Shopping for a new outfit!

On the way to one of the trendy clothing stores that were in the mall, Eric stormed ahead, as if trying to escape the thoughts that kept permeating his subconscious.

"Eric! Wait up!" Kyle tried to keep up with Eric's breakneck pace.

'Wait for him, so you can hold his hand while you walk'

Eric stopped and rubbed his face with his hands, before turning to Kyle, who was catching his breath.

"Listen, why don't you take a walk? I can handle buying my own clothes. I don't need a chaperone." Eric said.

'You should tell him how you feel'

"I just want to make sure that nothing happens to you, cause if it happens to you while you're like this, then it's my fault." Kyle said.

'And he's responsible too...'

"I'll be fine, just meet me back here in like an hour, go get something to eat or something." Eric said. "I'll be fine!"

"All right, I'll be at the food court if you need me." Kyle walked away, looking over his shoulder a few times before he kept going.

Eric managed to keep going until he found a store that seemed to have the type of clothing he was interested in. The only problem is, that Eric had never bought women's clothing before, and he didn't even know what size he was! As he idly stared at a rack of jackets, Eric was lost in thought.

"Can I help you with anything?" a voice shook Eric out of his thoughts.

Eric looked up to see a young woman standing near him, wearing a nametag. But he didn't need to look at it, because he recognized the young woman as a former high school classmate, Caitlin Parker. He always thought she was cute, but she wasn't the type of girl who'd give Eric the time of day. Eric had often wondered what she did after graduation, and now he had his answer.

"Uh... yes. Yes, you can." Eric said. "I'm looking for something from this century."

"I figured as much, no offense, but the retro-chic look is way out this year." Caitlin said.

"No offense taken. It wasn't really my idea." Eric said.

"I'm Caitlin, by the way," Caitlin stuck out her hand.

"Eric, uh..." Eric hesitated, but shook her hand anyway. "Erica."

"Erica... Pretty name." Caitlin said. "Now, let's get you into something cute..."