It was a sunny February Saturday afternoon in Ramsgate, and Sapphire Bates was sitting behind the till in the book shop she's poured her heart and soul into for the past eight months.
But as she looked out at the store, past the rows of hardbacks and posters for author events, there wasn't a customer in sight.
Book Bodega normally has an army of loyal customers as well as a regular footfall of tourists visiting the seaside town for day trips, but she's being told more and more often by would-be punters that they simply can't afford books at the moment.
This combined with skyrocketing gas and electricity bills, which she estimates have risen by 30%, left her £800 short this month. And if she didn't find it by the last day of February, she may have had to close her doors and say goodbye to her dream. But then a single plea for help on Twitter changed everything.
Sapphire tells the Mirror: "It's scary and it's frustrating. When you can't pay for things, either in business or personally, it's a really horrible feeling. It's frustrating because I know the bookshop could work. I know people in the community love having a bookshop. I've read stories about other sites that are doing really well.
"I think if we can get though the winter, through to April and May, then things will start look up and we can use the summer to better prepare for another winter."
Sapphire and her partner Nicholas, 38, came up with the idea of opening a book and coffee shop during a walk in April last year when they walked past an empty shop up for rent.
After working out their costings and taking out a loan, they opened the doors of Book Bodega in June.
As well as the books, Book Bodega sells coffee, cakes and savoury snacks including sausage rolls, which Sapphire makes herself. She also organises author nights and discussion events, donating the profits to local charities.
"I just love books, I'm a huge reader. It sounds like a cliché but it's always been an amazing day dream of mine, but in reality I thought it would be something I ended up doing in my retirement. I'm not from a book selling background, we've just had to figure it out as we go along.
"I didn't know what to expect when we opened but it was so busy. So many people from the local community came in and introduced themselves. I thought to myself this is actually possible, I've just got to keep going."
But the arrival of winter meant the store lost the tourist trade, however she had prepared for it and thought they were ready.
Sapphire always knew she might not be able to turn a profit in her first winter, accepting that she probably wouldn't be able to take a salary, but she didn't expect to not be able to pay the bills.
"Not only was it the winter but the cost of everything started going up and people had less month to spend. It was a shock to the system.
"They're not all huge increases but combined with a decrease in how much we've got coming in it's a lot.
"People came in and said they wished they could buy more but they couldn't afford it. People came in to say they would come back and buy something when they could."
Realising she wasn't going to be able to make ends meet in February, Sapphire decided to share her struggles on Twitter after a friend suggested it. She reached out to the social platform's much-loved #BookTwitter and was stunned by the response.
She posted a photo of her empty store and explained they were £800 short, asking anyone who could to consider buying a book from her online shop.
She wrote: "We need your help! I run Book Bodega, an Indy bookshop in Ramsgate. Winter is killing us, it’s soo quiet & we need to make £800 by Tuesday to pay our bills. This is my current view = no customers. Please shop with us and help us stay open!"
In just a matter of hours her tweet went viral, retweeted by thousands of book lovers as well as celebs including Good Morning Britain's Susanna Reid and This is Going to Hurt author Adam Kay.
She didn't realise how big her tweet had gone at first as she had notifications turned off, only realising when a friend sent her a screen grab.
"I was just shocked and overwhelmed. People have been so lovely, I've been trying to say thank you to everybody.
"Customers have been coming in to the shop and saying they saw the tweet. People have been driving half an hour which is just crazy. I just spent the day saying thank you."
As well as messages of support, authors were messaging Sapphire offering to do talks at the shop to help draw customers in.
But most importantly, she's had orders. Sapphire is still doing the maths, but she believes she's made her £800 and will be able to pay the bills this month - and the future is looking a little brighter.
While she's still working out the final numbers due to delays with the only order system, she's confident she has made enough cash thanks to kind-hearted strangers.
"I would have been gutted if we had to close. I don't feel I've done it for long enough yet. I've still got loads of ideas. I've just got to pay the bills so I can get on with things."
Sapphire is extremely grateful to everyone who has helped her in the past few days, and hopes her story will encourage people to shop locally whenever they can.
"I know things are difficult for everyone right now, but even if you can buy a £1 postcard or retweet something for a local business, it will really help. The smallest spend can make a huge difference. People will be so grateful.
"Independents really make town centres. We need these small businesses to come in and open to shake things up. As consumers we've got to remember them and pop in when we can."
- To visit Book Bodega's online store click here.
