Chapter Text
The store had a faint smell of meat, the produce recently wetted by the misty sprays. People bustled to and fro, children squealing as they grabbed at parents' hands to get a snack, tiled floors having a muted shine from when they were first waxed, decades ago.
Sarah Sasha and Cassandra Grace stood in the midst of the controlled chaos, a teacher and the principal observing the disorder swarming the building. While Sasha admired pie tins, Grace was utterly vexed.
"Lemons? Really?" Cassandra interrogated, standing over and behind the woman that probably would be better as a silo worker than a teacher.
"Yes!" Sasha frowned at the old hag. "Why do I have to explain this again? We NEED lemons!" Sasha expressed in an exasperated snap.
"But ALL the lemons in the store?" Grace hissed right back. "Do you know how much this'll affect the school budget?"
"Oh, we can buy FIVE. HUNDRED. CIGARETTES?" Sasha punctuated each word with a jab to the principal's chest. "But not a few lemons? You don't smoke NEARLY that much, if at ALL. You don't need any of those!"
"What I do with the money allotted to me-" "is that even legal?" Sasha's interruption went ignored. "I can do what I want with it."
"You- I don't- GOD." Sasha fumed.
"Don't act like a child. You teach them, not be them." Grace chastised, attention drawn elsewhere as she observed a very intriguing mop.
Sasha looked like she was going to strangle someone, her fists clenching hard. "Can you be any more INSUFFERABLE!?"
"With a personality like yours, everything'll grate on your nerves one way or another." Grace's comment was the straw that broke the camel's back, in this case being Sasha's patience. However, before Sasha could jump her, Grace tossed a carton of cigarettes on top of the pile of yellow citrus. "It's time to leave. Catherene doesn't have the insanity to take care of a class of kindergarteners for longer than a few hours every year."
Sasha's glare could kill; in fact, it could commit mass atrocities within the span of weeks. The Judas cradle for everyone and their Uber driver. "…whatever." The kindergarten teacher rubbed her temple. "I'm a grown woman. This isn't worth it. Yeah. She can't take care of anything that's below her knees." She joked.
Grace gave a mirthless smile. "With most of the school below her hip, it's surprising when she doesn't blow up over a minor inconvenience ten times a day."
Sasha tried to chuckle, but ain't nothing funny these days. Instead, she mentally smoothed any ruffled "feathers", letting out a deep sigh as they started to leave the store.
"…so, what are the lemons for?" Grace inquired again.
"…"
"…"
They stared at each other.
"A really big pie." Sarah confessed.
"All these lemons. For one pie."
"A big one!" Sarah protested.
"How old are you again?"
"…Hey."
Halfway to the rented truck, Grace paused, keys dangling an inch from the lock.
"Sarah?" She asked, dropping the first name- and making Sasha freeze in place.
"…yes?"
"Did we pay for these?"
"Great question! no."