Page 11 of Cakes for the Grump
If I am being honest, you are kind of rude.
His answer?
LUKE
Thank you.
Great, I’ve complimented the insufferable and arrogant ponce. At least, I remain employed. This time I make an Amandine; the traditional Romanian cake is filled with chocolate. Resolutely deciding his feedback isn’t important to me, I complete the rest of the week not caring about anything other than my daily tasks.
The following week after that goes well until it doesn’t.
For the first time, I have to contact Luke on my own accord.
ME
Did you hire a new assistant recently?
He was in your apartment and when I asked him who he was, he wasn’t very nice in his response. I’m just letting you know in case he brings it up to you...in which case I should defend myself by saying I didn’t ‘give him the finger.’ I was merely scratching my shoulder and then my hip in no particular way.
I suppose I should know better than to interact with your staff, although your house manager Valeria is always very nice to me so I was misled that this assistant would be too.
Don’t worry, I won’t make that mistake again. I’m very good at being invisible when needed.
The rest of the shift concludes. I go back to my dingy apartment and spend the next few hours trying to lift mold off a kitchen sink, as per Janice’s detailed instructions. Afterwards, when I’ve finally had dinner and am exhausted in bed, my phone buzzes. I reach over for it and find a delayed response from Luke.
LUKE
Don’t be invisible.
Peculiarly, my heart skitters at his directive.
Then I read his next text.
LUKE
I fired him.
My stomach flares. An unrelated indigestion response.
ME
Oh. Thank you?
I don’t expect him to answer right away, but he does.
LUKE
It wasn’t for you.
He annoyed me.
Although his reports of how many ways you sneakily gave him the finger were amusing.
ME
Glad you find me entertaining.
P.S. How was your recent smoothie? I changed the formulation.
