Creative Melting Pot

Theresa Marigold should have known where things were headed when she saw the store’s manager and assistant manager walk in near the end of the day. After all, this bulk store was the slowest out of the three in town, so them being their without prior notice should have been a warning. Still, it didn’t occur to the red head that something was wrong until they asked to speak with her in the back office. It was a small, cluttered room that always managed to be somehow be sweltering even during the dead or winter with a broken heater. The store manager pulled out a manila folder with Theresa’s name scrawled onto the top tab, and she instantly knew what was going on.

“So, what’s the damage this time?” Theresa asks in a dry tone.

The assistant manager shares a surprised look with his superior before looking back to the red head and says, “Now, Miss Marigold, I know this is probably a bit intimidating, but there’s no need to be that defensive.”

“I’m not being defensive, I just don’t like beating around the bush. Especially at the end of a very, very long day of work.”

A silence falls over the three. Theresa knows her response wasn’t really helping the situation, but she couldn’t bring herself to care at the moment. After all, this was the second time this month that they’ve brought her into the back to berate her about the slightest mistakes, and she was physically exhausted from the work day. In the red head’s mind, she more than earned the right to be a little irritated.

“Well, in that case, I won’t sugar-coat anything for you,” The manager explains as she takes several pieces of paper out of the folder. She then lightly taps them against the edge of the desk to straighten them before continuing, “Last week, we’ve received several complaints about your work ethic from members and staff alike. Meaning that this is the third meeting we’ve had to have about your behavior this month.”

“I’m aware, but why wasn’t this brought to my attention last week if that’s when all of these complaints were made?” Theresa asks.

“The first is from a member who said you were rather aggressive to him in the checkout line,” The manager explains as she places one of the papers on the desk and slides it towards Theresa. The red head nearly can’t keep herself from rolling her eyes. “He claimed that you told him you “he would have to wait” in a rather rude tone when he asked if you could get a different box of cereal for him because he saw the one he selected was dented.”

“Well, it was busy, and I only meant that I would have to radio someone to get it for him,” Theresa explains. She then pauses for a moment before adding, “Plus, I didn’t want our other customers-“

“Members, Miss Marigold.” The manager interjects. “We have members here, not customers.”

“…Other members to wait longer than they already had if I just went and got it for him myself.”

“While I do commend that, Miss Marigold, I’m afraid a big part of member relations here is perception,” The assistant manager chimes in. “So, despite having good intentions, all that matters is how you came across in that interaction. Which unfortunately was rather confrontational.”

“The next complaint was actually from one of your co-workers,” The manager explains after a brief pause. She then slides another piece of paper towards Theresa as she continues, “She said that she asked you if you wanted to help restock the fruits before opening one morning, and you told her: “No, not really.””

“That was just a joke,” Theresa says as narrows her eyes. She brushes a piece of curly red hair that had fallen in front of her face before continuing, “I wanted to lighten the mood since everyone always seems so tired and mad during the morning shift. I would never actually refuse to help if someone asked me to.”

“Well, again, it’s all about perception,” The assistant manager says.

“Even if you meant it as a joke, that’s not how she took it.”

“The final complaint,” The manager speaks up before Theresa has a chance to reply. “Is also from one of your co-workers. He said that he noticed you struggling to enter coupons and decided to help out. However, after his demonstration, he heard you call him an asshole under your breathe as he walked away.”

“Kyle’s a liar, then,” Theresa says as she crosses her arms. The red head admittedly can’t remember if that’s something she’d done in the moment, but she wasn’t about to backpedal at this point. “I know better than to call someone names like that. And for the record, I wasn’t having trouble with entering coupons. I made a minor mistake on one transaction – one that I was about to fix, actually – and he comes in out of nowhere and takes over. Like he does for every little thing I apparently do wrong!”

“Now, now, let’s…let’s settle down,” The assistant manager says as the manager only gives her a silent, stern stare. The red head relents, and the assistant manager clears his throat before saying, “Before anything else, I should mention that there has been notable improvement in your behavior since our last meeting, Miss Marigold. Several of your coworkers have mentioned how helpful you’ve been around the store, and you’ve even gotten a few compliment’s on the store’s review page. With that being said, we can’t just ignore these complaints. And, since this is your third disciplinary meeting with us, I’m afraid a stricter punishment is necessary.”

“So you’re saying I’m fired.” Theresa states bluntly.

The assistant sputters and looks tot he manager for guidance. Her eyes narrow and her lips curl up in a taunting smirk at the edges as she leans in. “Effective immediately.”

Theresa’s fingers grasp at the material of her jeans as she forces down a roar of insults and curses that began to claw up her throat. She feels tears sting at the corners of her eyes; not out of sadness, but due to pure frustration. To save herself the embarrassment, and to hopefully save her carefully applied black eye-shadow, Theresa stands up without another word. The red head makes it to the door before she decides to turn around. She wants to have the final word in this situation, to feel some semblance of control over what’s happening. Although, she also knew gossip spread around town like wildfire, and didn’t wanna completely ruin her chances at getting another job. So, the red head compromises by saying the tamest thing that comes to mind.

“Thank you so much for waiting until the end of the day to tell me all this.”

The assistant manager opens his mouth to say something, but the red head storms out of the office before he got the chance to speak. Theresa notices several of her coworkers glancing at her and whispering as she walks by, but she doesn’t pay any attention to them, After all, it’s not like she made any friends in the year and a half she’d been working there. Why should their opinion matter to her?

A gust of crisp, Autumn air hits her face as she walks through the store’s main entrance. The nearby rustling of red and yellow leaves also catches Theresa’s attention and, although she still feels awful, her mood does lighten ever so slightly. The time of year where summer finally fades into fall has always been her favorite, so it’s hard for her to hold onto her anger during this perfect weather. She gives a final huff before shuffling off down the street towards her apartment building. The red head does notice a few passersby who are regulars at the bulk store give her odd glances, but she’s too preoccupied processing the fact she just got fired and trying to sort out what her next move would be that she didn’t really notice them. It’s not until she comes to a crosswalk that she really takes the time to look around and notice what is now beside her.

The town’s permanent anti-magic barrier.

A slight hum rings through the air as the purple and blue trees of the forest just beyond the city limits twisted and distorted like one is looking at them through a soap bubble. The red head absentmindedly reaches out and feels a slight tingle spread through her fingers once she makes contact.

Theresa has always been fascinated by the barrier’s existence for as long as she can remember. Mostly because, in the grand scheme of things, she doesn’t understand why anyone would ever want a world without magic. From a young age, she was told it was to protect humans. Since they were the only race in all of Istoviel that couldn’t inherently use or learn magic. But the books locked away in the back of the town’s library told of magical creatures such as elves, gnomes, and even dragons who use magic on a daily basis – survive through it, even – and are completely unharmed. So why are humans so different? Why create a bubble around their society that repels anything different by taking away all it’s magic?

Sadly, those are answers that banned books can never provide.
With a final sigh, Theresa brings her hand back to her side before turning her attention back to the crosswalk before her. After all, she’s unemployed now, and needs to focus on the reality that’s in front of her.