Snowglobes

“Hi there, how may I help you?” she said to a prospective customer with a smile. It was only her second day on the job, so of course she put up a cheerful front. She was determined to show how these older employees how to do the job properly. Don’t they read the bad rep shop attendants in Malaysia get from other Malaysians on social media? We have to step up our game, she thought to herself, and she’d be the one leading the way towards better customer service in her country, being the beacon of best practices.

After going through all those thoughts in her head and still not getting a response from the prospective customer, she cleared her throat and repeated her question to the hooded person with a cap on. “Hello, are you looking for anything in particular?”

A brief pause passed before the guy responded in a low and raspy voice, “snow globes.”

“I’m sorry sir, but did you just say ‘snow globes’?” Always apologise before admitting that you didn’t quite hear what the customer just said. Basic common courtesy things like this, why can’t more Malaysian retailers get it?

After another little pause came the same response, only this time a little bit louder, “snow globes.”

“We’re terribly sorry sir, but we here at Studio don’t sell snow globes. Would you be interested in some Nike shoes? They’re on offer at the moment, 40% off for—”

“ARE YOU DEAF OR SOMETHING?? I SAID, SNOW GLOBES!!” the hooded man suddenly bellowed on the top of his lungs while still facing the wall.

The girl covered her ears with her hands, but the sheer volume of the guys voice seemed to rattle her skull. Her knees got weak and she fell to the floor immediately. She noticed that most of the merchandise on the walls had fallen from the vibration his voice was causing. Shattering glass could be heard from the shop’s entrance.

The hooded man turned to the girl on the floor, revealing that his non-existent face. It was just a pit of blackness that seemed to go deeper and deeper the more you looked at it. 

“WHERE! ARE! THE! SNOWGLOBES!??” the man’s voice now so piercing that the girl felt a wet and warm sensation running through her fingers that were cover her ears. She thinks her ears may be bleeding, but she’s too afraid to remove her hands from her ears. She closes her eyes before the hooded thing — it was certainly not a man anymore — screamed again to finish her off.