If you’re lost in a mall or can’t find something in a store, it’s quite likely you’ll look to an employee to help.

But what if that employee isn’t actually an employee at all?

Well, you’d apologize and look for someone else to help, of course.

However, that isn’t the way for many – as the mall artist in this story explains.

Read on to find out what happened here.

I know I’m working here, but I don’t work here

I work as an artist at a booth in a mall with an indoor amusement park.

The problem is that I don’t technically work there. I’m a subcontractor. I show up and paint things and send an invoice to the booth owner at the end of the week.

I was never given a tour, an orientation, hell I don’t even know the hours of the park that I work in.

Sometimes the park closes for private events in the middle of my shift. I have no clue what’s going on.

And this has caused this artist some problems.

I do my best to give people directions, but the sheer size of the place makes it impossible. There are 500 stores.

I come in, do my job, and leave. Most people are very understanding, but some people absolutely lose their minds when I don’t know the answer to something.

For example, this angry, middle-aged customer demanded, “Where’s X store?” I replied, “I’m sorry, I’m not sure, but the kiosk by the escalator will be able to let you know!”

The customer got angry, saying, “what do you mean, how do you not know?”

Let’s see how the artist responded.

I told them, “well there are 500 stores and five miles of corridors, and I don’t get paid unless I’m painting,” to which he responded, “it’s ridiculous that employees don’t know their way around!”

I explained to him, “well sir, I’m not an employee. I’m a subcontractor. This is like asking the gardener which drawer in the kitchen the silverware is in. I work here, but I don’t actually work here. And this place is so big, your best bet is going to be the kiosks. That’s what I use to find where I need to go, and I’m here all the time.”

This analogy finally struck home and he got so apologetic so fast.

I didn’t actually expect him to change his tune.

And this wasn’t the only time that such things happened.

I have to wear black in the booth, and I wear an apron absolutely covered in paint. My hands are also usually covered in fluorescent paint. I look like i work as a butcher in wonderland.

Whenever I leave on a break to go to a store, I’ll get people asking me for help, and have to say “sorry, I don’t work here.”

They usually say something like, “Oh, I thought because of the apron…” to which I reply, “oh yeah that makes sense, but I don’t think they usually let employees at Old Navy walk around this filthy. I’d look for someone not covered in paint.”

Cue the look of understanding slowly dawning on them as they look me up and down. Every time.

When you see someone who looks like they might be working – whether because of their attire, their activities, or their general aura – it’s normal to assume that they do work there.

So it follows that it’s completely normal for people to sometimes mistakenly ask a non-worker for help.

But when it turns out they can’t help, it’s quite unfair to get mad at them.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a barista whose keen eye uncovered a customer scheme for free coffee.

Let’s see how other Redditors responded.

This person found the customers’ dilemmas quite relatable.

While others were kind to the artist.

Meanwhile, this Redditor enjoyed the artist’s choice of language.

Even if someone was an employee, they aren’t going to know absolutely everything.

Sometimes we expect too much of one another, and clearly there are plenty of customers who are too quick to blame rather than being understanding.

After all, it costs nothing to be kind.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a thrift store employee who refused to play “guess the price” without seeing the item in question.