5 Minute Freewrite - Prompt: Cigarettes
"Vile! Disgusting! How can your manager let you smoke that thing and then handle merchandise? The stench gets everywhere!" the woman spat.
The sales clerk, a young man barely old enough to drive, looked miserable as he tried to calm the woman down. As she continued her tirade, she aggressively gestured toward the man's cigarette and spilled her coffee onto the pavement.
"And now you've made me spill my coffee!" she yelled, her shrill voice carrying across the parking lot. "What do you plan to do to compensate me?!"
Armand took one last sip of tea before letting out a sigh and starting toward them. He had only just begun eating his lunch, his only break for the day, but he couldn't let the woman continue to make a scene in front of the store.
"May I help, ma'am?" he asked as he approached.
"I want compensation!" she exclaimed. "This clerk has spilled my coffee and he refuses to stop smoking that awful cigarette!"
He eyed the clerk, who was clearly questioning his decision to work a retail job, and then shrugged.
"He's on his break and can do as he pleases," Armand said. "And I saw you spill your own coffee as you yelled at him, so I'm afraid I can't offer compensation."
The woman's face flushed crimson as she prepared to unleash further vitriol on the two men.
"However," Armand continued, "you seem to be quite stressed so I will offer you one thing."
He grabbed the clerk's jacket and dug in the pocket, then held his hand out and offered, "Cigarette?"
Note: I went a little over my time limit on this one. Oops!
This prompt was provided by @mariannewest and can be found here.
Image sourced from Pixabay.
The endearment on this one is amazing. Love the managers reaction!
And I agree that those people messing in others lives deserve a lesson. It is one thing to be concerned but just making others miserable is another kind of evil that should be slapped in the face!
Haha, thank you! And I agree, making others miserable for no good reason is plain awful.
Hahahaha :) I suppose that woman should know that raging about every little thing is probably worse for her health than smelling someone else's cigarette!
Also, I am here helping @mariannewest with freewrites today:
Here is Prompt 105
Thanks for writing with us!
@byn
Nice one @saryn! The guy's tranquil and cool attitude is what i would need sometimes when faceing clients 😉
Thanks! In my time working retail, I only ever managed to accomplish the "tranquil" part. I never pulled off the "cool" aspect.
As a lawyer I would rather pull out the "incredulous", when I have to listen to certain type of bullshit 🤔
Haha, which I'm sure you've had to hear more than your fair share!
Discussing about the fair share of bullshit that a lawyer is supposed to hear is like debating of the sex of an angel. Thank you the same for your kind thought!
Too funny!!!