A Night at Millicent's

And then on top of all this, she was getting a message from her digestive system.

Mm-mm...double uh-oh.

The cashier shook her head and broke the news a third time. "Sorry, no dice."

Also for the third time, the woman took the card and shined it up, trying to make the strip readable. "It really is just an old card."

Perhaps you should trade it in for a newer model, Sophie forced herself not to say. Or better still, just get a little green together and use that, on the one single solit'ry book you're purchasing. She found herself losing patience. This was getting her nowhere. It looked like she'd have to just suck it up and lug the bloody basket back downstairs, hang it all. Yes, she'd be carrying the same weight in books out the door either way, but using a big sturdy Millicent's shopping bag was amazingly easier.

She gave a wince and picked the basket back up to hear, "Ah! That did it."

She looked up. The woman's card had finally been successfully approved. "See? I knew it!" she told the cashier. "Fourth time's the charm."

Oh...well, thank goodness. As the little old lady was given her receipt and sent on her way, Sophie at last got her turn. The cashier smiled at her and her unwieldy load, anticipating a big sale to close out the day.

"And good evening to you as well, ma'am!" she chirped to Sophie. "Did you find everything you were looking for?"

"Oh, and then some, love," Sophie smiled back. "This place is awesome. It's me favourite store."

"Aw, thank you!" said the cashier, ringing up Sophie's items as she stacked them on the counter. "How sweet of ya. Well, my opinion's not quite as glowing, but of course, I come and work here every day. Do you have a discount card with us?"

"Oh, well, for what it's worth, I still reckon you're lucky," she told the cashier, handing her the discount card. "I live thirty-five minutes away, so I can't come 'ere that often, so yeah, I really try to get the most out of it when I can."

"I certainly see that," chuckled the cashier. "Okay, and your total is...one...thirty-two...seventy-five."

Sophie smirked. Clearly, the girl was trying to let the heavy total down on her nice and easy, but she'd already seen the dollar amount coming. And without the discount, it would have been almost ten bucks more. She gave over her own plastic. It went through beautifully the first and only necessary time, and the cashier produced the massive shopping bag with her purchase.

"All right, good night, ma'am, and thank you so much!"

"And you as well," Sophie returned. "Sweet dreams, lass! Cheers!"

Finally. Sophie didn't know how much time she had left, she only knew she had to make this quick. She hurried to the escalators, ran down them to get to the bottom floor extra fast, and hastened to the girls' room. The store didn't like customers to take unpurchased merchandise into the restrooms, so it was fortunate she'd already paid for her books (although at this point she couldn't see it making a world of difference). She got into a stall, sat to get on with business, retrieved a book, opened and flipped to the first chapter.

This novel she'd plucked from tonight's purchase was entitled Come Back Down. It was a fantasy about an elderly woman called Karen who passed away. The story opened with her death, but when she was taken to heaven, she was told that she'd be given a second life. The unique stipulation was that her second life would be lived in reverse. She would begin life number two on the day before she died, at her current age of 72. Chronological time would progress as normal, but with each passing day, while others were burdened by age, Karen was relieved of a small wrinkle of time. After a year at 72, on the anniversary of the day she died, she degrew to 71 years of age. Her deathday, it was explained to her, would become her new "birthday."

The other condition of the revival was that her loved ones would continue on with Karen in their lives, and they in hers, as if she hadn't died at all. And at first, this wondrous second chance, Karen felt, was the greatest thing that could ever have happened. As the years went on, gradually, life began to get easier. Her withered face and skin grew fresh and pure again. Her body and bones strengthened. Her system accelerated. Her grey hair reverted to its natural auburn. It became less difficult to move about and lose weight.

But now literally having the time of her life, Karen found herself faced with a host of questions about her "future." What would happen to her when she became a teenager again? A little girl? Would she have to go back to school? Would she need to be taken care of again? Who would look after her? And the most frightening thought of all: what would happen after the day she was originally born? What then? Would she be sent back to heaven, or to nowhere at all?

As Sophie turned page after page, these questions popped up in her own mind as well. A true bibliophile at heart, she wasn't too difficultly intrigued in fun stories, and such an original, creative narrative as this absolutely captivated her. She found herself engrossed. She could not, stop, reading. This book was astoundingly fascinating. The cliché was true: she literally couldn't put it down. She had to keep turning pages. She had to know what happened next. The world outside her little restroom stall vanished as she got lost in this wonderful, mystical book. She forgot about everything else...including the most important thing of all.

Eventually, her tongue went dry from licking her fingertip to smoothly turn the pages. Coincidentally, right about the time this happened, she reached the end of chapter three. The riveting story lost still no steam, but chapter three was the first to end on an odd-numbered page. Each new chapter also began on an odd number, and so on the even number in between, a blank page stared back at her. Chapter four was clearly visible on the adjacent side, but seeing this blank page psychologically helped Sophie decide to bring her leisure to a full stop. Maybe she had finally read enough for tonight. Blimey, she thought. I read three whole chapters! I—

Her eyes jumped open.

Wait...wait a minute...

She went for her cell phone, only to be reminded it was dead. She suddenly had an uneasy feeling.

She fished out her receipt, used it as a makeshift bookmark at the beginning of chapter four, returned Come Back Down to the bag, rolled off some toilet tissue, and finished up. An initial bout of anxiety set in as she hefted up her bag, flushed, exited the stall, washed her paws and left the ladies' room.

Just as soon as she egressed back into the store, she knew her worries were founded. The lights were off.

It was after 10:00, she realised. She'd obviously spent more time in the loo reading her book than planned. She made her way about, just enough guidance from the moon and streetlights out the windows. The escalators had also been shut off, turning them into essential staircases. Sophie ran up to level two and rushed for the door, harbouring a hope that she confirmed straightaway was in vain. Locked.

She couldn't get out.

She'd overstayed her welcome in the restroom—where she guessed no one, not even a janitor, entered to check for customers—and now everyone had left. Oh no, she thought. I'm locked in! They're closed! Everyone's gone! Why didn't they make an announcement over th—

Oh, rot. That was right as well; there was something wrong with the system. There was no music playing when she came in.

Oh no! she reiterated to herself. What am I going to do?? I can't call anyone, and everybody's left! Well, maybe I could use the phones that belong here, but...but, oh, even if I could, whom would I call? The only people who have keys are the ones who run the store. I don't know how to get in touch with them! What'll I...

She suspected she was left alone, but guessed there was a minute possibility someone else may have still been here. Perhaps someone stayed too long in the gentlemen's restroom while she was in the gentlewomen's. She stepped away from the front door.

"'Elp!" she called, trotting back out to the main body of the store, trying to carry her voice throughout. "'Ellllp! Someone, anyone! Is-is anyone 'ere?! 'Elp, I'm locked in! Please, somebody!"

She heard her cries faintly bounce and echo around the empty, dark space. A bad sign. Sophie was starting to get frightened. She was stuck—albeit in her favourite store, but still, in the dark, and trapped. Alone. And now, with her system evacuated, she was starting to get a little hungry again. She tried to stop severe panic from taking her over.

"Okay...okay," she whispered to herself. "Just keep calm, Sophe. Just think. There's got to be something we can do. Just be calm."

Be calm??! another part of her silently answered. How do you propose we manage that??

Well, it won't help anything to go to pieces, she told her panicked side. While we're in here...well...I hesitate to even bring this up, but, we could be in trouble...at least until tomorrow morning. Maybe we should...have a snack? There're Godiva bars over by the registers.

Have a snack? Take a candy bar? As in nick store goods, in other words?!

Well, not necessarily! I'm sure if we just explain the situation in the morning, be honest with them and pay for it, it'll be okay.

Well, you do what you've got to do. But for the record, I'm against it. Let it be on your head.

Good to know.

Without much other visible recourse at the moment, Sophie approached the register, incumbently looked around, and snuck a bar of Godiva chocolate from the display rack. Just feeling it in her hand and peeling the wrapping off made her hungrier.

Oh, did it taste good. This may have been technically dishonest behaviour, but she was in something of a bind. And now that she had some comfort food to settle her nerves, she could come at this more rationally.

Right. Okay...well, there's no shortage of sweets. We may get a cavity, but at least we won't starve.

All right, and so just what are we supposed to do about sleep then, clever girl??

We'll...oh, we'll sort something out, don't worry.

I will.

*****

The Bookworm Turns

Saturday, January 2nd, 2016, 10:44 p.m.

Since she hadn't much else to do at the moment, Sophie fetched a couple more chocolate bars, and took herself and her items downstairs to the first floor, where the streetlights and moonlight filtered in through the immense windows. If the idea didn't shock the wits from her, she'd consider trying to break through a window to get out, but these panes looked so thick and durable, she wasn't sure she could dent one with a sledgehammer. So instead, she sat in a chair by one of them, opened Come Back Down to chapter four, and continued reading. She had no idea where the store lights were, and even if she'd found and activated them, folks outside might believe the shop was still open for business. But far from ideal though this situation may've been, a sweet treat in her happy tummy took her a good way back to calm.

Furthermore, if she took sleep deprivation out of the picture, she could actually view this situation as being rather...cool. Look at it this way, she thought. We have the whole bookshop to ourselves! That's actually sort of brilliant! Visibility's imperfect, but nothing can disturb our reading right now. We do quite like that.

She finished chapter four. A page and a bit after five began, Sophie heard something that diverted her attention. She looked up.

It was a sort of shuffling, rustling sound coming from the children's section. Sophie abruptly sat up with a gasp. She was certain she'd been left completely alone in here. What if a frightening or dangerous creature had found its way in, with which she was now trapped? Maybe Sophie had an overactive imagination, but here in the dark with no means of illumination, she was uneasy. She couldn't see what was moving back there. Her eyes widened as the noise went on another moment, then stopped.

A figure pushed to its feet—a woman, Sophie relievedly determined, by the femininity in her bemused voice.

"Wh—...what...what-what happened..." she stammered.

Sophie's relief in being safe from scary monstrosities quickly metamorphosed into stark astonishment, at the sight of another human being here in the store after hours. She stood from her chair and called with a wave, trying not to scare this disoriented person herself.

"Uh, hi! Hi there," she waved. The shadowy figure turned her way and froze. Sophie stood still in place as well, not sure what more to say just now. After another few seconds, her companion spoke.

"...Wh—...what's...happening?...Where am I?"

Sophie raised her eyebrows, even though they couldn't see one another's faces.

"Erm, we're in Millicent's...the bookshop. And...well, it's after 10:00," she told the stranger. "It's past closing time. I'm, eh...I'm afraid we're locked in 'ere."

The young woman raised her own eyebrows, even though they (still) couldn't see one another's faces.

"...I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news," Sophie went on, "But there's really quite nothing I can do. I tried. You see, what happened is, I was in the little girls' room, and when I came out, the lights were shut and the door was locked."

The young lady placed her hands over her cheeks as her bearings came back to her.

"Oh, God," she meekly whimpered. "I...I must have fallen asleep in the castle."

Oh, right, Sophie recalled. There was a fairy-tale-esque castle in a corner of the children's section, the same corner where this sleepy lass had emerged. It was about five feet high and four feet wide, sufficiently sizable for most children to crawl in and out of. This girl, however, Sophie noted, was no small child. The tone of her voice was grown-up, as seemed her stature. Sophie gave a pause, and asked a question that naturally came to mind—though its answer could've gone a number of ways.

"Eh...may I ask what you were doing in the castle?"

"Oh...uh..." Her mate yawned, as if to answer. "...I was...well, really tired today, and, uh...well, I-I guess too tired to drive home. And after the kids left, I...suppose I thought the castle was a nice little, like, cubby-hole to crawl in and just kinda be alone for a while. I..." She felt a bit sheepish. "...I didn't mean to fall asleep, I just wanted to lie down and rest my eyes."

Sophie nodded in revelation. "Gotcha. Well, that's actually a bit funny; I mean, you were in the castle, and I was on the throne. I just got so hooked on this book I'm reading, I fully forgot about the time. So then, yeah, like I said, when I came out...boom."

Silence. The young woman in the dark shadows slowly nodded.

"...Wait..." she finally said. "So...you mean we're stuck in here?"

"I'm...afraid that's the way it's looking."

Her companion was scared. She didn't know what to say, do or think.

"...I'm scared. I don't know what to say, do or think."

"Same 'ere. But I don't reckon there's any immediate cause for panic. There is some food—even if it's just chocolate. I brought a few Godiva bars down with me. There isn't any big shortage of them, and of course I intend to pay for them when the store opens in the morning. But you're welcome to share them with me. And to be honest with you, I'm a little amazed and actually kind of happy someone else is 'ere. Not happy you're stuck, of course, but just that, you know, I don't have to be alone in this."

The girl nodded again, taking in everything Sophie was saying.

"...Okay," she finally said. "Well, um, I guess...I guess we'll be all right, eh...so to speak.

"Well, I mean, as...as long as you're not, like...a murderer or anything," she chuckled. "I promise I'm not."

Sophie laughed good-naturedly.

"No offence taken, me friend. Nor am I." She approached and held out her paw. "I'm Sophie. Sophie Anne Trimble."

With just enough light to make out the gesture, the girl gave her a royal handholding and curtsied.

"Nice to meet you. My name's Gabby. Short for Gabriella. My full name's Gabriella Laurel Whitmore, but I just prefer Gabby."

Sophie returned the curtsy. "Well, brilliant to make your acquaintance as well, Gabby and not Gabriella."

"I really like your accent," Gabby smiled, shuffling a step closer. "You're British, right?"

As Sophie watched Gabby come into her small patch of light by the window, she noticed something else: this girl's remarkable beauty. Her hair was strawberry blonde, and she appeared to sport a light dusting of freckles over her nose and cheeks. As she smiled, her lips almost seemed to form the shape of a heart. She couldn't tell what colour her eyes were, but she was guessing blue. Her nap on the floor had mussed her hair and smeared her makeup a bit, but somehow, this only endeared her more to Sophie. There was something about her that Sophie just couldn't put her finger on. But somehow, a part of her felt almost as if maybe this was meant to happen, in some strange, cosmic way. That she and this darling vixen were destined to meet.

"I am, yes, very good," said Sophie. "I was born and raised in Lincolnshire. It's a county right near England's east coast."

"Oh, God, I adore British people," Gabby declared, clasping her hands to her heart. "I swear, I'm not even kidding or trying to be nice. I'm the biggest Anglophile there is. Their voices sound like heaven. Even the funny cockney ones. I could just listen to them talk all day."

Sophie's heart fluttered. She felt a sudden urge to hug this doll, and whisper sweet British nothings in her ear. She made herself remain under control, though. She couldn't get too carried away just yet. But she had a wonderful idea.

"Oh, why, well then..." she grinned, purposely overenunciating her accent, "Perhaps I may indulge you. You see, I bought a lot of books tonight before the shop closed, and I'm already four chapters through one of them. It's about an old lass who dies, but then is brought back, and lives her life again, but in reverse. She starts out old and gets younger."

"Wow," the strawberry blonde commented. "Sounds fascinating."

"'Fascinating' does it little justice, love," Sophie smirked flirtatiously. "So this is just a suggestion, and of course you're welcome to decline...but if you'd like...I could go back to the start, and read to you."

Sophie could tell by the smile crossing her face that her new friend loved the idea.

"Oooooh..." chuckled Gabby, reciprocating the flirtation. "I'm enchanted already. Take me away, madame raconteur."

*****

The Gift Of Gab

Saturday, January 2nd, 2016, 11:37 p.m.

Before presenting the enchanted Gabby with an indefinite narration, Sophie wisely chose to run up to level three, where was displayed another item she would pay for in the morning: a beverage. Most plainly and clearly, a bottle of Voss water. Filtered, cool, refreshing, flawlessly quenching H2O. This would give her voice and throat the soothing cleanse they needed to speak, to grace Gabby's ears with the most refined British nuances until such time as the beautiful strawberry blonde fell veritably heels over head for her...possibly.