Lovely Moments

Chapter 5

     I looked around taking in all of my surroundings. Hearing someone behind me, I whipped my head around to see an old lady coughing into a napkin. I clutched my purse  and walked through the mall parking lot. I focused on the yellow lines seperating car after car. Bath your self in sales; Bed Bath & Beyond... 50% OFF! I saw the giant poster hanging from the front of the store. The cool wind blew against my hair, flying it all around. I looked to my right and saw the outside of Hollister, the male and female models popped from their posters with their six pack abs and looked down at me with taunting looks. "Look at hot mess.....Her hair...is like...not even totes perf." I could hear the girl model with her perfect blonde hair and big boobs saying that; and about half of my girl classmates. I looked to the boy model. He had a sexy smile that said, "Come into this store. Look at my face....look at it!" He was pretty hypnotizing. I blinked a couple times to get my focus away from the models and kept walking. I walked into the huge mall to see that it was packed.

     Women running to Bed Bath & Beyond to buy a years worth of soap. Men standing by the plasmas watching some baseball game. Everytime the team that they liked got a home run, a shout of hurrays and hoo-raws echoed through the whole mall. I walked passed them and went into the elevator. I pressed 1 and watched through the see-through elevator my decent gonig down. The elvator came to a stop and the doors dinged open. I walked out and looked at the stores on the first level. I decided to take a seat on the bench since I had to think my route through and that Stacey and Lauren were late....as usual. I thought in my mind what stores I needed to go to before I leave. "Hollister, Debs, Victoria Secrets, American Eagle....." Stacey and Lauren rounded the corner with slushies in one hand and bags in the other. "Nora! There you are! We've been looking for you!" Stacey's face lit up while Lauren was staring down at her phone texting someone. "You were looking for me?" I looked down at there bags full of jeans, shirts, and tank-tops. "You sure you guys just didn't go to all of the stores I don't like before I got here?" I crossed my arms and stared at Stacey. "Maybe.." Stacey leaned her face down and slowly took a sip of her cherry slushie, letting it make that empty-cup sound. I laughed, not wanting to get into a fight about something so silly.

     "Try this hot pink tank on Nora!" Lauren shoved the garment into my face. I flinched as the tag hit me in the eye. "Thanks mom, but I like picking my own clothes out, that I can happily waste my money on." Lauren smirked at me. "try it on or your grounded MISSY!" Stacey came out of the fitting room and walked up to us with a confused face. I folded the tank top and placed it onto the wooden table next to the other similar tank tops. I burst out laughing as Lauren stood with her hands on her hips and started tapping her foot. "Do you want me to get your father..." She walked up to the male model poster. The model was biting his bottom lip and holding the front of his jeans down a little showing the end of his stomach. She started talking to the poster. I laughed and looked around waiting for someone to notice the freak by the poster. I threw my hands into the air, "I don't know her!" I picked up the pink tank and walked back to the changing rooms.

     I looked at myself in the mirror and was quite impressed that Lauren was so correct. It didn't wash me out and it made me look like I actually had some boobs. "Let me see how it looks!" Lauren hollered over the curtain. I stepped out and slowly turned in circles so she could see how it looked from every angle. She squealed in pleasure that she was right, for once. "I told you, I told you! Now if you don't buy it, I will." I smirked and went back into the tiny changing room, closing the leathery brown curtain behind myself.

     After hours of shopping, my arm throbbed from holding bag after bag of clothing, jewelry, and other items. I lagged behind Stacey and Lauren as they rattled on about the upcoming dance, who they want to go with, and who will be crowned Miss. Royalty. I rolled my eyes, the Spring Fling Dance was stupid in my point of view. They crowned the most popular girl in the school as Miss. Royalty. Usually it didn't bug me, but as I spend more years in highschool, it gets old! Lauren and Stacey noticed that I was walking behind and decided to wait up for me. "It's definently going to be Carla..." Lauren finished her sentence. I rolled my eyes again. Carla Sedrick was the most popular girl in my school. The most "pretty" one too, but I don't judge beauty by how many guys you've slept with; the whole school does though. She's not the brightest and I'm surprised that she shows up for school at all. She was my lab partner once and I was about to stab myself with the knife we were dysecting a frog with. "Nora, who do you think is going to win the Miss. Royalty crown?" Stacey wondered. I rolled my eyes, "I don't know and with that, I don't care." I admitted. Stacey could hear the annoyance in my voice and dropped the conversation.

     Sitting on the bench, I watched the Merry-Go-Round turn and kids scream with giddy and joy. I put all of my bags next to me and eat a Subway Sandwich. Stacey went home after her mom called her, so it was just me and Lauren. Lauren was still ordering her sandwich, the worker looking annoyed as she stood there figuring out if she wanted ranch or not. I finished off my sandwich and threw away my paper and napkins. As I turned my eyes froze on an image. Actually, two images. They were sitting at the table three rows away. The two guys who tailed me yesterday. A coat of frenzy wrapped around my body and i reach into my bag to grab my phone. I need to text hale. And Quick. As I look back to the two strange men I notice another one, dressed exactly the same, but in a long black trench coat. What the hell is going on! I throw all my stuff into my bag and try to clean up the table quickly. I look back and notice the 3rd party member of the creepy men is staring at me. Hazel brown eyes, chiseled features. Quite handsome, but still creepy. He flashes a smile that could make your heart melt, and fo a moment I think I smiled back. Focused now though, I gather my last belongings and run up to Lauren. "I'm sorry Lauren but I'm um going to have to elave. My um mom, yea, she needs me. So so sorry, lets hang tomorrow or soemthing." I stutter still trying to find my phone in my never ending purse. God Damn it, where is that stupid phone. I look up to notice Lauren still ordering, "yea, okay, bye babe, see yah later." She says while she thinks about cucumbers or pickles. I love Lauren to death but she's so dumb sometimes...

     I walk out to the parking lot and find my car. Oh god I don't know how happy I was to see it but I was. I may be freaking out about something stupid, but I can get really paranoid. It's stupid, yes, but it can be a good and bad trait. I reach my car and reach into my purse to find the keys to my car. Shit where are they. Then a vision comes nto my head, putting my keys on the table, to look for my phone. "SHIT!" I feel like such a fool. I'm so stupid. Stupid stupid stupid! I can't help but be so fustrated at myself. I pull my hair into a pony tail and close my eyes for a second. I got to relax. I just have to go back in and get my keys, if anything maybe Lauren picked them up, I don't know. Hopefully she did! I turn around and find the 3rd man, about 10 feet away walking towards me. He smiles a daring smile and shows my keys to me. I have a mixture of mad and scared feelings occuring right now! He walks up and talks so charmingly, every word that slides from his mouth is fluent and beautiful. "Hi, I'm keet, I don't know if you've seen me at school, but I'm a Junior. It's nice to finally meet you." He smiles and hands my keys over, I put my hand out to take them and try to control the shaking taht has overwhelmed them. Why am I so nervious, I Have Hale, No one else. He leans against my car. "I've seen you at school, your really pretty, you know that?" he says flickering his eyes at me. My soul about erupts. I just blush and stand there. "Um, thanks...that's really nice, your um, pretty too." I say, then regret. He chuckles. "Your Funny, Well I got to get back to my friends, see you around Nora." he walks past me and his hand brushes by mine, staying a second longer touching to make me look at him, and him look at me. He walks away and I feel a weird sensation. was he flirting? Was I? No I like Hale, that's it.