Eliona's War 1: Hesitant Healer

Chapter 15

Seth fled back to his bedroom, ears flaming.

He slammed the door shut, and collapsed on his bed, hands covering his burning face. He'd totally just flashed her with green penguins. It was a wonder she hadn't burst out laughing. Now she'd think he was a dork.

It took a few minutes before he dared to re-emerge, now dressed properly in jeans and a slightly-wrinkled, but clean shirt. Mrs Beakor hadn't moved from the coffee table. When she saw him, her lips lifted in amusement.

"No penguins?"

His face felt like it'd erupt like a volcano. Of course she'd have to turn up on the day he chose to wear those stupid shorts. This was all Fenn's fault.

"What did you need help with anyway?" Maybe if he changed the subject, they'd all forget about this embarrassing moment.

"It's nothing difficult. Or illegal." Her eyes twinkled, and the fact she thought to include that last bit made him worry. Why would she need to reassure him of that? "I just needed to get some groceries from next door. What do you say? Will you help this poor old woman across the road?"

Seth didn't think she needed help crossing the road. Not when she could kick a heavy box across the yard without any effort at all. Still, he hesitated. He hadn't forgotten how she had fed him the world's best lasagna last night.

"You want help grocery shopping?" he asked carefully. If it was just that, then it shouldn't be too bad.

"If you would be so kind."

He watched her warily. The words did not fit the image he saw before him. There was no way a shark wouldn't be able to swim across the street and devour a school of helpless fish on its own. But he couldn't really tell her no, could he? Not when she'd gone out of her way last night.

"All right," he said. "I'll-"

His belly interrupted him with a grumble. He flushed.

Mrs Beakor grinned, and got to her feet. "We'll pick up lunch while we're out."

And that was how Seth found himself wandering the halls of a mall, bags dangling from either arm. As far as malls went, this one was old and worn, with narrow halls and faded paint. Its shoppers weren't much different. Mrs Beakor strode ahead of him, her tall figure impossible to lose amongst the few people who shambled along. Not like there were many—the most Seth had seen at once was a whopping eight.

Seth hurried to keep up, although his gaze roamed over each store they passed. He hadn't realized this little mall had so many different places to offer. It was literally across the street from the apartment block, and had everything from groceries to clothing. He'd be able to find nearly anything he needed here, and he wouldn't even have to worry about driving or dealing with an obscene amount of shoppers, either.

Had Fenn known that? Seth couldn't help but wonder. His uncle really had considered everything when choosing this place. He knew big places and too many people were overwhelming, just as he knew Seth would rather starve in his apartment than take the public transport halfway across a city to visit a giant supermarket filled with a thousand different choices and just as many strangers.

"In here," Mrs Beakor called. She went into a dimly lit store on the left. The sign above the door said IVAN'S, which did very little to explain what kind of store it was.

Seth followed, warily noting that the store looked rather shady. He couldn't even tell what it sold, because there was so much variety to the random stuff on its dark shelves. There were kitchen utensils to hockey sticks, and cassette tapes stacked between flashy purses and high-heeled shoes. The scent of cigarettes hung sharply in the air, making him wrinkle his nose. There were no other customers in the store, either.