"Hey.....ya'll....lady...people..." The red-headed Subway server gave them all a slow wave from behind the sneeze guard. His gaze lingered on Inez as he recognized her. "Store-lady!"
"Slow day?" Claire glanced around the empty restaurant.
"Slow..." the server repeated with a strangely wide smile.
The ginger teenager looked familiar to Tamra.
"Where'd you go to middle school? Was it Randolph?" Tamra asked him curiously.
The boy looked bemused. "Middle school? No, I'm in high..." He snickered. "I'm high!" He thumped his chest.
Inez muttered from behind her hand, "He's always high. I don't know how he got this job."
"Maybe you hired him," Claire shot back.
Inez frowned. "You know how I feel about drugs, Claire."
Claire heaved her huge purse up on the bar as she sang in a mocking tone, "'Not at work or school, please.' Killjoy. Do they have cookies - oh wait, my phone..."
As Claire's phone rang, the teenager jumped forward and karate-chopped the air.
Claire eyed the Subway server as she answered, "Hello, Vikram? I've found you a potential customer....What was that?"
Tamra examined the server's dilated pupils. "Just a club salad for me, please."
When the boy gave her a confused smile, Tamra snaked her arm around the counter to grab a ready-made salad
The boy reached out as well and placed his hand over hers. "Dude."
Tamra was hesitant. "Uh...Thank you for your service?"
The red-head saluted, releasing Tamra's hand and her salad.
"I'll have ham and Swiss on rye bread like usual," Inez enunciated carefully, pointing at each sandwich ingredient as she named it.
"Ham...and Swiss?" With an ungloved hand, the boy held up a slice of white provolone.
"Sure," Inez sighed.
Suddenly, Claire shrieked, making them all jump. "Vikram! I can't believe you!"
The Subway server tried to hide behind his circular piece of provolone cheese.
"I told you to watch him with that coat and it's stupid buttons!" Claire shouted into her phone.
"Why's she mad? I'm not doing anything!" The server whispered at Inez.
"We know," Tamra was emphatic.
Claire groaned, "Vikram! Which nostril?"
"She's not mad at you," Inez reassured the Subway server.
He looked uncertain.
"Maybe she's just hangry. Why don't you make her a sandwich?" Tamra reached around the sneeze guard to hand the boy a roll of rye bread.
The server accepted the bread from Tamra nervously. "You think?"
"That's it. Now spread some of that yellow stuff on it," Inez encouraged, gesturing at the butter.
The Subway server dropped the bread on the floor.
"Oh, I'll do it. They should replace you with one of those self-service machines" Tamra rounded the counter and started to assemble Inez's sandwich.
The Subway server immediately burst into tears. "They're replacing me? But I need this job! Oh, what'll I do!"
Claire blew a raspberry. "Well, you have to get the button back, Vikram."
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ChickLitAn indebted public servant who can't afford her own apartment, Tamra's 'lucky' to be diagnosed with an underreported and understudied disease that may soon make her infertile. What to do? Inez is secretly in love with her best friend's youngest brot...
