Elvira stepped in front of the stove with a pan in hand. Is this a restaurant or hotel? She thought, swirling around. The chaos like this has never been seen in the kitchen before.
"Hey," A girl around Elvira's age who seemed to be a waitress, greeted her with a pleasant smile. This was the first time Elvira saw that smile in this hotel. Everyone else smiles like they were just forced to.
"Hi," Elvira replied with a soft smile. Adjusting her hair in a bun.
"I'm Hazel Riley." She kept her tray in front of Elvira.
"Oh! I'm.." Before Elvira could say anything, Hazel interrupted her.
"I know you are Elvira Pearce. Assistant head chef. Your room number is 1029. Just beside mine. I wanted to meet you yesterday but you weren't in your room, I guess." She started blabbering, Elvira guessed she must be the talkative one here. Since all others are focused on their work.
"Can I call you El?" She asked with a bright smile. Elvira once again felt proud of her decision for coming here and meeting nice people.
"Of course," Elvira replied, burning the pan and putting the sunflower oil in it.
"So what are you making, El?" Hazel asked, curiously, gazing at the oil in the pan.
"I don't know. What are the orders?" Elvira asked, looking around as her team was busy making dishes of all kinds.
"What? You don't know?" Hazel gaped, "CEO Adkin has arrived and they are all making dishes to impress him, and believe me he is the rudest ice-cold man you'll ever meet in your lifetime." Hazel instantly aroused the fear in Elvira.
"What do you mean?" Elvira stuttered.
"Make your specialty and he will taste it. If he thinks his guests will enjoy it, then he will never compliment you." Hazel's words tricked Elvira's mind.
"Pardon?"
"If your dish is lower than his expectations, he will just fire you straight away. In other words, he would never cheer you up. If he is quiet, take it as a compliment, and if he opens his mouth consider the worst for yourself." Hazel simplified it for her.
"Then why aren't you attending to him? Won't he fire you too?" Elvira was really puzzled.
"No. I'm just a waitress and I know how to serve. So I never have any stress about that. If you know you are good at it, just have some courage and go for it." Hazel winked at her, flashing a toothy smile.
"Okay, then what should I make?" Elvira started to panic. Her mind stopped working. All the recipes she knew are now out of her mind.
"What are you really really good at?" Hazel asked, trying to calm her down.
"Umm. I don't know. Panicking?" Elvira bit her nails, looking down. Tapping her feet on the floor.
"I can see that. But what about cooking. What can you make really good?" Hazel wanted to support her. Calming her down and providing her courage won't be enough, she thought.
"How about mm Lobster Malay Curry?" Elvira got the idea. "How much time do I get?" She asked Hazel, who knew that they barely got forty minutes.
But telling Elvira about it would not be a good decision. So she ran and took the Lobster from the fridge.
"Let's get on with it. I'll help you." Hazel said, ignoring what Elvira asked. Elvira looked at her eyes and agreed with her. Both girls started to peel Lobster quickly.
Lobster simmered in coconut milk, with the taste of rare species Elvira always uses in her dishes. The odor filled the Kitchen with immense flavoring.
Everyone seemed to be curious about her dish but Hazel chuckled knowing they did the best among all. Hazel was going to serve Elvira's dish.
She put the dish carefully in the tray and straightened her back in a graceful position. Keeping the tray in both of her hands, she clicked her heels.
"Thanks, Hazel." Elvira shows appreciation to Hazel through her eyes.
"No worries, I got you," Hazel replied and turned on her heels like everyone else.
There was no doubt both of them were going to be best friends. But the problem hovering over everyone was the CEO. The ruthless king seems to torture his empire a lot.
The head chef reached Elvira with a smile on his face. Even he seemed to be of Elvira's age, "What luxury was it? The odor overwhelmed this kitchen." He remarked, complimenting her.
"Thank you so much. It was Lobster Malay Curry." Elvira proudly said. But there was still panic inside her chest. What if she gets fired on her first day?
Why is the CEO even in the hotel? Shouldn't he be somewhere in the main branch of Adkins's chains?
After a long misplaced time of thirty minutes, Hazel came walking as fast as she could on her toes rather than on her heels.
"El?" She shouted, waving at her.
"The CEO is calling for you." Everyone gaped. Except for her, no other person was called.
"It will be okay." Ned cheered her up, looking at her dreaded pale face.
She walked with her trembling legs, keeping her head low. Hazel took her to the table where the CEO was waiting. She was curious to see him. But if he was going to fire her, she would prefer not to see his face and hate him for the rest of her life.
"Look up," Hazel whispered, nudging her side.
"Miss Pearce, would you explain what you put in this dish?" The CEO asked, fiercely. His voice made Elvira's heart shiver in sync with her body.
Wait a damn minute! She got a hunch of hearing that voice before too. It was oddly familiar. She finally looked up at the man in front of her.
"You." She shrieked, almost gouging her own grave. The man she met yesterday wasn't a stranger. He was the CEO of the hotel she was going to work at.
What could be more embarrassing than this? Jumping into the CEO's arms. Then fighting with her in the public. He must be angry at me. Oh, Shit!! There is something more to this story.
She got drunk. Her memories of last night returned gradually. She called him an asshole. Damn it! She is surely going to get fired today. No doubt. She gave up the explanation to anything and considered herself unemployed. Back to her old crazy life.