Dexter and Amber left the apartment to head off to a sporting goods store. It appeared that the people living in the neighborhood within which the apartment was located, did not think it was appropriate for a man to walk around the block. It was 'suspicious behavior', at least that is what the policeman who questioned them said. In short, Dexter wasn't dressed in an appropriate attire for walking around the block. He should have been wearing walking shoes, and some sort of exercise outfit.
Dexter did not own a pair of walking shoes, nor an exercise outfit. He was surprised to learn that one had to wear the appropriate fashions in order to engage in exercise. As a kid, he had played baseball, walked, and run in his bluejeans. It appeared that those days were long gone. Following the doctor's orders to take a short walk every day, now required him to go to the mall and buy an outfit.
As Amber and Dexter approached the parking lot, a guy on a motorcycle pulled up to a spot in front of them. Amber came to a complete stop on seeing the leather clad motorcyclist. Dexter walked over to examine the bike.
The guy got off the bike, taking note in Dexter's interest in his ride.
"Nice bike," Dexter said.
"It gets to work and back on nice days. It sucks when it rains," the guy said while removing his helmet.
"I imagine that it isn't fun in the rain," Dexter said.
"You're Dexter," the guy said.
"Yes, I am."
"I'm Calvin Masters. I live above you."
Dexter extended a hand and said, "Nice to meet you Calvin."
"I heard that Mary hit you with her pepper spray," Calvin said.
"Yes. That was not pleasant," Dexter said.
Grinning, Calvin said, "She tried that on me, once. Fortunately, I was still wearing my helmet. She's actually pretty nice once she gets to trust you."
"Like that is ever going to happen," Dexter said with a snort.
Calvin said, "You've got to understand. She got gang raped a couple years back, in her previous apartment complex. It really did a number on her head."
"Well, getting hit with pepper spray did a number on my eyes that I'm not going to forget," Dexter said.
Calvin said, "I'll introduce you to her and vouch for you."
"You'll vouch for me?" Dexter said incredulous.
The guy was wearing leathers, and looked like he belonged to a motorcycle gang.
"She trusts me," Calvin said.
"You don't know me," Dexter said.
Calvin said, "You're 'Dexter.' You're the guy with the website that's made my life a whole lot better."
"It did?" Dexter asked.
"Man, your article on making the company pay for data plans saved me a bundle of money. Your suggestion of submitting expense vouchers to pay for a home office was like a gift from God. The company I work for adopted a monthly stipend for home offices. All I had to do was fill out a form. I get a hundred dollars a month extra for my office at home! I don't even have to pay taxes on that, since it is reimbursement for expenses. 'You the man, '" Calvin said.
"What do you do?" Dexter asked.
"I'm a systems administrator. When the computer crashes, they call me. It doesn't matter what time of day or night," Calvin said.
Dexter said, "I guess that means you're on call twenty-four hours a day."
"That's my job. Now, at least, I do get comp time. Last night I worked until midnight. Now I've got the rest of the day off," Calvin said. "It didn't used to be like that."
"I'm glad to hear that," Dexter said.
"I gotta tell you, my life is a thousand times better since you put up that website," Calvin said.
Dexter said, "I get a lot of emails telling me that, but I very seldom meet anyone who tells me about that."
Calvin looked over at Amber. "Who's the young lady with you?"
"That's Amber. She's my caretaker. I needed a little help around the house after the heart attack," Dexter said.
"I thought she was your daughter or something," Calvin said.
He brushed his hair back and gave her the eye. Amber rolled her eyes. She was unimpressed and wasn't afraid to let him know it.
"No," Dexter said.
Calvin said, "Nice to meet you, Amber."
"I carry pepper spray, too," Amber said with a smile reminiscent of a shark.
"Spunky. I like you," Calvin said with a laugh.
Frosty, Amber said, "I don't like bikers."
"Hey, don't knock my bike or the fact that I ride it. I bought it for two grand six years ago. It gets me to work and back. Although the insurance is high, the gas is nothing. I can do all my own maintenance on it. In two more years, I'll be out from under my college debt. Then you'll see me in a pony power car," Calvin said.
"You don't look like you went to college," Amber said. "I bet there are tats under your leathers."
Calvin replied, "Looks can be deceiving. I'm tattoo-free."
"I'm so impressed. Not," Amber said. "Now you're going to give me some cheesy line about how you were just saving a spot on your arm for my name."
"Are you kidding?" Calvin said. "That's reserved for Mom."
Amber said, "Let's get out of here, Dexter."
"We're off to the sporting goods store," Dexter said.
"See ya later, Dexter."
"It's been nice meeting you. Maybe one of these days we'll sit around and have a beer," Dexter said.
"Lookin' forward to it," Calvin said.
In the car, Dexter said, "You didn't like him."
"It was that obvious, huh?" Amber said.
"Yes," Dexter said.
Amber said, "It was falling for an asshole like him that got me into the escort business."
"Oh," Dexter said.
"I got pregnant ... then dropped out of school. He went to college and makes fucking big bucks. Me, I'm stuck fucking for bucks," Amber said bitterly.
"You've got a kid?" Dexter asked.
"SIDS got my baby," Amber said. "I went to wake up the baby one morning and it was dead. I cried for six months."
"Sorry," Dexter said.
"It's not your fault. It was God fucking with me," Amber said.
Dexter said, "I'm really sorry for you. That's a horrible thing to have happen to you."
"Like they say, it's water under the bridge," Amber said. She pulled the car out of the parking lot and headed towards the local mall. "You know, you ought to join a gym."
"Why?"
Amber said, "You've got a bit of a gut there. If you expect to have any luck with the ladies, you're going to have to get rid of it. Walking around a block isn't going to do it," Amber said.
"I don't like exercise," Dexter said.
"Duh!"
"It's that obvious, huh?"
Amber poked him in the belly and said, "'Jelly roll baby.'"
"Aren't you supposed to make me feel good?" Dexter asked.
"In my profession, I do that by falling to my knees and praising your cock. If you want someone to make you feel good, go to a shrink ... or better yet, a bartender," Amber said, and shot him a smile.
Dexter said, "My mistake."
When they reached the mall, they headed immediately for a sporting goods store. It was a huge store. It carried every possible brand under the sun. Dexter found himself in the middle of the shoe department. There were row after row of shoes, for all kinds of sports. There were racks of clothes. He looked around, feeling lost and overwhelmed.
"What are you looking for?" Amber asked.
"Someone to help me," Dexter said. Gesturing to all of the shoes, he said, "I've got no idea what to buy."
"Let me see if I can find someone," Amber said.
Dexter watched her walk off. With her looks, she'd get every salesman in the store following her. After fifteen minutes, Amber returned alone. She didn't look very happy.
"There are only two people in the store, and they are working the cash register."
"Let's find another store," Dexter said.
"We can help ourselves," Amber said.
Dexter said, "No. I've got no idea what I need. They've got shoes here with descriptions that I don't understand."
Dexter's last pair of sneakers were what used to be called tennis shoes. They were basically flat soled shoes with a canvas top that laced up the center. There was a high top version of them, but the regular ones served for every purpose. He ran, walked, played basketball, and lived in those shoes. He didn't see a pair of them anywhere.
Half the shoes were described as high performance. He didn't know what that meant. Playing games outdoors was for fun. Now it seemed to be a big business.
"I won't do any business here. Somewhere in this city is a sporting goods store or a shoe store that has friendly salespeople. I'll find them," Dexter said.
"It's just shoes," Amber said.
Dexter said, "No. This store is part of a big chain. They've got people thinking that they really don't have a choice other than to shop here. As a result, they couldn't give a shit about the customer. Well, we do have a choice. One day, this chain is going to wake up and discover that it doesn't have any customers."
"There really aren't many other places," Amber said doubtfully.
It took two hours, but Dexter and Amber found a sporting goods store that was fully staffed. Amber was nearly at her wits end. She couldn't believe that Dexter wouldn't just pick out a shoe off the rack, and try it out.
Despite the distraction that Amber's presence might have caused, the man took excellent care of Dexter. After finding out what kind of exercise program Dexter was considering, he came out with an all sport shoe that could function for walks and minor exercise sessions in a gym. It wasn't the best shoe for jogging, which suited Dexter just fine. A simple gym outfit with sweat pants and a reasonable sweatshirt completed his shopping expedition. He was satisfied with what he had purchased.
While they were leaving the store, Amber said, "You were right."
"About?"
"About finding the right store. That guy really knew his stuff and he really helped you. I couldn't believe it," Amber said.
Dexter said, "When I'm ready to take up golf, I'll come back to this store. It is going to get all of my business from now on."
"I don't blame you," Amber said.
She was silent for a minute.
The fact was, that Amber had never experienced that kind of service. She was used to going to the big chain stores, and putting up with the lackadaisical service they provided. The idea of a salesperson spending more than two minutes to answer some question before rushing off on some other errand, was foreign to her. She could see why Dexter had pushed to find that store.
"I'll come here and I'll recommend it to others. My business might not be much in the grand scheme of things, but maybe I'll be the customer that keeps this place afloat. Maybe, just maybe, my recommendations to others will make the business thrive. You never know.
"That big chain store will last for a while, but then it will fail. The only one telling customers that it is a good place to get sporting goods, is a Wall Street advertising firm. It won't last forever. People will get fed up with going into that monster store, that has equipment that they don't understand for sale, and no help in cutting through the bullshit.
"You see that with all kinds of stores. The chain grows and then gets too large. They stop caring about customers. All it takes is discovering that you wasted a hundred dollars to get burned on the store. The next thing you know, they are filing for bankruptcy."
"Another bookstore chain just went bust," Amber said.
"That's right," Dexter said.
Amber said, "Let's find a gym."
"Let's find the right gym for me," Dexter said.
"Why do I have a feeling that we're going to be driving around for a while," Amber said.
"Because, I'm very particular about who I give my money to," Dexter said.
"So, should we start looking for a place near the apartment?" Amber asked.
Dexter said, "I'm tired. I think I need to take a nap."
"Okay," Amber said. "We'll try to find a gym, tomorrow."
"You can chat with Calvin while I'm napping," Dexter said with a grin.
"I carry pepper spray, too," Amber said.
"Never mind."
Edited By TeNderLoin