When Candice was all the way turned around, she saw that her visitor was Stacey Kitt, her friend. She felt a little relieved that it wasn't a prowler. But she had a feeling that even that wouldn't upset her that much, given the state-of-mind she was currently in. It was like her mind was in a euphoric fog.
"Candice, are you alright?" Stacey asked, walking into the kitchen.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered, smiling.
Stacey looked incredulously at her, then smiled too. "I guess taking a day off helped, huh?"
"Yeah, I suppose."
"Well, you look two hundred percent better," Stacey said.
"I feel two hundred percent better," Candice said. She glanced at the clock. "Damn."
"What is it?"
"I've got to get to a meeting. You can let yourself out, okay?" Candice said, before darting towards the front door and leaving the house.
Alone in the kitchen, Stacey shrugged. I guess she got her wind back, she thought, before walking into the living room. She was about to leave the house (Candice gave her a key to the house - for emergencies - about a year ago, so she could just lock the door for her when she left the house), but she stopped when she spotted an opened box. She walked over to it and looked at it. On the side of the package were the words FEMALE DESIGNS. And next to the box were the pair of shoes she saw Candice wearing the previous day. Female Designs? Could that be the store that Candice was talking about yesterday? Inside the box was a flier, showing where the store was located. Apparently, it was the newest addition to Pleasantvale Mall, which barely ever got any new additions. The place was nearly a dump. She wasn't sure why they hadn't just torn the place down by now. She looked at the flier again, thinking that maybe she could stop by on the way to the middle school.
And with that, she left the house, locked the door, went to her car, and drove to the store Female Designs.
