I stand there in the aisle, I feel awkward looking through the labels, reading off the brands and trying to find a place to start. Even though I'm the only one in the aisle I can feel my face growing flush and my collar feels too tight. It's the feeling of being too warm right before the sweat breaks that's the worst.
I pick up a box, turn it over in my hands and put it down. How does one even judge the efficacy of these things? Some are longer than others, some shorter and wider. Does the size matter? Do I need to perform any special maintenance? Are they water proof? Is it something I would want to use in the shower? Corded, cordless? With other personal electronic devices I might consider the battery life, but it doesn't seem like it would need to last that long. It has a rather singular purpose and it doesn't seem like it would need too much power. Maybe I should go with corded, then there's no worry. But if it's corded it will be harder to hide. The corded ones are visibly larger, but not really by much, so I guess that's not really a factor.
A passing clerk asks if he can be of assistance. He eyes the shelf I've been staring at. It's so embarassing, he can see me squirming, he assures me it's nothing to be nervous about. It's not something everyone buys, but it's certainly very common. He tells me some people even purchase them as gifts to give to other people.
The chat's supposed to help me calm down, but my nerves just can't take it any more. I thank the clerk for the help and excuse myself, but I leave without buying anything.
The original post with today's prompt from @mariannewest is here.
This is only my second freewrite from a prompt, here's the other one I did:Re: 5 Minute Freewrite - Prompt: my shoe got stuck in the mud.
Image is my own.