WINTER... way too soon (Part 40f)

I was on the road, in the Merc, by 8am. I wanted to be at the store where I’d purchased the panties when it opened. I wanted to get in and out as fast as possible. I found the lady who had helped me right away and she pulled a box out from under the counter as soon as she saw me. Since they were paid for all I wanted was to get it and leave. But she insisted on opening it and holding the panties up to see if they were what I wanted. They appeared to be as the distinctive crotch line and leg opening treatment were obvious. I’m sure my face was as red as a beet. There were far more people in the store than I'd expected even though it had just opened. It seemed like they were all staring at me. I told her they were just what I was looking for and asked for the box. But, because I’d told her, when they were ordered, that they were a Christmas gift, she insisted that she get a clerk to gift wrap them. I have no idea what I said but I almost grabbed the box out of her hands and got out of the store as fast as I could.

This was the most embarrassed I'd ever been when buying panties. When I got in the car I opened the box and looked at the panties closely. As I said, they looked like the panties I’d taken off the clothesline but the material, nylon, was a lot more sheer than the others. In that sense I was disappointed but there was nothing I could do about it then. I looked at the label which read “Blue Swan”. I knew I’d seen the name before but I couldn’t remember where. I began to picture Elle wearing them. That helped me to erase the embarrassment.

When I left home my father had asked if I’d stop at the jewelery store that was in the town where my grandparents lived to pick up his present for my mother. I’d planned on looking for something for Elle at the store where I’d picked up the panties but, because I left so quickly, I didn’t so still had that chore in front of me. The owner of the store was a friend of my father and he’d never met me. He wanted to chat and I was anxious to get going. He finally went into his vault to get the package and left me standing by a display case. I looked down and saw a tray of charms. Elle had a real cheap charm bracelet that she loved and all of a sudden I had a brainstorm. When the jeweler came back I asked him about the charms and, as any good salesman would, proceeded to “sell” me on buying a good bracelet as well as a charm for Elle. If I paid for what he showed me I knew I wouldn’t have enough money to get any more presents so he let me “charge” it. Other than getting gas at the gas station and having the cost of it taken from my pay, I’d never done something like that. I came to appreciate just what having friends really meant. I think I gave him $10 and was off with my packages.

I managed to find presents for all the people on my list and was back home in the early afternoon. I went over to see Elle and she was feeling a bit better. She said she wanted to go to the midnight Christmas eve service with me but was going to rest until later. That was a nice way of saying she didn’t want to see me right then. I’d been through this before with Elle and her period so it didn’t bother me. I went home and wrapped the presents and then went looking for the kid who had wanted to buy my car. I ended up at the bowling alley and finally caught up with him. He went nuts! He couldn’t believe that I had changed my mind and was now willing to sell the car to him. My father had called the dealer where he'd bought his car to find out what the Merc was worth and was told $300. I probably should’ve asked for more but I didn’t. He was able to come up with about $250 cash right there. (I later found out his father owned the alleys) He said he was owed money from the gas station so he called down there to see if they would give me $50 of it. They said they would (they knew me from the racecar) and I headed down to get it. I was as excited as the kid was. I didn’t think it would all happen this fast.

The two guys had the money waiting for me but as long as they were there I asked about the fate of the racecar. They didn’t know for sure but thought it had been sold as it wasn’t there at the station. That concerned me but I was too focused on the sale of the Merc. It was just about dark when I headed back to the bowling alley. It was only about a half mile. The road was perfectly straight but it went slightly downhill just before the alleys. As I slowed down I saw this car coming towards me, up the hill, and partially in my lane. I had already started off the road and onto the shoulder so I wasn’t at risk. But, as it turned out, the poor guy behind me got hit, head on. I didn’t see it and I can honestly say I didn’t hear the crash. The mufflers on the Merc were way loud and I’d often rev the engine up when I stopped. I’d started walking towards the door when a whole bunch of people came running out and headed towards the road and in the direction I’d just come from. I followed. It was a mess.

To be continued...