Owner: Destiny

You walk into a large store. Your friend told you that this place was wonderful for everything--furniture, lighting, decor--they even have food! There is a large map upon entering and you admit to yourself that there seems to be a lot of good things but it also seems daunting. There is a LOT on this map. Then you realize that this is just the first floor and you feel a bit dizzy. There are two floors to this building, You hope that maybe the top if for storage, but looking to your left, you suddenly notice the escalator full of chatty customers and the bank of elevators to the side. The top floor has stuff too. Was this a mistake? You shake your head and try to concentrate on the map again. You friend did mention that there was a cafe. Maybe it would be better to get a bit to eat before starting your shopping trip. You ask a pleasant worker in a blue and yellow vest for the location of the cafe and he points you up the escalator and says the cafe is right at the top.

You get upstairs and grab a tray. So many choices! It is similar to a buffet in setup so you can see everything beforehand. But it is not all you can eat. You grab an entree with meatballs and head towards the cashier. The prices are surprisingly cheap and you commend yourself on waiting to have lunch here. After a wonderful meal, you decide that it would be a great idea to walk it off. You wander to the beginning of the shopping area (which is oddly on the 2nd floor) and grab a weird cart with a big plastic bag to hold your heart's desires. Kitchen items! Never have you seen so many weird items in your life--all with names in a different language. Of course they have the normal items that you already have such as pots and pans. However, they have potato presses, avocado slicers, mortars and pestals, mandolines, deep fry skimmers. And the options! If you don't want a simple wooden spoon, you can get one with slots or one with a blunt top or even plastic and rubber ones. Some items come in bright colors and others are a simple black or white. It makes it hard to choose the right one. You try you best and end up with 9 different items. The customers around you are startled by your very audible groan. This is just the first section!

Suddenly you see a small creature peek around the corner. And as fast as it was there, it was gone. Maybe you are just seeing things. You decide to move on.

Next you see furniture. Oh good! You remember that you would like to see about getting some nice cozy chairs for your living room. Variety is welcome in this section. It is very important that you pick some chairs that look nice and are also comfortable. Entertaining guests is something you love to do and the last thing you need is blah chairs that feel like rocks. What is better--cloth or leather? Recliner or stationary? Pattern or solid colors? Each time you see something nice, you sit in the seat and then take a picture of your favorites. After touring the section, the selection has been narrowed from around 50 choices to 10. Much more manageable. Sitting in one of your favorites, you ponder over the rest. Wait--what was that? You could swear that you saw the same thing from the kitchen area. Is something following you? You have your choice so you decide to move along...

Some of the areas are smaller or nothing is needed so you manage to keep up a good pace through the store. You even make it back to the first floor after two hours--that is good right? The pile of smaller items are growing in your cart. You have numerous pictures of bigger items to pick up later. Every time you are ready to leave one room, you feel that now familiar feeling of being watched. You have even tried looking around the corner and there is nothing. You brush it off and move faster. You finally reach the last shopping section which is decor. There are wall hangings, mirrors, candles, fake plants, clocks--so many beautiful items. You have to fight off the urge to throw things en masse into your cart. You are not made of money! You did grab a few things to make your living area a bit nicer.

Ahead you see a big sign that says "Self-Service Furniture Area." Ah! So this is where you get the bigger items! You grab a bigger flat cart and transfer the bag of items over. This area is the biggest open area that you have seen thus far and it seemed a bit empty. Well, empty in terms of people anyway. There were a few scattered people searching for items but it was slightly eerie. You go and get the few big items you need and head towards the end. Coming out of the long aisle that you were in, you notice that you don't see anyone else in the warehouse. Did you accidentally take a wrong turn into an employee-only section? You head starts to spin as you picture in your head a group of security guards coming angrily at you with their batons raised. The walls feel like they are closing in on you and you struggle to breathe...

You look around for signs of life and as you spin on your heels you finally see something move. Blocking your exit is the creature you saw before. It is a small, one-eyed monkey in a bulky winter coat. Do they sell that coat here? Because you would love it in your size. He is holding an armful of meatballs--just like the ones you ate just hours before. With a loud grumble, you feel your stomach turn. You both stare at each other for what seems like hours. Sweat starts to pour from your forehead and you fear that you might have to charge the animal. What if it is stronger than you? What if it has rabies? You close your eyes to see if that will help prepare to ram this weird beast. With a yelp, you feel a tap on your shoulder and look back to see what manner of being is behind you. It was the same employee that pointed out the cafe. He politely asked if he could help you find anything. You peered around and there was nothing barring your exit. You hurry through the doorway and go to the final checkout. Wow! Those were all really good deals! You think to yourself that you should come here more often. Well, maybe not... you could swear that you saw the blur of a puffy coat run past the last checkout lane.

Overlay by Rue
Background by patterncooler.com
Story, coding, name banner and everything else by me :D
Story featuring Darwin, the infamous, mysterious IKEA macaque. This story itself however is pure fiction.