37: Day Out

Kiara—

Humming quietly, I comb through the clothing rack, trying to find a top that catches my eye. Everything is rather silent, and I glance up over the rack, seeing Macy on the other side. She insisted that we have a girl’s day out all of a sudden. I guess for us to get to know each other better.

She brought me to the mall in the city, an hour away from our quaint little town and we have been going from shop to shop just looking at clothes and such. This is what girls do, right? Go shopping and eat frozen yogurt and stuff? Still, as I look through all these clothes, I can’t help but feel like it would be cheaper and better to make my own.

“Oh! What about this one?” I hear her say and look up as she holds up a bright green top.

“I’m not much into that shade of green,” I tell her.

“Hmm, okay,” she says, putting it back. “I’m getting hungry anyway. Want to go to the food court?”

“Sure. I could go for something to eat,” I say.

With that we leave the boutique and head down to the food court area. As we eat, I can’t help but feel so out of place. I had been to this mall before, but it’s bigger than I remember and so crowded.

“Are you having a good time?” Macy asks with a brow cocked.

I perk my head and nod. “Yeah, I am. I’m just not really used to this.”

She smiles. “Well, as long as you’re having fun. I always wanted a little sister, but I ended up with two brothers, so this is really exciting for me,” she babbles and pauses. “Oh, you don’t mind right? That I think of you as a sister?”

Her question takes me aback for a second. I hadn’t thought about it, but if she and Jeremiah end up staying together then she would be my sister-in-law. He had dated other girls before, but Macy seems different. The others never even tried to get to know me and so far, she has been good to him. They really make a good couple.

“I don’t mind,” I tell her. “I guess I always wondered what it would be like to have an older sister.”

Her smile nearly blinds me. “Yay! This is so exciting!” she says. “We should bring Jade and Harmony shopping with us too sometime! And Reba!”

I nod, smiling. I take a bite of my sandwich, trying to figure out what to talk about. “So, why did you decide to date my brother?”

“Hm? Oh,” she mutters and blushes. “Well, we had been flirting quite a while before he actually asked me out. By then though, I was already falling for him. He tried being so suave, but he always ended up making me laugh.”

For a moment I mull over her words. “He’s always eating my snacks.” And then of course denies it. But who else would get into my ice cream? He even sniffed out my secret cookie stash. Shyba’s not the type to do that. Maybe it could be the twins though.

She laughs. “What about you? Anybody in mind?”

My cheeks flare and I bite into my sandwich, trying to buy time to think of something to say. She grins.

“I-it’s nothing,” I mutter. “Just a uh… little crush is all.”

“Oh, come on, I see the way you look at him,” she says and thrusts her hands toward herself. “Go ahead, confide to your big sis!”

For a second, I don’t know what to do. Perhaps it would be a good idea to get this off my chest though. I hadn’t even told Mama, but she probably already knows anyway.

“Well… I guess maybe I do kind of like Shyba a little more than a crush. I don’t know.”

She takes a bite of her pizza. “You either do or you don’t.”

I take a deep breath, setting my sandwich down. “Okay. I do like him.”

She smiles. “Was that so hard?” she asks. I remain silent, my cheeks on fire. “What made you start having feelings for him?”

As I stare at my hands my mind traces back, my heart pounding. “When he decided to stay with us, I was determined to make him happy. He just looked so sad all the time, always kept his head low and wouldn’t make eye contact. I wanted to make him feel better. I took every opportunity I could to make him smile. I wanted to hear him laugh.”

I continue, “And every now and again he would smile at something I did, and I actually managed to get him to laugh too. Before I realized it, I… developed this fondness for him. I mean, we’re always together and we teach each other new things. He takes care of me. He’s my best friend… But when I let myself think about it, I realize I want us to be closer.”

My gaze returns to her. “I was trying to ignore it, you know?”

“Why ignore it?” she asks. “Are you afraid you might ruin your friendship?”

“That’s not really it,” I tell her. “There’s a lot I still don’t know about him… A lot he doesn’t seem to want to share, but bit by bit he is opening up. I just don’t want to put any unneeded pressure on him. I mean, I’ve flirted some, but he doesn’t respond so I don’t think he feels the same. So, I told myself I would just be patient and wait for if he ever feels the same way.”

“You really care about him,” she says smiling. “I thought it was because he has a cute butt.”

My cheeks flare, my mouth dropping.

She laughs. “You can’t tell me you haven’t looked at least once. Booties are important.”

I remain silent, my gaze drifting and bite into my sandwich.

“Thought so,” she says, grinning. “Anyway, I think it’s admirable that you aren’t trying to push yourself on him.”

For a second, I don’t know what to think. “It’s not easy, but I’d rather us stay friends than to scare him away or make him feel pressured.”

“You’re strong Kiara,” she says and takes the last bite of her pizza. “Okay, we’re not leaving until you find a cute new outfit that will give him whiplash when you enter the room! Then he’ll be the one chasing you!”

My eyes widen. Is she serious? As she drags me to the next store, I find my heart becoming no less restless. Why did we have to bring that subject up? My chest feels heavy now.