The Bubblegum Motto ✓

-3-

I was so accustomed to the blue walls of Aquasky that I had nearly forgotten the beige paint in CrunchFest. Unlike Aquasky, CrunchFest didn't have a bell installed at the top of the door, so suddenly, I was grateful for the silence that Aquasky didn't have.

When Violet saw me from the counter, she gestured for me to come over with a huge smile on her face. "Hey, you," she said when I jumped over the counter the way I do at Aquasky.

"Hey," I replied.

"It seems like it's been forever since I saw you," she laughed bubbly. It was the morning when things were a little freer because nobody really ate pizza for breakfast. Lunchtime was when all the people started crowding in, and it won't die off until after dinnertime. Or, at least that was what Violet had told me since this was really only my second time being here, the first being an informational meeting regarding how my job was to be performed. Meredith, Violet, and I were best friends through university , we had decided to work at CrunchFest together. Sometimes, Meredith and Violet had shifts together but since I worked with delivery and had to juggle both CrunchFest and Aquasky, I could count on the fact that I might not see them very often, other than these short exchanges in the morning.

"It's been less than a week since commencement," I pointed out, raising my eyebrows at her.

She chuckled. "Indeed, it has. Speaking of commencement, has Harry contacted you since then? He had been harassing Meredith and me, but luckily, it died down. You have got to stop breaking so many hearts. We have to pick up after you," Violet said jokingly, her eyes glittering with humor.

"No, he hasn't. But apparently, he had stopped by Aquasky to harass my cousin."

"How is Ian?"

"Alright," I shrugged. "He's been holed in Aquasky for nearly a year now."

"Isn't business slow during school days?"

"Yeah, but he manages. Somehow."

"Hm," she let out a satisfied noise before asking in a softer tone. "Has Kaitlyn been alright?"

"Today's her second day working at Aquasky," I informed my friend. "She seems to be doing fine. At least she's out and about, right?"

"Mhm," she murmured. "Send her my regards, okay?"

"Definitely."

Violet starting humming a familiar tune as she wiped down tables. Having nothing better to do, I grabbed a wet table cleaning cloth and started doing the same, beginning from the right and slowly moving towards the right. Violet's shift was early in the morning with a chef or two in the kitchen, but nothing more than that, so the diner felt a little empty.

My delivery times didn't start until ten in the morning, but I decided to come over to chat with Violet, especially since we hadn't really talked since commencement. I had immersed myself in Aquasky, and she was here, possibly with Meredith.

"How is working here, anyway?" I suddenly asked, my voice cutting through the silence. Violet turned towards me, her attention now set on me. "Is the staff nice?"

"You don't really have to worry about the staff. You're delivering pizzas alone," she said matter-of-factly. "But yes, the staff is pretty nice. There's another waiter that's pretty hot, but I haven't got much of a chance to talk to him yet."

Violet, unlike me, was a hopeless romantic and an avid romance book reader. She's clung on the idea that some prince would come and sweep her off her feet, completely ignoring my protests on the matter. Since her standards on men were so high after those fictional books, she's been single for quite a while now. I knew she was still searching for the "perfect one", though.