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Jessica woke up late. Again.

She rolled over and looked at her clock. 7:12. She had a half- hour" to get ready and walk to the train station. Not enough time to shower, much less do her hair and makeup. It was going to be a rush job, and she hated rushing jobs.She would rather be late than do a half-assed job.

"I'm going to be late," she told herself again and again as she got out of bed. "There is nothing I can do about it so just stop complaining and get a move on.You're going to be late anyway," her mother told her as she walked into her room.

"I'm not going to be late," Jessica said as she threw her clothes back on without bothering with a shower. "I don't have enough time for that.I need to go."

She rushed through her makeup and hair, trying to get them in some kind of order. She was running late, that was certain. The streets were empty. Nobody was on the streets before nine in the morning. Not a soul. All the coffee shops were still closed.It's a miracle I made it here on time."

"You're always late," her mother said as she threw her apron on and made her promise not to be late again. "It makes me look bad in front of my customers and I get reprimanded for it. Please, just be on time this once and I won't make you work overtime.I'll give you a ten percent discount on your next order if you promise not to be late again."

"Deal," she said and rushed out the door. "Thank you for your patience."

"Patience? This is the third time this has happened. What do you think will happen the next time? You will be fired. No doubt about it.