The Wait

It had been 14 mins and she was still in line. Actually, a line isn't the best way to describe what she was in. She stood in a crowd of people, silently waiting as the numbers slowly increased.  Her feet hurt and after a long day at work, the brightly lit building was the last place she wanted to be. Her briefcase dug into her shoulder, but she was too nervous about the bacteria on the floor to put it down.  She continued to wait as slices were cut, weighed and bagged with the precision of an artist. The problem was, only one artist seemed to exist at that moment. Where are the rest of the employees?, she asked, careful to not appear insane as she talked to herself. As 30 flashed on the screen, she stepped up to the counter. 

"A quarter pound of oven roasted turkey, please." 

"Sure," the clearly exhausted deli manager replied.