Scene: A sunny Saturday afternoon at a cozy café in Heidelberg. Birds are chirping, and Lena and Mira are sipping cappuccinos at an outdoor table.
Mira: (pulling out a small box with a grin)
Tada! Happy early birthday, Lena.
Lena: (bright-eyed)
Mira, you didn’t have to—wait… is this what I think it is?
Mira:
Yup! The sneakers you were eyeing last week. Limited edition, and your size was the last pair. I basically did Olympic-level gymnastics to get them.
Lena: (puts the box down like it’s radioactive)
Mira, no! Shoes?! You gifted me shoes?
Mira: (blinks)
Yes… they’re for your feet… which you walk with… isn’t that the point?
Lena:
You know what this means, right? You just cursed our friendship!
Mira: (laughing)
Lena, please. How exactly does a pair of Adidas break a ten-year friendship?
Lena:
It’s an old belief. If you give someone shoes, they’ll use them to walk out of your life. My aunt gave her best friend a pair of heels—and boom—ghosted her within a week. Never even got her Tupperware back.
Mira:
That’s tragic, but I’m guessing the heels weren’t the problem. Maybe the friend just didn’t want more plastic containers in her life?
Lena: (dead serious)
No, no, no. It’s a pattern. My cousin gifted her boyfriend loafers for Christmas. They broke up on New Year’s Eve. There’s a trail of shoes leading to heartbreak across my family tree.
Mira:
Okay, but correlation doesn’t mean causation. That’s like saying people drown because ice cream sales go up in summer. It’s not the shoes—it’s probably… people just being people.
Lena:
You’re so logical it hurts. But what about the tradition? Even my Oma used to say, “Wenn du Schuhe schenkst, verlierst du jemanden.” She never took it lightly.
Mira:
Your Oma also told us that putting a broom upside-down in the corner stops unwanted guests from staying too long. Remember when we tried that on your neighbor?
Lena: (grinning)
Okay, that was more fun than effective. But still—these sayings exist for a reason. Don’t you think there might be some deeper wisdom?
Mira:
Maybe once upon a time it was symbolic—like giving shoes was seen as a way of pushing someone away. But now? We have GPS watches tracking our friends’ steps. We’re way past symbolic shoes.
Lena: (still hesitant)
I appreciate the gift, I really do. But… can I just give you a coin for them? That way it counts as a transaction. Cancels the curse!
Mira: (raising an eyebrow)
Let me get this straight—you’ll Venmo me a euro so you don’t lose me?
Lena:
Exactly! It’s like protection tax for friendships. I’m preserving us!
Mira: (laughing and pulling out her phone)
Fine. I accept your ceremonial euro. But just so you know—if we ever drift apart, it’s not because of the shoes. It’ll be because you keep forwarding me astrology memes at 3 AM.
Lena:
Those are scientifically accurate star-guided truths, thank you very much.
Mira: (smirking)
Right. And Mercury’s in retrograde, so I guess that’s why your phone battery died yesterday?
Lena:
Exactly! You do believe deep down!
Mira:
I believe that batteries die when you forget to charge them. But hey, if my logical self helps you sleep better by accepting a coin, I’m all in.
Lena: (relieved)
Deal. Also, can we agree never to gift knives? You know… it “cuts” the relationship…
Mira:
Only if you don’t use them to cut cake together.
(They clink cappuccino cups and laugh, the sneakers safely under the table.)
End Scene
Science Vs Superstition 
Tell Us What You Think