Holding On To Happy | ✔

21. Graveyard Date

The mall wasn't very busy as Mom and I walked around, aimlessly, in one of the clothing stores. Then again, it was Thursday and the mall was only it's busiest on the weekend or on holidays. I wished that wasn't the case though.

If the mall had been a little more busy, with a little more people wondering around from shop to shop then maybe I would've never seen Faye and Ellen. Better yet, they never would've seen me.

"Why don't you try the skirt on first," Mom suggested, pointing to the dressing rooms.

My eyes darted over to Faye and Ellen who seemed to have been following us. It's possible that it was just a coincidence that they showed up at every store Mom and I went to. It was highly doubtful though.

Maybe I was being a little paranoid, but getting undressed behind a curtain didn't seem ideal at the moment. I knew for a fact that they weren't opposed to filming people in dressing rooms and posting it all over social media. I've played a part in many of their revenge plots and I knew all there moves. Now, with a target on my back, I was freaking out a little.

"No," I said, turning back to her. "I buy a lot of my clothes from here. It'll fit."

"Alright, now we just need a shirt," she said, already browsing a rack of blouses. "Do you know where he's taking you?"

"He won't tell me," I sighed, joining her at the rack and comparing a pink, sheer top to the floral skirt I had. It matched perfectly. "What about this?" I held up the skirt and top together for her to see.

"I like it," she said, but her face told a different story.

"You hate it," I laughed.

"Well," she motions to her current outfit. "I'm a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl."

Guess I shouldn't be too surprised that she wasn't a fan of my girly style. I bought the outfit and Mom bought herself a pair of black jeans.

Since she had to get to work to meet with the elusive lobster guy we left the mall. Faye and Ellen were no longer following us which was a relief. That was until we made it back to the car.

"What the hell?" Mom's jaw went slack at the sight of the car. "Who would do this?"

All four wheels were slashed and I immediately knew who was behind it. Looking around the parking lot I spot Ellen's convertible. The three of them waved at me, laughing before they drove off.

Mom was already on the phone calling for a tow truck. They day had been so perfect up until this moment, that I couldn't bring myself to tell her that this was my fault.

+ + +

Smoothing my hands over my skirt, I examined my finished look in the mirror.

"You're sure it not too much?" I asked, turning to my laptop where Alyssa's face appeared.

"That outfit looks good," she replied. "But I think your hair should be up."

Pulling my hair back into a ponytail with my hands, I agreed with her. It did look better that way. I grabbed a brush and a hair tie and quickly tied my hair up.

Calvin would be here soon and I was more than nervous. The only thing that kept me relatively calm was getting ready, but now that I'm done I had no distractions.

"You still haven't told your mom who slashed her tires?"

Well, except that huge distraction.

"No," I told her as I made sure my entire look was finally perfect. "It's not like I have any proof it was them."