The Boyfriend Thief

CHAPTER 11





“You know I hate shopping,” I said as I followed Molly and her mom toward the red brick facade of the Willowbrook Mall. As soon as we passed through the sliding double doors, an assault of scents hit me all at once: tacos, pizza, popcorn, new clothes, and those body washes from that bath store on the other end of the mall, which were so strong the smell permeated the entire place.

“I know,” Molly said, slipping her arm through mine and pulling me further into the mass of people moving in disorganized lines down the main corridor. “But you love me, so deal with it.”

Molly was on a mission to convince Corrie to buy her a new widescreen monitor—because Molly had nearly destroyed her last one while trying to take it apart and reassemble it. For no other reason than to prove she could. Which it turned out, she couldn’t.

“Oh,” Corrie said, distracted by the scent of hot pretzels in the Twisty Shop. “We should totally stop for one of those on our way out.”

“Tons of salt,” I told her. “Don’t you already have high blood pressure?”

Corrie shot me an annoyed look. “You’re not a doctor yet, Avery. If you hope to live long enough to become one, you’ll stay out of my way when it comes to hot pretzels.” She wagged a finger at me in warning.

Molly and Corrie pointed out random things as we walked through the mall. They were a lot alike, both easily distracted by food or shiny objects. I couldn’t help thinking about my own mom as I watched Molly with hers. My mom loved to shop, back before she began spending days and weeks in bed. We used to come out to the mall almost every weekend, sometimes to browse the newest sales without buying anything. Other times we’d leave with bags loaded down with new clothes.

The last outing my mom and I had gone on together before she left was to the mall, three weeks before she took off. I didn’t realize until years later after reading my medical books that her behavior change indicated some type of depression. I only knew at twelve years old that she didn’t act like my mom anymore and I wanted her back. The mall was the only place I could think of that might bring back the person I’d always known.

But it hadn’t worked. She had been like a zombie that day, shuffling through the stores without really looking at anything. And now I hated coming to this place. The sights and sounds and smells assaulted my senses, making me feel sick. My stomach churned and my head reeled.

Molly paused outside the electronics store when I pulled away from her and turned to look back at me. “You coming?” she asked.

Corrie and Molly were like the mother and sister I didn’t have. Molly’s mom had accepted me warmly into their life and home from the first day Molly invited me over. But today it hurt too much to be around them.

“I’m going to wait out here.” I gestured toward an empty bench behind me.

Molly studied me for a moment. “You okay?”

I nodded, waving a hand to brush off her concern. “It’s allergies or something. Too much going on in here all at once.”

Corrie dug around inside her giant purse before coming up with a bottle of antihistamines. “Here you go,” she said, tossing the bottle toward me. “These always help me. I couldn’t function day to day without them. My little lifesavers.”

I curled my fist around the small bottle and forced a smile. “Thanks. You guys go ahead, I’ll be right here.”

“I’ll try to keep her browsing to under an hour,” Corrie told me, winking as she followed Molly inside the store.

I sat with my head bent down for a while, listening to the sounds of life all around me. No one paid much attention to the girl sitting by herself. Everyone moved past on their way to clothing stores or toy stores or the food court. There was a card shop across from the electronics store Molly and Corrie had disappeared into. A sign hanging in the window reminded the shoppers passing by that Mother’s Day was only a couple of weeks away.

The bright colors drew me into the floral scented store. I slipped between the aisles, strolling past ridiculous displays of delicate crystal roses and teddy bears clutching “I LUV U!” hearts. Turning a corner, I found the card aisle and a huge selection of Mother’s Day cards glared down at me. My eyes scanned over the happy, sappy cards, but nothing felt right. Where were the Mother’s Day cards for the mother who had taken off and abandoned your entire family?

A familiar voice in the next aisle caught my attention and I peeked over the top of the card display to see the back of Hannah Cohen’s dark brown hair. She studied a shelf of Mother’s Day gifts while a saleswoman pointed out a few of the items.

“What about this?” the saleswoman asked, picking up a beautiful flower suspended in a glass globe.

Hannah barely glanced at it. “No, my mother says lilies are the poor man’s rose.” She let out a long sigh as she studied the rest of the offerings. “None of these are right.”

The saleswoman looked frustrated. Hannah had probably turned down everything else in the store. “Perhaps you’d like to take a look at our catalog? You may find something in there you could order.”

“My mother doesn’t order things from catalogs,” Hannah snapped. She smoothed down the front of her blouse. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be rude, but you don’t know my mother.”

I knew Mrs. Cohen, or at least I’d known her back when Hannah and I were kids. Even before the Cohens had suddenly found themselves teetering on the upper class wealth level, she had always wanted the best of everything. “The image you project to society says everything people need to know about you,” Mrs. Cohen used to tell Hannah and me as we watched her scrub the dust off the top of the kitchen cabinets, the part no one ever saw. “Your life can fall into ruins, but if you look like you have everything in control, you will be in control.”

Hannah smoothed out a wrinkle in her blouse again, as if she too could hear her mother’s words echo in her head. It had always been a habit she had, automatically making sure everything about her appearance was in place and orderly. I didn’t think she even realized how often she did it.

“Any Mother’s Day gift I give my mother has to be perfect,” Hannah told the saleswoman.

“I’m sure your mom will love anything you give her,” the saleswoman offered helpfully, giving Hannah a wide smile.

But Hannah’s shoulders tensed and she sighed. “Honestly, nothing here is good enough. No offense intended.”

“Maybe you should try Annabelle’s?” the woman asked, naming a high end boutique a few blocks away.

Hannah turned and I quickly stepped backward so she couldn’t see me, slipping around the corner of the card display. My back collided with a solid form behind me and I heard a muffled, “Oof!”

I spun around to find myself face-to-face with my brother.

“What are you doing here?” Ian and I asked each other at the same time.

“Nothing,” we said in unison.

Ian stood in front of the display of crystal roses, his hands shoved deep into his pockets and his face bright pink. He looked like I’d caught him red-handed doing something he should be ashamed of.

I narrowed my eyes. “What are you really doing here?”

Ian shrugged. “Nothing. Shopping.”

“Since when do you shop at Leila’s Cards and Gifts?” I asked.

“Since when do you?”

“I’m not shopping. I’m waiting for Molly and her mom. They’re in the electronics store.”

“Well, maybe I’m waiting for someone too.” But his ears were now as red as his hair and I wasn’t buying it.

I crossed my arms. “Spill, or else I’m telling Dad I caught you shoplifting.”

Ian’s mouth dropped open and his eyes bugged out at me. “I am not!”

“That’s what it looks like to me. You’re skulking around a store you never go into, near a case of crystal roses. What else could it be?”

He bent his head down and mumbled something I couldn’t understand.

“What was that?” I asked, leaning toward him.

“I said I was buying a Mother’s Day present.”

My back snapped up straight. My mouth opened, but at first no sound came out. It took me a moment to find my voice again.

“We don’t have a mother,” I said.

Ian glared up at me through the fringe of hair that had fallen into his eyes. “I know that,” he growled.

“Then what possible reason do you have for buying a gift for a mom that isn’t around anymore?”

“It’s not for her. It’s for...for Trisha.”

“What?” I screeched.

A few shoppers nearby turned to look at us. I grabbed Ian by the arm and dragged him out of the store and into the corridor, where our conversation would blend in with the rest of the noise of the mall. We sat down on the bench where I’d been sitting a few minutes ago.

“Why on earth would you want to buy a Mother’s Day gift for Trisha?” I hissed.

Ian shrugged, looking like the little boy he tried to pretend he wasn’t. He didn’t meet my gaze as he spoke. “I thought it would be nice.”

“Trisha is not our mother.”

“I know that.”

A woman walked by, pushing a stroller with a chubby baby inside. The baby gurgled happily as his mom beamed down at him.

I let out a long sigh. “She’s not...She’s not coming back, you know. If she was, she would have by now.”

Ian picked at a hangnail on his thumb. “I know.”

“But we’ve done good without her. We’re a team, you and me and Dad. We’ve managed to take care of each other.”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a candy bar. He started to unwrap it, but I snatched it away.

“Hey,” he said, reaching for it.

I held him back. “Don’t expect Trisha to come into our lives and fix everything. Because she can’t do that. She’s not Mom, she doesn’t have the answers.”

“I don’t expect her to fix everything!” Ian’s eyes became glassy with tears and he made another grab for the chocolate.

“We don’t need anyone else, okay? Tell me you understand. We don’t need a new mom, we’re fine without one.”

It was very important that Ian understand this. The two of us were a team as well. When Dad lost himself in self-help books and singles meetings, Ian and I were the ones who kept each other grounded and sane. We had endured everything together.

But my brother’s expression was hardened by years of disappointment. Our team had fallen apart sometime when I wasn’t paying close attention.

“What’s wrong with wanting things to change?” Ian’s question surprised me so much he was able to grab the candy bar from my hand. He stood up, glaring down at me as he clutched his chocolate in his fist. “You don’t have all the answers either, Avery. Maybe we need someone else to fix things for us once in a while.”

Before I could say anything in response, my brother spun on his heel and ran down the corridor, leaving me stunned on the bench while life continued on around me.