Okay, I needed a break, so I tried a 1 hour story.
It took longer. Gomen.
I'll probably polish this a bit later, and put it on my
website as a "before and after" look at a story.
This is not a color.
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{8:52 PM, June 24,1997}
[ A 1 Hour Story ]
By Joseph Palmer
The Customer
Click-- Clack.
Click-- Clack.
Yuuki Matsushita tried the switch again.
Click-- Clack.
I suppose the light's burned out, he thought. Not the sort of omen he had
hoped for this morning. He fumbled between the shelves and boxes, feeling
his way to the front of his new shop. He made it without banging his ankles
again -- they'd seen enough of that at his old apartment. his hand brushed
against the warm metal of the roll up door, he worked gingerly to the edge
where he found the chain, and after a few moments of fumbling, freed it from
the locking slot. He pulled at it tenitively. It refused to budge. What next?
he thought, Oh yeah, its probably a loop. He pulled the loose side through his
hand untill he felt it come tight on the other side.
Yosh! I can do this! I know I can do this! he thought. He steeled
himself and pulled the chain again. This time the door lifted and the golden
early morning sun flooded the floor. He kept a confident pace on the chain,
the sun now finding the wares stacked near the door. New brooms and mops
were standing near the front, next to a large table covered in bowels and
celo packed sponges. A neet display of cleaning powders and liquids, was
next, then shelves of cheery kitchen towels.
He let out his breath, realizing only then he had been holding it. My
own business, he thought. My first day. If my father could only see me now,
he thought sadly. He pushed a pair of small displays out onto the street,
claiming those preciouse millimeters for his wares. Finally he tipped the
banner on its pole, and spinning the pole in his hands, rolled the heavy
base out to a spot on the right, next to the street tables. He tipped it up
and gave the "housewares" banner a confident tug.
"Ha.. well done!" he heard from behind, then the sound of clapping. He
turned to see who it was. Before him stood a man in his mid fourties by the
look of his face, but still fit and trim. With him was an older man in a
clean but worn green apron.
"Welcome! Welcome" I'm Izumi Takashi, I have the bicycle shop there..."
he pointed two doors up the street. "And this.."
"Shintaro Miyazo, vegetable shop." the older man filled in gruffly.
"Ah thank you, I'm Yuuki Matsushita," he said, bowing deeply. The others
bowed, and came back up smiling.
"We heard you were re-opening the shop, and thought we'd come by and
make you welcome."
"Ah, thank you. It's good to know I have such thoughtful neighbors."
"You're in a good spot here," said the older man nodding his head.
"You'll do fine."
"That's good to hear, I was a bit worried, since the former owner was
in such a hurry to sell."
"Ah well, you see..., he didn't follow the rules." Takashi revealed.
"The rules?" Yuuki's heart froze. Perhaps this area was under the control
of the yakuza.
"Maah.. Maah... Why the long face?"
"I didn't know..."
"Hmmp. It's not what you think. There's none of that here," the vegtable
man said. "The rules have to do with a special customer."
"A very special customer." added the bike man.
"Real trouble?" asked Yuuki.
"Has been for some." The older man kicked at the pavement.
"No, not at all. A real angel, this customer." said Izumi.
"So what's the trouble?" asked Yuuki.
"Perhaps she is an angel. That's the trouble. Divine retriubution, I'd call
it," the old man grumbled.
"Or divine reward..." started Izumi. Take the last guy who had your shop.
"Do you know what happened?"
"No... Yukki replied."
"It's like this..." Izumi began. She came in one day, and he sold her some
towels. No problem with that, It's just that he charged her for best quality
towels, and gave her some poor seconds. She never complained. But she didn't
come back. And neither did anyone else. I tried. I'd come down looking to buy
something for my shop, and I just couldn't seem to find it. Everything just
looked wrong."
"Oh no! I just spent all my savings on this inventory!" Yuuki sobbed.
"No, it wasn't that. It was 'The Customer'. He cheated the customer.
{ 9:52 PM 1 Hour.}
"What happened? did she go about telling all the women in town?"
"No. I asked my wife. She just said that she didn't need anything at that
shop. It was that way for 3 weeks. Not one broom. Not one scouring pad. not
one bath bowel. Not one scrub brush. No one seemed to need them anymore."
"My life savings!" Yuuki cried, and crumpled to the pavement.
"Get up fool," the old man intoned. "I expect you will have great business
today. and tomorrow, and as long as you want to stay here. Just don't cheat
'the customer'. I myself had my old broom come apart in my hands this morning,
and last night damned if I didn't finish my last bar of soap, and use the last
of the dish detergent. I'll bet the whole town is in the same condition."
"But how..."
"No one knows. Just don't cheat 'the customer'."
"Will you point her out? should I giver her a special disc.."
"STOP! NO! Don't even say it. Don't even think it." The old man was shaking.
"Sorry, I..."
"It's okay," said the bike man. "It's just that Miyazo-san here tried that
once. He gave her an extra orange. Thats all. One orange."
"I never sold another from that batch. Or the next. Finaly I gave them away,
one per customer. For a whole day. The next day I couldn't keep the shelves
stocked. They flew out the store. It's fairness, I think."
"Fairness?" Yuuki's head was spinning.
"Near as I can tell If you give a discount or something to 'the customer',
you need to give it to every customer. It's okay then."
"Huh." was all Yuuki could manage.
"There's one more thing." the bike man began. If the customer likes something,
order more. Lotts more. If she buys prawns one day, half the town has prawns
the next. If she needs rice, the whole town needs rice."
"You don't say."
"So if she buys a mop from you, call your wholesaler."
"Okay."
"Now, I'd like a broom please, and there's a few other things," The vegatable
man said, patting Yuuki on the back as he walked in.
"Oops, and I have a customer!" the bike man said, dashing for his shop.
Soon the store was faily full of patrons, filling baskets with brushes, soap and
light bulbs. The old man walked up to Yuuki and handed him his basket.
"Please let me be your first customer," he said.
"Thank you!" Yuuki bowed, then rang up the merchandise and placed the money
into the register, except for a 100 yen coin, which he swapped with one in his
pocket. "Souvineer" he said, sheepishly. Miyazo smiled and took up his purchases
to go.
"Wait!" Yuuki called, chasing him to the front. He whispered in his ear. "You
never told me who the customer was!"
"Ah, well... he began, then looked up at the door and smiled. "Yuuki
Matsushita, I'd like you to meet Kasumi Tendou. Kasumi is my best customer."
June 24, 1997
The characters and stories of Ranma 1/2 are Copyright (c)
Rumiko Takahashi, and are used here without permission
or licence. No claims to the above copyright are made
by the author of ths work. This work is for non-commer-
cial use ONLY, and is produced for the enjoyment of fans
only. This work is the expression of the author and the
depiction of the Ranma 1/2 characters herin are in no
way represented to be a part of Ranma 1/2 as depicted
by the original author and copyright holder(s).
"The Customer" 1997 Joseph Palmer
{10:33 PM An hour and 40 minutes for this. JEEZ I write slow.}
________________________________________________________________________
Joseph Palmer "Never join a titanic battle unless
CEO, VideoS2 you get to be the iceberg." --- J.
Video Storage Systems Personal Web page:
http://www.VideoS2.com http://www.best.com/~jpalmer