Chris Quintos
JACK, late teens to early 20s
The shy, quiet JACK, a barrista, confesses details to his older sister about his crush on a customer named Carrie and the man he wishes he was.
JACK Carrie. Her name is Carrie. C-a-r-r-i-e. She comes in every day and she is . . . she’s just really cute. I think I’m in love with her. Which is crazy, because I’ve never said more than five words to her. Mostly, “What can I get for you today?” And then calling her name when her drink is done. She works at the Forever 21 on Market Street.
I don’t know how people do it. I have this coworker, Tim, he just flirts with everyone. I dunno, he’s like twenty-one or twenty-two or something, so he’s a little older than me. But like—he’s got mad game. You know? Like, I feel like Beyoncé could walk in here tomorrow, and Tim would get her laughing in thirty seconds. It’s like watching a magician. Like, where does he come up with this stuff, you know? It’s hard enough for me to ask what people want to drink. And I’m supposed to do that. And then calling out names—that part is hard, too. I guess because I’m kind of quiet. Except for Carrie—if I’m working the register, I don’t even ask. “Tall Iced Chai with Soy for Carrie.” I don’t know. Like sometimes, I’ll be floating around in my mind while I’m making drinks, then when I have to call out a name, I do it quietly. And then I know it’s like—I HAVE to do it again. But I’m like—ugh—why didn’t I say it loudly to begin with? If I just said it with a little confidence, I wouldn’t have to repeat myself.
Tim never repeats himself. Well, unless maybe the customer isn’t paying attention. And then he’ll add a joke, like, “Slightly less warm unclaimed Americano for Tom.” God, Tim is so cool. Like, why am I so timid. Like I know this Half-Caff Latte is for Matt—I’ve made it for him for like four months, most mornings. So, why can’t I just say that, “Half-Caff Latte for Matt. Half-Caff Latte for Matt.” Twice, with confidence. And like, Matt—that’s like a normal name. Don’t even get me started on the hard names. Like—are q’s supposed to sound like c’s or k’s? So hard to keep track. And like—apparently there’s more than one way to say and spell every name you thought you knew. Like, not “Matt”—because “Matt” is pretty self-explanatory—but like “Sonia.” Some people are like super specific, like it’s “So-ni-ah” or like “Son-ya.”
I don’t know. Or like if I spell something with a y instead of an ie, that like could ruin someone’s day. You know? It could end up on their Instagram as an FML. And I don’t want that.
I make sure to spell Carrie’s name right every time. I get upset when other people don’t. Sometimes they spell it, K-e-r-r-y or C-a-r-e-y. But like, Tim? He could spell her name with a Z and she’d still laugh at his jokes. I just know she would.