I was in line waiting to pay for my one item when it happened.

"I don't have my membership card," said the customer in front of me.

"That's all right," said the cashier. "We can look it up by your phone number."

"I don't know which number I put it under."

"We'll just try each one until we get the right one."

"OK. Number one..."

Ten minutes later...

"Alright, this is the last number," said the customer. "Number 21, 555-1110."

"That one worked."

I'm pretty sure the other customers cheered, or maybe it was just in my mind.

"OK," said the clerk. "That'll be $18.50."

The customer proceeded to pull out a jar of change. "One, two, twenty-seven..."

GAAAHHH!!!

Later at Ultra-Supreme Mart...

I was checking the movie titles. I was looking for a specific title. It was a movie that'd just released and I'd been waiting months to see it. I tried to see it at the theater; but every time I tried, some supervillain attacked or some natural disaster would occur and I'd have to leave. But now that my required time off had arrived, I'd finally get to watch it.

Yeah, I bet you didn't know that superheroes have vacation time. Everyone needs time to rest, rejuvenate, and not have to worry about deathtraps for a few days.

"Can I help you, Sir?" said the employee.

"Yeah, I'm looking for Super Gamer Fights, English dubbed."

"I'm sorry, but that hasn't come out yet."

"Yes it has. I just saw an ad saying that it's out."

"That would be the digital version only, Sir. And I'm afraid that the digital release is only available at BMF.com [BuyMovieFilms.com]. It comes out physically in three weeks. But, I can gladly help you order it online."

"But today is my ROT [Required Offline Time]. I wanted to watch it today, not tomorrow when I'm BO [Back Online]." Thanks to the Grey Area law, everyone is required to spend a certain amount of time offline. During this time you are not allowed to buy, surf, socialize, or otherwise use digital means (except for that customer—they could look up their phone number because it was a loophole).

You have to shop in a physical store, talk to people face-to-face, and use physical money. You are allowed to listen to music and watch videos as long as it is offline. Who knew that CDs and VHS tapes would make a comeback?

Part of this law was to stop people from turning into the stereotypical Gray aliens (they'd once been human but through overuse of technology became the aliens we know now). The second part was to help the economy. With people being forced into physical stores, the owners needed actual people to run them.

The employee gave me a blank stare then shrugged. "Bummer."

The Doghouse, later that day...

"UGH!" I said. "I just had the worst day!"

"Want to bet," said Brain.

Soot covered Brain. His hair was a mess, and he had one clean spot on his face in the shape of safety goggles. Apparently, there'd been a lab accident...again. Turned out someone had sabotaged him. He'd entered a new reality competition show for scientists and his opponent switched some of his chemicals. When scientists "go mad", it gets nasty.

Sally's hair was a mess; she was missing a sleeve; her clothes were wet; and one foot was in a block of cement. Her story involved a mafia boss who was using a local bar as a front for their operations. She got a little too close to the story.

Danny, whoo-boy, he was black and blue. He had a bloody nose, a black eye, and cuts. He also had a cast on one arm while the Doghouse med-bots mended his broken arm.

"Bad day at practice?" I said.

"No. I tripped while taking the equipment back inside."

"That doesn't seem bad."

"It is when it happens on the third floor."

"Enough!" I said swiping my hands in a board motion of frustration and anger. "We are going on vacation."

"I thought we already were," said Danny.

"We are. But we are going on vacation. Everyone, pack your bags, and I'll tell SPOT to ready the Dogfighter. We're going to Paris."

______

Words: 709

The first part of my entry for the "Summer in France" prompt by WattFest. Hopefully, I'll finish before the July 31 deadline.

https://www.wattpad.com/598368886-festival-bonanza-july-contest-summer-in-france