mistaken for a guy, she just didn't care that much and didn't bother correcting people when they got the wrong idea. Having been raised by four older brother and her dad, she behaved more like a guy than a girl and her androgynous looks did nothing to help with the confusion.

"You are completely free to use any line you want as long as it makes the guests feel welcomed and it keeps them in a good mood."
 
Okay, so she could make up something on the go and... Damn it. Welcoming. Right away? Being social and friendly enough was okay on the surface, but directly welcoming without a prepared fallback? She'd lose the job for sure. No doubt about it.

Grabbing a hold of the plates Xan quietly moved to relieve them from the way more welcoming, and potentially goodie-two shoes teacher's pet that was Elise. "... I'll take these to the kitchen." Welcoming, welcoming, welcoming. Damn it! Of course there was a troublesome thing with every job. Damn it.
 
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Elise watched surprised as Xan took the plates and went to the kitchen. Had she said something odd? Not quite certain what had gone wrong there, or if she just had misinterpreted the situation, Elise went for the table to check on the new customers. As always she told them about that week's special, and just like most of the times, they didn't even think twice before ordering the very thing she had suggested. The only times it failed for her was when the customer had some type of allergy that prevented them from eating that special menu or if it had something they just didn't like in it. Except for those times though, people tended to be very persuaded by her way of presenting the dishes with her words.

As she went to get the cakes from the kitchen, she let herself take it a bit slower for a little bit, just to check on their new employee. "You okay there?" Elise asked Xan while putting the cakes on the plates. Certain cakes were out on the display and could be taken directly from there, but others needed a cooler environment so they stayed in the kitchen until someone ordered them. "Are you nervous for your first customers?" She then asked with a teasing smile. "Everyone's nervous during their first day, just relax and it will go fine."
 
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