Machiatto Encounter

Hell Week Mania

It's already 9am and I need to leave the company premises since my shift in the Coffee Shop starts at 10am. Actually, the shop is just a block away from where I am currently working. Yes. I have two jobs. I needed these jobs since I needed money for my own because I don't want to rely on my parents especially that we also have expenses at home that they needed to attend to or else we'll end up being evicted from our house. Our situation is not that worse but I just want to lessen my parents' financial burden. Anyway, I'm Serafina De Castro. Sefi for short. I've been working as a Call Center Agent for 3 years...I think. I'm already in my late 20s but I haven't gathered enough savings yet. Thanks to my former team mate and best friend Rita, I landed a part-time job in the Coffee Shop. My Supervisor and Manager knows about my part-time job. Good thing they are fine with it as long as I also do good in my job.

By the time I stepped inside the Coffee Shop, everyone at the Coffee Bar is so busy. People are making coffee fast, serving coffee fast and taking orders fast. When I looked around the place, there are students everywhere. Looks like it's hell week mania. This is the time where students visit the Coffee Shop to study for exams. Not even sure if they are from high school or college. Well, this is a good thing because it means more income for the shop. After observing the whole scenario, I went straight to our locker area to change clothes. I am required to wear the uniform. While I was preparing for my shift, Rita, my best friend, tapped me on my right shoulder.

"SEFI!" She said out loud on my right ear.
"Do you really need to shout at me?" I said wearily. "I just came from a 12AM to 9AM shift. Imagine the stress I went through from work and you're shouting at me."
"Girl," She showed her bright smile. "I'm just trying to cheer you up so that you will be hyped up to work. You did notice how busy we are right now. Right? Come on, cheer up!"

Rita is my best friend for how many years. She used to work with me in the Call Center but decided to quit because of her passion for Coffee. She worked abroad as a Coffee Barista for a year and went back to the Philippines after she was offered to work as a Supervisor for the coffee shop we are both working with. This means she is my Supervisor and I am her subordinate. Even so, she doesn't give me special treatment to be fair with other Baristas.

"Come on Sefi. Don't be mad because I have great news for you." She said with an upbeat voice.
"Wait." Now I'm nervous. "What news? Is it bad?"
"No silly." She smirked. "It's good news because your request for study leave is approved! This means you can continue studying as a famous coffee Barista. All expense paid due to your great performance as an employee." Now, she's smiling much brighter.
"OMG!" I hugged her tightly. "Thank you so much!"
"You should thank the other Baristas. They vouched for you because they know you deserve it." Then, she released herself from my hug. "But right now, you need to go to your post. Customers are waiting."
"You got it, girl!" Then, I went straight to the coffee bar and started entertaining customers.

After five hours, finally, my shift is done. I never felt so tired in my life. I didn't felt that while I was working earlier. People's negative energy seemed to make me feel tired because I encountered a lot of difficult customers earlier. One demanded for an Espresso because he needs it to stay awake while reviewing for his exams but changed his order to Cafe Au Lait since he's been having too much coffee the whole day and I already punched his order. Then, there's this couple who had a love quarrel right in front of me while there are still people lining up so that they can order. Not even sure why they are fighting but they took 15 minutes of my time. It came to a point that I had to interrupt their conversation...in a nice way...of course...because they are already making a scene. Then, there's this group of people from the Call Center I worked with who can't seem to decide which drink or pastry they should order. Since I know them by faces, I just stayed calm and smile but deep inside I wanted to tell them that they are wasting my time. The last customer I had was a bit weird because he is not into coffee. He just wants to try drinking one.