Chapter 12: Judged And Accosted Again And Again
1446 Words
Ryan was shocked by his cousin’s behavior. It took a second for him to realize that she was a store employee, and his confusion deepened. He thought – This is no way to treat a customer! He looked Bonnie in the eyes and said, “No. I am not going to leave. I came to look at the clothes in the store, and that is what I intend to do!”
“As if I am going to let you lounge around and stink up the store!” Bonnie sneered at him and said, “You won’t make enough in your lifetime to buy an outfit from this store. Why don’t you save yourself some embarrassment and leave before you create a scene?”
Ryan looked at the clothes in front of him. He had to admit that the prices were extremely expensive. This seemed odd to him because there did not seem to be anything special about anything he saw. He smirked and said, “I don’t understand why such ugly clothes are so expensive.”
Bonnie stood akimbo and said, “You are just saying that to save face. I know that you can’t afford to shop here.”
“Whatever.” Ryan shrugged and said, “It’s a waste of time talking to you. I’ll just go.”
Just as Ryan was about to leave the store, a security guard yelled, “Freeze! Where are you going?”
Ryan stopped, turned around, and asked, “Is there anything that I can help you with?”
Bonnie lean against the guard’s shoulder and said, “This is my boyfriend, Carter. How do you like those apples?”
Ryan frowned and said, “I don’t understand what’s going on. You guys are just minimum wage workers, but you act as if you are the top dogs around here. What gives you the right to look down on anybody?”
Ryan’s words infuriated them. Bonnie nodded to Carter and he took a step forward and shoved his finger in Ryan’s face. “Don’t be stupid,” he said. “You and I don’t belong to the same world. Though Bonnie and I are workers, our salary is much higher than yours is. You can be sure of that!”
“I doubt that.” Ryan laughed and said, “I am a doctor, and you are a security guard.”
“Is that so?” Bonnie smirked and said, “You may be a doctor out there, but in here you’re a janitor. Look at the mess on the floor. Aren’t you going to mop it up before you leave?”
“Not in this lifetime. If I do not clean the floor. What will you do?”
Carter crossed his arms beneath his chest and said, “If you don’t mop the floor, I am going to break your legs.”
Bonnie looked at her boyfriend with admiration, as if he had done something incredible.
Ryan sighed. “All right,” he said. “What if I buy a piece of clothing?”
“Haven’t we gone over this already?” Bonnie gave Ryan an incredulous look. Just mop the floor and leave. If you do not, then your legs are going to be broken!”
Ryan thought that this whole situation was ridiculous, and he was not willing to mop the floor. He looked the guard in the eyes and said, “Try me if you dare.”
Ryan was a reasonable person. If others treated him politely, he would do the same. He would not start a fight, either, but he would finish one.
Just as Carter clenched his fists to fight, though, a clear voice called from outside the store: “What are you doing, Carter?” It was his boss, Linnet, and he assumed that she would be happy to see what he was up to.
“This bum has been giving us some trouble,” Carter replied. “I told him to mop the floors and leave. If he does not, then I am going to break his legs.”
“You are the owner of the store?” Ryan asked in surprise.
Ignoring Ryan, Bonnie approached Linnet and said, “You don’t know how nasty this guy is. If I were him, I would not have come in here in the first place.”
“Is that so?” Linnet looked at Carter and Bonnie.
“It is,” they replied proudly, in unison.”
“Great.” Linnet smiled and said, “You are both fired, and don’t expect to get your last paychecks, not after the way you have treated Mr. Jones!”
Bonnie gasped. “What do you mean, madam? Why would you fire us? We didn’t break any rules.”
Carter, who came from a small village, was also astonished. He did not want to leave the store. It paid well and the work was easy.
“Do you have any idea who this man is?” Linnet asked. “He saved my life. How dare you insult him like this? Go, now, before I call the police.”
Bonnie and Carter continued to beg for their jobs, but it was of no use. Finally, they took their belongings and left the store without incident.
Once they were gone, Ryan turned to Linnet and said, “Thank you. I did not realize the extent of your success. I am impressed.”
Linnet nodded. “The respect is mutual. Although we are both young, we are giants in our fields of expertise. And us junior giants, we need to stick together.”
After a while, Linnet took out several suits from the closet.
“What are you doing?” Ryan asked.
“You really need to pay more attention to your apparel,” she replied. “It is no wonder that people think that you are poor…”
Ryan shrugged and accepted the clothes. “I never thought much about what I wear....” he admitted.
“And it shows…”
“Thanks for that.” Ryan quickly changed, and then he asked Linnet, “Where are we going?”
“I’m going to take you to a banquet,” she replied. “It is being held by the Wood family.”
***
Just as they parked, Linnet received a phone call from her father. After accepting it, she covered the microphone, turned to Ryan, and said, “Sorry, I have something to deal with. Stay here. I will be back in a second.”
Ryan nodded and Linnet stepped out of the car.
Only a minute had passed before a guard approached the car. When he saw Ryan, he looked him up and down and said, “Sorry Sir, but would you get out of here? You are not welcome here.”
Ryan frowned and asked, “Why?”
“Because you are not eligible to be here. This party is only for rich people.”
“But you are not rich,” Ryan smirked and asked the guard what he was doing there.
When the guard heard the question, his chest puffed out with pride and he said, “Of course, I can stay here. I am one of the Wood family’s guards.”
“If that is the case, then ask your host to come out. I want to see if he will drive me out.”
When the guard saw that Ryan had no intention of leaving, he was infuriated. “Be reasonable,” he cried. “Look around. Look at the other guests. They are out of your league!”
“Do you think that my clothes are cheap?” Ryan asked.
“I do,” the guard replied. “And you are embarrassing yourself.”
“Is that so?” Ryan asked. “Because if you asked the host to come out, I think that you would be the one with pie on your face.”
The guard knew that Ryan would not leave, so he had no choice but to ask his boss to come out.
***
Den was not happy to be bothered by the guard about trivial matters. After what had happened at the hospital, he had broken up with Penny, and he was not in a good mood. “What do you need from me?” he asked.
- Writer
