(Archived) Poth Short Stories and One-Shots

A Brewtiful Beginning - Chapter 3

"Thank you, I'll be right back with your receipt," Palette stated, taking the credit card the customer handed him. He took it over to the register and slotted it into the reader to process the bill as Goth watched over him.

Once the order was processed, he took the receipt and the card back to the couple and wished them a good evening.

"That was good, your first successful service," Goth praised as he flipped the sign on the door into the 'closed' position once the couple was out the door.

"They didn't leave a tip, though," the taller skeleton noted glumly as he placed a plastic tub on the table to start loading dishes.

Goth shrugged as he went to get the spray bottle and paper towels, "I wouldn't worry about it, some people are just stingy and they seemed happy with the service. Trust me, most customers won't be shy about letting you know if they aren't happy."

Palette quirked his mouth skeptically, but shrugged it off, "You would know better than me. I have to admit I'm amazed at how easy you make this job look; even though you're so young, it's like you know the answer to everything."

Goth spritzed the table as he sheepishly corrected his coworker, "Thank you, but I'm not really that young... I'll be turning thirty-two next year."

"What?! Seriously?" Palette gawked, looking the smaller up and down as they nodded, "Wow, I never would have guessed you were eight years older than me. No wonder you're so smart!"

"I get that reaction more than I'd like due to my size, and it's all experience," Goth answered while fighting down a blush at the compliments, "You'll learn everything you need to know if you stick around long enough. I've been here the longest outside of Zeke and Melissa, two of our other co-workers you haven't met yet. And Mona, of course."

"It shows," Tamara added from where she was closing out the register and counting the drawer for the evening, "You're great at working under pressure and handling grumpy customers."

"The customers like you, though. You're better than me at working the register and advertising our specials," Goth countered as he tossed the dirty paper towel in the trash bin and pulled the broom from the storage closet, "Ah, Palette, could you clean the windows? The window cleaner and paper towel roll are in here."

"Sure," Palette smiled, retrieving the required cleaning supplies and wiping down the row of windows along the outer wall of the shop.

"You know, the customers would like you more if you were more social," Tamara teased, jotting down the register total in a small red notebook. Goth shrugged off the suggestion, he was fine with letting her have that niche.

"We made bank tonight," Claire whistled as she turned the tip jar over on the counter, sifting through the money, "Even splitting it four ways, it looks like we managed at least six bucks each... holy crap, someone left a ten!"

"Either someone really liked our service or they meant to put in a one," Tamara quipped, closing the book with a sharp snap.

"I prefer to think it was a testament to your skills," Mona shuffled through the doorway. Tamara handed over the earnings and the booklet in a practiced manner. Looking over the book, the corners of older woman's eyes crinkled as she smiled, "The numbers agree with me."

"Is there anything else we need to do for closing?" Palette trotted back over to his smaller coworker.

"Let's see...," Goth pondered, dumping out the dirt in the trash bin and leaning on the broom handle, "Closed sign's up. Tables, windows, and floors are cleaned. Cash register's closed out and tips are being counted. Other than storing away today's earnings, which Mona does, all that's left for us is making sure everything's powered down and put away, turning out the lights, securing the doors, and tossing the trash in the dumpster. I can show you where that is."

"Okay," the taller skeleton replied, following along as Goth walked him through the shutdown process. Heading into the breakroom afterward to switch out his apron for his bag, he dug into one of the pockets and pulled out his phone. As he unlocked it, his face fell and he groaned, "Oh no."

"What's wrong?" Tamara asked from where she'd been fixing her makeup in her compact.

"The apartment complex the movers were supposed to be taking my stuff to flooded," Palette relayed, reading through the message again, "The landlord estimated it'll take at least a month to get everything fixed, so the movers don't have anywhere to put my stuff other than a temporary storage locker."

"Ouch," Goth flinched, pocketing his name tag as he asked, "Do you have anywhere else to go?"

"Not on such short notice, not to mention the movers said they'll have to charge a daily storage fee for holding my stuff. I'm not going to be able to afford that," Palette sulked.

Across the room, Goth noticed Claire's amber eyes light up, "Hey Goth, didn't you say you had to kick out your old roomie when he flaked on the rent a few months ago?"

"He did," Tamara joined in, an impish smile on her face, "he complained about having to pick up the whole rent bill on his own because he couldn't find a replacement."

The hooded skeleton answered, "That's true... but I kind of gave up searching after the first three m-"

"Really?! How much is the rent?" Palette jumped on the conversation, his eye lights shining with hope.

"Six-fifty per person each month," Goth mumbled in mild surprise.

"Stars, that's cheaper than what I was going to pay for the apartment I was planning on moving into! Can I be your roommate, please? I promise I won't be any trouble and I'll even help with cooking and cleaning!" the taller begged, grasping Goth's hands.

The smaller stammered, "Uh... sure, that sounds alright. Do we need to go get your things tonight?"

Palette gasped, his eye lights shining, "Can we?"

"Yeah, we can head over so you don't need to deal with a storage fee," Goth confirmed, "Plus a bed would probably be comfier than the couch."

"Thank you, Goth! You're a life saver!" his co-worker cheered, bringing him into a spinning hug while the girls giggled at the scene.

"I wouldn't mind helping out," Claire added.

Tamara grinned, throwing an arm around Claire's shoulder, "Oh, it's becoming a party? You can count me in."

"It's not a party, we're just moving furniture," Goth wheezed in protest.

"Alright, simmer down," Mona chuckled as she locked up her office, "It sounds like there are plans afoot, so you all best be off."

Palette set Goth down with an apologetic blush that was matched by the smaller as they headed out to the lounge area. Claire picked up the trash bag sitting by the counter as Tamara hit the lights, dimming the shop to only the emergency light above the breakroom doorway.

As the door was locked, the trash was thrown out, everyone bid Mona goodnight, Palette led the way to the storage area while Goth tried to maintain a neutral expression.

***

Word Count: 1,210

Insert 'they shared an apartment' meme here. No 'there was only one bed' meme, though.