Emerald: The Candy Store
This is a short story of one of my characters, Esmeralda "Emerald" Valentine. I wanted to try writing about a precocious crush, so enjoy this short tale.
**Emerald: The Candy Store
By fastbreak333**
As the clock strikes noon, a clock tower in the middle of the town square rings twelve. A coyote of 3' and 11" wakes up from the loud bells and looks at the clock. The nine-year-old realizes that he's been sitting on this bench near the bell tower for about a half-an-hour. He looks up to the sky, seeing it partially filled with clouds, and then to a candy store that's at the left of him.
The coyote's heartbeat goes a little faster as he sees an arctic fox walk down the street. She is wearing her magenta sweater with no covering for her shoulders as well as a matching collar made of the same material. She arrives at the candy store, her tail swishing a bit behind her blue jeans. She unlocks the door and walks in, her black high-heels making a distinctive sound against the wooden floor of her store. It seems she came back from her lunch break as the coyote had anticipated, waiting for her store to reopen.
The coyote stands up, getting exponentially nervous at the sight of the fox. He grabs his glasses and wipes them frantically. He takes a deep breath, looks out for any traffic, and crosses the street, off of the roundabout where the clock tower rests.
As he reaches the sidewalk, he peeks through the window to see her. She seems to be humming a song to herself as she refills a container with vanilla-dipped pretzels. She bends down to pick up the scooper that was left carelessly on the floor. As the coyote gets a good look at her rear, he covers his eyes, blushing like a rose. He takes another deep breath and assures himself that he will be calm. He finally enters the store as he hears the little bell ring.
The arctic fox turns around, her long black hair flowing with her. She smiles at the customer's presence, "Oh, Joshua, it's so nice to see you again."
Joshua starts to get a bit apprehensive, "H...hi, Miss Valentine." He tries to keep his cool, determined to not reveal his precocious crush on the candy store owner.
"Oh Joshua," she giggles a bit, "Miss Valentine makes me feel old, you know that. Why not call me Emerald?"
"I...I think I would p-prefer Miss Valentine."
"Fair enough. What would you like today?"
Joshua gets a bit embarrassed. He was so focused on staying calm that he forgot his favorite candy! He makes some ums and ahs, looking at the bins of candy to scoop and then at the shelf full of cheap candy for 99 cents.
Emerald rolls her eyes with a smile, "Let me take a stab in the dark...you want Super Bubble Gum?"
"Yes!" He says, "I mean...yes." He shuffles to the 99 cent aisle and grabs a small pack of Super Bubble Gum. Joshua is usually seen chewing it after school for hours at a time, feeling like the flavor never faded. He sets the gum on the counter as well as a dollar and some coins to cover the sales tax.
"Thank you very much!" She takes the cash and places it in the cashier, "You know, I love having you around Joshua."
"You do."
"Yes, you're a very nice kid. I hope you continue to come by here, even if you don't want to buy a thing." She reaches over to pat his head as her leaning forward gives the coyote a very good look at her breasts. He blushes a lot, knowing how rude it is to stare. She looks at her wholesome face, feeling a sense of comfort and love.
"Um...okay, bye!" He rushes out the door with one thought going into his head: she touched me, she touched me, she touched me!
The arctic fox sighs, seeing the street starting to get a few more parked cars, potential customers waiting to buy her treats. "I really hope that boy finds somebody his age to love, but I better not tell him that. He might never come by here again." As she adjusts her sweater a bit, a dog in a sports jacket walks into the store.
"Hey," he says, "Do you happen to sell any boxes of chocolate for, like, giving to your girl and stuff?"
"Sure," she replies, "Let me help you pick one out."