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The woman hesitates for a moment, but then she steps back allowing us inside. I hold out a hand for Summer to enter first. She shakes her head but walks in. I follow behind her.
“Just so you both know, I’m not here alone and there are cameras.”
Neither Summer nor I comment.
“What are you looking for?” The saleswoman directs her question to Summer.
I wait for her to tell the woman she needs help finding shoes, but she doesn’t speak. Instead, she tugs at the hem of my sweater and touches her fuzzy hair. She’s nervous. I pull the word from my rolodex of emotions.
“She needs shoes.” I tell the woman in the black pants suit.
The sales lady looks Summer up and down, her lips curl up and her brow pinches.
“Maybe she would prefer something at a different store. I don’t think we have her type of shoes here.”
Summer’s shoulders drop and she turns to leave. I hold out a hand barring her exit.
“She needs shoes,” I say once again to the saleswoman. I don’t like having to repeat myself.
The dark-skinned girl rolls her eyes before turning on her heels and walking away. I look to Summer and tilt my head in the direction of the salesclerk. She too rolls her eyes but follows the sales lady.
“What kind of shoes are you looking for?” The woman’s voice tells me she isn’t happy to be helping Summer.
Her stance is closed off and she looks more annoyed than anything. I still don’t know why. It angers me that I can’t read emotions and situations as easily as my brothers. Why would she not want to help after letting us in?
“Something comfortable and less pointy,” I tell the lady when Summer doesn’t reply.
She sneers and picks up a pair of black and white cloth tennis shoes. “How about these?”
Summer’s eyes widen. “Um, maybe we should—”
“Those work—” Summer and I speak at the same time.
Both the women turn to stare at me with open mouths. I again feel as if I’m missing something. I hate this feeling. For the first time tonight, I wish my brothers were here to guide me.
“Gabe,” Summer says.
“These shoes are $1600,” the sales lady interrupts what Summer was about to say.
I wait for the problem to be announced. However, neither woman says anything else.
“Do you need to try them on?” I ask Summer.
She shakes her head but turns to the woman. “Size eight, please.”
The saleswoman looks a bit stunned, but I do notice she’s happier now. She’s even smiling as she grabs the shoes for Summer and hands them to her.
“Can I get you anything else?”
I look to Summer to see if she needs anything else.
“No thank you,” she glares at me before sitting down to put on her new shoes.
I follow the woman to the counter. Placing my bag on the register, I pull out two stacks of bound twenty-dollar bills and hand them to the lady. As she goes to ring up the box the shoes were in, I spot a collection of silk scarves behind her. One catches my eye.
“Add that to my order,” I say pointing to the dark gray and black scarf.
The woman turns to see what I’m pointing to.
