Tone Piece

It was late and the store was almost empty. The last of the customers were trickling through the check out line. The cashier was tired. She was almost done with her 5 hour shift. 20 more minutes and she could do her homework and finally sleep. The end of the line was approaching. The last person was a boy, about her age. Maybe a couple years older. He had big, warm eyes and a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. When his turn came, the smile won and she saw that the it was a wonderful smile, the kind that makes girls melt. She took his money and began counting the bills. There was a sudden felling of apprehension. Something was wrong. The bills were clever copies of fives. Well worn but the face was all wrong. In place of the president was a picture of the boy. Confused, the girl looked up. The boy had pulled out a gun. The smile remained on his face but all the warmth was gone from the eyes. They were cold obsidian. "Let's make this quick," he said. "It's getting rather late."