By Chance

Chapter Three

Abbigail

"My plan for today is to check out the town. I hear there is a great shopping center nearby that we can walk to," my mother said as her, my brother, and me headed down the hotel hallway.

"Then maybe we could hit up the beach?" I suggested.

"I was going to say that, Abby."

"Right."

"Why are you always itching to go to the beach?" Derek asked.

"Maybe because we're in freaking Australia!" I threw my hands up.

"Whatever," Derek said then shifted his attention to the elevator button. He pressed the down arrow and we waited for it to arrive.

The elevator dinged and we got on. The ride down was quiet. The back side of the elevator was a window, and it looked out over the expanse of the resort pool/beach area. There were quite a lot more people today, but maybe they would be gone when we came back.

We walked across the lobby and out the front doors. Or not really door. More like entrance opening. This hotel seemed to not have any doors to the main buildings. Just wide openings. It was conforting, I suppose, to be in an open place where the Aussie air ran through.

Today was beautiful. The sky was bright blue, the sun was shining. The air was a comforting warm with a subtle breeze. My hair, which was in it's natural waves, blew in the breeze. It hugged my exposed legs and arms, sending warmth through my body.

"Nice day," I said casually.

"Very," my mom agreed.

The shopping center my mom mentioned was not huge, but it wasn't small by any means. It was outlet style. All the shops had their own door. Not a big building that housed stores like a mall.

There was a lavish fountain in what seemed to be the center of the shopping area. People sat around it and conversed with each other. Others stood by it with impatient looks on their faces. Supposedly waiting on somebody.

The buildings with the stores seemed to radiate out from the center in rings. The whole place was probably made of two or three rings. I didn't see any shoppes that I recognized. They were probably local specialty shoppes or Australian chains that I didn't know.

"Alright," my mom said, looking at her watch, "you two meet me back here at noon."

Derek and I nodded.

She then walked off, not looking back.

I turned to my brother. "So?"

"This store seems cool," he said, nodding to a store with swimwear in the window.

"Okay," I said.

We walked into the store and were immediately greeted by cool air, thank God, and beach-esque music.

"Hello, welcome to Surf City," a young man of about twenty-five with a strong Australian accent and curly brown hair said as he approached us. "May I help you find anything?"

"No, we're just looking," I said.

"Ah, Americans I see?" he said. "How are you liking Australia? Have you come across a ragged koala or a vicious kangaroo yet?"

Derek laughs beside me. "Not yet, man, but we'll see."

The guy, Cooper it said on his nametag, laughs. "Well, let me know if you need anything," then he walked off toward the back.

I walked toward the girl's side of the store. It was definitely a surf shop. There were boards in every corner, some for sale and some for decoration, and other things that I didn't know the names of.