Sadistic Concern

Gauhar's POV

I wiped my sweaty palms on my apron "Alright, do you want me to check up on the tables?" I reached into my pocket to get out the little notebook I used to write the orders down on.

"No, you don't need to do that either." the dismissal in her short reply caused a wave of dread to envelope me. 

Was she implying that she didn't require my help anymore and that I was going to be fired? 

I felt my heart hammer in my chest at the thought, damn Wilhelmina she was actually right. Mrs. Abercrombie was actually more likely to fire me instead of kicking her out for her placing her feet on the table and potentially breaking her chairs by leaning them out of balance.

I felt my eyes widen in trepidation as a sudden smile spread on her chubby face, my brows furrowing in confusion. Was she enjoying my pain, the likelihood of that being the case was pretty high, but that made me wonder whether she had always been hiding her sadistic tendencies…or was it just my presence that brought that side out of her.

"Oh lord I think I know that expression." she exclaimed running a hand down her face in exasperation, her behaviour only added to my confusion. 

I quickly brought my hands up to touch my cheeks in an attempt to check if I had an inappropriate expression on my face. Just in case my face decided to betray me and do something weird.

Which it always did. I let out a heavy sigh as I felt sorry for myself, my eyes trained at Mrs Abercrombie in resignation.

Maybe it was the immense sadness in my eyes that made her let out an exasperated breath, her shoulders started shaking gently and I realised that she was silently laughing to herself.

Yup, she was definitely sadistic.

"I know what you're thinking Gauhar." She said between bursts of chuckles that made me increasingly irritated. She was the third person in the last seven days who'd said that and now it was really getting on my nerves, was I really that predictable?

"You do?" I asked uncertainly, unable to decide if her reading my mind was a good thing or not.

She nodded and cleared her throat "You think I'm firing you right?"

"You're not?" I was barely able to get the words out and I cringed internally at how hopeful they sounded. Her striking green eyes softened as came closer to me and pulled my cheek.

I repeat…. SHE PULLED MY CHEEK.

There was definitely something weird going on here, was she high? I had no means of confirming my suspicions but goddamn, her behaviour was confirmation enough.

Maybe I should check up on what she added in those amazing breads that she bakes… there was definitely a suspicious reason behind why they were so irresistible.

"Don't worry Gauhar, I'm giving you a day off today." She said with a soft smile, I looked into her eyes to check if she was actually telling the truth or if this was the side effect of taking something wonky.

 Her clear eyes that reminded me of bright forests were serious and her smile was filled with so much kindness, I had no option but to believe her.

When I hadn't moved from my spot for more than a minute she pushed me in the direction of Bill's table saying "Goodness Gauhar what's gotten into you, just go and sit with Will, I'll be back with some coffee and then maybe I'll think  about  clearing your very evident confusion."

I dragged my feet towards the table and plopped down on the chair in front of Bill in a trance "what on earth is wrong with her today?" I asked pointing towards the kitchen with my thumb and shaking my head in disbelief at the strange events that had occurred.

"What do you mean 'what's wrong with her?'."  She raised an eyebrow, placing an arm behind her head, making herself comfortable on the dark wood chair "There's nothing wrong with her, you're just being paranoid. She's always been a soft and loving teddy bear of a person."

I couldn't help but raise my eyebrows, sceptical at that statement "Um, Bill I don't think we're talking about the same person right now."

 I could readily agree that Mrs. Abercrombie was one of the kindest people that I had in my life, but describing her as a soft warm little teddy bear was stretching the truth a bit too far for my comfort. She was the most formidable employer that I could have ever asked for, describing her as an angry cat would be more accurate.

 "Chill Haru" she waved her hand dismissively at me "You're worrying too much about something when there's nothing. Just appreciate your leave and relax. You deserve it Gauhar."

Her grey eyes looked earnestly at me as she completed the last sentence and I allowed myself to relax into the hard wood of my chair, placing my head on my hands resting on the table as I stared at the cars moving out on the streets through the windows. 

Bill was right, I should definitely enjoy the rare breaks from work that I know…..wait how did she know about Mrs. Abercrombie letting me off of work today?

I suddenly sat up straight on my seat as I realised I hadn't told her about it "How did you find out about me getting a leave? I don't remember telling you about it, are you hiding something from me?" I narrowed my eyes at her.

Her face blanched at my words, the front legs of her chair touching the floor with a thud as she wriggled uncomfortably in her chair "Haha what are you talking about Haru, don't you remember telling me about that yourself?" she tucked a lock of her golden hair behind her ear, not meeting my eyes.

"Stop lying Bill, you know you can't lie to me" I deadpanned at her.

"Whatever makes you think that, why would I ever-"

"You are nervously tapping your foot right now, you always do that when you lie." I pointed out as I rested my chin on my hand on the table "Moreover you're not meeting my eyes as you speak. Face it Bill you're a really crappy liar."

She slumped against her chair in defeat, huffing out an irritated breath "Yeah yeah, alright Gauhar you can read me like an open book. Congratulations for solving the puzzle " She rolled her eyes at me, making me smile "I was lying to you, you're right."

I grinned at her, finding it incredibly adorable how she had her arms crossed across her chest and a pout on her face, making her look like a petulant child "Yes I can read you very easily, so don't even try that with me." She stuck her tongue out my words, making me grin "Now tell me, what were the both of you planning?"

"We wanted you to relax a bit Gauhar." I heard Mrs. Abercrombie say, as she placed the cups of warm coffee in front of us.

I tried to focus on the reason for my confusion as I felt the crisp familiar scent of coffee enamour my senses. Bill placed her hand on mine, her slate grey eyes softening as she smiled warmly at me, the genuine care in expression made my heart melt a bit.

"Yes we wanted you to take things easy for a bit, especially after what had happened to your father. We figured it would be better if you took a bit of a break." I furrowed my eyebrows at their words, who told them about my father's sickness?

I felt a warm but firm hand land on my shoulder, I looked up to find Mrs. Abercrombie smiling down at me. Her eyes shone with warmth and understanding "I knew how serious you are about your responsibilities, and I figured that it would be better if I let you off of wok myself, because I knew no matter how difficult the circumstances were, you wouldn't do that yourself."

I felt warmth bloom in my heart, their presence making me feel protected and….less alone. I shook my head to clear my thoughts "Who told you about my Baba?"

"Definitely not you." Bill ground out, her voice clearly giving away the annoyance she tried so hard to mask on her face. She folded her arms across her chest, not meeting my eyes.

Mrs. Abercrombie glared at her, causing her to sigh and shake her head "Daniya told me and Bill about it yesterday." 

I pinched the bridge of my nose, thinking of different ways I could murder that little snitch. 

Perhaps sensing my murderous thoughts, my employer firmly continued "And I'm very glad she told us about it. We also need to know about your problems Gauhar, you do know that you have people who care for you right? You are not alone in this, always remember that."

She squeezed my shoulder. Her words causing me to sag against the chair, a wave of tiredness washing over me "Thank you for being here. You guys are the best." I squeezed Mrs. Abercrombie's hand on my shoulder, trying to tell them with my eyes things that I couldn't through words.

And by the smiles on their faces, I knew that they understood.

"Anyway Mrs. Abercrombie prefers me over you, so I'm sure this was just an excuse on her part to get me back to work with her." She smiled smugly as she sipped her steaming coffee, wincing when it burned her tongue.

Mrs. Abercrombie hit her on her head playfully, causing her to protest. I giggled at their behaviour, Mrs. Abercrombie turned towards me "Don't mind her Gauhar dear, she just likes her ego stroked like a spoilt little cat."

I smiled at her, enjoying the feel of the warm cup of coffee around my fingers. I was lucky to have these people who knew what I needed even when I didn't tell them.

The shrill sound of a distant alarm caused us to jump up in surprise, Mrs. Abercrombie ran a hand through her hair "You kids carry on, I'll get back to work. And yeah don't bother to pay Gauhar, I'm gonna make Will work for all the money for this coffee and whatever you want to eat, so order whatever you want." She winked at me, before turning around and hurrying away.

I grinned mischievously at Bill "So Miss favourite ex employ, are you ready to work hard to pay off the massive bill I'm going to produce today?"

Bill groaned, wiping a hand down her face before shaking her head at me "Shut up Gauhar."