It was the big Sunday night of India versus Pakistan at the ICC Cricket World Cup. The FanZone behind Britomart seemed like a war zone, with supporters of both the teams screaming each other out in front of the big screen. With every run scored and every ball missed, the thunder of their voices would go up and down.

In the midst of all this, my little one got hungry and I went with my friend to the nearest McDonald’s or a ‘Happy Meal’. Yes, it was the Macca right next to the Britomart train station in downtown Auckland.

‘Cheeseburger, fries and frozen Coke, please.’

A wait for a few minutes and they realised they had run out of toys that were kept under the counter. Soon one of the staff comes back with a big box of the latest toys on offer with the kid’s meal. Just to appease my child and make her sit still till the end of the match, I wanted to pick up the best toy. Unfortunately, there was only one kind and so no choices to make.

Wait for another few minutes, as other customers bustled around me and the TV screens at the outlet were also screening the cricket match. It was a big match, afterall.

Then, I heard my receipt number being called out and I went and collected the ‘Happy Meal’ bag. Thanked the staff, found my friend and we made our way back to the FanZone.

My child was ecstatic, more with the toy than the food in the bag. As she settled down to eat her burger, I realised there was no frozen Coke. I must have forgotten to collect it from the counter.
‘Never mind. On our way back we can stop by the Macca outlet and ask about the drink. I am sure they must have realised one of the customers forgot to pick it up,’ I explained to her.

In a few minutes, some of our friends started feeling cold and wanted to watch the rest of the match from the comfort of their home. We all tagged along to their house and on the way, we stopped by Macca.

I went up to the counter with my child and told one of the staff about what had happened. He asked for the receipt and I told him that I had thrown it away. ‘Sorry, I need the receipt,’ he said and walked away from us to another customer.

I understand if that’s a policy of McDonald’s to tally the order with the food they have served. But there are exceptions to every rule. Here was a child after her mini glass of drink, which doesn’t even cost them 10 cents to serve. It was a special night of merriment as was obvious both inside and outside the outlet. I felt, they could have come up with a solution and not just walked away the way the staff did. What do you say?

Did you just ask why would I fuss over a fizzy drink for a child and that too late at night? Well, it was meant to be a treat for her so that she would let mamma watch the rest of the match.