-Prelude-
It was suffocating me. It was torturing me. It made me shiver from the bottoms of my feet to the smooth circular shape of the top of my head. It was like trying to swim in a sea of molasses. It was hopeless. I was going to die from this horrible, horrible ordeal.
"Can I help you, sir?" An elderly woman with wild gray hair (her scalp was almost bare and I could see flakes of dandruff polluting the sickly skin) and an ugly looking mauve suit looked over at me with a kind smile (that struck me as having an evil intention hidden behind it) as I stepped into the poorly lit antique store, plagued with the horrible odor of old women's perfume. It made me want to gag and regurgitate my breakfast. Why was I here so early in the morning? It was ruining my usually hearty appetite.
"No, I'll be fine." I smiled as pleasantly as I could manage, quickly stepping down the rows of outdated knick-knacks towards my destination-women's jewelry. I kept my eyes averted to the floor and my fists at my side, trying to keep my nose closed against the awful stench. I considered raising my hand to my nose to keep from choking or turning around and running right back out the door, but decided it would be much too rude.
I reached said destination, starry eyed and ready to pass out. I spotted, after a brief and unwilling perusal of the used jewelry, an onyx studded chain bracelet, something new looking (oddly out of place) and trendy enough to be found in the local jewelry store. I lifted the bracelet from the jewelry rack and stared at it with fascination. It glimmered in the hazy light and made me smile. Yes, this was it. The perfect gift.