“I know, but, look, Adrian’s really worried because I’m new to the area and I’ve never been here and he thinks I’ll get lost.”
Trish snorted and said, “He’s probably right,” while Laura muttered, “Overprotective, much?”
“Anyway,” I started again, “I promised him I would remain with all of you at all times.”
“I have stores I need to get to,” Laura said, crossing her arms.
Meghan cocked her head to the side. “And I have no i-dea where I need to go.”
I was afraid the two were about to have a showdown, which seemed to be a regular thing for them.
“Look,” I said, trying to keep the peace, and my promise. “Why don’t we make a list of the stores we know we need to go to, spend twenty minutes tops in each of them, and then if we have time, we can hit whatever other stores we want?”
There was a moment of silence as everyone considered this plan.
“Sounds good to me,” said Trish finally. “Where should we go?”
“I’ve already made a list!” Laura cried, waving her notebook.
Everyone crowded around, planning the route we’d take through the mall. I didn’t know what I wanted to buy, so I looked around, letting them decide. To be honest, it was weird not having Adrian around. He had become my shadow, and here in the enormous crowd with the Christmas music and crowds and constant tumble of voices echoing off the tiled floors, it was more than a little unnerving to know he was not within screaming distance. Which, in and of itself, kind of irritated me. I only had his family’s word that I was even in danger, and here I was, letting myself be scared.
“Excuse me, miss; would you like to try a sample?” a young man standing next to a kiosk asked me, and I jumped because now I was thinking about Adrian’s father looking for me at the mall and I just realized there were guys everywhere.
“No thanks,” I said, turning back to the girls.
“It’s free,” he persisted.
“I don’t wear perfume.” I turned, but he touched my jacket and I flinched.
“It’ll only take a moment.” Were his eyes glowing? Did he seem way, way too persistent here?
I smiled tightly and said, “No, thank you,” before turning back to the girls and urging them on.
“Where are we going first?” I asked, anxious to get away from the creepy salesman.
“Victoria’s Secret.”
“Victoria’s—why?” I asked. “I thought we were shopping for Christmas presents.”
Meghan smiled wickedly. “We are.”
In a daze, I followed them into the store. I’d been in there once, a year ago, when my friends back home had made me go in as a birthday dare to try stuff on. Entering the store again, I was just as uncomfortable now as I’d been then.
“You look like you’ve never seen lingerie before,” Trish said in her usual blunt fashion.
I crossed my arms over my chest, bristling. “I’ve seen it before.”
Meghan held up a black satin teddy fringed with lace. “This is hot.”
“Let me see that,” Trish said. She pivoted to face me and held the hanger against my throat. “What size are you, Mystic?” she said, eyeballing the scrap of cloth against my body.
“Why does it matter?”
“Because you want to make it a very merry Christmas for a certain someone.” She checked the price tag. “Ooh, maybe not that merry. Let’s keep looking.”
I stopped dead. “Wait, what are you talking about?”
Trish raised her eyebrow. “What do you think I’m talking about?”
My brain still wasn’t working through the implications, and I didn’t answer. Trish shook her head sadly. “We are in a lingerie store. Buying Christmas presents. Who would you buy lingerie for?”
I stared at her blankly. “My … aunt?”
Trish and Meghan burst out laughing.
“Mystic, I am sure as hell not talking about your aunt!”
“She means Adrian,” Jenny said quietly. I hadn’t even heard her walk up.
I turned bright red. I’m not sure I’d ever blushed that hard in my life.
“Oh.”
The girls saw my reaction and it just set them off even more.
“So you’ve—never, with Adrian?” Stephanie asked, trying to sound tactful.
“Uh…”
“Mystic, I can’t believe you’ve never had your way with that boy,” Trish said, still laughing.
“My way? My way is not a way, it’s a non-way. There is no wayness happening,” I stuttered.
Trish actually had to lean against a bunch of glass drawers filled with underwear to support herself, she was laughing so hard. People were starting to stare at us.
“The hottest thing that ever hit Stony Creek finally got himself a girlfriend, and they’re not doing it,” she said sadly, shaking her head. “Kinda makes you wonder what’s wrong with the world.”
“Wait, so how far have you gone?” Meghan asked.
“I don’t want to talk about this anymore!” I threw my hands up and walked away.