The Girl Who Lives In My Garage • Jenlisa

seven

I jog over to the barrier. Sure enough, Lisa's hair and backpack are moving among the crowd.

"I just happened to look, and there she was," the guy says. "It's lucky I..."

"Lisa!" I interrupt. No reaction. "Lisa!" I call, louder. This time, her step falters. She looks around. "Up here." People are staring at me, but I could not care less.

Lisa walks towards me. "Are you stalking me?" There's a smile on her face and hint of teasing in her tone.

"Come up here, okay?"

She glances toward the escalator. "I'll be right there. Stay put."

The kiosk employee sighs, and I realize he's next to me, leaning on the banister with his chin in his hand. "She's cute. Definitely worth looking for."

I laugh. "Truth."

A few seconds later, Lisa is walking towards me.

"Gotta get back to work," the kiosk employee says. "Good luck, Jennie."

"Thanks for your help."

"No problem. Don't forget. Come see me," he says motioning to the lotion.

I catch a whiff of chamomile and cucumber smile. "I won't forget."

Lisa approaches, hands in her jean pockets, calm and collected. "Hi, Jennie."

"Hi." I don't continue because I still don't know what to say.She clears her throat. "I was just going for a walk. Would you like to join me?"

I nod and follow her lead. Thankfully, she's heading toward the food court. Though I can't see a clock, I know I'm already pushing five-minute limit.

"So," she says, "correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you said the next time you saw me, you would call the police. Should I be concerned?"

Heat rushes to my cheeks. "No. I didn't call the police. I'm not going to."

She nods and is quiet for a few steps. "Thanks for that."

"You're welcome." The conversation is awkward and forced.

"So...you called me up here why exactly? Oh, I know. You finally decided that you can't get enough of my charming good looks, right?" She grins.

I take a step away from her. "Sorry. I'm just going to have to walk over here to make room for your big head."

Lisa laughs. "What is it, then? What can I do for you?"

"I just..." I stumble over words that still won't form. "It's cold outside."

Lisa adjust her backpack on her shoulder and nods but slowly. "That might be weird in July, but last I checked it was still January."

Oh my god. Could I sound any more stupid? We take our another turn in the direction of the food court. "I mean it's really cold. Like, they already cancelled school for tomorrow. Like dangerously cold."

"Okay..." she says, like she's waiting for me to continue, but I don't. She shakes her head. "You're going to have to fill in the blanks for me. I don't get it."

"I wanted to make sure you're going to be okay," I blurt out.

She's quiet for a second and that slows and stretches into minutes. Hours. Days. Then she says, "Really?"

"Yeah," I say, staring at the ground in front of us. "I mean, I told you not to come back to my garage, but then I thought, what if that's the only place you can go where you'll be out of the cold?" I swallow hard. "What if you're going to die tonight because of me?"