A Mile In My Shoes

FOUR

Capri

"Man, I told y'all we should've split up to make this trip shorter." Dellen fussed for the umpteenth time. "I'm not trying to be here all day. I got shit to do, you heard me?"

"Then leave. Nobody forced you to come." I grumbled in a harsh tone. I was tired of him complaining about how long we'd been at the mall when he wasn't invited in the first place.

Dellen stopped walking and stared at me as if I lost my mind. "I'm a grown-ass man. I'll leave when I'm ready to leave."

I snapped my head in his direction, my nostrils flared and my face hardened. "You sound pretty ready to me. You've been whining about being here for the past two hours. I don't recall anyone begging or manhandling you to get in my car. If whatever you had to do was so important, you wouldn't have jumped your chinky eyes ass in the car, to begin with. Now, you said you'll leave when you want to leave, but if it's not going to be right now, I suggest you shut the hell up and wait until we're done, you heard me?" I mocked him.

Standing still as a statue, his mouth was slightly open, but not a sound came out. I put him on blast in front of everyone and didn't feel an ounce of remorse. Dellen's head had been filled by the entire student body that he's a walking God and he could get whatever he wants because he's Dellen Knox. I'm not like everyone else. I see him for the egotistical jerk he truly is and I'll always hold my own against him.

Lydia and Max turned their heads, pretending not to witness our little dispute while Landen and Emmett clowned him. Picking up my pace, I continued my journey to the food court since I had a taste for Charley's Grilled Subs. The mall was jam-packed with it being at the peak of the holiday season. We had to maneuver through massive crowds to get to the food court. When we made it there, I was relieved to see the place wasn't nearly as full as the rest of the mall.

"Hey, Josh." I spoke to a classmate of mine. He worked here just for the hell of it. He comes from a line of wealthy attorneys, but he says he wants to learn how to be independent. I respect that.

"What's going on, Pri Pri?" He queried, addressing me by his special pet name for me. A name that I hate with all my heart.

"Just came to find an outfit for the Ques' party tomorrow," I said, leaning against the counter. "And to grab my usual order."

Pointing at me, he nodded knowingly. "Baconator Cheesesteak with cheese and bacon fries and a strawberry lemonade, hold the ice, coming right up. What about your friends? Are they getting anything?"

I looked over toward the exit to see them standing outside the restaurant conversing with Jhaviah, Emory, and some other girls from school. "Lydia!"

She turned around and I waved her over to the counter. "Huh?"

"Are y'all ordering from here before he rings me up?"

"Girl, no. I need to be able to fit in this jumpsuit tomorrow." She held her shopping bag in the air. "Max will take me to get a salad later."

"Alright. I just wanted to make sure before I paid. I don't care about the guys eating or not."

Shaking her head and laughing, she started walking backward. "So petty."

Shrugging, I reached for my credit card to have it on standby when Josh finished preparing my food. My cell phone rang, causing me to fish through my bag for it. Sucking my teeth, I hesitated on answering his call, but I did anyway. "Can I help you?"

"Not really. Pops wanted me to call you and tell you to come home this weekend since your ass didn't show up the other day."

I sighed. "I'm already on probation for not being on campus before curfew last week. I can't stay the entire weekend or they'll kick me out. What does he want?"