Oh boy.Here we go again.Why did the supernats find him so fascinating?Ross was ordinary, dammit, and there was nothing interesting about ordinary.Ross deliberately misunderstood and said with a professional smile of his own, “Have a good night.”
Glenn found his reply amusing for some reason.Those thin lips widened further, revealing slightly sharp incisors, but he gave an inclination of the head before sailing smoothly out again.Ross watched him go and had the gut sense he’d just met trouble.
Yeah.The supernatural world was fascinating and all, but Ross had the feeling he was going to get in over his head soon.Maybe he should really sit and figure out what to do before he got dragged along at someone else’s pace.
Night shift and morning shift shared an hour in the mornings, precisely from seven to eight o’clock.The thought was a changing of the guard, sure, but it also gave a chance for an employee to run late or for bad luck to be dealt with.
Ross’s co-worker, Suze, was about his age.She was sharp energy, angles, and quick words that tumbled over each other.They got along alright in the hour they shared, but what Ross wanted wasn’t comradery.He wanted information.
This morning, like every other morning, he tried to subtly pump her.“How many customers do you get during the day that never seem to have the right amount of change on them?”
Suze stopped wiping down the front glass doors and gave him an odd look.She pushed back inky black bangs to see him better.“Rarely ever.I mean, sometimes they don’t have exact change, but who cares?That’s what the penny jar is for.”
“No, I mean, I had an odd customer come in last night asking for an energy drink.They only had a dollar bill on them.That’s fairly common for me during the night shift.”
“Oh yeah?I don’t get customers like those.But basically everyone uses a card these days anyway.”She went back to wiping down the glass with a squeak of the cloth.
Ross, you’re being too subtle, he informed himself.Try something more blatant.“Do you ever get those people who look like actors?Like they literally stepped off the set from some glamourous red-carpet film?”
Suze stood and blinked at him.“No, never.You do?Really?All the way out here?”
Again, not the reaction he was looking for.But in hindsight, that likely wasn’t the right question to garner any answers.Ross changed the question to something more blunt.“So, what’s the strangest customer you’ve seen here?”
“Hmmm.I think the lady who wanted to carry her Chihuahua into the store was pretty odd.She kept trying to hand me the dog, said he was perfect for breeding with my dog.”
“Do you have a dog?”
“Nope.Never have.Strange, right?”
“Strange,” he agreed with a slight smile.But not at all in comparison to night shift.
Apparently, the night shift had a magic all of its own that enticed the creatures of myth to come and buy Gatorade.And gas.Sometimes hot dogs.
Ross would like to spread that magic around a bit more, please.Seriously, why was it just his shift?Not everyone was nocturnal.
The question begged for an answer.
Ross sat on the stool behind the counter and worked numbers onto a notebook, using the calculator app on his phone to double-check his math.No matter how he worked his finances, he’d need to work here another four months just to afford a year of college.Ross sighed, exasperated.Why did life have to be so expensive?His mom was right, maybe he really should just get one of those student loans.He hated the thought of starting out his adult life in that much debt, though.Still, he was already twenty-one.Most of his friends had already graduated and started working.Ross disliked the feeling of being left behind.He had two years of college done, but with his degree, two years was basically worthless.He would not only need the bachelor’s degree, but a CPA, plus maybe a master’s in public accounting.All just to be perfectly marketable.That meant a few more years at least.
Ross growled at the math on the page in renewed aggravation.
The bell above the door chimed and Ross lifted his head to say an automatic, “Welcome.”
A man shuffled, both hands clutching something to his chest.He looked done in, to put it mildly.College students facing finals with three papers to write and only eight hours to do it looked like he did.Dark bags stained under his eyes, his hair was so wild it was on the verge of gaining sentient life, and he’d probably been wearing the same outfit for three days.At least, he had about three days of absent drips from different meals splattering his shirt.
He stumbled to a stop in front of Ross and gave him a pleading look with hopeful hazel eyes.With a noticeable Australian accent, he asked, “Can I read you something?”
Ross went through a mental catalogue.Not vampire, werewolf, goblin, or druid.Quite possibly could be some other shifter.He could also be human, but…well, that looked suspiciously like parchment in his hands.And average citizens didn’t normally walk around with parchment scrolls.“What do you wish to read me?”
“I’ve got this spell.”He held it out, still with the beseeching eyes.“But it won’t work.I’ve tried it a hundred times, I’ve checked it a thousand, but it won’t work.It should work.Can I read it to you?”
Was this something like a bug in the code?An error in the matrix?Did Ross really want a sleep-deprived (magician?warlock?sorcerer?) reading aloud a spell that didn’t work?“Why do you think reading it to me will help?”
“Because I’ll be forced to slow down.Really look at it.I tried asking my clanmates, but they didn’t have time tonight.Too busy.Please?”
The man looked too pitiful.Ross felt like saying ‘no’ would be akin to kicking a puppy.A sick puppy.Ross brought him around into the niche next to the counter.There was a thin bar table there, and a gathering of chairs, so he could sit and be out of the way at the same time.“Sit.I’ll get you some coffee.You can read it to me in between customers.”
“You’re really so nice,” he said, sinking into the chair.“Annabella said you were fair dinkum.”
