By: Sam Francis Lokanata, Secondary 3 Peace

I bumped into a large shopper, inciting some rude remarks. I muttered an apology as I continued my search for the exit. It was another dreadful Black Friday and the mall was swarming with greedy holiday shoppers who had no patience at all. I held my crumpled paper bag tightly as I pushed past the hordes of sweaty shoppers. Despite the ice-cold air conditioners at full blast everywhere, it felt as if it was scorching with heat. With the number of people in the store, it felt as if we were all ingredients boiling in a stew.

Large bright signs illuminated by the garish neon lights screamed their discounts. People swarmed the shelves and devoured the products, leaving not a single one on the aisles. It was a miracle that nothing had fallen on the floor or perhaps it was quickly taken by any of the rabid shoppers before they hit the floor. As I finally made it to the checkout line, even the figurine I bought wasn’t smiling anymore.

Screaming children stressed mothers and grumpy grandparents filled the never-ending line. At the cashier, the attendants had long given up on smiling and good customer service, instead scanning the items in a bored trance and barking at the next customer to get it over with quickly. I joined the line and became one with the human centipede.

After eons of waiting, and my legs dying of tiredness, I paid for my toy and kindly asked the attendant to stop yelling at me. I breathed a sigh of relief as I exited the store only to let lose a groan of annoyance. More people stood between me and the exit. Each floor was packed with hundreds of people carrying shopping bags in a dizzying array of colours and making them twice as wide. I boarded the escalator down, I fought the urge to push the person in front of me to see if it would be a chain reaction of dominos.

The janitors had long hung up their mops in defeat as they watched the crowd stampede in with their dirty wet boots from the snow outside. I finally made it to the first floor and delved into the labyrinth of limbs to get to the exits. After a lot of finding the cracks between fur coats and winter jackets, getting clobbered by the shopping bags, a few nasty remarks, and a ring from an angry dog, I had finally made it to the bright exit. Light shone on me from the outside as I walked towards the exit as if I was finally reaching Heaven. I swung open the door triumphantly and closed the lid on the sardine can as I walked my home on the slippery streets.