As I slip back into the water, I immerse myself in small-town Texas, with a sexy Dom and a submissive principal. Devouring page after page as fast as I can read, the water starts to cool off. Not ready to go back to reality, I drain some of the water only to replace it with scalding hot water. Once the tub is full again, it’s time to return to Tim and Nora’s story.
About an hour later, I force myself to stop reading long enough to get out of the tub and dry off. Throwing on my nightgown and grabbing my Kindle, it’s time to make a quick bite to eat. It’s a good thing I grabbed chopped meat to make burgers. After making a couple of patties, I throw them in the pan with some sliced onions to fry. As they cook, it’s time to start slicing a tomato and rinsing off some lettuce for on the burgers. Flipping them so that they cook evenly, the aroma of the onions fills the air. Just then, my stomach starts to growl. Laughing at myself, I grab the ketchup and mayo out of the fridge. I was slicing into the fresh rolls I bought so that they can be loaded with all the goodies that were just prepared.
A quick check on the burgers shows they are a perfect medium-rare. Piling the burger and all the toppings on the bun, I head over to the table. Placing the food on the table, I go back and grab the jar of pickles and bag of Dorito’s. Turning the Kindle back on, I pick up where I left off reading. Before I realize it, I’m finished reading the book and have only eaten half of my dinner. Laughing at myself, I quickly finish eating. Once I’m finished, I prepare the other burger for my lunch tomorrow. Hopefully, I will get to take a break long enough to eat it.
Washing the little bit of dirty dishes, I can’t help but dread going to bed. Once I go to sleep, it means I will have to get up so I can go to work for another day’s worth of hell. I don’t understand why people can’t work together. This pandemic is no joke. I lost my best friend Lisa to it. Sadly, she was a cancer survivor, just for COVID to get her.
With nothing left to do except get my clothes ready for the morning. In the living room, I double-check that I locked the front door when I came in. Safe and secure, it’s time to go to bed and pray I don’t have nightmares about work.
Chapter 3
I am hitting the alarm to shut it off, then stretching and yawning. I swear it feels like I just went to bed. Stumbling through the kitchen, I turn the coffeepot on while I make my way to the bathroom. After cleaning up, brushing my teeth and hair the coffeepot dings that it’s ready for me to get my caffeine fix. Thankfully there were no nightmares last night. A good night’s sleep helps, but I could really use a day off to do nothing.
One cup down, it’s time to make a second cup and get dressed. Sitting my coffee on the nightstand, then I strip out of my nightgown. Grabbing the clothes that I had laid out the night before, I start getting dressed. Whoever had the bright idea to make our work shirts light blue needs their head checked. They get dirty so quickly, that’s why I always go back to the deli and swipe one of their aprons.
Back in the kitchen, I fill my 24oz to-go mug with the rest of the coffee. If today is a repeat of the last couple of weeks, I’m going to need all the caffeine I can get. A part of me wants to call and tell them that I don’t feel good, but if I do, they will make me stay home for at least fourteen days to self-quarantine. I can’t afford that. So many are without jobs right now that it makes me feel guilty for even thinking of staying home. I am an essential worker, even if I am just a cashier at the local grocery store.
With my mind made up, I grab my thermos, lunch, and coffee then head for the door. Once outside, I turn to lock up my house. It’s so strange to be out on the streets with next to no cars, no traffic, no one out jogging or walking their dogs. The few people you do pass have on masks and gloves. They step aside, letting you pass. The whole while looking at you like you have the plague, and they don’t want to catch it.
After hitting the alarm button on my car, I open the door. Hopping in then placing the key in the ignition, she fires right up. I drive along in utter silence the five minutes it takes me to get to the store. Once there, I park in the designated area for the employees. The store is already busy this morning. I can tell before I even punch in that it’s going to be another hectic day.
Back in the locker room, I place everything, but my coffee and thermos in my locker then head to the time clock to punch in. Following the arrows, I head to the front of the store to find Cindy to see which register she is going to place me on today.
“Good Morning, Cindy. I see it’s already crazy in here today. Which register do you want me on?”
“Morning, Nicole. Yes, there was a line to get in the store before we even unlocked the doors this morning. I think David is going to have to pull one of the cart guys to stand at the door and count people as they come in. We can only have so many in here at a time, and we’ve already just about reached our limit. Will you be okay on the twenty items or less register? Some of the other cashiers just can’t handle taking charge and telling people they have too many items in their cart for that line.”
“No problem, let me get my drawer so I can get set up then start helping out. If it’s okay, when I don’t have any customers with twenty or fewer items, I will pull one person at a time over to my register to help keep things moving.”
“Yes, please. That sounds perfect. Follow me; we will get that drawer for you. Make sure you count it and mark down exactly how much you have in there.”
“Believe me; I always count the drawer. There have been too many times that whoever had it the night before didn’t count correctly. Most of the time, it’s just a few cents, but lately, it’s been as much as thirty and forty dollars short. I’m not getting fired over someone else's mistakes.”
Cindy just shook her head as I followed her. Once she handed me the drawer, I quickly counted it three times to make sure my count is right. This drawer is only short ten cents, so at least that much is a good start to the day.
“All good, Cindy. The drawer was only ten cents short. Instead of writing the person up for it, I threw in the ten cents, so the drawer is perfect. We are all going through a rough time right now, and it’s the least I can do to help someone out who needs this job.”
Cindy just nods at me then goes back to helping one of the other cashier’s bag someone’s groceries. I can feel everyone’s eyes on me as I make my way to the first register. They want to see where I am going so, they can jump online as quickly as possible. At the register, I start it up then place the drawer in it. Once that’s done, I flip the light on for my register. Picking up the phone for the PA system, I announce that register one is open for customers with twenty items or less. Before I even laid the phone back in its cradle, I had three people in line waiting to be rung up. Yeah, it’s definitely going to be another long day.
Chapter 4
What a horrible morning. Almost every customer that got in my line had carts overflowing with groceries. No one wanted to hear that this was the express lane for twenty items or less. I don’t even see how some of them were able to get so many things in their carts. We did get two deliveries overnight that the night shift packed out, but still, that wouldn’t fill the shelves.
Oh no, here we go again, another lady with too many items in her cart. Sometimes I hate my job. Most of the time, I love it and the people that I help. This pandemic has brought out the worst in people. At a time when we should be coming together to support one another, they only give a damn about themselves.