You had no idea how you went from one porn shop to another. In your defense, though, at least this one was just an erotic book shop. It had taken Kassim a while before he stopped laughing. You were relieved to know that Sasha and Leila didn't know either when they first signed up. You weren't sure about Toto, but she seemed to have known. You decided that you would keep this job, though, until you found another one. It had been a week since you started working for Fatima and he didn't seem very demanding or anything like that. Leila said that it gets worse, but you had yet to see. The outfits that you had to wear were a bit uncomfortable, but you didn't complain much. Everything seemed fine, although, you had yet to tell Kouha about this. You felt like he'd laugh at your mistake just like Kassim, though something told you he'd be pissed about the outfits. So whenever you were able to see him, which wasn't so often because you were now both busy you hid most of the details about your job from him.
"We should go on a date again soon," Kouha mused as he was sprawled out on your bed texting Judar. He was just in his bottoms currently while you chose to at least cover yourself with a robe. He impromtuly showed up at your door step. You were happy to see him since you've just been having little texts here and there.
"Sounds nice, but when?" you asked, your schedules hadn't been exactly matched up lately. Even now, you were pushing it since you were both exhausted from your days. You barely had enough energy to do what you just did, but getting rid of the stress of a busy schedule was worth it. Kouha looked at you and shrugged.
"Probably after I'm done with all of my photo-shoots for now and when we're done with our next exams," he mused, leaning over to give your neck a kiss. You giggled a bit, wrapping your arms around him.
"Okay then," you said.
"So, how has your new job been?" Kouha asked. You tensed up slightly, though forced yourself to be calm. The job had been fine, but you did want something not so indecent.
"It's been alright," you spoke softly, "I don't want to talk about that now, though. I just wanna...continue on~." Sexual things usually made Kouha forget what you two had been talking about. The pinkette smirked and pulled you on top of him. You could tell by the look on his face that the subject had been immediately dropped.
"Sounds good, hon~," he purred, "But it's getting late and I have to go soon. Maybe you can..." He gripped onto your hips tightly, "Come back to my place with me~? I don't want to leave from you just yet." You gave an apologetic smile, leaning down to peck Kouha's lips.
"Sorry, babe, I have things to do for tomorrow as well," you told him. Kouhe let out a sigh, pouting cutely. You could tell that he was disappointed and so were you. After a bit of making out, Kouha left your apartment. You had a nice shower before getting to bed. Tomorrow was work once again. You couldn't wait to get paid since you had expenses. When you would go shopping after work for groceries, you would have to keep that in mind. The next day came sort of too quickly for your liking. You were grateful that you didn't have to go into work until later, so for now you worked on your school work before it was time to go.
Today was school uniform day. You felt weird getting dressed in the clothing, but you knew that you didn't have a choice. This was for your job temporarily after all. You were sure that you would find something better. Today, Toto was at the front, greeting those who came in. You noticed this one customer approaching Sasha, asking her something. She flushed bright red at what he said and shook her head. You sighed seeing as this guy was probably a pervert, but the next thing you saw made you raise an eyebrow. It looked as if she was going in a back area with him. You were about to follow them since this was freaking you out a bit, only for Fatima to cross your path. "[Name]~!" Fatima smiled, "Have you gotten used to working here yet?" You were still on Sasha and what was going on with her.
"Yes, Sir," you told him, you kind of weren't but you didn't want him to know that. "Sir, Sasha, she-"
"[Name], I've told you to call me Fatima," he said, with a wave of his hand. You were barely paying attention to him, but rather looking passed him.
"Okay, but Sasha, she went in the back with-"
"Leila! Have you gone over all of the rules with [Name], yet? She keeps calling me 'Sir'," Fatima whined. Leila let out a sigh as she heard her boss. She had been putting books in their rightful places.
"I have, Fatima, though I'll save the more detailed rules for you," she said. She sounded like she was aggravated. Fatima seemed to giggle.
"Good, girl," he mused, hands on his hips. You had enough of this, you really did.
"Fatima, Sasha just went in the back alone with some pervy looking guy. I'm concerned," you quickly said to avoid more interruptions. At this Fatima rose an eyebrow before letting out another laugh.
"Oh, [Name], she's just directing him to the areas in the back. If a customer asks something of you I expect you to comply as well," he said. You really didn't feel this was the safest as there was no view of the back, and you weren't completely sure of everything back there, yet.
"With all due respect, don't you think that's kind of unsafe? What if he were to hurt her?" you asked. Fatima yawned dramatically, as if he were bored with this, before waving everything you said off.
"It's perfectly safe, besides, it's in your contract to assist your customers to the fullest extent." You most definitely were going to quit the second you could, because that was pretty crazy. You merely nodded, knowing he wouldn't exactly understand your concern.
"Alright, S-Fatima," you quickly corrected yourself. Fatima gave a smile and a pat to your head before leaving. Once he left, you heard Kassim speak.
"Don't worry, [Name]. We wouldn't let anything happen to any one here. We all have each other backs," he explained. That did reassure you a bit, but for some reason you wondered why he didn't say that with Fatima around. You let out a sigh of relief.
"Thanks, that's good to know," you said, softly. There was a lot that you were sure you didn't know about this job, but you thought it would be better to just find another one and not figure them out. Fatima was probably just a bit dense when it came to those things, so maybe that was why Kassim didn't mention it in front of him. After all, Fatima always asked everyone how they were doing and seemed cheery. He must truly think it's safe. You watched as Sasha came out the back with a sigh of relief before joining Leila on putting the books in their proper places. You gave a small smile and went about your own work.
When your shift was finally over you let out a sigh and walked back to your car. You told the others good-bye before getting inside. That was when you remembered the grocery shopping that you needed to get done...you also remembered that you didn't bring any spare clothing. You hit your head against the back of the seat you were in. You would definitely be embarrassed, but you were too hungry to care, and you knew that the crackers and instant ramen that you had would be of no help.
Actually, embarrassed may have been an understatement. Your whole face was red as you picked out items and put them in your cart. Some people were staring and a few seemed to not care. You were in the frozen food section and placed some chicken nuggets in your basket. It wasn't the healthiest, but it would have to do for now. You didn't have much money to spare currently and asking Kouha about these sorts of things would put a bad taste in your mouth. Your huge wealth differences made you feel weird. You glanced at the ice-cream section but fought your urge to get some. With a sigh you turned away, only to have your attention caught. "[Name]?" you heard. You turned back around and noticed Sinbad at the end of the isle. Your face went red as you remembered what you were wearing and also because of the manner you had quit. Sinbad seemed to smile, though as he walked over.
"That's some role-playing you and Kouha must be doing," he teased. That was Sinbad for you, no shame. You quickly shook your head. You were thinking of how bad you felt for leaving your job like that, especially since Sinbad had been a pretty cool boss, although he had kinks to work out, no pun intended.
"Sinbad, hey...," you said, awkwardly. The man rose an eyebrow at your words and your tone of voice only for a smirk to crack up on his lips.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Is this the part where you apologize and come running back to me?" he teased. You hated to admit this, but the comfort that you had with Sinbad and Alibaba, although he wasn't there, was sort of like siblings.
"Very funny," you quickly said, making him chuckle. He reached over and patted your head, sensing your slight embarrassment.
"It's alright, I understand," he said, "You need new horizons and not to mention you have a nice sugar daddy." Yep, that was Sinbad for you...no shame. You swatted his hand away, making him chuckle again.
"Yeah, yeah," you rolled your eyes before looking down, "...I am sorry, though. I guess I could have quit in a kinder way." You weren't sure how to word it. Sinbad merely put a hand up and shook his head.
"It's fine, [Name], I understand," he smiled, "Now, enough teasing. Why are you dressed like that?" It seemed as if his curiosity was getting the best of him. You sighed, feeling a bit better with being dressed like this now that you were with someone you knew.
"It's part of my new job," you mused, to which Sinbad rose an eyebrow, "Yeah, there's uniforms and such. Oh, and get this it's an erotic shop as well." Sinbad couldn't help but to chuckle again when he heard this.
"I take it you didn't know when you applied," he said, knowing you too well. You nodded with a sigh, "Well, what's the name of it? I'll come and offer you support one day. Maybe I'll bring Alibaba, too."
"Please, Alibaba would faint the second he realized what was going on," you giggled, remembering your jittery former coworker, "I'll tell you the name so that you can make sure to avoid it and not embarrass me," you joked.
"Fair enough," Sinbad smiled.
"Anyway, it's a parody title, like yours. It's called 'The Joy of Books' very unoriginal," you mused. You called it unoriginal, but you had failed to realize that it was an erotic book shop. You barely noticed Sinbad's face fall as you said the title.
"If your boss Fatima?" he quickly asked, face now serious. You rose an eyebrow, wondering if they were rivals of some sort.
"Yeah, he-"
"[Name], you have to quit. Like right now," Sinbad said, hands going and holding your shoulders as he looked you in the eyes. You were kind of alarmed at this. It was pretty weird.
"What? Why? It seems like a decent place," you told him. Sinbad looked at your uniform again, although you were unsure why.
"He made you sign a contract, didn't he? Don't worry, I'll find a way to get you out of it. Just DON'T go back there," he told you. This sort of scared you at the moment, but you refused to believe it. You pulled away from him.
"Sinbad, I don't know how you know about my boss, but he's fine and my coworkers seem to have no..." you trailed off being reminded of how Kassim didn't talk in front of Fatima. You quickly shook your head at that, "My coworkers have no problem with him. But if it concerns you, you should know I plan on quitting once I find a new job anyway." Sinbad let out a breath of air.
"[Name], listen to me. Listen. DON'T go back there. Let me deal with Fatima, alright?" he said. You let out a groan, not liking this.
"Sinbad, Fatima is a good boss-"
"[Name]! I'm trying to help you! I'll explain everything once I've gotten you out of this situation, but for now-"
"Sinbad, stop!" you said, a little bit louder than you wanted to. People around you stopped and stared for a bit, "I'm fine! I will be fine. Fatima is good boss and he actually cares about his employees well-being. He doesn't overwork us." The last thing was a slide at Sinbad, but you couldn't help it, "Now, excuse me." You left the isle, just wanting to go home.
"[Name], listen to me," Sinbad called to you, but you just ignored him. You went straight to the register, not bothering to get anymore items and paid for what you had before going home. You felt as if you had a head ache now. Things were getting exhausting, that was for sure.
Once you were home, you saved the groceries that you had bought. It wasn't much, but it would last you until your next pay day. You sighed, no longer feeling hungry after your run-in with Sinbad. You did wonder what he had meant, but at the same time you just couldn't bring yourself to believe him. Your boss seemed fine and he didn't seem like the type to make someone yell in a grocery store not to work for him anymore. But then again, yelling in public like that was a serious thing and Sinbad had always been the type to protect those he cared about.
You couldn't help but to remember your first date with Kouha, you had seen Sinbad there as well as Alibaba. It was the hugest coincidence that you would see them both there. You had been a bit concerned and on the fence about Kouha and Sinbad had offered to take you home. Thankfully Kouha hadn't been as thirsty as he seemed, he just was a little more direct than you would have expected. Even now you think about the mix-up with the word 'dessert'. You knew your boyfriend well now, and when he wants to have sex, he straight up tells you.
Still, your former boss had been there for you. He and Alibaba had always been there for you, and you were very grateful for the two of them. If Sinbad was like a regular boss you wouldn't have been able to talk to him in the manner that you usually did and Alibaba would have been fired after the first day. They really had been like family to you, but you went ahead and messed that up tonight...You had to remember, though, they weren't your family and they did have their flaws. Maybe Sinbad just has a grudge against Fatima. You weren't sure, but you decided to be on high alert.
You showered up and did your nightly routine before deciding to turn in for the night. You would have to remember to buy pain killers because your headache grew a bit. Perhaps it was from your newfound stress of the day or maybe it had to do with being anxious in some way. You weren't sure, but you make sure to put some on your list. You would get it when you got your first pay check for this new job. Hopefully all of your worry will be for nothing and you'll end up not needing them.
It was the next day and that day was swim wear. You were dressed in the two piece you were given as you were behind the register. You couldn't help but to remember your conversation with Sinbad last night, and while you thought he was being dramatic, he did prompt you to continue with your job search that morning. You found a nice boutique that was about to start up and managed to get an interview. You would talk to Fatima about it later on that day. While you would like to wait until you would actually get a job, you felt like this would be what was for the best. What Sinbad said spooked you a little after all, even if you did what to deny it, you still had that feeling.
You watched as Toto came in, adorning her swim wear. She let out a sigh and greeted you before going to clock in. You could see a customer visibly staring at her breasts, making you roll your eyes. Little Shop of Whores may have had its creeps, but they were never this brazen. You stepped out from behind the register momentarily and handed Toto a book. She rose an eyebrow at this, "You might want to consider holding one of these today," you told her. You glanced over at the man who was now staring at your own breasts. You gave a groan then turned away, only to feel his presence.
"Excuse me," he said. You wished you could kick this creep out. You turned around, trying to slip the annoyed look from your face.
"How can I help you?" you asked. You managed to look regular, but you knew that if he kept it up you wouldn't be able to keep it at bay.
"You seem like a sweet girl," he said, before motioning to Toto, "Can you ask her to remove the book." Your mouth dropped as you couldn't believe this, before you had the chance to curse him out he continued, "I mean no offense to you, I just personally like her look better." You were so close to beating him with a book. You noticed that Toto went to do her job, making the man groan. "Now look what you've did." He started to follow her. You couldn't compress your feelings anymore.
"Excuse me?! I'm sorry sir, but I'll have to ask you to leave!" you said. You managed to do it in a polite way at least, because there were a lot of things you could have said to him. The man only rose an eyebrow.
"For what?" he asked as if he honestly didn't know, "Are you offended that I rather her?"
"You son of a-"
"[Name]~?!" you heard your boss and turned around to see him. His hands were on his hips and he was pouting, "That's no way to talk to a customer. In my office." He began to walk back to his office. You reluctantly followed, though glanced back to see the customer gawking at Toto again. You felt that you should have been politer, even if the guy was a jerk.
"I'm sorry, sir, I should have handled it different and asked him to leave in a nicer way," you said as you sat down. Fatima rose an eyebrow at this. He sat down at his desk while you sat opposite of him. He leaned back, looking a bit bored now.
"It's not that," he told you, "You shouldn't have asked him to leave to begin with." Now it was your turn to raise an eyebrow.
"Pardon?" you asked. Fatima laughed a bit.
"Oh, [Name], my customers are always right. They are allowed to look and touch if they like. Though no need to worry these guys are too chicken to touch," he spoke to you as if he were talking about the weather over tea with a friend. You looked rather shocked.
"Fatima...isn't that harassment?" you asked him. Fatima shook his head as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"It's not. Look it's in your contract, see," he mused as he pulled up your contract, showing you the section. So this was what Sinbad meant. You bit your lip, deciding to tread carefully now.
"I see...," you spoke carefully, "Well, Fatima, it's good that I'm in here now, actually. I wanted to talk to you." You would just quit, though you did wonder why your coworkers were fine with this.
"Oh, really~? Well, two birds one stone, right?" he laughed a bit. You nodded.
"Right. Anyway, I have this great job opportunity and I hate to do this after just one week of working, but-"
"Say no more," Fatima said, dramatically, "I'm fine if you want to quit, this job isn't for everyone." You let out a sigh of relief.
"Really?" you asked. He giggled.
"Of course! Just pay me for the uniforms and you can quit," he said. That seemed easy enough, but you weren't sure how much they would cost. You would probably be slightly in the red for a bit.
"How much do I owe you?" you asked. Fatima leaned forward in his seat.
"Twenty-five thousand dollars," he smirked. Your eyes widened. So this was what Sinbad meant.