Blaze & Ajax (Alpha’s Rejects #3)

It was Tuesday, and the hardware store was deader than a doornail—pun intended. Instead of sitting at the register, staring at the same shit over and over, I straightened out my aisle with magazines, books, candy, and little purse-sized tools that no one would ever buy or use. Once everything was perfectly neat, I worked through each row of hardware and tools, making sure everything was tidy, and the bins were fully stocked.

“You realize that we have people to do that,” said my manager, Barry. He was shorter than me, instantly bringing my mind to Blaze, except Barry was twenty years older and had a halo of ash-brown hair, completely bald on top.

Stop thinking about Blaze. He won’t be back , I reminded myself. I’d done a great job of making him feel like shit, and I kept asking myself why I even gave a fuck.

“I know. It’s just dead, and I’m kinda bored,” I said.