Marley didn’t want to go to work. It was only her first day on the job, but as she put on her uniform, she was already starting to regret accepting a position at Super Stock. Marley absolutely hated Super Stock, but she had applied there because she needed the money and against her better judgement, she had decided to take the job. But it was only temporary, Marley assured herself. Soon, she’d be able to quit and never look back. That was Marley’s hope, at least. She’d work at Super Stock for a year, max. By then, she’d have found a better job. Maybe she could even find something that paid better than minimum wage. That sure would be nice, even if it was only a quarter more per hour. Marley would take whatever she could get.
If Marley stayed at Super Stock, she’d probably lose her mind; she was sure of that. The nature of Super Stock was fast paced and hectic while Marley preferred calm and tranquility. In general, Super Stock was a wild place that more closely resembled a zoo than a functional store. It was a multinational brand. So, it was kind of a big deal. The stores had everything from gardening tools to electronics. Therefore, it was the perfect place to get groceries, toys, electronics, and home goods while only having to make one stop. Though convenient, the store was terribly chaotic; it was the type of store where a person could get trampled by a stampede of shoppers while trying to get a cheap TV on Black Friday.
Marley had always felt bad for the employees who worked at Super Stock. It was bad enough just shopping there, but working there had to be even worse. After all, the employees were the ones who had to deal with all the crazy shoppers. Marley was about to become one of those employees and naturally, she was far from thrilled about it. =Though as much as Marley hated Super stock, she couldn’t quit. Her dad had recently lost his job; so, it was either get a job or dropout of college. For Marley, the choice was easy. She’d work in the terrible store for the sake of her future. Since she was ten years old, Marley knew that she wanted to be a teacher and she would do anything to fulfill that goal, even if it meant dragging her feet through the store’s doors every day.
Marley put on her blue vest over her pale yellow polo. She looked at herself in the mirror and cringed; she absolutely hated what she saw. The uniform was not at all flattering, but really, what did it matter? Marley certainly wasn’t looking for a workplace romance. So, she had no reason to look good. Marley figured that the employees were all middle aged and boring, anyways. Besides, Marley was just working there for the money. She didn’t need or expect anything else. Still, Marley brushed her hair and put on a little makeup, but only because she wanted to make a good impression.
The night manager, Patty Price, orientated Marley to the job. She gave Marley the grand tour of the store and then she showed Marley how to operate the cash register. For a while, Marley practiced different checkout maneuvers in practice mode, but eventually, Patty instructed Marley to open her checkout line, for real this time. Marley felt kind of nervous. Though she hadn’t had trouble while she had been practicing, seeing customers flood into her line was unnerving. To Marley’s relief, Patty stayed behind Marley, serving as training wheels of sorts.
As Marley’s shift went on, she could tell that she was becoming more and more confident in her abilities and her anxieties lessened. The job wasn’t hard, but there was a lot to remember. So, it took some getting used to, but it didn’t take long for Marley to get into a rhythm. It was at that point that Patty decided that Marley was ready to go it alone. Being alone made Marley a little anxious again, but in a way, she also felt better. It was nice not having a person over her shoulder, watching like a hawk. Still, if Marley forgot how to do something, she’d be in a jam, but she assured herself that there was no problem that she couldn’t work through.
A number of cash registers were open, but Marley was still swamped. It was her first day, but she was already overwhelmed by masses of people. So, Marley was relieved when she saw the light of cash register #4 flicker on. Being adjacent to Marley’s register, people flooded from her line to #4’s. Marley felt calmer as her line became a little shorter. The cashier adjacent to Marley was a life saver!
When the store calmed down after a surge of customers, Marley looked at the boy manning the register beside her. He had blonde hair that almost touched his shoulders and a jovial looking face with brown eyes and smirking lips. Marley noticed that his name was Henry. He grinned at her. “Hi, my name is Henry.” He said, seeing Marley.
She pointed to his name tag. “Yeah, I noticed.”
“And your name is Marley.” He commented.
“I’m aware.” Marley said smartly and Henry chuckled a little.
“Welcome to Super Stock, Marley.”
“Yeah,” She said, seeing a customer approach her line “I guess that I better get back to work.”
Another customer filed to Henry’s line. “Yeah, me too.”
So, that’s how their conversations went. They talked when the store was quiet and fervently worked during the busy times. For a couple weeks, that was the extent of their relationship. Still, they had fun together even if it was only through brief conversations during downtime or breaks.
Marley adored Henry. So, she was thrilled when he asked her to go out with him the next Friday night. Henry was by far the most interesting person in the store and, save for Marley, he was the youngest employee at Super Stock. At twenty-six years old, he was about seven years older than Marley. However, the age difference didn’t bother Marley. Really, it wasn’t that big of deal. Besides, Henry’s age was kind of attractive to Marley. Maturity was an asset that many of Marley’s classmates lacked. Henry was funny too. He always knew how to make Marley laugh, even if she was having the worst day of her life. Sometimes, she wondered why he worked at Super Stock rather than as a comedian. Though he had a great sense of humor, Henry knew when to be serious, which was yet another point in his favor. Marley couldn’t deny it; she had a major crush on Henry Gerard.