To the starbucks attendant

Just yesterday, I was thinking to myself that my next post is not going to be anytime sooner than any day in the last week of this month. But then at quarter to twelve, with the hands forming a right angle in the dial of my watch something happened that induced me to put today’s post on the blog.

My husband and I were out. The night was dark and the drive not so arduous. We were tossing with the places we could go to, to satiate our hungry souls. While we were still undecided on where to eat I said “I do not mind eating anywhere as long as we can have Starbucks’ hot chocolate post dinner”.

Now, most of you are unaware of the fact why I was so specific about STARBUCKS hot chocolate. I have my own weird reasons. Firstly, it reminds me of my MBA days in Cardiff, UK. A Starbucks’ egg and mayo sandwich with extra-hot hot chocolate had been the ultimate breakfast idea for me. Sitting at that coffee shop then, I had spent hours reading a book, discussing studies and chatting with my friends, sipping onto the Holy Grail. Secondly, I did not find such good hot chocolate at any other coffee shop in my city here in India (Chokola gives some competition but it leaves the belly really heavy). And thirdly, I JUST love Starbucks’ hot chocolate FULL STOP :p.

So, yesterday, the quiet chilly night made me crave for a steaming cup of hot chocolate. I called up my friends and asked them if we could catch up over a cup of you know what :p and they agreed to see us post dinner. We quickly made up our minds, ate at an Indian restaurant nearby and left from there to have the sip of the rich cocoa flavoured drink I had been longing for.

Our friends were already waiting for us in the market where the Starbucks outlet was. To my misfortune, we reached there just a little late. The coffee shop’s shutter had come down. It was left slightly open for the attendant to come out and lock it. My friends were already sipping the coffee from the coffee shop one block away from Starbucks. I thought of going in and giving it a try but my friends asked me to drop the idea. I still asked the guard if I could go in but the guard denied. We decided to just stand there and chat for a bit before calling it a night.

After every twenty seconds my eyes used to gaze at the Starbucks board and my lips formed an upside down U. I felt miserable that I could not get a cup of my favourite winter drink. I was REALLY yearning to get a sip (no sips) of it. I am sure you know that there are these times when you really want to eat or drink something. You start imagining it and in your head you are already having it. God! It was one such craving last night.

For some reason the attendant came down for a bit before finally closing the entire shutter down. He overheard my sad hot-chocolate wanting conversation with my friends and asked “apko coffee peeni hai (do you want to have coffee)?”.  I murmured to myself “neki aur pooch pooch (why ask before doing a good deed)?” Without taking too long I said yes (YES YES YES!). He asked us if we wanted cappuccino. My husband and friends who were just too grateful to get the offer from him replied with a happy yes. I said to my friend “let me ask if he can get me hot chocolate”. To this, my friends responded “stop being so picky at this hour”.

But the girl had wanted her chocolaty drink too bad. I tried my luck hard and popped up the question “Can you get me hot chocolate please?”. Without taking a second he answered affirmatively. One of my friends who initially didn’t feel like having coffee said “ two hot chocolates please”. I also ordered for my husband’s regular coffee, a latte. The sweet attendant replied with a gleeful  “sure”.

I was so excited to have the drink. It was the most ecstatic moment of the day for me. We had lost all hope and then the angelic attendant arrived for us from under the shutter and fulfilled our wish.

My friend joked “I should have asked for Deepika Padukone today :p” (men and their fantasies LOL).

After fifteen minutes our drinks arrived. We could not thank the attendant enough. He could only smile back.

After he left, we climbed onto the trunk of our car and enjoyed our drink. I relished every sip of the sinful chocolate drink and with that every sip I appreciated the gesture of the attendant. Our drinks were almost over when we decided to disperse for our respective places.

On my way back home, I thought to myself “how many times do we come across such helpful and good people in today’s mean world who would go out of the way for a stranger’s happiness?” and the answer came “seldom”. Had the attendant wanted he could have easily given me a stern, stoic “no” when I had requested for the hot chocolate but he agreed happily.  

This post did not emanate from the hot chocolate but from the warm gesture of the Starbucks attendant we met last night. I am not sure if that attendant will ever come across this post but I dedicate this to him and thank him from the bottom of my heart to get me that steaming hot cup of hot chocolate at that hour of the night. Had he not got me that cup I would have slept with an unfulfilled hankering. Thank you very much. It is because of you and not the hot chocolate that the night came to such a sweet end.

P.S.: a good deed never goes unappreciated.