He held them up. “I’m not familiar with either of these brands. Which one would you recommend?”
She noticed the accent. It was slight, not strong, but it gave him an added layer of mystery. Juda pointed to the one in his left hand, noticing the lack of a ring. “I prefer that brand.”
“Perfect. Then that is the one I will take.”
He laid both items on the counter. She removed the unwanted container and placed it in the cardboard box sitting underneath, by her feet. Later, one of the high school students who worked part-time at the market would take the unwanted items in the box and re-shelve them.
Figuring she had nothing to lose, she tried to initiate a little conversation as she rang it up. “You must be new around here. I haven’t seen you in the store before.”
“I am…new,” he admitted haltingly.
“Would you like a bag for this?”
“No, thank you.”
“That’ll be eighty-seven.”
He reached inside his jeans pocket and pulled out a folded wad of money. Peeling a one from the outside, he handed it to her. She quickly counted his change from the drawer and held it out to him. He accepted the coins with his other hand, then paused to stare at both occupied hands.
Smiling, Juda grabbed a small paper sack from the pile next to her, plucked the bottle of pain meds from his palm, and slid it into the sack before handing it to him. He gave her a small smile as he took the sack and dumped the change into it as well.
“Thank you.”
“Is there anything else I can help you with?” she inquired, tearing off the receipt and stuffing it into the sack, completing the transaction.
“No. I thank you.” He started to leave, then hesitated. “Do you…work here long?”
She frowned. “Pardon?”
“Have you been working here long?”
“A few months. Why?”
“You look like someone I lo—I know. Used to know.”
Juda studied his face. The man definitely looked lost. And disappointed. He managed a weak smile as he folded down the top of the sack, when his eyes lit upon something above her eyes. Juda forced herself not to reach up and pull down a bit of hair to cover the scar at her hairline.
“Does it still hurt?” he inquired.
“No. Well, sometimes,” she admitted.
“How did you get it?”
By now two other customers had taken their places in line and were growing impatient as they waited to check out. Besides, his questions were starting to annoy her. The topic had slid into territory she didn’t wish to pursue, especially with this total stranger.
She straightened and resumed her professional stance. “If that will be all, thank you for coming to Bliar’s Grocers. May I have the next customer, please?”
The man moved away but remained standing by the front door. His eyes never left her. Although she knew she should feel creeped out by his unwavering attention, she didn’t get any sort of vibes off of him that made her think he had foul intentions.
After a few more minutes, Mr. Hampstead, the store manager, went over to speak to the guy. Juda couldn’t hear what was discussed, but eventually the man nodded and exited the store. When there came a lull at the counter, her boss ambled up to her.
“Go take a break. I got this.”
She thanked him and started to head for the employee lounge in the back when he stopped her.
“Hey, Juda. Did you know that guy who was standing there watching you?”
She shook her head. “No. He told me he was new in town. He said I reminded him of someone he knew.” She’d almost said the guy had claimed she reminded him of someone he loved…
