Work Text:
They say it takes ninety days to let go of someone. Well darling, the universe only gave us eighty-one, and my heart is pounding on the sixth. So please forgive me if our conversations diminish and our glances are cut short as I do not think I can fake another smile on our last.
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Day One
Klara told herself this was a good idea. Get a job at the local bar to save up a little extra cash in her last year of university. Was it ideal to have one with all the projects and classes she was a part of? No… but she was determined to show her family she was more than just brains. She can work hard and keep up with her studies at the same time.
Her first day on the job was quite hectic to say the least. Why was she asked to start training on a Friday night? She’ll never know. But her shift had come to an end, and she took her time to collect her thoughts in front of her locker. With her bag slung over her shoulder, KJ leaned her head against the cool metal as she caught up on all the notifications she had missed.
“Crazy first day, huh?”
Klara glanced up from her phone to be met with who she could only assume was the most experienced worker at the bar. At least, that’s what it seemed like from watching her and others on her shift. She worked around everyone else with ease, always going back and forth between the various areas that needed it. She wasn’t the manager though. Klara knew that much at least, but she didn’t spend too much time on it.
She shrugged her shoulders while pocketing her phone- she didn’t want to seem like she wasn’t cut out for the job, “Yeah. I guess so.”
“Do you work tomorrow?”
“Yeah. Same time tomorrow and Sunday.”
The woman flashed KJ a small smile as she opened her own locker, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
It was a soft smile that reached her emerald eyes and- fuck. What’s her name?
///
Day Six
Dinner rush had ended, and now Klara stood at the end of the bar cleaning her station. It was her third shift and while there was still so much more to learn, she fell into a little groove with what she knew. While wiping down the counter, she couldn’t help but overhear the conversation that occurred between two of her coworkers.
“How long are you here ‘til?”
“The end of the year.”
“No, I meant today.”
“Oh sorry- I’m here until eleven.”
That’s the same time I get off. Klara glanced over to identify the one who was leaving at the same time as her was the emerald-eyed mystery woman from her first day on the job. She still didn’t know her name, but maybe she could figure it out from the schedules.
Could that be considered creepy? Maybe. Definitely. But wouldn’t it also look a bit odd for the new hire to ask for her name and no one else’s even though she still doesn’t know her other coworkers’ names?
She’d be lying if she said the woman hadn’t caught her eye. Klara shook her head. She was just curious as to why she did so many odd-end jobs during her shift and how she was the only one who was never yelled at by the manager. Or at least that’s what she told herself.
Anyways- they won’t be working together long. Only a few months before the woman left. Why was she leaving the job? From what KJ could tell, the woman couldn’t be too much older than her, and this bar was run by a bunch of college students anyways. Was she a student as well? Oh right- it was none of her business.
Klara applied for this job to prove her family wrong and make a little cash, and she planned to keep it that way.
///
Day Ten
Sabine.
Sabine Callas.
That’s her name. Klara totally didn’t go full investigator mode as soon as she got the second schedule to cross reference. Of course not. Who would do that?
Well I can’t work here and not know anybody’s names. So I guess I got to start somewhere .
That somewhere just so happened to be the one coworker that, though she loathed to admit, caught her eye. Not to mention the one coworker she knew she had limited time with. Because of course her heart would develop a coworker crush (no- it’s not…) on the one person where goodbye was on the horizon.
///
Day Twenty-Two
Shit. I’m screwed.
Klara laid awake at night smiling like an idiot at the prospect of seeing Sabine at work the next day. Another day she can work side-by-side with her coworker crush (no-).
Maybe she should phone a friend. If she tells someone, maybe her heart would stop skipping a beat every time she thought about those emerald eyes or that damn smile that Sabine always gave her.
Though last time she shared her feelings with a couple of friends it ended poorly. So she kept all her admirations big and small to herself. She’ll get over it eventually, just like she did with the others.
Yeah. Just make it to the end of the year.
///
Day Thirty-Four
How could a shift where shit hit the fan turn into one of the best? Two words. Sabine Callas. Well isn’t every shift with her the best?
Ryo, the coworker that tended to the larger and more complicated operations of the bar, wasn’t there. He always works Saturdays. Where the hell was he?
Klara usually wouldn’t notice who was and wasn’t working a specific day, but the manager had thought she was good enough to take his spot. She didn’t want to say the manager was wrong… but maybe they were wrong.
She was swamped in drink orders. As soon as she thought she caught a drop, another four to five drinks would come through the system.
And the universe thought it would be funny to add even more stimulus to Klara’s situation. The presence of another coworker beside her caught her attention, and she briefly faltered when she realized it was Sabine.
There was no time to get lost in her profile or green eyes and- oh god. Does she think I’m incompetent? Is that why she came over here to help me?
Of course not. Sabine helped anywhere and everywhere she could. There was no time for judgment, and thus it was time to kick her efforts up a notch.
Klara knew having a second pair of hands would help and how Sabine and Ryo usually ran this station together near-flawlessly together, but she didn’t expect it to go this well.
Klara and Sabine worked together like a well oiled machine. With Klara’s quick work and Sabine’s quick yet effective communication, the two were able to serve drinks at a pace she didn’t think she could reach- even with Sabine’s help.
Sabine’s voice held a softness with a hint of urgency with every ingredient she asked KJ to grab. Though not an urgency of impatience or annoyance that Klara had expected- just an urgency that came with working in such a fast-paced environment.
And damn. Klara hopes Ryo schedules off again.
///
Day Thirty-Seven
It wasn’t often KJ came in on work on Thursdays, but she couldn’t complain. When she saw she was on the schedule for today, she was ecstatic to have an extra day to work with Sabine. Instead of two shifts with Sabine and one without, all three of hers were with the woman. She’d call that a win.
Except for one fatal flaw. She didn’t check the rest of the schedule to see why she was even scheduled for Thursday. Everyone’s schedules were pretty solid, so she must be covering for someone, right?
Two hours into her shift and no sign of Sabine? Is she running late? Has Klara been so busy that she somehow keeps missing her? Or is she- Oh.
That’s who she’s covering for. One glance at the schedule when she could catch a break confirmed the unfortunate conclusion she had come to.
So maybe working an odd Thursday wasn’t a win.
///
Day Forty-Five
Okay she lied. Today was the best shift ever. She was scheduled on a Monday. One of the slowest days of the week. With Sabine. And without the manager.
Sure, Klara hated slow days. She started to itch for the fast-paced environment. She itched to prove she could excel at her job.
But now, she could observe Sabine in a much more relaxed environment, and she could hold conversations with her without the fear of being cut short by a bunch of patrons filing in demanding drinks or the manager yelling at them. A whole slow evening with her coworker crush (okay yeah. Maybe it’s time to admit it).
She learned so much about her. Sabine’s birthday. Her hometown- Seattle. She’s a chemistry graduate student- maybe she graduates in the winter and that’s why she’s leaving? And a few other small facts about her.
Like how Sabine loves to go to the markets in the city around Christmas time. How she loves the winter holiday season. Klara’s mind couldn’t help but drift off towards the idea of them strolling down the streets going from tent to tent. All bundled up their winter coats and gloves. It’s a shame she wouldn’t be in town for the winter holidays. But it’s also not like she’d have the chance to go with Sabine anyways.
Every time they talked, Klara would get lost in those emerald eyes. She couldn’t help it. She only had so many more shifts to commit her eyes and smile to memory.
Call her delusional, but there’s something about the way Sabine smiles at her and the way they hold eye contact. Or how Sabine would randomly tell a small story to Klara throughout their shift even though there are two other coworkers she could share her stories with.
Or maybe she’s just been so zoned into academics she forgot how it felt to truly connect with a person. Yeah, let’s go with that. It’ll hurt less when she works these Monday shifts next year without her.
///
Day Fifty-Four
It’s day fifty-four, and Klara can count on both hands how many shifts she has left with Sabine. She can count on one how many Mondays she has left.
All the stolen glances and shared smiles swirl around in her head.
There was this one moment where they caught each other’s eyes for a few seconds during rush hour. Klara could have sworn that she saw Sabine’s eyes light up and the barest upturn of her lips. Every night those few seconds repeat in her mind, and every night she tries her best to not overanalyze it. It felt… different. Did Sabine feel the difference?
Or maybe that one Monday where they weren’t talking much (Klara focused on trying not to stare at Sabine’s profile too much), but then Sabine told her a story out of nowhere. Was she telling the story just to kill time? Why didn’t she share it with the other coworker that was just a few feet away?
Too many questions. Too many answers Klara feared to learn.
She just needed to make it through these last few shifts before she traveled home for winter break. Before she had to say goodbye.
And Klara had it all planned out.
Sabine would notice she wasn’t on the schedule for the next three weeks.
“Heading home for the holidays?”
“Yeah. My flight leaves tomorrow. I’ll see you next year,” Klara would say with a smile, bracing for impact.
“Oh, this is our last shift together. I won’t be working here after the year ends.”
Klara would act surprised. As if she hadn’t spent the last seventy-five days preparing for this moment.
A new kind of smile would dawn her lips, and she’d hope the oh so attentive Sabine wouldn’t see past her facade.
“Oh. Well, I enjoyed working with you. I hope you have a good Christmas and New years.”
Klara hoped her voice wouldn't waver.
Or at least that’s what she replayed in her mind. Maybe they’d just clock out just a few minutes apart and none of this would happen. Klara didn’t know which one seemed better.
Alas, she had twenty-seven days, twelve shifts, and four Mondays until she learned their ending.