Chordling
Bardbarian, the Divine Chordia of Concordia
I had some fun with an idea that I use for a few writing sprints. 
Poor spelling, grammar, and repetitive word choices may be ahead. Use caution while reading.
The summer sun of a new Sunday gleamed in the clear sky. It was the beginning of a new week in June. Every week was the same for Erin. Today she would spend time cleaning the house for guests and family that would come over for dinner tomorrow evening. Tuesdays were reserved for doctor's visits or leisurely activities. Wednesdays meant that Erin would have to stop by the market. Thursdays and Fridays were spent with her friends in the assisted living apartments. And she woke up early every Saturday just to buy the first batch of cinnamon bagels from Amy's Cafe. Erin always sighed with relief when she reviewed the structured calendar in her notebook. It was something she realized that she needed in order to stay sane when she started her retirement from the office.
Her fingers turned the page over to review the next Monday as she hunched over an empty market cart in aisle two. Today was Wednesday of course. Erin was expecting daughter and grandchildren to stop by again with the in-laws for another healthy serving of her homemade soup. That was what the notebook told her. Erin ran her index finger over each item on the grocery list that was tucked between the pages of her notebook. Her lips recited them. Most of the items she needed were in aisles five or six. She closed her shopping list and tucked the notebook into her market bag before scooting the grocery cart further along the lane. There was a subtle squeak in one of the cart's wheels whenever she moved just a touch to the left. It was something that she learned to ignore over the years. She figured it was better than the cart's with wheels that were sticky.
Erin suddenly realized that she needed an extra carton of eggs and another gallon of milk as she passed by them. All of the eggshells in the first carton that she had inspected were cracked.
"That's odd," she muttered to herself as she placed the opened carton back onto the shelf for one of the employees to handle later. It was the first time she had ever seen an entire carton of damaged eggs in all of her years of grocery shopping. Erin managed to find a suitable dozen eggs but her hands trembled when she heard a large thud. She let out a gasp when her fingers managed to catch the new caron of eggs before it could fall away.
"Hand over the money, Jackson," a young boy's voice intimidated. "I don't have time to play these kinds of games with you anymore. It's a waste of my time and I would rather do my homework for Mr. Nettles." Three pranksters stood over a smaller boy who cowered beside Erin's grocery cart with his arms covering his face and his head. Muffled cries and sniffles sputtered back at the looming group of children.
"I'm sorry, Jackson, but you're going to have to speak a little louder," one of the pranksters said. The three of them lurched their bodies forward to grab Jackson away from the cart but Erin was faster and pressed her body between them.
"That's enough already," Erin scowled. "You don't need this boy's money, especially if you're going to treat him like this. Where are your parents? All of you should be heading home."
"Jackson has all of your candy money. But I don't know why I am telling you that. My mom and dad tell me not to talk to weird strangers like you," the young child spat back. Erin stared back at him and her disappointed expression had not moved. Jackson had curled himself behind Erin's legs. He did not dare to reveal his face. "Move out of the way, old lady, or I'll- hey!"
A large man wearing the grocery store's signature red button tee grasped the talker by the back of his shirt and scooped him up. His two, smaller companions were already attempting to wiggle their way to freedom.
"I think you three have caused enough ruckus this afternoon," the man sighed. "I'm sorry about this situation ma'am. And I am sorry about the eggs. We won't charge you for those. I'll be able to clean that up once I handle these little fellas. Go ahead and pick out some fresh ones." The previous carton that Erin had choses must have gotten squashed when Jackson was thrown into her cart. "I hope that your grandson is alright. Let me know if you would like to speak to my manager," he continued to look towards Erin.
"Oh, he's not my- Uhm," she paused, "Thank you. I think we should be fine," Erin smiled. The grocery employee nodded and turned away to bring the other children out of the store. A small group of other shoppers seemed to have formed at a comfortable distance. Erin turned behind her and leaned down to see the small boy, Jackson, still glued to the cold, tile floor.
"Are you alright?" she whispered to him. Her lips drew into a frown when she noticed that his body was shaking. "Those other kids are gone now. They won't be able to bother you." The little boy sniffled twice and wiped his sleeve across his eyes. The right one was starting to bruise and blood had dried beneath his nostril. Erin reached for her purse and fished out a small napkin. She offered it to Jackson first and wiped at his nose when he decided not to take it. Jackson wiped his eyes once more and stood up from the floor. His jet black hair was in a mess and the cotton tee he wore had a colorful cartoon figure printed on the center. Both of the pockets to his gym shorts were turned out. There didn't appear to be any change, bills, or anything of value that Jackson could claim as his own.
"Jackson, is it?" Erin smiled.
"It's Jack," the small boy's voice whispered.
"Jack, it's nice to meet you. I'm Miss Erin." The old woman held her hand out to the little boy. Her grandchildren were 6 and ten. Jack must have been about eleven or twelve if she had to guess but all of her grandchildren were girls. Erin took her hand away when Jack still had not taken it. She had been crouching on the floor still and Jack was gazing over her shoulder. Erin turned her head to see if she could spot what had caught his attention but all she could recognize were groups of shoppers.
"It seems like you're having a rough day," Erin spoke as she lifted herself off of the ground to grab her grocery cart. "Are your parents around?" Jack shook his head. "I would lose my head if my children lost track of me in the grocery store," Erin tried to tease but it was clear by the look on his face that Jack was not ready for humor yet. "You should pick out a nice treat for yourself from the candy aisle and ask one of the workers to use the phone so you can call your folks. Here," she said pulling out a small bill from her wallet. "You can use this. Take care of yourself, okay?"
Jack took the bill from Erin and placed it into his pocket. Erin smiled and waved to him as she started to move her cart down the lane again. She didn't get too far and felt a gentle tug at the back of her shirt. Jack was still standing behind her with pleading eyes. There might have been a touch of guilt with the way they shined.
"Do you want to be my shopping buddy?" Erin offered. Jack pressed himself next to the cart. He held a new dozen eggs and placed them into Erin's grocery cart. Erin smiled and lead Jack through the rest of her shopping list. He weighed out the fresh produce and carried back packages of meats after inspecting every last one of them from the display cases. He even reached the cans on the higher shelves despite being shorter than Erin. It did make her nervous that he had to jump though. Jackson did not speak very much at all during their trip and most of what Erin said was from her list of groceries. She thought it was best if she avoided discussing school. Jack already seemed like he had a rough day.
Erin let Jackson follow her to the grocery line. She began placing her products onto the conveyor belt while the little boy stared at the wall of candy. Erin could tell by the look in his eyes that he was having a hard time deciding between chocolate bars and gummies. The person before them in line left with their cart full of grocery bags and the cashier began scanning Erin's things. The beeping sound gave Jackson a bit of anxiety. He knew this was his final countdown to make a decision.
Poor spelling, grammar, and repetitive word choices may be ahead. Use caution while reading.The summer sun of a new Sunday gleamed in the clear sky. It was the beginning of a new week in June. Every week was the same for Erin. Today she would spend time cleaning the house for guests and family that would come over for dinner tomorrow evening. Tuesdays were reserved for doctor's visits or leisurely activities. Wednesdays meant that Erin would have to stop by the market. Thursdays and Fridays were spent with her friends in the assisted living apartments. And she woke up early every Saturday just to buy the first batch of cinnamon bagels from Amy's Cafe. Erin always sighed with relief when she reviewed the structured calendar in her notebook. It was something she realized that she needed in order to stay sane when she started her retirement from the office.
Her fingers turned the page over to review the next Monday as she hunched over an empty market cart in aisle two. Today was Wednesday of course. Erin was expecting daughter and grandchildren to stop by again with the in-laws for another healthy serving of her homemade soup. That was what the notebook told her. Erin ran her index finger over each item on the grocery list that was tucked between the pages of her notebook. Her lips recited them. Most of the items she needed were in aisles five or six. She closed her shopping list and tucked the notebook into her market bag before scooting the grocery cart further along the lane. There was a subtle squeak in one of the cart's wheels whenever she moved just a touch to the left. It was something that she learned to ignore over the years. She figured it was better than the cart's with wheels that were sticky.
Erin suddenly realized that she needed an extra carton of eggs and another gallon of milk as she passed by them. All of the eggshells in the first carton that she had inspected were cracked.
"That's odd," she muttered to herself as she placed the opened carton back onto the shelf for one of the employees to handle later. It was the first time she had ever seen an entire carton of damaged eggs in all of her years of grocery shopping. Erin managed to find a suitable dozen eggs but her hands trembled when she heard a large thud. She let out a gasp when her fingers managed to catch the new caron of eggs before it could fall away.
"Hand over the money, Jackson," a young boy's voice intimidated. "I don't have time to play these kinds of games with you anymore. It's a waste of my time and I would rather do my homework for Mr. Nettles." Three pranksters stood over a smaller boy who cowered beside Erin's grocery cart with his arms covering his face and his head. Muffled cries and sniffles sputtered back at the looming group of children.
"I'm sorry, Jackson, but you're going to have to speak a little louder," one of the pranksters said. The three of them lurched their bodies forward to grab Jackson away from the cart but Erin was faster and pressed her body between them.
"That's enough already," Erin scowled. "You don't need this boy's money, especially if you're going to treat him like this. Where are your parents? All of you should be heading home."
"Jackson has all of your candy money. But I don't know why I am telling you that. My mom and dad tell me not to talk to weird strangers like you," the young child spat back. Erin stared back at him and her disappointed expression had not moved. Jackson had curled himself behind Erin's legs. He did not dare to reveal his face. "Move out of the way, old lady, or I'll- hey!"
A large man wearing the grocery store's signature red button tee grasped the talker by the back of his shirt and scooped him up. His two, smaller companions were already attempting to wiggle their way to freedom.
"I think you three have caused enough ruckus this afternoon," the man sighed. "I'm sorry about this situation ma'am. And I am sorry about the eggs. We won't charge you for those. I'll be able to clean that up once I handle these little fellas. Go ahead and pick out some fresh ones." The previous carton that Erin had choses must have gotten squashed when Jackson was thrown into her cart. "I hope that your grandson is alright. Let me know if you would like to speak to my manager," he continued to look towards Erin.
"Oh, he's not my- Uhm," she paused, "Thank you. I think we should be fine," Erin smiled. The grocery employee nodded and turned away to bring the other children out of the store. A small group of other shoppers seemed to have formed at a comfortable distance. Erin turned behind her and leaned down to see the small boy, Jackson, still glued to the cold, tile floor.
"Are you alright?" she whispered to him. Her lips drew into a frown when she noticed that his body was shaking. "Those other kids are gone now. They won't be able to bother you." The little boy sniffled twice and wiped his sleeve across his eyes. The right one was starting to bruise and blood had dried beneath his nostril. Erin reached for her purse and fished out a small napkin. She offered it to Jackson first and wiped at his nose when he decided not to take it. Jackson wiped his eyes once more and stood up from the floor. His jet black hair was in a mess and the cotton tee he wore had a colorful cartoon figure printed on the center. Both of the pockets to his gym shorts were turned out. There didn't appear to be any change, bills, or anything of value that Jackson could claim as his own.
"Jackson, is it?" Erin smiled.
"It's Jack," the small boy's voice whispered.
"Jack, it's nice to meet you. I'm Miss Erin." The old woman held her hand out to the little boy. Her grandchildren were 6 and ten. Jack must have been about eleven or twelve if she had to guess but all of her grandchildren were girls. Erin took her hand away when Jack still had not taken it. She had been crouching on the floor still and Jack was gazing over her shoulder. Erin turned her head to see if she could spot what had caught his attention but all she could recognize were groups of shoppers.
"It seems like you're having a rough day," Erin spoke as she lifted herself off of the ground to grab her grocery cart. "Are your parents around?" Jack shook his head. "I would lose my head if my children lost track of me in the grocery store," Erin tried to tease but it was clear by the look on his face that Jack was not ready for humor yet. "You should pick out a nice treat for yourself from the candy aisle and ask one of the workers to use the phone so you can call your folks. Here," she said pulling out a small bill from her wallet. "You can use this. Take care of yourself, okay?"
Jack took the bill from Erin and placed it into his pocket. Erin smiled and waved to him as she started to move her cart down the lane again. She didn't get too far and felt a gentle tug at the back of her shirt. Jack was still standing behind her with pleading eyes. There might have been a touch of guilt with the way they shined.
"Do you want to be my shopping buddy?" Erin offered. Jack pressed himself next to the cart. He held a new dozen eggs and placed them into Erin's grocery cart. Erin smiled and lead Jack through the rest of her shopping list. He weighed out the fresh produce and carried back packages of meats after inspecting every last one of them from the display cases. He even reached the cans on the higher shelves despite being shorter than Erin. It did make her nervous that he had to jump though. Jackson did not speak very much at all during their trip and most of what Erin said was from her list of groceries. She thought it was best if she avoided discussing school. Jack already seemed like he had a rough day.
Erin let Jackson follow her to the grocery line. She began placing her products onto the conveyor belt while the little boy stared at the wall of candy. Erin could tell by the look in his eyes that he was having a hard time deciding between chocolate bars and gummies. The person before them in line left with their cart full of grocery bags and the cashier began scanning Erin's things. The beeping sound gave Jackson a bit of anxiety. He knew this was his final countdown to make a decision.
