Then a family walks into the store, an entire family and their grandmother. I am folding brightly-colored shirts and the matriarch walks over to me to ask for a seat. "Of course." I stop folding and motion. "Follow me over here. See this bench?" I situate it. "This will be perfect." I close the door to stop the draft. She sits, we exchange quips about being old, about being young, and she rests on the wooden bench and drinks coffee from a cardboard container with a lid.
She watches her grandkids. There are two boys and a girl. The granddaughter, a slightly overweight, timid girl with a shy smile picks out a deep blue shirt. She changes in the dressing room and walks the length of the store to where her grandmother sits. She wears the blue shirt and a black pencil skirt and walks hunched, because (it seems) her confidence has not yet caught up with her age. She bows her head so that you can only begin to see her smile. But, I notice her mannerisms and how pretty she feels as she stands in front of her grandmother and the lady's "Oh, darling's!" and "How pretty on you's!"make the girl giggle and look from side to side. Her ankles are crossed as she stands, and her body sways side to side as she balances. Her mother looks on as her grandmother eyes shine and she sips her coffee and sit on the bench. The girl brushes hair behind her ear with her hand. She folds her hands behind her back. She remains hunched. She looks at the dirty white floor tiles.
Then,
"Excuse me? I need a size. Can you please find a size 8 long? I want the dark blue wash and I can't find it. I don't mean to be any trouble but I love this fit so much. I actually have another pair just like it at home. My husband thinks I'm crazy! Okay, so size 8 long. Can you please see if you have it?"
She stands in front of her grandmother for a few more minutes. Then she changes and they leave without purchasing the outfit.
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