Trying your own bakery is... trying. (Open.)

[callmeemily]

There's a ton that Raleigh doesn't know. Of course there is - everybody's got that stuff, things that they don't really have an interest in figuring out. That being said, she got this chance - this ridiculous chance, and that's why she's currently sitting down outside of the local coffeeshop, and she's... looking.

She's looking at the binder her boss gave her, that's got expenses and income, because she's theoretically doing inventory because he asked her to, even though it made no sense.

But... she gets numbers. For the first time she gets numbers, and Raleigh stares at the books, because she knows how much she gets paid. She knows how much a pastry sells for.

And now, she can see exactly the sort of profit her boss is getting. "Holy shit." She stared down at the box again, and she shakes her head, and she starts to wonder - not for the first time - about starting this herself, and pay the people working for her a decent, llving wage.

Now, if only she knew where to start...

Comments

[weatherornot]

One thing that Genevieve loved about this town was the never ending supply of good looking people. They were everywhere and they were mostly nice and some of them very willing to have a fling. It was like Christmas for someone like Genevieve who was of a mind to enjoy herself as much as possible while she could.

"Holy shit?" she said, flashing the girl a smile as she sat down at the table. "Must be some exciting papers there."

[callmeemily]

Looking up, she realised she'd seen her tablemate before - not formally met her, but she'd seen her, and so she flashes a smile that's gone almost immediately as she looks back down at the papers for a second. It's not frowning, but her brows furrow together, and then she takes a breath.

Okay.

"Uh, yeah? My boss wanted me to... look over his books, and... uh." Tipping her head to the side, Raleigh shook her head slightly. This? All of this? Made no sense. "I'm Raleigh, by the way." She sounds a little distracted, before she flips the page, and then finally looks up, and the smile's back. "You're... uh..." Hoping her memory kicks into gear, Raleigh rifles through everyone she's heard of lately, and then she abruptly remembers. "Genevieve! Right?"

[weatherornot]

Genevieve was surprised that the girl knew her since she didn't know her. She was just going to take it as flattering though and not creepy or anything like that. Genevieve had been pretty social since coming to town so it was possible they had a mutual friend or met at a part or something. Or maybe Raleigh was creepy.

"You got it. Nice to meet you, Raleigh. Find anything exciting? Embezzling, tax evasion, slave wages?"

[callmeemily]

She'd seen her around at the couple of parties that she'd been to lately, and Raleigh tried to keep track of who was who, if she could swing it. She saw the surprise and half smiled with a shrug of explanation - clearly, at least to her, it wasn't a huge deal.

"I don't know if I'd know tax evasion if I saw it, but... uh. I think I need to start my own business," she says with a laugh, shaking her head. "It's boring, anyway. Work." She flips the book closed, and since she's no longer alone at the table, she sits up a little straighter, and she's... well. Nicer. "What're you up to, today? I'm betting it's more interesting then my day, I can almost guarantee it," she said with a small, sheepish laugh.

[weatherornot]

"Nothing much, although definitely more exciting than looking at paperwork. What kind of business do you want to open?" she asked. It was pretty impressive and ambitious of her, more ambitious than Genevieve would probably ever be, and she admired it about the girl.

"And don't worry, I'm here so your day just got a lot more interesting."

[callmeemily]

"Hey, you never know, my paperwork could be amazing," Raleigh said with a laugh, even though she shook her head. "A bakery. It'll be a bakery." Pausing for a second, she revised it. "And... maybe food. Chef's discretion." She rolls her shoulders in a shrug, and leaned her chin on her hand, and she can't stop the way her lips curve into a bright smile when Genevieve says her day's going to be more interesting. "I'm always up for 'more interesting'. Did you have plans, or just... do you just happen to know how good it'll be?"

[weatherornot]

"Yeah, you just looked thrilled there," she said with a laugh. Genevieve was sure some people thought it was exciting but she was also sure those people were few and far between. "And you'd have some stiff competition, I've heard there's a pretty amazing bakery there."

This girl was too, too adorable the way she perched her chin on her hand like that and just smiled at Genevieve. Genevieve could swear that she was swooning just a bit and how cute it all was.

"Oh, I absolutely know how good it could be," she said, giving Raleigh a wicked grin.

[needleandink]

Adrian was walking through the town back to the shop after his morning run, bottle of water in one hand, when he heard the exclamation. He turned towards the sound and saw a vaguely familiar blonde, but one he hadn't met yet. Not that that was anything surprising. He wasn't exactly on the welcoming committee.

Still, he drifted in that direction and stopped just short of invading personal space.

"Is that a good 'holy shit' or one of the 'damn, I'm completely screwed' variety?"

[callmeemily]

Her brows were permanently high as she stared at the numbers - she's not a math whiz, but it was easy to see that this - even taking account rent and salaries and everything else, this.... was nowhere near fair. Or even. Or anything, and what the hell has she been doing all this time?

"I.... I don't know, actually." Raleigh flips the book closed, and she finally looks up at whomever talked to her, and she realises she's seen him around but she doesn't actually know him. Yet. Looks like that's changing.

"I.... sort of think I might need to start a business?" She sounds just as confused as she feels, but she shrugs. "Anyway- Sorry. Have we actually met?" She tries to meet everyone - best she can, anyway.

[needleandink]

"I don't think we have. Adrian Smith," he offered with something of a sheepish grin. "I'd offer my hand, but I don't think you'd thank me for it."

He hadn't done a long run, only about five miles, but he was still a guy, and still sweaty.

[callmeemily]

She rolled her eyes with a smile when he said that she wouldn't want to shake his hand, and she pushed out his chair with a foot so he'd have a place to sit down. "Well, then, we'll just have to do it next time. Raleigh Harper." Being able to use her own name makes her feel good - it makes her feel whole again, and as far as she knows she's safe now. Safe to use it, and it's just right. It sits right, makes her feel right.

"Good to meet you, Adrian Smith." She takes a sip of her coffee, and her brows furrow. "You're... tattoo place? Right? You work there?" Putting a name to a face makes things a little easier.

[needleandink]

Adrian took the seat and stretched long legs out in front of him. "I'll make a note of it. Good to meet you, Raleigh. And yes, you're right. I work at Siren Cove Ink. It's not steady business, but it keeps me in food and the rain off my head," he joked.

[callmeemily]

Her eyes crinkled at the corners as she smiled. "Yeah, you can say that there's an IOU." She's teasing, and she scratches the back of her neck, leaning back in her own chair. "Is it.... hard? I mean, I'd guess that it's hard, doing the whole tattoo thing." And honestly, terrifying. You slip, and it's on somebody forever.

God, that sounds like a lot of pressure.

[just_another]

He sets the extra coffee down and pushes it toward her before sinking into the chair on the other side of the table, his own drink held between his hands. He's a little tired, having stayed up too late reading, as he's prone to doing, and he's up now to open the store, though he still has a bit of time before he needs to head over there. Besides, if he's a little late, Charlotte will probably get things open.

"Holy shit?" he asks, although he rarely curses without good reason, he figures echoing Raleigh is as good a reason as any. "And here I thought I was doing you a favour by getting you the coffee." He's teasing, though his smile is hidden behind his hand briefly as he stifles a yawn.

[callmeemily]

"Bless you," she says with a smile when a coffee just appears next to her, and she leans her chin on her hand once she takes a sip. "I... uh. I was going through some things at work, and- I mean. So, running a business is hard, right? Rent and equipment and salaries and taxes, but... like."

She turns the ledger so he can see it - and clearly see the profit line, and she's frowning. For a reason, but she's... frowning.

A lot.

Taking another sip of coffee, she shakes her head, and it's likely that the next sentence... it all may make sense now. "Joel, I make six fifty an hour."

[just_another]

Running a business is hard, it's why he's the only employee of the bookstore. Over the years he's considered trying to take on help now and then, but every time he's looked at his books it's become fairly obvious that he can't afford to pay a person what they would deserve and so he's just continued on as he has. It's part of why he's looking to outright buy the property, too, because he knows owning it and paying a mortgage will not only be cheaper, but will prove to be a good investment in the long run.

But the numbers he's seeing in the book Raleigh has are far better than his own and when she tells him what she gets paid, he finds himself frowning deeply. "What? But..." He leans in again, taking the book from her so he can really see it for a second, then turns it back toward her. "That isn't right. The profit is significantly higher than what I make at the bookstore and even I could afford to pay someone more than that. That's less than minimum wage."

[callmeemily]

"I know I make less than minimum wage. There's... like... legal... things? He's taking a risk to hire me because he's not paying taxes because I wouldn't give him my real name, but- I mean, if you look before I started, it wasn't- they didn't make this much money, but..."

She feels... used. And angry. Really angry, actually, but she doesn't know what to do about it.

"I had no idea," she said lowly. "None. Why am I killing myself at this job and- and it just makes him more money. I never thought it was like this."

[just_another]

"But if there's been an increase in the profit margin you would think that you'd get a raise to reflect that," Joel protests, flipping back through the book again and taking in the numbers. He's always been good at math, he's always had an eye for numbers and what he's seeing is fairly clear. Since Raleigh started working at the bakery, the increase in profit has been significant and she's seen absolutely none of the financial benefits of her work. Joel knows there are plenty of people who run their business in a less than honest manner, but he likes to believe a small business in a town like Siren Cove would at least try.

"And you've been using your real name for weeks now," he adds, rubbing the back of his hand across his eyes. "You could sell your baking out of our kitchen and make more than you are now, which would serve your boss right."

It's actually not a half-bad idea. There's little start up involved with something like that and in a town as small as Siren Cove, he's sure the word would get out fairly quickly. Spencer might not like having strangers coming in and out of his house, but Joel thinks he could set her up in front of his store and she'd make plenty of money that way, which would give her the funds to start her own bakery if that's really what she wants to do.

[callmeemily]

She doesn't know what a profit margin is, exactly, but she gets the ghist of it well enough, and she's still just... frowning. A lot.

"That doesn't mean-" It's the first time she's actually disagreeing with him. "It's not on legal paperwork, I... I don't-" She hesitates, and her brows furrow. "I haven't-" She's trying to find a way to say what she's thinking, but it's hard because it's something that's a giant mess of emotions - shame, fear, regret, relief, selfishness. "It's one thing to tell people who I am, it's another one to file papers with the federal government." She doesn't know if she's still declared missing, or if they think she's dead, or what - but she does know something.

If she does... god, she misses her mother and her brother, and it's so hard, but... "I don't want to leave," she says quietly, and she looks away, her shoulders tight with tension. So she's not working legally, still.

She's still got the envelope, though. She's got the envelope that's got nearly ten grand in it, and she just sort of looks at Joel. "Do you think-" She pauses. 'Do you think I could rent a place with cash in hand? Like a month to month thing?" Less paperwork. Just... a place.

[bachjones]

"This is the free cinnamon rolls place, isn't?" Bach smiles. "Can I throw in another sorry, Raleigh?"

[callmeemily]

"Well, it's- I mean," She looks back at the coffeeshop she's sitting in front of. "I'm free cinnamon rolls, but the actual bakery's that way." She knows he knows that, which is why she smiles up at him. "You don't need to throw in another sorry. You want to have a seat?" Raleigh smiles up at him, her mouth lifting on one corner. I wouldn't mind the company." She flips the book closer, and take a sip of her coffee as she pushes out a chair with her foot.

[bachjones]

"Will there be food?"

He takes the chair and sits down. "Are you reading something nice or homework?"

[callmeemily]

"There's almost always food," she said with a smile, and shakes her head ruefully. Almost always, there's food. It's what she does, feeding people.

Raleigh looks down at the closed book, and her brows furrow. "Neither? Looking at stuff for work, and it's not.... super nice." She wasn't quite sure how else to put it. "But hey, it's work, right? How about you, what're you up to, today?"

[bachjones]

"Good, I like that."

"That frown not so much, though." He tries to sneak a peek. "Not super nice in a horrible get the police kind of way? Because you're on your own if it's that. Okay, I'll drop you off at the station, but after that you're on your own."

[callmeemily]

"No, just sort of... there's some things that don't add up." That was an understatement if she ever made one. "But no police. Just... stuff." She smiles, shrugging her shoulders. "How're you? How have you been?" She's been a mess the last few weeks, but she doesn't really want to talk about her if she can avoid it too much.