Heidi sighed as she shuffled from her car to the zoo, preparing for another boring shift at her job. She glanced at the departing day staff, envious that they were leaving right as she started. What was initially meant to be a temporary gig turned into four years of monotonous night work, and she was at her wit's end. Time and time again she had asked to move to the day shift, but her requests were denied constantly, often with no reason given. She had fantasized about storming out of the zoo for good, not looking back, and finding meaningful work that she actually enjoyed. Being in a small town, however, jobs were fiercely competitive and cut-throat, meaning that she had little chance of being hired elsewhere.
Pushing open the door to the staff room, Heidi clocked in and wandered over to the job list, unmotivated and dreading whatever job she had drawn. She rolled her eyes and groaned audibly, having been chosen to pick up rubbish littered around the zoo and the enclosures. Heidi grabbed a roll of rubbish bags, a reacher grabber and a net, setting off to work.
"Hey, Heidi!" A voice called out. Heidi turned her head and saw her friend Gabrielle waving out to her. She changed direction and headed towards Gabrielle.
"Hey, Gab." Heidi said, rather flatly and in a tired tone.
"Another night in hell," Gabrielle remarked. "Someone made a total mess of the gift shop, so I have to clean it out and restock EVERYTHING."
"Hey now, hell sounds like a much better alternative!" Heidi joked. She loved that her and Gabrielle bonded over their hatred for night work at the zoo.
"You're not wrong, honestly."
"Shit, Aiden's coming. Better run and get this trash out of here. I'll catch up with you later!"
"See ya!" Gabrielle said, as she wandered into the gift shop and began to clean up the mess. Heidi got to picking up rubbish before her boss, Aiden, began berating her.