Cody headed into the break room. Something about the place seemed odd to him but he couldn't quite place it. Which was what was bugging him the more he thought about it. The place looked amazing and he wasn't about to quit, but it was like this place was itself out of place. How could someone have looked in this area for the restaurant for two years and not found it? It looked like it had been established well before that. And then there were the actual proportions of the building. Was the building really big enough to hold a restaurant this size? It didn't make sense.
Lost in thought, he went to sit on a stool.
"Watch it!"
Cody yelped as he jumped up, spinning around to see what he had just sat on. There, on the chair, was possibly the smallest woman he'd ever seen. She made Millie look giant. She must have had dwarfism or something, he thought.
"What?" She snapped. "You never seen a short person before?"
"Nifty. Calm down. He's the newbie and is just overwhelmed." Millie told her. She came over to Cody. "Don't mind her. Her entire family has Napoleon complex but normally it's not that bad. Except when processing new recruit's contracts. She'll be fine once that's done in a day or so. She really good at that."
Nifty glared at Cody. "You're the new recruit?" She jumped down from the stool and approached him, wagging her finger to call him down to her.
"Best do as she says for the moment. She's HR, so can make your life working here a living hell. Though the boss thinks he'll be a good go between."
Nifty's glare immediately dropped to shock. "Really? This is that guy?" She grabbed his collar and pulled him down to get a better look at his face. "Hmmmm. Yes. I can see it. Boy, can I see it. You're right. Mr. Atlus is picky normally about who he selects from this side, but boy did he pick a good one here. And the Zodiacs..."
"Nifty!" Millie snapped. "Not yet."
Nifty blinked a couple times before slapping her hands over her mouth. "Oops."
Cody looked between the two women. "Who or what are the Zodiacs? And what do you mean by "this side"?"
Millie patted Cody's shoulder. "Don't worry about that just yet." He still looked skeptical so she repeated. "Seriously. Don't worry. That will become clear in time, but not yet. For now, just get used to the basics and the more complex stuff will come later."
Sighing, he nodded. Something about Millie was so soothing. He didn't know if it was her scent, floral and woodsy, or if it was the way her voice reminded him of the peace of the woods, but which it was, he felt himself calmed. "You're right Millie. Get the basics first. And I'm sorry for sitting on you Nifty. I was lost in thought and didn't see you."
Nifty flared her nostrils unnaturally wide before nodding. "Good. Be more careful next time." With that, she jumped back up onto the stool, grabbed some papers off the counter, and left. Cody just shook his head. Another mystery to ponder but one mystery he didn't need to ponder was if she was HR, then he did NOT want to get to know her if he could help it.
"She's actually fairly nice once you get to know her." Millie said, once again seeming to read his mind. "But yeah, most of us try to avoid her."
"Does she normally work in the break room?"
Millie grabbed a powdered donut from one of the many boxes on the counters and handed it to him. "Yeah. She likes contracts but likes to tailor them to each person. Call it a family past time. I may say she's fairly nice once you get to know her but do NOT, I repeat, do NOT tell her any secrets. If she can use something to make a deal with you, she will, and it will always be to her benefit, not yours."
"This job is beginning to seem like it's more trouble than it's worth."
Millie jumped on the stool next to him. "Well, tell me about it? Maybe I can help talk you through it. Surely just busting tables and refilling the heating trays isn't THAT taxing, is it?"
"Well, no, it's a lot of little things really. Like this morning, I was hit by a massive rainstorm but when I got in, it all just vanished leaving only my wet clothes as proof it ever happened. Then there was a guy saying he'd been looking for this place for two years in this same area and never could find it. Finally, it's like all the proportions with here is wrong. It's like it's to big or doesn't belong to this world. It's seriously giving me a headache."
Her eyes lit up. "Now that I can help with. I'll be right back." She rushed out of the room leaving Cody once again with his thoughts. He tried to ignore them as much as he could while he ate his donut and waited for Millie to come back with whatever she had in mind. The donut turned out to be a good distraction as it was the best donut he could ever remember having. It was just the right amount of cakey with the perfect amount of powdered sugar to flavor the donut without being overpowering or messy. And was that cinnamon in them? It was all perfectly balanced. He'd have to see if he could get where they came from to get some for himself on the way home. He'd just thrown the last bite in his mouth when Millie came back with a large mug of steaming tea.
"Here you go. Be careful. It's still really hot. I'll let Mr. Atlus know what's going on so he won't get mad at your extended break and then I'll be right back." She smiled at him as she ducked back out. Her head suddenly poked back in. "And have another donut. You'll need your energy." She disappeared again.
Cody nodded as he grabbed a sprinkle donut. He didn't normally like sweet breakfasts like this, but he wasn't going to complain since they were so good. After the second donut was gone, he sipped from the tea. It was still hot but had cooled enough to drink comfortably. It didn't take long before the tea was gone and with it went his headache. "Whatever was in that tea really does the trick." He sighed as he leaned back against the counter.
"Well, you're looking better already." Millie said, stepping back in.
"I am. That tea was amazing. What was in it?"
"Oh, you know. Chamomile, mint, some dried berries. All natural and picked myself. Now, you ready to get back to work?"
"Can I ask you a few questions first?" Millie tilted her head. "Your conversation with Nifty made this place seem more like a club than a burger buffet. What kind of clientele does it serve?"
"All kinds. The food we serve normally changes to cater to the clients as well. We don't normally keep serving one type food like this but this is a special occasion. You'll understand eventually," she said, cutting him off.
"Are the lunch rushes usually this intense?"
"Same as any other buffet Sweetie. You'll get used to it. Now, we should probably get back to work. Mr. Atlus is usually generous with breaks, but even he has his limits and they are not nearly as high as the sky. Get it? Because both Skye is his last name and Atlas was said to hold up the sky?" She chuckled at her own joke.
Cody smirked despite himself. "One or two more, then we can go. One: Where can I get more of these donuts? They are delicious."
"Oh, those are made by our breakfast specialist. You'll meet him eventually. He's on a break but drops those off every morning anyways."
"So this place is definitely not a normal burger buffet. Which come to think of it, I've never even seen a burger buffet before."
"Not usually, no. But they are around. And no, it's not a usual restaurant. You make it through the trial period and you'll know what I mean."
"And will I keep getting these headaches?"
Millie hissed through her teeth. "That, I honestly can't attest to, but I do think you won't. You'll learn a lot about this place at that point and who knows? You may find the benefits worth sticking around for. Like the dental. There's actually a dentist in the building, so you can get free checkups. Plus there are apartments upstairs for the long time employees like myself and Nifty. Well, and Ajax, even though he hasn't been here nearly as long as either of us ladies. Point is, there are lots of good things about working here. And Mr. Atlus will do anything in his power to help those loyal to him. So, just give it a shot and if you get another headache, I'll start making pitchers of that tea for you. It's just as good cold." She told him as she held the door open so they could get back to work.
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