It was the color that first caught Johnny's eye. It was a bright yellow, with a dash of orange. You just couldn't miss it. And something about it exuded a raw, muscular feel. He felt it would grip the surface well, and really help him run faster. He had his qualifiers in two weeks, and his last pair had worn out. He looked on it for a brand mark, but there was none. That was strange. But his gut told him he really had to get these shoes. It was a good idea to get these shoes. He entered the store where it was on display, only hoping that that they wouldn't cost more than the little money he could spare for it.
He went up to the shopkeeper and had to wait for a few minutes as a couple of customers made their purchase. Then Johnny went up to him and asked.
'Say, how much for the pair of runnin' shoes that're put outside on display?'
'What those? Well, they bin here a long time, no one's ever showed any interest in 'em. Do you wanna have a look?'
'Yes please.'
The man slowly made his way to the display counter. He was a man of seventy, with a generous girth and tufts of snowy white hair on his head, below which was a wrinkled, kindly face. He came back with them, and put the pair in Johnny's hands. 'You can try 'em on if you'd like.'
Johnny slipped one on and the fit was snug as though the shoe was made especially for him. He slipped on the second and did I fast jog on the spot to test how they felt. The old man looked at him. At the lean and chiseled features of his body, his agile stance and his dancing eyes.
'You a runner son?'
'Oh yeah, I've been tryin' out for nationals for the past three years, but always narrowly missed out. This time I've a feeling I'm gonna make it. I have to, to repay all the loans I've taken in my pursuit. I see there's no brand name on this. What sorta guarantee can you give me on this?'
'No guarantee. What you buy is what you get.'
'Okay. I'm gonna trust my gut on this one. How much?'
'Thirty dollars. Cos I've never seen a finer made pair of shoes in my entire life.'
'Oh god. I don't have so much. I've only twenty. Please sir, please give it to me for twenty.'
The man seemed to look at him for a minute. 'Oh all right. They weren't going anyways. If I can do my bit to help a young man, I sure will. Go on, take 'em!'
Johnny thanked him and came out of the shop a happy man. He took out motorcycle parked by the sidewalk and started on his way home. He had a good feeling about these shoes.
On the way home, he found a man standing by a stationary car, waving his arms for help as he walked around in frustration. Johnny slowed down and stopped next to him.
'Can I help you sir?'
'Oh it would be a blessing if you could. You see my car's just not starting, do you know what the problem could be? I've tried everything!'
'Well I dunno much sir, but I could take a look under the hood for you, I can.'
'That would be of great help!' Johnny parked his bike in front of the car and got off to check under the hood of the car. As he passed the other man, he felt a sharp object pressed in the low of his back.
'Alright buster, no sound. Just walk off the road into the bushes, and don't try anything stupid.'
He silently agreed and after walking a few meters inward, the man spun Johnny around and asked him to give all his valuables and cash. When Johnny said he actually had nothing, the man lost his cool.
'Now you listen man! I'm gonna take your bike and get away on it, cos that's not even my car all right? Now if you don't want me to take your life along with that, do as I say!'
'But I have nothing except for these shoes I bought. Honest!'
The man looked at him angrily as he saw that Johnny wasn't lying. Then he yanked the shoe cover out of his hands and peeped inside.
'Ooh fancy. Guess I won't mind wearing those. He quickly kicked off his own shoes and wore the yellow ones. 'Don't let me see you around again' he said as he started trotting away. Johnny felt a sinking feeling inside him and he felt hot tears well up in his throat. He could have easily chased down the man, but what was the point? He was armed.
But then suddenly, just a few meters in front of him, amidst the bushes he heard a scream of surprised pain. Someone was yelling in pure agony. Johnny sprinted to the source of the sound, and saw that it was the same man, writhing on the ground in some pain. Then his eyes fell upon his feet and his jaw dropped.
His feet were bleeding profusely and his toes were missing, as if they'd been bitten off. All that remained of them were two weird looking stumps for feet. There was blood everywhere, and the man now seemed to go into shock, turning alarmingly white and soon fainting into silence. Johnny looked to see what had caused all this, when his eyes fell upon the yellow shoes. They were perched innocently on a nearby rock, and would have been beyond suspicion if not for the blotches of red all over its toe end.
He walked up to it cautiously and picked it up, expecting them to bite again. Something told him without a doubt that they had been the cause for what had transpired. But nothing happened.
He put them back in his bag, took another glance of the faint body, and decided not to get involved in this. They wouldn't believe his story anyway. He went to his bike and rode away.
Once home, he washed them carefully and sat and stared at them. That was when he realized, if it wasn't for those shoes, the man would probably have killed him out of frustration for not having anything on him. Or he would have been left stranded there. The shoes had saved his life. He felt that they were their to protect him, and wouldn't do anything to him.
So the next morning, he wore them to practice. And it went great.
Two weeks later, he topped his heat qualifiers, and made it to nationals.
A month later, he won gold at the nationals and represented his country at the Olympics.
Six months later, he won gold at the summer Olympics, setting a new event record.
All the while he never showed too much surprise or disbelief. For since the very first time he had seen those shoes, he knew it was a good idea to get them.
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