Scene: A busy retail store. Fluorescent lights buzz overhead. Shoppers pass by with carts full of discount deals. But in aisle seven, a couple stands close, whispering.
WIFE (quietly):
“Okay… hear me out. You sit in the wheelchair. Look super sad. I’ll do the talking.”
HUSBAND (raising an eyebrow):
“You want me to fake being disabled… in public?”
WIFE (grinning):
“Not forever. Just for today. There’s a contest — the store’s giving a $500 gift card to the most ‘heartfelt customer story.’ I saw it on their Instagram.”
HUSBAND:
“And your idea of ‘heartfelt’ is pretending I broke my legs skiing in Aspen?”
WIFE (playfully):
“Or saving a dog from a burning house. Whatever sounds more heroic.”
She wheels over the in-store customer wheelchair, dusts it off, and gestures dramatically.
WIFE:
“Come on, babe. We’ve faked worse at family dinners.”
HUSBAND (sighs, sitting):
“This is ridiculous.”
WIFE (fixing his hair):
“Ridiculously genius. Now limp your lip a little. It sells the story.”
They roll toward the front of the store, where a contest sign reads:
“Tell Us Your Story — Win Big!”
WIFE (to the clerk):
“My husband… he’s been through so much.”
The clerk looks suspicious.
CLERK:
“He parked in a red zone outside.”
HUSBAND (nervously):
“Miracle. I just started walking again?”
The clerk stares. Pause. Then picks up the phone.
CLERK:
“Security to the front desk, please.”
The couple looks at each other — wide-eyed. The plan just backfired.
