It was a nice day, and I was just looking around the big gift shop they had near the giant waterfall. The sound of the water was still kinda in my ears from being outside, and I was just enjoying the coolness inside the building after all that walking in the sun. I had on my comfortable blue jacket, just something I threw on that morning, and was looking at a display of those little carved wooden animals. They had a lot of different kinds, like bears and deer, and I was trying to decide if I should get one for my niece.
Then this lady came up real fast, like she was in a big hurry. She kinda bumped into me, not hard, but enough to make me step sideways. Before I could even really look at her, she started talking real loud. “Excuse me, can you help me? I’ve been looking for ages and nobody seems to be around.”
I blinked a little, surprised she just assumed I worked there. I mean, I was just standing there, looking at a bear carved out of wood. I said, “Oh, I don’t work here. I’m just a customer, like you.”
She waved her hand in the air, like she didn’t even hear me. Her voice got a bit higher. “Yes, yes, I know. But I really need someone to show me where the special edition mugs are. My husband says they’re tucked away somewhere, and I promised him I’d get one. We’re in a rush.”
My eyebrows kinda went up. I just told her I wasn’t an employee. I tried again, a bit slower this time. “No, I really don’t work here. I’m just looking at these animals.” I pointed to the carved bear.
She put her hands on her hips, and I felt a little prickle of annoyance start to rise in my chest. “Look, I don’t have time for games. You’re obviously here, and you’re just standing around. It’s your job to help people.”
I shook my head. A feeling like a buzzing started in my ears. “Ma’am, I promise you, I do not work for this store. I’m a visitor. I bought a ticket to see the waterfall just like you probably did.”
Her face got kinda pinched. “Oh, so now you’re going to be difficult? I just need to know where the collector mugs are. It shouldn’t be this hard! You probably know where they are, just tell me. Don’t be lazy.”
My muscles in my neck started to feel real tight. I really didn’t want to argue with her. This whole thing was making my good mood disappear fast. I looked around, hoping to spot someone with a name tag. “I really can’t help you, because I don’t know. I’ve never even looked at their mugs.” I decided the best thing to do was just go find an actual employee. “Let me see if I can find someone who actually works here for you.”
I started to walk away, heading towards where I thought the cash registers were, figuring that was the best place to find an actual worker. But she stepped right in front of me, blocking my path. She was breathing a little fast, like she was really mad.
“Oh no you don’t!” she practically yelled. A couple of people nearby kinda glanced over. I felt my face get hot. “You think you can just walk away from a customer? I know your type. Trying to get out of doing your job. That’s just rude!”
I felt a headache coming on, right behind my eyes. “I am not trying to get out of my job,” I said, my voice probably a little louder than I meant it to be. “Because I don’t have a job here. I told you, I’m a customer!”
She scoffed real loud. “That’s a likely story. You’re just trying to get rid of me. I’m going to make sure you get disciplined for this! This is terrible customer service! I’m going to report you to your manager. What’s your name?”
I felt myself seeing red a little bit. This was just ridiculous. I really didn’t want to give her my name, because what was she even going to do with it? She couldn’t get me fired from a job I didn’t have. “My name doesn’t matter,” I said, trying to keep my voice even. “Because I’m not an employee. I was just trying to find you someone who could actually help.”
She pointed a finger at me, real close to my face. “You are the most unhelpful person I’ve ever met! You just don’t want to work! I demand you take me to the mugs right now, or I’m going to make sure you lose your job! You’re going to be sorry you didn’t help me!”
Just then, a man, who must have been her husband, walked up, carrying a small bag. He looked a bit tired. He saw his wife practically yelling at me, and his shoulders slumped a little. “What’s going on, hon?” he asked, his voice soft.
She turned to him, still glaring at me. “This person here won’t help me! They refuse to tell me where the special mugs are, and they’re being incredibly rude and lazy! They deserve to be fired!”
The husband looked at me, then at his wife. He kinda gave a small, apologetic shrug. “Oh, honey, the mugs were in that little section by the entrance. I just found them. I’m sorry, I should have just waited to tell you.” He gently took her arm. “Come on, we’re running a bit behind schedule. Let’s just go pay for this and head out.”
She hesitated for a second, looking back at me with a huff, like she still wanted to keep arguing. But her husband started to lead her away, talking quietly to her as they walked towards the cash registers. I just stood there for a moment, letting out a big breath I didn’t even realize I was holding. My head still throbbed, but at least she was gone.
