The Backwards Shirt
“Excuse me, sir?” the lady with diamonds on every finger said.
Phillip turned around. “Yes? Something wrong?”
“Funny you should ask that. Why, yes there is something wrong.”
He turned to face her squarely. “Well, what is it? What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know how to tell you this, but I think your shirt’s on backwards.”
Phillip looked down where the logo should have been. It wasn’t there, nor were the buttons where they should have been.
“Hmm. How’d that happen? Well, I guess it doesn’t matter how it happened. Probably just need to take it off and turn it around.”
“Here? In the store?”
“Sure. Why not?”
“I don’t think it’s appropriate to take your shirt off while you’re in line at a store. Perhaps you should use a fitting room or a restroom.”
Phillip’s eyes darted from side to side.
“I see what you’re doing here, Ma’am,” Phillip said. “You’re trying to get me to get out of line so you can get ahead of me and get out of the store faster.”
He sighed and shook his head. “Not gonna work. Nice try though.”
“I can assure you th…”
“Tsk tsk tsk. No assurance is necessary, Ma’am. I’m onto you. And you’re NOT going to go ahead of me. This is the last time I’m telling you this. If it persists, I’ll need to contact Security. And from what I hear, Security in this store is mean and unsociable, if you know what I mean.”
Phillip faced the front of the store and greeted the clerk after she helped the person in front of him.
“Hello, sir. I think she’s right. Your shirt’s on backwards.” She rang up his items and gave him his total.
He handed over his credit card. “Hmm. So it is, so it is. Shirt’s also inside out. Part of our fraternity initiation: ‘Turn Your Shirt Backwards and Inside Out Day.’ Not allowed to change it so we have to make up excuses why we can’t.”
As he grabbed his receipt and package, Phillip glanced back at the scowling rich lady behind him. His smile was a mile wide, and then he winked.
He was sure she was smiling before he went through the sliding exit doors, but he never turned around to find out.
delightful!