Today was the day. 

Sebastian had been feeling the urge for as long as he could remember. Even as a kid, he had this peculiar longing deep inside. He wanted an apple. 

So Sebastian summoned up his courage and made a trip down Main Street to the Apple Cart, where he’d heard there were all kinds of wonderful apples. Sure, he’d heard too that there were some bad ones mixed in. But he was a smart guy. He was sure he could tell the difference. 

“What’re lookin for?” the man at the Apple Cart asked, watching Sebastian sidle up. 

“I’m here to buy an apple,” Sebastian said, his voice a little thin despite the pride he felt inside. 

“Well, you’ve come to the right place. I got loads of apples here. I got yer McIntoshes, I got yer Granny Smiths, I even got yer Golden Deliciouses. You name it, I got it. What do you fancy?” 

Sebastian hesitated. He wasn’t sure. He’d never had an apple before. But he sure wanted one—a good one. Cost was not an issue—he’d gladly pay dearly for a good apple. 

“I’m not sure,” Sebastian answered. “Could I maybe take a look at them?” 

“Well, of course you can,” the Apple Cart man said. “Be glad to show you. There’s just one little proviso.” 

“A … proviso?” 

“It’s a tiny thing. Nothing really. But, you see, if you look at an apple, I gotta be sure you’re serious about maybe buyin it. So I charge you to take a look.” 

Sebastian had never heard of such a thing. “I have to pay to look at the apple, even if I don’t want to buy it?” 

“Of course. You understand the position I’m in, surely,” the man said. “I gotta make sure you ain’t one of them guys who just wants to look at my apples with no intent of ever buyin one. I get a lot like that coming by my cart, you know.” 

“What if it’s a rotten apple?” 

The Apple Cart man nodded serenely. “Many of them are in this batch. A whole bunch, in fact. Still, I gotta charge you.” 

“What if it’s a McIntosh and I really want a Granny Smith?” 

“Gotta charge you.” 

“If it’s bruised or overripe or underripe?” 

“Gotta charge, charge, charge.” 

Sebastian quickly realized that buying an apple was going to be no easy feat. Still, he tried looking at a few, despite the cost. He was willing to do that, of course. He’d wanted an apple for so very long. 

He even mustered the courage to pay the full fee to buy one outright, one that looked yummy and delicious. It looked so tasty that he closed his eyes, held it with both hands, and bit in as deeply as he could. Finally, he could satisfy that persistent need to taste a real apple. 

But he quickly discovered that that particular apple made him sick to his stomach. 

Little did Sebastian know that the Apple Cart was filled with wonderful apples, sweet tasty ones that would have satisfied that lifelong urge of his and more. That would have sated that hunger that had so long gone unfulfilled. 

But he couldn’t find them in the Apple Cart, not this way. 

Instead, Sebastian turned and walked away defeated, his pockets empty, convinced he’d never manage to eat an apple. Not a good one, anyways.