AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Right, Prudence, I’m just going to take you through our sales techniques before we open up…”
“Mr. Turner, really?” One of the girls rolls her eyes. “Do you have to be so heavy right away? Can we not introduce ourselves first?” She doesn’t wait for him to answer, she just bolts right through displaying a confidence that I could only dream about. “I’m Alice, this is Hayley, Sue, and Becky. We’ll look after you today so you don’t have to suffer the long speech about sales…”
“I’m doing it anyway,” Mr. Turner says firmly. “So, you might as well endure it.”
I try to listen to him, I really do, but as he drones on about closing and the one, two, three technique, my brain switches off. Then when he gets into bait and switch I’m gone. My brain is with the four girls and their incessant giggling behind his back. Sales, I’m sure that I’ll figure out, but friendship is going to take some time. I would rather cultivate that side first.
Finally, th
e speech ends and it’s time to get to get to work. The store doors open, and as Mr. Turner suggested it’s really busy. Endless streams of people fill the store end to end, and all of a sudden, I’m in the deep end. The other girls head off in every direction, already knowing what to do, leaving me completely and utterly by myself. I should have listened…
I can do this, I tell my panicky heart. I’ll figure it out as I go.
“Hello there…” I say quietly to one person who looks a little friendlier, but she turns her back on me, shutting me down completely. “Hi, can I help you?” I try with someone else. Nope, nothing. No response at all. “Erm, I like that… the top will look really nice on you…”
Shit, why didn’t I listen? I don’t know what to do now! I glance around wildly, searching for an escape route but there doesn’t seem to be one Just keep trying, don’t be knocked down.
This is what the real world must be like, swimming against the tide for a while. I suppose it would be naïve of me to assume that I would just step into this and all would be okay, it’s going to take some work. I need to keep thrashing and swimming until it becomes easier. Soon enough I’m sure I’ll be like Alice and the other girls who aren’t having any issues at all, and I’ll be swimming with the tide instead. I just need to get there myself, then it’ll be absolutely fine.
I try again, holding my head high. “Hi, can I help you with something…”
“Where are the scarves?” one girl asks me coldly. “I need a black scarf.”
“Oh right, erm…” Again, this was something that Mr. Turner probably told me, but I was too busy trying to slide myself into the social group to care. “They are… over there.”
“No.” All of a sudden, I’m shocked by Mr. Turner’s voice right behind me. “They are over in the left-hand corner. Please, let me come with you to assist you with that.”
He shoots me an angry look as he stalks off with the customer which makes me feel sick. My stomach churns, butterflies flap angrily, turning into birds, and my heart becomes encased in an ice-cold sensation. I’m screwed I know it, I’m in a real idiotic mess here. One of my own making.
I flick my eyes everywhere, begging for someone to rescue me from this horrible situation, but there isn’t anyone. I’m on my own, I have no comfort blanket to fall on because I’m an adult, completely by myself. This is how it has to be now, I can’t be sheltered forever.
With that thought, my chest gets unbearably tight, I can’t breathe anymore. I try my hardest to suck back air, probably looking like an insane person to everyone else, but I don’t care. I can’t breathe at all, my throat has closed over, my lungs are squeezed tight. There’s no way I can stay alive like this! My hand reaches up to my throat, I hold it for protection, but it still doesn’t help.
My vision blurs and starts to go black and the sounds all shut off around me. I truly am alone now, stuck in my own little bubble, but it isn’t peaceful. Still, it’s terrifying.
Help, my brain screams out. Help me, please someone, see what’s happening here…
Just as I’m certain that I might fall, I feel a hand wrap around my arm and I’m yanked. I don’t know what’s happening or where I’m going, but it has to be better than here.
“Are you okay? Here, please drink some water. Sit down, I think you need to sit.”
My vision eventually clears a little and I see Alice standing in front of me, her face filled with concern. She hands me a glass and I drink from it, the water shaking all the way into my mouth and down my throat. It tastes good, really nice and cold.
“Right, Alice.” All of a sudden, I can hear Mr. Turner. “You go back to work, I’m here now.”
Alice leaves and Mr. Turner comes into view. I brace myself, waiting for him to yell at me, but somehow there isn’t any anger in his face at all. He is simply looking at me with concern.
“Are you okay, Prudence? What happened out there?”
“I… I’m sorry, I didn’t know where the scarves were and I should have listened, I shouldn’t…”
“No, no. I didn’t mean that. I mean are you sick? You don’t look well at all.”
He rests his hands on my shoulders in what I presume is supposed to be a reassuring gesture but instantly I flinch backwards. I can’t stand the sensation of his hand on my skin, I hate the way that anyone touching me feels. Especially anyone male.
Well, except for Logan, he’s a very different story.
“You can go home if you feel sick, I don’t mind you starting tomorrow.”
