Possessive about Rosa

2

I walked down the stairs wearing sunglasses and heard noises coming from Richmond's house, it was early for anyone to listen. Ignoring the yellings coming from the lady I walked down to reach work on time. I walked out of the building and saw some cops investigating a spot opposite to the building. Another murder to solve, I thought walking away. The day isn't far away when the cops would ask us to leave the building and move out because of the crime rates in the alley. The amount of murders taking place here is enough for anyone in their sane mind to move as far as possible from this place but the rent is less compared to other buildings around here so people like me and Richmond have no choice but to live with the murders happening below us.

Walking four blocks to reach work isn't something I wish to go through for a pay which doesn't even help me pay my bills and stash food, but I had to do it anyway because I had no other option. Crossing the road and walking some steps I pushed open the door of the café and the aroma of so many delicious treats hit my nose. I waved at Leona who sat behind the counter waiting to open the café and make money. Walking inside the kitchen and then to the lockers I kept my purse and looked at my face in the mirror.

"Grab your breakfast, we have fifteen minutes until we open up." Leona called out as I filled my cup with black coffee and took one cinnamon bun and blueberry donut. "How are things at home?" I asked Leona, she set the pen down and shrugged. "Peachy." 

We were ready to open, I stood behind the counter, Leona sat behind the cash counter and the two waiters; David and Taylor stood in front of the closed door of the café, the chefs made sure everything was good in the kitchen. "Open up!" Leona clapped her hand as the clock struck seven in the morning. I was never a morning person, I'm not a night person either, sleep and food are important and after realising that for that you need to have money in your pocket everything just changed. 

"Good morning." David said beside me to a young man in a three piece suit and a long black coat with a laptop bag in his hand.

"A large cappuccino and green Apple muffin to go, thanks." His accent was thick, David nodded and went to work.

"Morning. I'd like a pumpkin latte and three green Apple muffins, I'll eat here." A college student with red hair smiled at me.

"Coming up kid!" I called and slid the shelf open to pull out muffin with the tong and set them on the plate. I asked the new waiter to fill me up a pumpkin latte and serve her order.

"No ma'am we don't have the marmalade in the morning, it's around lunch and tea time." There was unfortunately no one in my line so I looked up at David who was trying his best to make the old woman understand the shortage of green Apple marmalade in the morning. "I was served yesterday!" She argued, she was clearly lying. The chefs don't make the marmalade until lunch. I decided to take the matters in my hand.

"Good morning ma'am." I kept a hand on David's shoulder, stopping him. "How are you this morning?" I asked her politely as she sighed.

"I want the marmalade with my muffins." She tapped her hand on the glass counter.

"Ma'am the chefs don't make the marmalade until lunch." I reasoned smiling.

"I don't want to hear the excuses, I'm paying, provide me the services properly!" She raised her voice and the man behind her started complaining.

"David why don't you take the line to my side and start serving, thanks." I turned to David, he nodded and jogged to my side of the counter. "I'm sorry, you can start ordering over there." I stood on my tippy toes and announced to the line, I heard groans but the other customers walked to David and placed their orders.

"I came here yesterday and the guy served me, why won't you serve now?" I wanted to tell her to stop lying but I had to keep smiling. "Ma'am I've been working here since the chef started the concept of green Apple muffins and marmalade. They only make the marmalade before lunch, the lunch crowd gets the marmalade." I smiled at her despite my irritation.

"I'm gonna sue you people, you won't be able to sell a single spoon of marmalade or a single muffin!" She yelled, everyone sitting in the booths and standing in the line started looking at us, this is embarrassing. 

"Don't hold your breath you old cow!" I heard David yell, I wanted to smack him so bad! Turning to the lady I saw her face turn red in embarrassment, I felt bad for her, "I'm sorry ma'am, the coffee and your muffin is on the house." I clasped my hand as she huffed and walked away. Leona didn't seem to be bothered with all this but I was, what David said to her wasn't fair, she was his grandmother's age.

"The show is over, people!" David waved at some customers gawking at us, mumbling things they turned back to their food. 

For another hour and half we all served the customers, David took Taylor's place in the room as he had college to attend and I was left behind the counter to serve alone, Leona seemed happy, the Monday mornings for her we're great, she loved Monday mornings because the customers were great and so was the extra money.

"Hey, the blonde there, she's asking for three raw eggs." David banged his hand on the counter making me gasp. 

"Raw eggs?" I was totally confused.

"Yes. Raw eggs." He repeated.

"We don't sell that here." 

"I told her." Sighing I looked past David's shoulder to see who wanted raw eggs, a girl around seventeen or so sat at the corner near the window staring back at me, smiling a little.

"Shouldn't she be at school?" I leaned and asked David.

"Who cares? She wouldn't listen." He shook his head.

"Well, tel--" I was cut off when I saw her standing meekly behind David.

"Hi.." She bit her lip.

"I gotta serve people, I'm outta here." David walked away leaving me alone with the girl.

"I only need three eggs, I'm ready to pay for it." She seemed desperate.

"We don't sell that here, I'm sorry dear." I wiped the counter with the towel in my hand.

"I have an experiment at school in an hour and I forgot to buy the eggs, please?" She insisted.

"I'll see what I can do." I started towards the kitchen, kids these days are weird and so is the school's curriculum. 

"Do we have eggs? Raw eggs?" I asked, nobody in general.

"Yes, in the pantry." One of the chefs called.

"Got it!" I walked to the pantry, there was a pack of six eggs, I took out the other three and arranged them on another pack and walked out of the kitchen to give the girl her eggs.

"Thank you so much, I'll pay for it on the counter." She walked away, I kept my eyes on her as she paid for her pancakes, milkshake and the eggs. Leona frowned at me when the girl pointed at me, I shrugged and smiled.

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The hour before the lunch crowd arrived was bustling, the chefs were running around, muffins were baking and being pulled out and arranged in the orders that are already placed for our daily customers, marmalade was being filled in small containers and kept in the chiller to cool down. David was off to pick his younger sister from school, Taylor was back from his college and after the lunch crowd got going everyone was ready to take a well deserved break.

Leona as always sat behind the cash counter reading her book, and I cleaned the imaginary dust on the glass counter, the people started coming in, Taylor was in charge to serve the daily customers their orders and I took orders from other customers, everything was in order during lunch, no one was threatening to sue us or no highschooler needed raw eggs, I was satisfied. 

Last night was a bust, I should've known better than to drink and get half wasted, what was I thinking? No, I wasn't thinking at all. After serving the customers and looking around if anyone needed any help I sat on a small wooden stool behind the counter, I looked at Leona who was counting cash and writing something in her accounts book, she liked keeping track of money. 

I heard the bell above the door ring indicating new customers were here, a group of gentlemen walked inside the café they all were murmuring things to one another, I could hear them. They walked at the end of the café and in the table by the window, they had to pull three more chairs from around so they all could sit. I waited for one of them to come and place orders as the customers do here usually but no one did, they were busy in their own trance, after giving them a minute or two to settle in I stood up and walked to them to get their orders. 

"Good afternoon gentlemen, how are you this afternoon?" I smiled at them, they all stared at me as if I'd grown another pair of heads on my shoulder and the next moment they got back to their conversation as if I wasn't there asking for their order.

"Are you guys ready to order?" I managed to ask, it kind of felt humiliating how they ignored me.

"Yes, five black coffee, two skim latte, three cinnamon buns, three chocolate donuts and...Guzman, what did you say you want?" The man turned to whoever was Guzman and I took that time to write down their huge order on my notepad.

"Green Apple muffins and marmalade." I heard a rich deep voice, my hands stopped scribbling the order and my eyes lifted on their own to find the most sexiest voice I've heard.

"Is that even a thing?" The man from before who was bald and wore a yellow three piece suit cringed, I looked at him refraining from lashing out on him for saying that.

"It's quite an unique concept, Mr Miller." I had to bite my tongue to hold down the moan threatening to come out.

"Whatever you say kiddo." The man chuckled and glanced at me, "yes, two green Apple muffins and extra marmalade." He nodded and went back to conversing with the man he was talking to earlier. Before leaving them to get their orders I peeked a quick glance at the same man but much to my disappointment he was busy typing on his phone. Damn you. I wanted to stomp my leg and walk away but I didn't. 

Standing in front of the coffee machine and waiting for the coffee to pour into the fancy cups I stared at the same man, the café was not crowded, after people got off work that usually came for takeout so the chefs had to make sure we didn't run out of sweet treats. After filling up the beverages I went to serve them their orders with a heavy tray in my hand.

"Gentlemen your orders." I announced, the same man from before tore his eyes away from his laptop and nodded, "alright, dig in." He said. 

Everyone started taking their orders, the bald man kept his eyes on laptop until everyone but him was done, I gazed at the man who caught my eyes, he had a strange ring in his right hand which I noticed when he took his skim latte, the bald man closed his laptop and took his black coffee. Some of them said their thanks and some didn't.

Turning around I left to get their other part of the order but I felt a slight graze on my lower hip, I stiffened and looked down, the man who sat on the chair beside me had his elbow strangely out, as though he meant to touch me, I shook my head thinking that it was a mistake and let it go. I walked behind the counter and pulled out the buns, donuts and the muffins with marmalade and smiled to myself for trying to take a peek at the man.

I heard that man talking about the muffins and I smiled, "yes, you know Kath from finance? Yes she was murmuring about the muffins all the time in the elevator, and one woman asked her about it, she actually asked the security to stop the elevator just so she could explain." He chuckled. Taking my steps swiftly I placed their orders in the middle of the table, he didn't acknowledge me again.

"So that's the reason I had to climb ten samn floors because the elevator wasn't working for half an hour, I could've been late for the presentation." The other man sitting across him said bitterly, everyone burst out laughing.

I turned back to leave and felt a hand grab my ass and squeeze it, I jumped back in horror and looked down at the man who did it. He smirked at me taking his hand back on the table, tears pooled my eyes in anger and sadness. "Smooth." He rubbed his hand on his cheek, and like that a tear escaped my eye.

"Hey, hey you asshole!" I heard Leona shout from wherever she was but I had no courage to look up, what happened was mortifying, I wanted to shout at that man and slap him even but the words seemed to choke in my throat. I felt humiliated and violated.

"You will leave my property at this moment or we are calling the cops." I heard Leona beside me.

"Calm down woman, it's nothing like she's not used to it." 

"Leave!!" She yelled.

"I'm sure we can throw a bunch of bills at these women and get it settled." it was a new voice, I was shivering in the corner, no one should go through this, the victims never stop blaming themselves for it even though it's not their fault, they always feel as though in some way they were sending signals.

"Is that so? Mads! Mads come out!!" She called the name of a chef working in the kitchen, "I'm asking you to leave!" She said again.

"Leona, is everything alright?" Mads came out panting.

"Why don't you call the cops and file a complaint of molestation against all these people?" She pointed at each and every one.

"We are not involved, if you're desperate for money tell us, don't push us into the mud." The bald man got up.

"You can shove that money up your old loose ass and then when you retire you can s**t that money and live the remaining days of your pathetic life." She was calm.

"I'm calling the cops." Mads said.

"Let's leave, it's not worth it anyway, these women love to play hard." A new voice said, everyone agreed and I heard the sound of multiple chairs being pulled back against the floor.

"I'm gonna make sure cops find you, you're under surveillance anyway, we have proof." Leona's hands wrapped around my shoulder pulling me close to her.

"Let's leave, there is no point staying." One of them said and everyone got up to leave.

"I'll make sure you're behind the bars for this...you pricks!" Leona spat looking at them.

"Don't worry honey people like them think they can get away with everything, not this time." She cooed, my head hung low in shame.

"What are you waiting for? An invitation? Red carpet?" I raised my head to see the man I was admiring before standing in his place, he shook his head no and pulled out his wallet out of the pocket of his pants, he respectfully kept some dollars and walked towards us and looked at me.

"I'm sorry for their behaviour, you take care ma'am." He glanced at Leona who just scoffed, then he looked at me and after a moment he left.

That moment I let my emotions out, I hugged Leona and cried until she pulled me away from her embrace and sat me on one of the chairs, she sat beside me and rubbed circles on my back, I dug my nails in the palm of my hands out of frustration, what he did wasn't acceptable.

"Honey, we'll call the cops, don't worry, we have proof. Don't worry baby." She said in my hair, "No, I don't want any cops involved. Please." I said the last part softly. 

"Why, I promise I won't let you pay a single penny, we'll call them and give them the photage, they'll find the bastards and put them behind the bars after you give them the statement." She tried convincing.

"No. Please. It's not about the money, I don't want to take this any further and humiliate myself." I shook my head and got up to glance at the clock, two hours before I got off.

"Nothing happened, let's get to work." I wiped my face and turned to leave before Leona stopped me.

"Rose ho.." She started.

"Mads, do you need a hand in the kitchen?" I didn't let Leona complete her sentence.

"No. Rose she's right, we're here you don't have…" I cut Mads off.

"Please." I swallowed looking down.

"Okay, if you ever change your mind you can come to us, I'm keeping the photage with me." Leona got up.

I knew I'd never report that man, I was a coward.

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