Maximilian Street lit up with lots of light as the sun went down slowly behind its tall buildings. Max looked around with an eager face. He had never seen such a street in his life. There were clothing shops everywhere, every one of them looked super expensive.
"What kind of clothes do you want, Max?"
"Uh, something nice for orientation and classes. What do you suggest?"
Max was not certain what kind of clothes would be appropriate for orientation. He would try to do casual stuff, but if Danica had better suggestions for him, he would like to hear and learn about them.
"Orientation? Hmm, wear casual that day. Let's park here. Let's buy you some leather items from here, and then we'll move to a more casual street for casual clothes."
Max looked at the huge shop with a 'Burberry' sign on top. The glass door was open wide as if inviting him inside, and he didn't even know what they sold inside, but the fragrance that was coming from it smelled super nice.
"We are not going here, follow me. First, we need to get you some proper winter clothes."
Danica tapped on Max's shoulder, then walked ahead with confidence. Max nodded his head and followed along. Everywhere he looked, there were such shops—expensive and very welcoming. Blanka suddenly pointed at a store called 'Dior.'
"Look, it's the 'Rose Celeste Medallion Necklace.' I asked Mom several times, but she refused. It's a little bigger too here in Munich. It's so beautiful."
Blanka was walking with Danica and showing her a mannequin, her fingers pointed at it. Max looked toward it and understood she was talking about a pendant. It didn't look special at all to him.
Girls have weird taste. Her mom said 'NO' to something? It might be expensive or trash.
"This is Lodenfrey, best for some handcrafted wool coats. You need to spend on being warm first."
Danica entered the big white building, and Max followed. Inside, he saw rows of thick coats hanging on a rack. Looking at them, he finally realized his own ragged coat wasn't enough. It had kept him safe from the wind outside, but he was wrong to think that was all he needed. To be truly safe, he needed to be warm first, even outside his home.
"Choose any coats from here."
As soon as she said it, Blanka took Max's hand and walked ahead. She took charge entirely and took coats from every row, holding them up to him and rejecting them on the spot.
"This one looks nice. What do you think, Max?"
As she picked a woolen charcoal-colored coat, she turned him toward the mirror while showing him that it suited him and would look perfect on him.
"Let's take this."
Max nodded his head. He wanted something darker in color, and he was not questioning Blanka's choice in terms of fashion. She was miles ahead of him.
"You don't have to listen to her. You can pick whatever you want. Blanka, don't be a big baby. Let him pick whatever he likes."
Danica walked in on the duo. Max saw her hand carefully hiding the price tag from him. The coat was €4,599. Max thought this was really nice of her to do. Blanka didn't notice such a small gesture, because she had never seen or faced this type of situation.
"Max, look, this is reversible—inside black leather biker coat and outside cashmere wool. It's perfect for you."
"It really is perfect, Danica. Thank you, but I'll get it."
Max reached for the heavy coat. Danica's hand was already covering the price tag to hide the cost. He gave her hand a soft tap, meeting her eyes. It was his way of saying he already knew how much it cost—and he didn't care.
"Alright, if you're sure about it."
Danica smiled and backed off. After that, they went on a shopping spree. From hand gloves to boots, Max bought about €8,934 worth of clothes and went to the counter to pay. He was holding four big shopping bags.
"After paying here, we have to go to Kaufinger Street for your casual wear."
Max nodded, hearing Danica's voice. She was a very kind woman. Every time he wanted to buy something, she would show him the price tag somehow. If he really didn't have any money on him and came here as he really was, she would be an angel for him.
"Sir, card or check?"
"You don't take cash?"
"We do, but usually such big amounts are paid in bank."
Hearing a new term for paying, Max wanted to know if they took cash or not. All his life, he had dealt with cash, so not hearing the common 'Cash or Card' irked him a little.
"I'll pay with card."
He pulled out his wallet, which looked like it had seen the First World War or something inside this luxurious store. He had gotten himself a new leather wallet from here, but he planned on using it on his first day of university.
As soon as the card came out, it almost outshined the whole store. It screamed for attention, with thousands of lights inside the store glaring at the diamond, making it glow.
"Maximilian Karl Weber, your card is so pretty, Maxi."
Blanka was the first to react. She looked at the shining name on the card and spelled it out word by word. She wasn't trying to be mean; she was just curious and wanted to touch it. But before she could, Danica quickly moved her hand to block her.
*KA-CHING*
"Thank you for your patronage."
Max gestured to the counterperson with his eyes to hurry up, and as soon as the payment was done, the trio walked out of the store. They were going back to the car and had to change location from this luxurious street to buy more casual, day-to-day stuff.
"Hey, can you guys take this with you? I…I need to go to the toilet, and I just saw one behind us. I'll be in the car in five minutes."
Max suddenly pretended he had to pee and shoved the shopping bags into the girls' hands and ran back where they came from. Blanka just laughed, while Danica smiled and, shaking her head, walked toward her car.
Max, on the other hand, went to another big shop called 'Dior.' As soon as he entered, he understood one thing—this store primarily sold women's products.
"Sir, how can I help you today?"
"I want that pendant."