Apparently I’m Insane

                      Whenever Hannah and I go to the mall we have a routine SHE likes to follow.  I for one like to sit there and write or read. That is until it’s time for “Story of his life.”  “Story of his life” is basically us narrating the lives of boys we (or mainly Hannah) find attractive.

                      The mall is one story.  It’s rather long and even has its own ice skating rink, arcade, mirror maze, and movie theatre. No one really watches movies there though.  It’s a bit run down.

                       Hannah and I have divided the mall into three sectors. The first sector is what we like to call the “Pig Out” section. The “Pig Out” section consists of the food court with at least a dozen restaurants, the candy store, and the entertainment stores. We only go to this section of the mall when we have extra money, which is like never.

                      The second section we don’t have a name for because it’s not worth naming.  It’s our least favorite section. This section of the mall has all of your mainstream extremely expensive stores.  It’s ridiculous.

                       One time we went into a store called Fashion is Key because we heard they had really cool plaid flannels. Going into that store was very disappointing. Almost as disappointing as the Avatar: The Last Airbender movie.  The store had flannels, but they were hideous. They were bedazzled on the collar and on the bottom of the sleeves. The back of the shirt was plain. The reason for this was so you could bedazzle your name on the back of the shirt. Not to mention the color schemes were awful. Majority of the shirts were purple and brown.  If that doesn’t sound hideous then I don’t know what does.  And get this, that good for nothing shirt was fifty dollars. Sixty five if you wanted your name bedazzled on the back. After seeing that shirt we never went into that store again.

                      All the other stores in that area are the same. There’s one store that looks sort of interesting called Jessica’s Emporium, but we’ll never step foot inside. The last thing we want is to see something we like and then not be able to afford it. 

                      The third section of the mall is really cool. It’s the perfect hangout area. There’s an ice skating rink, an arcade, and a mirror maze. It even has a mini stage that people can perform at. Almost like the ones they have dispersed around at six flags.  I don’t really like malls, but I wouldn’t mind going on a date in this part of the mall.

                      There’s just a slight problem, I’m not exactly appealing to the opposite . Apparently, wanting to spend time at the library and talk about how the human race is bound for death by stupidity isn’t how guys want to spend their time. Psshht. Whatever.  I’m a strong independent Latina lady who doesn’t need a boyfriend. Who cares if I’m awkward? Some people find awkwardness appealing… I just haven’t met those people yet. I will one day. Hannah’s lucky. She doesn’t have my problem.

                      Hannah’s personality is so appealing to the males of the planet.  She’s an extrovert and I’m an introvert.  She’s really easy going and will listen to anyone. Just know that if she doesn’t like what you have to say she will let you know. When Hannah wants something she’s determined to get it. Which, is why we are sitting in the mall looking for Hannah’s new boyfriend. She wants a boyfriend and she’ll make sure she gets one too.

                      We always sit in the same place every time we go to the mall. We sit at the benches that are in the main entrance/exit of the mall.  This way we can see everyone at least twice. The bench is probably my favorite place in the mall. It’s right across from the bookstore and the anime store.  There are other stores that surround the bench, but, they are too girly for my liking.  Skirts aren’t really my thing. Hannah doesn’t like them either. We only wear them if it’s absolutely necessary. Sometimes I’ll wear a skirt if I’m babysitting my neighbor. Her name is Yebin. She’s the cutest toddler in the world. She loves playing dress up. The happier she is the more I get paid to watch her. That reminds me, I’m suppose to watch her in a few weeks. Her parents made reservations at a fancy restaurant I can’t pronounce. Maybe I’ll buy her a doll when I have money.

                      As Hannah and I enter the mall we make our way to the bench. She sits down before I do.  She has an excited look on her face. Me? Not so much. Not going to lie, I’m kind of jealous of her charms. “You ready?” she asks. I give a slight nod with an annoyed look on my face. She takes note of my annoyance and scowls.

                      “What’s wrong with you?” she asks already knowing what I’m going to respond. “Gee I don’t know. It’s not like I was woken up this morning only TO BE DRAGGED TO THE MALL SO YOU CAN GET A SMOKING HOT BOYFRIEND WHILE I GET STUCK WISHING ANIME CHARACTERS WERE REAL.”  I almost yelled. “Touchy.” Was Hannah’s response. I let out a sigh and plopped myself on the bench.

                      “Oh calm down. The perfect guy is out there somewhere. I just hope he is as awkward as you are.” Hannah said with a smirk on her face. “Not helping.” I said back. “Hannah. Listen. As much as I love doing  ‘Story of his life.’ I don’t think I am in the mood today. You see, I had a weird dream and I don-“ I didn’t get to finish because she cut me off. “Shhh. Hot guy just walked in the door.”  Great.

                      “Well what do you think?” Hannah asked still staring at the guy. She couldn’t take her eyes off of him. He was a tall white boy with black hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a black shirt with a skull on it and a red sweater. He had on black jeans and gray sneakers. He was really cute. Like really cute. Just not my type. “He’s pretty good looking.”  I said not too interested. “But?” Hannah asked. “Well…” I began to say. “Come on. Spit it out.” Hannah said looking at me with her signature look while fixing her curly hair. “It’s just that he looks… like a bad boy. I feel like you would get annoyed with him after a while. His looks are top notch, but the way he keeps staring at you makes him seem like he only wants to have fun, nothing more.”

                      “HE’S LOOKING AT ME?” Hannah yelled in excitement. She whipped her head around to look at the boy. The boy smiles at Hannah with his perfect white teeth and she waves at him. She then gets all flirty and starts twirling her hair. Well, I lost her. She’s probably thought of cute nicknames already.

                      The boy waves back at Hannah and I notice something on his forearm.  “HOLY… IS THAT A TATTOO?”  Hannah gawked. No Hannah. It's a dead bug. Of course I didn't say that to her, I simply nodded in response. “Oh Hell yeah.” Hannah said with a determined look on her face. She practically jumped off the bench and went towards the guy. Damn. We’ve been in this mall for ten minutes and Hannah already found someone. That takes skill.

                      I didn’t really feel like sitting around watching Hannah get a boyfriend so I went to a nearby soda machine. I put in a dollar and twenty five cents and clicked the button for a Sprite. The stupid machine ate my money without giving me my soda. I tried again without success. You’ve got to be kidding me. I got fed up with the machine and kicked it. As I kicked it, some stupid guy walked by with his friends and said “You see? It’s girls like that I don’t like. They should learn how to control their temper.” That pissed me off.  Joke is on him though, he’s ugly and that’s something he’ll have to live with for the rest of his life.

                    I turned to head back to the bench when a weird feeling came over me,  stopping me in my tracks.  My whole body got tingly and I froze. . I’m going to mutate into something weird. Just watch. As the tingling feeling started to wear off a person ran into me knocking me to the ground. “Oof.” The person that had knocked me over fell too, but they shot up so fast you couldn’t even tell they had fallen.  Meanwhile, I’m still on the ground struggling to get up.

                     It was a guy that had run into me. He was wearing blue jeans and a gray hoodie. I didn’t get a chance to see his face because he started to run away. Wow, what a jerk. He didn’t even check to see if I was okay. I finally stood up. I was fuming. I wanted to punch the guy. I wouldn’t be so mad if he had just asked if I was okay. As he was running away he yelled “I’m Sorry.” His voice cracked a little. What a gentleman. I wonder if he just hits his mom and just says sorry like it’s okay. People like that just make me want to-  I KNOW THAT VOICE. THAT SOUNDS LIKE THE GUY IN MY DREAM. THE SWEATER VEST GUY.  Ughhh. What was his name? Think Mya. Think… Chicken Pooh? No. That’s not it. Own you… ONEW. THAT’S IT. ONEW.

                      I don’t know why, but I began to run after him. Something was telling me I needed to catch him. Hannah might get irritated that I left the bench, however I can worry about her later. The guy that reminded me of Onew was far ahead of me. He was getting close to the middle of the mall. I ran after him as fast as I could. Everyone was looking at me like I was crazy.  “WAIT. STOP.” I yelled. It was no use. He just ran faster . I almost gave up until he tripped and fell. Stupid klutz. He tripped over his own feet. I reached him just as he was about to get back up.

                      I grabbed his arm and helped him get on his feet. I’m surprised I did because he didn’t do the same for me. Then again, there could be a logical reason why.  His arms were scrawny but felt like they had muscle. I have no idea how that works. He tried to run away again but I still had his arm. He had his hood up and his back turned towards me so I couldn’t see his face. He was taller than me by a few inches. I didn’t even have time to fangirl over the fact that I was making physical contact with a guy.  “Wait. I just want to talk to you.” I said out of breath. “I’m sorry. I don’t have time to talk. I shouldn’t even be here. I need to go.” He said in a panic. “Wait. Let me see your face before you go.” I said. I need to know what he looks like. “I can’t. It isn’t allowed.” Isn’t allowed? Is he that socially awkward? Without even thinking I said “Onew. Please let me see your face.” The boy’s body tensed. I still had a hold of his arm. “What did you just call me?” He sounded scared. I quickly regretted calling him Onew. Way to go Mya. The first guy you get to talk to you and you blow it.

                      “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to call you that.” I tried to sound as sincere as possible.  “Who are you?” He asked.  He was about to turn around and let me see his face when out of nowhere he screamed. His scream scared the crap out of me and caused me to jump back. Everyone in the mall was starring.  He clutched his arm. It was then that I understood his scream wasn’t one of being scared, but rather of pain.  Before I could see if he was okay he ran out of the back exit of the mall.

                      “WAIT.” I yelled once more. I tried to go after him, however I was too late. He was long gone. I couldn’t even see where he had run off too. I stood in the same spot for about ten minutes trying to process what had just happened. Today is not my day. Still confused, I turned around to head back to the bench when something caught my eye. It was a metallic looking rock that was broken into two pieces. I picked it up and studied it. It looked a little unusual for a rock. It was really Shiny and smooth, almost slimy. I made my way back to the bench. I really want to forget what just happened. It would really save my confusion.

                      I got back to the bench only to find Hannah there waiting for me.  She had a huge grin on her face. She’s going to think I’m insane. “There you are.” She said. “I was getting worried. I thought I saw you run off, but I wasn’t sure. Are you okay?”  “Yeah I’m fine… Actually, I’m not. I think I’m going insane.” “You are insane.”  Hannah joked. “Very funny.” I responded. “I was running after a guy.” Hannah looked at me trying not to laugh. “You? Running after a guy? What’d he do? Tell you anime is for kids?”  “I’m serious. I think I’ve seen him before. Like in a dream. Except in my dream he was opening portals and was faceless.” She’s not going to believe me. “Woah. Sketchy.” I knew it. “Just forget it.” I said annoyed. “Oh. Relax. I’m just playing. What happened?” She asked. I told her everything and she just blinked in confusion. “Let me get this straight. A random guy knocks to the ground without apologizing and you chase after him?” she asked. “Correct.” I said. “Then he falls on his face, you help him up and realize he’s the guy from one of your dreams. He won’t let you see his face because it’s forbidden . He screams and runs away, leaving behind a rock you think is magical?” She looks at me in disbelief. “Well when you put it that way...”

                      “You’re delusional.”

                      “Am not.”

                      “If he screamed then why didn’t I hear it?”

                      “Because you were too busy drooling over the guy with the tattoo.”

                      “His name is Christian and we have a date later.”

                      “Surprise. Surprise. Look. Call me crazy all you want. Something isn’t right.”

                      “Yeah. You.” Hannah says. I can’t tell if she’s joking or not. At this point I don’t care. She looks down at my hand and points. “What the hell is that?” she asks. I hold up the two rock pieces. “The rock I think the guy from my dream dropped.” She looks at it with a disapproving look on her face. “I thought you said it looked magical and shiny?” “It does.” I say. I look down at the two pieces and gasp. They look like two ordinary pieces of rock. Their texture has changed too. It now feels like a stupid ordinary rock. Is someone pulling a prank on me? Where is the camera? “What? I don’t understand. It wasn’t like that a minute ago.” I think I’m ready to cry in frustration.

                      “Mya. I’m going to say this as your best friend. Go home and get some sleep. You need it.” “I think you’re right.”  I say giving up. “Do you want me to take you home?” Hannah asked. I could tell she was concerned. “No. Get ready for your date with that Christian kid.” I said feeling upset. “Are you sure? I can stay with you if you want.” I gave her a slight smile. “It’s okay. Go have fun.” She looked at me with a caring look in her brown eyes. “Tell you what? Why don’t you give me a piece of the rock. If anything magical happens, I’ll let you know.” I knew she didn’t believe anything magical would happen. Even I don’t really believe it. She was just trying to help. I gave her a piece of the rock and left the mall in a small state of depression.

                       Little did I know there was something, or rather certain people waiting for me when I got home...