Brace(let) Yourselves For An Angry Ending, Part 2
I’m at the front desk at my school fair where people buy tickets for activities, helping out to get service hours needed to graduate. When you buy tickets, your child/children automatically get a bracelet so they can play the Wheel of Fortune. It is one bracelet per child, and you can only play once. A boy, about ten or eleven, comes up with his newly-purchased tickets.
Boy: “I’d like a bracelet, please.”
Me: “Sure, what color would you like? We have red, blue, green, and yellow.”
Boy: “I’ll have blue, please.”
I attach his blue bracelet and he is on his way. After this, it gets incredibly busy and we are rushing to give bracelets and change. The boy returns to the counter and he looks vaguely familiar, but at this point, I’ve seen probably 150 children in thirty minutes.
Boy: “Could I have a bracelet, please?”
Me: “Have you had one already? I’m sorry, I don’t remember if I’ve seen you already.”
Boy: “No, I haven’t had one yet, but my brother did.”
Me: “All right, pick a color.”
He picks a color and I put it on him before he runs off again. I make note of his face and clothes in case he returns again. Sure enough, ten minutes later, he’s back.
Boy: “I’d like a bracelet, please.”
Me: “I’m sorry, I can’t give you one; I remember you from earlier. In fact, I think I already gave you two.”
Boy: “No! I haven’t had one yet! Give me a bracelet!”
Me: “Could you go get your parent, please? I’d like to confirm with them; I don’t want to make any mistakes.”
He leaves again and comes back with one of his parents. It’s important to note that parents and kids can’t see the boxes of bracelets since they’re under the table with a table cloth over it, covering the front.
Parent: “What seems to be the issue? My son told me you’re refusing to give him a bracelet. They come free with the tickets, right?”
Me: “Yes, they do, but they are limited to one per child. I could be wrong, but I think I remember your child coming by once, if not twice already.”
Parent: *Now angry* “He hasn’t had his bracelet yet! How dare you accuse my child of lying?! Now give him a yellow bracelet or I’ll report you to administration!”
Me: “Sir, there are other families around, so I need you to keep your voice down. I cannot give your child another bracelet since you’ve just proved to me that he’s had one already. The bracelets are under the table so you have no way of knowing what colors we have available right now. And if I may add, next time you try to trick us, throw away the previous bracelets. I can see them sticking out of the pocket of your coat.”
He turned bright red and spluttered incoherent sounds before grabbing his child and speed-walking away. Our “manager” congratulated me for standing my ground and gave me a free drink from the concessions stand, as well as bonus service hours.
Question of the Week
What is the most wholesome experience you’ve ever had?
