Board Thread:Off-Topic Discussion/@comment-28743333-20151017150311/@comment-1859034-20151202225612

Margaret made a concerted effort not to bite her tongue while taking their orders. The older gentleman took control of what his family were going to eat, while the woman, presumably the mother, scoffed at the menu. Evidently the food wasn’t up to her standard, and that left Margaret to briefly think why they’d bother to come here in the first place. The children were just as bad, if not worse to deal with. The way they scraped their chairs along the floor, got into shouting matches for attention, and generally had little regard for anyone else or their property beyond themselves. But business was business, and the Coffee Shop needed as many customers at it could get.

After barely managing to deal with the family, Margaret made her way back to kitchen to start their meals. A faint vibration briefly emanated from her apron front pocket. Checking to make sure the customers were content and no-one else had walked through the door, she swiftly ducked out of sight, reached down into the pocket and retrieved her mobile phone. It was standard practice for workers to leave their phones off in the back lockers, but exceptions could be made for emergencies, such as sick family members. On in this case, co-workers.

Swiping the screen with a red finger, the message almost instantly appeared.

''E: Hi Momma Bird! J ''

Margaret sighed. Not due to the sender, but their choice in nicknames for her. There had been several occasions where people would refer to her under that name, and it started to become irritating lately. Nevertheless, this time it came from a close friend, so she let it slide.

''M: Eileen! J R U Feeling NE better?''

E: No L U Should’ve woken me



M: Sorry but Ur sick

E: L L 

M: I no U want 2 work but OHS rules won’t let U

E: Sorry

<p class="MsoNormal">M: Don’t be <span style="font-family:Wingdings;mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings">J Has Rigby called?

<p class="MsoNormal">E: No

<p class="MsoNormal">''M: Sorry. Haven’t seen him & Mordo 2day too''

<p class="MsoNormal">E: Could U do 1thing 4 me pls?

<p class="MsoNormal">M: Sure no prob

<p class="MsoNormal">E: Could U pls pick up more meds?

<p class="MsoNormal">''M: The usual? ''

<p class="MsoNormal">E: Yes

<p class="MsoNormal">''M: Sure. Closing up soon. I’ll run down 2 the shop & get them.''

<p class="MsoNormal">E: Thanks <span style="font-family:Wingdings;mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings">J Ur the best

<p class="MsoNormal">M: NEthing else U need?

<p class="MsoNormal">E: Did U check my shopping list?

<p class="MsoNormal">M: U wrote a list?

<p class="MsoNormal">Something caught the corner of Margaret’s eye, something she hadn’t noticed before. She gently grasped at a sliver of paper behind her phone, slowly revealing a small handwritten note. Eileen must have taped it to the phone last night.

<p class="MsoNormal">''M: Nvrmind I got it. Cya l8r <span style="font-family:Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings">J ''

<p class="MsoNormal">Margaret turned, hearing the front doorbell jingle, and upon seeing who just flew inside, almost dropped her phone in shock. It was hoped that she’d see a familiar face today, but not once did she suspect CJ of all people to visit.

<p class="MsoNormal">It went without saying that Margaret and CJ didn’t exactly have the closest of friendships. Or anything resembling a friendship for that matter. Margaret certainly didn’t hate her, but didn’t feel comfortable around her either. A part of her wished Eileen had forced herself to work after all, just so she didn’t have to confront the cloud woman in case something went wrong. Again.

<p class="MsoNormal">However, there was no chance of that today. Margaret was working alone. She certainly couldn’t choose not to serve CJ or ask her to leave. What if they got into an argument? What if the Shop was destroyed? For the first time since facing Jackie Carmichael, Margaret felt worried. Uncertain. And as much as she hated to admit it, she felt… no, was… afraid.

<p class="MsoNormal">But all those fears, all those dreaded possibilities, only existed within her mind. There was a difference between ‘what if’ and ‘it will happen’. Her father once said the best way to deal with an issue was by confronting it directly, and Margaret wasn’t one to shirk responsibility.

<p class="MsoNormal">Maybe… nothing would happen. Maybe she could indulge CJ’s desire for a hot beverage swiftly and without incident. Perhaps they might find common ground, and maybe, just maybe, they could even be friends.

<p class="MsoNormal">Hiding behind a wall wasn’t going to answer any of these. Taking a deep breath, Margaret pocketed her phone, and walked out of the kitchen to kindly greet the cloud woman…

<p class="MsoNormal">

<p class="MsoNormal">(If the option is still open for players to have two characters, I would like to also be Eileen. She's a fun character, plus no-one has chosen her yet. :) )