I blame it on the Kids' Brownie Mountain (a dessert from Target that includes precut brownies, whipped cream, and oreos) my boss bought for us at the store or maybe because three necklace sets were stolen in the morning, but I was pretty ready to leave by the time the store closed today.
The stragglers, however, had something else to say about that. They went around the store, barely making eye contact, looking at this cool thing dress, then this cool thing all the way at the back of the store, far from where I stood near the register.
I went to the back to ask my boss if I could make the closing announcement. She looked at me doubtfully, perhaps because I was too excited when I posed the question at her. "It's my last Saturday working here," I pointed out. "I think I should do it."
She relented, following me into the store. I turned to her last minute, "I forgot. What do we say?"
She gave me an odd look. "Attention customers," she prompted, following right behind.
I went to the dead center of the store, and she kept going. "ATTENTION CUSTOMERS!" I began. The five or six people we had in the small store stopped, and I felt empowered by the eyes on me. "WE LOVE YOU," I said, speaking from the heart and with a deep desire to always say it this way. "BUT WE'RE CLOSING SOON."
I looked over at my boss busy organizing the shoes, she shook her head.
I asked her later on as we counted the deposit if that was okay, and she shook her head again. "You love them?"
"I luuurve them," I claimed, still counting cash. I stopped. "But was that okay?"
"As long as it's from you heart," my boss said, still shaking her head. I looked at Judy for some guidance.
She shrugged. "It was sort of like Kanye to Taylor Swift," Judy pointed. "I think it worked."