DagNABBIT!

MalReynolds · 01-14-2008, 12:20 PM

Saturday I was at a video game store at my local mall, which shall remain nameless. I always questioned the location of this store, because they had the exact same goddamned store across the street, but I digress. After bumming around for a little while, not finding anything in the mall, I decide to go across the street and try my luck over there for a copy of Resistance: Fall of Man.

I head into the store, and check it out. There's around six other people in there, including a small child that is crying, and a clerk that eyes me when I walk in. I move over to the X-box and start playing some Guitar Hero, and I can feel someone watching over my shoulder. Within 45 seconds, I see out of my periphery, the father carrying the small, crying child out of the store, reassuring the son that they will call the police.

The empolyees spring out from behind the counter, forcing everyone to the exit of the store. Everyone is kind of freaking out - we're all in the same boat. No idea what's going on.

I get out of the store, and see the employees bringing down the shutter, so I get on the phone. I have 2 missed calls - from the same guy, wanting to hang out. I tell him, "Something weird just happened at the gamestore I was in. I don't know what's going on, but I'm going to head to the store in the city and try and find the game I was looking for." I hang up, get into my car, and as I'm pulling away, 3 squad cars show up with their lights on.

Scratching my head, I drive into the city, pull into the game store, and find a copy of Resistance, which I buy. But my inner-nag is getting the better of me, so I puropsefully hand them an expired gift card so I could stand at the counter longer.

"Hey, do you guys know what happened at the store on Midlothian?"

The first guy behind the counter kind of looks like Justin Long. He looks at me funny.

"I was in the store when it was evacuated. I just want to know what was going on in there."

"I dunno, man. Ask Scott."

So I turn to Scott and ask him the same question. "I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to discuss it."

I sigh. "By the way, your gift card is expired."

I pay with cash and decide that maybe it's not worth chasing.

-

The friend comes over with his girlfriend, and I'm recounting the situation, and we're all running possible scenarios, but we're blanking pretty hard. So we decide to head back to the mall location, and have me ask them - I work for one of the guys there, reviewing games for a website, so I have an in.

When I get there, they're packed dealing with the flood of customers from across the street. I see my contact, but he's dealing with a mob, so I'm forced to talk to another employee.

"Hey, could you tell me what happened across the street earlier?"

"Sorry, I can't."

"I was in the store when it went on lock-down..."

"The store is going to be fine."

"To be honest, I'm not worried about the store. I just want to know what was going on."

"Well, sometimes we get an overzealous customer, and sometimes the cashiers overreact. Someone may have mentioned a knife, and that's why the cops were called."

"Are you telling me, with a wink, that that's the most likely reason?"

The guy shakes his head. Deadpan. "No. I can't discuss it."

I go back to my friend and his girlfriend and tell them that wherever I go for information, I'm being stonewalled.

We head across the street, and the other gamestore is still closed with the shutter down. There are a few cop cars parked in the lot, but the scene seems to have cooled off a bit. We go into Panera and get some food, all the while still talking about what happened at the store.

We head out after about an hour, and see that the store is open, so I head inside. There's been a shift change - the clerks that were there during the event had since gone home, so I begin pestering one of the clerks.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell. Company policy."

A friend I went to high school with is working there, and I ask him. Same old song and dance.

I overhear that he's running across the street to go on a snack run, so I leave ahead of him and head to the restaurant where he's picking up the food.

"What happened earlier," I ask.

"The store got held up," he said. "The guy got away with around $300, but there were a bunch of customers in the store, so no one was in any real danger."

I paused. "I was in the store. I was playing Guitar Hero."

My friend looked up. "Really? The guy had a gun and he was about a foot behind you. The clerks said that he kept eyeing you after you came in."

"That's no good."

My friend nodded, grabbed the food, and left.

I walked back out to my friends, who were waiting by the car. I told them that I walked into the middle of a hostage situation - effectively becoming a hostage myself - and that I had been less than a foot from a gun that was being weilded in anger. After telling them exactly what happened, my friend just paused and went.

"Well, ****."

And that was one of the strangest Saturdays I've had in a long time.

Also, when I was at the mall the first time, I was hunkered down looking at games and a lady with Asperger's farted right in my face.

bluguerrilla · 01-14-2008, 12:30 PM

totally not realistic, no one eats at panera.

Also, lol.

**Jtehanonymous** · 01-14-2008, 12:31 PM

Whoa, that's so freaky.

The person you thought you felt "watching you play guitar hero" was that robber.

Whoa. XD

MalReynolds · 01-14-2008, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KgZ

A+, would read again.

PS- it would have been funnier if the store that got robbed was the only place that had the game, and you couldn't find it anywhere else.

I mean, they did have the game, but by that point, I had already gotten it at the city location.

And the guy watching me play GH was the robber.

He's lucky I didn't see him, otherwise that guitar would have been all a manner of upside his head.

**Jtehanonymous** · 01-14-2008, 12:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MalReynolds

He's lucky I didn't see him, otherwise that guitar would have been all a manner of upside his head.

You never know. Maybe if you had turned around he would've flipped out and fired his gun. 0.o'

Be glad you were more focused on the song playing. XD.

**All_That_Chaz** · 01-14-2008, 12:56 PM

God damn.

fastfingers65 · 01-14-2008, 01:48 PM

Darn it, you got the game.

pntballa18 · 01-14-2008, 02:06 PM

Or you go to hit him over the head with the guitar, only about halfway through your swing the guitar stops due to the wire not being long enough.

That would have turned out well.

**customstuff** · 01-14-2008, 02:09 PM

Holy crap. Nice story dude!

MalReynolds · 01-14-2008, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pntballa18

Or you go to hit him over the head with the guitar, only about halfway through your swing the guitar stops due to the wire not being long enough.

That would have turned out well.

The cable would have broken, etc etc.

Or I could have just punched him in the skull.

This is IF and only IF I had the drop on him. I would go charging a guy that had a gun when all I had was a 7 pound plastic guitar.

sjoecool1991 · 01-14-2008, 02:40 PM

Woah, thats wierd.
There is a game store where i live, and another right across the street, and a Panera place 3 doors down from it.

**foilman8805** · 01-14-2008, 02:42 PM

You're giving the guitar the benefit of the doubt...7 pounds?

Maybe 5 at most.

EDIT: Interesting piece though. I like the way you write.

OrganisM · 01-14-2008, 02:44 PM

Well, now you know the REAL consequences if you **** up on guitar hero.

MalReynolds · 01-14-2008, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by foilman8805

You're giving the guitar the benefit of the doubt...7 pounds?

Maybe 5 at most.

EDIT: Interesting piece though. I like the way you write.

It was an X-box guitar with detachable neck. They weigh way more than the original GH guitars and have a good deal of heft to it.

Also, thank you for the writing compliment. It's a hobby of mine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjoecool1991

Woah, thats wierd.
There is a game store where i live, and another right across the street, and a Panera place 3 doors down from it.

Where do you live?

sjoecool1991 · 01-14-2008, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MalReynolds

It was an X-box guitar with detachable neck. They weigh way more than the original GH guitars and have a good deal of heft to it.

Also, thank you for the writing compliment. It's a hobby of mine.

Where do you live?

Virginia.

**Nyokou** · 01-14-2008, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjoecool1991

Virginia.

Cool, you guys live in the same place apparently.

I only know of about three Paneras in Richmond. >_>

MalReynolds · 01-14-2008, 03:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjoecool1991

Virginia.

Uh-huh. Is your GameStop possibly right next to a Michael's Craft Store, Angelo's Pizza, Advanced Autoparts?

GamerShadow · 01-14-2008, 03:29 PM

Wow, that is way more exciting than anything that's happened in my life. Good read, would read again.

Cj_leonine · 01-14-2008, 03:34 PM

Amazing.

LLaMaSaUceYup · 01-14-2008, 03:36 PM

Enjoyable story, yeah that is a weird Saturday.
;/
glad you weren't shot!

oh and good job on figuring out what happened ;]

01-14-2008, 12:20 PM	#1
MalReynolds CHOCK FULL O' NUTRIENTS Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: A Denny's Bathroom. Age: 36 Posts: 6,571	DagNABBIT! Saturday I was at a video game store at my local mall, which shall remain nameless. I always questioned the location of this store, because they had the exact same goddamned store across the street, but I digress. After bumming around for a little while, not finding anything in the mall, I decide to go across the street and try my luck over there for a copy of Resistance: Fall of Man. I head into the store, and check it out. There's around six other people in there, including a small child that is crying, and a clerk that eyes me when I walk in. I move over to the X-box and start playing some Guitar Hero, and I can feel someone watching over my shoulder. Within 45 seconds, I see out of my periphery, the father carrying the small, crying child out of the store, reassuring the son that they will call the police. The empolyees spring out from behind the counter, forcing everyone to the exit of the store. Everyone is kind of freaking out - we're all in the same boat. No idea what's going on. I get out of the store, and see the employees bringing down the shutter, so I get on the phone. I have 2 missed calls - from the same guy, wanting to hang out. I tell him, "Something weird just happened at the gamestore I was in. I don't know what's going on, but I'm going to head to the store in the city and try and find the game I was looking for." I hang up, get into my car, and as I'm pulling away, 3 squad cars show up with their lights on. Scratching my head, I drive into the city, pull into the game store, and find a copy of Resistance, which I buy. But my inner-nag is getting the better of me, so I puropsefully hand them an expired gift card so I could stand at the counter longer. "Hey, do you guys know what happened at the store on Midlothian?" The first guy behind the counter kind of looks like Justin Long. He looks at me funny. "I was in the store when it was evacuated. I just want to know what was going on in there." "I dunno, man. Ask Scott." So I turn to Scott and ask him the same question. "I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to discuss it." I sigh. "By the way, your gift card is expired." I pay with cash and decide that maybe it's not worth chasing. - The friend comes over with his girlfriend, and I'm recounting the situation, and we're all running possible scenarios, but we're blanking pretty hard. So we decide to head back to the mall location, and have me ask them - I work for one of the guys there, reviewing games for a website, so I have an in. When I get there, they're packed dealing with the flood of customers from across the street. I see my contact, but he's dealing with a mob, so I'm forced to talk to another employee. "Hey, could you tell me what happened across the street earlier?" "Sorry, I can't." "I was in the store when it went on lock-down..." "The store is going to be fine." "To be honest, I'm not worried about the store. I just want to know what was going on." "Well, sometimes we get an overzealous customer, and sometimes the cashiers overreact. Someone may have mentioned a knife, and that's why the cops were called." "Are you telling me, with a wink, that that's the most likely reason?" The guy shakes his head. Deadpan. "No. I can't discuss it." I go back to my friend and his girlfriend and tell them that wherever I go for information, I'm being stonewalled. We head across the street, and the other gamestore is still closed with the shutter down. There are a few cop cars parked in the lot, but the scene seems to have cooled off a bit. We go into Panera and get some food, all the while still talking about what happened at the store. We head out after about an hour, and see that the store is open, so I head inside. There's been a shift change - the clerks that were there during the event had since gone home, so I begin pestering one of the clerks. "I'm sorry, I can't tell. Company policy." A friend I went to high school with is working there, and I ask him. Same old song and dance. I overhear that he's running across the street to go on a snack run, so I leave ahead of him and head to the restaurant where he's picking up the food. "What happened earlier," I ask. "The store got held up," he said. "The guy got away with around $300, but there were a bunch of customers in the store, so no one was in any real danger." I paused. "I was in the store. I was playing Guitar Hero." My friend looked up. "Really? The guy had a gun and he was about a foot behind you. The clerks said that he kept eyeing you after you came in." "That's no good." My friend nodded, grabbed the food, and left. I walked back out to my friends, who were waiting by the car. I told them that I walked into the middle of a hostage situation - effectively becoming a hostage myself - and that I had been less than a foot from a gun that was being weilded in anger. After telling them exactly what happened, my friend just paused and went. "Well, **." And that was one of the strangest Saturdays I've had in a long time. Also, when I was at the mall the first time, I was hunkered down looking at games and a lady with Asperger's farted right in my face. __________________ "A new take on the epic fantasy genre... Darkly comic, relatable characters... twisted storyline." "Readers who prefer tension and romance, Maledictions: The Offering, delivers... As serious YA fiction, I’ll give it five stars out of five. As a novel? Four and a half." - Liz Ellor My new novel:** Maledictions: The Offering. Now in Paperback!

01-14-2008, 12:30 PM	#2
bluguerrilla FFR Player Join Date: Apr 2006 Age: 41 Posts: 3,966	Re: DagNABBIT! totally not realistic, no one eats at panera. Also, lol. __________________

01-14-2008, 01:48 PM	#7
fastfingers65 Banned Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 1,124	Re: DagNABBIT! Darn it, you got the game.

01-14-2008, 02:06 PM	#8
pntballa18 FFR Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Hossin Age: 32 Posts: 3,357	Re: DagNABBIT! Or you go to hit him over the head with the guitar, only about halfway through your swing the guitar stops due to the wire not being long enough. That would have turned out well.

01-14-2008, 02:40 PM	#11
sjoecool1991 FFR Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Age: 33 Posts: 2,302	Re: DagNABBIT! Woah, thats wierd. There is a game store where i live, and another right across the street, and a Panera place 3 doors down from it.

01-14-2008, 02:42 PM	#12
foilman8805 smoke wheat hail satin Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: LA baby Age: 35 Posts: 5,704	Re: DagNABBIT! You're giving the guitar the benefit of the doubt...7 pounds? Maybe 5 at most. EDIT: Interesting piece though. I like the way you write.

01-14-2008, 02:44 PM	#13
OrganisM FFR Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Nesoi, Olympus System Posts: 2,644	Re: DagNABBIT! Well, now you know the REAL consequences if you ** up on guitar hero. __________________ . Originally Posted by jewpinthethird[link]: "If you get stung by enough bees you turn into a bee, because the venom gets into the blood stream which spreads bee DNA throughout your entire body... changing your genetic structure into a bee's. Every year roughly 125 people in America are turned into bees this way." Originally Posted by MrRubix*[link]: "Do you basically bukkake-paint your walls every time you jack it?"* Originally Posted by All_That_Chaz[link]: "My pity-sex depreciates at a rate of 5% annually."

01-14-2008, 03:29 PM	#18
GamerShadow FFR Player Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: In my Dungeon Age: 32 Posts: 2,534	Re: DagNABBIT! Wow, that is way more exciting than anything that's happened in my life. Good read, would read again. __________________ Note to self Finish.

01-14-2008, 03:34 PM	#19
Cj_leonine FFR Player Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Chillin' with Carmen San Diego Age: 34 Posts: 2,070	Re: DagNABBIT! Amazing. __________________ Status: Innactive Onehander Best FC Before Avmiss Fix: . Be Princess . Hellbeat . End Night

01-14-2008, 03:36 PM	#20
LLaMaSaUceYup FFR Player Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Phoenix, Arizona. Age: 31 Posts: 3,759	Re: DagNABBIT! Enjoyable story, yeah that is a weird Saturday. ;/ glad you weren't shot! oh and good job on figuring out what happened ;]

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