Unhelpful Helper

There she was, sitting at a nearby table, staring at Victoria while she dealt with customers. Hearts were practically beaming out her pupils as she slowly sipped her coffee, her chin resting in her palm as if she was admiring the most breathtaking view of her life.

Every time Victoria moved; Isabelle's gaze would always follow her, her serene expression unwavering. It was like she was in a trance, completely ignorant to everyone around her except for Victoria.

Her loving gaze had momentarily stopped when Victoria had snapped in front of her face, pulling Isabelle back into reality. Isabelle's eyes flutter a couple times as she looked up at the irritated woman standing before her.

"Hey, if you're just going to be here for the entire day, why not just make yourself useful and help me out?" she asked placing a brown apron on the table.

"Are you saying I'm useless?" Isabelle questioned, grabbing the apron with her free hand.

"Obviously," Victoria deadpanned. "All you do is sit there and stare at me like some lovesick fool. But I guess I could give you some credit for at least buying something."

A smug grin grew on Isabelle's face as she put the apron on. "So, what you're saying is, you want me around?" she teased, tying the apron behind her back.

"No, I'm saying you are a useless lump taking up space in my bakery and for once I'm offering you to make yourself the least bit useful," Victoria shot back, already regretting this idiotic decision as she shoved a tray filled with freshly baked sample-sized pastries. "Go outside, attract customers and give 'em some samples to enjoy."

Isabelle grabbed the tray, making her way to the front door, but stopping midway. "What do I get in return for helping you?"

"I won't sock you for being a waste of space."

Isabelle scoffed as she raised an eyebrow. "Wow, that's the best you can offer? I'm volunteering to help you, and you're threatening to punch me?" she teased, a playful smirk tugging at her lips.

"Just get the hell out there, and don't even think about threatening customers to come in," Victoria spoke, pressing her index finger on Isabelle's chest.

Isabelle rolled her eyes, turning around to finally go outside. "Whatever you say, your royal highness," Isabelle mocked.

Victoria watched as Isabelle strutted outside, her posture exaggerated and her expression full of confidence. For a moment, Victoria wondered if she had just made the worst mistake of her life by letting Isabelle work here. But then again, the worst mistake was ever dating that annoying, idiotic fool. Or was it perhaps breaking things off with that loving soul?

Victoria sighed, not wanting to think about it any longer. She walked back to the counter to take the customers' orders again. Throughout the day she couldn't help but glance over at Isabelle who was doing a surprisingly immaculate job at attracting customers.

Isabelle was practically a magnet, drawing all sorts of people in with her over-the-top enthusiasm and charm. She greeted every passerby with a bright smile, offering samples like she was handing out golden tickets.

Her exaggerated gestures along with her dramatic expressions made it hard for anyone to ignore her. Whether the people were an old couple out on a simple stroll or a group of teenagers going out for a quick bite, Isabelle had them entering the bakery without them even realize it.

Victoria hated to admit it, but it was working—too well, in fact the once quiet bakery had transitioned into a loud customer-filled shop. Still, Victoria refused to give Isabelle the satisfaction of praise. Instead, she just focused on fulfilling every order, her hands were moving swiftly as she packed up orders and rang up sales.

She would also occasionally glance toward the door, catching glimpses of Isabelle's smug grin. At one point, Isabelle had caught Victoria looking and winked at her, causing Victoria's gaze to quickly avert into a scowl.

Minutes began turning into hours, and soon enough, the rush began slowing down. Isabelle had finally sauntered back inside, setting the now-empty tray on the counter as she let out a dramatic sigh.

"Well, well, well," she drawled, wiping fake sweat from her forehead. "Looks like I single-handedly saved your bakery."

Victoria let out a scoff as she crossed her arms. "Please. If anything, you were just some overly enthusiastic nuisance that people couldn't get away from."

"Call it what you want, but you can't deny I did a damn good job," Isabelle smirked, leaning on the counter. "How about I get a reward for doing so good?"

"How about no."

"And why not? I know you're thinking about how much of an immaculate job I did," Isabelle bragged, her eyes closed and her head slightly facing up as she placed the tips of her fingers on her chest.

Victoria began wiping down the counters, not bothering to give Isabelle the attention she wanted.

"You want a re-" Victoria tried saying before she was cut of by a bunch of masked men running into the shop. Two of them grabbed Isabelle's arms, dragging her away. But Isabelle as the fighter she was did not let it go so easily. She immediately grabbed a nearby chair and slammed it into one of their heads causing them to fall to the ground.

Great, just when everything was going smoothly. Some idiots had to have tried kidnapping Isabelle, and now they were in a brawl, destroying most of the bakery's furniture while they were at it.

Soon enough three bigger men entered, they easily overpowered Isabelle. The two dragged Isabelle out of the bakery while the other man approached Victoria.

"I'm charging you for all that damages you caused!" Victoria yelled at Isabelle who gave her a thumbs up. "And what do you want?"

The man cleared his throat. "Tell anyone about what happened today and you will surely regret that decision," he threatened, shoving his index finger in Victoria's face.

The man ran his thumb along his neck in a threatening manner, before following his companions and driving away with Isabelle. Unlike any normal person Victoria wasn't the slightest bit worried about Isabelle as these stuff happened quite frequently when they were together back in the days. Victoria knew that Isabelle would break free one way or another and she'd likely just see her the next day.