Where's the Salt?

Why is everyone in such a rush? I figure there must be some fantastic event I’m missing. No matter where I go, everyone around me always seems to be in such a hurry to get where they’re going. Or maybe just to get away.

“Excuse me, miss?” I tapped the shoulder of the lady next to me. She gasped hard while raising her hand to her chest.

“Oh! Uhm, yes?” she answered, hesitantly.

“Do you know where the salt is?” I asked. Each word I spoke repelled her further and further from me, and before I knew it, she was half way down the aisle pointing in the opposite direction. I nodded and walked her opposite, headed toward what I needed.

“Dear god!” an elderly man shouted in my direction as I passed him by.

I continued forward.

I didn’t find myself in the grocery store much nowadays. I kept busy throughout the day and often resorted to the quick decision of fast food. The fluorescents hurt my eyes. I squinted slightly as the glare shot off of the freshly waxed floor. What a shame.

I rounded the corner to the cereal aisle. Hopefully the salt would be this way. A young girl stood next to her mother as she chose her sugary cereal of choice. My shoes squeaked as I approached them. 

“Mommy, I think I want that one,” the girl announced. Her mother turned to place the box in the cart and saw me standing there.

“AH!” the mother let out an abrupt shout. 

She dropped the cereal on the ground and quickly hurried away, her child in tow.

I picked up the box and examined the packaging. Bright pink polka dots lined the edges and zoo animals littered the front of the box. Interesting. I don’t think I could enjoy my breakfast if a cow were staring me down.

I shrugged and continued down the aisle, placing the cereal back on the shelf. A pop song started to play over the intercom. I’m sure I’ve heard this one before. I bobbed my head to the beat as I made my way past the granola. It didn’t feel right, so I stopped.

“They say he’s manic,” a voice around the corner said in a whisper.

I slowly popped my head around, not wanting to cause a fright. Two women were talking next to the spices. The salt was sure to be here, maybe they could help me out!

“Excuse me,” I smiled as I entered the aisle. That hurt. I hadn’t smiled in awhile.

The women's eyes grew large and they looked at each other. One of them clutched a cross that hung from her neck, and the other anxiously wrung her hands and wiped her forehead.

Each step I took towards them seemed to push them further away from me.

“Excuse me, do either of you know where I can find the salt?” I asked.

They looked at each other again, puzzled.

“It’s behind you,” one of them finally answered.

I quickly turned, fearful I had passed up my prize.

They were right. It was there, right next to the pepper and the oregano. I turned to thank them, but they had already gone. 

I grabbed a bottle and headed toward the checkout line.

That song was still playing. I knew it from somewhere and I liked it, didn’t I? I started bouncing my shoulders as I walked down the aisle. This felt right.

I eventually made my way to the register. No line? Lucky me.

I put the salt at the end of the checkout conveyor belt. I watched the salt ride the belt up until it approached a young, brunette cashier. She was staring at me, her mouth agape.

“One salt please,” I smiled again. It didn’t hurt as much this time. I laughed. She should laugh too.

She continued to stare at me, frozen in place.

“One SALT!” I slammed my fist on the counter, tired of the silence.

She jumped before quickly grabbing the salt and scanning it. She began to tear up.

“Wou- would you like a bag?” She asked, her hands shaking.

“No, thank you,” I smiled hard, showing as many teeth as possible.

“That’ll be a buck fifty,” she whimpered as she told me the price.

Oh no. How could this be? I didn’t think this far. I patted my empty pockets. I forgot this part. I have to pay, I forgot this part! I grabbed my head and started taking deep breaths. My jaw clenched so hard, it felt as though it might shatter.

I scanned the room around me. 

The lady whose shoulder I had tapped was in the far corner, sobbing. 

The mother and her daughter who wanted the farm cereal were hiding in between the fruit stands. 

The women who had helped me in the end were on the phone, talking fast.

The room started to spin. How could I get this far and mess up right at the very end?

“Here,” a young man behind me slid a five dollar bill on the counter.

So kindness did still exist. Is this what it felt like to be cared about? I slowly turned and gave him the largest smile I could muster.

“Thank you, sir. You don’t know how much you’ve saved me,” I felt the need to tell him what his kind act had done for me.

I handed the cashier the money.

That song was playing again, I was sure this time, I knew it. I tapped my feet and brought my hands together for one loud clap. It must have startled the cashier quite a bit, because she burst into tears directly afterward.

Her sadness was killing my mood. I was ready to get out of here.

I frowned at her, to let her know how she was making me feel. 

“Just get out of here already!” the man who had handed me the five snarled at me.

“I will.” I grabbed my salt and walked towards the door.

As I left, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. My blood soaked hair clung to my forehead, and the gash on my cheek continued to bleed profusely. My shoes left a bloody trail, mixed with dirt on the freshly waxed floor. Shame.

I made my way to my car and popped open the trunk.

“Please don’t kill me,” he pleaded.

“Shh, I got you something,” I opened our salt.

I poured it into the identical wound on his cheek. He writhed in agony, begging for mercy.

“My turn,” I grinned.

I poured a bit of salt into my hand and rubbed it into my wound.

God, it hurt. I hadn’t felt that in awhile.