Page 33 of Holly Jolly July

brought him a gift.

BARISTA

You... brought him a gift?

ANNIE

Yeah. He must have a reason for hating

Christmas so much. But instead of taking

the time to understand him, I was rude.

I guess that’s what I get for trying to

interact with people prior to being

caffeinated.

BARISTA

Wow, no one’s ever come back to

apologize before.

ANNIE

Does James scare off a lot of customers?

BARISTA

Everyone’s afraid of him. His customers,

his remaining family, even the Small

Business Association, they all avoid him,

which only makes everything worse.

I’m worried he might lose his business.

ANNIE

Why would he lose his business?

BARISTA

Every year the Small Business Association

invites him to their Christmas party, and

every year he refuses. As good as his coffee

is, community support is important in this

town. I’m sure there are a lot of other

great businesses who would love to be in

---