Cal gazed with apprehension at all of them, glittering in the display in front of him. He reached tentatively towards one, then, changing his mind, he reached for another one, before changing his mind again and just pulled his hand away. He bit his lower lip as he studied all of them, each as exquisite as the next. How does one possibly choose one over another?
The sales associate stood at attention behind the counter and watched Cal with amusement. Cal had walked into the store thirty minutes before, quickly getting apprehended by the aforementioned associate, who sought to discover his needs. Cal had stumbled over his words as he had looked quite fearfully at all of the options present. His mind had kept echoing that same question over and over again as the sheer weight of the situation threatened to overwhelm him. How does one possibly choose one over another?
It had to be perfect. It had to be beautiful. It had to be...her. Cal had said that to the associate. Could they even reflect their owner's personality and character? The associate had wasted no time in saying that they could. Many things belonging to people tended to reflect their owner's taste, personality, likes and dislikes, etc. Cal's mind had whirled as he looked once more in horror at everything in front of him. How does one possibly choose one over another?
Now he was in his present predicament. The associate had wheedled more information out of Cal and had finally managed to narrow down the limitless possibilities to five potential candidates. Five was still too much for Cal, but at least five was better than hundreds. As his eyes traveled back and forth between the five, he could feel a sweat break out on his forehead. Grabbing a handkerchief out of his pocket, he quickly mopped his forehead. He could feel the eyes of the associate boring into his skull. His background in medicine, while tending towards the inanimate side, told him that if he wasn't careful, he would be suffering from a panic attack very soon. How does one possibly choose one over another?
The associate said something and Cal looked at him in absolute confusion. The associate repeated himself ("Very carefully") and Cal realized that his mind-plaguing question had been uttered aloud. Requesting a moment to gather his thoughts, he practically fled the store to the fresh air outside. He had not realized how claustrophobic the store had become until he reached the wide, open outdoors. Leaning against the glass window outside, he gulped in deep breaths of the fresh air, all the while checking his heart rate. He was relieved to discover that his beats were slowing down with every breath he took. After five minutes, he had gotten himself under control and had taken up pacing. As if struck with an epiphany, he stopped mid-stride. He now knew which one stood out above the others.
Running a hand through his sweat-drenched hair, he yanked the door back open and strode purposefully back inside and over to the counter with a determined step. Without missing a beat, he pointed directly at the display and announced, "That one!"