1985 (h.s.)

Chapter Nine

"How was school, dear?" Aunt Erin greeted. She agreed to take me to my first day of work. This was the soonest shift she could get me in. Otherwise, I would be working weekends so she could be there to take me. I had a shift Sunday, too.

I had my license, but my dad's car wasn't left to me. It wasn't a big deal. After buying some more clothes, my own car was on my list. It would mean more to me if I bought it myself. I had no specific wants other than that it could get me to point A to point B without issues.

"It was good. I have a lot of makeup work to do after work though," I explained while gazing out of the window. She started to talk about something going on at the church, but I didn't listen. I was too busy getting excited about my job.

The drive was a little more than five minutes and it was spent smiling and nodding at whatever Aunt Erin was talking about. I hated to ignore her, but she made dry conversations. She didn't talk about much else other than gardening and church. She parallels parked in front of the shop and unlocked the car doors. The storefront was small and quaint. There were flower boxes full of pansies lining the windows. A chalkboard sign naming the specials was set in front of the door. A sign hung from the top saying W. Mandeville Bakery. Must be a family name, I thought. I took one last breath before entering the shop. There was your normal glass case of baked goods and two or three small tables. I was met by an older lady with a large smile on her face.

"Hi! I'm Elaine Harper, you must be Olive? The owner right?" She stuck her soft wrinkled hand out to meet mine. She had soft brown eyes and peppery gray hair. Her caramel-colored skin was scattered with wrinkles. Her smile was one that made you feel like you were welcome. She gave off this nurturing grandmotherly vibe. It was refreshing.

"Yes, follow me this way sweetie. My other employee is in the back. He'll train you. My bones are aching," she led me behind the counter. I hope the other worker was nice. I don't know if I could work with someone who wasn't decent to be around.

A grin formed on my face when a tall curly-haired boy sat at a table, "Harry this is the new worker I was telling you about, Elaine, this is Harry."

Harry turned around and his lips raised into a smirk, "I know. We go to school together. She's a good," he paused searching for the right word, "friend."

I acknowledged him with a nod. Our eyes locked and I met him by the table. I bit my lip to keep myself from smiling. It didn't work too well. He had this goofy grin on his face.

"Alright, I'll leave you, kids, to it. Don't scare her away Harry, we need this one," Olive flashed another smile and walked away.

"Welcome to the bakery Elaine. Don't expect me to teach you all of my secrets, I can't have someone taking my spot as the favorite," he quipped, "You know how to bake?"

"Yeah, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten the job. I'm quite the pastry chef," I countered.

"Alright Ms.Big Shot, show me what you've got. I expect some banana bread to be done in an hour, get on it!" He directed. I scooted to the counter and started following the recipe, which was practically engraved in my brain. He made a big mistake telling me to make banana bread. I had the moistest and rich banana bread in the whole state of Oklahoma.

I had the batter made up within fifteen minutes and slid it in the oven for about forty. It would get done with five minutes to spare. Beat that, Harold, I thought. There are two things you should never doubt me in, reading and baking. Covered in ingredients, I made my way to the sink to wash it off of me when I felt flour being thrown upon me.

"You little shit head," Harry stood behind me, flour in his hands and a toothy grin plastered across his face. I rushed to the counter and grabbed a handful of flour before I threw it all over him.