In the Dark

It was summer and i was working part time at one of the most expensive clothing malls in the country as a sales girl. one particular day was very busy because the shop was filled with people so eager to spend on one item or the other, some just came to admire because they couldn't afford any item. i did not blame them because i too was in the same predicament.
there was this particular dress i stared at since the first day i started work, i even promised myself i would buy it with my pay if it could and that meant a whole 2 months wages or more, nothing less. that day a girl annoyed me by coming out of nowhere and picking up the dress, tried it on and paid for it on the spot! to emphasize how expensive that dress was the amount could pay my school fees for one year (as a year one Unilag student) i got jealous, envious and upset at the same time, i thought to myself " why were we not all born equal?" i watched the dress and her move towards the door in despair because there was only one type of it. then when she reached close to the door something caught her attention  and she came back into the shop and walked with the dress  in her purple shopping bag towards me, just then she did something... she dropped the shopping bag that the dress was in on the floor in front of ME!
i stared at the bag, i stared at the dress, beautiful colour, nice trimming, perfect size n fitting (I'm sure). i played wearing this dress over and over in my head and there was the owner carelessly looking at other clothes that are no better than the dress. i told myself " she doesn't deserve it!" and i picked it up. it felt like she dropped it for me. i quickly hid the dress in a safe spot. i looked at it, admired it, aah! i felt the material, my own, my precious! after a few minutes of admiring "my gift" i walked back to my post hoping the silly girl wouldn't remember buying a dress and truly she dint, she walked out of the shop with two big bags filled with clothes and at that moment i was certain the dress was meant for me.
after a few hours of work it was time to close, it was my turn to clean up and arrange the clothes. a spare key was left for me to lock up when i was about to leave. i patiently waited for the last person to walk through the door. i locked it and reached for my prize! imagine not having to save anymore what I've been longing handed to me on a silver platter!
with excitement i entered the lift in the shop to drop some clothes in the storage room still admiring the dress. i pressed the lift button and went down. all of a sudden  the lift jerked and stopped halfway then the lights went off. i pushed the lift button, it did not respond, i hit it, no use, i was stuck!
it was a sick feeling being stuck in a lift, everywhere was dark, it was like i was in a black pit. i became nervous and started sweating. i felt slimy and dirty like i was covered in soil with worms and flies all over then i became depressed because my heart grew heavy and i remembered the dress still on my left hand. to think that such a thing would cause me to do the unthinkable, to steal what someone had paid for. i felt terrible, i felt like i walked into a forest, missed my step, entered a deep ditch and no one could hear my screams because everyone had gone and i realised this is usually like what happens when you do something wrong, its like you see a beautiful cage and a curious shadow inside, you enter and then you're trapped inside realising that the curious shadow is a horrible snake or creature waiting to devour you, SIN! is what it is. i stole and my conscience probed further and i felt that was why i got stuck in the lift to think about my actions and correct my mistake. i curled up by the corner of the gloomy lift and i hoped i would last the night.
i woke up to hear banging somewhere above the lift, my heart skipped and i shouted "help, help" apparently two men were trying to open it. after what felt like hours the door above me finally opened and i was pulled out. they told me i was lucky because i would have suffocated if i stayed any longer and that it was one of the salesgirls who discovered it was stuck while she tried to use the lift. i thanked them all. i was given food to eat and water to drink. the next thing i did was call the customer who forgot her shopping bag (luckily she left her phone number to be notified for new arrivals) she told me to keep it since i was honest enough to call , i thanked her. once i hung up i went to hang the dress back on the clothes rack, i did not want it anymore.