@tdpossum and I got really involved in a Sanctuary Target AU, so obviously I HAD to write fic about it, and obviously she HAS to make edits for it. (Hint hint.)
Itâs a quarter to ten, fifteen minutes to close, and as far as Helen, who has been the manager of the Old City Target for as long as anyone can remember, is concernedâŠit shows.
âWelcome to Starbucks, can I take your order?â Kate grumbles, her green apron wrinkled, leaning her elbows on the bakery display.
Itâll smudge the glass, but Helen knows Abby, the best Starbucks manager theyâve ever had, will double-check that Kate made it shine again.
She waves at Abby, hunched over her psych textbook behind the counter, and continues on her rounds. She stops to arrange the display of the clearance items near the front of the store, to adjust the hang of a hideous but trendy t-shirt in juniorsâ, smiling at the last customers of the night as she goes.
Her walkie-talkie hisses, and Willâs beleaguered voice crackles through the little speaker. âMagnus, I have a line of seven customers and Iâm the only checkout open. Canât Biggie open up a register?â
But Biggie, whoâs been working here almost as long as Helen, is manning the customer service desk, and besides, itâs good for Will to learn to handle these situations himself. She hasnât told him, but sheâs positive he has assistant manager potential.
Cheerfully, she turns her walkie off.
âI could sell you the new iPhone 7, but your 5C can be fixed just fine,â she hears Henry say, as she approaches Electronics. âHere, dude, let me see your phoneâŠâ
Henry Foss is the smartest employee sheâs ever had in this section, the most thoughtful, the most conscientiousâŠand somehow, also, the worst. Sheâll have to talk to him again, or the next time they have a visit from Corporate, he really will be fired.
She can usually handle John, their Corporate rep, just fineâŠbut it would certainly help if Henry could make a saleâŠany sale.
âHey, boss!â Henry calls cheerfully, as he hands back the phone to his euphoric customers, who will adore him but now not spend a dime. âGood night, huh?â
âWhy donât you just let him go?â John had asked, as sheâd walked him to his car, a brand-new two-seater Helen guessed cost more than she made in a year, at the end of his last visit.
âI donât like to give up on people,â sheâd informed him.
John had rubbed his third finger, bare, now, for going on two years, and said nothing.
Henry could get another job, easily, of course. Nikola, who manages the Kmart across town, has been trying to steal him away for monthsâŠbut Helen just canât bring herself to do it.
Maybe sheâll bake his favorite m&m cookies tonight, and have a little talk with him before his shift tomorrow.
âMagnus!â Willâs voice wails from the pocket of her crisp khakis, where she stuffed her walkie. âI need help up here, Iâm going to be murdered by an unruly mobââ
She smiles. âComing, Will,â she sings into the speakerâŠand then heads to the breakroom instead.
She deserves a cup of tea, doesnât she?
