Aaah, yes! Another sunny day. Penelope smiled as she stared out the big glass windows while she set up the serving line. Clad in a brand new uniform that fit her perfectly (versus the ones she had before), she was ready to seize the day. She had waited for what felt like forever to start back at work again, and she was bound and determined to make it one of the best days she had ever had!
The timer on the proofer went off, and she moved the bread to the oven before continuing with her setup. Although it was her regularly scheduled day off, Terry was in the store with her to make sure that she didn't overwork herself. She had already given some stern words to Penelope as she danced around the kitchen upon arriving, and had threatened to send her home if she didn't listen and slow down. For Penelope, though, there was no such thing as slowing down when there were plenty of things that needed to be done. She did try, though. Kind of.
Terry came around the corner with a cart load of cookies as Penelope sat the last few pans on the line. She loaded a few pans into the remaining empty spaces of the ovens before pulling two frozen cookie doughs that she'd set on the corner of one of the pans off. "Macademia nut?" She asked, offering one to Penelope.
"Yesss!" Penelope gleefully hissed. She took one of the cookies from Terry and they clacked them together saying "Cheers!" before quickly devouring the morsels. This used to be one of the only occasions when Penelope ever got away with eating any sweets. What Mary didn't know wouldn't hurt her, after all. But now, Penelope could have all the sweets she wanted! She was being careful to eat sweets in moderation, as she didn't want to get fat. She was still fairly underweight, but still wanted to be healthy.
With all of the prep-work for the morning done, Penelope went to the register and opened the cash drawer while Terry pulled the change fund out of the safe. They then walked around the dining area and made sure all the tables and chairs were wiped down. They were all clean from the night before, but they liked to re-sanitize things again before opening when they had the time. It made for a fresh, clean feel that made Sub Haven more inviting to its customers. The smell of bread and cookies filled the restaurant, which always made for a perfect opening!
With nothing else left to do before the bread and cookies finished, they sat down to take a break. "I think this is the earliest we have finished our morning prep in a long time!" Terry exclaimed. "Its good to have you back, Penelope."
Penelope smiled at her. "I'm so happy to be back! Oh my goodness, I am so done with sitting at home not doing much of anything. Its crazy to think that I don't have to do endless amounts of chores and stuff. I don't really know what to do with my hands, now!"
A somewhat sorrowful giggle came out of Terry's mouth. "Well, now that you're free, you can do anything that you want, right? Have you thought of any new hobbies you might like to try?"
Penelope shook her head. "Not really. Art and writing are what interest me the most. I've been working with the art stuff that Derek got me. That's fun. Oh, and I swim, too! And watch TV. Ooh! And my dad is teaching me how to drive my new car!" She beamed.
"Well look at you! Sounds like you're getting along quite nicely! I didn't know that you liked to swim."
"Mmhmm." Penelope nodded. "I'm really good at it, too. Well, I used to be. I don't know how good I am now. I don't have anybody to compare myself to. Except Derek. He's kind of weak, though. So I don't think I can count him."
"Well it sounds like you might have something to do once school starts up again!"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, if your school has a swim team, why not join it? You can find out where you're at and figure out what you need to do to improve yourself. You don't have to be the best as long as you're having fun."
"Yeah, that's true." Penelope mused. "Competing costs money, though and, well, the Filmore family has already done so much for me. I couldn't possibly ask them for anything else!"
"Come on now, dear! The Filmore family is the richest in the area. I'm sure they are more than willing to spare a few dollars so that you can enjoy something you love. They did get you that new car after all, right?"
Penelope blushed. Even that was a large gift that she struggled to accept. Sure, she loved it. But she still didn't feel worthy of it or anything else that they tried to give her.
"Well, at least you are trying to be thoughtful with asking for things. Just be careful about being too frugal. Even when you are in a middle-class family, its important to get things that you like and do things for yourself. Its part of why we work. Sure, we have to worry about maintaining our households, but all of that gets harder when we don't work on ourselves. Besides, now that you're back, you can always save the money that you make here up to do those things, right?"
"I guess… I feel like I owe some of that to the Filmore family, though."
Terry reached out and put her hand on top of Penelope's. "Sweetheart, you are still just a kid. Sure, you may be eighteen now, but you've yet to graduate and start life as an adult. Nobody who is in your shoes should be working a job to give their money to somebody else. What you make is for you and it is for you alone. I know that Mr. and Mrs. Filmore are going to tell you the same thing.
Before Penelope could protest, the timer on the oven went off. They both got up to pull everything out of the oven to cool off. Then, they unlocked the doors and opened up the restaurant. The fresh bread would be cooled off just in time for the lunch rush to start.
As with most mornings, it was slow going until the lunch rush started at 11. For the most part, things ran smoothly. Penelope got back into the swing of things quickly, handling meats while Terry did vegetables and ran the register. It wasn't until the end of the rush that things got sour. It was a little after 1, and the crowd had dwindled down to almost nobody. That was when Mary, Greg, Sean, and a couple of Greg's friends walked through the door. Penelope didn't miss the large shiner that was on Mary's face.
"Mrs. Marks, I'm sorry but you and your son are going to have to leave the store." Terry announced, moving to keep the space between Penelope and the group. "You have been banned from all Filmore properties and you are violating the restraining order that was placed on you and your son."
"What are you talking abou-" Mary stopped mid-sentence, noticing Penelope standing in front of her. "Oh. You're making me leave because of that fucking brat!?" She huffed. "Fine! We'll go. I don't need to spend my money here, anyways!" Mary turned on one heel and directed her boys out the door.
The two friends stayed behind for a moment, and one of the girls- the same one who had harassed Penelope at the mall just weeks before- stepped out and sneered at Penelope. "I can't believe what you told the cops about your brother. You better watch your back, butch. Because the moment we get you alone, you're going to pay for what you've done." Before Penelope or Terry could react, she, too, turned on her heels and walked out the door. The other one followed her without saying anything.
"Whats that girl's name?" Terry asked.
Penelope shook her head. "I don't remember what it is. I'm not worried about her, anymore, though. They can't hurt me anymore. I'm not going to let them."
"Good girl." Terry smiled. "I'll have a chat with Mr. Filmore. I'll make sure that anybody who wants to come in here just to harass you will be banned from the shop."
"Thank you."