On a Friday afternoon. Antonio browsed the mall on his day off. He worked on each weekday, but he called in sick today for some much needed R&R. He did that from time to time, just to a lot himself some rest, and time to clear his headspace. However, his rest time was disturbed when his wife had send him a photo of some shoes she needed for work, and which store to pick them up for at the mall. She took an extra shift at work so that she could pay off an overly expensive purse that she put on her credit card, so she couldn't handle it right now. He didn't mind it though because he loved his wife unconditionally, and he could probably grab a cinnamon roll from a kiosk while he was at it. Nobody else was home when he left, or else he'd had brought them with him. He didn't really like doing things alone, and his kids like to come with him because it was guaranteed that he would buy them a sweet treat. He was a pretty straightforward shopper, he always knew exactly what he wanted, and where to find it. That was just about all there was to it. He found the shoe store his wife had told him to go to, and after some discussion on what color she should get, a nice off-white color was decided. The young woman who had helped him was very cute, with a nice petite body, and often smiled as he met her gaze. Antonio was aware of his effect on most women, but he only really had the eye for his wife. She was the perfect mixture of everything he wanted in a woman, from her long hair to her bodacious curves, there's nothing he was deprived of when it came to her. Nonetheless, he was still sweet to most women that he met.
"Can I help you out with anything else sir?" the young woman smiled.
"I think that's it sweetheart, let's checkout" he smiled back.
The two of them made it to the register, and finished the transaction. She handed Antonio the bag, "Here you are sir. I'm glad that I was able to help you today."
He held onto the bag as she handed it to him, and locked eyes with the worker, "Actually, there is something else you can help me with" Antonio smiled.
"Yes sir, anything." the young woman said as a smile formed on her face.
"Could you point me to the Cinnabakery? Im in dire need of a cinnamon roll and they moved the kiosk since last time I came here."
The young woman's look of desire in her eyes turned to those of slight disappointment, and then relief. "Uh yes I can sir! Just make a left out of the store, go down the escalator and it's at the dead end in front of the vacant mall space"
"Thanks a bunch!" Antonio smiled, as he waltzed out of the store knowing that he still had it, and that his sweet tooth was soon to be fulfilled.
Antonio was able to find the kiosk without much problem, thanks to the workers directions, and got the cinnamon roll that he had desired since he left the house. He sat on a bench near the kiosk and enjoyed his small meal, looking around at the different stores, before focusing in on one.
Now, he specifically remembered that the worker said that the kiosk was in front of a vacant store, but the store in front of him was quite the opposite. It was stocked with all sorts of merchandise from what Antonio could see though the window. It even had a nice glowing sign.
"Realm Gifts & Novelties. Sounds cool. Must've just opened up shop recently" he shrugged.
As he continued to scan the windows of the store, Antonio had a bit of an odd feeling inside. He couldn't explain it, but he felt that something was drawing him to the store, almost pulling him. He didn't usually this feeling towards most stores, but he usually followed his gut when it came to most positions. He finished his treat, threw the trash away, and stepped toward into the store.
The store was surprisingly dark, despite how well-lit the rest of the mall was. Antonio figured it to the store's decor, which he attributed it to portraying a medieval type look. Behind an ancient looking counter, stood a middle-aged Korean woman, with pale skin and kind eyes. She smiled at Antonio, and welcomed him into the store.
"Hello there sir, what brings you in to my Realm today?" the woman said.
"Well I was snacking out there, and I had some time to kill so I figured that I'd take gander at some of your things" Antonio answered with a smile, as his eyes continued to wander the shelves.
"Just so you know, everything here is up for sale. If you find it, just ask me"
Antonio thanked the woman, and started to look around. The stores inventory had all sorts of international items that Antonio had heard of before, and most of them had luckily came with English translations so he could tell what he was looking at. He was curious to see if there were any ancient weapons that he could get, like an ancient sword. He'd always wanted one for his office, and figured that this would be the place to get one. He didn't have much luck on finding any weapons throughout the store, only small trinkets that he thought were neat.
While searching, he came across small box that typically would carry a ring, or earrings. Curious to what may be inside, he opened it up and to his surprise, were two of the most fascinating rings that he had ever seen. They looked like black wedding bands that he had on his finger, but on the band were black crystals that shone even in the dark. The illumination of the rings put Antonio in a would-be trance, before he snapped herself out of it. The glow really jumped out to him and he instinctively reached out and grabbed the box. He searched, and looked all over the shelf, but couldn't find a price tag. Still determined to get the rings, he took it over to the worker at the counter.
"Hi! I was wondering how much these wedding bands were?", Antonio asked.
The lady looked down at the rings and smiled, and stuck her hand out for the box. "Oh, was there no tag?", she said as she opened the box, and stared at the rings.
"No ma'am. I searched high and low but couldn't find them. Do you think somebody took it off?"
"Possibly" the woman sighed, "Oh well. I said that everything was for sell, and that includes this! Take it!" the woman said, sliding the box over towards Antonio.
Antonio smiled, like a child that got a Christmas present! "That is so generous of you! Are you certain?"
The worker laughed and said, "Those of the Rings of Gyohwan! Very special in our culture. They are said to bring loved ones together like never before imagined, understanding life through their eyes."
The explanation was enough for Antonio. He appreciated other cultures and what they brought to the world. The rings seems like a very admirable Korean object, and he figured that this nice little trinket would be a nice gift for one of them. All that mattered was deciding who got to wear the other ring.
"Say no more ma'am, I'll take it. Are you sure I don't have to pay?"
"Yes, Mr. Ruiz. Now go enjoy them with your family."
Something seemed a bit off after she said that, but Antonio couldn't quite place his finger on it. He shook off the feeling, thanked the worker, and walked out of the store. The back of Antonio Ruiz's mind danced around the idea of how that worker may have known his last name when he didn't say it, but his mind was somewhat clouded and he couldn't arrive at a clear solution. He decided to forget about it, as it was only going to frustrate him on his day of rest. He hopped into his car, and took the long way home.
At Home
Antonio pulled into the driveway, and put his car in park. He had a serious problem on his hands. Who was he going to give the ring to? It was all he could think about on the way home. He had such a passion for each of her family members, and didn't want anybody feeling left out.
"3 more of these would be perfect" he sighed, thinking hard about who should get half of his latest find.
He sighed, "Fine, I'll just give it to:"   indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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