Fuck, how she hated working rainy Saturdays. Rainy weekend afternoons were always so slow. Hua — known as Ann to her friends — was the manager of a mailbox and delivery store, and disliked down times. An energetic person, she hated being bored. Like now, when she was alone in the store. Still, it gave her plenty of time to read. She was a big reader, sometimes had ten or more books on her nightstand.
She loved the customer service aspect of her job. She loved people, and loved to have fun. She was a spontaneous person, living for the moment. It was a perfect dichotomy to her job, which was dull routine. Still, it paid the bills. She wanted to go into public relations, or events coordinating. Something that didn't have so much downtime, and would allow her to interact more with people. More than that, reading gave her ideas. She longed for an Adventure.
Outside it was pouring, again. Ann watched the drops spatter against the parking lot and gave a heavy sigh. She felt obligated to stay until the store closed at 5:00. She got a cup of hot tea and went back to her book, the sound of the rain providing a soothing backdrop.
At 4:03 a woman came in.
"Wow, it is raining cats and dogs out there!" she exclaimed, shaking her dripping umbrella in the doorway.
"Yes, it is!" Ann answered. "I'm glad I'm inside today."
The water all over the floor didn't make Ann happy.
"Has it been slow today?" the woman asked.
"Quite slow. I'm glad I thought to bring a book."
"Oh well, it's good day for curling up with a good book in front of a fire. Hot cocoa would be nice too! I think that's what I'll do after I get home. After I ship this."
"Oh, I'm jealous," Ann said.
They went over the details of shipping the woman's small parcel. Then the woman paid for the shipment and left.
"May the day go by faster from here!" she called out, putting up her umbrella again as she stepped through the door.
"I hope so!" Ann called back.
She returned to her book.
At 4:50 she began doing a few closing procedures.
A guy wearing a poncho came in at 4:54. Ann rolled her eyes at his timing.
"Good! I'm glad you haven't closed yet. I was afraid I'd miss you. Horrible traffic out there with all this rain."
He took the poncho off, and set it outside on the ground under the awning. The guy was about her age, late twenties. He was tall, with short, dark sandy blond hair. He had a confident, yet geeky, air about him.
"We're open for a few more minutes, so you made it," Ann replied. "What can I help you with?"
"Well — I want to check my mailbox and mail this. It's a Priority item."
"Okay, please fill out this form. I'll attach it to the package. Anything to declare value-wise?"
"Um, no, it's just some family papers to my brother in Texas. I want to make sure he gets it before Tuesday. Come to think of it, yeah, let's do a return receipt. Is that included with Priority?"
"Yep. Is Third-Day okay then?" Ann asked.
"Whatever it takes to get it there by Tuesday," the guy smiled.
"That'll work," she responded.
He had a nice smile, she noticed. He walked over to his mailbox and took out some envelopes and a small package. It was narrow and about a foot long. He brought his mail back to the counter to finish shipping.
"Hey, what the hell is this?" he asked, examining the package. "I don't remember ordering anything from — NP Enterprises?"
He took a pair of scissors from the counter and cut a slit in the packaging tape.
"How much do I owe you?" he asked, putting the scissors back.
"Nine dollars and 43 cents," Ann replied.
He took out a credit card from his wallet, and slid it through the reader. The transaction went through. Ann handed him the receipt after reading his name — Logan Miller — and matching it with the name on the card.
"Thanks," Ann said, as he opened the box and turned it upside down.
To their surprise, a thin box containing a male masturbation sleeve fell out. It slid over the counter and fell off the other side, landing at Ann's feet. She smirked, trying hard to keep from laughing. She bent down and picked it up. The guy's face was bright red as she handed it to him with a grin.
Here, at last, was Ann's opportunity for an Adventure. But should she? With a stranger? At work? If the manager happened to walk in, she'd get fired for sure.
"I...I forgot I'd ordered that," he said with an embarrassed look.
