Sal finished tying the strings of his blue Kovyn's apron, after tying back his hair. After adjusting his matching, blue hat over his ponytail, he closed his locker, and left the break room to start another day at work. He knew he was supposed to hate working at Kovyn's, yet he felt surprisingly content. Is it possible that I love working at Kovyn's? he wondered, as he folded some shirts he had taken from the men's fitting room. Then, he shook his head. No, it's retail. I can't like working here.
"Excuse me, where's the bathrooms?" a woman with a stroller asked.
Sal put the folded shirt down on the display table. In a naturally, cheerful voice, he said, "Go down aisle 7 over there," he pointed towards aisle 7, "make a right and it's towards the back wall."
"Thank you." The woman left.
Sal smiled, happy to have been useful. His day was starting out great.
* * * * *
"Stay in the men's section. I'll come get you when I'm done looking at... unmentionables," Elizabeth said to Russell.
"You mean bras?" Russell asked.
Elizabeth gasped and looked around, as if bra was a secret word that could summon the devil. "Don't say that word out loud!" she hissed. Elizabeth hurried off towards the "unmentionables" section while Russell headed off to the men's, holding back a laugh at her reaction.
Russell knew Sal would be working. Yet he couldn't do anything to stop Elizabeth from going to Kovyn's when she wanted to go to Kovyn's. And she didn't know Sal worked there. He would have to find Sal and warn him, fast.
He looked around the men's section, searching for any sign of an average-height, male employee with long, dark-brown hair. He heard giggling coming from behind a clothes rack.
"Go on, ask him. I dare you."
Russell glanced behind the clothes rack and saw three young girls. A blonde,a brunette, and a redhead. They looked like middle-schoolers, no older than 14. Russell groaned inwardly at the thought of middle-school. Then, he thought, a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead walk into a bar... He smiled in spite of himself.
"No, you ask him," said the brunette, giggling.
"I'll ask him," said the blonde. Combing her hair with her fingers and adjusting her pink, sequined shirt, she confidently walked over to a Kovyn's employee, who stood near a table of neatly folded shirts. Russell smiled when he noticed that that Kovyn's employee was Sal. He followed the giggling girls over to Sal, who was folding shirts. Russell hid behind a nearby rack of more shirts, curious as to what question the giggling middle-schoolers were daring each other to ask.
The blonde shushed her giggling friends. Flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder, she said, "Excuse me."
Sal looked up from his shirts. All smiles, he cheerfully asked, "Can I help you?"
The brunette and redhead had their hands over their mouths, as if holding back more giggles. The blonde was more collected. "Where's the lingerie section?"
The brunette snorted. The redhead nudged her.
Russell held back a laugh of his own, thinking about how flustered and embarrassed Sal would get over that question, especially coming from girls suffering from chronic giggling. Peering from behind the rack,he found himself disappointed, yet surprised at Sal's reaction.
Sal looked unfazed. Pointing to the left, he said, "Go down that way until you hit the shoe department. Make a right, go straight until you hit aisle six, next to the purses. Make a left. Then, walk all the way to the back and they'll be near the pajamas."
YOU ARE READING
The Riveting Lives of Russell and Sal
General Fiction[Newly edited and rewritten!] Russell is a virtuous goth with a Christian upbringing. Sal is a carefree slack-off who would rather work retail than go to college. It was hate at first sight. Until they were forced to partner up in class. After their...
