Tessie D

I went back to work on Friday night. I wasn’t going to. I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I didn’t want to go back there. 

Still, I didn’t want to quit without giving my notice, and I didn’t want to leave anyone having to cover for me on Friday or Saturday night. I was going to turn in my notice and work through the weekend. 

When I got to work, I went to the back where Alex usually sits and figures the afternoon receipts before the evening rush hits. He saw me walk up and put down his pencil. 

“Good afternoon, Tess!” He said brightly. “How are you doing today?” His tone seemed genuine. 

“Fine. Good. I wanted to talk to you about something.”

“Yes, me, too,” he said. Before I could respond, he continued, “I know that you were very upset the other evening. I would be, too. It must’ve been very frightening for a moment in the freezer. So, I had a technician come out to check the freezer lock yesterday afternoon, and it turns out that you were right. It was catching. There was a little piece of the hinge that had bent, and it was at an awkward angle, so the door would stick just a bit.” 

I didn’t know what to say.

“Oh, well. I guess that’s good that it was checked out.” 

“So, we got it fixed, and it shouldn’t be a problem again. Okay? Feel better?” 

“Yes, I guess.”

I was nervous, standing there, talking to him about the other day. 

“Now what did you want to talk to me about?”

Maybe I was wrong. Maybe he hadn’t been holding the door. Maybe it was just an accident. There was something wrong with the latch, and I’d misjudged him. 

“Nothing. I mean, it’s fine. I just wanted to thank you for understanding. You know, why I needed to take off work the past couple of days.”  

“No problem. But, you’re feeling better now?”

He seemed genuinely concerned. 

“Yes, much better. I’m going to go clock and get to work.”

And, I went back to work.