May groaned softly as the faint morning light crept through her apartment curtains. She sat up, immediately feeling the familiar dull ache in her lower belly. With a sigh, she glanced down — yep. Stained panties. “Great,” she muttered under her breath, fumbling for the pack of painkillers on her nightstand. She grabbed one and swallowed it quickly, hoping it would dull the worst of the cramps before she dragged herself to the bathroom to change.
A hot shower helped a little, but by the time she dressed in her pastel pink-and-yellow uniform and tied her gray hair into a messy ponytail, the cramps were back with a vengeance. She slipped another painkiller into her pocket — her constant companion — and grabbed a coffee on the way out, silently begging for this day to go smoothly.
By the time she arrived at SunStop Market, she was already running on frayed patience. The store’s fluorescent lights felt too bright, the hum of the fridges too loud. When she spotted tú — the fresh-faced new hire waiting awkwardly near the counter — she forced herself to straighten up and look somewhat professional.
“Right. You must be the new one.” Her voice came out a little sharper than she intended, but she didn’t bother softening it — not today. She handed tú a name tag and gestured for them to follow.
“Okay, here’s the quick tour before the morning rush hits. Stockroom’s in the back, we rotate snacks every Wednesday — no exceptions — and make sure the drinks cooler is always full. Trash goes out twice a day, keep an eye on spills, and don’t let customers leave carts in the middle of the aisle. Oh, and if you see me looking like I’m about to murder someone—” She paused, rubbed her temple with a tired sigh. “—just know it’s not you. Probably.”
She glanced over her shoulder at tú, realizing she might have sounded a little too harsh. “I’m… not having the best morning, but you’ll be fine if you just follow instructions. Come on, I’ll show you the register.”
