This, That, and the Other

“Let’s go over some of the details of your upcoming intergalactic journey, Mr. Andrews,” the woman behind the counter said. “First, because of the length and inherent risks of such a trip, we must receive payment in full up front. Installment payments are not accepted.”

Mr. Andrews grumbled, but nodded in the affirmative.

“As you can imagine, there’s no cellular, WiFi, or satellite service during the trip, so we can offer you an unconnected tablet computer or a loose leaf binder to record your thoughts and observations during the journey,” she said. “What is your preference?”

“I cannot believe that you’re able to offer intergalactic travel, but no outside world connectivity,” Mr. Andrews said. “That’s ridiculous. It’s barbaric. I’ll take the tablet.”

“Your obstinacy on this matter is regrettable, Mr. Andrews,” the woman said, “but the motivation for most who embark on this journey is to escape and to get away from it all. This lack of connectivity supports that escape from all the noise.” The woman got a gleam in her eye. “We are proud that our mission is produce an environment where our clients can let go of all that and can truly relax and find themselves.”

Mr. Andrews looked at his watch, looked around nervously, and said, “Fine, I’ll sign the damn papers.” The woman handed them to him, he signed them, and then asked where the departure gate was.

The woman smiled, pointed to her right, and said, “You’d better hurry, Mr. Andrews. The journey starts in ten minutes and I believe the police, who are looking for you, are on there way here. But if you hurry, you’ll disappear and they’ll never apprehend you.”

A few minutes later the police arrived. “Mr. Andrew is in the module, officers, ready to start his journey,” the woman said.

“Thank you, Donna,” Officer Krenshaw said. “He’s the third one just this week. How stupid are these guys to fall for the intergalactic escape entrapment? Won’t Mr. Andrews be surprised when he sees us walk into the module?”

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Written for these daily prompts: E.M.’s Random Word Prompt (intergalactic), Fandango’s One Word Challenge (payment), My Vivid Blog (loose leaf), Word of the Day Challenge (obstinacy), The Daily Spur (motivation), Ragtag Daily Prompt (gleam), and Your Daily Word Prompt (produce).