Zodiac Heroes - Cast Down to Earth

Bonus Short 1 - Everlasting Friendships

When I said that I wanted to work at Starbucks, I didn't mean that I wanted to do math.

I work at the Starbucks in Manhattan, just a few minutes away from some high school that I've never heard of before.

College was tough, and I needed to pay for it, so I got a part-time job here at Starbucks.

When I was little, I always thought that a coffee shop was like a little heaven for teens and adults alike. But when you're the person who has to stand at the cashier and deal with all the customers, it's not as fun as you'd imagine.

Today, my shift was not the dreaded cashier shift. I was in charge of calling out customers' names.

"One Almondmilk Honey Flat White for... Carina." I called out.

I watched from the counter as a girl with short, dirty-blonde hair wearing glasses made her way to the counter. Taking her drink, she said a quick "Thank you." to me, then made her way back to a table in the back, where around four to five others sat.

Ah, everlasting friendships. I thought as I watched the group. I had never been one for big friend groups. Yet watching that group of friends over at that table somehow made my heart ache slightly.

That was when I realised that I hadn't been in touch with my old friends for quite some time. I seemed to have shut everything out when I left for college, choosing to focus on my studies instead. I mean, it makes sense, school is for studying, not throwing wild parties and making friends with strangers that also go to your school.

As I watched that group over at the corner, I couldn't help but miss those happy times when I stayed in contact with my friends. But enough of that! I have work to do.

A coworker placed another drink onto my counter. I heaved a small sigh as I picked the drink up to see whose it was.

"An Iced Green Tea for..." My voice faltered as I noticed that instead of someone's name that was usually written on the cup, there were a series of dots and lines. "Who wrote the name in morse code?" Turning to one of my coworkers at one of the cashiers, I asked, "Liberty, was that you?"

"Hey, the dude who ordered this communicated in sign language and I don't know that stuff!" Liberty responded back. "So we communicated in morse code instead. What, can't you read morse code, Makara?"

I heaved an exasperated sigh. "Why of course, I know what all these dots and lines are saying- Of course I can't read morse code! I didn't study this!"

As we talked, a grey haired boy had walked up to the counter. Tapping the counter three times to get my attention, he signed "Hey, sorry, but I think that's my order." in sign language.

"Oh, okay, thanks for letting me know." I said, signing as I spoke.

"You're welcome." The boy signed, taking the drink on the counter. "By the way, you don't have to sign as well, I can hear you."

"'Kay, sorry." I put my hands down.

Over from one of the cashier counters, Liberty called out, "Wait, you didn't tell me that you knew sign language! Why weren't you at the cashier?"

"I usually am, but someone suggested that we switched roles just for today." I reminded her. "I think it was George."

"Yeah, blame George." Liberty then turned around, sticking her tongue out at George, one of our coworkers.

"Wow, I guess I was wrong to think that all you Starbucks workers got along." The grey haired boy signed, trying to hide a small smile on his face.

I rolled my eyes. "Yep, that's us for ya. I usually work at the cashier, so fusses like this don't happen often. I speak a lot of languages, which helps."

"I see." He responded.

Just then, the girl with short blonde hair that had came to get her drink earlier, Carina, had came up to the counter. She placed her hand gently on the grey haired boy's shoulder. "C'mon, Cygnus, we've got to go." Then, she turned to me. "Sorry to interrupt your conversation. I'm Carina, by the way."

"Nice to meet you." I replied, noticing that the table at the back that she and her friends had sat around was now empty. "And that's fine. If you don't mind me asking, where are you headed?"

"Christmas shopping." Carina responded. "My friends and I are going to the mall. It is almost Christmas, after all."

It took me a moment to realise that today was December 23rd, which meant one more day until Christmas Eve, two more days until Christmas Day, and three more days until Boxing Day.

"Dammit, I can't believe I forgot about Christmas!" I mumbled to myself.

A girl with shoulder-length black hair, who had been standing with a group behind Carina, had heard what I had said. "You forgot about Christmas?" She asked, shocked. "What made you do that? Overworking?"

"B, calm down." Carina told her. Turning back to me, she said, "Sorry about that. She's big on the Christmas spirit."

"That's alright, and no, it's not overworking." I added in response to "B"'s question. "I suppose I'm just too into my studies."

"I see," Carina pursed her lips. "I'd suggest giving yourself a break if you wanted to. Don't set high standards for yourself that you can't reach, and always take care of yourself."

I nodded my head slightly. "That sounds good. Thank you."

Behind Carina, a girl with blonde pigtails that looked a bit like Carina went up to a black haired boy, who looked much like B, and tugged on his sleeve. "Hey A, Carina's busy but we got a problem." said the girl.

The black haired boy who the girl had called "A" heaved a sigh. "What is it now, Vela?"

A tall brown haired boy who stood next to the blonde haired girl, Vela, flashed the boy a nervous smile and answered, "You see, we kind of... lost Puppis."

"You what?!" asked the boy called A. "Are you kidding me?! How did you even lose him in the first place?" He face-palmed. "You know what, let's go look for him. Come on."

The grey haired boy, who Carina had called Cygnus, looked over at the group, rolled his eyes, and signed, "Idiots."

The black haired girl, B, giggled. "C'mon Carina, Cygnus. Let's go find Puppis."

"Alright, coming." Carina told her. Before leaving, she turned back to me. "Well, goodbye now. Remember what I said."

"I will! Thanks for your advice!" I thanked her, watching as the door closed.

Ah, everlasting friendships. Maybe I should visit some of my friends for Christmas.

Liberty came over and tapped me on the shoulder. "Makara, our shift's over. You wanna go somewhere?"

"Why not?" I responded.

Liberty smiled. "Alright, I'll go get my coat!"

As we walked out of the shop, Liberty nudged me with her elbow. "Where to?" She asked.

I thought for a moment. "What about a nice walk in Central Park?"

We made our way to Central Park as the snowflakes fell around us.

Snow is a beautiful thing. Just like friendships.

~~~

And that's the first bonus short for this book! Two more to go!

Thanks for reading! Have a good day/night, and stay safe!

Peace out,

Confusion owo