A Sizeable Problem

(I am 16 and a sophomore, working my first job at a very popular fast food chain. I am working as the front-end cashier and have a short line of customers. One of the customers is a black woman in her 30s or 40s. I am white.)

Me: “Good afternoon, miss. How may I serve you today?”

Customer: “Yeah, I want a—” *gives me all the orders but forgets to tell me the size*

Me: “I’m sorry, miss; what sizes were you wanting for the meal with the drink and fries?”

Customer: “What sizes are there?”

Me: “We have small, medium, and large.”

Customer: “What sizes?”

Me: *thinking I must have said it too quietly or quickly to understand, knowing that the customer has no hearing aids and she is one of two customers in the place* “Small, medium, and large!”

Customer: *starting to get really irritated* “TELL ME THE SIZES, NOW!”

(I start getting worried and none of the managers are bothering to help me.)

Me: “I… I’m sorry, miss. I thought I had said—”

Customer: *cutting me off* “TELL ME THE SIZES NOW, YOU STUPID B****!”

(By this point I am close to tears, and I look to my coworkers for help. One coworker comes over and asks what is going on. He is the same race as the woman.)

Coworker: “What’s going on?”

Customer: *yelling at him before I can answer him* THIS C*** WON’T TELL ME YOUR CUP AND FRIES SIZES!”

Coworker: “Ma’am, the sizes are small, medium, and large.”

Customer: “Oh. Then why didn’t you say so in the first place?! No wonder you have a job at [Fast Food Restaurant], since you dropped out of school!”

Coworker: “Ma’am, she has been working here for two weeks now, and it’s Sunday. She goes to the same high school as most of the workers here. Now that’ll be [price].”

(I have never seen someone look so ashamed of themselves, and I thanked that coworker by buying him a meal. I left the restaurant after two months and found a better place to work.)