When Julie walked into the hardware store, she was shocked. She couldn’t believe her husband, Jack, had risked his life by driving through a dangerous storm just to get to a store that was completely ordinary. Julie knew for a fact that it wasn’t special because she had been to plenty of hardware stores in her time. In fact, Julie noted that this hardware store in Cheltenham looked exactly the same as the Hampton hardware store she had visited with Jack a few weeks ago. Julie was not impressed.
Deciding to investigate further, Julie approached a shop assistant who was innocently stacking shelves. The shop assistant didn’t notice Julie standing there at first. She was so enthralled in the job at hand that it appeared as if no one else in the world existed. Peculiar. Julie politely cleared her throat to grab the shop assistant’s attention. Turning towards the sound, the shop assistant looked immediately stunned at the site of the pregnant woman standing before her. Julie could see the wheels turning in the shop assistant’s mind, as the shop assistant put two and two together. Unsure what to say, Julie stood there silent and waited for the shop assistant to make the first move.
“Hi there,” the shop assistant began. “What can I help you with today? You look like you’re in the market for plumbing supplies sold in Cheltenham. Is that correct?” Stumped by the shop assistant’s helpfulness, Julie found herself stumbling on her words. Julie explained how she was actually there to get a better understanding of why her husband wanted to visit this store so badly during a terrifying storm. Julie said she wanted to know why her husband would leave her, his pregnant wife, just to be here. When he knew that she needs him both now and after the baby is born. After Julie was finished oversharing, she looked up and noticed the shop assistant crying.