Thank You For Today [H.S]

Hello

"That'll be about forty pounds please." Harry watched as the old lady in front of him struggled to count the money she held in her trembling hands. There were two twenty pounds notes that she could have easily handed over but chose instead to waste Harry's time by counting all the single pound coins in her purse. Harry reached over to help her but she harshly swatted his hands away.

"You keep your filthy hands of my money." She scolded as her cold eyes distastefully scanned over the numerous tattoos that embellished his arms. He rolled his eyes, muttering colourful words under his breath as he accepted the money and watched her hobble out the store. He didn't let people like her get to him, what did it matter, she was going to die soon anyway.

"Harry, since there's no one else in the shop do you mind stocking up the snack's aisle until someone needs to pay."

"Sure, whatever." Harry grumbled as he got up from his seat behind the counter, it's not like he could have said no. His boss gave him a firm nod, watching him leave before returning to his office in the back of the store. Harry trudged towards the snack's aisle, shoulders slumped as he remembered he still had about four more hours of work to endure. He hated his job, he truly did, even if it was only part time and just a means for him to get by while he was in university. Just like any one his age would, he hated working here, in a small, quaint little town in an even smaller grocery store. He was home for the summer holidays and in a place as mundane as Cramend, known only for its infamous Cramend cake, this was the only means of making money for the next four months. This or working in the bakery with his mum all day, everyday, yeah, no thanks. Of course, he could have decided to take up his friends' offer and join them in Ibiza for the summer, no, Harry shook his head sadly, he couldn't do that to his mother. It was already hard enough for her to be alone while he was at school for most of the year, he couldn't imagine what she would feel if she was alone all summer long. He grabbed a box of Oreo's and began filling the shelf, wondering if he could get away with opening one packet, he was quite hungry and could feel his stomach rumbling, begging to be fed. Unfortunately, he had already had his lunch break and stupidly spent the hour smoking outside while talking on the phone with one of his friends. By the time he came back inside to eat, his hour was up. He ignored the temptation and continued recklessly stuffing the boxes of cookies into their designated spot, disregarding the fact that his boss would most likely ask him to do it all over again. It took him about an hour to finish stocking up the aisle and to his luck no other old lady had come in to chastise him about his tattoos. That was their main demographic, elderly couples who couldn't be bothered to make the journey to the Aldi or Lidl or any other main supermarket in town's center. He returned to his seat behind the counter, spinning around mindlessly  as he put his arms on the counter and rested his head for a minute.

"Hello!Excuse me, sir?" Harry's head shot, rubbing his eyes as he tried to wake up from the short sleep he had accidentally fallen into. His head spun from the abrupt movement and it took him a while to properly see the girl that stood in front of him. "I'm not sure you're allowed to sleep on the job." She joked and Harry merely shrugged, not bothering to say anything else,  before he began scanning the items.

"Are you having a party?" He asked as he realized her items consisted of a hundred pounds worth of snacks, drinks and candy.

"No, " The girl replied cheerfully, rocking back and forth on her heels like a child waiting for their drink to be handed to them. "They're all for me." Harry looked at her with a raised brow; she was skinny, wearing oversized sweatpants and a hoodie that only accentuated her frail look. Her face was ghostly pale and her eyes were decorated with dark bags that made her seem older than she actually was, her hair rested on top of her head in a manner that remind him more of a bird's nest and Harry couldn't help frowning a bit, overall she just looked, sickly. Despite her weakened look Harry could tell she was beautiful, her eyes were an alluring shade of brown and her lips were plump and rosy red, bringing a little colour to her pale face, and was shaped into a smile that was so captivating.