A Different Kind Of Pronoun Discourse

In French, some people will address you in the third person, like, “How is he doing?” or, “Is he done with this task?” Depending on who says it and when, it can be either silly banter or crass condescendence. This exchange is the latter.

My partner and I enter a pastry shop and greet the waitress, who is talking to a friend. She turns her head, looks at us, doesn’t say a word, and goes back to her discussion. We take some time to choose what we want. The waitress finally comes to serve.

Waitress: *Very sour* “So, are they done choosing?”

Me: “No, they are not. She can go back to her discussion. They will call her when they are ready.”

Weirdly enough, she wasn’t impressed with my answer. We/they left without buying anything.