Hi! I wrote this little story for a challenge to write a conversation between yourself and Don Flack on the lovely "Totally Eddiected" Fan-Side. It's my first try. English is not my first language. So please be kind.

Unexpected awareness

It was Monday evening, and me (Rangers fan, already turned 40, married over 21 years and mother of two girls) working my late shift in the small supermarket a few blocks away from the NY Police Department. So I was used to see patrolmen and plain clothed ones rushing in and out every now and then for buying the one carton of milk, they desperately needed for breakfast next morning. I was fine with it, because no rowdie gang would dare to enter the shop to try „tread or trick".

I immediately noticed when he entered the door because it seemed that all activities in here came to hold for a moment, like every time he frequented this place.

He was handsome in all senses of the word. Dressed in Jeans and a black t-shirt his badge hanging on a thin leather strap around his neck. With the silky dark hair, 6 foot whatever and his impressive blue eyes (always ...BOOM!) he stood out in the crowd. But the cutest part of him was: He seemed totally unaware to it.

Every time he appeared at a Rangers game, I saw him taking his seat in the first row of the block via ours.

I shook my head in amusement when the pretty young clerk who worked with me blushed deep red, as he passed her.

He went straight to the fruits and vegetables and seemed to be a little nervous today. By searching through the tomatoes he mumbled something like"Messer will kill me" and went over to the apples.

Chuckling by myself I continued my work until someone said "Hey!" in front of me. I looked up from my checking-list straight into sapphire blue eyes.

Stunned for a sec I looked over my shoulder..., but no, my workmate wasn't around here. So it really was me (short haired, little overweight, 5'2, not really a sight for sore eyes), he was talking to.

"May you help me?", he went on. "I was in here this afternoon and I think I have lost my lighter somewhere around the vegetables. It was a gift from a special friend of mine, and I would be so thankful to have it back."

I noticed his tense expression and quickly decided to do something about that. Confident in my special sense of humor (didn't all people around me, tell me?) I raised an eyebrow and answered:

"Sorry, I haven't seen it, so I'm afraid you have to interrogate the cabbages to find out, detective."

He frowned, tilted his head to one side and looked at me as if he tried to figure out, whether I was annoyed, or amused. He apparently chose the second option and gave me a smirk: "Yeah, an' than examine the onions"

"What would be a bunch of work given all the layers of clothes", I went on.

"Not forgetting to question the oh-so-sweet looking pumpkins and the turnip-noses", he returned.

"Until you have them all soft-boiled", I added.

That made him laugh. "Yeah! Wouldn't this be a nice vegetable-soup?"

I had the impression,he got a little sarcastic at this point. So I empathized: "Yeah, but with bitter taste! So you 'll get sick of it, very fast!"

He nodded. "You bet!"

And just at the moment he wanted to say something else, my workmate appeared with a silver lighter in her hand: " Hey detective, are you searching for this one?", she asked him all flirty.

He took his precious gift and gave her (blushing again) a million-dollar-smile and a "Thank you, so much!"

Meanwhile I went back to my work, not expecting he would notice me any longer.

Suddenly he tipped me on my shoulder and said: "Hey, see you at the Rangers next Saturday! Bye!" And then vanished.

I stood there, my mouth hang open in disbelieve. That wasn't something I would ever have expected. He notice me?

With a smile on my face I shook my head. It is like it is. Sometimes I forget:

It's not the way you look, that matters! It's the way you are.

Hope you enjoyed it.