After a busy day of painting walls, I finally came home. I took a shower, wore my pink tank top and shorts and fell on the bed. Sleep came easy, although waking up became difficult.
Sooner than I expected, it was time for my shift at Circle Eight. I just hope everything went well as I really didn't want to get fired on my first night.
Quickly putting on a purple blouse with black pants, I tied my hair in a pony tail, making sure I looked smart. I debated whether I should wear the white sandals or the black ones. Opting for the black sandals, I grabbed my purse and left my apartment.
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As soon as I entered Circle Eight, Jason was there along with a man wearing a black shirt with the club logo embroidered on the right breast area.
"Hi, Ariana. Welcome to your first night at Circle Eight." Jason greeted playfully.
"Hello Jason, how are you?" I asked politely.
"I'm great, are you ready for your first shift?" He questioned softly.
"Yup, get me to work, boss." I replied enthusiastically.
"Alright, this here is Mike. He is the bartender, and will teach you all you need to know about bartending." Jason waved at a smiling Mike.
"Hey babe, how are you?" Mike asked in a friendly manner instantly putting me at ease.
"I'm good, how are you?" I asked him in return.
"Perfect, just waiting for my student and then I'll begin working." Mike said referring to me as his student.
"Ariana, why don't I give you your uniform and you can start working?" I nodded and Jason led me all the way back of the club and inside a small room. He grabbed one of the familiar looking black shirts and handed it to me.
"This is the shirt you'll have to wear every night, I'll give you two of these so you can alternate between them, and you must wear black skinny jeans with the shirt." Jason instructed me. I nodded and took the shirt from him.
"Okay, I'm gonna go, you get changed and meet Mike, okay, if you have any problems don't hesitate to ask for help from Mike or me." Jason told me and left the room.
I hurriedly put on the shirt with the club's logo embroidered on the right breast, then left the room and went to meet Mike who was cleaning a glass with a rag. When he saw me he smiled softly.
"Hey babe, you ready to get started?" He asked rhetorically.
"Yup, put me to work, captain." I have him a mock salute.
"Since its your first night I'll not stress you out too much. All you have to do for tonight is pick up the drink bottles and glasses, and clean the counter every half hour or twenty minutes depending on the amount of drinks spilled, easy enough?" He asked making sure I had no issue with anything.
I nodded eagerly, letting Mike know that I was perfectly fine with the work he gave me.
"Okay good, now get ready, babe, our first customer for the night just arrived." Mike said and in response I put my game face on, letting the whole world know I was ready to work.
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The night passed quickly. I collected empty bottles and glasses from patrons, and cleaned the counter as efficiently as possible. When the club became crowded, I helped out Mike by taking people's orders and letting Mike know so he could prepare the drinks. He even let me mix a few drinks, and I learned quickly how the drinks were made.
Now it was 2:37 am, and last of the people just left the club. I didn't realize how tired I was until Mike told me to sit down. My legs sighed in relief when I sat down.
Mike cleaned the counter and made small talk with me. I had worked one night with him and already felt close to him.
Jason came out from wherever he was in the club and perched himself on one of the round chairs.
"So Ariana, how was your first night?" Jason asked me.
"It was great, Mike helped me a lot and taught me how to make drinks." I told him with a grin.
"That's wonderful, well you better get home now. Wait, how do you plan on getting home?" Jason asked me with a small frown etched on his forehead.
"If I'll find a cab I'll take it, otherwise I'll walk home." I told him simply shrugging my shoulders.
"Absolutely not, I'll drive you." Jason said.
"Oh no, it's okay, I told you I'll take a cab."
"It's not safe for you to be walking the streets at this time of night, I'll drive you home." Jason said ignoring my protests.
"But you -" I was cut off by Jason.
"No, I'm driving you home, end of discussion." Jason stated.
"He's right you know, it's dangerous for women to be out late at night." Mike told me, and I knew I was outnumbered.
"Okay fine." I told Jason with a huff.
"Good, Mike, give Ariana the money for the tips, and then we'll leave." Jason told Mike who nodded.
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"Is this your place?" Jason asked as he parked his car on the side of the road.
"Yes, thank you so much for dropping me off, Jason." I told him gratefully.
"It's no problem at all." Jason replied sincerely making me smile.
"Okay, I better get going, thanks again for dropping me off." I said and got out of the car.
"Good night, Ariana." Jason said.
"Good night, Jason." I said and went upstairs to my apartment. Happy that my first night at Circle Eight was a success.