Once upon a time, a man was strolling by the mall. He was enjoying all the beautiful stuff in every boutique. Once in a while, he’d stop at some shop to try on clothes. But nothing soothed his taste. He wasn’t looking for anything in particular, but if there’s a good buy, why not?

He found himself inside an infamous shop. Though he wasn’t into designer clothes, he got in anyway and decided to take a peek at their new season selection. The man walked by, aisle by aisle.

On a particular rack, something caught his fancy. A white cotton tee with black lines hemmed on the side. It was an ordinary shirt. He took it from the rack and noticed a little, black inscription right at the heart of it that said, “TRUE LOVE”.

“So cheezy”, he thought.

He kept walking but the image of the common shirt kept popping in his head. So he took a 180 and walked back to it. He took it again from the rack and walked towards the fitting room. He took off his shirt and put the other one on. As he was doing this he thought, “This is so ordinary, nothing special about it, what am I thinking trying it on? Well, what the hell!”

The shirt touched his skin with ease and hugged his body with comfort. It was the perfect length and perfect fit. After smoothing the shirt with the palm of his hand, he was amazed at how an ordinary cotton shirt could feel so right at his touch. He gazed at himself on the mirror and saw that it did not only feel good, but looked good, on him.

“Wow, this is great! I think I’m gonna buy this.”

He turned sideways. Perfect.

He turned half back. Perfect.

He turned the other side. Perfect.

The man went to the cashier and took out his wallet from his back pocket.

The cashier man said, “Sire, are you confident of your purchase?”

“Oh yeah! I think its great. I’m actually surprised that nobody purchased it before me.”

“That’s the thing, Sire. The price is a little bit, umm, extravagant.”

“How come? This is just a cotton shirt, and it seem to appear, old and used”. He struggled to come up with a euphemism, not to offend the man by the cash register, but failed. “No offense meant”.

“None taken, Sire”. That is why it was on the rack. Sure a couple of men took a glance but decided its not worth the price”.

“Really now. Maybe its destined to be mine.” He smiled. “How much is it anyway?” He asked, holding his wallet up.

“Its $50,000 Sire”. He paused. “Quite expensive, I told you”, and the man bowed his head in embarrassment.

“No kidding?!!” He exclaimed.

“Would you like to reconsider, Sire? The amount hasn’t been punched yet. You could still change your mind. We have other great items here. Better quality, lesser price. Why dont you take another sweep?”

The man peeled off the shirt from the counter and walked away. He held the shirt on eye level and scrutinized it carefully. Nothing special. Nothing stunning. Nothing catchy about the shirt. At all. He stood in front of the mirror and gently placed the mysterious shirt over his own and looked at his reflection.

Even off him, it still looked good.

The Cashier noticed the shopper’s difficulty in making the decision.

“You really liked it, don’t you?”

“Yes, I truly do. But I was thinking maybe the amount is way too much for this”. He clasped the sleeve of the shirt tightly.

“Yes, but some things came with a price. And sometimes, it doesn’t matter how much it costs. If you want it, then go get it. If you dont think its worth it, come back and I’ll return your money”.

The man fell in deep thought as his inner debate went on. He thought, “Damn, how hard is it to find a shirt that fits this well? There’s gotta be something more about this shirt”.

Mr. Cashier read the longing and hesitation from the man’s eyes. He gave him a good deal, the return policy isn’t a big thing in their store. Buyers often find what they’re looking for in this particular shop and they leave satisfied and happy, like children smothered with chocolate ice cream on their faces at the playground. And they never return to exchange anything.

“Sire, if true love had a price this much, would you buy it, or pass it up?”

The man remained silent. Holding the shirt up his heart.

>>>>>hmmm so yeah...anyway speaking of short stories i made one a very long time ago and...i dont know if I should post this one...or NOT




>> I dont like frogs. Frogs as frogs. Or men as frogs.

There is a lesson somewhere there.

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This is the fairy tale that should have been read to us when we were little…

Once upon a time…in a land far away…a beautiful, independent self assured princess stumbled upon a frog as she sat contemplating ecological issues on the shores of an unpolluted pond in a verdant meadow near her castle.
The frog hopped into the princess’ lap and said, “elegant lady, I was once a handsome prince, until an evil witch cast a spell upon me. One kiss from you however, and I will turn back into the dapper young prince that I am and then my sweet…we can marry and set up housekeeping in your castle…with my mother…where you will prepare my meals…clean my clothes…bear my children and forever feel grateful and happy doing so. And just like Cinderella and Prince Charming, we will live happily ever after”.

That night…as the princess dined sumptuously on lightly sautéed frog legs seasoned in white wine and onion cream sauce, she chuckled…and thought to herself:

I don’t think so.

hahaha haba ba? anyways.. YUI's original desuu

*and ummm special thanks to my nee-chan for those deep words hahaha