Dressing Up The Situation More Than Required

(I work in a small corner shop. It’s around two pm and the store is pretty dead. A lady walks in and purchases a large quantity of alcohol, paying in cash. She spots the engagement ring on my finger as I hand her the change.)

Customer: “Aww, are you getting married?”

Me: “Yeah, I’ve been engaged for almost two months now.”

Customer: “That’s nice. I’ve been married for just under thirty years now.”

(She reaches back into her purse and pulls out a twenty pound note.)

Customer: “You seem like such a sweet girl. Here, take this. Put it towards your husband’s suit or something.”

(I don’t like taking other people’s money, especially from strangers, so she puts it on the counter.)

Me: “Well, um, actually my, uh, girlfriend and I are both gonna be wearing dresses but thanks.”

(I don’t tend to discuss my personal life with customers much, and this one showed me why. Nodding for the briefest of moments before she realised what I’d said, her eyes widened in shock and she turned around and sprinted out of the store faster than I would have believed for someone of her age, leaving behind the £20 as well as all her purchases. We kept them behind the counter for a week before my boss decided to donate them to me and my now wife for our wedding. It’s been a month now since the wedding, but no-one since has asked about it.)