She glanced behind her to see the young man disappear around the corner. Fran figured out that the key worked when it was inserted upside down all the Brunettis had mentioned in the note was that the key had to be turned counterclockwise to open the door. She huffed an exaggerated sigh that might have sounded like relief to the casual observer, but was edging toward self-pity just one more hurdle in a day spent fighting for bargains among the city s other aggressive shoppers. She could imagine the Brunettis giggling at her as she fumbled at the lock in the unfamiliar hallway. Her bag frothed at the top with glossy full color brochures showing Sub-Zero refrigerators seamlessly camouflaged as cabinetry, restaurant sized ranges, hand painted tiles, sleek leather chairs shaped like slippers.
Form follows function.
Sleek European design. Carefully crafted but not self-conscious. Fran liked impervious surfaces. She felt an urgent need to iron out irregularities, to clip frayed edges. This weekend shopping trip to the city was a culmination of years of thumbing hungrily through decorating magazines, silently sculpting her own flawless domestic scene devoid of children and pets.