Self Check-Out

297 words

Enzo rushed to the bakery counter and picked up the standing order of morning donuts. Placing them carefully in the cart; he moved on quickly, grabbing the three items on his wife’s grocery list. After all he was on his own time.

Only four items! Self Check-Out.
First item beeped, second item did not.

Several frantic passes, he sees the problem. A moth has landed on the glass in front of the red eye. Could anything else go wrong this morning! He glances at his Apple Watch. Late.

He shouldn’t have tried to shop for his wife. The boss gets really ugly without her sugar high. Maybe he should send a text to her cute receptionist Debbie. She is sooo hot.

“Hey Deb. Running late with the donut pick-up. Be there ASAP.”

“Better make it snappy Enzo. She’s headed for the the coffee pot. Three strikes and you are out. If you know what I mean.”

He did. He lifted the ungainly, flexible donut box to the red eye and realized the bakery sticker was on the bottom of the box!!

Stopping himself from placing the box in the bagging area and getting the dreaded ‘Unexpected Item in Bagging Area’ shout out, he set the box back in the cart.

What to do? He needed a portable scanner. Throwing his hand up in the air like a kindergartener, he realized no Attendant was in sight.

Panic mode was setting in. He was not a thief but this was an emergency. He paid cash for his wife’s three items. No credit card ID this time. It was their own fault.

As the exit door slid open a woman from security tapped him on the shoulder, “Come with me, Sir.”

“But there was a moth on the scanner. I swear.”