The bananas were not on sale. The catalogue said they were on sale. Sure, the catalogue ended the previous day, but wasn’t that unfair to people who couldn’t shop that day? Some people had to work.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡECxUsB89If
Karen made her points very clear to a pimply-faced teenage boy trying to stack shelves. She was calm and classy and-
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgwLZzgyJ0B
‘Let me speak to the manager! Clearly, you can’t help me!’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQz4SXEYfT
Admittedly, a hair in Karen’s asymmetrical blonde bob may have fallen out of place. She pushed it back into place and glared daggers at the boy, who spoke into his headset while Karen rapidly tapped her feet.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXnsPbok4SW
‘I see the manager’s taking his sweet time. Honestly, the customer service here is-’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoq1mKW9zh
‘What appears to be the problem?’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD3g5ztcpDY
Karen turned towards the deep but feminine voice. When she saw the manager, she instinctively held her breath.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo4CPop3lm5
The manager stood tall and slim. Her black wavy hair fell to her shoulders, just short enough to not require being pulled back in a ponytail. Her amber skin was smooth and soft. Her large bronze eyes carried years of experience looking friendly to customers- even customers like Karen.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBDXZpk1kXN
‘Excuse me, ma’am? Are you okay?’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHeTBcoMcHD
Karen finally gathered enough concentration to see the manager’s name badge. Frema Nazarian.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9D13YyEiH9
Karen delivered the same speech she had previously given to the boy with at least 70% more stuttering.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxMXHaz7PZ1
‘With all due respect, ma’am, you could have enjoyed this sale this day last week.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRxhL1op5Kt
‘B-but, I received my catalogue in the mail a day later.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNHPLTobtSO
Frema took a gentle step forward. ‘I’m sorry to hear that. How about I give you a copy of this week’s catalogue? There are plenty of items for sale.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsIcf27UW2L
Karen tried to glare at her, but her gaze quickly softened. ‘But not bananas.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVqSEdbcK9J
Frema gave her a sympathetic smile. ‘But not bananas.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyrz6hNoReh
Behind her, Karen could hear a distant yet familiar set of voices, her son Kyle and her daughters Sharon and Carol.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdJ4G0OPBkT
She got in Frema’s face and yelled, ‘Do you expect me to pay full price for these bananas? I’m a single mother!’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzRL3lY1C9i
Frema’s smile slipped as a fire lit up in her eyes. ‘I am too, ma’am.’ She tapped the boy’s shoulder to get him to return to work.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80Vb3ZIGMN
‘Well, w-well…’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7wNEqwzNd
‘Well, what, ma’am?’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJX2TJJKCt3
‘You’re a disgrace! This supermarket is a disgrace! Your motto is ‘Low Prices for Everyone’, and yet you can’t offer a single mother a discount for fucking bananas?’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlgSVkeo2RT
‘I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave. You’re disturbing the customers.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7IPwXoSPl
‘I am a customer! You’re not taking me away. I have a right to be here just like everyone else!’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡACV5kAAat9
Right on time, Sharon and Kyle grabbed Karen and pulled her back. Carol apologised to Frema in her trademark monotone voice.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3KWAb4usnZ
‘Hey, let go of me!’ Karen shouted. Kyle and Sharon only did so once she was a good metre away from Frema. Karen pointed at Frema. ‘I don’t care if you’re…’ She gulped. ‘I’m never going to this place again!’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshLJ1JKzsy
She stormed out of the supermarket, though not without first kicking the shopping baskets on the floor. Frema sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGWw3IPgJOl
Karen’s children followed her out into the car park. 17-year-old Kyle picked his nose and scratched his butt under his baggy jeans. His Monster logo cap was thirty degrees off-centre. 16-year-olds Sharon and Carol were identical in appearance but wore very different clothing. Sharon was clad in short shorts and a rather age-inappropriate tube top, while Carol wore a long, loose top with the Collingwood Football Club logo and a pair of tracksuit pants.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYCSFXz28VS
Sharon placed her hand on Karen’s shoulder. ‘What the hell was that, Mum? Mum?’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4OGsIKVsxt
Karen paid no attention to her daughter, focusing all her attention on the burning sensation in her cheeks. She was silent the entire car trip to the next nearest supermarket. And when she shopped. And when she drove her family home. Her cheeks were still warm.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlfylO1ZLyO
Karen’s home was a modest one-story brick building. As she stepped into the house, she was greeted by paintings with motivational sayings such as ‘Live, laugh, Love’ and ‘Dance like no one is watching’. She continued to frown as she passed them.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX3G75bZ7GD
Kyle’s room was covered in posters of motorbikes, one of which hid a hole in the wall from an angry punch a few months ago. Half-empty cans of energy drinks littered the floor.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj61tSPGRdq
Sharon and Carol shared the biggest bedroom, with Sharon’s side covered in boy band posters and Carol’s side covered in footy posters. Towards the line between their sides was a small, empty birdhouse they had built together. Underneath the birdhouse was two toolboxes, one pastel blue and the other black.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTxL8sWpBOd
After passing these bedrooms, Karen finally arrived at her own. The plain beige walls were adorned with little photo frames of her family, from her children to her mother and father. One side of the queen-sized bed was made up, as always. She dropped her leather bag by the bedpost and collapsed onto the untidy side of the bed. Her eye caught a glimpse of a photograph on the bedside table. The photo contained a man around her age kissing her cheek.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwmARHVq53J
As sighs took out her energy, she reached for the sheets and pulled them over her, shivering a little at the coldness. She let the empty silence lull her to sleep.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZT5XGg08o0
‘Hey mum, when’s dinner?’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZghBWYV1gg
One eye opened. ‘Get it yourself.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMPTxxFuG4Y
‘But you always-’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxeue533RMc
‘Well, maybe, Kyle, it’s time for you to do it for a change. I’m not your personal chef.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhxeZoJJfM3
Kyle shuffled out of the room. ‘Nevermind. I’ll wait.’
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOYGTe6zs0Z
The damage had been done- Karen could not get back to sleep. She rolled over to face the made-up side of the bed. She started tripping through her memories of the man in the photo until she stumbled upon a more recent memory- a certain manager’s glossy hair.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdLYU1BUivt
The flushing face returned. Karen started wondering if she had finally reached The Change. Then again, The Change wasn’t known for making someone tongue-tied or causing them to focus on the little details of another woman’s appearance.
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2l2Rw3k607
Or cause them to throw a tantrum in a supermarket. Not that Karen was in the wrong. Those banana prices? Insulting!
494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeRxMjVD2Vy
Karen groaned and stood up, mentally preparing herself to cook dinner. Under her breath, she muttered, ‘Who does that woman think she is?494Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMIsGlKgBag
然後按「加至主畫面」