Working in the Bookstore!

Zansho stared at the sign in front of her, the one that was hanging in the bookstore window. She had read it three times in a row to make sure that she had it correct "Help Wanted! Willing to hire anyone from ages 13+ to help today only in the bookstore! Paid by the amount of work done". It wasn't like her family exactly needed the money, but Zansho herself would sure enjoy having some pocket change to use; and it only made it better that it would be money she had earned herself. Her parents were always telling her to take experience where it came, she assumed this would count in their eyes as such.

So, she walked into the door, pausing as she heard a little bell chime above her head. She glanced up curiously, noticing a bell attached to the door that would chime when anyone moved the door past halfway open; it looked to be made of brass, and was shiny. 

Pulling herself away from the distracting bell, and resisting the urge to open and close the door again just so she could listen to the musical chime it made, she went over to the counter and waited patiently for the woman standing behind it to notice her.

"May I help you, dear?"

"Yes, ma'am. I'm interested in helping for the day. I turned thirteen a few months ago!" 

"Ah, very good. Well, follow me and I can show you what you'll be doing. My name is Missus' Smith by the way, but you may call me Birdy.", the woman said as she walked out from behind the counter and started down one of the many rows of books, gesturing with her finger for Zansho to follow after her.

Zansho kept up with her, listening to her introduce herself. "My name is Zansho, Zansho Jun Chi.", she introduced herself.

"Zansho, eh? Such a very pretty name. Alright, here we are..." She paused long enough to sweep a curtain aside, and kept it out of the way until Zansho entered; and then allowed it to fall back into place. Behind the curtain was a back room filled with several boxes that looked like they had just come in, the boxes which were likely filled with books, or so Zansho could assume. "Alright, this is what I need you to do dear. I need you to open these boxes, pull out the books, and neatly put them on the shelves where they belong. Once you're done with that come up front and let me know, I'll be at the counter handing the customers. If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask! When you're done you'll be nicely paid for your efforts! Got it all?"

Zansho nodded several times and smiled. "Yes, ma'am! I will do my best!", she responded happily before watching the woman nod and head back out to the other side of the curtain, apparently to head back up front and continue to man the counter.

Zansho went over to the boxes and began to open them one by one, peeling the tap off so that she could open the two flaps to reveal the nice, new, books instead - and that new book smell mixed with a bit of box smell. She carefully took an armful of books and brought them back out on the other side of the curtain to put them on the shelves in their appropriate places. She put the books up and then returned to the back, grabbing another five more. She repeated the same process as the first, moving her way through the alphabet, since that was how the shelves were organized; making sure that she put the books in the proper place.

With the first box down she started on the second; following the same pattern as before and ensuring that they were all put away correctly. As she worked she was able to hear the lovely bell chime sound many times, indicating customers entering and exiting the store. Sometimes she stumbled across them, and after a short while of putting books away was even able to help and direct them into the right areas for what they were looking for.

By the third, forth, and fifth boxes she was moving a lot faster, able to already know which way she had to go, and how far down the shelves she had to go to find the proper area of the alphabet that she was looking for. Zansho made a last and final trip behind the curtain to find that there were no books left that needed put away. Smiling happily to herself she headed back out the curtain and up to the counter, searching for Birdy.

"Birdy?"

"Up here, dear. How did it go, did you get all of the books put away?"

"Yes, ma'am. All of the boxes left back there are empty."

"Good to hear, good to hear indeed! I also heard that you helped many of my customers find what they were looking for while you were doing it, and for that I am extra thankful. You are able to come back anytime and help me out; I could always use someone like you around here. Make sure it's okay with your parents first though. Oh yes, before I forget..", she reached behind her to a small pouch that jingled when she picked it up off of the counter. She handed the pouch to Zansho. "That's your pay for the day, thank you again. Don't spend it all at once!"

"Thank you very much! I'll be sure to come back!", Zansho said happily as she took the pouch and slipped it safely into her pocket. She skipped her way to the door, pausing to listen to the chime as she opened it, and then out into the street, glad for a job well done.

Word Count: 980