It was awkward when it happened. At least to me, i think. Well, last night since we are lack of part-timers my boss re-called one of our colleagues who started with us but left at the end of november last year due to final exams, to stand in for the night with me.
She showed up. That was the first surprise of the night. Cos i thought is another guy part-timer(who sadly is a very slow person, add hyperactive disorder to that, really gives me a major headache) who will come.
Me and her, unspokenly, had disagreements. Mostly me with her i think, but still. She is a good worker, no doubt, and she always strives to better herself. A good point, but sometimes it went too far and she's being very competitive. That and over-zealous to do EVERYTHING. Jeez gimme something to do will ya?
But both of us only wanted the best for the cafe, and for my best, i let her do what she wants as long as she did her job. And that she did. But the price is silence. There was always close-to-zero comunication between us when we worked together. Me remaining tight-lipped so as not to show my frustration towards her(and in doing so keeping my anger in), and her dare not talk so much cos she knows if there's no topic, i won't talk(which is kinda true...i would rather stay silent than participate in meaningless intelligence-deficit conversation).
So there exists this slight tension between us whenever we work...and to be honest, ever since she stopped working and two new douchebags came in for work, i miss her professionalism. So when she came in for work that night, i was relieved, because i don't have to spend the night with either one of the two, which will surely take a huge cut out of my life.
Like usual though, we remain mostly silent. I did my part in briefing her abt the new stuff she missed out while absent, and she took it all in with grace. I made effort this time, in cultivating small talk. I teased her abt her clumsiness(she kept knocking stuff over lol. perhaps too nervous i was around...) and talked abt other things.
Then came an interesting incident. A customer ordered hot latte(and later, hot cappuccino) which she both made(while i did the cold ones. I knew she missed making hot drinks) and i saw that she had vastly improved in her milk pouring, as if she never left, as if she never stopped making hot coffee drinks. She was the first......the first to successfully(and in succession too, so there is consistency) draw patterns over the milk froths on both the cappuccino and latte. She did it.
Her flair for perfection drove her to it. But it really takes patience and continuous dedication to make it work. I, shamefully, did not go as far as her, yet i am not jealous, even though i feel defeated. I wanted to congratulate her on her pattern, but again, i remained silent. Until...
...it is my turn to make both cappuccino and latte, one each. I poured out the cappuccino first. She, as always, watches me while i do it, trying to figure and analyse how i make my drinks. I put it out and told her to serve it first. Then i proceed to the latte, which i myself graded it as a failure, because i made a flat-white, instead of a latte. Still i told her to serve it out.
Minutes later when she came back in and i was cleaning up the coffee machine, she, in a serious tone(like always? lol) said to me "I have a question i wanna ask u." Omg what did i do? I said "Yea?" She continued "I've always wondered how u manage to make the perfect cappuccino...how did u do it???"
Omg wait....WHAT?
Just to make sure, i point to myself and asked "What? Me?" She nodded. I went on and laughed it off, saying "Me? Perfect? I can't even make a pattern like what u did..."
She then went on abt how the original and perfect cappuccino does not need a pattern....how the deco is simply a round blob of white, a creamy texture of milk on top. According to her, i made it just now. And that patterns exist more on lattes....it is less dominant in cappuccinos....
And then it hit me. Yeah....latte art! That was it! For latte!
I kicked myself in the head for forgetting abt that. However grateful i am to her for pointing out what i had done to me, i still reserved some unacceptance of what she said to myself(i don't trust ppl too easily), because, for all i know, she is just being praiseful with motives. But she seemed genuine though, so i took it in a way that is non-too-serious, but not entirely unaccepting too.
I was taken aback when the last surprise came. It was time to go home, and dutifully she recorded her working hours and abt to leave. I was packing away my computer, and she came and had her hand out for a handshake. "Goodbye!" she said. I shook her hand and said the same. When we let go, she said "Come!" and now both her hands are open and i actually said out loud what's in my head "What?" before she hugged me.
I was stunned. My bos's brother and his two cousins were there too, and they saw us. Gave a good-hearted laugh to themselves too and went "aww!!" I quickly regained my loss of words and went "Oh...thanks..." as she patted me on my back. And then we part.
The hug signifies alot. I know what she's doing. That hug alone doesn't mean anything more than "Let's set aside our differences. And make peace." Ok i added the latter as an afterthought but i think the main point is the first line.
And it was she who made that step...and now i wonder, am i really such a close-hearted person? I don't store hate in my heart(and in fact i do NOT hate her at all, just a disliking..) and collect it against time. At least that's saying something. If i really am a close-hearted person i would have rejected her straightaway. Blocked her with my adapter i was holding that time.
In hindsight, i do want peace.
Oh, and how did i answer her question? I simply told her, "I just pour it out like that...no secret or specific way to do it...i just did it without thinking much." I'm not sure if she believed me wholely(if she didn't, its okay, it's her thoughts after all), but it's the truth.
Because u know what, i actually didn't know how to answer her. Because i didn't know the exact answer. I just gave her the next best thing.
Thanks, RN.
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