The snow began to fall. It was heavy, coming down in sheets. Petra could barely see the red lights coming from the fire trucks at Forever 21. She slowly sipped on a bowl of soup at Isabella's cafe, unable to concentrate on the burning sensation on her tongue. All of her energy was focused on the life she had. The clothes she folded. Her employees. Petra didn't know what to do next. Her brain was running at a mile a minute.
It was getting dark outside, and Petra knew that she had to check on the now burnt down Forever 21. Petra took one last sip of her soup, put on her jacket and opened the door to the sheets of snow. People on the streets seemed happy. It was the holidays, but Petra wasn't feeling the holiday spirit. Next to the door, the blind man was dressed as a salvation army volunteer. He was shouting quotes from movies as people placed money in his bucket.
"Well in my book, my father died a much richer man than you'll ever be!" He screamed to a man who placed a crumbled dollar bill in the bucket.
Petra was not in the mood for people like this. She walked as fast as she could to the store. When she arrived a fire man greeted her.
"Ma'am, I am very sorry for your loss. But you are very lucky to be alive," He said with an emotionless glare.
"Thank you. Would you mind if I had a look around?" Petra replied, pointing towards the black smoke rising from the building.
"Go ahead, but be careful of any debris that fell," He warned Petra.
Petra slowly walked to the front of the store, which now consisted of broken windows and black ashes. She stepped over the window ledge and entered the building. Everything was covered in dust. But, you could still tell that it was a clothing store, from the glossy photographs of models that hung from the walls.
Petra was in shock. She didn't know what to do with her life now. She began to pick up pace as she made her way to the second level. As she climbed the broken escalator, something made her fall. She blacked out....
"Can you hear me? Petra, can you hear me?" A woman in scrubs was holding her head.
Petra was confused. The last thing she remembered was climbing the escalator. She began to panic. Petra screamed, and then she said nothing.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Her life in ruins
A piercing buzz woke Petra up. It wasn’t the usual city noises, it was something else. As Petra dragged herself out of bed, something awoke her senses too. The smell of fire. It engulfed her nostrils. At first, Petra though the smell was coming from outside, until she connected the dots that the buzzing was a fire alarm and that the fire was coming from downstairs.
Petra had a panic attack. She didn’t know what to do. She grabbed a pair of patent leather ballet flats and a few clothing items, and made her way through the smoke. Petra got on her hands and knees and began crawling through the smoke. She made her way to the stairs, frantically running down two steps at a time. When she made it outside she saw what was happening. The Forever 21 was ablaze. All 20,000 square feet of it.Petra began to shake and fell to the ground. Her life was in that store, it was everything to her. It was hard to process what was happening, but then she felt a man grab her shoulder.
“Don’t worry, everything will be all right.” The man said.
“Who are you?!” Petra replied, crying hysterically.
“Oh, I’m Lucas. Lucas Shaffer. Nice to meet you.” Lucas said as he extended his hand to help Petra off the concrete.
“Hi...I..I..I’m so scared. How did this happen?”
“I’m not quite sure, but from the looks of it, it appears to be arson. Maybe it has something to do with Occupy up the street.”
“Oh no. My whole life is in this building! How will I move on?”
“Well for now, you could take a walk. I’m heading to the Theater if you’d care to walk in that direction.”
“Yes, that would be nice.”
Petra pulled herself together, took one last glance at Forever 21 and walked away. As she crossed the street with Lucas, it dawned on her that the might never be able to get her old life back. Her routine was broken. Destroyed into a million little scraps of burning fabric.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
A simple dressing room conversation
The light humming of The Spice Girls echoed in and out of the street. Petra was not paying much attention to it, because she was in the middle of folding a stack of orange t-shirts for the fall window display. Petra tended to zone out the radio station, because she preferred Top-40 hits over oldies.
The store was not very full, since it was only 10:15. But, there was quite a lot of commotion down the street. Petra poked her head out the revolving glass door to see what the fuss was about. In the distance, Shaniqua Washington (a known figure in town), was shouting at the bus driver for what seems like no apparent reason. Shaniqua was causing a scene. Traffic was backed up as far as the eye could see. Petra was very happy that she was inside the store today.
Around 12:00 o’clock, business began to pick up. The usual lunch crowd, consisting of young women, came in to try on clothes. Petra fully understood their behavior, because she too was always starving for fashion.
A particularly loud group of women entered the dressing room with armfuls of clothes.
“Do I look fat in these pants?” A brunette said to another.
“No, honey, you look amazing in those pants!” Brunette number 2 said, as she rolled her eyes with out Brunette number one noticing.
Simple conversations like this really frustrated Petra. She dealt with this every single day. Petra never understood why women became so obsessed with the way one pair of pants looks on them. Oh, wait, Petra was exactly like these women.
The rest of the day ran pretty smoothly for Petra. At 9 p.m. she closed up shop. Just as she was locking up the two main doors, a thought came to her head.
The man from the brick wall suddenly appeared in her brain. She did not know why, because she had never had any personal connection with the man. All she knew was that he was there for a reason and she needed to know why. As soon as possible.
The store was not very full, since it was only 10:15. But, there was quite a lot of commotion down the street. Petra poked her head out the revolving glass door to see what the fuss was about. In the distance, Shaniqua Washington (a known figure in town), was shouting at the bus driver for what seems like no apparent reason. Shaniqua was causing a scene. Traffic was backed up as far as the eye could see. Petra was very happy that she was inside the store today.
Around 12:00 o’clock, business began to pick up. The usual lunch crowd, consisting of young women, came in to try on clothes. Petra fully understood their behavior, because she too was always starving for fashion.
A particularly loud group of women entered the dressing room with armfuls of clothes.
“Do I look fat in these pants?” A brunette said to another.
“No, honey, you look amazing in those pants!” Brunette number 2 said, as she rolled her eyes with out Brunette number one noticing.
Simple conversations like this really frustrated Petra. She dealt with this every single day. Petra never understood why women became so obsessed with the way one pair of pants looks on them. Oh, wait, Petra was exactly like these women.
The rest of the day ran pretty smoothly for Petra. At 9 p.m. she closed up shop. Just as she was locking up the two main doors, a thought came to her head.
The man from the brick wall suddenly appeared in her brain. She did not know why, because she had never had any personal connection with the man. All she knew was that he was there for a reason and she needed to know why. As soon as possible.
Sunday, October 9, 2011
Schedule, Interrupted
Petra did not know how to react to the intrusion of a mysterious girl named Eliana Rosenthal. It is rather difficult for Petra to deal with new scenarios that do not pertain to her every day life. But, she knew some where in her gut that this Eli was important. The truth with all its power lies inside me, Petra thought to herself. They were meant to meet for some odd reason, which Petra could not put her finger on just yet.
Once Petra pulled herself together, she headed out of Apartment 2 on H Street, and made her way down one flight of stairs into Forever 21. When she pushed through the revolving glass door it was already 8:03. She was not happy that Eli had disturbed her schedule, because it altered all of Petra’s plans for the day.
The store opens at 10 AM, and the rest of the employees usually file in at 9. In the silence between 8 and 9, Petra amuses herself by folding and refolding all of the shirts in the entrance. Once she has completed this task, she heads over to Casa de Waffles for another breakfast.
As Petra was turning left onto Popular Avenue, she spotted Eli. Great, now I feel obliged to talk to her. But, she was in luck and Eli did not seem to notice Petra, for she was too engrossed in the display case of Alfonso’s Pet, admiring the miniature puppies that clawed for her attention.
Petra made it to Casa de Waffles with no trouble at all. An old man, who looked like he was quite depressed was sitting next to a brick wall. He was not begging for money, but Petra felt terrible for the poor fellow, so she went up to talk to him.
“Hello.” Petra said as she pulled out a crumpled $5 bill from her pocket.
“Good morning ma’am,” The man replied.
Suddenly, Petra felt funny. She did not know what it was, but knew that her “flow” was off. She placed the money in front of the man’s feet, ran in to get her waffle, and hurried back to the store.
Petra was not sure what happened to her moments ago, but for some reason that old man had an impact on her in that very moment. Once Petra made it back through the revolving glass doors, she sat in silence, eating her waffle, pondering the old man.
Once Petra pulled herself together, she headed out of Apartment 2 on H Street, and made her way down one flight of stairs into Forever 21. When she pushed through the revolving glass door it was already 8:03. She was not happy that Eli had disturbed her schedule, because it altered all of Petra’s plans for the day.
The store opens at 10 AM, and the rest of the employees usually file in at 9. In the silence between 8 and 9, Petra amuses herself by folding and refolding all of the shirts in the entrance. Once she has completed this task, she heads over to Casa de Waffles for another breakfast.
As Petra was turning left onto Popular Avenue, she spotted Eli. Great, now I feel obliged to talk to her. But, she was in luck and Eli did not seem to notice Petra, for she was too engrossed in the display case of Alfonso’s Pet, admiring the miniature puppies that clawed for her attention.
Petra made it to Casa de Waffles with no trouble at all. An old man, who looked like he was quite depressed was sitting next to a brick wall. He was not begging for money, but Petra felt terrible for the poor fellow, so she went up to talk to him.
“Hello.” Petra said as she pulled out a crumpled $5 bill from her pocket.
“Good morning ma’am,” The man replied.
Suddenly, Petra felt funny. She did not know what it was, but knew that her “flow” was off. She placed the money in front of the man’s feet, ran in to get her waffle, and hurried back to the store.
Petra was not sure what happened to her moments ago, but for some reason that old man had an impact on her in that very moment. Once Petra made it back through the revolving glass doors, she sat in silence, eating her waffle, pondering the old man.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
A Not So Ordinary Day
The day started with the smell of perfume wafting through Petra’s bedroom window from Forever 21. She took a sniff of her newly purchased (tags still intact) pajama set, inhaling the perfect combination of lavender and honey. She grinned just at the thought of it.
Petra glided to her window, pulling it open with a couple of shoves. Finally, the window gave in and a gust of wind and rain blew the receipts off her side table. She peered out of her window, cautiously glimpsing over the edge at Heaven that lied below.
It was barely 7 and the streets were almost entirely silent. A few trucks passed by, carrying trash, coming to slow, squeaky stops every so often. Petra liked her view. It was urban, yet serene. She didn’t mind the daily trash-trucks, because in fact, they comforted Petra. Just like the canary yellow shopping bags scattered around her house from her various shopping excursions to Heaven with her employee discount.
Petra is the manager at Forever 21 and had be downstairs at promptly 8 0'clock. She likes to get to work before the other employees because she enjoys running her fingers across the endless racks of clothes, thinking about which ones she will purchase at the end of the day.
In order for Petra’s day to run smoothly she must check her clothing collection that is stored in her spare bedroom, which she specifically uses as a closet. It is average size, not too small, but not too large. All of the clothes are on the same white, plastic hangers. Petra doesn’t use the wire ones, because they can damage the clothes in some shape or form. She hangs the clothes on metal racks, which are color-coded by category. Blouses go on rack one, along with the t-shirts, and pants and skirts go on rack two. The shoes are neatly stacked in boxes along the trim of the walls. The items are neatly organized so Petra can see all of them in an easy, visually appealing manner.
It takes Petra approximately 10 minutes to pick out her outfit each day. She times it. Three minutes for a top, three minutes for a bottom, two minutes for shoes, and two minutes for accessories. Petra uses her time wisely and never exceeds her limit. Once her outfit has been chosen she shuffles across her hard-wood floors into her kitchen.
Her kitchen consists of a small wooden table with two chairs from Jack’s Jems. It’s not the best, but it does the trick. Petra opened her mini-fridge to see what was left of her grocery run last Tuesday. It does not look promising. Only a few drips of orange juice and one cup of plain yogurt left. It will have to do.
Just as Petra begins to sit down in her chair, she hears two quick and sudden knocks at her front door, jolting Petra from her seat. She was not expecting guests and she does not have any neighbors. This is quite a perplexing day for Petra Jagodzinska.
Petra glided to her window, pulling it open with a couple of shoves. Finally, the window gave in and a gust of wind and rain blew the receipts off her side table. She peered out of her window, cautiously glimpsing over the edge at Heaven that lied below.
It was barely 7 and the streets were almost entirely silent. A few trucks passed by, carrying trash, coming to slow, squeaky stops every so often. Petra liked her view. It was urban, yet serene. She didn’t mind the daily trash-trucks, because in fact, they comforted Petra. Just like the canary yellow shopping bags scattered around her house from her various shopping excursions to Heaven with her employee discount.
Petra is the manager at Forever 21 and had be downstairs at promptly 8 0'clock. She likes to get to work before the other employees because she enjoys running her fingers across the endless racks of clothes, thinking about which ones she will purchase at the end of the day.
In order for Petra’s day to run smoothly she must check her clothing collection that is stored in her spare bedroom, which she specifically uses as a closet. It is average size, not too small, but not too large. All of the clothes are on the same white, plastic hangers. Petra doesn’t use the wire ones, because they can damage the clothes in some shape or form. She hangs the clothes on metal racks, which are color-coded by category. Blouses go on rack one, along with the t-shirts, and pants and skirts go on rack two. The shoes are neatly stacked in boxes along the trim of the walls. The items are neatly organized so Petra can see all of them in an easy, visually appealing manner.
It takes Petra approximately 10 minutes to pick out her outfit each day. She times it. Three minutes for a top, three minutes for a bottom, two minutes for shoes, and two minutes for accessories. Petra uses her time wisely and never exceeds her limit. Once her outfit has been chosen she shuffles across her hard-wood floors into her kitchen.
Her kitchen consists of a small wooden table with two chairs from Jack’s Jems. It’s not the best, but it does the trick. Petra opened her mini-fridge to see what was left of her grocery run last Tuesday. It does not look promising. Only a few drips of orange juice and one cup of plain yogurt left. It will have to do.
Just as Petra begins to sit down in her chair, she hears two quick and sudden knocks at her front door, jolting Petra from her seat. She was not expecting guests and she does not have any neighbors. This is quite a perplexing day for Petra Jagodzinska.
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