Chasing Shadows In The Grocery Line Novels & Stories

Finally! On the way to the vending machine is the storage, rarely used to store boxes. She disregarded the noise again amidst the eerie silence and continued walking to the machine. She pulled out her dollar and was only a few steps short of the machine when she heard faint yet aggressive shuffling to her left. She turned to where it was and saw a shadow moving from the blinking fluorescent bulb in the storage area. W-What is that? Her heartbeat accelerated as she slowly pulled out her phone, getting ready to dial Axel’s number. She completely forgot about the machine. Her attention was completely pulled to the mysterious shadow from behind the stack of boxes.

Michael’s POV The bright lights of the supermarket shined above me, casting a white glow over the neatly stocked shelves. The scent of freshly baked bread and aroma filled the air, an odd contrast to the tension twisting inside my chest. I pushed the shopping cart down the aisle, gripping the handle so tightly my knuckles turned white. Ashley strolled beside me, scanning the shelves for something sweet. She was humming softly, utterly at ease, completely unaware—or maybe just ignoring—how fucking angry I was.

I hated how broke I was, but I knew it was only temporary. Slowly, but surely, I was crawling my way out of the red. I still had a ways to go before everything was fully taken care of, but I was beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel now that Damien wasn’t around to drain my financial resources. Lost in my own thoughts, I didn’t realize where Shane had driven us to until I’d glanced out the window, seeing the familiar lion emblem on the chain grocery store I usually shopped at. Staggered at our location, I snapped my attention towards the mouthwatering male, the inquiry poised on my lips, but him reaching out to take my hand stopped the words from tumbling free.

So I drove to the twenty-four-hour Safeway in Menlo Park instead. It was 2:15 when I pulled into the lot. Storming through the automated sliding doors, I yanked the heavy dark-grey hoodie up over my head and pulled the black baseball cap low to shadow my eyes, desperately trying to pass as any other late-night shopper grabbing a snack. However, this was impossible. Even in the dead of night, the lone cashier and a night-shift stocker pulling a pallet of boxes down the main aisle froze the second my shadow cleared the entryway. The stocker stopped dead, dropped a box of cereal back onto the pallet, and whispered a hurried, “Holy shit, that’s…” under his breath.

How- before I could end my list, the sound of footsteps took my attention. By the sound of the footsteps, I was aware it's a man. I shouldn't directly shoot my questions on him, he lost his wife and I should keep that in my mind. My heart raced abnormally with each close step. Holding my breath firmly, I turned to face the person. He hasn't arrived yet, I was staring down, listening to the steps getting closer. When a foot stepped into the room, what I first noticed was a black shoe. Raising my gaze from the bottom to the top, I was slowing forming the picture of the person. Black shoes, black trousers, black shirt, a loose gray tie hanging above unbuttoned buttons and a God Damn familiar fa

Clearly somebody that she cared about gave it to her and I wanted to know who. After a 15-minute chat session with the jewelry counter clerks, she finally settled on one. "Is it time to go yet," I asked. "Calm your balls," she said, laughing and then smacked my arm. Was I crazy or did she just keep finding any reason to touch me? I noticed things like this, because I didn’t just have people casually touching me on a regular basis. We finally made our way to the grocery section and ended up being there another fucking hour. She had to stop and look at everything, and look at the nutritional information.

It would be based on their employment level. Twenty minutes she was only mildly surprised that her father, Damon, and her grandmother were joining them on their shopping trip. When they got in the SUV’s she turned to the boys and asked, “Did you bring your ID and your Debit cards?” They both nodded and indicated their wallets were in their back pockets. She noted Louisa looked nervous, she imagined she wondered what she was doing along for the ride.

Even thinking about the entire scenario was giving her strict and horrified goosebumps. Late this night, someone wouldn't play any prank on her right? Obviously no, none would dare. "I swear there was someone. I am very sure! I-i was changing when..." Sylendra was about to describe more about the whole incident but stopped timely in the middle in utter shame. The guards looked down awkwardly and one of them cleared his throat. It was impossible for someone to barge inside with all the heavy securities and specialised guards on duty. "Mam I think you are just stressed. You've worked a lot today, you should go home and take rest."

I push a shopping cart loaded with goods; from canned goods, cup noodles, breads, cheese and pancake mix to detergent soaps, bath soaps, shampoos and also boxes of green teas, coffee, brown sugar and creamer and lastly dog food and shampoo. I walk from cashier 1 to cashier 10 but there are long queues everywhere, including the basket lane. And yes, the line is worse than Christmas shopping. I stand next to a woman in her fifties, I guess. She wears a blue shirt and white shorts. ‘Ma’am,’ I said, tapping her back where her curly dark brown hair lay on her shoulders. ‘Is it okay if I leave my cart here, I just forget to get something.’ ‘Sure,’ she said, and I think with those chinita eyes of

She was right though, no matter how hard I tried to ponder about it, I have to come clean with Stephen if I want the Frederick issue to be dealt with. I locked up the car, took a deep breath, and strolled confidently towards the entrance. The bustling atmosphere of the mall greeted me as shoppers hurriedly moved from one store to another. As I navigated through the crowded aisles, picking up fresh produce and gourmet ingredients, I could feel the weight of someone's eyes boring into my back. Ignoring the prying gaze, I continued my shopping, filling my cart with the items I needed. However, the unsettling feeling grew stronger, and I couldn't shake off the sense that I was being watched agai