I concentrated on the task at hand, at each swirling loop of chocolate gracing the cakes surface. The lines and shaped were taking on something that resembled either an elephant or a very abstract monkey. I sighed, tossing the cupcake into the scrapheap, and motioning for Lillian to toss me another. I worked in a low scale shop in the middle of London, selling gourmet cupcakes. My mother had opened it some years ago, and had worked in it until the day she died. She had loved that shop, and it had flourished under her tender hand. Then she died, leaving her totally inexperienced daughter with a shop to run and no clue how to do it. I often wondered if maybe she was telling me something when she asked me to stay behind and help her with the orders for the next day and I was just too stupid to notice her intentions. Anyway, I cursed myself for not getting the practice that would help like no other thing would. As I was (attempting) to chocolatize the cupcake, the bell sounded from outside the door. I set the frosting bag I had been holding in the heating box type deal, wiped my hands off on my apron, and exited the kitchen. A nervous young man stood there, his eyes scanning the merchandise I had displayed.
"Hello, and welcome to Dreams in Chocolate, how may I help you?" I asked, plastering a half attempted smile on my face.
"Well, I need to place an order for 60 cupcakes. I don't have any designs really in mind, so can you give me some examples of what you do?" he asked, swallowing multiple times. I nodded, before leading him down a polka dotted hallway.
"This is where I discuss which ideas you want. I'll be back in a jiff with our photo album." I said, guiding him to a chair by a coffee table with a book on it. He smiled weakly, before settling back in his chair.
I walked briskly through the back, searching for a black and white book that seemed intent on giving me hell today.
"Where are you, you little bugger?" I muttered, scanning the top shelves. I thought to where I had seen it last, until I landed upon the coffee table. Whoops. I hurried off the stool, brushed a few stray hairs from my red face, and walked back towards the polka dotted hallway. I opened the door awkwardly, blushing like mad.
"Sorry, I seem to have left it here." I said, situating myself on the chair opposite him.
"So, do you have any particular ideas in mind on what you would like to do?" I asked, pulling out a pad and pen. He shrugged his shoulders. "I really haven't gotten to that part yet. My friend is having a party, and he loves your cupcakes. This is my birthday gift to him." He said.
"Ok, so does he have any particular interest or traits that we could incorporate?" I questioned, pen poised.
"Well, he's, we'll say, a complicated person. His imagination tends to get the best of him, and it amazes me how much his mind sweeps and swirls. He also loves chocolate. And the color purple." He mused as I scribbled furiously.
"Alrighty. So, how about something along the lines of this, with purple tints?" We could also add some of those swirly doodads in to go under or over the original design." I voiced, pointing to pictures in the book. He looked at me shyly from under a swoosh of dark hair as I put together a mental picture of how these cupcakes were going to look. He nodded when I required input, but he mainly just sat there listening to me ramble.
"Is there anything else you wish to be put on there before I start the sketches?" asked, finishing up my notes. He shook his head, smiling slightly.
"Thank you, Miss… Melissa?" He said, motioning to my nametag.
"Please, call me Lissa. You are…" I said, standing up and shaking his hand.
"Charlie. Do you need a number or anything to contact me or anything?" He said, following me out the door.
"Oh, yes, thank you. Do you mind giving me a number so I can reach you to overview the designs? Then I can get the rest of the paperwork I need when were ready to draw the ideas into stone." I said, handing him a pen, and pointing to the bottom of the pad. He wrote out his name and number, before handing the pad back to me.
"I'll look forward to the call." He said as he slipped on his jacket and walked out the door. I walked back into the kitchen, past the mess that was usually present, and entered the room specifically used to create plans. I stared at the empty, mocking pad for some ungodly amount of time, before inspiration struck. I went through half the pad before coming to a conclusion. I tweaked it, before slipping out of the room. The kitchen was dark and silent, the usual hustle and bustle reduced to an eerie hollowness. I looked at the clock for proof of what I feared. The blaring yellow letters pronounced it was half past midnight mockingly. I sighed, before stumbling to the spare bedroom in the back, slumping gratefully onto the uncomfortable cot and falling asleep almost instantly.
Xxx
Xxx
I woke up the next morning when a slightly amused voice shouted in my ear, "TIME TO WAKEY WAKEY!" I groaned, before pulling myself to glare at my baker Lillian. Her black bangs tried to hide the evil smirk, but I saw it as clear as day.
"Oh, bugger off. Aren't you supposed to be making something?" I growled, burrowing back under the covers.
"Nope! The orders haven't come in yet! Now, am I going to have to push you out or are you coming willingly.
"Oh fine, bloody cheerful git." I growled, swinging my legs over the side of the cot.
I stretched, wincing as joints snapped into place.
"What time is it?" I asked, attempting to straighten my outfit. I decided to hell with it and entered my office to get the spare clothes I kept in a drawer.
"Its five minuets past 6." Lillian informed me, lounging in the doorway.
"Oh good, I still have time to change." I said, hurrying towards the bathroom.
I exited, as refreshed as I could be sans a shower, before heading towards the phone. I pulled the slip of paper with Charlie's number out of my pocket, dialing each number carefully. I had always had a problem with phone buttons, and I didn't want to end up calling Siberia or anything. A slightly disheveled voice answered on the fourth ring. "Hello, this is Charlie."
"Hey Charlie, its Lissa. I have a blueprint of what style we could do these cupcakes in. Do you mind coming down later today to come check them out?" I asked.
"Sure. Can you give me a few hours? Sorry, I'm not an early riser." He mumbled as something crashed in the background.
"Sure. I'm not usually, but today a certain baker person decided it was her duty to wake me up at an ungodly hour." I replied.
He laughed over the phone, before saying his goodbyes and hanging up. I placed the phone back on its cradle, before going over and helping the senile old lady that thought she was Miss America.
