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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2f2urLDzR
Karen made her points very clear to a pimply-faced teenage boy trying to stack shelves. She was calm and classy and-
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgObdXl8C33
‘Let me speak to the manager! Clearly, you can’t help me!’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIYASUZbYcq
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkilm3jzVQQ
‘I see the manager’s taking his sweet time. Honestly, the customer service here is-’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Q8tuWGzNn
‘What appears to be the problem?’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9zsQqRw9lU
Karen turned towards the deep but feminine voice. When she saw the manager, she instinctively held her breath.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcyV7U17D8m
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSNwMF3ZIFa
‘Excuse me, ma’am? Are you okay?’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3VbD4Uk6zE
Karen finally gathered enough concentration to see the manager’s name badge. Frema Nazarian.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBjnzbj6Sd
Karen delivered the same speech she had previously given to the boy with at least 70% more stuttering.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqG2lH2b8ny
‘With all due respect, ma’am, you could have enjoyed this sale this day last week.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9QXRYgkyrr
‘B-but, I received my catalogue in the mail a day later.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrmEjOO7iO
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.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYYyh8j1RCs
Karen tried to glare at her, but her gaze quickly softened. ‘But not bananas.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3vIgB6zCUW
Frema gave her a sympathetic smile. ‘But not bananas.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZkDzHHY7rs
Behind her, Karen could hear a distant yet familiar set of voices, her son Kyle and her daughters Sharon and Carol.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbuQqQi33Cy
She got in Frema’s face and yelled, ‘Do you expect me to pay full price for these bananas? I’m a single mother!’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaLGKGWrtIg
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2egtyxp8UV
‘Well, w-well…’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmfAunk4dz4
‘Well, what, ma’am?’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWvaPTjCebN
‘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?’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEbJDVXIWC7
‘I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave. You’re disturbing the customers.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4KzrAFBjDs
‘I am a customer! You’re not taking me away. I have a right to be here just like everyone else!’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZyPyQNfW6o
Right on time, Sharon and Kyle grabbed Karen and pulled her back. Carol apologised to Frema in her trademark monotone voice.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZh0j4bKwY
‘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!’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNF6prhRV13
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfCDSFeTRUO
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVa2ZUUdVUC
Sharon placed her hand on Karen’s shoulder. ‘What the hell was that, Mum? Mum?’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfiZsVomGJF
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxeeVCPgdCR
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xvHCO3cr0
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSQvL2kOoWA
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJejf9deF3l
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNWoriX1Pn7
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiShPmJf1Tp
‘Hey mum, when’s dinner?’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIJ8NXx0ASy
One eye opened. ‘Get it yourself.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmSm6483vVd
‘But you always-’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCwbWGqMPrS
‘Well, maybe, Kyle, it’s time for you to do it for a change. I’m not your personal chef.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV6d8u45X4Y
Kyle shuffled out of the room. ‘Nevermind. I’ll wait.’
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyd8lz7kXY0
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzvXbXHh1h5
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.
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0zgQ65SSh7
Or cause them to throw a tantrum in a supermarket. Not that Karen was in the wrong. Those banana prices? Insulting!
813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAcN5j0ctU
Karen groaned and stood up, mentally preparing herself to cook dinner. Under her breath, she muttered, ‘Who does that woman think she is?813Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv6r9Ya1nex
