Brittany wandered through the store with her friend, Mary.
Well, friend was really a strong word, thought Brittany. She's more like a lackey or something.
Mary's family was very rich, even richer than Brittany's. In fact, Brittany's father worked for Mary's father. That's actually how they became friends. After a particularly expensive shopping spree, Brittany's father threatened to cut her off unless she hung out with Mary. She would never admit it to her father - or anyone else for that matter - but it actually wasn't that bad having Mary around. She had such low confidence that she would do practically anything Brittany asked her to, including doing her homework, letting her borrow her car, or even buying the occasional expensive present for her. And the amount of abuse she tolerated was impressive. Brittany often amused herself by finding new ways to torture and humiliate her without losing her friendship. And today called for a particularly inventive punishment. Mary had dared to talk back to her, in public, and even had the nerve to call her rude! She had originally planned to look for some cool Retro clothes, but her new mission was to find the ugliest thing in the store and coerce Mary into wearing it in public. And as she rounded the corner of the last aisle, she found the perfect thing.
"Mary, look, these boots would be perfect for you. Try them on!" said Brittany with fake enthusiasm.
Brittany held up the hideous boots for Mary to see. The boots were long, reaching almost knee, with a very long thin stiletto heel. The toes of the boots were oddly shaped, rounded almost in the form of the four short webbed toes with a short claw extending from three of them. The worst feature had to be the material. The entire boot appeared to be made of some kind of reptile's skin. Brittany could hardly contain her laughter at the thought of Mary walking around in these ridiculous boots.
"I don't know, Brittany. They look a little weird to me, " said Mary shyly.
"What? You don't trust my taste?" said Brittany in a huff. "Which one of us is the fashion model? Who has been featured in several magazines? Oh right, it's me, so I guess I know what I'm talking about. Now put them on!"
"If they are so great, why don't you wear them? " said Mary softly.
Brittany could barely contain her rage. Defiance two times in one day. That must be some kind of record for the mouse. She was really going to make her pay. "Okay, whatever." said Brittany. "You don't want to wear the boots, forget it. I guess my opinion doesn't mean anything to you. I don't know why I bother to try to help you, or even bring you along with me. Let's just go home, and maybe I'll meet up with you later some time next week."
Mary blanched at the thought of being alone for a week. "Wait, Brittany. We don't have to go. I'll try them on. I'm just not sure about buying them."
Brittany immediately brightened. "You will? Oh, thank you Mary. It means so much to me that you trust my opinion. Now put them on, " said Brittany as she thrust the shoes at her. Mary took off her shoes, and immediately regretted not wearing socks today. The shoes smelled earthy, and felt oddly warm against their skin. Mary tittered on the heels as she walked around a little in the shoes.
"Oh, they're just perfect " said Brittany with a smile.
"I don't know, they feel a little tight, " said Mary. The shoes were very snug, and felt pressed like they pressed directly into skin.
"Oh, they will loosen up after you wear them a while. Come on, " said Brittany, as she dragged Mary towards the checkout counter.
"Wait, what about you? I thought the reason we came here was to find something for you, " said Mary, hoping the excuse would give her enough time to get out of these uncomfortable boots.
Brittany rolled her eyes, and grabbed a nearby white fur coat off a rack. "Here, this is perfect. Now let's go, " said Brittany as she dragged Mary to the counter.
"Aww," said the Manager. "Those boots are an excellent choice. Very unique."
Brittany rolled her eyes. "Yeah, snakeskin boots. Very unique " said Brittany sarcastically.
"Actually, those boots are made from an alligator, " said the Manager. "A very special alligator actually. You see...."
"Yeah, yeah, " said Brittany, cutting off the Manager. "You've made the sale, you can save the story for some other sap. Just ring it up, along with this, " she said, holding up the white fur coat.
"Interesting. I didn't think a young lady like you would be interested in a Chinchilla coat, " said the Manager.
"Chinchilla! In a store like this! Whatever, " scoffed Brittany.
"Young lady, I assure you this is all natural Chinchilla. You have my word on that, " said the Manager.
Brittany looked back at Mary, who has fiddling with the boots, trying to remove them. "Okay, it's a Chinchilla coat. Just ring it up so we can get out of here, " said Brittany, impatiently.
"But don't you want to try it on, young lady? I am afraid there are no returns. " said the Manager.
"Okay, okay, just give it here, " said Brittany, as she slipped on the coat. It had a musky smell, like a wet animal, and was uncomfortably warm. "Can you ring us up now so we can go? " said Brittany.
"But of course, " said the Manager, with the same odd grin. "Please enjoy your purchase."