My Kmart Love (Based On True Events)

Ch.3 Electronics

3 weeks passed and I had pretty much forgotten about that day. I was on the register when a customer asked me for a price check on a toy. Since everyone on the floor was busy, I turned off my light and made my way to the toy department that sat at the back of the store. As I was reading the tags on the unorganized shelves, the door to the garden shop swung open.

The garden shop was a small, fenced off area outside of the store where we stocked all sorts of gardening equipment and patio accessories. "I got it!" I shouted as I helped the struggling associate by holding the door. "Thanks, this thing is heavy..." he trailed off as he pulled out a kid's swing-set on a flat bed. My heart skipped when I laid eyes on him.

He wore a royal blue shirt with the Kmart logo on his sleeve. His honey brown hair was neatly styled and parted to the right. A black lanyard with his name hung loosely from his neck as he pulled the flat-bed all the way through. "Hey!" He smiled when he laid eyes on me. "It's good to see you again!" His crooked smile sent my heart into a frenzy and caused my face to heat up. "I um...g-gotta...this" I stammered as I picked up the toy I was looking for and raced back to the front of the store. "I can't believe he got the job!" My mind raced with excitement. "Oh crap...he got the job..." I repeated fretfully to myself as I glanced down at my lanyard.

Whenever I had a crush on someone, it was really hard for me to speak to that person. I would get all flustered and my words would jumble up. My hands would clam and my stomach would flutter anxiously. "Oh geez, what did I get myself into...?" I thought to myself as I finished ringing up the customer.

A few more weeks passed and I found out that he worked in the layaway department. I had been working at Kmart just over 3 years, so I was considered one of the veterans. Thanks to my experience, I was always covering other departments when the associate had to take a lunch. Electronics was my favorite, back then it was stocked full of videogames. One day, I was covering electronics when a light knock on the glass counter made me glance up. I was crouching by the register, re-shelving the tablets.

My face turned crimson when I laid eyes on him. "Working hard?" He asked with a crooked smile. His leather jacket was draped lazily over his folded arm and he wasn't wearing his lanyard. At this point, just like everyone else, he had gotten tired of wearing the company shirt and had opted for a light blue button up instead. I swallowed forcibly as heat began rising to my face. "H-hey, I didn't see you there..." I smiled
nervously as I locked the shelf and stood up. "Is everything okay?" I asked.

"Actually, I was hoping you could get a video-game from the back case for me..." he said as he motioned with his head. "Sure!" I enthused as I locked my register and unhooked the keys from my pants. I led the way towards the back where the newest games lined the shelves. "I actually wanted to try that one..." he said as he pointed to a popular first-person shooter that had just been released. For the sake of copyright let's call it Summons for Mission; Phantoms. I had just gotten that same game a few days prior. "Oh, I have that one!" I enthused as I began unlocking the case.

"What do you think, is it any good?" He asked curiously. "Honestly..." I began as I pulled the game off the shelf. "I didn't really like it. The graphics were sub-par and the game mechanics were unimaginative and more complicated than they needed to be. Instead of an upgrade, I kind of felt like they took a step back in innovation..." I said as I handed him the case. He looked at it curiously. "Really? Wow, that sucks..." he trailed off.

My face turned crimson when I realized I had ruined the game for him. "B-but it's definitely worth a try...he-he!" He furrowed his brows and pushed his lower lip out slightly. "Is it worth 60$?" He asked me seriously. I glanced down at my black tennis shoes. "No..." I muttered honestly. "Well, how about I take a copy of Tomb Raider instead?" He asked with a smile. "Good choice, I really like Lara Kroft's design in this one!" He nodded as I handed him the plastic case. "Thanks Hannah..." he said with a wink just before turning around and making his way towards the front of the store.