My car was parked outside of the rundown drug store rarely used for medication and more or less used as a gas station but without the gas. Inside sat a wide selection of candy and toys along with your basic necessities. I had a trip planned for the summer and my 10 year old passport just expired. Whilst waiting to get my photo taken I noticed the baby-faced man behind the counter. He possesed a round face with brown spiral curls. My Gaze slowly moved down to examine the small but noticeable tattoo on his arm, a frog riding a skateboard. This tattoo looked as if he did it himself with a stick and poke. A deep voice woke me from my daze, “I like your shirt, do you skateboard.” The shirt he pointed out, hinted at a hidden talent that I barely possessed. The rest of my outfit wasn’t quite put together baggy gray sweatpants and a pair of year old Converse which were no longer white. My brain so focused on the perfectly symmetric form of his face it could barely demangle the words coming from his mouth.
“Thanks.” That was the only word I could form with my lips. This hidden confidence I saw in him by the way he shaped his words. He knew exactly what to say as if he read me like a book. I watched as he tilted his head towards where my passport picture was supposed to be taken, hinting to me that I needed to go over there. I shuffled myself in front of the white backdrop, and formed a subtle smile. Without any words, the man pushed my hair behind my ears. My heart started to beat out of my chest as I locked eyes with the man.
“Your ears have to be in the photo.” The man confidently told me as he took steps back away from me.
“Oh,” the word I decided to use towards him to show my disappointment that he had a logical reason to touch my hair rather than pure attraction to me.
“Smile,” The man told me noticing the smile from my face faded, “Okay 1,2,3,” he counted to take the picture, “Click, Snap,” The old 1990s camera squeaked. “You look good,” The man told me in a tone I could easily recognize as him hitting on me.
“Thank you,” My words quickly faded as my brain reminded me of my husband who sat outside in the car I left running.