"Damn...Here I thought I alone could carry us through."

I said with a downed expression as I took a bite from my turkey sandwich.

Hmm, he added more mayo this time.

"You're still hung up over that? And just so we're clear, I performed at the same standard I was performing before your arrival, so relinquish that thought from your mind." My dear partner rebutted with an irritated tone of voice as she too continued her meal. We had continued eating at Edmond's shop, and I had grown accustomed to the routine. At first, I thought they only ate here for the discount but, the place had revealed its hidden quirks as I visited day-by-day over the week. It was in a fairly secluded part of the city and didn't get too much traffic, even during lunch hour. The food wasn't anything outstanding, but it felt homemade, and the quality was better than anything you'd get at a convenience store. I also didn't keep my original order of chips and beer to accompany my meals but changed it to an occasional purchase of roasted nuts and an iced coffee.

"Still though, why'd you think the rating went down, anyway?" I asked, still bummed out over my earlier confidence being shattered.

She put a finger to her mouth and took an inquisitive stance, her eyebrows raised after a short while, but before she could unlock her lips to utter her answer, I stopped her.

"No, you can't just blame me for it."

She let out a short sigh and continued eating.

So she really was just gonna tell me I was the problem. Not the first nor last time, I guess.

I let out a sigh of my own as the silence had returned. It had become routine that our days would be lined with these moments of respite from the verbal abuse, and I'd be the one to break them, but it seemed today my dear partner was more prying than usual.

"Why are you so bothered by all of this? Not a short while ago, you weren't bothered by the idea of letting the relationships we created die."

"Umm, guess cause it might affect my pay?" I let out an anxious laugh at my disingenuous answer.

"If that were the case, your insistence on working with more clients per shift would actually increase your pay." She stated with a tone that shouted, "Are you trying to be dumb, or is does it just come naturally?".

"Though, saying that..." She said before pondering on it.

"Alexandre put a large amount of time into each client, while as you focused on working with as many as efficiently as possible."

"Hmm, guess it felt a lot more personal for the clients if you practically befriend them, huh."

"Indeed." She replied shortly, as I continued pondering it.

"Guess that explains it, by the way since you always put up with my questions, guess the reason I'm so bothered by it is that if Alexandre became an exec with his performance and I'm not doing as well as he did, I won't have the chance to get promoted either," I said while scratching the back of my head.

"So, in the end, it really is money."

"Yep."

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

She let out a short "Hmph" and went back to her meal. In reality, while I wouldn't have minded the larger salary, the reason I was put in such a negative mood by our review was that I had thought I was improving. Customer satisfaction meant that I had gotten better at handling relationships and communicating. If I could get better in that aspect, I could keep my promise to Amanda and myself later down the road.

Guess it was just conceit on my end.

I let out one last sigh to accompany the last bite of my sandwich I took before throwing out my trash. I came back to the table and sat down, Myla was still finishing her meal, and we had ample time to wait until our next client. I wanted to pass the time by finding something to argue about with her, but I had neither the energy nor willpower to combat her sharpened tongue, which had been polished in the previous days after rigorous combat with my pesky inquiries. Realizing this, I laid on the table and placed my head within my arms to await her when a cheery voice reached my ears.

"Hey, guys! Good to see you lot will still be regulars 'round here." Fable said with a smile and took to her usual spot, taking a chair and sitting on it backwards to face us. She had taken up talking to us on our breaks as she also left for her band practice at the end of our lunch period. She was a nice contrast to the usual silence Myla brought and would share stories of her concerts, marriage, and even her father.

"You know, I could ask dad to make you some coffee if you want, seeing as you'll visit almost daily." She said, looking at the bottle of ice coffee I had bought from the shop's many coolers. I shook my head with a smile taking a sip from the slowly warming up drink.

It's fine. I prefer iced anyway. That reminds me, Myla also told me she'd prefer if I was iced as well, weird.

As I pondered the true meaning behind those words of hers, I recalled another thing I was thinking of as well.

"Speaking of, we can drive you to your band practice if we ever have to go the area, y'know?" I said with a friendly tone and smiled at her. They had accommodated us for the past week, and I wanted to repay their kindness, especially since Fable also decided to socialize with us every day.

"Really? You will?" She asked with a surprised but positive expression.

"Sure, why not?" I assured her as I faced Myla, who had finished her meal. She stood up and threw out her trash, and faced the two of us.

"There is nothing against it, so it should be acceptable."

She said with a hint of kindness, most likely intended for Fable.

Here I thought she was warming up to me. I guess I'll have more luck putting her inside the oven they got in the shop.

I thought as I too faced Fable once again.

"So, where do you go for practice anyway?"

"Oh, it's just in this neighborhood here," She said as she pulled out her phone and showed it to me on a map. Myla came nearer and observed the map as well before a surprised expression covered her face.

"We are indeed headed for that area for our next client." My partner said, still taken aback by the fortunate unfolding of events.

"Perfect! We'll get in the car. You can go grab your stuff then, Fable."

"Aww, guys, thanks a bunch." She said with a delighted tone and ran off into the shop.

"Isn't she a bit excited for this?" Myla asked as she put the chairs back in place.

"What? Nervous to be traveling with a friend?"

"At the very least, that implies you didn't consider me one this entire time."

"I never, ever, want to imply nor think about that. Don't worry."

We finished our banter as we got into the car and saw Fable exit the shop, guitar bag in tow. She waved goodbye to her father, and so did we before she got into the car.

"Right, before I forget." She said before going into her bag and shuffling to find something.

"I already planned to give you guys these, but here."

She handed us two small, multicolored tickets.

"What are these?" Myla asked.

"They're tickets for an upcoming music festival, my husband and I's band are going to play there, and we had some extra tickets on hand. He told me to give these to some friends, and since you've been so nice this week, I thought, hey, why not?" She said with a lovely smile and put on her seatbelt.

"Hmm, it's out in a forest. Perfect, my 5-step plan for revenge is complete!" I said with a proud tone and let out a short laugh.

"That implies I'll go with you. Thank you, Fable, however, I'll have to decline in fear of my own safety." She said, glancing daggers at me.

"Don't worry, it lasts for a few days, and the venue's massive. So you can go separately."

"Thank God."

"Indeed."

It seemed to me, that my dear partner and I had finally agreed to something.

How nice, now to ambush her during the festival.

"And away we go!" Fable exclaimed from the back as we made our way to our next client.