Around the mall.

“Relax! No one saw you, I promise!” Mila told Noelle, reassuring her of the same for the third time as we walked around the mall.

“B-But…! But…! That was…”

“Fun?”

Red faced, Noelle nodded shyly, “Well, yes. But we could’ve gotten caught!”

“That’s why I was keeping watch.”

Noelle hid her face in her hands. “What’s wrong with us?”

“Everything,” I answered with a sigh of my own. “None of us is right in the head.”

“Makes us compatible, doesn’t it?” Mila said.

That got a giggle out of Noelle. “I suppose. I just don’t understand why it was so… exciting.”

“The thrill, the danger, the passion, the need… It just feels good!”

Too good, sadly. Why couldn’t I be into safer stuff? But then again, the girls also liked it, so maybe I was doomed to do this from the start.

As we continued walking, Noelle stopped in front of a store. A lingerie store. She stared at the underwear in the display for a moment before turning to us.

“Um, I have to buy a couple things. Do you mind waiting a bit?” she asked us.

“I’m going with you. Maybe we’ll find something nice,” Mila said. “You, however, stay here,” she told me, smirking. “You’ll just have to imagine what it is we’re buying.”

Hey, this was actually a good opportunity. “I’ll go check a couple other stores in the meantime. There’s something I need to see.”

Noelle nodded. “Let’s meet at the food court in 20 minutes?”

“Sure.”

I hadn’t expected to get some time for myself during this little trip, but it was good I did. After all, Christmas was getting closer and closer.

I think I’ve said I’ve never enjoyed shopping, and truthfully I wasn’t looking forward to this, either. That said, I wasn’t gonna half-ass it. I had money saved and plenty of gifts to buy, and boy was that a weird thought. For the longest time, I only had to think of gifts for my mom and my sister. Now I also had to think of the perfect gifts for five perfect girls. Oh, and that one dude, I guess.

But what, dammit!? What could I give them!? They all had more money than me, they could buy whatever they wanted. For a moment I considered writing them a song, but I quickly discarded that idea. I didn’t have the time or the skills to do a proper job at it, and… I don’t know, it didn’t feel right, either.

No, if I couldn’t buy them something expensive, I’d have to make up for it somehow, and there were a few things I could think. For example: giving them things they didn’t know they wanted, things they wouldn’t buy for themselves, things they couldn’t find, or things… that would have a different meaning if it was their boyfriend giving it to them. So yeah, I didn’t have an easy time ahead of me.

Surprisingly, though, there was one gift I already had figured out. I had watched one of Noelle’s model kit review videos, and she mentioned wanting a certain kit that she couldn’t find anywhere. The issue there was that I’d have to find it, and if she couldn’t…

That's what I wanted to check. There were a couple of toy stores and hobby stores in this mall, and even if they didn’t have them, they might be able to point me in the right direction.

I caught myself smiling. There was a time when even walking into stores was a challenge, and now I could do it without problems.

I made it quick and checked the two hobby stores first. As expected, they didn’t have the kit, but told me of other hobby stores in the city that might. They also gave me links to good websites where I might be able to find it online, so it really wasn’t a waste of time.

As I was making my way to one of the toy stores, however, a heartbreaking sound drew all my attention. Someone was sobbing, softly and deeply, as if trying to hold themselves back from crying. I looked around, but couldn’t find anyone. People walking to and from other stores also seemed to hear it, looked around, but when they couldn’t find the source, they moved on.

It was when whoever was holding back their cries got the hiccups that I managed to pinpoint where they were. I went and looked between two soda vending machines and saw a child there. A small boy no older than six or seven years old. He was standing between the vending machines, head down, shoulders shaking as he sobbed.

…What to do now? What could I do?

…

“Hm? Who’s in there?” I said, acting like I’d just happened to find him. I kneeled down at a distance from him, about a couple meters, and smiled. “What happened? Did the machine not give you your soda?”

The boy looked at me with wide, blue eyes. He shook his head fervently, his messy blonde hair getting even messier. “I’m… “ he hiccuped, “I’m lost…” His voice was weak, near the point of cracking.

My chest tightened “Lost? Who were you with?” I asked, trying to sound casual.

“M-My parents.”

Well, at least I knew what to do now.

“I could help you find them if you want,” I told him. “We can speak to one of the security guards. You can tell him you’re lost and he will announce through the speakers that you’ve been found. Your parents will come immediately.”

I pointed to one of the security guards down the corridor. He was slowly patrolling and wearing a distinct uniform. The boy peeked over his hiding stop and saw who I was pointing to.

The boy looked at me and his lip quivered. His eyes became even more watery, making me fear I’d just scared him more. Instead…

“B-But if they find me… They’ll just yell at me more…”

I winced internally, but didn’t let it show in my face. I frowned and asked him. “Why? What happened?”

Through sobs and hiccups, he told me. “I… I wanted a toy… b-but they said I’d already gotten something… so I yelled at them and… and they scolded me, so… I… I ran away.”

“They must be really worried about you.” I smiled. “You know, I got lost once in this mall, too, when I was your age. When my mom found me, she yelled at me and scolded me for going off on my own, but I was still happy to see her. I wasn’t scared anymore.”

Tears were now falling down the boy’s cheeks. “I want my mommy and daddy…!” he cried.

“Come on, we can find them. My name is Oliver. Oliver Brooks. What’s yours?”

“R-Robert.”

“The guard is right over there, Robert. He’ll help us find your parents in no time. What do you say?”

Robert rubbed the tears from his eyes with his palm and nodded. He walked out of his hiding spot and I stood up. I was about to start walking, making sure Robert was beside me, but when I looked down at him, I saw him reaching for and taking my hand.

I… didn’t know how to feel about that, but the boy was scared and I didn’t have the heart to tell him to let go, so I let him.