“Yeah, totally fun.”
He looks like he wants to say something else, but someone hands him a flyer from one of the shops here. I think it’s from a jewelry store.
He winks at Kylen. “Maybe something for your pretty girlfriend?” He walks off to bombard another customer.
Kylen stares down at the paper. “Doesn’t he see I’m a high school student?”
I pat his shoulder. “One day when you’re rich and famous, you’ll buy your wife or girlfriend all the jewelry in the world. And whatever else she wants.”
“I would totally buy her the world.”
“Yeah, because you have a huge heart.”
He glances down at his chest. “Hmm. I don’t know. It looks like a normal size to me.”
I playfully roll my eyes and jab him in the ribs with my elbow. “You know what I mean.”
“Yeah, I’m just being funny. You have a huge heart, too. Figuratively, of course.”
“Thanks.”
As we walk further into the mall, I say, “By the way, I finished the song for our project and I’m mostly finished the love song for the band. I just need to tweak a few things.”
“Nice! Thanks. You’re amazing at multitasking.”
I pat myself on the back. “It’s a gift.”
He chuckles. “Sure is.”
We reach the first store and spend some time getting what we need. We don’t find everything and are forced to go to another store.
It takes an hour and a half before we’re satisfied with everything we have. We buy slushies from one of the shops and sit down on benches to drink them.
He has blueberry and I have watermelon. As I sip mine, we chat about many topics, mostly movies. I catch him staring at my slushie every so often.
I hold it out to him. “Want to taste it?”
“You sure you don’t mind?”
“Not at all.”
He thanks me before removing his straw from his slushie, placing it in mine, and taking a sip. His eyes light up and he takes an even longer sip.
“Hey!”
“Sorry. It’s just so good. Do you want to taste mine?”
I stick my straw in his and suck it up. It’s good, but not as good as the watermelon. Kylen quickly finishes his, complainingwhen it gets too cold and gives him brain freeze, then hurries to the shop to buy his own watermelon slushie.
When he returns, he grins at me. “Got two straws in case you finish yours and decide you want more.”
“Thanks, but I’m so freezing. I don’t think I’ll take another sip.”
Shrugging, he stabs his straw into the lid and drinks. “Ahh. So darn good.”
We hang out at the mall for a bit longer, going into shops for the heck of it and trying on things we know we won’t buy.
Then it’s time for us to go back to campus and do our homework.
