On Monday morning I continue my usual routine, checking out multiple customers. Say hello, check out the items, Say goodbye. My head shot up as a strange six items rolled down my line. A water bottle, a bed, a USB drive, a needle, a cup and lastly MP3 player. After a quick look at all six of the items, I quickly look up to see a man standing in front of me. I felt him look deep into me, the looks felt as if he seemed to denigrate me as a person. His piercing and angry hazel eyes seem to be upset or as if he was extremely focused. The man pays for his items never saying a word, grabs his bag and walks away as if everyone venerated him as a god. The tall chestnut brown haired figure disappears into the sea of customers.

During my lunch break, the strange man and items reappeared in my thoughts. He seems to be around the college-age, so maybe that explains the strange items. The bed, maybe he recently just moved into an on-campus apartment and needed a new one. The bottle of water and the cup were nearly obvious, to drink water. His haughty and entitled demeanor let me believe that he made good grades. Maybe the MP3 player was to listen to music while he was studying and the USB drive to save his classwork? But the needle. The needle made no sense, the meaning bemused me. Maybe he sews in his free time or was buying it for his grandma. Nevertheless, I stopped thinking about the meaningless needle and return to finish my shift.

Around a week later, I arrived home and turned on the TV. Channel 8 news on was currently on. The newscaster reported about a man that the police had recently taken into custody. I quickly turn my head to see the same mysterious piercing hazel eyes and chestnut-hair from the store. The reporter continued stating that the man was arrested for kidnapping and attempted murder. Following, the Police Chief appears on the screen to share a few minor details on the crime. The Cheif reported that the man went to a party, used the water bottle to keep an unknown liquid substance cold. Once he arrived at the party he poured the contents in a cup, the mixture made the poor girl unconscious. He used the MP3 player to drown out the sounds of her struggle and in the USB to hide encrypted files that held the plans for his next wanton act. The bed for the room that he locked her in, but they never mentioned the needle. The same needle that is plugged my mindful week. The station was playing how the girl managed to escape, while I sat there dreading the man that crossed my path not too long ago.

Towards the end of the week, while I was washing my clothes, the news came back on. They were reporting the nationwide story that originated in the city. A new prostitution ring, they state, running rapidly. The news lady informed that they like to promote fear into the population, the leave a needle with the girl they would capture next. I return to my task after the commercial break begins. Simultaneously, a needle fell out of my right back pocket of the pants I was about to put inside the wash.