I Am Not An Idiot

3

"I'm telling you for the last time ma'am, this is not a grocery store!" The man with red apron on a black shirt held the old woman's hand, preventing her on hitting the man's face. She had glowing grey hair and soft wrinkled skin. Her voice was soft and she was very gentle but her arm was still unbelievably strong.

Valerie ran to the enterance of the café, barging inside to find her grandmother quarreling with a barista in front of the counter, "Granny, what are you doing?"

"Oh, good mercy you're here, darling. This boy won't let me inside. I need to buy more apples!" Granny Jo still insisted to go inside.

"Granny, this is a café-a coffee shop. They don't sell fruits." Valerie explained, "...and I thought I already bought enough apples for you. How many did you eat for the last two days?"

Granny Jo stopped her movements. She let the barista go and scanned her surroundings, realizing that it wasn't a grocery store after all. She faced Valerie and stared with confusion, "Where am I?"

Valerie sighed. Now matter how many times she tells her granny, she won't remember it. Her alzheimer was getting worse. The only thing to do is to calm her down and let her rest, "Granny, let me get you home."

Valerie apologized to the barista, who was muttering furiously and immediately held Granny Jo's hand and guided her outside.

"Granny, please stay home next time, I don't want anything bad to happen to you." Valerie circled her arms to Granny Jo.

A guy came to them, gasping for air after taking a fast run, "Hey Valerie, good thing you came."

"Thanks for the call, Gilbert. She might've sent that barista to hospital if you didn't tell me." Valerie pulled her arms from Granny jo and smiled to Gilbert.

"Yeah I was on the bus when I saw Granny Jo running, then Peter-my barista friend called me he was attacked by a grandma, and I thought it might be Granny Jo." Gilbert's ocean blue eyes gazed at Valerie. His dimple caught Valerie's eye, realizing how cute he looks along with his strong jawline. But no, he is not Valerie's crush. He is her boss. They are so close they can call each other their names without saying "Mr." Or "Ms."

"Well, your instincts are right." Valerie faced her granny, "I'm gonna take her home, see you late, Gilbert."

"See you later, Val." Gilbert waved at them as they walk away. He cried, "Don't be late!"

"I won't!" Valerie cried back.

Speaking of late, what time is it now? Valerie checked her phone, Dammit! 3 O'clock? I missed algebra again.

She sighed. There's nothing she could do. Algebra is just a class. Her granny is her last family member. Granny Jo is her top priority.

She guided her granny home and eventually put her to sleep. She stroked Granny Jo's arm, feeling the cold pale skin in the tips of her fingers. "I hope you can see me be a successful person, granny. When I graduate, I hope you would be there."

Then her smile faded, sighing in disappointment, But how am I going to get to college? My grades are a trainwreck.

Valerie stood and went to her room to change her clothes into her uniform. She tied her hair up into a ponytail and sprayed some perfume in strawberry scent.

"Time for work." She said to herself on the mirror.

Valerie went outside the house, reporting to her neighbours that she's going out for a few hours and asked them to help watch Granny Jo if she ever walks out of the house. Then, she carried her bag and walked to the restaurant she was working at, Noodle House.

She entered the restaurant, greeting to her fellow workers and rushed to the kitchen. She put her fingers to the fingerprint scanner for attendance and reported to Gilbert, who was already there in a chef suit.

"How's Granny Jo?" Gilbert asked.

"She's asleep." Valerie replied.

"Good." Gilbert nodded in relief, "You may go back to work."

"Yes, boss." Valerie smiled. She wore her apron, put her small notepad inside the pocket, and placed a pencil on her right ear. She went outside the kitchen and interacted with the customers, taking their orders and sending them their noodle dishes.

It has been two years since she started part-timing in that restaurant. She met Gilbert in her parent's funeral, when he introduced himself as Granny Jo's apprentice in cooking, and became a professional chef with a luxurious Indonesian-culinary restaurant called Rasa. He also had this other restaurant, which is Noodle House. He became a young entrepreneur in his 20s, which was quite an amazing achievement.

When Gilbert first met Valerie, he felt bad and wanted to help her out. Valerie asked if he could find her a job, so Gilbert offered a job at the Rasa restaurant, but Valerie said it was too luxurious for an inexperienced kid like her, so she decided to work in Noodle House. Even though she was 15 back then, she worked for her own living.

Granny had stopped working for a long time. Moreover, she was just diagnosed on having alzheimer that year, making Valerie even more worried. She needs to work hard to pay for the medicines and hospital check-up bills. Yet she did it whole-heartedly, because she loves her Granny, who was the only family left.

Gilbert helped Valerie on taking care of Granny Jo, which really gave Valerie less of the burden than she usually has. Therefore, she's so grateful to meet him. They eventually became friends outside the working life, even though they are like 5 years apart. Sometimes Valerie thinks Gilbert as a brother she never had.

Four hours had passed until her shift ended. She hung back her apron to the lockers room and reported to Gilbert. Gilbert dismissed her and she was allowed to go back home.

She stepped outside the restaurant, staring up the darkening sky and breathe in the evening air of the town, "Ahh. A day with no tutoring sesh..."

Ting

She noticed a notification bar popping up on her screen, revealing Matthew's message, "Tutoring starts today, an order drom the teachers. 7.30 p.m. I'll send you the location. Don't be late."

Valerie grunted in disappointment and shoved her phone back in to her pocket, "...or not."

She turned to the other direction and walked to the bus station, farther away from her house. She took the bus and travelled accros the town to an elite neighborhood where the houses are big and luxurious. She arrived at a bus stop and walked along the clean road following the sidewalk to a sturdy white house with giant fences and a gate guarding it. She saw the map of the location on her phone which was releasing a beeping sound, signaling that she had arrived at the right place. She looked up to the building that stood tall, unlike her minimalist house. Valerie pressed the button with a bell logo and a tinkling sound came out from the speakers of the house.

"Such magical-sounded bells." Valerie commented in admiration.

The gate opened itself by an automatic machine and let Valerie come inside. She walked through the gate and stepped on the stairs, leading her to a big white door with a golden handle. She knocked on the door, then a maid opened it to let Valerie in.

Valerie took her shoes off and stepped her foot inside, feeling the cold marble floor as she walk to a big room with luxurious interior and gigantic paintings covering the walls.

Is this even a house? Valerie thought to herself, sightseeing the room with expensive flower vases and golden carvings on the corners.

"Mr. Collin is upstairs, you may go to his room." The maid said.

Valerie nodded, letting the maid guide her to another room with a stairway circling the walls to another level of the house. Valerie followed the maid upstairs and arrived in front of a wooden door on the corner of the floor. She thanked the maid who went back downstairs and then she knocked on the door and called Matthew.

Matthew opened his door. His eyes were swollen and his blond hair was messy. His sky blue eyes glared at Valerie, pouting unhappily towrds her, "You're late."