Captain Uz felt disappointed as he shook the coffee vacuum only to realize it was empty. They had been on the cruise ship called Santa Maria for three days now and they had one day left to reach the shores of Philadelphia. He tried to figure out a better way to communicate this amidst the roars of the inpatient passengers who couldn't wait a minute more for the coffee. He couldn't believe the 50 barrels of coffee beans had been empty,
"Gluttons" he mumbled, wondering how large their appetite was for coffee. He was still muddled when he was jerked by a knock on the door.
"What's the problem captain?" A hostess asked, she had waited for the captain to deliver the beans for processing but he had taken too long.
"The coffee beans are finished," he said,pacing around the small space. She knew the chairman, he wasn't a man who handles disappointment lightly.
"What should I tell him?"
"Him, who?" The captain asked.
"The chairman of the party," she said. She stood confused staring at the captain who kept pacing in the room.
"Tell him we realized the ship had a crack and some of the beans had leaked into the oceans"
"That's stupid! Who will believe such a story" she said, leaving the room angrily.
"Where's the coffee?" the chairman asked the hostess.
"Uhm,..mm" She fuddled with words trying to find a consoling explanation. The chairman left angrily to the store room, bashing his way through the door. He met the captain, turning the few beans on a tray.
"What's wrong captain, the passengers are waiting for more coffee. The party's still going on" he said pointing to the direction where the music was louder.
"It's finished" he heard himself saying aloud. The chairman couldn't believe this, Santa Maria cruise ship was known to have an abundant supply of coffee beans and that's why he had selected it for the party.
He stood there confused on what to do. The dignitaries he had brought wouldn't be happy to learn the coffee beans are finished, not after he had bragged about how they'll drink to their fill.
"What alternative do we have?" He asked.
"We can mix the few beans left with different beverages hoping to give us the coffee scent".
A few minutes later, the blended coffee was served.
An hour later, the captain could no longer hear the shout of the crowd. Concerned, he went to the hall to check what had happened only to realize all the passengers were sleeping. The captain went back to his cabin hoping they would reach the shores of Philadelphia before they woke up.