"I'm sorry."
Eric shook his head. "Does it sound weird that I'm so disconnected?"
Dave pointed upwards. "I've seen the people upstairs. There's a lot of disconnected people up there. You seem like you're in good condition in comparison."
"I was lucky, I guess. I got here early so I wasn't with my friends when it all happened. But I guess that a lot of other people were here with their family and friends. They saw those family and friends torn apart. That must have been rough. Of course it was rough on me. However it has less impact when you see strangers suffering."
"Wait. Those things came into here?"
"I guess there were a lot of people in here and they were attracted to the crowds."
"So how do you know that the shopping centre is empty of those things now?"
"I've wandered around a lot during the day and I've not see any. They might wander in during the night, but by daylight they disappear."
"That's unsettling. Tomorrow, we really need to get the doors to this shopping centre closed. And hopefully barricaded with something extra so that they can handle a decent crowd trying to push their way in."
"I guess that I've been lucky so far."
"That's both of us. At least you've been on the roof most of the time. I've spent a lot of time on the road, most likely just walking by vast crowds of those things completely unaware of the potential danger."
Eric looked nervously around. "We shouldn't talk so much. Let's get what we want and get back up on the roof. We can talk then."
Dave smiled at Eric. "That's a damn genius idea."
Dave walked to the male underwear section and picked up some unpackaged briefs. He held them around his waist to check the size. It seemed a bit small so Dave picked up a larger size and held it around his waist. Armed with the knowledge of his size, Dave picked up two half-dozen packets of briefs and put them into his shopping bag.
Eric had walked over to a section with jumpers and was digging through a few piles that were on a display table.
Dave walked to the T shirt section and grabbed about half a dozen black T shirts that he put in his shopping bag. He didn't bother testing the size because with T shirts he actually knew his size. He then walked towards the trouser section and stopped in front of a shelf with some track-pants on it. He picked up a dark grey set and read the size label. Conveniently the size system was the same as his underwear so he knew what to get, his only worry being that the pants might be a bit long in the leg.
Continuing to the trouser section Dave looked about for some tough looking pants, the sort that workman would use. He found some khaki pants that were made from a tough canvas-like material. The label on the pants declared that they were perfect for any work environment. Dave looked down at the pants that he was currently wearing - they were a set of semi-casual office pants - and noticed that they were rather filthy.
Dave placed his shopping bag on a display table and took his shoes off. He noted that his shoes were in bad shape. Although his shoes were constructed like a pair of joggers, they didn't have a jogger's build quality and all the walking that Dave had recently done had worn them really badly. Dave's socks were also unpleasantly stained so Dave removed them as well and dropped them onto his abandoned shoes. He took off his office pants and dropped them onto his old shoes. After taking a quick look around the store, Dave took off his underwear and pulled on a clean set of briefs. Dave would have liked to have had a shower, but just changing to clean clothes made him feel so much more refreshed.
Dave pulled the work-pants on and was pleased that they were a good fit if a bit long in the leg. Bending over, Dave rolled the pant leg ends inwards until they were a functional length. The new pants fit really well so Dave grabbed another pair that he placed into his shopping bag. Dave pulled out one of the T shirts that were in the bag and left it on top of the bag. Dave removed his button up office shirt, which he dropped onto the floor with his other discards. He picked up the clean T shirt and pulled it on. This was much more comfortable.
Dave walked to the sock section and grabbed a number of thick looking hiking socks that he put into his shopping bag. These were just the sort of socks that could reduced blister and other foot injuries. The label attached to the socks showed some rugged workman hefting up handfuls of house bricks.
Next to the sock section, along the back wall of the clothing store were wall racks covered in various shoes. Dave looked over the jogger section until he found a few that he liked. He picked his favourite off the rack and looked around. The display only had the right shoe of its pair, so he'd have to look around for a complete pair. At one side of the show display was a door. On the door was a large sign saying 'staff only'.
"Hey Eric," called out Dave.
"Uh, what is it?"
"I'm going to go into the back storage and look for some new shoes."
Eric jogged over to where Dave was. "Can I have a look around as well?"
"That's why I called you over. I would prefer it if we stayed together. It's not night time but there's safety in numbers."
Eric gulped and nodded.
Dave pushed open the door that said 'staff only' and walked through. The area was filled with numerous shelves that were crammed with shoeboxes. The shelves seemed to be organised by brand. Dave looked at the label on the shoe
