THE SALES GIRL WHO NEVER FORGOT

 ---  *TITLE: The Tea Centre Girl* *Episode 1: The Girl Who Had Stayed Home For 3 Months*  My name is Ifechukwu. The second child and daughter of a family of five.  I had just finished my SSCE, and I had stayed home for 3 months doing nothing. No job. No school. Just waking up, eating, sleeping. I was tired of being a liability.  So this morning, I dressed up and went to look for any low income job. Any sales girl work. I didn't mind the pay. I just wanted to be useful.  And I succeeded.  I got work at a fast food place known as Tea Centre. And I resumed that same day. No interview, no CV — "start today if you can."  Meanwhile, I had never worked in a public space before. I had never served anyone in my life. I didn't know how to carry plates without shaking, I didn't know how to smile at strangers.  But I trusted my guts and my instincts. And I did well.  The first day, a customer tipped me ₦3,000. Just like that. I had never held ₦3,000 that was my own.  That same pattern continued till month end. And I collected my first salary: ₦10,000.  It may be small to you, but to me, it was everything. Believe me, working was fun because I was paid for my stress and my time, and I was given free food and transport too. So many privileges — I thought.  I started saving my salary so I could support my family with my earnings.  Back to my workplace — I worked for a kind-hearted lady. She treated all her workers the same. No favoritism. But she had only one rule:  "Don't be greedy."  Greediness meant eating too much portion, stealing from the shop, over-staying your break time, and so on. We all obeyed her rule.  Till her children came back.  She had 4 kids. All university students. 3 girls and a boy.  The eldest was a boy, about 22 years old, schooling in one of the prestigious universities in Nigeria. He was the one in charge whenever his mom wasn't around. And he was also the only person who never followed the rule.  He steals money. Buys things anyhow. Eats unimaginable portions of food. And yet none of us ever reported him, because he owns the business too.  He was some kind of bully. And among all the help his mom had in the shop, I happened to be the only one he disliked, for reasons I still cannot say till I left the shop.  I didn't know that working under him would be harder than serving