Extend the Story - Add a Room

Miss looked out the window and sighed. More snow was falling on the gray and dirty rooftops, and she still had to make the long trek to the grocery store for bread. She had no more frozen food left to live off of, and she dare not order another pizza.

Damn, she thought, damn.

She started puttering around her tiny studio apartment in search of her shoes when her foot struck something under a pile of laundry. It was a glossy postcard advertising the grand opening of a store called "Try."

The flyer was very simple with its wording, simplying saying new customers would receive a 15% discount on their first purchase. Miss was intrigued, and she decided to stop in at the shop after she left the grocery store.

After loading up on bread, frozen food, cereal, and yogurt, Miss felt ready to face the week ahead. She started trudging along in the snow with her heavy bags.

When she reached Loro Street, she remembered the postcard and headed toward the storefront with simple gold lettering in the window: Try. The store owner opened the door for her with a smile.

"You're the first one today," he said with a smile. "Snow is keeping everyone else at home."

He gestured toward simple shelves along the wall, filled with various objects and books. "Feel free to take a look around," he said. "I'll keep your groceries up at the front counter, free up your hands a bit."

Miss started to aimlessly wander along the shelves, intrigued at the collection of objects they contained. There were things that look positively ancient, like vases and books, as well as objects that were strangely art deco or modern.

The owner softly said,"Each of these items has a story, some good, some bad. The person who takes possession of the items becomes part of that story."

Miss dismissed his statement as artistic jibberish, and her eye was caught by two objects: a glittering flapper-type purse and a golden pyramid statue. Miss had a weakness for purses, and this one would cost her: $50. On the other hand, she was also hopelessly addicted to Egyptian art, and the pyramid, priced at $60, had intriguing drawings on all sides of it.

She felt compelled to buy both objects, but her low bank balance told her only one thing would be finding its way back to her studio. Her hands itched to grab one of the objects, and she didn't notice the store owner watching her with a smile of anticipation.

She started to reach toward the shelf.

Miss picks up the pyramid