[Trouble] Chapter 8 - Helping at the inn

After a week of staying there, Riz decided to help Lina at their inn, at first Lina is reluctant to let him help because he is their guest, but eventually she gave in because of her parent permission and Riz stubbornness in insisting that. So the first day on the second week, Riz woke up early to get ready. He took a proper bath and wear the staff uniform that Lina has prepared for him.

Their uniform are simple and easy to wear. It was a bit big for Riz but are adjustable with Lina help. Their grey with white striped half hakama still look like a long hakama because of Riz insufficient height and because Riz are still young. Riz blue hair was combed to the back and tied with a string to make him look neat.

Riz followed Lina around as he learned from her on how to serve the customer. Angela and Damian are staying with Lina’s mother at the counter in front, and Angela greeted everyone that come to the inn, while Damian helped Lina’s mother by giving the room keys. Their days passed by rather leisurely and Riz are learning well, and after more than two weeks Riz now can already start to do some of the task by himself without getting lost.

Even the customers gave a satisfied feedback to the inn owners, which make Lina’s parent smile because having Riz there is very helpful to them because they have no need to find too many part timer worker for this three month period.

.._..

Today Riz are helping at the kitchen, he is learning how to make the dishes with the inn uncle as his teacher. Despite having no experience in cooking, Riz learning speed are quite fast as he was after all a top student at his school, so his memorizing is good and he can easily repeat what was taught. So the uncle always pass the ingredient preparation to Riz while he cooked the food.

The other kitchen staff prepare the snack and any other simple dishes, which caused the food to be ready in a very short time. And because the food provided by the inn is very delicious, it cause an endless number of customers coming to the inn during the day, so the dining hall is almost always full today. 

“Ah! Riz! Hurry hurry!” The uncle called for Riz while sweating profusely as he keep cooking, and since he is almost done, he need to cook the next one soon, so he have to rush Riz for the next menu ingredients. The fire in his pan is very strong but since he is a professional chef, it was not a big deal for him, as all is within his control as a sizzling sound and fragrance scent came as he cook.

“Okay uncle, the ingredient is ready!” Riz reply as he done and put the prepared ingredients to the station. He sighed a bit and went to prepare the next one fast, because he know taht each second counts.

“Alright boy, great!” The uncle reply with a smile as he now done cook the current dish. He went to the next stove and start the fire, leaving the finished dish for the staff to put and decorate on the serving plate. 

“Ssshhhhhh!” The sound of some ingredients being fry in the oil, as the uncle keep pouring the ingredients in the new pan, as he keep stirring and adding it. While Riz now done prep the fish with the turmeric and onions, he dice the carrots and pepper. 

The staff that are done put the food on plates carry those out to the dining hall and serve them with a smile on the face, “Madam, Sir, Enjoy your food” They said with a simple bow and then leave to go pick up the empty dish from the customers that has finish eating. They also help to pour the tea for the customer and the customer thanked them for giving such service.

Soon it is time for break, it is now two oclock in the afternoon, and the dining hall is closed for an hour to allow all the staff to eat their lunch alongside while taking a short rest from the busy schedule. The kitchen staff all sat down, as some of them took out their own homemade lunch box, while some sat up straight when the uncle put down a bunch of dishes for them that he cook just before the break time.

Riz flopped on the chair, he took out his handkerchief and wipe his sweating forehead. He then go wash his hands. Though he has been helping at the kitchen for a few days now, he still have a hard time to adapt during the rush hours, and he felt that it is quite tiring especially today when there is a lot more customers coming due to the weekends.

He smiled when Lina’s mother came to the dining hall with Angela and Damian following behind her. Like usual, they always eats together no matter how busy they were, and the two of them never throw a tantrum during these busy time.

“Big brother!” Angela tackle Riz and hugs him happily when they are close enough. She snuggle and smile as she look up at Riz. Riz ruffles her hair and help her sit on the chair next to his right. The staffs always reserve two chair for the two little kids because there was one time when they sulk when they cannot sit next to their big brother.

After making sure Angela sat properly, he then helped Damian next. They thanked for the food and then started to eat together with everyone. Due to how young Angela and Damian are, the staffs that adore little kids keep giving some portions of their handmade food to the two kids. Angela did not feel shy at all and ate all that they gave to her, while Damian was not sure if he should or should not eat those foods.

.._..

After eating, they get ready to resume their work, while one of the staff bring Riz, Angela and Damian to a small room, just next to the main kitchen. Inside there is a grandma waiting inside. The staff smiled to her and greeted her, then left the three of them there.

“Grandma! Hello!” Angela greeted as she run and hug the grandma excitedly, “Play play again?” She ashed with sparkling eyes, making the grandma laugh as she lift her up.

“H-hello grandma...” Damian greeted her too while holding to Riz sleeve, and Riz walked with Damian to the grandma and Damian took a seat first. The grandma smiled to Damian.

“Hi grandma Meng.” Riz finally greeted her too, and took a seat, “Sorry for troubling grandma Meng everyday...” Riz apologized a bit.

“It’s fine, since I have fun teaching all of you.” The grandma said gently and pats Riz head slowly. “Plus, you and your little siblings are just like my grandchild.” She laughed a bit, “Plus it’s a good way of passing my idle time too.”

“I-Is that so..” Riz said with a bit flushed cheek, “Me too like to learn with grandma Meng.” 

“Angela too! Learn fun!” Angela said with a happy smile, she especially like to cling to the grandma during their lesson. Riz assumed that it is maybe because grandma Meng is very gentle like how his mother were, so Angela maybe a attached to that motherly gentleness. Damian nods too as a way to say that he too also liked to spend their time with this grandma.

“Alright alright. I’ll start today lesson then.” She smiled and took out sewing kit and some already cut fabric. It seems that this week she will be teaching Riz about sewing. Angela look curiously at the sewing kit, she want to open it, but the grandma took out some drawing books and also some origami papers, so her attention immediately moved to those two things.

With that, Riz was taught the basic of sewing by the grandma, he learned the style of sewing, the pattern and how to make little sachets as the practice for today. Riz learn with focus because he wanted to also learn how to sew clothes. With that he aimed to learn to make cute dresses for Angela and smart casual clothes for Damian.

The two hours of learning passed easily when one is enjoying the lesson, and Riz finished making three cute sachets with cute pattern. It is not too small and not too big, but enough to put small items like coins and cell phone inside. Riz also put some tassel and bells to the sachets, making it look better. Angela and Damian came next to Riz and looked at the sachets.

“Oh, you really learned quickly.” The grandma complimented as she checked the sachets too, and she can see that he sew it properly and there were not too much imperfection on the sachets, it does not look like how a beginner make it.

“Um, I’m just making like how grandma Meng show to me…” Riz said while keeping back all the needle and thread back into the sewing kit, cleaning up with a smile.

“But you make improvement and make it look much better instead of letting it be a plain and simple sachet. I can teach something a bit harder, tomorrow.” The grandma chuckle and pats Riz as a reward, which make Riz feel much more content than being complimented.

“Angela want too!” Angela again tackle the grandma with a puffed cheek, she was bit jealous because she did not get a pat for her origami work. The grandma shook her head a bit with a smile and also pats both Angela and Damian too.

Their small lesson has ended, and the two kids was a bit sleepy so they took a nap in the room with Riz sitting on the middle as they use Riz’s lap as a pillow to sleep. The grandma come and cover them with a blanket as Riz read a book in the meantime.

.._..

Riz woke the two up after two more hours is up, since he needed to go to the kitchen again to continue helping at the kitchen. So when Angela and Damian woke up, he then tidy up their clothes and then bring them to Lina’s mother at the counter. Though the two of them are still rather sleepy as they yawned when they walk, Riz holding their hands to lead them.

“You should have let them sleep more.” Lina mother smiled when she saw them keep yawning.

“I’m not sure if they won’t walk around when they woke up alone in the room… so I’m bit worried.” Riz said and pats them slowly, he help them sit next to Lina mother.

“Right, since they cannot stay still.” She chuckled, and she then asked one of the staff to bring two small pillow for the two of them.

Riz nodded, agreeing as he recalled that one time when he was late in picking them up at kindergarten because of a sudden meeting for the student council, where all the class leaders need to attend, make him arrive late 30 minutes. When he arrive at the kindergarten, the teacher told him that Angela and Damian went missing because they walked out of the kindergarten by themselves without telling anyone.

It caused Lyla and Fuz a big panic, and they with Riz have to find them around the town, only to find them playing at a playground rather far from the kindergarten. It seems like it was Angela idea to go exploring with Damian just following her, it was lucky that nothing bad happen to the two of them. Because of that incident, Riz knew that he must make sure that there are someone to watch them.

They sulked when Fuz scolded them, and refused to even let Fuz hold them, not even holding hands or carrying them. Even though Damian does not sulk as long as Angela, he still followed Angela by also refusing to let Fuz stay close to him.

He does not want to cause trouble to the inn since he was after all staying there with the two of them. He really does not want such thing to happen again due to feeling grateful of them letting him staying there.

And so after settling them, Riz went back to the inn kitchen to help. Because he helped them preparing for ingredients in the morning, at evening they only ask him to help wash and clean up some of the plates. So he went out to the dining hall to pick the empty plates and bring back to wash them.

When it is almost dinner time, the staff allowed him to retire for the day, so he went to the counter to pick Angela and Damian to return back at their room, to bath and clean up before coming down to eat dinner together with Lina family.

.._.. 

During night time, as the three of them laying on the futon, Riz told them a bed time story so that they can sleep soon. Damian was usually the first one to sleep first, while Angela always hold herself from sleeping, because she wanted to listen to the story until the end of the story. So despite her feeling drowsy from sleepiness, she will stay up as hard as she can.

Riz patted her when she finally sleep after the story ends. He himself yawned and also then sleep after he turn off the lamp. He make sure he two of them was properly covered with blanket before he then go to sleep.

-To Be Continue-