Not Perfect Night, Doomed Night -[BBANGSAZ AU]

15.) New Job, New Me

Minji's POV:

Pushing my way through the doors of—wait, what kind of place is this? A strip club? Oh no, no, this is Bambina Café. I mean, yeah, there were neon lights and the faint smell of something sweet and smoky in the air, but definitely not that kind of establishment. My nerves were already frazzled, and this wasn't exactly how I envisioned my first day going. My heart did a weird little somersault as I scanned the room for Haerin.

There she was, peeking out from the door frame at the back, looking all cool and composed like she wasn't about to introduce me to her whole world of chaos that resided in this cafe. I could practically hear the upbeat, old timey jazzy tune that should be playing in the background as the star of the show—me, obviously—strides in with an awkward mix of confidence and sheer terror.

"Glad you made it, Minji. Come on back," she said, her voice smooth as ever. She gave me a quick once-over, and for a second, I felt like I was on some weird runway show where she was the judge and jury. "Not bad, not bad at all."

I couldn't help but notice how different she looked compared to the other baristas and waitresses in the café. While they rocked their short shorts and skimpy tops with the kind of confidence I could only dream of, Haerin was in a whole different league. She was modestly dressed in a green and orange cap that matched her shirt, paired with belted black dress pants and athletic sneakers. It was like she was the head coach of some secret coffee shop sports team.

"Thank God you're working with me," I blurted out, relief washing over me. "I thought I was going to be alone in this."

"Uh, no, you're technically working two shifts," she said, sheepishly holding up two fingers in that way that made my jaw drop. "Danielle's and yours."

"Wait, what?" My voice cracked like I was back in middle school. "Two shifts? Seriously?"

"Yeah, so for the first three hours, it'll be with me," she explained casually, like she wasn't dropping a bomb on my day. "Then I clock out, you get an hour and a half break, and after that, your real shift starts—closing hours."

"It should be a breeze," she added, as if closing up shop on my very first day was no big deal.

"Haerin," I grabbed her shoulders, staring her down like she'd just told me the world was flat. "You've gotta be kidding me, right?"

She shook her head, the tiniest smirk playing on her lips. Nope, not kidding.

"So, when does my interview start?" I asked, trying to grasp at any semblance of normality in this whole scenario.

"What do you mean, interview?" she replied, looking at me like I'd just asked if the sky was blue.

"Like... usually jobs give you an interview before they hire you, right?" I was starting to feel like I'd missed a crucial step in the whole employment process.

"Min, I secured you a spot," she said, her tone oozing with that 'duh' vibe. "You got in through me, you don't need to go through all that crap. Just show up, and you're in."

I was both bewildered and thankful. It was like getting into a club without having to wait in line—except instead of a club, it was a café, and instead of dancing, I'd be stocking endless inventory and sweeping.

"Come on, let's get you situated," she said, leading me to an open locker space that was located in the corner of the back hidden by shelves. She fiddled with the lock for a moment before swinging the door open with a flourish. "This is your locker," she started explaining with military precision. "Chuck your stuff in here when you start your shift."

She reached inside and pulled out a crisp uniform set. "This will be your uniform. It's the same as mine since we'll both be working in the back. I know it's a bit tacky, but it's not bad," she said, giving me a thumbs-up like that was supposed to make everything okay.

"You can change here, orrr-" She gave me a once over. "If you're worried about your Johnson then the employee bathroom is in the far right corner down that hallway. It's a bit of a walk but I know you wouldn't mind for your dick's sake."

I gave Haerin one big obvious eye roll before grabbing the uniform and walking down the hall.

When I came out wearing the same outfit Haerin wasted no time proceeding to the next part of my training.

"Great! Now, let's get you trained," she said with an enthusiasm that I didn't quite share yet.

The next thirty minutes were a whirlwind. Haerin introduced me to all the back-of-house duties with the speed and intensity of a drill sergeant. There was restocking ingredients, syrups, and batters for drinks and pastries, which seemed easy enough—until she mentioned something about "surge hour orders," and I felt my confidence waver like a Jenga tower on its last block.

"Yeah, usually the baristas handle themselves pretty well, but occasionally usually during promotions there will be a large influx of customers and for those days we'll need extra hands on deck."

Haerin continued to ramble on and on about procedures and other lame work protocols but I didn't care to listen much. I won't need them.

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"Okay, and that's a wrap for today," Haerin finally said as she put away her notepad.

"Really? Just like that?" I asked, half expecting her to drop another bomb on me.

"Yup, it's your first day, and I don't want to overwhelm you with all this stuff," she replied, patting me on the back like I was a kid who'd just survived their first day of school. "Let's take it easy for today and have you stock the shelves."

I nodded, pretending like I totally wasn't already overwhelmed. We had an hour left of our shift—or rather, Haerin's shift. And after that, it would be just me and two others... probably. She wasn't exactly sure, and that did nothing to calm my nerves.

"You should be closing up shop, so again, easy shift," she said with a grin that made me question if she really believed that.

As Haerin walked away, leaving me to my thoughts, I couldn't help but think, "Easy shift, my ass." But hey, if I managed to get through today without spilling syrups all over myself or breaking something, I'd call it a win. Baby steps, Minji. Baby steps.