It was a cold New York morning. The snow blew about and the January air was enough to give even the most warm person frostbite in a mere instant. And although every square inch of her body was wrapped up, she was cold. Both physically and emotionally.
Her name was Laura. Fresh out into the real world, from a small, rural town in Indiana, she was nineteen, but had the appearance of a twenty- five year old. She was too lazy to wear make up, and besides, it was a waste of money, so she had a 'stash,' for special occasions. When it came to beauty, she wasn't very precise. She was beautiful, no doubt, but one would never believe someone was as pretty as she. They never saw it in her pulled back, unkempt hair, or in her loosely worn shirts, but once she wore that red dress, people couldn't keep their eyes off of her. But enough of that, she had to set out into the world, and find work.
She had recently rented an apartment; using what money she had, so she had to work. She didn't have too much experience, only being nineteen. She had stopped into an upper class clothing store, but was turned down for the position they offered. So, she decided that she was going to apply at a diner, not too far away from her home. A man that always had a half lit cigarette hanging out of his mouth hired her. His name was Mr. Malone, and he was in his late fifties. He seemed dirty, but she believed she could trust her.
She started work on a Sunday afternoon. It was a relatively nice neighborhood, and they paid her minimum wage, but occasionally there was a generous enough person that would give her a good tip. She talked to her friend Sharon on the phone earlier that day, and they decided that in the coming weekend they would go out and enjoy the city of New York. This made Laura ecstatic, because she would have a chance to look her best, and wear the red dress. She couldn't wait until that Friday night.
Monday she had to work a double shift, and came to find that it wasn't the best thing in the world. When she got home her feet hurt and she wanted to sleep. She still couldn't wait until Friday.
Tuesday, she had the day off. She went to the grocery store and while there met a nice man who took her groceries to her car for her. New York was turning out to be a great city after all.
On Wednesday, her day at work was the worst she had experienced yet. She was treated very unfairly, screamed at, and groped by countless older, perverted men who had nothing better to do with their day. Well at least Friday she would be around people her own age.
On Thursday, there was more groping, in which she could do nothing about because the customer was always right. People wouldn't grab her inappropriately on Friday.
Finally, the day had come, she would wake up, take a shower, get dressed for work, and be happy. Nothing could ruin her day today. She called her friend and Sharon had told her that she would have to leave straight from work, so she would just have to get ready at the diner. Work went by fine this day, no one touched her, she wasn't screamed at, nothing could ruin this day.
She went into the back room to get changed and had noticed the back room to the dressing room was open. She didn't care, she just wanted to get dressed and go. She got her dress all ready, her make up out, and started changing. When her shirt was off, she heard a click. Laura looked over her shoulder and had seen Mr. Malone, standing there, very suspiciously.
Startled, she said "Oh, Mr. Malone, I didn't know you were back here."
"Sorry Laura, I would never want to startle you" He said.
"Well it's fine. See you Sunday." She said, hoping he would leave.
"No, I want to see you now" He said, approaching.
"What are you talking about.?" She said puzzled.
Mr. Malone approached her and started taking off his clothing. She knew what he was wanting to do to her, so she ran to the door, not knowing that it was locked.
"You'd better keep quiet and just let this happen." He said, pulling a gun to her head.
She had no other choice, than to let him do what he wanted. After all was said and done, she panicked. She kicked him in the head and bolted for the door. He pulled the gun out and shot her.
The power had shorted out, and when it came back on again, Mr. Malone was crouched in the corner, realizing the mistake of his actions. Laura's friend, Shauna, calling on the phone, wondering where her friend is, and the red dress, perfectly folded, just waiting to be worn and look beautiful.