But, even though she knew she'd appreciate the extra wages, by the Circle, she was bored. The lunch crowd had yet to show up, so all she had to do was sit there and wait. She scanned through the morning's paper, pretending to read the news stories while she stealthily looked for jobs to apply for. When the boredom got too much, she would wander back and check to see if Cook needed help, but the portly woman had worked at Stolley's long enough that she was used to handling things by herself until the lower level cooks showed up for dinner rush. Unfortunately for Cecelia, Cook didn't like to be bothered and, after the 6th time Cecelia went to the kitchen, Cook threatened to roast her for dinner if she came back again.
"If I had known it would be this dead, I'd have slacked off after I agreed to take the shift," Cecelia thought to herself as she read the help wanted ads again. She saw a promising ad -- one of the journalism offices was looking for a secretary. She made a mental note to stop by after work the next day to let them know she was interested.
She looked up as she heard the tavern door open. She put on her brightest smile and waved the person in. "Morning! Come on in and relax a bit," she said, with the cheerfulness and obvious relief of someone who desperately needed something to do.