"That. Was. Horrifying." Hope said leaning against the wall of the pantry. "It feels like we've been in here for hours!"
Goldie shook his head at Hope looking out of the door. "It's only been about an hour, but that means I've only got an hour to prepare for the lunch rush. You two better get going. Bonnie and Freddy should be good now. just check the main dining area and you should find them."
Hope and Jack walked into the main dining area,
"You're late." A stocky man with brown hair walked up to them with a frown on his face. "Let's go girl. It's my job to show you the ropes. Rule one: Always be on time!" The man quickly walked away with Hope following behind.
"Don't mind Freddy. He's just an ass. Come on I'll show you the ropes."
"Alright, waiting is a fairly easy gig." Bonnie began. "Let's start with the simple stuff, like the menu."
They went over to a table close to them and Bonnie handed Jack a menu.
"Now you'll want to familiarize yourself with this, you'll be writing down orders off of it everyday. Also, you'll want to memorize the specials, since we have them daily. They change based on the day, and we can have up to six. Today you're getting off lucky, we only have two. If you look on the next page there, you'll see them listed for the customer's convenience, and for the time being, yours as well. Now would be a good time to over the table numberings."
Jack stood up, and Bonnie motioned to the number on the table, a five craved in a metallic plate, bolted onto the table.
"The number corresponds with the server. I have the first ten tables, and you'll have tables 11 through 20. This moves us into our next topic, being nice to the customers. Nobody likes someone who is rude to them, especially their waiter. So, be nice, even if they are being assholes, keep your cool. Why am I telling you this? Tips. The nicer you are, the bigger the tip. Uh, Jack? Are you listening?"
Jack was awoken from his daze of staring at Bonnie when he said that. He couldn't help himself, he's fucking cute.
"Uh, yeah. I'm listening. Be nice to people and get more money." he replied.
Bonnie smiled, "There we go, you're getting the hang of it! You're practically a natural at this. Now let's go over silverware. It'll be on the table, and you can go back into the kitchen if they need another utensil or whatever. Though for parties, I advise you keep some extra spoons and forks in your apron. Kids are clumsy, and they tend to drop things. A lot. So, in the case of this event, you can swoop in and give them an extra one."
Bonnie then paused, but continued shortly after it.
"Now we do have regulars who come in here everyday. I would recommend you get to know them and befriend them, otherwise they can get you fired. There used to be this guy who worked here, started about the same time as me, but he doesn't anymore. I'll give you three guesses and the first two don't count as to why he was fired."
"That wraps up the training I believe." Bonnie said. "You seem like you've got the hang of this. Even though the first day is a rough one, you should be golden."
"Thank you." Jack said. "You were very informative."
Bonnie chuckled, "Thank you. You know it's been awhile since I have gotten a compliment."
"What do you mean? I'm sure Freddy complements you all the time, as good looking as you are."
"Well he doesn't anymore, he's just been an asshole lately. It's like we're drifting apart. Though thank you for the compliment."
"You're welcome, and besides, he didn't seemed too thrilled about having to teach Hope the ropes."
"Yeah, he's never been too keen on new hires. I like the new hires, so full of life and energy, ready to go! But all he's been lately is cold and distant, and his performance has been lacking."
"His… waiting performance?"
"Uh, sure, that performance."
Jack involuntarily shivered at that. Do these two even have boundaries?
"Well, uh, I'm sure his performance will improve," Jack began, "You just have to give him some time."
Bonnie scoffed, "I've given him plenty of time! Like what the hell? We've been doing this for years now and he doesn't even give a flying fuck!"
"Calm down, it's alright."
Bonnie sighed, "No it isn't. Freddy and I have been in a rocky situation for a few weeks now. It's no big deal really."
"Alright. If you ever need to talk or anything, I'll be here for you."
"Thanks. I might need it too, since we have been having a bigger argument on the side, though it seems to have subsided for now."
"Can I ask what it is about?"
"I'd rather not talk about it right now."
"Ok. Whenever you're ready, I'll be here."
The two were then interrupted by the sound of the doors opening. People were filing into the restaurant, ready for lunch.
"Ready to put your knowledge to the test?" Bonnie asked Jack.
"Ready!" he replied enthusiastically.
Freddy stopped near the entrance of the restaurant. "It's important you are clean and presentable. No customer wants to be served by someone covered in filth or who looks untidy. Even though you completely failed in punctuality, you at least seem to understand tidiness. Well I think I've covered everything. I want you to mop up near the arcade and prize corner, then go ask Goldie to help you memorize the menu. I'm sure it will be stuck in your head after helping him prepare some of our food items. Do you understand?"
Hope blinked in confusion. Freddy had probably just given her thirty rules and tips in fifteen minutes. "Uh yeah, I've got it. Thanks."
Freddy nodded and then quickly walked away to do who knows what.
"Great, now I'm stuck mopping up where that idiot Mark works," Hope grumbled to herself. She walked towards the prize counter mumbling about getting stuck with Freddy for training. "Jack was probably having all the fun," Hope thought.
She sighed, breaking the silence of the near empty restaurant as she looked for a closet that might hold a mop. All of a sudden she heard a bang and a moan. She glanced around noticing that she was walking by Kid's Cove.
"I think that's Foxy's Area. He's probably there with Chica now. At least I don't have to listen to that again. Thank God." Hope thought as she quickly walked away from Kid's Cove towards a door she noticed near all the arcade machines.
As she went towards the door in search of a mop a voice shouted out, "Hi! Hello!"
"What the Hell was that?! Who's there?" Hope yelled in a panic.
"Oh.. I'm sorry I scared you! I'm Brandon. I work here sometimes handing out balloons!" Hope looked at the scrawny fifteen year old who stood behind her.
"Don't go sneaking up on people like that. Geez, you'll give them a heart attack!" Hope said grumpily.
"Anyway, do you know where I can get a mop?" Brandon pointed to the door Hope was heading towards and then scurried off to annoy someone else.
She mopped the area she was at for a while, making sure to clean near the bases of the arcade games.
"And now I have to go mop the damn Prize Corner. How did he even get hired here? If he's so goddamn angry all the time he shouldn't be near kids." She walked towards the Prize Corner mopping as she went.
As she mopped near the Prize Counter she noticed that the sticky messes she was mopping up were a lot worse.
"That's weird. These spills can't be that old, and it's odd that they are so light colored. Typically the less visible messes are easier to clean." She mopped the area for a while, working hard to clean up the strange white messes.
She moved behind the prize counter cleaning more of the white messes up and then went to open the door to the storage area where the prizes were kept.
"F-Frank. c-can you s-slow down? I-I-I d-don't t-think we used e-enough lu-lubri-ricant." Mark whined. Hope's jaw dropped.
"What the hell is wrong with these people. Why is a children's pizza place considered the best place to fuck?!" Hope threw down her mop and walked away from the Prize Corner avoided the leftover sticky messes now that she knew what they were.
"Hey, Goldie." Hope said walking into the kitchen.
"Hello!" Goldie said cheerfully as he rolled out some pizza dough.
"I have a question for you." Hope said, "Why is it that I've ended up listening to at least two couples bang in this restaurant?!"
Goldie stopped rolling the dough and looked at Hope with a shrug. "To be honest, after a while you learn the places to avoid and you get used to it." Hope shook her head in disgust.
"Why don't you help me prepare a few pizzas?" Goldie asked shyly.
Hope smiled and got to work spreading sauce and cheese on the pizza. The two worked together quietly, making about three or four pizzas with their teamwork.
"Hey, it's time for you to get out there and start serving, but thanks for the help. Maybe me and Chica can try the teamwork method soon to get more pizzas made." Goldie said with a smile.
Hope finished the pizza she was on then rushed out of the room to the main dining area to begin her first day as a waitress.