Light as a Feather

Chapter Three

    It turned out that the only other person in the house was her great-aunt Edna. Edna was rather sour, and she didn't enjoy talking to other people much. That was why she had locked herself in her room, a "Do Not Disturb" sign on her doorknob.

     Her mom had kind of ditched her in the bedroom. She decided to just chill out for a bit. Apparently, though, her mom hadn't completely forgotten about her. She walked into her room and said, "Annabelle, I need some eggs. Will you walk to the store and get some?"

     "Why? Just take the car."

     Her mom's eyes turned into sharp daggers. "Annabelle, I'm trying to give you something to do besides play on your phone. Now, please do what I asked you to."

     Annabelle sighed, but she got off the comfy bed she had been lying on. She plugged her phone in since it was dying and then she walked down the stairs. Her mom was nowhere to be seen. Edna was in her room still, so she walked out the front door. Soon after leaving, she realized that her mom hadn't told her where the store was. Not wanting to bother her, she turned right and hoped for the best.

     After a short while, a little corner market came into sight. Annabelle must have been lucky, because she still possessed a few dollars that were in her pocket. She entered the market and found a small room with shelves and aisles crammed into it. This was hardly a store. Why was there such a small market in such a rich neighborhood?

    Shaking her head, Annabelle walked into the tiny cold foods section. Spotting the eggs, she grabbed a carton and opened it to make sure none of them were broken. None of them were.

     As she walked towards the front, she realized that nobody was behind the counter. If you could call it that. It was more like a table with a cash register. She rung the bell. Nobody came.

     Then she looked at the candy aisle. A boy who looked around her age was walking up to her, a smirk on his face. "You're new here, huh?" he asked.

     "Uh, yeah. Help would be nice."

     "Oh, you think...?" he said, pointing to himself. Then he started laughing. "No, I don't work here."

     Annabelle didn't smile. "I never said you did. I just said that help would be nice."

     He shrugged. "Well, the people who own this place don't really come here a lot. So, I ring myself up. You want me to do it for you?"

     "Wait, whoa, whoa, whoa. You mean that people can come and take whatever they want without paying?"

     He shrugged. "Yeah, I suppose. But nobody here does that. Mainly because nobody comes to this market 'cept me. That's why I asked if you were new."

     His eyes were blue. Annabelle noticed that right then. "Well, that's crappy a way to do business. I guess you can ring me up."

     He slid behind the table and took the eggs. When she had paid, he handed them back to her. "I never caught your name," he said. "Mine's Tyler."

     Annabelle hesitated. "Uh... I'm... Anna."

     "Are you sure? 'Cause you don't seem sure."

     "I'm sure," she said, holding the eggs. "Good bye, Tyler." She didn't turn to look at him after she left.