Chapter 206: Crisis of the Cake Shop
In Pasadena, on a small commercial street not far from Caltech, the neon sign of Max's Homemade Cupcakes flickered intermittently, but the shop was completely empty of customers.
Well, the word "almost" would be generous—there really weren't any customers at all.
The two young women stared anxiously at the eviction notice on the table. "For just 46 cents in the register, we get this massive slice of humiliation. It's unbelievable!"
"Really? Landlord's kicking us out after we only paid rent for three months out of six? With a batting average of .500, we should be in the Baseball Hall of Fame!" Max made the sports analogy with bitter sarcasm.
"Ladies, I'm just stopping by to grab a cupcake for my post-workout treat." The door chimes jingled as someone entered, but unfortunately it was just their friend Sophie.
Caroline asked Sophie to have a seat while she went to get her usual favorites, but she noticed several flavors were missing from the display case. She couldn't help but ask, "Max, where are the lemon meringue cupcakes?"
"We stopped making those. Not just those either—the mixed berry and red velvet too. We had way too many left over every day. Even the homeless lady I give day-old cupcakes to said, 'Honey, your little bakery's about to go belly up, isn't it?'"
"So you'd rather trust the business advice of a bag lady over the marketing plan of a Wharton MBA?" Ron walked into the store with his characteristic grin.
"Oh my Caroline's Prince Charming" Sophie's eyes lit up with stars. "I look like such a mess right now. Max, I need to use your restroom to fix my makeup."
"Go right ahead," Ron answered for Max with a smile, then picked up the eviction notice from the table. "My ladies, looks like you've got yourselves in quite the pickle."
"No, this isn't a crisis—let me show you what I'm gonna do!" Caroline snatched the eviction notice from Ron's hands and tore it into confetti. "See? Problem solved!"
"Oh wow You ripped up an eviction notice That's exactly what my mom and I used to do~" Max clutched her chest dramatically.
"Caroline, you know you're just kicking the can down the road, not actually solving anything. If you want a real solution, I'd say paying the rent would be your best bet." Ron pulled out his thick leather wallet and placed it on top of the paper confetti. "This is how problems actually get solved."
"No, Ron, we can't keep taking your money." Caroline grabbed Ron's wallet and shoved it back into his jacket. "Honestly, I suspect you're the one who's been messing with our crowdfunding account. Ron, you can't keep doing this. I need to preserve what's left of my dignity.
If you keep this up, I'd rather become the sugar baby of that creepy old guy I turned down before."
Caroline was a Wharton graduate, after all, though that degree seemed pretty meaningless coming from her family background—so meaningless that she probably could have graduated just from Daddy Channing's donation checks.
"No, I swear on my mother's apple pie, I had absolutely nothing to do with that money," Ron protested. It was technically true. It was all Mr. Channing's inheritance money, and Ron had even gotten a nice tax break before handing it over to Saul to manage the investment portfolio.
Of course, Ron had given this money back to Saul and added it to Caroline's startup fund plan.
However, since Ron's financial audit team was currently reviewing all fund-related accounts, the cupcake shop's dire situation wasn't surprising. Saul had suspended transfers to Caroline's crowdfunding account for over three months.
Of course, it wasn't like they were completely broke—that would be too obvious. There were just a few small, irregular deposits, and the store's actual revenue wasn't nearly enough to cover their massive overhead.
The truth was that the shop was way too big for their customer base, and Caroline, in her eagerness to succeed, had gone overboard with the renovations, which only drove up their monthly expenses. Now they were stuck between a rock and a hard place.
But even so, they shouldn't be this broke...
Ron voiced his confusion. "If I remember correctly, this place is right next to some pretty decent schools. I honestly don't get why business is still so terrible with you two gorgeous women running the show.
There are tons of nerdy guys around here. Even if they just wanted to sit in here and stare at you two, they'd probably buy something, right? I have a buddy named Howard who would definitely camp out here all day trying to hit on you both with his cheesy pickup lines. Don't tell me cupcakes have gone out of style?"
"Yeah, well, that's because they all go to that cupcake joint at the corner. Those sluts over there work in bikinis!" Max complained bitterly.
"Well, there's your problem right there." Ron knew all too well the devastating effect bikini uniforms had on computer science majors and physics nerds. It wasn't surprising that Max and Caroline's shop got steamrolled.
"Max," Caroline took Max's hand, "I know things at the shop aren't looking great right now. I've been losing sleep over this problem. Hell, even my sex dreams have been about me paying rent to Ryan Gosling."
"Ryan Gosling?" Ron felt a twinge of jealousy. "Well, I have to admit you've got good taste. Lots of people say he looks a bit like me. In that case, I forgive you for not dreaming about me instead."
"I swear, I only dreamed about him once. The rest were all about you," Caroline reassured Ron before continuing. "I just keep hoping that somehow the universe will give me a sign and point us in the right direction."
"Then I bet you and my mom would have plenty to talk about."
Ding-a-ling~ the door chimes rang again, and Caroline excitedly grabbed Max's arm. "See! What did I tell you? A customer! This means our shop is never going under. Quick, look busy!"
Max put on an attitude of fake importance: "Sir, I'm terribly sorry but I can't rush your order of 100 cupcakes because Martha Stewart has been waiting in line ahead of you. She's planning to throw a cupcake party at her house for some celebrity friends."
"Oh no! That's absolutely devastating news for me~" Ron replied in an over-the-top theatrical voice. "Lord knows how much I love your cupcakes. They're like food for my soul. I can't find meaning in life if I don't have one every single day!"
Ron gave a subtle wink: "How was that performance?"
"NICE JOB! Ron, next time maybe try to get a little more emotional," Caroline whispered approvingly, then immediately switched to her customer service smile. "Hi there! How can I help you today?"
"Hello, I'm Joan Morris." The woman gestured to the man beside her, who looked quite official and was apparently there to do the talking.
(End of chapter)
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