Natalie

“Nat!” he called out, chasing the fit blonde girl in the middle of the mall.

She turned around and smiled brightly at him as he came up to her. Natalie was wearing a red flannel baggy shirt over a white top, with a pair of jeans covering her legs.

“We really do live close to each other, don’t we?” she said giggling, clutching her handbag.

“Yeah I thought I saw you there, are you with anyone?”

Mark had already got everything his mom had asked for him and was on his way out of the mall when he saw her busty body, standing outside there.

“Yeah, just my mom, she’s actually just doing some shopping in there,” she said, pointing to a store, “Ever since I’ve been back, she’s wanted to hang out all the time. I’m an only child so I know she missed me heaps when I was at college.”

“Hey, I get that, I’m an only child too,” he explained to her, “Except my parents get that I want my freedom, I want a lot of space at home and I think I’m given in.”

“Oh my god, you are so lucky!! I wish I had that too,” she told him.

Natalie was a pretty quiet and well respected girl who didn’t have a whole lot of social experience with guys and boyfriends. Part of this was due to the fact that her parents were very overprotective of her.

“I’ve been to college for a whole semester now and yet, if she saw me talking to you, she’d be so paranoid, asking so many questions as if I was being interrogated for doing something wrong,” Natalie explained.

“I know it sounds bad but I’m sure it’s all in good faith, they do it out of love.”

“Yeah I know, I don’t believe anything different, it’s just a little frustrating,” she replied.

Mark felt bad for her, she seemed like she very much wanted to get out a bit more and explore herself like she had done for the last few months at college.

The freshman girl kept taking looks inside the store as they spoke, just checking on how long her mother was in there. Eventually Natalie’s mom was spotted at the front counter of the store, speaking to the cashier as she bought a pile of clothes.

“Well I better let you go then,” Mark said, wrapping up the conversation, “Hopefully I get to see you more these holidays.”

Natalie paused at first, knowing why he was going, all for her own sake, but she also really did not want to see him leave.

“Well umm would you maybe want to go for a walk or something with me, just down by the bay? This afternoon that is,” she asked him.

Mark nodded straight away, being in the same boat.

“Yeah of course, I’ll drop this off at home and then I’ll be good to go,” he said, “Your mom will be fine with that?”

“Yeah, I’ll just convince her that I’m seeing a high school friend of mine,” Natalie said.

The two quickly decided on a time and a spot to meet up at and said goodbye quickly before her mother left the store.

An afternoon plan was all set.