Chapter four: Andrew

It really has been that long, huh? I watched as she stomped her way back home and slammed the door. She was the same old stubborn cute girl. It was good to see her again, I didn't think any of us would since we left. I chuckled, slamming the front door and headed upstairs two steps at a time. It took an hour for me to unpack my stuff, we were home for now. I was getting hungry. I headed downstairs, mom was now in the living room putting on her blue blazer. Lydia was wearing her pink and white sneakers. "We're going to the mall," she said with a smile.

I assumed she meant her and Lydia, So I told them, "have fun."

"That means you too, Andrew. Put your shoes on and meet us in the car," mom stated in a stern tone. I saw Lydia jump up and down with joy while making her way out the door.

I groaned out loud, begging her that I should stay back. She took my sneakers by the front door, handing it to me, and said, "you need clothes and supplies for school," before leaving outside with my little sister.

***

We arrived at the King of Prussia mall minutes later. More like a half-hour later, the GPS kept rerouting us. Lydia was too excited, she got nauseous and we had to stop at a gas station to purchase water and Pepto Bismol.

This place was huge though, there were plenty of shops to pick you couldn't pick just one. That was the problem, consumerism at its finest. I didn't want to be here all day. If they have an Ann Taylor here, I'm screwed. It's mom's favorite shop.

"Oh my gosh, Ann Taylor!" I heard mom scream in excitement when she spotted the store. Crap.

"Mommy I want ice cream," Lydia begged while pulling at her hand.

"We will sweetie, let's just go here and get mommy some new clothes. Come on, Andy."

"I'm not going in there. I'll find somewhere else to do while you shop for the boring." I shook my head.

"Ann Taylor is not boring, it's fashion-forward. And I'm not letting you leave without us, you could get lost."

"I'm a big boy mom, I think I can handle some directions."

"I know, my big boy." She reached over to pinch my cheeks, I whined, removing her hand from my face.

"Can I at least sit on the bench that's across from here and wait for you guys?" I pleaded.

"Fine, we won't be long," she swooned to me as she went inside the store. Yeah right, I'm gonna be here for hours.

I decided to play on my phone while I waited, With candy crush and browsing my Facebook feed. I peeked into some of my old friends' statuses: catching some rays and waves. I missed surfing so much, especially taking my custom made surfboard to the waters on high waves.

"Andy?" I heard a masculine voice break out my thoughts, I was shocked to see an old friend from California.

"Dude, what are you doing here?" I got up from the bench to give William a handshake. His hair was more blonde when I last saw him. His laid back attire was changed to a more casual outfit. Instead of board shorts, he was wearing cargo shorts.

"Shopping, what are you doing here?" he asked back.

"With my mom and Lydia here shopping. But I mean what are you doing in Pennsylvania?"

"We moved here last year. My mom's publishing company transferred here," he explained.

"That's cool, man. We're getting settled now, we just moved here."

"I'm about to head to the food court, wanna come?" He suggested.

"Yeah, I have to tell my mom first." I went inside the store, meeting mom in one of the aisles, and told her that William's here. We've been friends for a short amount of time, we became close friends. Mom loved him because he's polite. She hasn't seen his player's side. I asked if we could get something to eat, she agreed and said she'll meet us there.

We began to catch up on old things. Girls walked by us, giving us winks and waves. We greeted them back, causing them to squeal. "Let's hit Taco Bell," Will suggested and I nodded. We went to the line, I knew exactly what I wanted: the grande burrito.

We were behind two girls, one of them smelled real good, like vanilla. She took two steps back, colliding with me, and stepped on my shoes. "Oh, sorry." The familiar voice of Rachel apologized. "Are you ok?" She had her hands on my arm to keep her balance, standing up straight, and looking back, her content expression dropped with her shoulders when she saw it was me.

"Hi, neighbor."