Tell Me a Fable

"No, not really," he said. Hesitating, he added, "It's rather restful, if you ask me." The checker straightened back up and returned to ushering groceries to the other side of the scanner. He winked at Claire, who frowned slightly.

The last of the motley collection of comestibles and toiletries completed its short journey. Claire brushed a credit card through the terminal, which quietly accepted the offering. As the checker handed over the bag containing her purchases, he smiled and gently said, "Have a good day, ma'am." Claire relented and returned a small smile. The checker wasn't bad-looking, she thought.

Claire headed for the exit, trying to remember what other chores awaited attention. The details somehow eluded her. The automated doors opened for Claire with a slight rush of air. She changed direction almost without thought for the spot where her car was parked, then stopped. With an odd shock, she realized that the parking lot was empty.

A hot sun shone down from a clear blue sky that somehow seemed deeper than normal. A slight breeze stirred, bringing to Claire a peculiar, metallic taste. Claire stood frozen for a long moment, unable to quite comprehend the meaning of this absence of normality. The breeze shifted and the metallic taste disappeared. She blinked, then slowly started forward again in confusion and uncertainty. The air grew thick. Claire halted again. For a terrible moment, her memory grew sharp. A great flash seemed to sear her eyes and burn away her flesh, but then the agonizing light faded away as if it had never been. The bag fell from her hand, strangely silent as it struck the shimmering pavement, its reality fading.

Claire stumbled forward a few feet, yearning without reason for the hazy horizon that glittered beyond the parking lot. The powerful urge to reach her car passed. Claire, moved by an inchoate sense of terror and relief, turned back to the store. She needed to pick up some odds and ends. The dinner party would be fun. Bill and Mary were bringing their own children. Her small son and daughter would shriek with delight in the back yard as she and her husband shared wine with their friends. All was well. Her mind returned to tranquility as she passed through the doors.

(With apologies to the various and many uncredited authors who have over the decades contributed to the growing soup of ideas in my head that has at last yielded this pastiche of clichés.)

added by: author bumpylight on 07/08/2011 - 10.47

Oh, dear. I see pronoun confusion in the last paragraph of my humble little story. Sorry about that! I hope it nonetheless gave you few seconds of entertainment. -_-

added by: author bumpylight on 07/08/2011 - 11.26

All of a sudden, an ominous haze of clouds opened up above her. Though she could not see very clearly, Claire was able to squint and shift her gaze enough to make out the shape of a large saucer descending from the sky.

"Great googily moogily..." she gasped breathlessly, as the saucers began to rear back. Doors underneath the saucers flew open, revealing enormous canons that burst forth with green laser beams.

Claire took off running back outside, narrowly escaping a totally awesome explosion that took out the building she was walking into . The bellowing thud of rapidly expanding gasses knocked her to her back as the store erupted into a hellish firestorm of blue-green flame. Also some propane tanks blew up nearby.

Scrambling to her feet, Claire fumbled with her car keys in a desperate and blind rush. It didn't matter, though-- her car totally just exploded too.

Just as she was wondering what to do, the saucer landed and a bunch of aliens stepped out. Their skin had a putrid, glassy sheen that glittered ominously with reflections of the store fire. Their eyes were small, and their foreheads were large. They spoke to Claire in an odd tongue that was a mix of slurring nonsense and the inkling of what appeared to be at least minor intelligence. As they walked closer, Claire was able to get a better look at their faces.

It was an army of John Boehners.

An entire army of alien John Boehners with green laser beams.

added by: author Jared on 07/08/2011 - 11.58

"Has what ever happened before?"

The checker's mouth twitched once more then turned down at the edges, creating a dour expression that reminded Claire vaguely of her grandfather. The man hadn't shaved and a forest of silver whiskers populated the crags of his face like the tips of a million steel wool wires.

"Er, I'm sorry?" Claire was taken aback. The checker had never before responded with more than a smile or a nod to her small talk. "I meant that the store's so empty. There are usually at least a few other shoppers in here."

The checker leaned back and slumped his shoulders. He ran the loaf of deli Italian bread over the scanner, set it gently on the bagging counter, then smashed it flat with a vicious slap.

"Hey --" Claire started, but was too astonished to finish.

"There's two things going on her, lady," said the checker with a menacing vehemence that shocked Claire anew. "A, You've finally noticed something beyond the little bubble you live in, and B, I no longer give the slightest crap about much of anything."

Claire backed slowly away from the check out counter. "Um, I just came in for a few groceries …"

"Yeah?" The checker laughed maniacally and picked up Claire's smashed Italian and tossed it over his shoulder. "Your fancy deli bread that costs 4 bucks a loaf? Let me clue you in, sister. This loaf's got the same flour and yeast in it as the bread you can get at Spaldis for 79 cents."

Claire grew indignant now. Her eyebrows turned down of their own accord and her cheeks flushed with blood. It should have been a clue to her high dudgeon, but her flush of anger wasn't visible due to the expensive foundation make up she diligently applied to her face every morning.

"I happened to prefer organic foods with no preservatives."

The checker laughed even harder than he had before. "Yeah," he managed to say between gouts of laughter, "your organic tomatoes that cost $3.79 a pound." He giggled as he held up the bag of tomatoes. "You can get these at the farmers market for 60 cents a pound, but we put 'em bags that say 'organic' to get idiots like you to pay $3.79."

The checker twirled the bag of tomatoes around and flung them to the floor at her feet. They made a squishy splat sound as they struck the floor and a soupy mess exploded out as the bag split and splashed her ankles with tomato gore. She turned and ran for the door.

"There's just not enough of you left!" the checker shrieked at her back as she fled. His maniac laugh echoed in her ears as she bolted out the doors. She didn't notice on the way out, nor had she noticed on the way in, the large yellow poster board signs taped to the inside glass of the doors. The signs said: "Going Out of Business."

added by: author Hadding on 07/09/2011 - 02.05

"Be quiet, they're listening."

Clair whispered, "Who?"

The checker passed the canned through. His movements were automatic. "The Martians."

Clair was tired. She had been dealing with a class of five-year-olds all day. And she was about to go to her adolescents, if they were home, finding new openings for those tiring pre-adult bursts of fantasies. Suddenly a stream of light flashed across the checkers body. And then a small droplet of blood emerged from his forehead. In amazement, Claire watched as his body leaned forward, crash against the register, and then crumbled to the floor.

Clair suddenly bent into a crouch position as she saw the laser beam hit the spot where she had been standing. It burned into the celery that had been behind the can. She took out her cell phone.

"28174, Agent 405. I've found it."

The small image on the cell let out the voice of Agent-in-Charge Merriweather.

"I told you it would pay off,” the face on the cell said. “All those days with those little warts. They've finally traced you."

"What should I do?”

"Take them out."

"Roger that."

"Roger 405. Over and out."

Clair adopted the agent-ready position. Around her was silence. She had to get out the check-out lane and put on the laser reflecting phosphorus suit she had in her purse. The checker had said "Martians." She knew they had indoctrinated him and that they were actually from Pluto. They had one objective in hand. To kill the phony astronomers who had disgraced their planet and their civilization.

She had no arguments with the astronomers. Those heavenly nerds were always looking for knowledge. Whose fault was it? She remembered how the Pope had cracked on Copernicus, had gotten Descartes to strew blessings down upon his mathematics. But dealing with Pluto, they had made a mess of it. Her own personal thing was to find out why, exactly, the Plutonians wanted to disguise themselves as Martians, since the United States had just landed Shuttle Dionysian IV on Mars two weeks ago. The Martians had been reported as friendly.

She sneaked into the men's room, crawling on all fours. She figured there was a security video camera in the women's bathroom that the Plutonians had overtaken. After changing, she pulled out her automatic, got to her knees, and crawled out the door.

From the two-way windows in the upper level offices, the Plutonians watched her edging along into the freezer section. A small figure approached a smaller one.

"Plas, we've got to stop her. We got a good sight now, should we...”

Plas lifted his hand. In his purple Pluto outfit, he was an astounding figure with a strong glare.

"No, we must let her go. She'll come up here and not find us. Then she'll leave. Eventually she will take us to the hidden astronomers."

"How she gonna do that, Plas?"

Plas slapped the figure. "I told you there will be no dialect here. Speak proper, you idiot!"

For a moment, Utocks looked astonished, the sting on his cheek blazing. But he immediately bowed his head. He didn’t want have any more physical refrains fall upon him. He was just waiting for his turn. He knew Plas would err soon and that he, Utocks, will get him. "You ass," Utocks swallowed silently.

Plas was struck by the figure of Clair, her gun out, crouching, coming past the fruit section toward the back door. But it would be no use to trap her up here, such with stupid Utock waiting with that idiot-proof laser gun.

"Look," Plas said, "take it easy. You already messed up shooting the checker."

"But he was gonna... he was going to let her go!"

Plas didn't want to explain the elaboration of plans again, especially to a backwards subordinate. How they needed Clair alive without any mess-ups or suspicions. Besides, something told him that Clair was in some way on to them. It was his suspicion.

"Look, Utocks, you got too much on your mind. Take it easy. Let me relieve you of all them heavy thoughts. I'm the Esterchi, you got a few more years to go. Sit down at the finger console, play some games. I'm going down there for a while. Take it easy. I'm gonna get the information from this chick. Find out where those astronomers are."

Utock felt everything go limp. The Esterchi, they were allowed to use dialect. And if they wanted to, after they ate their food, they could expel their wastes all over the Umbericos. It was like that. When he got home...

Plas saw the dejected Utock sit down and place a game into the console. He waited a moment. Then Utock stood up, forgetting about everything, and began acting out the motions of the game. Plas smiled and took out his cell. He pressed “figures,” and then decided which one. He selected and then pressed transfer.

"Is this where the kiwi is?"

Claire turned around. From her knees she looked up at the tall figure behind her. He reminded her of someone, one of the teachers.

"Hey, I like that outfit you're wearing. Did you drop something?" the figure asked.

Claire pocketed her automatic. She was just a few feet from the backroom doors. She stood up. He was just like Phineas back at work. But, for a moment she was confused. There was a difference. He had his affectations too.

"It's all shiny and all."

She felt herself smiling. She liked Phineas, even though she knew he was gay. But this figure...

"Well, yes. It's a new design," she described her p-protection suit.

"It's over there, behind you."

Claire and the figure turned around. There was Mrs. Ashplan, the bookstore lady.

The figure, smiling at Mrs. Ashplan, thanked her, but turned back to Claire. He touched his fingers to his cheek in a certain way, smiling at Claire, "That outfit certainly is flashy. I want one too."

A hand hit Clair's shoulder, "Ma, Derrick ate all the cornflakes. Get up, Ma!"

Clair looked around and saw her windowsill and the plastic flowers drooping. On the walls were the drawings from her youngest daughter Magaret.

"Ma, get up! Derrick ate the cornflakes!" Ah! It was 6:30 a.m., an hour-and-a-half before work. The figure beside her rustled.

“It’s okay, Plas,” Claire said, after Margaret had left. “You don’t have to get up. When you do, you can use my laptop to finish some of those no-smoking blurbs. There’s some celery in the fridge.”

“Okay, lovely Clair.”

They smiled and kissed.

added by: author plas on 07/09/2011 - 03.43

“I know a secret,” the cashier said.

Claire looked at him. There was nothing unusual about the man. It was the same man who always worked the 8 - 4 shift on Tuesdays. He squeezed the bread, and repeated, “I know a secret.”

Claire didn’t know what to say as he rang up the bread, the butter, and then, the final item, a pound of hamburger. The total: $0.00.

“Everything is free today, but we didn’t advertise it. Nobody knows. You are the only one who has come in today.”

Claire snapped her wallet shut and hurried out with her groceries, unnerved.

added by: author W. King on 07/09/2011 - 12.37

.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

As he opened his mouth to speak, Claire leaning forward expectantly as if waiting for the short, young clerk to spill ancient secrets that had been on the mind of man since the beginning of time, the door to the shop opened, blowing in a chilled wind that seemed a little too cool for the muggy June afternoon.

The man, long and lean with just a hint of dustiness around the edges, paused to glance at the couple. His hat, a worn relic that folded up at the edges so much the outer rim disappeared, tipped slightly as his warm drawl uttered. "Ma'am."

Claire leaned back, away from the clerk and pushed her long brown hair behind one ear, the question forgotten for the moment. She stared down at the milk and eggs on the counter, wondering why she hadn't picked up a loaf of bread. Absently she told the clerk to wait a sec, she knew she would end up coming right back to the shop if she didn't have some fresh bread for her evening visitors, the sparrows and wrens that landed near dusk on her back stoop.

She turned to walk back to the bakery, where the local bread makers delivered fresh French and sliced bread before the rest of the town woke. She glanced around for the dusty stranger, only realizing he wasn't anywhere she could see after reaching the back of the shop, where the isles of the tiny store were clearly visible from the corner vantage point. At his height, much taller than Claire's meager five feet four inches, his hat should have been visible over the isles of sugar and canned carrots.

Claire walked back to the front of the store, her bread clutched anxiously in one hand, faintly crushing the soft slices in her hurried grasp. "Did you see where the man went? The guy in the hat?" She peered into the clerks slightly scarred face, where the acne of the previous years still haunted his face. He looked at her carefully, his eyes confused. "What man?"

Claire paused, and remembered. The man. The one of her dreams, the one who never ceased to visit her when she finally passed out in the morning, after the dawn had risen and make her fear of sleep less real. Claire looked around the shop that seemed so real, and couldn't decide is this was a dream that seemed like her life, or her life was becoming a dream.

added by: author Manda on 07/09/2011 - 09.32

"Kiss me" the cashier said

"What? What did you say?"

"I said, kiss me. On the lips. It doesn't have to be, like, all gooey. But put a little oomph in it, please" said the cashier. He wasn't tall, dark, and handsome. This cashier was more your basic scrawny hipster model, with a nest of blackheads on his nose that Claire couldn't help but notice, since he right up close and personal.

Depsite her immediate impluse to smack him, Claire was baffled enough to say "Well, why? Why would I want to do that?"

"Ok", said the blackhead-infested hipster cashier "Here's the way it is. I'm really a handsome prince. Ok, not literally a prince, but the child of a prosperous family in the South. Old money, you know? Formal dinners, avenues of live oaks, and so on, and so on. Private schools, priviliged childhood. And then it happened. On the day after my graduation from high school, I was deer hunting in the woods. I had been in my tree stand all morning, and was just thinking about giving up and heading home, when a beautiful woman came walking through the trees. She had was the most graceful, delicate woman I had ever seen, with deep chestnut hair, big, soft brown eyes, and..." he stopped and cleared his throat. "Well, she looked good, right? So I saw this beautiful woman, and I called out to her. She looked around and me, plainly startled, but did not run away. I begged her to wait for me to climb down from the tree stand and join her, and she smiled and said "But can I trust you?"

"I said that she could trust me with her life, but as I climbed down the tree, I slipped and fell, and the rifle went off. I must have hit my head, because when I woke, it was nighttime, and the lovely lady was nowhere to be seen. On the leaves where she had stood were many drops of blood, and the undergrowth was crushed as though a large doe had lain down, but there were no tracks from man nor beast. I blundered through the wood all night, calling for the lady, but I found no more sign."

Claire was intrigued despite herself "So you're under a curse that only a kiss can cure?"

"Oh, no. I just wanted to see if you'd go for it."

added by: author Amatiq on 07/10/2011 - 02.55

The young man lifted himself away from the conveyor belt. Having his buttons pushed, he almost bit his tongue off, trying to remain in control of his emotions. He answered the woman's question with a shallow smile.
"Mom, it's closing time. I am not supposed to be ringing you up. You are going to get me fired. Let me get the manager."
The young man locked his drawer and proceeded to the office. Within seconds, an older man stood by his side, watching the teen scan the rest of the items. Once the order was finished, the balding man in his sixties, carrying a generous belly, spoke.
"Mrs. Johnston, please shop earlier. This is about the tenth time you have done this to me. Todd is now on overtime and the company doesn't want anyone to have overtime. This makes my job more difficult. I have to admit, your son did the right thing by telling me. You should be very proud of him." Mr. Jenkins turned and smiled at his best employee.
Walking around the counter and standing face to face with the late shopper, the manager gave her a piece of his mind. "Tyler's a good worker. He’s conscientious and great with my customers, even the ones that come in at closing time. It's too bad the rest of my employees weren't more like him."
The mother was shocked by the verbal report card and a radiant grin held her face hostage, plastered on as if she were on a roller coaster ride barreling down the track. Mom knew her son was a good kid, but never thought he was a worker. She based her theory on Tyler's bedroom, a pigsty without the pigs.
This information was just what a mother wants to hear. Couple it with Tyler's acceptance at Duke University in Raleigh, North Carolina, the day couldn’t get any better. Never was she ever so proud of her son. Mr. Jenkins was known for being a stern manager, who did not give his staff any leeway. His motto was “My way or the highway”.
The manager observed the radiant-motherly glow on Carrie's face. "Mrs. Johnson, surely you knew Tyler was a great kid. He is going to be the Employee of the Month. Plus, I gave him a raise. I know he will be leaving for college, but his job will be open to him during his summer break. And, Mostly Groceries will pay for Tyler's books as long as he is in college and maintaining good grades. Just bring me the bill." The man had a little smirk while divulging his benevolent behavior.
"Yeah mom, I was going to tell you what Mr. Jenkins said tonight."
The late night shopper looked at her son. "Well Tyler, this has got to be your best day ever. I have some more good news for you."
The young man's eyes popped out of his head. With a faint stutter, "Did you hear from Duke?"
The woman didn't utter one word. This was a game she often played with her son.
Tyler was antsy. For once in his life, he wanted to hear what she had to say, without having to drag it out, piece by piece. "Mom, don't do this to me now. You know I have been waiting a long time. Please, tell me the good news!"
With one breath, she blurted out, "Yes, you were accepted by Duke and they offered you a scholarship. With the gift from Mostly Groceries, your college will be very affordable for your father and I.”
Continuing on, “Congratulations Tyler, I am so proud of you!” There was a definite shrill in mom's voice. “See what you get when you put hard work and effort into what you are doing. Now, if I could only get you to clean your room."

added by: author Bobbie on 07/10/2011 - 09.05

“Worldview”

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

“Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Look,” he whispered, “don’t cause any trouble. We treat everyone the same.” He passed another rusty can over the scanner window. It chimed again.

“No need to be all weird,” she said. “I’m just commenting on the empty store. I usually don’t see it empty like this.” Claire turned her head from side to side, making a point of looking all around the front of the clean, well-stocked store, and arched her eyebrows. The man in the wheelchair behind her rolled his eyes, and the two Hispanic women behind him stopped their conversation to stare.

The checker continued scanning the cans and produce, then hit a key on the Geiger pad. “Comes to $12.34,” he said.

The oddness of the figure didn’t register as Clair opened her purse and found only a small, green vial and a green-tinted square of paper. She stared into the purse for only a second before glancing back up to the checker, fumbling for words. He was holding out twelve dog-eared bills and some tarnished coins.

“Twelve thirty-four,” he repeated, shaking the money for emphasis. “Your stuff checked clean. Take it or leave it, we’ve got other customers.”

The bewilderment on Claire’s face was obvious. She glanced around at the empty store and then again back into her purse.

“Milton eff-ing Friedman,” the checker said, “another one? You’re on the scrip, aren’t you? Aren’t you?” He suddenly seemed angry at her, and she didn’t know what to say.

“Here,” he said, stuffing the money into her open purse and dropping the box of canned goods and wilted greens into an open chute behind him. “It scanned clean. Twelve thirty-four, take it! The scrip didn’t take, if you even know what I’m talking about, and what a stupid eff-ing choice you’ve made!”

He flipped a toggle switch on the dirty counter in front of him and the conveyor advanced Claire through the doorway and positioned the man in the wheelchair in front of the checker. He cradled a small box of diodes in his lap. “I’m sorry about that,” the checker said. “She’s obviously on the scrip. We deal with everyone, right? Let’s see what you have there.”

“Es un escandolo!” one of the women said. The checker nodded, not understanding the words but agreeing with the tone in the woman’s voice.

Claire looked back through the plate glass window, beyond the signs for $0.99 Pot Roast and weekly soda specials, and saw the checker talking to himself and nodding his head as he placed a small box on the scanning device.

The light outside was harsh, actinically bright, and different, somehow, from what she expected. It was blue without being blue, as if the ultraviolet were shifting into visible ranges. The air smelled faintly of smoke as a dry wind blew along the dirty storefronts, and several discarded cardboard boxes skittered and rolled down the barren sidewalk like corrugated tumbleweeds. The street was buckled in front of her, as if a massive root or burst pipe had heaved the plasticrete upwards by more than a meter but had failed to breach the surface.

A group of people walked along the opposite side of the street. They all wore bright red shoes and wristwatches with red bands, and one man wore comically large glasses with red plastic frames. They laughed and talked amongst themselves as they walked by, and none of them even glanced in her direction.

Still, her heart beat faster. She was afraid. She was alone, and they might….what? She wondered about it for a second or two, and her pulse slowed. Why should she be afraid? Had they seemed threatening? Had they seemed rough? Vulgar? Dangerous?

She stood in front of the store’s dirty, cracked polycarbonate and looked into her purse again, at the small green vial, the money, and the paper square. She pulled out the paper. On it was printed “TAKE BOTH.” In smaller print, repeated all around the edges of the paper like a border, was the word “WORLDVIEW.”

She had no idea what the vial might be. She had no memory of it. She removed it from her purse and saw that it contained a single tiny tablet. Take both? But there was only one. Had she taken one already? Why hadn’t she taken them both? Or had there been three? And what was it? It certainly didn’t look like a standard medicine bottle or any type of container she had seen before. She removed the stopper from the vial and immediately smelled honeysuckle. She held the bottle horizontal over the palm of her hand and tapped it gently until the tiny tablet fell out onto her palm. She touched it to her tongue, to see if it had any taste, and was startled when it fizzed and dissolved instantly. There was nothing in her mouth to swallow and no taste at all – just a tingling sensation and the pleasant aroma of honeysuckle.

She looked down the street and saw that the red-clad people were gone, no doubt having turned the corner onto one of the intersecting side streets. The smell of honeysuckle was still strong, and she no longer detected the burnt smell she had thought she noticed earlier.

A trolley advanced down the street towards her, rolling almost silently along the smooth pavement. It slowed as it neared her. A few smiling passengers looked out of the open trolley windows. Others were reading business newspapers. Well-heeled citizens, all, and she felt comforted. The people seemed familiar, as if she had seen them in her neighborhood, or perhaps at the Garden Club luncheon, but she didn’t actually recognize any of them.

The trolley rolled to a stop at the corner, and a brass bell clanged twice. She stepped up through the rear entry and took her seat. It, too, was familiar, and she knew she always sat in this spot if it was available. And why wouldn’t it be? Who would sit in her spot on the public trolley?

The trolley rolled along quietly, and the bell double-clanged at each orderly intersection where passengers boarded or departed. The sunlight was warm on her face as she tilted her head away from the window slightly to avoid the draft from the trolley’s movement. She could smell freshly mowed lawns and hear the comforting buzz of mowers in the background.

added by: author Stormgod on 07/10/2011 - 09.29

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"Has what ever happened before?" he half whispered.

Claire frowned. Was he even paying attention to her? "What I was just saying about there being nobody else here. Is this common on a Friday afternoon?"

The checker paused trying to think of what to say. He stared at her and stammered, "That's what I thought you... I mean..." he looked at the lady standing in line behind Claire as if to confirm that Claire was saying what he thought she was saying.

Claire turned to see what he was looking at. She saw the lady too. She looked around and saw a lot of people. The noise of all the shoppers hit her along with a sudden shock wave that flushed through her body and made her heart skip a beat.

The checker kept scanning and bagging with the same look of terminal boredom. He shook his head slightly as if to say, "Crazy customers!"

Embarrassed, Claire paid and left as quickly as she could. She left her groceries behind. The checker never bothered to stop her. In a dazed shock she got in her car and turned the key then sat there staring off into space.

"Come here often?" her passenger asked. Claire screamed and turned her head. She stopped screaming. There in the passenger seat was a... well it was a feminine young man or a boyish girl or someone she knew but had never seen before. He or she was white. Not Caucasian but pure white and smiling widely.

"Just a joke. I'm Uriel, an angel. How are you today?"

Claire starred in disbelief with her jaw hanging open. The angel was the brightest thing she ever saw and yet it didn't hurt to look at it. It wore no clothing but it had no genitals.

"Angel?" she blurted. Was she dead? She began to scream again but this time nothing came out. The angel touched her lips with his finger tip and suddenly a wave of total comfort washed over her. She closed her mouth and smiled.

"Am I dead?" she asked with a dopey smile.

"No," the angel said, "but you're close. You're having a seizure."

The face of the angel changed. It was her father's face, no her son's, no it was actually her husband's face, no it was really her mother's, no her own face...

"You see, this is all taking place in one fraction of a second. I am here to give you a choice."

"A choice?" Claire asked, confused but still smiling.

"Yes. You can either die right here, right now, painlessly and with the peace of mind knowing that everyone you love is just fine."

"Or?"

"Or you can survive this seizure unscathed but go on living with uncertainty."

"Uncertainty? You mean without knowing what could happen, when and how I will die, what will become of my loved ones?" Claire asked.

"Yes, that's it. It's your choice."

"Has this ever happened before?" she asked.

"Oh yes," the angel said, it's face settling into it's original androgynous visage, "this sort of thing happens to most people at some point in their lives. This happens to anyone who almost dies too early in life. But you never remember this little juncture. You make your choice and either return or you pass on with me into the light. Oh, and that weirdness in the super market back there; it's just your neurons misfiring. You won't remember that either. In fact if you choose to live you will simply come to here in your car wondering what you were spacing off about. You'll shrug your shoulders and drive home to your family. But you'll never know what can happen for the rest of your life."

"I see." said Claire. She thought about it. She had always feared dying painfully. She had a far greater fear of leaving her loved ones behind before she was ready. Now she was as ready as she ever could be. But the fear was gone. She thought about dying in an accident a few decades in the future, about watching her husband die of some disease, of outliving her siblings and so on. There was no fear.

She knew that going into the light meant total bliss and that returning to life meant a poignant mixture of light and shadow, pleasure and pain, uncertainty, fears, hopes, and love. She was not ready to leave her loved ones behind, whatever pain and sadness may come.

"I want to live." she said.

The angel smiled. She looked into it's eyes and...

..."What? the..." Claire was sitting in her car staring at the back of a minivan. She must have spaced out. "My groceries!"

She ran back into the store and retrieved her groceries. The checker shook his head again. Claire assumed that she was over worked and distracted by thoughts of work. But it was Friday and she was on her way home.

Home. Where the heat is. She thought of her family and the weekend ahead. For the first time in a long time she forgot all about work and other worries and looked forward to spending quality time with her loved ones.

added by: author DawnC on 07/10/2011 - 10.36

"Look around, madam--what do you see?" replied the checker now half smiling.

"Well...nothing. As a matter of fact, I can't see anyone in the parking lot, or on the sidewalk. What in the world is going on?" Claire was beginning to panic a bit, and she could feel the hair on her neck standing and tingling. The flight or fight sense was heightening.

"Everything is all right. There is no need for concern. You see, you have arrived."

The checker was fully smiling now, seeking to allay Claire's fears.

"What? What do you mean? There are no people anywhere!"

"And that is a beautiful thing," said the checker who had now moved around the counter and stood next to Claire. "You see, there is no one here, except your humble servant, which means you have harmed no one in your life, and you shall pass through the portal into gracious redemption."

Horrified, Claire exclaimed, "You mean I am dead?" Here, in the grocery store---I'm dead!'

"There is no death here. Only the passing of good spirits." With that, the checker took Claire's hand, and walking out of the store together, disappeared.

added by: author A-004274 on 07/10/2011 - 03.39

“Yes, it has happened once before.”

“When?” Claire held her purse closer to her.

“A few years ago. Our manager ordered all employees into the back room to explain the new rules. He told us that if we only had one customer at the cash register and no other customers were in the store that we should treat the one customer like royalty.” The checker rang up the next item on the conveyor belt.

“Really? What else did the manager say?”

“He said that after we were finished totaling up all the items on the conveyor belt we were to escort the lone customer to the back room.” The checker rang up the last item. “Your purchases total $80 today ma’am.”

Claire paid the checker. “What happens now?”

“Here are your groceries ma’am. Have a nice day.”

“That’s it? You mean this isn’t like the other time when the only other customer in the store was treated like royalty?”

“Like I said ma’am that was a special occasion when a member of the British royal family visited our store and our manager told all the other customers that the store was closed for the day.” The checker put the last bag in Claire’s cart.

Claire’s cell phone rang. “Hello. Yes I’ll tell him.” She put the phone back in her purse. “My husband and your manager told me to tell you that you are to escort me to the back room.”

The checker closed up the register and walked with Claire to the back room. He opened the door. A large crowd of people blew noisemakers and sang Happy Birthday.

“Surprise. Happy Birthday, honey.”

“I guess it’s true what your checker told me. Lone customers are really treated like royalty here.” Claire hugged her husband, the store manager.

“I’m a new manager so I have to do something different to make an impression. I decided that once a month I would herd all the store customers and employees into the back room to give one special customer a big surprise and one special employee a raise.” Congratulations son you earned it this time.” Claire’s husband shook the checker’s hand.

added by: author Sora Dina on 07/10/2011 - 08.37

They walked in the shadows along the pathway leading to the zoo. The main gate was not completely shut. Someone had jammed a nail into the latch, preventing the gate from closing securely. They could hear the roar of approaching sirens and knew that they were being followed. They quickened the pace and broke into a run. Too late. They had been spotted and a posse of armed zoo commandos were closing in on them. Clair said to the checker, "Let's split up and try to lose them in the elephant path" The checker replied, "Are you crazy, the maintenance crew hasn't swept up the elephant droppings yet". Clair decided to go it on her own as she hiked up her skirt, flippity flopping through the plops down the trail. She made it without incident and except for the putrid odor that enveloped her, she felt good about her escape.

When she awoke the next morning, she found herself back at the home. The smell in the room all but choked her. "Is that the smell of elephant droppings?" "No" said the checker as he hovered over her. "That's the smell of decaying flesh. I was just kidding when I said there was no death here. You've been dead for over a week now".

added by: author Ernie on 07/10/2011 - 09.03

"Believe it or not, it happens every day."

Claire nodded nervously and made her way out to the parking lot. Opening her driver's side door, she sat down in the car.

"Now where did I put those keys?"

After a few seconds of fumbling, Claire started the car and put it into gear. The car began to sail backwards as she struggled to get her legs in to apply the brakes.

"Surely I must be about to hit another car" she thought to herself, as visions of women pushing strollers swirled in her terrified brain.

After what seemed like an eternity, Claire got her legs into the car and with all her might, slammed on the brakes.

"Oh God, Oh God," she thought as she exited the car to see where it had stopped.

About an inch from her front bumper in the last row was the only car in the parking lot. She realized what had happened.

She had worked the graveyard shift and had been sent home early. It was 4 a.m.

added by: author CaPsLoCk on 07/10/2011 - 09.23

Title: The Writer's Nightmare

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"No," he said, a note of sarcasm entering his voice. "The store has never been empty. Not once in its entire existence has it been devoid of people." He started to clap. "Congratulations to Mrs. Obvious! You've just won a prize! You'll find it on the ceiling, right next to the word 'gullible.'"

"Attention," the checker called on the intercom. "We have a situation. We have just been informed that the store is absolutely, completely empty. Warning, warning. Danger. We are entering into uncharted territory."

"Well, you don't have to be like that about it," Claire said. "I was just making conversation." She would have been embarrassed about all the commotion if there had been anyone around to see.

"All kidding aside," the checker said, "you should really start to worry. What if operatives from the Federal Bureau of Obviousness and Predictability heard you? They've got bugs everywhere."

Claire's face fell. She looked positively terrified. "No," she said. "No! I wasn't that obvious, was I?"

"Now don't make things worse for yourself," the checker said. "I'd advise you to put on your most urbane, intelligent persona or you're looking at some serious trouble with the BOP. The call the most serious offenders 'the silent ones.' You don't want to know why."

The lights in the store went out, plunging everything into total darkness. "Oh no," he muttered. "They're here."

Claire heard noises up in the rafters. The checker pulled out a flashlight from a drawer by his register and turned it on, showing her the door. "Run."

"But they'd be expecting that!" Claire said. "That'd just put me in more trouble! No. There's only one way out of this mess." With that, she grabbed the checker's shoulders and put her lips on his mouth.

"Meep!" the checker barely uttered before Claire manhandled him onto the checkout counter, still kissing him. "Oh yeah, baby," she said. "Yeah." She pinned him to the counter while she climbed up and pressed herself against him, smashing her groceries in the process. Bottles clattered to the floor, and jars shattered against the raised sides of the counter. The checker stayed very still through the assault, hoping that she wouldn't implicate him in her crazy, though somewhat trite scheme to get away from the feds.

A figure clad in a form-fitting black suit, tie and sunglasses walked up to the register. The checker was still stuck in Claire's amorous embrace, and chocolate bars were melting under the heat of her adrenaline-fueled passion. A jar of tomato sauce lay in shards on the scanner. The scent of smushed raspberries sweetened the air.

"Hm," the figure said, analyzing the situation. "Hm."

"Ma'am," he said finally. "You're going to have to come with us."

Claire looked up. Her mind was racing, trying to remember the most outlandish plots of books she'd read, movies she'd seen, trying to think of the least obvious thing possible.

"Have you ever tried this?" She dipped her finger in the now destroyed jar of tomato sauce. She was stalling and she knew it. "Rao's brand. Eggplant, can you believe it? It's really quite good. Costs a fortune though, haha." She worried that her random behavior and nervous laughter would give her away. Then she worried that her self-conscious worries would give her away, because wouldn't anyone act like that? Oh god, was she being too obvious? Then she worried that she was sinking into a spiral of anxiety, all too predictable given her current situation. The BOP operative gazed at her with palpable disdain.

"Please come with us," he said. More operatives joined the first, and they guided her off the hapless checker and put her hands behind her back.

"But!" she shrieked as the handcuffs clicked around her wrists. "Bu-bu-but! What else was I supposed to do? What else was I supposed to think? What else was I supposed to say?"

The operative turned to her. Like an English teacher, like a businessman, like the average reader who couldn't be bothered with content that didn't sell itself within the first fifteen seconds, he replied, "Well, something interesting would have been a good start."

The men in black led her away, and she was never heard from again.

added by: author MarlonMac on 07/10/2011 - 10.35

"Just last night," he whispered to Claire as he straightened up. "Most people in this neighborhood shop early," he continued.

Claire watched him place the last item into her bag. Without hesitation she grabbed her bag and hurriedly walked toward the door. She could feel his eyes following her. She awkwardly adjusted her bag as she reached to push the door open, and quickly exited the store.

Fumbling for her car keys and not finding them, caused her to panic.

"Hey there, wait a minute," the checker yelled out.

"What is it," Claire replied as she turned to see the checker running toward her.

"Here," he said as he handed her the keys. "You might need these. They'll come in handy when trying to start your car," he continued.

A little embarrassed by her forgetfulness, Claire smiled and took the keys.

added by: author okie1 on 07/10/2011 - 11.34

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"Now and then. You should keep up with the News."

"What did I miss?"

"Today is the first day of the new Relaxation Rule."

"Oh!" How could she have forgotten? The Gov's Relaxation Rule meant that you were supposed to only go out of your home in an emergency. Suddenly feeling conspicuous, she asked if he could hurry, please.

"Got an emergency?"

"Why else would I be here?"

The checker's mouth twitched again and he concentrated on the frozen juice in his hand.

Finally, he was through, she had paid and was heading out the door. A Spot Check light came on and she resigned herself to a physical search by a robot that appeared from the wall. Entering into a small cell for privacy, she waited while X-rays and a a probing, rubber tipped protrusion made sure she wasn't hiding anything dangerous or otherwise illegal.

She'd left her nail clippers and comb at home this time, thank goodness!

Finally allowed through the door, she went quickly to her car, trying to act as if she were in emergency mode. She knew they were watching, as always.

added by: author A-013589 on 07/11/2011 - 03.11

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"No but then again I would not know it has been years since I worked here"

Claire quickly looked at the checker and an eery glow came across his face.

Claire then asks if he died.

The checker turned "Yes about ten years ago here in this very spot"

Now Claire even more scared and trembling ask why he has returned.

The checker says "Because it is time to come back and help another soul depart this store"

Claire looks at him with a scared but question look on her face. Then mustard's up the voice to ask, "is it me?"

The checker then looks and replies, "Yes you see you were here when your heart gave out and now you are here to pass on to the next life and I am your angel to help you on you journey."

added by: author A-032161 on 07/11/2011 - 12.52

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Sometimes they dance,” he said.

“Dance?” she asked.

The celery, which had been sitting inside of one plastic bag waiting to be placed into a larger plastic bag, waited no longer. Without hesitation, it rose, shook off its clear wrapping, and ran to join the other veggies. The celery jumped from the checkout counter. Just as it landed it was nearly run over by a tomato rolling so fast it barely changed its trajectory, narrowly avoiding the celery.

“Hey, watch it,” the celery yelled at the tomato in a thick New York dialect.

“Eat my ketchup,” replied the female tomato.

“And they talk?” Claire asked.

“Sometimes they sing,” he said.

“Am I dreaming?” Claire asked.

“I don’t think you ask if you’re dreaming when you dream. I’m Robert, by the way.” Robert said.

“I’m Claire,” she replied, “Are they dangerous?”

“No. Don’t think so,” Robert said.

The celery hopped down to an aisle and out of sight. A mushroom came into view from aisle eight, spinning like a top and heading down the main aisle beside the register lanes. It stopped just in front of Claire and Robert.

“Woo. You guys look like giant cauliflowers. I must be peaking,” and, with that, the mushroom spun off.

Just then, the sounds of an exceptionally large choir warming up came from the vegetable area.

“Let’s go. You’re not going to believe it,” Robert said.

“Are you sure?” Claire asked as she began following Robert to the vegetable corner of the store. As they approached, the sound was overwhelming. They came around the corner, and saw all the vegetables were still in their bins. They were arranged, active, and most were making sounds.

“Me, me, me, me, me. Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo,” thousands of vegetables were doing vocal warm-ups.

The celery, which had run from Claire and Robert, was out in front of the vegetable bins. He rose up on his tuft and circled his stick a few times in the air before rising up straightly. The warm-ups stopped.

The celery counted down, “Four, three, two, one.”

The song and dance began. It was a song to the tune of Billy Joel’s “For the Longest Time,” but with vegetables moving to the beat and singing different lyrics.

“Oh, Oh, Oh,

For the longest time, Oh, Oh, Oh,

For the longest,

If you don’t eat vegetables today,

You might face some horrible delays.

We have the fiber,

We have the vitamins, too.

We’re so proud to be here to be good for you.”

“Wow,” said Claire.

“This is a new one. You eat your vegetables?” Robert asked.

“I’m not sure I’ll ever eat another vegetable,” Claire said.

added by: author George T. on 07/11/2011 - 01.37

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"Yes, a bit strange isn't it?" "It is attributable to only one or two things."

Claire turned her head and looked at him intently. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it's like this. Do you remember Sept. 11, 2001? And what you were doing at the time?"

Claire had to stop and recollect her thoughts. It was an unusual question at best.

"Oh, now I remember," she said thoughtfully. "Ummm..., I was shopping for food at the downtown Walmart." "Why is that important and what do you mean?"

"All over the country, people are re living that day", said the checker. "It is like an unbelievable transcendental, metaphysical experience we are all having at once. It is sort of like the rapture or a massive nuclear explosion that separates us from ourselves and others in one light flash that resembles a dream. Or on 2nd thought, nightmare." The checker leaned forward again and looked deeply into Claire's dark brown eyes, flecked with gold. "Do you believe my fable?"

Claire was puzzled. "Why are there no people shopping today, she asked him. What does your fable imply?

"Simple", he said. "We are all at our various places when Sept. 11 occurred. You are at your place and the rest of us are finding ourselves where we happened to be that day. You are the only one shopping today. You better believe it, girl." It is just like the rapture or a nuclear explosion. Nuclear explosion Nuclear explosion, Nuclear explosion, rapture, rapture, RAPTURE.... His words were resounding like a clanging cymbal and the sound was bouncing off the emptily aisles and store shelves. It was all so eerie and Claire was starting to feel anxious and her hands were getting cold and clammy. She felt a jolt.

The alarm clock sounded with a loud blare of national public radio; a jazz piece with trumpet sounding like the seven trumpets in the book of Revelation.

Claire woke up with a start. She was sweating. She was relieved to find out that it was only a dream and not really the rapture or a nuclear explosion. Her shopping trip was only a fable in her dream world; only a fable to be taken lightly.... She decided that morning that she would postpone her weekly trip to the store.

added by: author Suzie Q on 07/12/2011 - 07.53

spelling correction: empty aisles

added by: author Suzie Q on 07/12/2011 - 08.07

The talking groceries remind me of a rhyming poem I did years ago about the same thing. But it was after the store closed and the parking lot was dark. The beginning of the story seems oddly disconnected from the second part. The story is already too well-developed to try to develop it further. Just my opinion.

added by: author Yellowbird on 07/12/2011 - 09.25

Nervously, with small beads of sweat accumulating across his brow, he whispered, "It's alive."

Claire suddenly felt uneasy. "Excuse me?" She began to reach blindly for the grocery bag, never losing eye contact with the now hurried man.

"Nothing. Look, I must go to the back now. That'll be $25.03."

Claire reached into her cluttered purse for a twenty dollar bill. As she rummaged about, she realized she didn't have it. She could sense his impatience."Credit, please." She handed the man her card. His jaw clenched, he took it, slid it and gave it back.

"Have a great day ma'am." It was said so quickly, so abrupt, almost rude. She hastened her things together. No worries, she thought, with a sudden desire to leave.

The man hurried towards the back of the store. She saw him trip, sputter back up and begin to run. She saw his name tag resting on the floor. "Paul" in big white letters. Pausing at the door, she unconsciously stopped. "Should I stop?" she voiced aloud without hearing the words. Her neck was craned towards the big black doors in the back. She looked around. No clerks, no customers. Hmm. She dropped her bag, barely hearing the audible thud as she began to meander towards the back of the store.

She picked up the name tag. I'll just give him this and be on my way, she thought. Passing the milk. Elevator music softly crooning a love song. The lights were so bright, she blinked. A warm fuzzy feeling began to envelop her. She continued to walk. Aisle one. Aisle two. I remember shopping with my mother here.

Finally, her destination. Two black doors stood before her. She felt the cold of the meat cooler next to her. She saw how clean the doors were. The smell of Lysol from the hall that must surely be inside. Her hesitation made her wonder. Thinking it was silly, she plowed ahead into the room.

it was that quick. That sudden. The regret. A fog of red enveloped her. Through the coughing she could see. See men standing in line, uniforms, name tags and all. Standing in line to the box crushing machine. Hands folded in front. Heads bowed in acceptance. A scream. A man being sucked into the machine. Blades whirring. Chipping sounds. Are those boxes? There were no boxes. Was that Paul? Was that Paul's legs? A crunching noise. A pause. Then another scream. And the doors closed.

added by: author A-040310 on 07/12/2011 - 09.41

“No. Can’t say it has. But then it’s not everyday a mean-spirited rumor is passed all over town, is it?”

The checker had Claire’s rapt attention now.

“Mean-spirited rumor?”

“Seems like there’s gossip going around that this store has been selling tainted celery.”

Claire eyed the celery the clerk just scanned.

“What’s wrong with the celery?”

“Not a thing. It came off the same produce truck as always. Seems like those guys at that Big Box store on the other side of town are trying to shut us down.”

“What’s wrong with the celery... according to them?”, Claire repeated.

“They’re spreading tall tales celery’s come from crop in Mexico that caused sickness...you know, food poisoning? Ecoli?”

At first, Claire didn’t know whether to feel worried or to ask the clerk to remove the celery. The pained expression on her face was clear to the checker. He continued to scan her groceries.
“I...uh..Maybe I’d rather not buy celery today.”

Claire walked the short distance to where the black conveyer belt dumped the celery. It looked fine. Still, Ecoli was pretty serious. What if her kids became seriously ill? She knew what she should do. But would she? Based only on a rumor?

She glanced around the empty store again.

It’s only the celery that’s a problem. Why not just remove the celery from the produce aisle rather than risk losing customers? People don’t like taking chances. They figure if the celery is bad, what else may also be. Not really rational thinking. But, there it is, she thought.

Claire was a pragmatist, not a risk-taker.

“Listen, I think maybe I’d rather not chance the celery. Can you remove it, please?” she asked.

“Lady, it’s like I said. It’s only a rumor. There’s nothin’ wrong with the celery. Besides, we get our produce from the same distributor as that big store across town.”

The clerk read the expression of insistence on Claire’s face.

Dang that store. First they empty out the place by starting a rumor and now we’ll have to get rid of a half dozen crates of fresh celery. They could put us out of business. I could lose my job. I’ll get them for this, he thought.

“Gee, I’m awfully sorry. Maybe, it’s best if you just get rid of the celery for a few days till the rumor dies down?” Claire asked.

“Guess we’ll have to now, won’t we?” was the clerk’s response.

He pulled the celery from the conveyer and tossed it hard beneath the checkout counter with a look of disgust.

“I’m really sorry about this. I just can’t take a chance with my family and all” Claire said.

“Oh sure, sure. I understand. But that guy across town hasn’t heard the last of me yet.”

The rumor about the celery died a fairly quick death and customers returned to the small grocery store. But the checker who waited on Claire was gone. Claire discovered from neighbors the grocery lost so much business during the "celery episode", they had to let a few employees go. The checker was one of them.

Life returned to normal in town for quite a while.

One morning, Claire awoke to what felt like an earthquake shaking the entire house. She rose quickly and ran for her children’s rooms. They were still asleep. Hmmm, must have been a sonic boom or something. There being no further jolts, Claire tended to the imminent household morning rush. She prepared her children’s lunches as she waited for their breakfast waffles to brown lightly. About ten minutes later, she heard the faint sound of a fire alarm in the distance. She shrugged and went on with her duties as her kids rallied round the breakfast table.

She wrapped sandwiches in plastic wrap, keeping a wary eye on the waffle iron. She started to wrap their apples and realized she’d run out of wrap. Guess, I’ll have to go to the store and buy some more, she thought.

“I’ll drop you guys off to school this morning. I have some grocery shopping to do,” Claire said.

After depositing her kids at school, Claire made her way to the grocery store. When she passed the big box store, she slowed her vehicle almost to a halt. She couldn’t believe her eyes. There was a gaping hole in the direct center of the building and smoke rising from windows, doors and the roof. Several police cars and an ambulance were parked at the curb in front of the store.

Clearly, gawkers were unwelcome anywhere near the disaster. Claire proceeded to the smaller grocery store where she usually shopped. It wasn’t empty. In fact, it was busier than she’d seen it in a long while. She pushed her cart down the aisles quickly and headed to the checkout counter when she was through.

The checker began to scan her groceries.

“What on earth happened to that big grocery on the other side of town?” Claire asked

“Bomb blast. They think it was the checker who used to work here.”

added by: author A-002613 on 07/12/2011 - 11.41

“Mam, didn’t you hear the news goin around town?”

Claire looked perplexed. Stepping back she answered “no, what’s the news?”

“It’s all over the town newspaper, and a lot of big shot journalist been stoppin traffic up by the creek all day.” The checker kept Claire’s attention as he continued with the story. “A farmer says he’s got a horse that writes his name and talks. Told’em he was the reincarnation of Secretariat, the greatest race horse that ever lived.”

Claire was startled, she always had a strong opinion about reincarnation. She believes humans and animals can return to earth and fulfill their destiny. She stared briefly at the checker. “Where’s that creek at?” she asked. “Oh just five 15 minutes if you walkin. Go up the road pass Sam’s Butcher Shop. That’s the fastest way.”

“Hurry” Claire said with excitement. “I’ll quickly pay for my groceries and go by the creek.” After paying, she quickly ran out the door, on her way to see what the fuss was about. Afterwards the checker sat down in his favorite chair and reminisced about the days events. He thought about Claire and wondered if he should tell her about the magic beans he found. “Maybe next time” he thought to himself. For the time being there’s nothin like a cool glass of lemonade, sittin on the front porch, waitin for the next customer to tell another great story.

(Certain words are purposely written without the complete “ing” ending in order to give the perfect feel of a small southern town)

added by: author DebD on 07/12/2011 - 06.02

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward. His face was inches from hers when his lip curled into a sneer. Claire took a step back, unnerved.

“I said you better watch yourself. Don’t make too much of a fuss. And yeah we’ve done this a few times.” His words were pointedly enunciated and there was an underlying accent Claire couldn’t put her finger on.

Claire backed up until she ran into the counter behind her. The bizarre checker grinned, apparently enjoying her unease. He picked up a box of powdered donuts.

“You just couldn’t go without these could you?”

Claire’s arms broke out in gooseflesh. How did he know she was making a particular stop for those? On the way back from her lecture she could swear she smelled powdered donuts—her Achilles heel to her current diet. She had pulled many a late night in the lab with them keeping her going. After she had published her paper, “Advances in translating the Infrared Spectrum in relation to: guidance systems and long distance surveillance,” and gained ten pounds, she had decided that she should swear off sweets for a while. So after enduring that smell for a half hour during a long stretch before civilization, and rationalizing that she could pick up some other groceries as well as the sugary temptation, she had stopped at the first open market she had spotted.

But how would he know that? Claire relaxed a little. She was just psyching herself out. Lately she had gotten a little paranoid—feeling like she was being watched and jumping at the smallest noises. Nighttime had never bothered her—after all she had worked in a mostly abandoned building, at night, for six months—so she figured it must just be an after-effect of burning the candle at both ends. Not to mention the sudden renown and popularity that her paper had brought her in the science community. She was usually a pretty solitary person, not even working with a partner on her experiments, so people swarming around her and hounding her with questions was next to unbearable. So it was probably just that, in combination with her frazzled nerves, that was making her paranoid. And this guy was probably just some creeper trying to get her goat. Nothing menacing about that. Or so she hoped. Good thing this grocery store was hours away from her usual stop.

“Come off it. Everyone loves those, you cheeky little man. And if you could hurry I would appreciate it. My, uh, husband is waiting in the car for those donuts.” She glanced at her watch trying to hide the slight blush on her cheeks. She really was a terrible liar, but a fictional husband sounded like a good resource at the moment. The truth was that it was already bumping midnight, which meant she wouldn’t get back to her apartment until around three in the morning. Plus the only thing waiting up for her was a goldfish named Stan.

The unsettling grin returned. “The smell just seems to follow you everywhere doesn’t it?” Claire tensed when she thought she heard a footstep behind her. She glanced over her shoulder. There was no one there. Just a bout of paranoia. Just a bout of paranoia. She tried to tell herself.

“Come on mister. There are only ten items there. Aren’t you done yet? Or do I need to speak with your employer?” Claire’s shaking voice completely bellied her attempt at coercion.

Claire glanced at the door and then back at the short, stocky, and extremely unnerving man in front of her. Caught in a moment of indecision, between staying and going, she almost missed his reply:

“Sure. He’s standing right behind you.”

Before Claire could move a pair of strong arms wrapped around her. Claire screamed and kicked until a prick to the side of her neck made everything go black.

***

If this story’s moral was in the form of a multiple choice question it would look something like this:

In the story “Baited Trap” subtitled “Claire’s Unforeseen and Unfortunate Night” the moral is…?

A. Don’t give in to sugary impulses
B. Don’t stop at random stores late at night with creepy cashiers
C. Run while you can
D. Don’t write grand scientific papers that terrorists might be interested in
E. All of the above

Really you can take your pick.

added by: author A-076991 on 07/13/2011 - 01.11

"I said you need to leave!" He whispered urgently.
"Excuse me?" said Claire, a bit taken aback.

The young cashier was a friend of her son, and she knew him well. He was usually very outgoing and polite, always in a good mood and quick to start conversation. Claire was beginning to get concerned and the teens pale, drawn complexion served only to deepen that concern.

"You need to get out of here now, they're going to get you!"

The sentence was barely out of his mouth when his eyes suddenly glazed over and rolled back in his head. His knees gave way and he slumped forward onto the scanner.
Claire stared at the boy and the brightly colored dart protruding from the back of his neck. She couldn't comprehend what had just happened. She started to reach for the boy when a quick movement suddenly caught her eye. Her eyes snapped up, looking for the source of the movement. A large man, completely clad in black was walking slowly toward her. A ski mask covered his head, and a small gun was held calmly in his right hand.

The man raised the gun and aimed it straight at her. A knot of terror hit Claire like a hammer. The words "Run, RUN!" spun furiously through her mind. Something in Claire's mind snapped, and instinct took over. She turned toward the door and ran. Her legs pumped furiously, seemingly of their own accord. She had to get away, she would give anything if she could just get away. The automatic doors slid open. Only five feet to safety!

The second man sprang at her from behind the vending machines that flanked the doors. Claire shrieked in despair as he wrestled her to the floor. She fought with everything she had to get away, but the second assailant was immensely strong. He rolled her on her stomach and pinned both arms behind her back effortlessly. She felt cold steel on her wrists and heard the familiar sound as the handcuffs locked her arms in place. Her attacker stood and reached into his pocket. Claire shut her eyes tightly, and waited for the shot that would end her life. But the shot never came. She opened her eyes just as a dark hood was pulled over her head.

The first man had arrived and she felt their hands on her legs and under her arms. They lifted her from the floor and carried her for what seemed like an eternity. Claire wanted to cry, she wanted to scream, to beg for her life, but she decided she wouldn't give them the satisfaction. At last the men stopped. They sat her down on the floor and helped her stand. She felt someone grasp the handcuffs behind her. This is it, she thought. She stood there shaking, waiting for the inevitable. The cuffs were suddenly loosened and her hands were free! She reached for the hood on her head, franticly tearing at it, trying to take it off. She was standing in a pitch black room, an instant later the lights came on.

"SURPRISE!"

Claire reeled backwards in shock while a crowd of friends and family started singing Happy Birthday. Claire sank to the floor, buried her face in her hands, and wept.

added by: author Drake on 07/13/2011 - 02.02

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

Claire waited for him to say something but he didn't. The checker was only reaching for the canister of pickled artichoke hearts. He rang up the head of lettuce, the container of strawberries, and the carton of whipping cream while maintaining silence. The checker also rang up her package of veal cutlets, the lemon juice, and the apple pie.

Claire fidgeted, not used to speaking and then being ignored. She heard the chime of the scanner as the last item was added to the tally of her bill. She stared at the item. She didn't remember picking up a second stalk of celery.

Claire returned her gaze to the small digital screen of the cash register, ready to pay her bill and leave. She felt herself blink in suprise. The total of her bill was two cents.

Claire paused to read the total again, hesitating with her debit card in her hand. The edges of the plastic cut into her fingers. As she felt the cashier take the card from her hand, she realized how cold his fingers were against her skin. His fingers felt like how she imagined ice from the polar caps might feel floating in the freezing, salty depths of the Arctic.

As Claire's eyes jerked upwards from their hands to try and see the cashier's gaze, she realized her breath was freezing in the air over the check out counter. Her hand, with the card, tightened on the cashier's icy grip.

"Isn't it curious, one's action and perceptions through life?" asked the cashier gently. His mouth twitched. Claire could swear on her life she thought she saw a skull briefly.

"Life is like shopping. People work hard, honestly or dishonestly, to acquire wealth. People pick and choose based on what they think is good to buy and add to their life. People feel the need to give their two cents all the time even when its not necessary."

"What?" Claire asked, scared and confused. She couldn't make her fingers unbend. The cashier's grip was gentle but firm. His other hand reached out towards her. Claire flinched.

The cashier held the two celery stalks he'd rang up earlier. For some reason, Claire's mind brought up a memory of her grandmother who was Greek. In her memory, Claire was listening to her grandmother tell her about Greek traditions, how celery leaves were used for garlands of the dead.

Claire swallowed, her mind breaking from the memory. For a moment, she had a hard time breathing. She blinked rapidly.

A moment later, she was staring up at the bright lights on the ceiling of the store. Over her crouched the cashier. He stared down at her frowning, his mouth twitching.

"Can you smile?" the cashier asked urgently.

Claire tried to smile. Maybe death would leave her alone if she could. The left side of her face took a moment to respond. The cashier pulled a walkie talkie off his belt and started speaking into it.

Moments later, the store was bustling with activity. The manager came out off his office speaking on his cell phone. Stockers from the back were hustling foward with a blanket and a dairy crate. Claire's feet were propped up and she was covered with the blanket.

A short while later, an ambulance arrived and took Claire to the hospital. As Claire sat on her hospital bed, a kindly looking doctor looking weary approached.

"You had quite a scare today, Claire," the doctor said, examining the clipboard at the bottom of her bed.

Claire nodded cautiously. The doctor's hand reaching for her made her wonder if it too would be cold. His hand was warm, firm, and strong.

"We called your emergency contact number," the doctor said quietly. "We have you on some medications for high blood pressure. I want you to make a follow up appointment with your family doctor for further follow up."

Claire nodded as he continued speaking.

"You had a stroke. I hesitate to call any stroke minor but you don't appear to have lost any bodily functions yet." The doctor paused.

Claire, having looked down as he spoke, looked up as he paused. She was surprised to find he appeared to have the same facial structure as the cashier.

"Being alone is sometimes a matter of perception," she heard though the doctor spoke, "High blood pressure can be caused by any number of factors. Diet, stress..."

Claire shook her head in confusion. The doctor paused again, "I'm glad we called your grandmother for you. You don't appear to be in any condition to drive. That medication is tough for some folks. Your grandmother said she would have your friend pick you up."

Claire stared as the doctor left the room momentarily. Her grandmother was dead. She had been planning on making a celery garland for her grave tonight. Since her grandmother had died a year ago tomorrow, Claire had felt so alone.

Claire was surprised when not only her friend came to pick her up but also her lover, back from deployment. She was carted off to the car. Her companions attributed her quietness to the shock of surviving a stroke.

Claire, thinking upon the words she heard and her near death experience, mused to herself. Maybe she had felt alone because she only saw what she had expected to see or maybe it was because Gram had died. But she wasn't really alone.

"I was a bit worried about you, Claire," her lover confided as her friend drove them home. "I hadn't heard from you in a while. Usually you're always putting your two cents in and I missed that. You bring such a lively joy to my life when I'm on deployment. I hadn't had a call or a letter from you for weeks."

Claire hesitated and then confessed, "I've been missing Gram. The anniversary of her death is tomorrow. I guess I just felt alone and sad."

Her lover reached for her knee. Her friend reached for Claire's hand and squeezed.

"Silly, you didn't have to be alone. We've been around the whole time. I wish you'd have said something. I'm sorry I forgot," Claire's friend apologized. "Maybe we could keep you company and talk about the good things in life? I remember your Gram. You're just like her. Always so interested in life and exploring new things. I don't think I've ever seen someone buy so many different things at the store."

Claire's friend laughed merrily. "You make me open my mind to new experiences when I'm around you."

"Yeah," Claire's lover agreed, a crooked smile on his face.

Claire thought about the things she had thought the cashier had spoken and then the doctor. Perceptions, celery leaves, and pennies rolled around in her imagination.

"Well, maybe some old experiences are what I need now," Claire admits. "I need you as much as you need me. Would you, that is, could you keep me company tonight and tomorrow? I don't like being alone."

"Of course!" Claire's friend exclaimed.

"Definitely, Babe," Claire's lover promised.

Suddenly, Claire didn't feel so much alone. She smiled, feeling some of her stress disappear. She thought to herself, I've not been alone all day really. I just needed to realize that. Claire relaxed, prepared to enjoy the company of her companions, rather amused now by the allegories she was seeing in today's experiences.

added by: author Snuffy on 07/13/2011 - 10.25

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward. And hesitated, looking into her lush green eyes. Two shining pools of life deeper than the rest of the universe.

As she looked back into him, everything seemed to slow down to a surreal pace far beyond that of the quiet mountain town. Even the country sunlight between them hung silently, and rather than glare from his name-tag that read Robert instead of Bob, it remained fixed there like a perfect star. No, the store had never been empty before at two forty- four on a Sunday afternoon. And it wouldn’t stay empty long.

“Claire, I love you,” Bob pronounced squarely, and watched her face alight with a subtle glow. She seemed to unfold toward him with warmth. “I’m sorry that...” he continued, and stopped suddenly. She flinched. He felt her fold back inward, away from him.

A group of people bustled in through the main doors, chattering and lively. The sunlight streamed through the large storefront windows, sparkling on the stray dust particles in the air. Outside, children squealed and laughed and a pickup truck growled down the street. In the distance, out on Highway 51, a tractor-trailer grumbled it’s Jake brakes against the downhill grade to the South.

The checker continued to scan Claire’s groceries. He totaled the purchase and bagged them efficiently while she counted out the bills and change and set the cash on the counter. Bob handed Claire her receipt with a warm smile, and their hands did not touch.

She lifted the bag of groceries away and walked out the door. The checker removed a bottle of spray cleaner from under the counter, along with a roll of paper towels. He proceeded to wipe down the conveyor, enjoying the clean smell.

A young couple appeared and set down a two-liter of soda, a carton of ice cream, and a can of whipped cream for purchase.

The checker turned and looked out the window towards the parking lot sprawled out under the cloudy blue sky. Just as Claire went to set her groceries in the back of her Jeep, the bag spilled, and cans rolled away and under the car. He could almost smile. It was so typical. She was just scattered without Rickey around.

Bob quickly untied his apron and removed it. “Excuse me please,” he said as he wheeled and strolled sharply out of the store.

The couple glanced at each other, and watched the checker assist the woman with her groceries. The outdoors afternoon glowed silently, and it was a still autumn day.

added by: author Friday on 07/13/2011 - 10.47

"Lady, you need to bag your groceries, put them in the buggy and leave now!"

Rather taken aback by the fierceness of his reply, she looked more closely at the middle aged man. He was definitely under some type of stress. His hands shook as he hurriedly scanned her items and there were small beads of sweat on his upper lip, which twitched again.

"I know you must be having a bad day," she replied stiffly, "But that is no reason to be so rude!"

The tension was palpable as the checker held her gaze momentarily before he answered her.

"Please," he begged, "Just leave."

That was it. Claire was not going to tolerate this any longer.

"Let me speak to your manager!"

The frustrated checker sighed deeply and sadly.

"Just knock on the office door, ma'am. Someone will let you in."

"You can't page him?"

"No ma'am. You'll have to knock on the door."

Claire strode angrily to the door the checker had pointed out and knocked peremptorily. She heard voices behind the door and scuttling noises before the door was flung open, barely missing her face. A hand reached out and grabbed her by the arm, dragging her into the room. As her arms were jerked roughly behind her back, she saw the trussed up bodies of the store's frightened employees.

The man in the ski mask with the gun glared menacingly at her as he shouted at his partner.

"How did you miss this one. I thought the manager had gotten all of the customers out!"

As she joined the others on the floor of the office, Claire realized had she been kinder to the stressed out checker she would be on her way home with her groceries. A random truism from her childhood popped into her head as the fear engulfed her - kindness is its own reward.

added by: author A-056313 on 07/13/2011 - 11.14

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"You know," he began "I thought there was someone on isle three, but when I walked over there, it was empty".

Claire felt the hairs on her arm stand up.

"Funny" she whispered. "I thought I saw someone on isle two and when I looked over there was no one there, either".

Claire locked eyes with the man in front of her.
Simultaneously they glanced at the digital date-clock behind him.

May 21st, 2011. It was 6pm.

added by: author NanaHaha on 07/13/2011 - 01.43

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Tell me a fable,” said the checker.

“A fable?” repeated Claire.

“Yeah. Tell me a fable about an empty grocery store.”

Claire squinted.

The clerk tilted his head slightly. “Come on, I’m dying from boredom over here!”

Claire protested. “What? No!”

“There’s a small reward,” said the clerk. “Come on, I can tell you want to…”

Claire shifted. “Well… I’m not much for telling stories…”

The clerk just stared.

Something in Claire rose to the challenge.

“All right. A woman and a man are in an empty grocery store. The woman… is the shopper, the man is the checker. The woman is checking out… her name is Claire, like mine… when suddenly…

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened be-

“Wait, wait, wait!” interrupted the clerk, obviously irritated. “This is just what actually happened a few minutes ago. I wanted a fable. You know, like ‘The Ant and the Bee’ or something like that.”

Claire blushed. “I’m sorry… it was my first time, and I was just trying to-“

“Well, obviously you weren’t trying hard enough, and now you’ve just embarrassed yourself in a highly public forum.”

“Highly public forum? There’s no one else here!”

“What are you talking about?” The clerk nearly yelled in his exasperation. “The store is full!”

Perhaps it was her extreme exhaustion or the new drugs she’d tried out earlier, but it wasn’t until the clerk said this that Claire noticed that a small crowd of people had gathered around her.

“I’m sorry I asked you to tell me a fable. You seemed like the creative type… trying to create a fantasy or something, but obviously I was wrong. Now everyone here thinks you’re an idiot.”

Claire broke into tears and ran from the store, leaving her groceries behind in her haste and humiliation.

The moral is: attempting to tell a fable in a public forum is bound to lead to humiliation for the author.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Not a bad fable,” said the clerk. “A little confusing…”

added by: author A-077226 on 07/13/2011 - 02.22

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward. "Haven’t you heard the news, Claire?” he asked with a somber, yet puzzled expression.

“What news?” Claire asked cautiously. “I haven’t heard anything. Jared, Celia and I have been up at the fishing camp all weekend. I just popped in to pick up a few things to get us through the night. Henry, is Norma alright? I saw her on Friday at lunch and she was in such good spirits!”

“No, no, Norma is just fine,” Henry quickly reassured his childhood pal, “although, she could probably use a friend right about now. She’s gonna have to be strong for those kids at the high school.”

“Henry, tell me what happened!” Claire demanded, her voice raising an octave in panic.

“Oh,” he said sadly, the corner of his lips twitching down once again, “its number twenty three. A delivery truck hit his Chevy head-on Friday night. Damn kids. When are they ever gonna learn? That levee road is treacherous, but no matter how many times we warn them, hell, they think they are invincible. I guess we thought the same thing once, too, didn’t we Claire?”

The last words her dear friend uttered were so muffled that she felt like she was eavesdropping on the other side of a door. A wave of nausea sent spasms through her body. She grasped the checkbook stand with shaky fingers and took three deep breaths in a feeble attempt to steady herself.

Slowly shaking her head, Claire looked wordlessly up at Henry with bleary eyes. Finally, she gathered the courage to ask, “Wh-wh-what happened Henry? Is Derek okay?” she whispered, the garbled words tumbling from her suddenly dry mouth.

Shocked to see Claire so distressed, he slowly shook his head in return. “No, Claire. That’s why the store is so empty today. The whole damn town is down at the football field right now for the memorial.”

“The memorial?” Claire echoed in disbelief. Then, suddenly, another thought struck her, and although she was terrified to ask, she knew that she must. Grasping his left arm, she pulled the cashier closer, her expression demanding an answer. “Who else was in the truck, Henry?”

“Hmm, well, there were three others. Marylou Jorgen told me it was that pretty redheaded LeBlanc girl and Betsy Soileau’s youngest. Yeah, and that dark-haired fella Derek is always runnin’ with. What’s his …”

“Casey. Casey Moreau,” Claire interrupted. “Oh, God! Please tell me they are okay,” she gasped.

“A bit banged up, from what I hear, but damned lucky, too. That Soileau girl is in a cast from neck to foot up at Holy Family Hospital. But, word around town says they gonna make out okay,” Henry passed along the news miserably.

“I-I gotta go, Henry!” Claire suddenly realized. Seizing her purse from the empty grocery cart, she quickly darted for the exit sign.

“Hey, what about your groceries?” Henry called out in confusion to Claire’s retreating back.

“I’ll come grab them tomorrow!” Claire shouted as she sprinted through the automatic doors. The full force of the Louisiana summer sun nearly knocked her over, the oppressive humidity sucking the air from her lungs, stopping her dead in her tracks. Oh, how was she going to break the news to Celia, who had already lost so much in her young life? First, her grandmother, then her brother. Now, her boyfriend, too! She wouldn’t even have her best friend by her side during her senior year. What kind of curse had been placed over her little angel’s head? Whose sins was this innocent young girl paying for?

“Thank you for making Celia come to the bayou this weekend,” Claire sent a silent prayer to the sky as she inserted her key into the ignition, realizing just how close she had come to losing another child. If they had stayed home, instead of going up to the cabin to commemorate Jacob’s passing a year ago, Claire was certain Celia would have been in that truck. In fact, they had fought about it all weekend, especially since there was no cell service at the camp. It had only been that morning when Celia had finally discarded her sullen teenage funk.

Screeching out of the empty parking lot, Claire raced home, paying no mind to the twists and turns of the dangerous river road that had stolen Derek’s life just a few hours ago. The tears and the blistering heat made the rapidly darkening horizon appear hazier than it really was. Letting out a soft moan, Claire buried her head in her hands, completely forgetting that she was hurtling nearly 60 miles per hour down the treacherous street.

A blaring horn barked at her, shaking Claire from her saddened reverie just in time to swerve back into the right lane. Trembling, Claire slowly applied pressure to the brake, easing the speedometer down to a more reasonable, though no less dangerous, 40 miles per hour. She exhaled slowly, wondering how her daughter’s broken heart could possibly ever recover from such a tragedy. She had to get home, break the news as gently as possible, and get Celia down to the field to be with her friends. Then, maybe afterward, they could go visit Kenleigh at Holy Family.

At the thought of that dear child lying strung up in a hospital bed, fresh tears filled her hazel eyes, turning the blacktop into a hazy shadow. Determined to get to her daughter, Claire pressed the pedal to the floor, coaxing the Explorer’s needle back up toward 50, then 60.

A flash of honey brown caught the corner of Claire’s eye, but the massive white tail deer was faster than her reflexes. As she cranked the wheel to the left, the giant buck swerved back into her path, then collided with a piercing thud against the grill of the bulky SUV. As Claire tumbled through the air, she caught a glimpse of the eight-point beast sauntering off into the dwindling sunset. A sickening thwack and the gut-wrenching sound of bones shattering into a million tiny pieces was the last thing Claire heard. And, a lavish wreath made of magnolias and roses, encircling the neck of a pure white cross painted “In Loving Memory of Derek” was the last thing Claire laid eyes upon.

added by: author Nicole on 07/13/2011 - 03.41

"Absolutely not," the checker said. " It is 4:13 am pacific daylight time and you are here at the Bakersfield A & P, Bakersfield's only all night store I might add, and you are buying the same groceries you always buy every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday morning. Your behavior borders on a compulsive obsessive disorder except today you must be having a really, really bad hair day."

"Why do you say that?" I replied, having trouble getting my mind wrapped around the information he just told me.

"Normally, for you that is, you shop in blue jeans, a Howard Stern for cat catcher sweatshirt and a Seattle Seahawks baseball cap. Today, you're wearing kayak boots, cargo pants, a dinner jacket with a L.A. Dodgers vest and a full face motorcycle helmet. Were you able to find everything you wanted?"

"Yes, thank you so much." I replied, not adding any contact with my sanity. I picked up my groceries and walked out the front door, so far so good. Then, a checker cab stopped in front of me, the door opened and a man in a macintosh coat and deerslayer cap said "Get in, Watson! The chase is on and we are burning daylight!" Enough is enough, I thought to myself. I swore a sacred oath to all my ancestors I was never going to touch Red Bull and Speed again. Just stick to the family favorites for recreational drugs, Colt 45 Malt Liquor and Thai Stick.

I looked at the alarm clock. It was 4:15 am. No place to be for 50 hours. Thank goodness!!!

added by: author Writer Guy on 07/13/2011 - 05.13

"Well, there was this one time that the store was rather empty." The checker continued his scanning, with a slight grin beginning on his face.

Claire, feeling a little on edge, started to grab her bags and leave the store. Suddenly, the checker began to twitch in a way that was not normal for any human.

"STOP! You will not leave our lair!" The checker now had a large tentacle reaching out for Claire. He started to pull her over the counter just as more tiny creatures began coming around the corners of shelves.

"Help! What is going on?" Claire screamed.

The checker, who once looked like a ordinary teenager, was now a dripping, green, oozing monster who was looking at Claire like she was lunch.

"We are here to take over your planet grocery store by grocery store. We will not cease until every supermarket is under our control."

Claire, feeling the need to race from the store as uickly as possible, whacked the monster over the head with a can of green beans. She escaped to the nearest police station and told them of her experience. After she finished her story, Claire waited for the officer to follow her to the store.

"Well, aren't you coming?"

Slowly, the officer began to twitch and writhe in his chair. The last thing Claire remembered was being surrounded by oozing, green creatures.

added by: author A-065449 on 07/13/2011 - 05.38

“The Short End Of The Stick”


Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Why? Are you afraid to be in the store alone with me?” He leaned back to his normal standing position and grabbed the next item on the conveyor.

Claire was startled. She hasn’t meant it that way, but the fact that he suggested it made her think that she SHOULD be concerned.

The checker was an older man, perhaps in his late fifties. He was clean shaven and wore his hair cropped short. His face was more weathered than tanned, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and mouth made her think of dry creek gulches in the desert Southwest. They weren’t the result of frequent smiling. His blue eyes were extremely pale and would have been beautiful on a handsome man. The checker was not handsome.

He was not muscular, but his muscles were visible. They were like connective cords moving beneath his skin, wiry and tough, drawn and strong, but not in a way that suggested health or strength. One of his ears was cauliflowered, and he had a faded green tattoo on the upper surface of his arm just above his right wrist, the name “Linda” in scratchy cursive.

“If I was afraid,” she said nervously, “I wouldn’t have come shopping when I saw no cars in the parking lot. I see you every time I shop here. I feel almost as if I know you.”


The checker glanced up at her from under his brows as he passed a can of corn over the scanner window. Lady,” he said, reaching for another can without looking at it, “you don’t know me.”

She realized that was true. She saw him at least once per week when she shopped. Sometimes she made an additional stop in between her regular shopping trips. He was always on duty. But, she always shopped during the same time of day. It wasn’t as if he was always in the store, was it? Still, she realized that she didn’t KNOW him. She only recognized him. He didn’t wear a name tag of any sort, and she didn’t know his name.

“No,” she said, “I guess I don’t. But I come here so often that I should! My name is Claire, by the way.” She smiled tentatively. He didn’t offer his own name, or acknowledge hers in any way. He just continued to scan her groceries. The machine chimed monotonously as the tangle of red laser light washed over each bar code in turn. “Have you worked her long?”

The man glanced up at her again, and again the corner of his mouth twitched, but he made no response. Now his silence was making her feel awkward, and when she felt awkward she talked even more, as if filling the silence with her own voice would blanket her with familiarity.

I was her just Saturday,” she said, “but I didn’t buy any bread. I stopped in today on my way home, just for the bread, but thought I might as well buy a few other things while I was here. Make less to carry next Saturday, right? Plus, with no one here, it’s easy to take my time and look for things, isn’t it?”

The checker said nothing as he placed a cucumber on the scanner to weigh it.

“I don’t usually buy those kind of cucumbers,” she said, again filling the silence. “’Cukes’ my father called them. He grew them every year, and I never really liked them. I usually buy those English one, do you know which ones I mean? The ones that are in the shrink wrap? But you didn’t have those, so I thought, oh, well, just get the regular old cucumbers!”

The checker placed the cucumber into a bag on the carousel and hit the key on the touch screen register. “Forty-three twenty seven,” he said, “Claire.” He emphasized her name, as if he were taunting her, but his expression didn’t change.

“Oh! I didn’t think you heard me,” she said, placing her large purse on the counter and opening it.

“Things aren’t always what they seem,” he said. His voice was tired, bitter. Almost accusing, as if the difficulties in his life were somehow laid at her feet, were her fault.

“No,” she said, “they certainly aren’t.” The gun was very large, and he had a second to wonder how she had gotten it out of the purse so smoothly before it flashed with a sharp, deafening –CRACK!-

He instantly felt hot and out of breath and there was a metallic taste in his mouth. He fell backwards into a sitting position, and he felt like the fall should have been painful, should have knocked the air from his lungs, but all he felt was dizzy. The red stain bloomed on the front of his shirt, and he heard a rattling, almost snapping sound come from the wound.

“Now, I’m not going to be coming back here,” Claire said, stepping around him to the opened register drawer. “It’s not that I’m unhappy with the store, or the quality of your merchandise. I just don’t think it would be a good idea to come back, with those surveillance cameras watching all of this. The police are going to be quite angry, and I’ll bet your boss is going to be cross with me too, isn’t he?”

The checker’s vision began to blur.

“Oh,” she said lightly, smiling her friendliest smile and lifting the cash drawer to get at the large bills underneath it, “I don’t guess that will matter to you, will it? You aren’t going to be here either.” He heard her laugh, chuckle, almost. “Although, maybe it does matter to you. As you said, I don’t really know you, do I?”

Her laughter was quiet, grew quieter, and that was all he knew.

added by: author Stormgod on 07/13/2011 - 05.42

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward. Then he said with a blank stare, “Did you not hear about the rapture?”

added by: author WhoDatFan on 07/13/2011 - 06.25

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward and then assessed his immediate surroundings. Claire could only stand there, seemingly frozen and her tight lower-lip falling slightly.

"We know your secret; we know who are you are," he says in an calm, yet very ominous and assured manner.

Saying nothing, Claire bobs her head back and forth, surveying the unnervingly quiet, dimly-lit, desolate store.

"What is this? Some kind of practical joke?"

"They're waiting for you outside, Ms. DuBois. Please...go," he commanded with a diminuendo in tone.

Too intimidated to respond, Claire collected the couple of brown bags of groceries, gave the "cashier" another look---his eye's still trained on her---and proceeded to walk out at a faster-than-usual pace.

Claire exits. Not two steps outside, she's nearly blinded by a barrage of powerful lights radiating from nearly every direction. Claire stands there, agog and frightened, not even able to wink thanks to the immobilizing panic that's overcome her. She's flawlessly executing the classic 'deer in the headlights' position.

A few seconds pass and then, sounds of maybe a half-dozen boots and clinging gear being heard, Claire's 'greeted' by military personnel---all sporting similar, military-like uniforms and wearing gas masks.

Claire: "What's going on, what is this...what have I done?!" she shouts in a panicked, shrilled voice.

Her face pale as the night moon, two of the masked soldiers firmly escort her away from the building's entrance to an adjacent parking lot. At this point, realizing the gravity of the situation, she knows she must remain silent---fearful of the small army surrounding her.

She's quickly whisked to an unmarked, black Suburban, her captors only speaking to ask her to step in. Claire hesitantly complies and climbs into the backseat. The handcuffs make her getting "comfortable" even more awkward. A new look suddenly comes over her face---one devoid of hardly any emotion, except of utter hopelessness---as if she now realizes what's going down.

The door's firmly shut. The tinted-out SUV starts to pulls slowly out of the barren parking lot off onto a dark, desolate highway with several more, almost identical Suburbans and trucks in tow.

'Til this day, no one knows who exactly these commandeering, official-like men were; nor was Claire ever seen or heard from again. Years past; people could only wonder whatever happened to the local grocery store that had graced 3221 Mallory Avenue for over 25 years.

But gone it was, nothing but the stone foundation left, leaving passersby only to speculate what was once there.
 

added by: author WordRaptor on 07/13/2011 - 06.31

He gazed at her for a moment, then continued to check out her items without answering.

Claire thought this was slightly unnerving, and waited patiently for him to be done. She noticed a long scar down the side of his face, which didn't help much to ease her feeling of dread.

He finally pushed the last item through the scanner, and said "$25.80"

Claire quickly reached into her purse to retrieve the money so she could be on her way and out of this strange situation.

She paid the clerk and grabbed her bags. Heading for the door she glanced back once more to see him standing behind the register watching her. She turned as she approached the automatic doors and walked right into them, not realizing that they had not opened. She dropped her groceries and sighed in disgust.

As she started to pick up her items, she glanced back to see if the clerk was going to come help her. He was no longer behind the register. "That doesn't surprise me," Claire said to herself.

She finished bagging her groceries and stood to once again exit the store. The doors still would not open. She tried pushing them, as you do in an emergency, but to no avail.

"Hello?" Claire shouted. "The doors will not open."

No one answered her.

"Hello? Is there anyone there?"

The store remained deserted and silent.

"This is ridiculous." Claire exclaimed. "Just see if I ever do business here again."

She was starting to feel less than comfortable by now, and just wanted to be out of here and on her way home. She tried once more. "HELLO??" she screamed. Just an empty echo answered her. "Someone must be working in the back."

She placed her bags on the floor and started walking down the aisles, slowly looking down each one. They were all empty. She made her way to the back of the store where she saw the door that read "Employees Only."

Just as she was about to push the door open, the lights went out. Claire froze and started to breathe heavily. What is going on here? She thought.

She tried yelling once more, but still no one answered.

She gathered up what little courage she had left and pushed through the door. As she did, the lights returned and Claire found herself standing back at the register, checking out her groceries, with the same sinister looking clerk at the register.

added by: author Patty29 on 07/13/2011 - 07.11

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"You shouldn't have come here," he whispered. Claire noticed a darkness to his voice that didn't fit the scrawny twenty-year old's body. Before her eyes, his face began to twist and change, morphing into something demonic. Fangs sprouted from his gums, his eyes flooded red and his skin flushed black. Claws grew from his nail beds, and he reached out to her, slashing at her face.

She pulled back, surprised, and glanced around, hoping someone had entered the store and seen what was going on. The artificial lighting had grown dim and shadows danced down the aisles. Products began to fall off the shelves, cans exploding as they smacked against the shiny linoleum. Tomato sauce created a puddle at the front of aisle three and the windows lining the front of the store cracked and shattered, debris flying towards the check-out lines.

Claire stumbled backwards. The cashier no longer looked like a young college student, but a demon from the darkest depths of Hell. Muscles tore through the shirt of his uniform and his claws grew to horrifying lengths, resembling scythes. She tripped over a can and fell to the floor, looking back at the cashier. He splayed his claws out in the air, raising his arm high above his head. With a terrifying smile on his face, he slashed his claws down towards her.

Claire shielded her face, but felt no impact. She slowly lowered her arm and stared at the young man. He had returned to his original form, skinny and small, a look of concern painted on his face.

"Ma'am? Are you all right?" He held his hand out to her, but Claire scrambled to get up on her own. She looked at the windows, her mouth agape. The glass remained intact. She spun around to look at the aisles, only to find they were clean and orderly. The lights in the ceiling were just as bright as when she'd first entered the store. The cashier continued to look at her, and she shook her head.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You collapsed, ma'am. You didn't hit your head, did you?" Claire forced a small smile and shook her head.

"I think I'm okay, thanks." The cashier nodded, the corners of his mouth going up in a twisted smirk.

"Good." In the blink of an eye, the world fell into darkness around Claire, and the cashier wielded his scythe-like claws above his head, stabbing them into her stomach.

~ submitted by Miranda (docsaico)

added by: author A-067717 on 07/13/2011 - 07.12

Ugh.... Sorry for all the typos in my last stab, folks. Never trust your fingers, even when it isn't for pay, LOL!

added by: author Stormgod on 07/13/2011 - 07.26

"It's Sunday," he said quietly, arching an eyebrow at her expectantly. She took a step back, snatching up her open checkbook as he folded his arms over the counter. He smiled at the confused expression spreading across her face and she felt herself blush.
"Excuse me?"
His face lost its lazy, comradely smile. He straightened. "You do know that it's 10 a.m. on a Sunday, right? I'm surprised you're not rattling off Hail Marys while you're waiting in line."
"Oh." Claire looked down at the conveyer belt full of frozen peas and canned tomatoes. No wonder she couldn't buy wine for the wake. How bad had the past week been when she couldn't even remember the day? "Everyone's at church, then, I suppose."
The slightly mocking curl was back to the cashier's lips. "Ding ding ding. You and me must be the only ones in town not dozing through the sermon. And don't pretend that they won't notice. You might just be the talk of the town today."
As though she wasn't already. "I'll be in the church tonight, so that should count for something," Claire murmured. Back in that church with the spiteful old Mrs. Vanderzanden and the holier-than-thou condescension of Grace Nordyke. Claire looked around at the shelves of bright, cheerful products, gleaming under the bland flourescent lighting. It was kind of nice to be alone in here. The cold rush of air conditioning banished the thought of the glaring sun, the muggy heat, the tiny town and smaller people. God, how she hated being back here.
The cashier looked up from examining the scratched bar code on a can of soup. His dark eyes were inviting, almost sympathetic. "Ah. You're visiting for Barry's funeral, then?"
She nodded, eyes at her feet. She shouldn't have worn the strappy sandals. Actually, it was quite possible that she had caused a scandal just by wearing jeans instead of a skirt. They clearly identified her as an outsider. When she was younger, that was what she'd wanted. Now she would have given anything for someone to treat her like a normal human being.
"Yes. He was...an old friend."
She could feel the man studying her, eyeing her clothes, her hair, her legs. If his conclusion could have popped up in electronic letters on the cash machine she couldn't decide if it would say "Heathen whore" or "Not bad."
"Well, Barry was something of an idiot, then, wasn't he?"
Claire looked up, startled, an automatic "Yes" dying in her throat. The cashier's smile seemed to pull the blood up through her skin.
"I'm just saying," he grinned. "City lady like you, Barry should have tried to keep you here. Nip that whole "friendship" problem in the bud."
She couldn't help laughing. This man understood that friendships didn't exist between the sexes here unless the two parties were related. "Well, you got one thing right. Barry was an idiot. But it's only right to say goodbye to him."
The cashier nodded amiably. "Well, I'll be sorry to miss the service. Have to stay here tonight and pull a double shift. You know," he tilted his chin at the empty store, "Mind all the customers."
A thought occured to her. She examined the cashier. He was probably mid-forties, like her. His thin face was covered in dark stubble and his hair was thick and curly, streaked with gray. He had kind of a beaky nose.
"Why aren't you at church?" she asked, leaning in. She had been out of this town for over ten years. Maybe there were new people here, now. People who knew that there were religious options other than "Practicing Methodist." People who spat in the face of custom. People who didn't think it was her "wifely and Christian duty" to return home to bury a man that she hadn't been married to in almost a decade.
"Just putting the 'talents' the Lord gave me to good use," the man parabled easily. He began compiling her items in plastic bags, grouping the vegetables together and separating out the meat. By the end of the night she would have people she hated using her veggie platters and cold cut trays as meeting places to discuss her return, their hateful eyes dissecting her across the room.
"I'm Claire," she said impulsively, reaching over the conveyer belt.
"Alex," the cashier replied, taking her hand with a surprised look.
"Hey, if you're still around tonight, I might be back here."
His mouth bloomed into a full smile. "Well, I could sure use the company. Not much else to do."
She fingered the straps on her purse. "It'd be nice to have someone to talk to. I can't really do that with my ex's parents..."
She trailed off as his brow furrowed. "Your ex?"
"Barry," she said slowly. "He was my husband. Just for a few years, but..."
Alex's expression had turned stony. "Oh."
"But we weren't when he...." Understanding began to dawn. "Oh. I'm sorry. Never mind."
"67.39," he said, looking down.
A cold hand settled over her heart. The air conditioning was the whole town's breath on the back of her neck. She felt like she was being slowly swallowed. Keeping her eyes on her checkbook and trying to bite back the urge to run and never stop, she paid and took her receipt.
Mechanically, Alex handed her the gathered straps of her plastic bags. His eyes were different now. They crawled across her skin. She felt stripped and raw.
"Have a good day, Miss," he said.
The cold settled in her belly like a stone. She took her purchases and headed for the sliding door, back into the merciless heat. The bags weighed heavily in her arms, like loneliness, like grief.

added by: author B.K. on 07/13/2011 - 07.43

....

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Is there anything in the bottom of your cart?”

Claire glanced down at the 50-pound bag of Purina Monkey Chow. “Just that,” she pointed. “Do you need me to hoist it up for you?”

The checker shook his head. “I've got it.”

He pulled out the scan gun and rang up the monkey chow. “Cash or barter?” he asked.

“Barter,” Claire replied. She reached into her purse and pulled out a gold-engraved cigarette case.

“I can't change that,” the checker said. “Do you have anything smaller?”

Claire dropped the cigarette case back into her purse and rooted around. Usually she carried small power tools and dental equipment, but today the pickings were slim. “How about this?” she asked, proffering a clear plastic box containing a scintillating iridescent scorpion.

The cashier nodded and took the box, handing Claire three small conch shells in change. As Claire tucked them into her purse, she scarcely noticed that the cashier was now her brother-in-law, Phil. “See you at six, then?” he asked.

Claire smiled. “I'll be there. Tell Mavis I'll bring my famous armadillo pot pie.”

“Mom?”

Claire turned around to spot her 10-year-old son, Jordan, tugging on her coat sleeve. “What is it, honey?”

Jordan, who was now two years older, shook her arm and called out louder, “Mom!”

“For crying out loud, Jordan,” she said, stuffing the bag of monkey chow into her purse. “Can't you see I'm busy?”

“Mom!” Jordan yelled, rising up to his full 14-year-old size.

“What do you want?” Claire shouted, jerking upward.

“Mom,” Jordan said, “I need a ride to soccer practice. And if you didn't sit up half the night writing stories, you wouldn't fall asleep at the computer.”

added by: author CDunigan on 07/13/2011 - 07.50

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

Claire leaned in closer to the checker; a movement as flawless as that of a ballerina. This movement manifested when she was but a young girl; ever so popular, she was privy to all the secrets of her school chums and spent much time leaning in for a whispered confession. Although the whispering confessions had ceased, she still yet leaned in when about to hear something confidential.

"We are the only ones here today Claire." the whispered words seemed rather ominous when coupled with the fact that the checker actually knew her name!

Claire immediately stood erect and stepped back from the young man. Well, evidenced by the spray of acne upon his face and the wispy, scant beard, she thought he was really just a teenager.

"How do you know my name." Claire barely recognized her own voice, usually so chirpy and articulate. Now it was a mere breathless string of words that came from her quivering lips.

"I know everything about you Claire, and you did enter the market through the red door. You have no reason to fear me." The checker looked straight into her eyes as he spoke.

"I came in through the same door that I have been entering for the past ten years, and it is definitely not a red door!" Claire's voice sounded normal to her again and this brought her a sense of power.

The checker told her to look again, and to her surprise she did see that the door was indeed red.

"Do you not recognize me?" the boy asked her.

Claire was just about to answer him with a resounding no when she noticed his lopsided grin.

"Tommy?" she whispered and reached for the counter to steady herself. "What manner of trick is this! My brother is dead!"

"Yes Claire, my physical body is dead, but my soul is alive. I have come here to tell you that you must wake up, it is not your time to pass from this realm. You have more to do, and your children need your guidance."

The checker put his hand to Claire's forehead and she closed her eyes.

"Mother, please wake up!"

Claire opened her eyes. "Have I overslept?"

added by: author A-069232 on 07/13/2011 - 08.14

The checker with smokey grey eyes and sandy blonde hair slowly whispered, "Shh, don't let them hear you."

Claire responded with surprise in her voice, "Who?"

"The little green guys from outer space who have taken over the store."

"Excuse me?" Claire choked out.

"Just kidding" said the man with the gorgeous grey eyes and rugged jawline.

Claire managed a nervous smile then relaxed.
"Naturally good-looking, in a cowboy sort of way. Must be a lady's man," thought Claire to herself.

While she was daydreaming, he explained, "This little town is always quiet on Sundays. Today is especially slow in here because of the rodeo in the next town over. Most of the town goes."

"Aren't you into rodeos?" Claire asked. "You look like a rodeo type."

The checker chuckled. "Name's Todd Marks," he said extending his rough, tanned hand. "How did you figure me out?"

"You're wearing a western shirt and cowboy boots," she said smilng not quite a grin and not quite a sarcastic smirk.

A smile spread across his face. "Gives me away every time. Darn, I guess I don't pretend to be some other kind of guy well." He paused then added, "I didn't catch your name, ma'am. A pretty lady like you has to have a nice name."

"My name, uhm, is Claire, Claire Baxter. I'm new in town. Actually I'm new to Texas altogether if you hadn't figured that out already."

"Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Claire said as she headed toward the door. As she walked to her car she thought "Who was this handsome Todd and why wasn't he at the rodeo?" Oh well, she wouldn't find out today. She might not ever have the courage to ask him, not after what she'd been through. Men were on her out list.

added by: author A-068392 on 07/13/2011 - 08.31

UGH! Sorry for the duplication, and everyone knows I'm not big on grammar, but I couldn't leave it alone. Every time I saw a mistake it broke the flow of the story.




“The Short End Of The Stick”



Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Why? Are you afraid to be in the store alone with me?” He leaned back to his normal standing position and grabbed the next item on the conveyor.

Claire was startled. She hadn’t meant it that way, but the fact that he suggested it made her think that she SHOULD be concerned.

The checker was an older man, perhaps in his late fifties. He was clean shaven and wore his hair cropped short. His face was more weathered than tanned, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and mouth made her think of dry creek gulches in the desert Southwest. They weren’t the result of frequent smiling. His blue eyes were extremely pale and would have been beautiful on a handsome man. The checker was not handsome.

He was not muscular, but his muscles were visible. They were like connective cords moving beneath his skin, wiry and tough, drawn and strong, but not in a way that suggested health or strength. One of his ears was cauliflowered, and he had a faded green tattoo on the upper surface of his arm just above his right wrist, the name “Linda” in scratchy cursive.

“If I was afraid,” she said nervously, “I wouldn’t have come shopping when I saw no cars in the parking lot. I see you every time I shop here. I feel almost as if I know you.”


The checker glanced up at her from under his brows as he passed a can of corn over the scanner window. Lady,” he said, reaching for another can without looking at it, “you don’t know me.”

She realized that was true. She saw him at least once per week when she shopped. Sometimes she made an additional stop in between her regular shopping trips. He was always on duty. But, she always shopped during the same time of day. It wasn’t as if he was always in the store, was it? Still, she realized that she didn’t KNOW him. She only recognized him. He didn’t wear a name tag of any sort, and she didn’t know his name.

“No,” she said, “I guess I don’t. But I come here so often that I should! My name is Claire, by the way.” She smiled tentatively. He didn’t offer his own name, or acknowledge hers in any way. He just continued to scan her groceries. The machine chimed monotonously as the tangle of red laser light washed over each bar code in turn. “Have you worked here long?”

The man glanced up at her again, and again the corner of his mouth twitched, but he made no response. Now his silence was making her feel awkward, and when she felt awkward she talked even more, as if filling the silence with her own voice would blanket her with familiarity.

I was here just Saturday,” she said, “but I didn’t buy any bread. I stopped in today on my way home, just for the bread, but thought I might as well buy a few other things while I was here. Make less to carry next Saturday, right? Plus, with no one here, it’s easy to take my time and look for things, isn’t it?”

The checker said nothing as he placed a cucumber on the scanner to weigh it.

“I don’t usually buy those kinds of cucumbers,” she said, again filling the silence. “’Cukes’ my father called them. He grew them every year, and I never really liked them. I usually buy those English ones, do you know which ones I mean? The ones that are in the shrink wrap? But you didn’t have those, so I thought, oh, well, just get the regular old cucumbers!”

The checker placed the cucumber into a bag on the carousel and hit the key on the touch screen register. “Forty-three twenty seven,” he said, “Claire.” He emphasized her name, as if he was taunting her, but his expression didn’t change.

“Oh! I didn’t think you heard me,” she said, placing her large purse on the counter and opening it.

“Things aren’t always what they seem,” he said. His voice was tired, bitter. Almost accusing, as if the difficulties in his life were somehow laid at her feet, were her fault.

“No,” she said, “they certainly aren’t.” The gun was very large, and he had a second to wonder how she had gotten it out of the purse so smoothly before it flashed with a sharp, deafening –CRACK!-

He instantly felt hot and out of breath and there was a metallic taste in his mouth. He fell backwards into a sitting position, and he felt like the fall should have been painful, should have knocked the air from his lungs, but all he felt was dizzy. A red stain bloomed on the front of his shirt, and he heard a rattling, almost snapping sound come from the wound.

“Now, I’m not going to be coming back here,” Claire said, stepping around him to the opened register drawer. “It’s not that I’m unhappy with the store, or the quality of your merchandise. I just don’t think it would be a good idea to come back, with those surveillance cameras watching all of this. The police are going to be quite angry, and I’ll bet your boss is going to be cross with me too, isn’t he?”

The checker’s vision began to blur.

“Oh,” she said lightly, smiling her friendliest smile and lifting the cash drawer to get at the large bills underneath it, “I don’t guess that will matter to you, will it? You aren’t going to be here either.” He heard her laugh, chuckle, almost. “Although, maybe it does matter to you. As you said, I don’t really know you, do I?”

Her laughter was quiet, grew quieter, and that was all he knew

added by: author Stormgod on 07/13/2011 - 08.38

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Sorry I was lost in thought late night last at “Breen’s Pub” welcome to Murphy`s

store, I’m Ned Murphy

You must be from America, First time in Ireland?”
Ned said shaking Claire`s hand.

“What gave it away” she replied smiling.

“It was your strong Irish accent and LL Bean Jacket”

“Yes, flew into Shannon airport yesterday “

“Ah Your staying at Sean`s B@B then he told me he had a guest staying this week, it’s a small village here and word travels quickly”

“So that means I’m the local attraction, do I get the front page”

“Well, only if you murder someone”

Claire burst out laughing, she had heard that the Irish were quick witted.

“So, Ned why is it so quiet”

“Oh, it’s Sunday everyone’s at mass, should be ending soon, we only have the one service as we are a small village”

“So why are you not in attendance?”

“Falling out with the local priest I’m afraid, dated his sister some time back and she caught me with Someone else, been bad blood between us ever since”

“Ladies man then”

“Well, let’s just say I drink too much and let my guard down, not blaming the drink it was my decision,never been much for commitment”

“Well I have to get back to Sean`s expecting a call from my commitment in Portland Oregon, But It was nice meeting you”

“Same here, oh we have a talent show tonight at Breen’s, lots of local talent, will be singing myself. Hope to see you? “

“Well if that’s where action is, Maybe?”
Claire said with a big smile as she lifted her bag of groceries of the Check stand and walked out the door.

Love that accent, would like to be Mr. Commitment in Portland Oregon wherever that is Ned thought as he closed the till while he watched Claire walk down the village street on that warm august morning.

added by: author A-076026 on 07/13/2011 - 09.21

"I actually prefer it this way." he answered. "Last evening we had a large group of customers. They were stepping on things, dropping things, and breaking things. They left such a mess that I had to spend some overtime cleaning. Pickles on the floor, busted juice jugs in the fridge, cracked eggs in the bakery section: these folks wrecked the store. . . ." Just then a man entered the store. He looked left, he looked right, then he shuffled out quickly. Claire and the clerk exchanged glances. Then the phone rang. Ted, the clerk, rushed to answer it. It was the police. the officer bellowed, "Have you seen a man in a gray shirt and blue shorts running down Main Street." "Well," said Ted, "a man just walked into my store and then left in a hurry." "Did he look scared?" "Absolutely." "Which way did he go." "East." "Thank you." When Ted returned Claire was somewhat stunned. "What is going on?" she inquired. Ted explained, "You know that fellow that just came in?" Claire nodded. "The cops are looking for him." Soon there was a commotion outside. Twelve police cars roared by turning off their sirens as they passed. Then followed a couple of officers with dogs, and, finally, an armored truck lumbered down the street. The clerk quickly rang up Claire's groceries. They only cost $25.12. But as Claire was beginning to make her way to the door, a man clothed in a blue uniform and holding a megaphone pronounced, "Do not leave any business establishments, homes, cars, or other places at this time. We are in the midst of a manhunt, and we don't want to confuse you with the wanted suspect." Claire tiptoed back to her spot at the checkout counter. With a soft smile, she said to Ted, "I guess I'll be here for a while."

added by: author A-077004 on 07/13/2011 - 09.58

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"Wanna see the monster?"

Claire wasn't sure she had heard him right and politely, yet warily, asked him to repeat himself.

"Wanna see the monster?" the checker repeated.

Claire had been puting up with cheesy pick up lines all day long at work and the last thing she wanted to see was this guy's "monster". She stepped back and raised an eyebrow, silently warning him to quit right there. The checker crawled up on the counter and asked her again.

"Wanna see the monster?"

Rage built up inside Claire and she looked into her empty shopping cart for something to hit him with. Lacking a weapon, she mustered up the strength of two overweight teenaged video gamers and shakily hoisted the shopping cart itself over her head. Just as she was about to swing it forward, the floor below her feet gave way and she tumbled head over cart into the basement.

After realizing she hadn't perished in the fall, Claire's attention was immediately drawn to the excruciating pain in her upper thighs. Feeling around in the dark, she quickly realized that during the fall her legs had become lodged in the child seat portion of the shopping cart. She wiggled her way out of her temporary prison and set about the task of finding the back staircase out of there. She was crawling her way across and over a pile of what she assumed was fifty year old groceries when she heard it. It was a low rumble that slowly built up in volume before ending with three or four seconds of dead silence, and then it would start again.

"The monster!" Claire whispered to herself, suddenly sorry for misunderstanding the clerk upstairs.

Just as the next loud moan started, she heard rushing footsteps over her head. She tried to mentally follow them, hoping they would lead to an exit from the dust mite infested hell she had found herself in. She soon realized that the monster was located directly between her and the exit she longed for. She flattened herself out and literally slithered across the concrete floor. The rumbling was so loud this close that she wasn't sure if she would be able to stand it. After what seemed like a half hour, she made it to the bottom of the staircase. She placed a hand on the bottom step and started to stand when she suddenly froze. Standing right in front of her face was a pair of black leather motorcycle boots. She bent her neck back to see what was connected to the motorcycle boots and saw the face of the checker from upstairs.

"Wanna see the monster?" he said.

Claire scrambled up the stairs without looking back and made a bee line for the front door. She pushed on the door to get out and it wouldn't budge. She stepped back to let the next customer come in so she could get out. He looked around at the empty store inside.

"Strange that no one's here today" he said.

Claire stared straight ahead.

The corner of her mouth twitched.

added by: author A-076170 on 07/13/2011 - 10.23

Grocery Night

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward. By his expression, Claire figured he’d been about to say something smart, but he was hers now. Her inane conversation had at last caused him to meet her gaze, and now the young man swayed on his feet with his eyes unfocused. His hand, limp on the package of bread, alternately squeezed and relaxed as some dim, subverted corner of his mind twitched and railed against her control.

Claire’s mouth quirked. “Please don’t crush my bread,” the flicker of a glance she gave his name tag made her roll her eyes and groan. “Jayden.” The pretentiousness and single-minded obsession with individuality possessing modern parents made Claire’s head hurt.

Slack-faced, Jayden yanked his hand from the bread loaf as though it burned. “I’m so sorry.” His voice came out hollow, void of character or emotion.

“It’s alright.” Claire smiled, touching the tip of her tongue to one of her finely-pointed canines. Pretentious name or not, Jayden would have to do. “I won’t be eating it, anyway. But you can. You do like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, don’t you? All boys do.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He swayed a little. Claire tucked one errant strand of hair, fallen from her timeless updo, behind her ear and she gestured to her few remaining groceries.

“Do keep ringing me up, dear boy.” Jayden resumed his work with mechanical efficiency, though his eyes remained frozen on Claire. She continued giving him directions between the machine’s beeps, her voice infused with the barest touch of power.

“It is a bit before four in the morning, I think. I take it you know when your shift ends?”

“Fifteen minutes.”

“Good. Finish my transaction here. I will pay you, take my groceries, and go to my car. I’d like you to finish your shift like any other night. Then come out to my car, the one in the rear of the lot.” Claire smiled again, the tips of her fangs visible. Jayden didn’t react. “The one without the cameras. Do you understand?”

“Yes.” The final beep chimed as a few garlic bulbs joined her groceries. Claire enjoyed irony in her cooking, and her spaghetti was a simple dish perfected for over sixty years. “Your total will be $32.95.”

Claire paid cash and gathered her bags. Though well within her power to bypass paying for a few groceries, she understood human nature well enough to know a corporation would investigate a thirty dollar shortage long before they did a missing clerk. “Thank you. Goodnight.” She turned to go, breaking her gaze and releasing her hold. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Jayden blink and shake his head, frowning as he looked after her. He narrowed his eyes as if trying to recognize her through a piece of thick frosted glass, then shrugged and resumed his bored posture. Her orders took root. He would come to her, though he himself would not know why.

In defiance to the folklore, Claire caught a glimpse of her reflection in the sliding doors. Others of her kind preferred the clubs and bars alive with youth, or else the streets ripe with the homeless and lost, but Claire’s appearance revealed why she did not hunt as they did. As she had been, as she always would be, she was less a monster and far more a replica of the nuclear family housewife. Her hair would always be blonde and in timeless, upswept style, her make-up immaculate, her blouse and skirt pressed, and her beauty on the edge of fading in the in-between zone of a woman’s 40s and 50s. That was Claire, forever, and her haunts were grocery aisles and a well-stocked kitchen.

She put her bags into the car and sat in her driver’s seat to wait. From her purse, she withdrew a compact and a tube of lipstick to touch up her face. “Don’t feel bad,” she scolded her reflection.”Times have changed. There is no shame in grabbing a bit of fast food on grocery night.” Claire blotted her lips on a tissue. The color resembled blood, making her stomach growl. She sighed and snapped her compact shut. “Be the health food gourmet tomorrow,” she muttered to herself, looking out the window to see her food approaching, “and hopefully tonight’s indulgence won’t go straight to your hips.”

added by: author Cath on 07/13/2011 - 10.42

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"No never! But maybe it has something to do with the economy."

"Is that going to be all for today?" the checker asked Claire.

Claire said, "I guess so, but I hope everything gets better for the store. I would really hate to see it close, I love shopping here."

As Claire gets ready to leave she hears a loud sound like a trumpet blowing. She wonders what it can be. She was amazed at how beautiful the sound was, and wondered where it was coming from.
She follows the sound to the park where she sees a crowd of hundreds of people gathered together all dressed up for some special occasion. She recognizes alot of the people who normally would shop in the store she had just left. She starts asking each one she came to what was going on. One would just shrug and turn away. Another would just giggle. But finally the crowd cleared and standing on the platform was my boyfriend that had been away serving in the military. He had came back to surprise me in a very special way. The whole town was in on his surprise. He got down right there in front of everybody and asked me to marry him. And, of course, I was very surprised to see him and even more surprised to hear him ask for my hand in marriage. So, if you go into a store and its deserted ask yourself why and see where your townfolks are and boyfriend. You never know you may get surprised too. And, by the way, I said YES....

added by: author A-075261 on 07/13/2011 - 10.49

"I've been alone for atleast an hour now. This is the first time I've ever seen it this slow too"said the checker. "The girl's on register 6 and 8 are on break again and the manager is in the back taking inventory. I've seen you in here before" he added.
"I shop here a couple times a week. I could see if it was cold and snowing like hell or a thunderstorm, but at ten past five on a thursday. I dont know? Even the parking lot is empty" said Claire.
"I would'nt worry about it, maybe the president is making speach on the tube and everybody is glued to the tv waiting for the punch line. You know how them politicians tell some jokes?" said the checker.
Claire laughed, "Your a funny guy" she said. I dont remember seeing you in here before. How long have you been working here?"she asked.
"I've been at this store for about three months, but i was across town by the old plaza for about a year at that store. I guess i got promoted, or relocated, one or the other." he answered
"You mean the one thats being remolded?" asked Claire.
"Yes, that's the one." he replied.
The checker continued to bag Claire's groceries as she looked him over. He was about the same age as she. He must be in school somewhere and this is a job he needs to help pay the tuition, she thought.
"So what do you want to be when you grow up?" she asked.
He chuckled and said "I'm not sure i want to grow up, but I hope to be writing books that make beautiful ladies like yourself wish they were the main characters in the story.
"Oh your good, so you want to be a writer?" she asked.
"Well that depends on the peolpe who are reading this right now?" he answered.

added by: author A-076866 on 07/13/2011 - 11.07

Hi Authors,

There are so many great posts on this entry! Even though the newsletter went out Friday, it looks like it's still making the rounds through the 70,000+ email addresses in the system. Because some people are just getting the email, I'm extending the contest over the weekend. We'll make some decisions on Monday, but it's going to be tough!

Best Wishes,
Keira

added by:  Textbroker  on 07/13/2011 - 11.18

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

“Today is my first day.”

She looks in his eyes. “You’re here all by yourself on your first day?”

“Am I doing it wrong?”

She laughs. “So far so good.”

He continues scanning. “So what do you do when you’re not buying groceries?”

She notes his flirtation and ponders. “Well, I cook said groceries, work part time at the noodle house down the street, and I moonlight as a magician.”

“I love noodles. I eat there all the time. Why have I never seen you?” he asks.

“Well, do you ever go in the back and watch the cooks?”

“No. I usually just eat. Sometimes participate in the weekly trivia contests. Mostly just the noodles, though.”

“Well, maybe that’s it. “ A brief pause. “Or that I don’t really work there. I’ve been focusing on my magic recently.”

He’s finished scanning her groceries. “Can I see a trick?”

“Yes. I can make all of these groceries disappear. Without the exchange of money.”

He laughs. “I like your style, but I can’t let you do that.”

“Sure you can.” She winks.

“Are you trying to get me fired on my first day?”

“That’s not really my problem is it?” Her smile fades. “This is my trick. And it’s happening. I can’t leave an audience unsatisfied.”

He looks at her curiously for a moment. “So really—“

She cuts him off with her index finger. Then she motions to her jacket pocket where her other hand sits in the form of a gun, pointed at him.

“I need this trick. I need these groceries.”

“Well I need this job. So what are we going to do?”

“You lose. Bag them. I’m leaving.”

“I’m not going to do that. Show me the gun.”

“A magician never reveals her tricks.”

He looks at the groceries and back at her. “I’m calling your bluff.”

She looks at him for several seconds and then removes her hand from her pocket. It’s just her fingers with no gun. “You win.”

She looks at the groceries and then back at him. “Keep them. I don’t need ‘em.”

She turns and walks out the store with a smirk on your face.

Inside the store, the checker notices the cash register is slightly ajar. He opens it up and all the cash is gone. His face goes white, and he runs out the door.

added by: author Benjamin on 07/14/2011 - 12.00

Claire responded with a puzzled , yet understanding, look of astonishment. "You don't mean to tell me you haven't heard about the bizarre happening at the Plaza after your departure?" The checker leaned even closer, listening intently. He was hoping against hope she would continue her conversation. He was very anxious to hear what had happened at his old plaza location. As the suspense grew, he became more and more anxious about what Claire was beginning to tell him. Claire spoke in a low, hardly audible voice. " You must listen very carefully and promise never to divulge what I am about to say." "I promise, I promise, no one will ever hear from from these lips of mine. My lips are sealed," the checker said quietly, not wanting anyone to hear. Even tho the store was near empty, several people had entered as the double door opened to let a young child exit. As the young child exited Claire left the checker, quite to his dismay. The checker now wondered if Claire was about to reveal the secret of a story that would make his first novel a big success.

added by: author A-066993 on 07/14/2011 - 12.34

“Yes,” he whispered, as he reached for the strawberries.

Claire began to feel uneasy. Her heart began to race as a wave of panic was rising inside her. She forced herself to remain calm.

She didn’t usually shop at this store. She was on her way to her sister’s house for Sunday brunch. Her sister was serving those tuna salad sandwiches they both loved to eat by the pool with a few fresh fruits and celery. She had called her with a list of things to pick up on her way over. It would have been out of her way to go to the Supermarket on East 3rd Street, so she decided to stop at this little “mom and pop” store to save time.

The clerk continued to ring up her groceries at an unusually slow pace. She felt as though everything was happening in slow motion. She noticed that he was perspiring. He had beads of sweat on his forehead and his t-shirt was damp under the arms. The urge to leave the store without her groceries was nearly overwhelming.

Again, she glanced around the store. There wasn’t a soul in sight. She looked out into the parking lot in hopes of finding an approaching customer, but there were none. Her knees nearly buckled as she recognized that there were no cars in the parking lot except hers. Even the sight of her black Pontiac Grand Am with tinted windows seemed intensely eerie in the only occupied space in a totally deserted parking lot. She wondered why she hadn’t noticed this when she arrived? Surely there was another vehicle or two when she pulled up, right? She couldn’t remember.

The checker was still scanning and bagging items for what seemed like an hour, when she knew it had only been a few minutes.

Finally he announced, “That will be $21.56, please.” She quickly handed him thirty dollars and anxiously waited for her change, although she wanted to simply run toward the door, she managed to keep her composure and walk at a normal pace. Everything inside her screamed, “RUN!” But she refused to allow this strange event to cause her to react just as strangely.

She was nearly there, about five feet from the automatic doors, and just as they began to open she heard him say “It happens every time.”

She stopped and slowly turned to him and said, “Every time?”

Yeah, we aren't open on Sunday. I was in here stocking shelves, cleaning the floor and the bathrooms. Someone comes in to buy groceries every time I come in to get some work done and forget to lock the door behind me,” he said with a wink and a smile.

added by: author SsCraig on 07/14/2011 - 01.53

Claire could feel her heart begin to pound in her chest as the checker's face moved closer.
"yes, this happens late at night as usual." The checker's mouth began to twitch once more.
Claire moved to her left towards her basket. Reaching in and grabbing the bag of garlic. The checker's eyes opened wide and the surprise and the horror crept upon his face. Backing away, the checker eyed the exit and ran towards the door. As the exit door opened, Claire could see the light of dawn reflecting on the open door. Claire began laughing hysterically as the checker disappeared into the dawn's light.

added by: author aprilrose on 07/14/2011 - 03.29

"Look, I've had a long day, and my sense of humor is nearly as exhausted as I am. If this is a joke, I'm not getting it. Has what ever happened before?" the checker said, with a slight urgency in his voice.

Claire, puzzled by his reaction, looked around the store again.

"The way the store's so empty. Has it ever been that way in the past?" she repeated.

The checker put down the can he was preparing to scan, and looked Claire directly in the eyes. His expression was guarded.

"It's not empty. It's full of people, and you're holding them up. I could get in trouble for letting the line get like this. Now, would you stop kidding around?" he said.

Shocked, Claire said "What are you talking about? Look around you!" and turned, sweeping her arm around to indicate the desolate store. She heard a clanking noise behind her. Turning around, she saw her can rolling away on the tiled floor. There was no cashier.

In a daze, she took her bags and walked out of the shop. She kept walking, as long as her legs held out, but she never found another person.

added by: author Slade on 07/14/2011 - 04.34

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

______________________________________________________________
...and slowly spread a very sharp and jagged smile at her as he swiped at and tried to grab Claire over the counter. She was taken aback with revulsion and fright and fell backward against the opposite and deserted cashier's aisle.

The checker's eyes seemed to cloud up and soon became as black as Onyx marbles. He began to shed the skin that made him, 'him,' it was mind boggling. The astonishment and shock suddenly wore off as she saw what looked like pain on his misshapen face. During this transformation, still reeling, she skidded backward across the floor, stumbling through the candy and the magazines. She gained her footing, but she couldn't feel her legs. The moment felt utterly surreal to her. She knew the front door was blocked by this monster, the thoughts coming to her in a flash, she ran back through the aisles of the store, as he bounded over the counter. Claire fought down the urge to just fall down and give up. She thought she would just wake up in a bad dream of some kind.

Claire still couldn't feel her legs, she just acted on sheer adrenaline, instinct and her base sense of self-preservation. As she ran to try to find a hiding place or another way out of the store, she cautioned a look over her shoulder, and saw whatever 'he' had become gaining ground. She imagined she could smell the stench of his rancid breath on her neck and it moved her more into survival mode.

Because his or its eyes weren't yet acclimated to the florescent lights of the grocery store, he was running blind as well. He was tracking her strictly by sound. She instinctively knew that bit of luck would not last very long. Soon he would be able to track her by sight also. Coincidentally, she was wearing sweats and running shoes. She had just popped into the store to pick up a few things for dinner. She didn't notice or pay any attention to many people on the streets, when the lack thereof finally dawned on her while she was shopping. She found a back room that was used for storage, with a one-way mirror and ducked in quietly. It was dark and secluded with a blocked back door. She knew there was a back door because she could see a tiny line of daylight creeping from underneath it. She hid under one of the big oak desks on the back wall close to the door, slowed her breathing, as it was ragged, mostly from the rush of adrenaline, and made not one sound. She ran 5 miles every morning, so she was not too winded.

She knew he was still in the interior of the store, because he was running into and tripping over the things she pulled off the shelves and threw as she ran. He was still coming her way. She had to figure out how to direct him back to the front of the store so that she could unblock and get out of that back door. She didn't know what awaited her behind the store, but she was all too painfully aware of what she would have to deal with inside.

Claire had a zippo lighter in her pocket, which she just happened to find on the running trail that same morning. She flipped the lid as quietly as she could and hoped he would not see the ignition of the lighter. In the firelight, she saw there were old unused lockers. She looked carefully over the desk to try to get a bead on the creature, she didn't hear him stumbling over anything anymore. She saw him plodding back her way. She extinguished the lighter's flame at once, praying he didn't see it. He slid past her room, as though he didn't even see the door. Claire was scared out of her mind, but she was confident she could find something to either protect herself or to escape with. She waited until he was at the further end of the store and she commenced to opening each of the locker doors.

She found a ring of keys and relief flooded her heart. She convinced herself not to get too happy or cocky. The main thing was she needed to remain calm. To panic right now would mean certain capture or death. She wasn't sure of 'its' intentions at the moment, but she was not trying to stick around to find out. She quickly, but quietly moved the boxes out of way of the exit door and deftly started to test each one of the keys on the lock.

She heard it coming back her way and realized she was running out of time. She couldn't panic now, she was so close to freedom. What she did was to put the boxes she removed from the back door, in front of the entrance door. This would afford her a little more time before it was on her and she would have to fight for her life. It started to turn her doorknob, her nerves were frayed. She was down to the last 3 of the keys, her nerves were jangled. As the boxes began to move, she finally found the key. She quickly unlocked the lock on the door and opened it to the alley of the supermarket. Sweating profusely, she looked back and started to run out into who knew what, when she heard someone yell, "Hot Damn, Cut it and Print it, that's a wrap people."

Claire had run onto the set of a horror movie by mistake and the director wanted to see where it would go. She was both scared and pissed off at the same time, she was truly unaware that she was the star of a movie. On the morning she was running, she had run the path for so long, she stopped paying attention to it anymore. She dropped into the store just for a moment.

After her adrenaline finally slowed to a rush, she calmed down enough to see the run back of that particular scene. She could finally crack some semblance of a smile and thought, there was something to this survival thing. She took self-defense classes after that.

added by: author A-073343 on 07/14/2011 - 05.55

“I said you have beautiful eyes,” he murmured softly, peering into her face over the edge of brown rimmed spectacles. His right hand automatically reached for the bottle of olive oil approaching on the moving conveyor belt. His gaze never left her face.
Claire looked down at the cash in her hand, pretending shyness to avoid responding. Thoughts bounced around in her head. Was he flirting with her? She was old enough to be his mother. It was common for her to receive compliments about her eyes. An inheritance from her Norwegian grandmother, they had a violet tone with a pronounced black ring. Perhaps that’s all it was: just an observation. He seemed harmless, yet there was no one in the store. If she were to acknowledge him, where might it lead?
Looking back toward the empty aisles again, Claire’s glance fell across the counter. Only five more items were left on the belt. The checker had turned away from the scanner to bag the cereal boxes and juice cartons. Claire chanced a glance at his back. Green apron strings hung in an untidy knot across his white cotton shirt. His black jeans stretched tight as he reached to grab a rolling can. A square of folded light blue paper stuck up from the right back pocket. The shirt fabric was so soft she could see his arm muscles ripple as they tensed and relaxed while he lifted several bags into the shopping cart.
The last of the items were passing through the scanner and into a waiting bag. The checker hit the total key and smiled at her. “Your total is $69.85. Do you have a bonus card with us?”
Claire dropped her key ring into his offered hand. He scanned the card and the register whirred again. A long paper receipt flowed out of the top, colorful with coupons printed on the reverse. She noticed his name tag read “Steven, Floor Manager.”
“You saved $12.50 shopping with us today!” He told her, giving her the receipt and returning the key ring. His fingers brushed hers gently as she passed him the cash.
In that instant, she made her decision. “Thank you for your compliment. I have Norwegian eyes from my grandmother. You are quite observant.”
“Really?” The checker’s eyebrows lifted in amazement. “I’ve only known one other person with eyes like yours. They look just like my grandma’s eyes, too.”
She looked at him sharply. Tears had welled up and begun spilling over his cheeks. He removed his spectacles and brushed his eyes with the back of his hand.
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled in a choked whisper. “My grandma died last week. I miss her so much.”
“Well then. Your name is not Steven.” Claire stated with sudden revelation. “You are Danny.”
“What? How’d you know that?”
“Because my grandmother died last week. You’re my youngest cousin! You were only two years old the last time I saw you! Imagine us meeting like this!”
“Ah ha!” Danny’s grin would have fit a sliced watermelon. He pushed the cart forward and bounded quickly around the counter, enfolding Claire in a bear hug. “Welcome to Ely, Cuzz! That sure explains a lot!”
“Yes?” Claire’s voice was muffled against Danny’s chest. “We are definitely related. You hug just like Grandpa John.”
“Yes, and to answer your other questions. You haven’t been back in years. You probably don’t remember what it’s like in this town. Here, everyone knows everyone. Today is Grandma’s funeral.” He took the blue paper out of his back pocket and smoothed it on the counter. “Everyone in town is going. She was like everyone’s Grandma. I opened the store to give out food trays for the reception. As I was closing, I saw you parking so I waited. Figured you were a tourist or something. There’s no other stores open, so you wouldn’t have been able to buy anything if I had closed.”
“Thank goodness you waited. The cabin I rented has a kitchen but no provisions.”
“Why’d you rent a place? You could have stayed with one of us, you know? Nobody said you were coming!”
“Well, it was sort of a last minute decision. Wasn’t sure I’d make it through the blizzard. I didn’t want to say I was coming and then not make it. Hey, keep this quiet just between us until the memorial service, will you? I want it to be a surprise.”
Danny looked at her curiously.
“Well, sure Cuzz. I guess.”
“It’s really important that you not tell anyone. Please promise me.”
“Sure.” His eyes questioned her.
“Certain people won’t like it that I came, you know,” she said quietly.
He nodded thoughtfully, and then brightened. “You know what you need?” he asked, smiling again.
“No, what?”
“Someone on your side. Count me in. Now, let’s get these groceries to your car. I need to close up.”
“Thanks, Danny. Wow. I still can’t believe we met by chance.”
They crunched through the snow being cautious to avoid ice patches, each carrying several bags to the car trunk. He waived as she drove off. Back in the store, Danny hung his apron in the back room. Before closing the lights and locking the door, he removed a paper from his shirt pocket and carefully opened it. The photograph looked just like her. He reread the note his father had scrawled: “This is Claire. I think she’s coming. Keep your eyes open. If you see her, call me right away.” Danny tore up the note, letting the pieces drop into the trash.

added by: author A-057888 on 07/14/2011 - 07.01

"Ma'm its a witching hour"

"oh?"

"Yes, all good citizens are taking siesta behind closed shutters...." His smile leaked across his face carrying its own message of accusal.

"I...I...didn't know...." She hesitated but caught herself, "...and you sir?"

His laugh was guttural, low and filled with mocking pleasure.

"Just saying, Ma'm"

He looked across the conveyor, over her peaches and fresh twigs of sage, to show his sincere dark brown eyes under black lashes. His olive skin was shiny with perspiration. His full lips and shocking white teeth carried a cruel line.

"Thank you, I'll hurry home" She replied, trying to keep a neutral tone. "Many Blessing to you sir"

The paper bag weighed oddly in her hands as the peaches rolled around. She brought the clump of sage out to carry at her side. The stillness was unnerving and the silence unnatural. Her mantra played over and over in her head while she tried to concentrate on placing her feet solidly across the pavement.

From above she heard the whisper, "Witch, witch, witch...." and picked up her pace, only three more doors and she would slip inside to safety.

added by: author filmmaven on 07/14/2011 - 08.01

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

With a crooked smile, he seemed to look straight through Claire. His icy gaze gave her goosebumps as she tried to read his eyes, looking for something that would tell her what was going on in his head. "Are you alright?", she asked the checker with a hint of nervousness in her voice. His eyes looked as if they were on fire, "I'm fine. Why do you ask?', he said with ice in his voice. Something didn't feel quite right with Claire. She stepped back a few steps, looking out into the empty parking lot, hoping to get away without being killed by this strange checker who didn't even seem human. A rush of fear seeped into her as she made a beline for the double glass doors of the supermarket. The doors locked by themselves, leaving her locked in with a raving lunatic who wanted to do God knows what to Claire.

Claire felt like screaming, but, who would hear her? There wasn't a soul around for miles. Then, a voice that seemed to echo through the store stopped her in her tracks. She was unsure what to do next. There seemed to be no escape for her. Her body shaking with fear, Claire slowly turned around, tears streaming down her face and her breathing erratic, she said in an almost whisper, "what are you going to do with me?" The checker, a tall, lean man with fiery red hair that was pulled back in a ponytail gave her an evil grin and said, "I'm going to take you to the depths of hell," as he leaped over the conveyer belt, bolting for her with the speed of light.

Claire screamed so loud she almost busted her own eardrums as the checker came at her with a machete he picked up from behind is register. Claire thought to herself, this is it. I'm going to die. As the machete came down on Claire, she put her hands up in defense, hoping he would somehow miss. She let out a horrifying scream as he brought down the machete on Claire's neck.

Claire sat straight up, sweat beading down from her forehead. "It was just a nightmare" she said with a sigh of relief, "just a nightmare."

added by: author tina1967 on 07/14/2011 - 01.35

After leaving the store, Claire looked to the sky because of the strange light shinning from above. The closer the light decend the more it began to take on the form of an Angel, at least that's what it looked like to Claire. She wandered if anyone else could see this Angel. Claire looked all around her but no one else was in sight. She knew that no one else would believe her so she hurried to see if she had a camera in her car.

Not knowing if Angels would aloud their picture taken or not, she was willing to take that chance. By the time she had arrived back to the spot that she had seen the Angel decending down, the figure had made it completely to the ground.

Claire could not believe her eyes. With the wings fully extended, Claire felt as if they were inviting her to come close as if he or she wanted to give her a hug. Claire stood frozen in her spot. Part of her wanted to run away as fast as she could and the other part of her wanted to run to this figure and put her arms around him or her.

It was hard to tell if this Angel was a man or a woman, but all she knew that it felt like all of her worries and problems just faded away the moment she got close to this Being. She wanted to say something but the words just would not come. Once Claire had gotten close enough to touch the Heavenly Being, the wings begin to engulf her and whisper so gently that everrything was going to be alright.

added by: author A-075705 on 07/14/2011 - 02.02

"Once a long time ago." the checker replied as he started to scan the rest of her groceries.

Claire's eyes sparked with interest this is what she had been waiting for, but before she could start making her plans she had to be sure. "What do you mean this has happened before?"

For a moment Claire thought that he was not going to answer her then he slowly started to speak as he began his voice was full of fear. "It happen about sixty years ago I remember my grandmother talking about it."

Claire bit down on her inpatients getting this kid to answer her was like pulling teeth. Counting backwards from five she gave to clerk a gentle nudge, "What did she tell you?"

"That on a day when all movement stops, when the harvest moon is full those who were killed by the town will find their revenge. That this will happen every sixty years until those who placed the curse break it." He gave a nervous laugh, "Grandma was a little bit nuts always saying that she was there when it happened before."

Giving an understanding nod, Claire prodded the clerk again with another question. "What did she mean by that, and how did she survive?"

"I asked her about that too and she told me once that not everyone of the town took part in the deaths, so those families were left alone. But the descendants of the people who took part in the murders all go crazy during the three nights of the full moon and then they die."

"Wow" Claire gasped fringing shock, "Who did the towns people murder?"

Before the clerk could answer they were interrupted by the swishing sounds of the automatic door opening. A tall dark haired man stepped through the door, he turned his face towards Claire. She knew him the minute she focused on his face, it had been decades since she had last seen him, for a moment time melted away and she could still feel the heat and passion that they had once shared. She knew why he was there for the same reason that she was, the only question was if he was there to help or just to drive her crazy. He didn't speak he just nodded his head then proceeded to walk towards the back of the store. When the man was out of sight Claire turned her attention back to the clerk and repeated her question.

The clerk waited a few seconds before he answered, granted Claire already knew the story without him telling her. The curse went back over five hundred years, and the story was passed down through the ages about the night that an colony had been wiped out all because a vengeful man who couldn't have what he wanted.

As Claire walked out of the store she only had two thoughts, would she be able to save the town this time and could she stay away from him long enough to save his life as well. She knew that only time would tell, but this time she was going to get it right, this time it would not win.

added by: author Pattylh on 07/14/2011 - 04.40

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.
“A man’s heart lays here as he watches the clock strike 12.”

Claire stood there in confusion while the checker continued to ring her purchase up. There was an eerie emptiness for what seemed like a century when the checker broke the silence.

“Go on, go!” stuffing the receipt in her hands.

The walk to the car felt like a scene straight out of an old western. There were no other cars in the parking lot, the sky was now a dusty grey, and there was nothing but silence, not even a bird’s chirp was heard. Claire had a sudden feeling of urgency and ran to her car dropping groceries on the way. She started the car and took a deep breath deciding that there is nothing to be worried about.

“Hello Claire”
Turning pale Claire sat still, starring at the radio.

“Claire’ the voice repeated.

“Who’s there? What do you want from me?”

“Claire you must hurry come. Time is running out.”

“Hurry where?” Claire shouted not sure if she even wanted to know.

“Remember what he told you. A man’s heart lays here as he watches the clock strike 12.”

Claire drove on repeating over in over what the checker had told her. She was terribly confused and not sure what to make of it, when suddenly she hit something. Stopping the car she contemplated whether or not she should get out and check, when suddenly something that resembled a person stood outside of her window. Its eyes were red, its nose merged with its checks, and his mouth appeared to be sewn shut.

The creature began to bang on the window. Claire drove off as fast as possible when she noticed a billboard. There was a picture of a man with his hand over his heart facing the flag. There was a clock whose time read 12 o’clock.
“A man’s heart lays here as he watches the clock strike 12” Claire repeated
Claire looked at the street signs she was on 12th and Chest Avenue. “A man’s heart lies in his chest!” she said with excitement.

She turned on to 12th and Chest Avenue and quickly noticed the watch wear house. She parked and went in where she was greeted by the checker.

“Ah, I see you made it without being beaten by the diggers.”

added by: author AnnB on 07/14/2011 - 05.18

The smell of his breath nearly knocked her down as the tired checker exhaled before speaking.

“We’ve been really slow for a few weeks now.”

The offensive combination of cigarettes and strong coffee coupled with the bag of onions now passing over the scanner, caused Claire to step back as she listened to the checker complete his explanation of the store’s lack of patrons.

“This store was owned by an older gentleman, Mr. Walker, who came in every morning and met with his employees before the doors opened. He would talk about presentation and friendliness and encourage all of us to do the best job we could do.”

The checker’s eyes watered as he talked about the old man, giving Claire an insight into the feelings of respect and honor the checker held for his employer.

“A couple months ago, Mr. Walker died of a massive heart attack leaving the store to his daughter. None of us have ever seen. She hasn’t even come in to introduce herself. I really don’t think she even cares about this old store.”

Claire saw her total flash in green letters on the display screen and began pulling out her wallet.

“Anyway,” the checker continued, “things haven’t been the same around here since Mr. Walker died. None of the employees are motivated. The shelves aren’t staying stocked. I’ve been one of the few employees to stay on here. Everyone is afraid she’s just going to sell this place to the highest bidder and we’ll all lose our jobs anyway.”

Claire avoided eye contact as she handed the money to the checker. Her manicured nails and diamond rings contrasted against his leathered hands and generic watch. She glanced around the store again. It was mostly vacant and in slight disarray. Her father had owned many groceries stores in several towns and this one had brought in the least amount of revenue. She had met with her financial adviser earlier that week and was convinced that, after a visit to the west end location, the store would be closed and her father’s assets put to better use.

The persistent checker spoke on, “I sure hope that doesn’t happen. The people on this end of town don’t have very many places to shop. Most of them are older or on fixed incomes and can’t afford to go too far from home. I think that’s why Mr. Walker spent so much time here. This store held a special place in his heart.”

The emotion of the checker, whose name she still had not caught, had overwhelmed Claire. This was someone who obviously knew her father better than she did. After all, she had spent years away from home attending college and then law school. She then spent even more years away focusing on her blossoming career. She had rarely called home, much less visited. But, she knew her father was a good, hard-working man and she wanted to make him proud.

The shaky hands of the checker handed Claire her receipt and his crooked smile warmed her heart.

“It sounds like you were very fond of Mr. Walker,” Claire said, “I admire your loyalty to him and to this store.”

“Thank you, ma’am. You have a nice day.”

As Claire walked away, purchases in hand, she felt a determination grow within her to keep her father’s legacy alive. Not only would she go against the advice of her accountant, but she would do as her father did and visit the store often and encourage the employees. She would make her father’s soft-spot a more pleasant place to shop. She’d start by handing out breath mints.

added by: author A-074749 on 07/14/2011 - 05.43

and a shadow of fear came over his eyes as he answered Claire's question." No , this has never happened before", he replied with anticipation in his voice. "I usually open the store alone and wait for everyone to file in, but no one has shown yet." "We haven't been open for even an hour; so I'm just giving them all a little time to come in before I really start to worry," The clerk said more to the bottle of juice that he was scanning than to Claire. "Well, uh, Tim read his name from his name tag; I hope that they start to show up soon, it's Friday, so it's going to be very busy today". Claire responded as she looked at the cash register for her total to check out.
Tim did not reply, he watched her as he bagged her groceries and could tell that she had began to feel uneasy at the way that was scoping her out. She was reaching for her bag and leave when Tim grabbed her wrist and his hand began to shake almost uncontrollably. "Please", he began, "please walk to the back with me to check if anyone is there?" "I think that I heard something right before you came in and I am afraid to go and look alone." Claire's grey eyes scanned Tim's flushed and fearful face for signs of humor, there was none. "Ok", she answered. "Are you sure that you are alone in the store?" She asked him as he began to come from behind the cash register. "No, I'm not to sure", he said with eyes darting around the store. He rubbed his hands on his light green uniform vest and begin to slowly lead Claire to the back of the store.
"Do I need to draw my service weapon?" Claire began to wonder as she followed the severely tall and lanky young man towards the back of the store. " She noticed that he was wearing the latest style of Air Jordan's, and immediately her thoughts went to her fiance Roger who also loved to wear Air Jordan's. Claire informed Tim what she was a detective, as she withdrew the weapon from the left side of her blue pleated jacket. Tim's shoulders relaxed a little and a little smile creased his face at the thought of having armored protection with him as he went to investigate the noise that he had heard.
They started down the middle isle, and as they were nearing the end, Claire crept in front of Tim slowely raising her weapon to her mid section. They began to hear noise coming from the direction of the back of the store. Claire began to crouch, and signaled for Tim to do the same. Her long black hair peeped around the corner of the aisle before her eyes did. She stopped and looked and listened, more sound continued to come from the back. She turned to Tim. Her deep grey eyes stared into his greens. "I'm going to need for you to stay here while I check this out", she ordered him. "Okay", Tim answered. Claire stood up and slowly rounded the corner. So did Tim. "I thought that I told you to stay back there!" Claire yelled at Tim in a raspy whisper. "I can't, I'm scared" he said. "Stay here!" she demanded again as she elbowed him into the next aisle. Tim waited two seconds and was behind her again. "If you get hurt, it's on you buddy," Claire told him without even looking back at him. They crept closer and closer to the wide black double doors of the underbelly of the grocery store. The closer they got the more they could hear sounds of talking and a faint sound of music. Little beads of sweat formed on Claire's forehead as they reached the doors. "I want you to stay here", Claire demanded as quietly as she could, but with teeth clenched to sound off authority.
Slowly she pushed the doors open. It was totally dark except two large glass windows where a little light was making a pathway. The noise seemed to be coming from there. Claire swallowed deeply and clinched her weapon tighter but kept it pointing at the ground, as she slowly walked towards the light. The noise stopped. Claire swallowed again. She pushed the door open. Surpri....Pow Pow Pow. Claire shot three times in the direction of the person who jumped out at her in the dark.

added by: author A-073622 on 07/14/2011 - 05.46

"Only once, a few years ago, when an out-of-date can of beans erupted", he whispered, glancing eerily from side to side. "The stench was so bad that a Counter Terrorist Unit was called in. The fear was that a Weapon of Mass Destruction had been detonated."

Claire pulled back with a shocked look on her face. The look in the checker's eye was startlingly odd.

"Well, the air seems clear to me, so what do think explains the lack of customers today?, she asked, rather warily.

"I'm not sure", he said, "But it is odd, no?"

He started making "Do, do, do, do" sounds like The Twilight Zone theme song. Looking intently into her eyes, he grinned demonically as he repeated the phrasing over and over.

After four repetitions, he burst into loud laughter. The sudden unexpected outburst of his unpredictable behavior gave Claire to blink her wide open eyes and caused her to shudder perceptibly.

"Donnie, you've simply got to stop watching so much late night TV. Mom is right. You need to get a life! You're almost 21 and you still have no girlfriend!"

Claire paid cash for her items, turned and left, shaking her head.

"Right!" said, Donnie.

As soon as she left the store, the clerk quickly shook his body and slipped out of the human-like skin which fell to the floor. He turned to walk toward the back of the store.

Humming The Twilight Zone theme song, he softly chuckled. He was ready for lunch, and there was a group of employees in the back room that he could choose from. Maybe he'd begin with Donnie.

He was trying to remember a recipe he'd read in his favorite cookbook, "How to Serve Mankind."

added by: author Jay Dano on 07/14/2011 - 07.41

His lips opened as if he was about to answer but he hesitated. He glanced up at the service booth then quickly dropped his gaze back to the task at hand.

“One loaf bread, $2.79,” he spoke robotically.

“It’s actually pretty strange,” Claire continued, inspecting the checker’s name tag. “Rob, is it? Has there really ever been a Thursday at 3:30 in the afternoon where only one person was shopping in here?”

Rob glanced again at the service booth. It was encased in glass and whatever was inside of it was invisible to anyone looking in.

“One can cream corn, $0.79,” the checker said in the same monotone voice as before.

“And actually Rob, where the heck are all the workers? Are you the only guy they could get to come in today?” Claire persisted now, her body relaxing and nonchalance filling her voice. “You know what I mean, Rob?” She spoke as if she had known the checker for years, as if he weren’t a stranger, as if this wasn’t the first time she had set foot in this store before.

Rob lowered his voice to a whisper and finally replied, “ Ma’am, you know I can’t answer any questions.” Claire tilted her head, her eyebrows arched in confusion. “One box macaroni and cheese, $1.59.”

“For the kids, you know. And what do you mean you can’t answer any questions? That’s poor customer service, Rob,” Claire said, her words ending in a crescendo.

“Claire, please shut your mouth,” Rob whispered. “I can’t answer your questions or they’ll,” suddenly the bright fluorescent light above the aisle farthest from the two shut off. “Erase you,” Rob said under his breath.

Startled, Claire lowered her voice and in the softest shout she could manage replied, “how dare you! Wait, how do you know my name? I never mentioned that?” A sudden whooshing sound filled the air and the next light cracked and became dark. “What the hell,” Claire screamed.

“I can’t answer you Claire.” Another whoosh and the third and fourth lights cracked, the darkness inching its way closer to them. “Ok, alright,” Rob whispered. “I was trying to tell you something earlier.” Another whoosh, another crack. The darkness was now threatening to engulf them. “ I was trying to tell you,”

Claire’s curiosity momentarily held her growing fear at bay. She leaned towards Rob, so close she could smell the scent of his cologne. Rob abruptly shot up straight and tall, his eyes rolling back. The checker’s body began shaking violently, writhing as if electricity had filled it. Claire backed away, her eyes wide and filled with panic.

“Oh my God, Rob,” Claire shouted.

“One… can… green… beans, run!”

added by: author KrystalB on 07/14/2011 - 08.53

Claire was unsure if she should lean in to the cashier or back away. After all that mouth twitching kinda freaked her out. She watched as the cashiers eyes darted from side to side as if he badly wanted to tell her something but was afraid to say it. Just as he started to speak the bell rang letting them know that a customer entered the store. He snapped his lips shut and rang up the next item.
The cashier stopped ringing up items as an elderly woman slowly walked by dragging her cane oddly behind her. It took this lady a good ten minutes to make it to the produce case coughing the whole walk back. Just as Claire thought she would finally get all of her items rang up so she could leave. A large crash came from the produce aisle. The cashier headed to find out the source of the crash and began yelling for help. Claire ran to the cashier and watched as he attempted CPR on the lady laying on the floor. Claire dialed "911" while the cashier worked. The line was busy, so Claire tried several more times. The cashier looked up and told Claire that the lady had died and there was nothing he could do. The cashier shakily stood to his feet and as he turned an odd sound came from the direction of the deceased woman. Claire watched as the elderly lady sprang to her feet and attacked the cashier ripping out a large chuck of meat from his neck. The cashier was chocking on his on blood as he feel dead to the floor. Claire ran crying out the front door to see a chaotic scene. Had the whole town gone mad. Stores were on fire, alarms were going off, and loud screams filled the air.
She ran to her car and cranked it up. Just the elderly lady and cashier attacked her car. The cashiers eyes were empty and dark. Were his teeth pointed? Was she dreaming it? He began to ram the glass with his head as she raced away.
After Claire put ten miles between her and those crazy people she cut on the cars' radio. The CDC representative was telling people to get somewhere safe and avoid all contact with others. She mentioned something about what they think was a contagious virus that is easily passed from person to person. The President was to issue a statement in an hour and they wished everyone safety in the days ahead. Just then Claire noticed the scratch bleeding on her arm. Where did she get that? The coughing began about the time she made it to her parents house.

added by: author A-077122 on 07/14/2011 - 11.49

Claire thought about things a moment.

I was only 6:45 in the evening. Where was everybody.
She didn't see any sign of a guard, a manager, or anyone else that could help.

Could she trust the checker to help if she told hem she was kidnapped and he sent her in for food, but was waiting just outside with a gun. Was there someplace she could hide. What would he do if she didn't come out.

How did this happen.

She had stopped at the Automatic Teller on the way home from work. The drive through was blocked and she had to walk up to the alcove where the machine was located. She started punching in the $40.00 she wanted when the door swung open and bumped her.

A man's voice said: "Cancel it".

She was startled, but relieved and figured he was in a hurry. She started to turn around to step out of his way and he grabbed her shoulders.

"Don't turn around."

"Now withdraw $200.00."

Damn he was, robbing her. She couldn't afford to withdraw the limit. He stuck what felt like a gun in her back and she withdrew the $200.00. She reached behind her and handed it to him. He put his hand on her shoulders, with the gun still in her back and guided her out the door to the drivers side of a car.

"Get in, and slide over."

He punched the lock buttons and got in too, took her purse, took out her wallet and credit cards and gave back the purse. Then he drove to the grocery store. He had given her back $40.00, and told her what to get in the store.

"We're gonna need some supplies.” he said, “no stores where we're goin."

She was puzzled.

"Get in there, and remember I’ll be out here with the gun. If you try anything funny I'll get you and anybody else who gets in my way."

"Ok. Ok. Whatever you say."

She was really scared now. He was going to take her who knows where.

You could see practically the whole store from outside the glass front. It wasn’t very big. She rushed around the store gathering the groceries. She darted in the back once and found an outside door. It was chained closed. The restrooms were in the front, between the door and the office that was closed tight.

She was shaking at the checkout stand and was surprised the clerk didn’t notice.
He just smiled as he rang up the rest of her purchases.

Should I say something. What could he do.

“Isn’t anyone else here?”

“Somewhere in the back, maybe smoking.”

He was finished checking her out. She saw the total of $36.23 and handed him the two twenties. She turned slightly to look over her shoulder.

"Hey!" she said, "See that man out there with the dark coat"

"Yeah what about it."

"He's with me."

She put her hand in her jacket pocket and pulled it up where the startled clerk could see it.

"I have a gun here, and if I don't come out with a bag loaded with money, he'll be in here with the big gun, and shoot up you and the place."

His eyes popped and he just looked at her.

“You heard me, I’m robbing you!”

He started to sputter: “But, but

“Now!” “Get the cash box under the counter too.”

She said, hoping he could hit an alarm. He just started stuffing whatever cash he could grab in a bag. He handed it to her.

“Is that all?”

“Yes Ma’m.”

“Aren’t you going to do anything?” “Don’t you have an alarm?”

“Y’ Yes, but aren’t ya gonna shoot me?

“Is it silent?”

“Yes and no, silent to the cops, loud here.”

“Ring the damn alarm.”

She said as she headed out with the groceries, leaving the bag of cash.

As she got through the door the alarm pierced the silence. She heard running and saw the black coat getting into the car. It sped away, before she could get close enough to see the plate.

She sat down at the curb to wait for the police.

added by: author just PJ on 07/15/2011 - 12.53

“Did you ask me something, miss?” He leaned further to slide her milk over the scanner.

Chime, chime.

The corner of the checker’s mouth was still twitching, and Claire had the uncomfortable feeling that he had not only heard her, but that something else entirely was going on. A crawling, reptilian feeling crawled slowly up her spine. She clutched at the horseshoe pendant around her neck. The checker seemed to notice and the twitch became a wry smirk.

Chime, chime.

Claire felt an unaccountably huge sense of relief at this sound of another register. Someone else was here after all. She turned to give the new customer an amiable smile.

There was no one there.

The edges of Claire’s eyebrows closest to her nose dipped in confusion. She noticed that the check pen was swinging from its chain made up of small metal balls as if some casual person had just dropped it.

Claire began to turn, but kept her eyes on the swinging pen, which seemed ominous all of a sudden.

“Was someone just here?”

A deep, loud, and harsh whisper sounded directly into her ear, as if the speaker were no more than a fraction of an inch from her.

“NO!”

Claire screamed and turned. A dry desert breeze blew menacingly across her face.

There was no one.

She turned for her groceries, ready to bolt, but she noticed that the celery was turning a yellowish brown at the edges. Horrified, Claire watched as first the leaves, then the stalk began to yellow and become limp. Her milk seemed to be curdling before her eyes, and the fresh apples she had picked out moments before began to grow soft and forcibly close in on themselves.

Confused and terrified, Claire began to run toward the door, and her hip began to ache horribly. She glanced down at the hand clutching her body near her pocket and was aghast to see liver spots appearing on her twenty-five year old arm and hand. The reflection from the back of the stuffed-animal claw machine witnessed her terror as she aged decades within seconds.

The desert wind grew more intense and she watched as it picked at the laces on her shoes until the edges began to disappear with the wind. First the edges, then the shoe itself were carried away, millimeter by millimeter by the hot desert’s breath.

Dumbstruck, petrified, Claire looked around for help. Leaning against the coin collection machine near the front was the checker, arms folded; he looked mildly interested in the proceedings but had the air of an altogether bored man.

Claire tried to scream for help but her lips were unresponsive, and she noticed that tiny specks of her lipstick were being carried away in the now blistering current of air.

Claire stared at the clerk, her mute plea unspoken, and he gave his wry smirk, eyes frozen and pity-free. He yawned ostentatiously as a sudden, massive gust of hot air poured through the cash register area. He grinned widely at the slight clinking sound caused by a small metal object hitting the floor.

After a few moments the clerk shifted from his leaning position and sauntered to the customer side of the register, conspicuously free of customers. Leaning over, he picked up a small horseshoe pendant, dangling from an unbroken chain.

“Congratulations, Claire. You’re our 100th customer out the door. “

Chime, chime.

added by: author A-069480 on 07/15/2011 - 01.01

"All the time," he said quietly.

His manner was as cordial as any Claire had ever seen and possessed a forthrightness that seemed unworldly. She shifted nervously as the checker slowly rang up her items, looking up occasionally and giving a pleasant smile.

He was good looking, and extraordinarily so for his age, which Claire guessed was in the neighborhood of fifty. It was funny, any other day Claire would have been annoyed by a pokey grocery employee who rang up items like a snail between his relentless gawking. Instead, she found herself thinking about the distinguished streaks of grey in the man's hair and what he was like outside of his job.

"In fact," he said, "we're a one-at-a-time kind of business. It works wonders for our personal relations."

Claire was growing uncomfortable; she diverted her attention, hoping that the small gesture would encourage the clerk to pick up the pace. He started up again, but was still moving incredibly slowly, as though he were waiting for something.

Claire took a few moments to survey the store. It was old and gave her a strange sense of deja vu. A large bin, shaped like a Coca-Cola can and filled with ice and bottles of cola, stood next to the counter along with a few old trinkets Claire hadn't seen in ages.

On the counter in front of the register was a jar of raw beans. "Closest guess wins $100!" a piece of paper taped to the jar exclaimed. On top of the jar was a plastic container filled with small pieces of paper and dollar bills.

Claire wasn't sure how much more she could take.

"I'm sorry," she said as politely as she knew how. "I'm in a bit of a rush, so would you mind hurrying up just a bit?

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry Ma'am," the clerk said, increasing his speed. "I had no idea you were in such a rush. What's the occasion if you don't mind me asking?

"I do mind, actually! Claire blurted out angrily. "Can't you just put the stupid groceries in the bag?" The question, despite its good intentions, practically knocked the wind out of her. She didn’t answer him; she couldn’t.

"Certainly," the clerk said. "Please accept my apologies."

He finished bagging the groceries and looked at Claire.

"Aren't you going to give me my total so I can go?"

"Go where, Claire?" he said in a tone that reminded her of a junior high school counselor.

"Stop it!" Claire shrieked. "You don't know my name; you can't. I've never seen you before in my life, so just shut up!"

"Calm down, there's nothing to be afraid of."

"That's it," Claire said balling up her fist and on the verge of striking the man. "How dare you treat me like this? I want to speak to your supervisor."

"I'm afraid he's out at the moment." The clerk’s pleasantness never waivered.

"What's your name, then?" Claire demanded, feeling a lump building in the back of her throat. "I'll need to know it when I speak to your boss."

"My name is Peter."

"NOOOO!" Claire wailed and burst into tears. “That’s insane! This can’t be real…who will raise Matthew?

Claire sobbed quietly but was starting to calm down. It was all beginning to make sense; it was the only thing that fit. She hadn’t entered the store herself. She hadn’t selected the groceries or walked down any of its aisles. She was now certain of that.

Claire collapsed on the floor in disbelief and Peter approached her from around the counter, placing his hand on her shoulder. His touch was the most soothing thing Claire had ever felt, like thousands of scented candles and bubble baths all rolled into one.

“Your husband did a fine job raising young Matthew. Everything is well in hand. Do you remember the accident now?”

“Yes, I’m starting to,” she said sadly. I was on the way home with Matt when the tire blew. That’s how I died, isn’t it?”

Peter nodded. “I’m afraid so.”

“Was Matthew hurt in the crash?”

A wide and comforting smile spread across Peter’s face. “He walked away without a scratch. Can you believe it? The paramedics said it was a miracle,” he added with a wink.

Claire stopped sobbing and returned his smile. She felt an overwhelming feeling of serenity. “Why the grocery store?” she asked.

“Don’t you remember it? It’s the same grocery store your father used to take you to when you were young. I try to create an environment that’s as comfortable as possible. Transition is difficult for most.

Are you ready to go now, Claire?

It was so obvious after he said it. When she had been just a little girl, before her father died, they used to go to this small country store for soda pop. They had won the contest with the beans and split the winnings down the middle. Fifty dollars had seemed like a fortune at that age.

“Yes, I think so.”

Peter extended his hand, Claire took it and he helped her up from the floor. Peter led Claire to the store’s front door. Peter reached behind his head, unclasping a gold chain that had been hidden underneath his shirt. On the end of the chain was the oldest and most unusual key she’d ever seen, jagged and filled with flawless gemstones.

Peter put the key in the large lock of the front door and turned. All by itself, and with a large creek, the heavy wooden door began to open. A glorious white light flooded into the store. It seemed as bright as a thousand suns, yet it wasn’t hurting Claire’s eyes.

Peter looked over and smiled warmly at Claire, who returned it and squeezed his arm. Hand in hand, they crossed over the threshold.

added by: author GonzoBoy on 07/15/2011 - 02.18

“Don’t let the empty aisles fool you,” he said with a contorted smile, “According to recent surveys, most Americans prefer X-Mart over any other store in the country. Customers love our clean, well-stocked shelves, competitive prices, and outstanding customer service practices. Ralph Shysterson, CEO of X-Mart, believes that customer loyalty is the foundation of every successful business, which is why he made it possible for customers to save even more money by enrolling in our customer loyalty program. Would you like an application, sir?”

“No, thank you. And it’s ma’am, not sir. When I was shopping, I noticed that you no longer carry my favorite brand of toothpaste. Your competitor has always carried my favorite brand. Is there any reason why I shouldn’t buy my toothpaste from the other store?”

For a moment, the clerk’s eyes appeared to focus on a distant, invisible object. After he scanned the last item on the conveyor belt, he removed a small device from his apron.

“My apologies, ma’am. Please enter the name of your favorite toothpaste into our system. The friendly clerks at X-Mart consider it their duty to satisfy the needs of every customer. If you have trouble finding something, don’t be afraid to let them know. Most special orders take mere hours to arrive.”

Claire reached into her purse and removed a loaded revolver. Calmly, she aimed the gun at the clerk and poised her index finger on its trigger.

“Open the register.”

“X-Mart employees are trained to report all incidents of theft. Customers who attempt to threaten X-Mart employees will be escorted from the property and taken into police custody.”

Claire cocked the gun.

“My name is David,” said the clerk, “ and I don‘t want to die.”

“Well, David, if you don’t open the register, I’ll kill you.”

Terrified, David complied. Claire handed him her empty purse.

“Put the money in there. Does this store have a safe?”

“When shopping at X-Mart, you will notice that some areas are only accessible to employees. Please do not venture into these zones unless you are accompanied by an X-Mart employee.”

“Lead me to the safe.”

A thin, black liquid pooled around David’s shoes and his limbs vibrated with thousands of tiny convulsions. Although he couldn’t fully appreciate the gravity of her threat, his instincts compelled him to obey her orders. Reluctantly, he led her into the manager’s office and opened the safe. Claire aimed and shot.

In a moment, David’s head exploded into a kaleidoscope of hues. Sanguine fragments of skull decorated the bland gray of the office walls and clung tenuously to the ceiling. Small, blue wisps of an unknown substance bombarded the air while his body twirled to the floor in a ghastly dervish. As sparks jumped from David’s mutilated neck, Claire shielded her ears from the crackling death knells of the defective android.

“XMSA63 simulation completed,” boomed a monotonous voice over the intercom, “Status: terminated. Reason: desire for self-preservation. Engaging XMSA64 simulation. Status: pending. ”

Claire arranged the groceries on the conveyor belt as a clerk identical to David emerged from a trapdoor behind the counter. While he was scanning her groceries, Claire made several awkward attempts to initiate a conversation. A few minutes had passed when the clerk softly uttered something to himself.

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

added by: author Content Ox on 07/15/2011 - 05.42

"Look, lady, you wanna shop or you wanna chat?"

Claire began to blush.
"How rude," she thought.

Suddenly, the glass entrance door opened and, enveloped in a cacophony of screaming and yelling, an enormous, fat middle-aged lady and five dirty little kids invaded the store. As soon as they got inside, the kids scattered in different directions while the lady shrieked, "Y'all behave yourselves now, or you're gonna git a whippin'" The fat lady must have weighed 350 or so and her pasty-white skin jiggled as she moved. She had on a huge yellow muumuu which almost, but not quite, covered her stubbled shins. Her feet were so bloated that her toes were almost invisible. At the other end, she had a thin, brown frizz on her head with little piggy eyes and tiny ears. She wore big dangly earrings and blood red lipstick. She was carrying a canvas tote bag on her ham-sized right arm.

Claire suspected that she now knew why the store was called Piggly Wiggly.

"We'll just be a sec," Muumuu said in the general direction of the checkout as she turned to the right towards the meat section.

There was a scream and a faint crash from the aisles on the opposite side of the store. Then a kid's voice, "Hey! You're gonna get a whippin' like she said."

"So? Watch this."

Laughter and squealing broke out as the checker bolted around the counter and began running towards the sounds. Claire spotted Fat Muumuu coming fast around the end of an aisle, fat rolling like waves on an incoming tide.

"Oh, wow, this is going to be good," Claire thought. She followed in Muumuu's wake.

The kids had dropped a bottle of olive oil off one of the shelves and one of them had the bright idea to make a super slide out of it. The oldest boy was sliding on his belly down the linoleum floor as the checker came flying around the corner. Unfortunately for him, the oil had spread into the area beyond the aisle and when his shoes hit the oil, he lost his footing and slid, crashing into a display of canned goods at the end of the shelving. Cans were knocked everywhere.

Fat Muumuu got there a moment later and when she hit the spilled oil, she began looking like an ice skater fighting to keep her balance by flapping her arms while leaning back at an impossible angle and temporarily putting off the inevitable. She was flapping so fast and hard that maybe if she wasn't so heavy she could have become airborne. As it was, she was able to hold off pitching backwards until she collided with the checker who was struggling to stand up. That's when they both went down and barreled into the end of the next aisle where, unfortunately, there was a display of stacked tomatoes.

The kids were howling with laughter at the mayhem. One of the little girls yelled, "Clean up on aisle three!"

Claire was laughing so hard she could feel her panties getting wet.

"Wait 'til I tell the bridge club about this," she thought.

added by: author A-072684 on 07/15/2011 - 11.25

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"Maybe." he said

Claire took a good look at the stranger at the cash register today. She knew Leon said he was hiring someone so Jerry could go part-time. Jerry is about to start his sophomore year at university and needs to cut back on his hours. But this guys beady, cold eyes looked as if it had been many moons since they had seen daylight. Claire reasons someone doesn't have to be a vampire like the ones she reads about when visiting the library of strange writings. Jerry's replacement could be like her friend Shelia. She remembers Sheila, the night waitress at Roscoe's saying "I can't remember the last time I saw full sunlight." But something is out of sorts with Jerry's replacement.

"Where's Leon?" she asked Jerry replacement.

"Where he should be." replied Jerry's replacement.

Claire's stomach quizzes, and she goes into automatic response mode. Her responses are molded by a great people trained in the mysteries of the mind. Not just the conscious mysteries, but the unconscious mysteries. Jerry's replacement was standing in the presence of a manipulator of outcomes and didn't know it. He was confident which meant he could either back it up or couldn't and didn't realized it. Maybe he is a causer way out of control. A causer is someone who sees a direction the people may benefit from, but without clear direction the people will loss its societal control. And here on terra five societal control is what keeps the air and water flowing. So why was this guy creating suspicion through his evasive behavior? She prepares to control her natural mental response,which even after many generations, still can cause someone to puke if not trained.

The first wave comes with visions of the set-up. This is cause of events. Jerry's replacement reasons began to flow out of control at first. But then Claire sees blue skies, lakes, birds and the sun on terra five! This can't be happening because terra five is surrounded by the protector of all who dwell there. It is the protector that will not let the strong rays of the terran five sun burn the people. The protectors transparent walls allow the people to see the world beyond the interior. The view is deceptive. It looks like a thriving planet, but the people see the fruits of a millennium planet transformation, but the sun is still dangerous according to the scientist. So why is Claire seeing these things through the eyes of Jerry's replacement? Next wave shows the plan.

Jerry's replacement is in a room surrounded by others of every background. There is cause and effect. Rhyme and reason. Love and hate and more, but the one missing is truth and consequences. They are all reasoning that closing the store would make the people listen but the closure had to include hostages so the people would know they were serious about getting beyond the protector. Her final wave of visions was action taken.

Leon is giving Jerry's replacement his register log in and badge. Suddenly, Leon has a control stick shoved into his side. This brutal instrument was long ago banned, and why Leon now has one in his side is too far for Claire to go right now, but at a later date she will. She is almost up to her standing in front of the register, but before she gets there she sees Leon and the other customers locked in the back room surrounded by chaos waiting to happen.

"He should be in his office, but the door is closed. Why is that?" she ask Jerry's replacement.

"You will be where you are suppose to be soon Ms. Claire." And he attempts to overpower Claire. She has seen this before and knows how to change the outcome. She quickly steps out of reach of the control stick, then just as fast disarms Jerry's replacement. But what comes next surprises Claire because it is way out of her comfort zone. Instead of the obvious course for a manipulator of outcomes she ask Jerry's replacement a question that changes everything for Claire and the people.

"Why did you do this?"

"Because I've been out there. I've seen and felt the lakes cool waters and there's nothing to be afraid of."

"You are crazy."

"You saw my thoughts. Did they feel fake? I chose this moment because it was the only moment you wouldn't see. It is the now. You make your choices based on what you see in the past. But I need you to make a decision based on what you can't see."

"Why me?"

"Why not you."

Claire tried to use her training in the manipulation of outcomes, but she couldn't get past the unknown, and her decision to ask a question took terra five beyond the protective walls and into the warming rays of the terran sun. Her simple question was....

"Show me."

Now we walk in the sun and the moon and the stars all the day and night long.

added by: author A-064887 on 07/15/2011 - 02.19

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward, but before the checker could utter a word to Claire, there was a knock at the Cabin door...The checker paused and Clair glanced back at the door, the winter winds were smacking the windows anxious to come in...The checker spoke saying, that's odd, i wasn't expecting anymore guests this evening...Claire stared at the door nob as it began to rattle, the knocking continued. The checker discarded the bread and dropped it on the desk alongside the festering cheese and day old grapes. his hand slid off of Claire's itinerary, smearing the oil from the cheese all over it, the checker made her way to the door slowly, the knocking suddenly stopped and they heard what sounded like a heavy slump and slidding snow. The checker hesitated as she reached for the knob and looked back at Claire who was gazing at the scene, a bead of sweat trickling down the side of her face, flashes of the mysterious man with the strange necklace shes been seeing in her dreams were cascading her minds eye...The clerk composed herself and reached for the door knob turning it and pulling against the compression of the raging snow storm...she looked out expecting to see someone, only flurries of snow and gusts of ice swooping around the cabin porch. Suddenly she heard a moaning below her, she quickly drew her gaze down ssquinting through the blowing wind and falling snow, it was a man, dark skinned, he wore a what looked like black bear skin, a thick heavy coat, his chest was exposed and she could see something gleaming on his necklace, a very strange object, she called Claire to come and help her, Miss! Miss! she shouted, there's someone out here! come and help me bring them in, they'll die if we don't get them out of the cold, who is it? said Claire, I don't know said the checker irritated by the question, Come on! Claire reluctantly made her way to the cabin door, clutching the necklace her grandmother had given her when she was a little girl living in Rwanda, it was the only thing in this world that reassured her safety...She strecthed her kneck for a glimpse of the unexpected guest as she approached the scene. Come grab his legs i'll hold his shoulders said the Checker anxiously, the moment Claire saw his face she almost fainted, it was the man she had been seeing in her dreams, always at a distance walking towards her in the dream...She was frozen with fear, she couldn't believe it, the clerk yelling, everything seemed to be happening in slow motion as Claire began to faint. As she fainted a sillouette emerged out of the storm, it was the hotel Cabin porter coming to the checkers aid, he had heard the yelling...

Claire woke up to the scent of Camomile tea, the steam rising from the cup on the dresser beside her. She was still clutching her necklace, it was a very unique looking piece, a very rare type of amber only found in the moutain amber deposits in Rwanda, the stone was wrapped and clutched by a gold hand, the back of the hand facing away from her chest, with the stone always resting on her skin, the hand was engraved with a very rare symbol that signified a dream star, or a star only seen in dreams, that was said to reveal itself to very special people. Claire rose up sliding up against the wooden backboard of the bed. she brushed her braids aside and took a deep breath, she gently grabbed the cup of tea took a curious sip and got up from the bed, making her way to the window to see if the storm was still raging. The scenery outside was frosty and thick veils of falling snow obscured everything, she heard what sounded like a truck engine starting over the deep belowing sound of the wind, suddenly the glow of what appeared to be break lights lite up through the veils of snow, the truck slowly drove off into the depths of the storm, Claire peered curiously...A knock at the door startled Claire, Are you ok Miss. Shethar?, hello? hello? it was the clerk, Claire took a sigh of relief and went to open her room door. Miss Shethar, you scared me, you just fainted, you've been out for 3 hours said the clerk with a monthers genuine concern, 3 hours? said Claire, she looked at her wrist watch, oh my goodness, I have to call my husband, he must be so worried, is there a phone I can use Missssss?, arousing the checkers name, ah yes, sorry, it's Nubia, Mrs. Ayana Nubia, and sure the phone is downstairs in the waiting room, Thank You said Claire, oh of course said the checker kindly smirking. Claire dashed back into the room to grab her purse, the checker handed claire her room key as she made her way into the hallway, shutting the door behind her. As she walked toward the stair case she noticed another room door was slightly opened, the glow of the room lamp seeping through the crack, she looked in as she walked by catching wind of a uncanny feeling, she saw the huge figure of a man lying down, his face coming into view, his eyes opened quickly startling claire, she rushed down the cabin steps stumbling into the walls as she went scurried down, are you ok Miss. Shethar? inquired the checker, yes! said Claire nervously. She jumped into one of the seats by the phone in the waiting room and anxiously picked up the phone dialing frantically, the phone rang and was immediately picked and she heard the sound of her sons voice, mommy? yeah baboo its me, mommy are you okay? Baba's worried about you, Claire calmed down so as to not frighten her 8 year old son Jacob, Mommy's ok, where's baba? she heard the phone drop and her son calling for his father, baba baba! it's mommy! She heard footsteps rushing from the distance and her husbands voice, Claire?, Claire? are you ok? where are you? We heard that there was a storm approaching Vancouver, whats going on? she smiled sincerely, comforted by his concern, I'm ok David, I'm fine, I made it in just before the storm began, I'll be meeting with the senators tomorrow morning she reassured her husband, Claire was an African diplomat from the Rwandan national assembly sent to correspond with united states congress to secure interests in eductational funding in Rwanda. Claire spoke with her husband for what seemed like hours, they finally concluded with a phone kiss and a cheerful goodbye from her son Jacob. Claire hung up the phone and took a deep breath, she stood up and made her way back up the steps to her room, reminiscing about the conversation, as she reached the top of the steps she remembered the strange man in the room, she rushed by the door and ran to her room, she anxiously slid the key in and opened her room door sweeping in and closing the door behind her, she closed her eyes and took a breath, she made her way to the foot of the bed and started unpacking her suitcase. As claire was retrieving her belongings unfolding her cloths she the door behind her creek open and closed, she froze with intense fear...she could smell someone in the room, the presence was overwhelming and she began to lose support from her knees, she clutched her necklace and closed her eyes...A deep baretone voice broke through the silence, Shethar...why are you afraid? Claire slowy turned her head and looked back from the corner of her eyes, she saw the mans necklace gleaming, it seemed as though a light was fluctuating from it. What? said Claire, the man spoke softly and kindly, why are you afraid ? Claire mustered the strength to turn around and face the man, he face was like onyx and his eyes were bright... and his smile was oddly familiar, Claire stepped back, who are you? you don't remember us do you Shethar? the man stepped aside and someone else entered the room, it was a woman, just as tall and strong as the man was, she wore a dark robe with a necklace around her neck that resembled the one, Claire was wearing, the woman eyes were full of intelligence and love, her skin was luminescent gold and glimmered, she gazed at Claire kindly, we've been trying to reach you for quite a while Shethar, why have you been ignoring us? Ignoring you? Claire was full of confusion, here, look said the woman calmy as she retrieved a device from the inside of her suit. It looked like a modern day phone, with a small glowing screen on it, she placed it into Clairs Palm, it vibrated and projected a holographic image of a magnificant city, the man spoke saying, Shethar, this city is just a few light years a way, Claire gazed at the hologram projecting the surrounding planets and regions of the city, she could see people walking and strange crafts flying around in the imagery. With a tear streaming down her face, she whispered, just a few light years away?....she giggled and looked up at them, crying, the woman said come on Shethar, with a confident smirk, come back with us...Claire closed her eyes and was suddenly spiraling into lights and colors she had never seen before, stunning shapes and sights, she could feel the lights and colors sweeping through her body, planets and galaxies going by her disappearing out of view....then everything abruptly stopped and she felt as if she was standing again, she opened her eyes and there before her, through 20 foot windows that stretched wide across at the edge of a large room, there through the window, a marvelous city, gleaming like quartz in the sun.....the two figures that she encountered back at the cabin room on earth appeared by her side. That stunning woman gently grabbed Clairs hand and carefully placed a shiney object in her palm. It was the amulet her grandmother gave her, the woman spoke again saying.....do you remember now?

added by: author A-074732 on 07/15/2011 - 03.34

I just want to express my gratitude to the folks at Textbroker for coming up with this idea. This has been a lot of fun and has given me the creative writing bug I've been missing for a while. :)

added by: author Nick C on 07/15/2011 - 03.52

"Popping Good, My Dear"

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

{------------}

"It doesn't happen very often," he said. His plump face shone with honest goodwill. Claire could detect the faint smell of soap, overlaid with the stronger presence of sugar, flour and yeast. An odd metallic odor seemed to snake into the mix, only to disappear instantly. Claire blinked, then dismissed the inexplicable hint of strangeness.

Leaning back, the checker returned to beeping the groceries into a prospective change of ownership. Claire watched with mild fascination as the checker's chubby fingers flickered casually, twirling the groceries this way and that before ushering them smoothly over the small steel cliff demarcating the end of the checkout platform. The young man's casual skill and flair brought a strange interest to what should have been an completely unremarkable chore. He seemed to exude hidden strength.

The steady progression was jolted when the checker paused momentarily at the closed paper bag. He grinned and looked at Clair, whose eyes rose to meet his. "It's two grape jelly rolls and one apple fritter, isn't it?" Startled, Claire nodded and wondered how he had known. The bag was whisked away to join the rest of the gang in the rapidly-filling plastic grocery sack that lurked in wait.

Finishing the transference, the checker swept the last of the groceries into the grocery sack. Looking up at Claire, he said, "That'll be $36.90, ma'am." His kind blue eyes twinkled with good humor. Claire paid with a check, smiling at the checker. His jolly demeanor was so infectious!

Gathering her groceries from the checker, Claire felt a resurgence of the peculiarly powerful urge to load up on sweet rolls that had seized her when she drifted near the bakery department. The store was permeated with the smell of freshly-baked goods. She could almost taste the melting texture of frosted donuts and the rich fruitiness of jelly-filled pastries. It was odd because she wasn't normally a fan of such indulgences. Tearing herself away from these unusual daydreams, Claire turned to exit the store.

The doors wouldn't open. Puzzled, she looked back at the checker, who was watching her with concern. "I'm sorry, ma'am. Those doors have been acting up all day. The repairman hasn't arrived yet." He chuckled with obvious embarrassment. Pointing to another, smaller door on the other side of the storefront, he added, "You can use that other door, ma'am."

Claire smiled slightly and walked to the other door. As she approached the other exit, a harsh clanking noise echoed from somewhere under the floor. Claire stopped and frowned. The noise vanished. Looking back at the checker, she saw him shrug and roll his eyes. Reassured, Claire reached the door and stepped onto the mat.

The doors began to open. Claire tried to move forward, but somehow her feet were not working. The mat dropped suddenly, taking her shoes, her feet and her entire body with it. The clanking noise returned, growing to a crescendo. Claire glimpsed whirring saw edges and a profusion of metal arms. Utterly shocked, she froze. The mat slammed with a rubbery sound onto the basement floor, almost knocking Claire out of her stuck shoes. Her knees hurt. The metal arms and saw edges, now horribly visible, reached for Claire. Reacting far too late, she tried to scream. The nearest saw tore out her throat, reducing her scream to a wet burble. Steel arms ripped her away from the unyielding shoes, breaking her left ankle, then whisked her thrashing body to a platform stained with old blood. Many more steel arms went to work. A burning smell arose. The frantic thumping from Claire grew to convulsive heights, then abruptly ceased. Only the whirring of machinery was heard.

Humming pleasantly, the checker reached up to a switch over the non-responsive doors that had baffled Claire. He flicked the switch and the doors opened. His face beamed. Thinking of the wonderful meat pies to follow, he returned to his post to await another customer.

{------------}

Okay, I hadn't been about to pop another entry into a thread already glutted with much better efforts than my own, but the unfixed italics are annoying. The grim bit of whimsy splattered above will serve as an excuse to try to fix the runaway HTML italics with several closing tags. If they don't do the job, well, it was worth trying.

added by: author bumpylight on 07/16/2011 - 10.40

(By the way, if for some bizarre reason I cannot resist the urge to scribble yet another little fable, I promise to either make the checker run in terror as Claire cruelly hunts him down, or to watch Bambi again to get into the right mood, then crank out a real tear-jerker with lots of cute, anthropomorphized animals with huge, appealing anime eyes.) ^_^

added by: author bumpylight on 07/16/2011 - 11.38

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.
“It’s the Fourth of July, everyone was in here earlier stocking up and most of them have headed to the lake.”
Claire looks at the clerk as if he has lost his mind.
“The fourth of July? How can it be the fourth of July? My birthday was yesterday, and my birthday is April the first. I may be an April fool, but I am not an idiot. The fourth of July? Hhmmphhh… You will have to do better than that. I think that it is because your prices have gone up over twenty percent in the last thirty days because you can’t compete with that big store that they built out by the interstate. Is that it?”
The checkers face flushes. “Could be that is part of it. Sad thing is that Mr. Simonson had a buyer for the business right before it was announced that the new store was going to be built. But when the buyer found out, they backed out of the deal because they didn’t think they could compete with the new store. Mr. Simonson was very disappointed and has really lost his interest in the business. He turned seventy this year and was ready to retire.”
Claire looks at him in amazement, surprised that he had been so forthcoming so quickly.
“I don’t know that I would tell everyone that story, Sam, it can’t be good for business.”
The checker gets a look of astonishment on his face. “How do you know my name? Do I know you?”
Claire smiles and her clear blue eyes sparkle with mischief. “Not yet, but you will. Beginning tomorrow, I will be the new boss. We are going to renovate this store and show the big boys that we can compete. Of course we will have to renovate first, so that we can give the community something like they have never seen; a boutique grocery, deli and bakery. Would you like to keep your job, Sam, and learn a completely new style of doing business?
Sam’s face lit up. “Yes. Thank God. Mr. Simonson was going to close the doors. He told me this morning that this would be my last day to work, and along you come and I still have a job. I do have a job, don’t I?”
Chuckling quietly; Claire smiles at Sam. “Yes, you do. On one condition, Sam. Do you think you can keep this a secret? I am not ready for everyone in town to know what we are up to.”
Sam smiles widely at Claire. “Yes ma’am. I won’t tell a soul.”
“Sam, you meet me here at eight tomorrow morning, and I will show you what we are going to do.”

added by: author Rachel T. on 07/17/2011 - 08.02

As Claire leaned forward, his breath flickered her tuft of hair which was hanging above her left ear. As if afraid for his life he slowly and quietly pleaded with Claire "Please, no more questions. Leave this place, all will be revealed."

Taken back, Claire locked eyes with Johnny’s at least that was what it read on the name plate pinned to his shirt. There, for a moment, appeared to be a tear forming from the duct of his eye, though it was quickly blinked away. What replaced the dismay was an unbelievable rage of anger.

"GET OUT OF HERE!"

"No! Not until you tell me what is going on here." she screamed as her ear was still ringing. "Look here, ass, if you are trying to scare me with your sudden psycho bursts of anger, its not working. Do you know who my family is? They scare me, you do not. I have not done anything to you. All I asked was in part, why is it so empty here. I think it is a valid question, considering the fact we are the ONLY TWO THINGS WITH A PULSE FOR MILES! JERK!"

"Get in your a car, leave. Take your receipt with you. We don't want your business!"

Claire took her receipt and left with urgency. Clearing the threshold of the doors it dawned on Claire. 'I already have my receipt.' Secretly Johnny had scribbled an address on the piece of register tape.

He must have done it while screaming at me. Who was in the store? Why did he have to create a diversion of yelling so that he could give me these directions and what appears to be a time? Her chest felt hollow with the racing of her heart. Her blood ran ice cold making her spine tingle.

'Oh, dear God! What should I do? If I show up, is this man going to kill me? Does he really know what is going on here? Does he know about me? What if my secret has gotten out?'

A hurricane of thoughts were unleashed in her cerebellum. Emotions were crippling her attempts to insert her key into the ignition. Thrice she had fumbled her keys while trying to gain entry into her truck. Cold sweat ran down her brows depositing the salty taste into the corners of her mouth. Vomitus was hanging in the back of her throat.

'Get a grip, Girl!' She commanded her self as the engine rang loud in the empty parking lot. Claire left her groceries and the smell of burnt rubber on her departure. It was not until she reached the end of the cemented sidewalk with an abrupt right turn did she come to the full realization, she was truly alone.

With the absence of vehicles or foot traffic on the sidewalks, traffic laws were a thing of the past. She stopped her truck only long enough to place her transmission into 4 HI and proceeded down the dirt embankment which was designed to keep individuals from creating short cuts from the main road to her road. Her only mission was to get home. To go in hiding was something she was extremely familiar with.

Johnny impatiently looked at his watch as customers filled his check out line. He could not help but to analyze their faces as they went through. He thought 'All the misery they must feel trying to hide who they are and how miserable their little unimportant lives are. If only they really knew.' He could feel his anger well up inside of him. He was afraid of this particular aspect of his character. He knew all to well what anger did for him. If it was not used at the appropriate time or displayed with absolute control, destruction would be the only result. He knew the promise he had made so long ago and how hard it truly was to keep.

"Thanks ma'am, you have a good day too." He responded back to his last customer as he proceeded to assist the next one. His thoughts traveled back to Claire. He knew exactly who she was, what she was, and why she was. In just a few short hours she would know this as well.

Claire now safely inside her home locked every door and window. Knowing this action was in vain, she still felt a sense of security with the sound of the locks as they seated into place. Now, the part of her life she despised the most, waiting. She placed her back on the sheetrock in her hallway and allowed for her muscles to give way to gravity. The slow transition felt like hours before her bottom was resting on the wood paneled floor. The time was 11:37 A.M., she had an unexpected date at 4:15 P.M. All she had to do today was wait.

'Claire. Claire. It is time for you to arise again. Wake up.'

Immediately Claire raised her body off of the floor in a panic.
"Who's there?" She screamed out. Her question was only returned with an echo.
"Oh, God. What time is it" as she clamored for her cell phone. The digital clock on the face read out 1557. "I hate military time. If only I knew how to get it to read real time, not time to do math time." she said in disgust.
Claire quickly subtracted 12 from 15 and realized the time was 3:57 P.M. The very push of blood through her brain resonated deep in to her chaotic mind.

"Do I go and get answers. or do I stay and preserve my life?"

"GO. GO meet with him."

"Who is here!" Claire demanded as she sprung to her feet. "I want to know who the hell is in my house."

Silence fell with a shattering sound. The fury of fear pushed Claire to rip open all the door and cabinets, to no avail. She was not accompanied by any living thing in her home.

"I need some type of serious vacation. I am wigged out. Bet I did not even get to the store today, man what type of horrible dream."

She proceeded to laugh as she walked into her hall restroom to wipe the uncomfortable trail of drool off of her face. Then she stopped as she realized a crumpled piece of paper in her clenched hand. She pealed back the wrinkles and read the address. The address she had been handed was her own. Claire's head snapped up immediately with this startling piece of realization.

Standing there, in her mirror, looking back at her was Johnny. Claire vomited and then blacked out. A lofty floating sensation came over her.

A blinding light was piercing her eyes as the lids struggled to open. The immense weight of her eyes felt surreal. The light was not helping matters either.

"Claire? Are you here with me?" Johnny’s voice rang out.

"Where am I?"

"You are here, the place you have visited before, though did not have the right to remember. You came here as a young scared child, though we sent you back. Look child, look with your gift."

"What gift?" Claire asked, though knowing exactly what Johnny meant.

"Why do you play games with your self. I was able to seclude you today in the store with my gift, and with yours, you were able to see me. Why play games."

"I..I don't understand. What is my gift." Claire asked with a quivering voice, petrified of the answer which may come.

"Your gift is the gift of discernment between spirits and flesh. Now look with your gift."

Claire opened her eyes and heart for the first real time in a ling time in her life. Before her eyes were bodies and blood through out the horizon. Claire began to weep uncontrollably.

"Why weep? This is what they choose? Why do you have compassion for those who would see you dead?"

"Who are you. How do you know about me. How did you know my parents tried to kill me with all of the rituals and lies. Why do you rip me open like this. Who or what gives you the right to torment me as well?" Claire demanded with full anger in the heart.

Johnny leaned forward from his position above her, "I just needed you to understand that you are most important if the weaker ones will ever win this war. Will you help those who are in need of direction, protection from blind destruction?"

"Yes. I think but how?"

"Return, know that every day you have is a gift. Know that every soul you reach is a treasure and every time you engage some one with a smile or a word, you make an impact which creates the ripples needed to fight this war which most do not see. Most do not see like you are able to. Be the eyes for the blind. Live your life with purpose and your gifts will flow from you with out your knowledge. You have to shine your internal light not hide who you are any more. Now go live with intention."

added by: author A-062987 on 07/17/2011 - 09.43

Wow. Seeing the typed word in print shows you everything you did not see when proof reading. This is frusterating, simple mistakes glaringly obvious. Sorry guys, hey if you can not laugh at your self, then who can you laugh at.

added by: author A-062987 on 07/17/2011 - 10.05

Claire paused.

"Did you say something?"

The corner of the checker's mouth twitched as he reached for the celery. Claire looked from side to side, surveying the otherwise empty store.

"Strange that no one's here today."

The machine chimed as the next can slid across the scanner.

"Has this ever happened before?"

The checker looked up at Claire. Setting down a loaf of bread, he leaned forward.

"You wanna know something, lady?"

Claire balked. This "he" wasn't a he at all.

"Uhhh, sure," Claire responded, eyeballing the clerk's surprisingly thick arms and broad shoulders.

"You shouldn't be so quick to make assumptions."

Blinking her eyes, Claire tried to determine if she heard the checker right. Claire opened her mouth to ask for clarification, but decided it might be best to keep her mouth shut.

As the checker rang up the final item, Claire reached for her debit card. Seeing the $48.46 total on the cash register screen, Claire held her card out to the clerk.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! You can't just pay for this!" the clerk declared, pushing away Claire's card.

Claire looked around. Was she going insane?

"You have to earn this food!" Grabbing Claire's arm, the clerk began dragging her to the back room of the grocery store.

"Wait! What? What do you mean earn it? Where are we going?!"

"To work!" The clerk pushed through a set of double swinging doors. Claire shielded her eyes from the sudden bright lights.

"Agghh! What are those? Who are all of these people?" Giant celery-like creatures cracked whips while drudging slaves stocked the back room shelves and labeled fresh produce.

"Ahh, yes, our lovely customers. They also assumed they could just pay for their items and walk away. See where it got them?"

Claire's jaw dropped. "B-B-But isn't slavery illegal? I don't understand! You can't just force people to do this!"

The clerk slipped a whip out of her pocket. Suddenly, Claire realized why the clerk's upper body sported a less-then-feminine form.

"Okay, okay! No need to get violent! Just give me some stickers or something and I'll take care of the produce!"

The clerk pointed to a corner that was empty, save a giant celery with a whip. Claire started to sweat. Eyes darting from the clerk to the celery slavemaster, Claire gulped and nodded, dragging her feet as she moved to the corner. She knew this wasn't right but didn't want to provoke the clerk until she had a plan.

The giant celery said nothing as Claire approached but glared at her with dark, lifeless eyes. It handed her a sheet of stickers. Claire grabbed some nearby oranges and started slapping on the stickers, her hands shaking.

"How am I supposed to get out of here?" Claire mumbled.

The giant celery grunted. "I've been asking myself that same question for 2 years."

Claire jumped. Her eyes darted to what was probably the face of the giant celery. "I'm sorry?"

"Tch. I scared ya, didn't I? I seem to have that effect on people."

Fumbling with an orange, Claire said, "N-N-No offense meant. I, ah, I just assumed celery of any size couldn't talk."

"Yeah, well, I assumed people couldn't talk, and look where it got me."

Claire blinked. "I take it you're....not from around here?"

"You got that right. My people came from far away. On our planet, our food is shaped like humanoids."

'Oh my.' "I see." 'I have to get out of here.'

With a sudden burst of courage that surprised even herself, Claire threw down the orange and stormed over to the grocery store clerk.

"Hey--!" the giant celery called out.

Stabbing a finger against the clerk's stunningly-flat chest, Claire spat, "I am NOT going to subject myself to this! Such cruelty and inhumanity! You think you can just trap helpless shoppers back here with these potentially barbaric giant vegetable creatures? You're insane! Or maybe I'm insane! This can't be happening! But nevertheless, I will not stand for this! I am LEAVING."

Storming out of the back room, Claire expected the sound of footsteps to follow. She spun around. The doors to the back room remained closed.

"Finally, someone stops acting like a zombie and leaves this place."

"Ahhh!" Claire jumped back. The clerk stood before her, arms crossed.

Regaining her composure, Claire spouted, "How can you do such a thing? I'll call the cops! Your place will be shut down and your giant celery people will be exposed!"

The clerk laughed. "No human back there is being held against their will."

Claire gaped. "B-But...otherworldly creatures...giants...and with whips! You're trying to tell me they're all free?"

"Any human back there can leave whenever they wish."

Surely this lady was bonkers. "But--"

"Every day people on this Earth subject themselves as slaves to what they consider the 'norms' of society. They'll do anything to blend in and not cause a scene. They are too quick to make assumptions. They assume that blending in is right. They assume that ignoring problems will make them go away. The only ones who make a difference in life are the ones who muster the courage to stand up and face opposition. You, Claire, have learned to fight the assumptions. I think you have a bright future."

'How did she know my--' "Look, I'm still seriously weirded out. Can I just pay for my groceries and go?"

"Sure thing." Moving back to the cash register, the clerk rang up Claire's groceries a second time. This time the clerk didn't make a scene when Claire handed over her credit card.

As Claire turned to leave, she had one last thought. "So, uhh, what about the giant talking celery? Can they leave?"

"You assume they're celery?"

Claire paused. "Never mind. I'm not gonna ask." Against her better judgment, Claire assumed an invasion from some angry vegetable-like alienoids was imminent and walked out the door, never again to return to that grocery store.

added by: author EditingMom on 07/17/2011 - 11.52

He leaned forward and looked around as if he had a secret to tell Claire.
"There is a new supermarket that is having a grand opening about three blocks from here. They are giving the first one hundred customers $50.00 worth of free groceries.'
"Your kidding right?" Claire asked the checker. "Well, if that is the case, I need to get down there right now. With that kind of grand opening, everyone is going to be there. Have a good day and I'll be back if I don't get a chance to get the free offer" she told the checker.
Claire calmly walked out of the store. As soon as she got to the door, she took off running toward the new supermarket as if someone was chasing her. She wanted those free groceries and as she ran, she hoped that she wasn't too late.

added by: author A-076108 on 07/18/2011 - 08.55

It's been a great party, regardless. ^_^

added by: author bumpylight on 07/18/2011 - 09.20

"I guess you didn't hear?," he said, his eyes wide.
"Mrs. Eyres died last night. They found her sitting in an arm chair at her daughter's home, stabbed to death."
"Oh my!," I replied, shocked. "Do they know who did it?"
"Her daughter's ex-boyfriend," he said with a hint of derision in his voice. "Everyone knew he was a bit strange, but no one expected this."
"Women are hurt every day like that." I said, remembering my own ordeal. "Until law enforcement starts taking this sort of thing seriously, more women will die or be hurt. You shouldn't be legal to hurt those close to you."
"Amen to that sister," he said, with a smile. "That'll be twenty-six fifty Miss McCabe." He watched her walk out of the store, making a mental note to find out what he could do to help make sure no one else had to go through what the Ayres family was facing. Then he unsnapped his phone with a smile. "Honey, I'd like to meet you for lunch. Is Chinese ok?" Laughter. "See you there. Love ya."

added by: author A-085492 on 10/09/2011 - 08.49