3 days after my 14th birthday, my dad walks me into my first real job. My heart pounding, my new boss approaches us. The store manager, a short, young woman down, comes really close to me, shaking my hand, introducing herself as Jade. She leads me behind the counter, through the kitchen, and into a small rundown back office for orientation. She asks “Are you nervous?” I responded yes. I'm assured that I have nothing to be nervous or worry about. I'm still worried though, this place was full of teenagers i've never seen before. I'm not really sure what I'm actually supposed to do, but I feel stupid for asking, the ground cluttered, messy with food, and the smell of burnt. But somehow, I feel safe. 

Years pass, work becomes my safe space. When I walk into work, I feel like I belong there. Jade and I grow close: when there are no customers, we make food. She's the person I call when an angry customer comes through the drive thru. When they drive off, we giggle knowing the issue wasn't an issue at all. She is the person I ask for more and more hours so I don't have to be home all day with my family that doesn't understand me. There, I would just be doing chores and getting into trouble, so my dad thought. 

My dad drops me off at work after being very upset with me. I walk into work, clearly upset. Jade sits with me in the office for over an hour, she lets me cry, let all my understanding out, and she listens. I feel like she genuinely cared about me, she related in almost the same way her father treated her family. She gave me one of the best hugs and plenty of time to calm down before returning to work. I felt like she understands me.