"A day off?"
Mr. Arthur Bumble, owner of the overpriced surf shop, was on another one of his before-closing-time rants. His most dedicated and most popular employee, Victoria Hanson asked for a day off. A normal manager would understand or give a few huffs and puffs about it. Unfortunately, Mr. Bumble was not an ordinary manager. Let me just say that Mr. Bumble was Scrooge without a heart deep down inside.
"Please, Mr. Bumble, it's just one day," the young woman pleaded. "I really need to take this day off."
"Why?" he asked, his beady black eyes showing no compassion, and for that matter, no emotion, except, of course, for the occasional flicker of anger.
The not-quite-twenty-year-old Victoria began to explain. "I'm moving back to Blue Bay Harbor next week. The commute is only two hours from here, but I will need to unpack and get everything settled for J—"
Mr. Bumble, however, interrupted her, also discharging a few specks of saliva at the same time, due to his anger. It was, indeed, an act Mr. Bumble managed to master. "Oh please, using that little brat as an excuse again?"
"But sir—"
"Listen to me, Miss Hampton, and listen well," Mr. Bumble began. For about the billionth, maybe trillionth, time, Mr. Bumble had mistaken her name. "If you're not in this shop, serving customers, and instead you're driving down to Blue Bay Harbor, using that wretched child—"
"What?" she asked, her fury rising. "All right, Mr. Bumble," she spat, "I've worked for you for several months, and I've learned a lot about you. You've told me many things, but now I would like to say some things to you.
"First of all, it's Hanson. Han-son. Do you understand? Second, my child is nowhere near wretched, so I don't want to hear you saying anything else about him. And third, I quit.
"That's right, sir, I quit! Have fun finding a new employee!" Victoria shouted from the top of her lungs.
Victoria stomped away, feeling exhilarated, and at the same time, quite frightened. Victoria needed that job, needed an income, for the young person thrust upon her at so young an age. He needed her, and she him. Unfortunately, this young being made life so much more difficult. And yet, Victoria enjoyed every minute of it.
She reached the corner, shaking from head to toe with fright. How could she have just given up her job? Tears began to sting her eyes. She could not go back there and beg for her job; her dignity would not allow it. Yet, what would she do?
An idea came to her, and Victoria ran as fast as she humanly could. In a short instant, she arrived upon a doorstep and burst through the door.
Thankfully, the owner of that house was a very good friend of Victoria's otherwise we all might have thought Victoria had gone mad.
"Sara!" Victoria called out. "I'm in a bit of trouble.
Sara Lively, possibly the kindest person on the face of the Earth, was the other employee of Mr. Bumble. Sara would willingly give the last piece of bread out of her mouth to a friend in need, but thankfully, none of her friends were that desperate, otherwise that would be slightly unpleasing to the eye.
"Ooh, did you finally kill Bumble?" she asked teasingly.
"Not quite, but, it does have something to do with him," Victoria said.
"What?"
"Well, see, I did . . . something kind of . . . out of character for me. . ."
"Which was. . ."
"I . . . I, uh, quit. The job. That Mr. Bumble gave me," Victoria said, waiting for Sara's reaction. "And I kind of yelled."
"You . . . quit."
Victoria only nodded her head.
Sara squealed with delight. "Yes! Finally! Someone put that uptight jerk in his place!" She ran over and grasped Victoria's hands in hers. "I'm so proud of you!"
"Sara?" Victoria said grimly. "I kind of have a problem now."
Sara gave her a quizzical look.
"Money! What am I going to do?"
"Simple, you can borrow from me!"
Victoria, instead of being ecstatic as Sara was, only sighed exasperated. "Sara, come on. Mr. Bumble's paycheck can barely support one person. Now it's magically going to support three people?"
Reality hit Sara like a ton of bricks. She sunk down into her sofa. "I guess you're right," she said quietly. "But what are you going to do now?"
"I have no idea," Victoria admitted sullenly.
They sat in the living room of Sara Lively for what seemed like hours, or possibly could have been hours. After Victoria let out another sigh, Sara perked up her head and smiled.
"I have an idea," she said simply.
Victoria waited. "So . . . you going to tell me anytime soon?"
"No," Sara said flatly. "I'm going to show you."
"Show me? Can't you just tell me?"
"No. You'd better call Mrs. Mann and tell her she'll be watching Justin for a bit longer, a few hours or so."
"Sara, what are you up to?" Victoria asked, a slight smiled upturning the corners of her lips.
..:X:..
"Is the blindfold really necessary?" Victoria whined, sitting in the passenger seat of Sara's car.
"Well, if I'm going to surprise you, then yes, it is really necessary," Sara retorted.
Sara drove, and Victoria whined, until finally the car stopped. When the two friends got out, Victoria hurriedly took off the blindfold to see where Sara had taken her.
After observing her surroundings for all of two, maybe three, seconds, she turned to Sara and asked, "Blue Bay Harbor? Why are we here?"
Sara nodded her head in the direction she wanted Victoria to look.
When she did, Victoria saw a building, a very worn down building, to be frank.
"So, what do you think!" Sara demanded rather than asked.
"Uh, what am I supposed to do with it?" Victoria asked.
"Buy it!" Sara exclaimed, as though it were obvious.
"And then. . ."
"Fix it up, and make it into your very own surf shop!" Sara said, a bright smile taking over her face. When Sara looked over at her friend, she saw Victoria was not convinced. "Come on, it's really not that bad!"
Sara dragged Victoria inside by the hand. "It's kind of . . . dirty," Victoria said.
"Hey! Look at this place. The ceilings are really high, so you can stand up so many surfboards. And look, see that wall over there," Sara said, pointing to a large blank wall. "You can put pictures of you surfing, or, wait; even better, you hang pictures of your students!"
"Students?"
"Yeah! You're going to give surfing lessons! And . . . over there you can put the cash register, and in that corner you can put a TV! The structure of the building is strong; it's just dirty in here. The outside just needs a good scrub down!
"And you know I have all those tools in my shed since my Dad never took it with him when my parents moved out. And, you're going to have employees, and you can be the boss!"
Victoria took a second look at the shop. "Well, I guess it's not that bad. Plus, it's right next to the beach . . . I'll buy it!"
"Great! And since the building is pretty gross, the price is low, so you can totally afford it!" Sara said, happy for her friend.
Victoria sighed. "But, there's this problem I have. See, I need someone to help me with the business . . . someone who has some experience with surfing, if you know what I mean."
Victoria and Sara shared a smile and a giggle.
"I guess I'd better start looking for a place out here," Sara said.
"There is something else you have to do."
"Which is. . ."
"Talking to a certain boss whose name starts with a 'B' and ends with 'Umble.'"
"Ooh, you're right. I'm going to give that jerk a piece of my mind!" Sara exclaimed happily. Her eyes widened. "I should plan out everything I should say to Bumble."
"While you do that, I think we should get back home," Victoria reminded her friend.
"Oh, yeah. Mrs. Mann probably isn't too pleased."
"And neither is Justin," Victoria said grimly.
..:X:..
"Mrs. Mann?" Victoria called as she tiptoed into her house.
"Hello, Miss Hanson," Mrs. Mann said, briskly, as if in a rush. "Justin is already in bed."
Victoria formed a pleasant smile. "Thank you, Mrs. Mann, for watching Justin all the time."
She only responded with a curt nod of her head. As Mrs. Mann headed toward the door, Victoria could have sworn she heard Mrs. Mann mutter under her breath, "Good riddens."
Shrugging her shoulders, Victoria closed the door. So much had happened in this day. She quit her job, decided to start her own business . . . good thing there was still a week until she moved, because it would take a week to fix up that building, and get all the supplies she needed.
There was something else Victoria had to do. She knew the time would have to come sooner or later, but she hadn't realized this feat would be so difficult. There was someone, actually, five someones, with whom she would have to encounter once she returned to her hometown. It would not have been so hard for her to do, but now there was a young person in her life, and the last time those five someones had seen her, this young person did not exist.
A/N: Hii! This is Januarial Thorns, and my first story that I plan on finishing!
The story is off to a bit of a slow start, don't remind me. And don't fret! The guys will be back!
Reviews are appreciated!
Oh, and I guess I should have said this earlier: I do not own the Power Rangers
-Januarial Thorns