Page 47 of Truth or Dare

Soon, we pulled into an enormous mall parking lot and I took the hoodie off and left it in the car, figuring I’d be inside and warm enough in a minute.

As I got out, he came around to my side and reached for my hand. Yes, he still looked pissed but he was holding my hand as we walked inside. My heart was in my throat at that.

“What first?” he asked as we got into the enormous mall. It looked like it had a lot of upscale shops. He stopped in front of the mall directory and map.

“Um…” It felt like I was on another planet. I had spent half my life as a teenager in shopping malls. But after all this time, it was so strange, so foreign. So… normal.

This was a normal I had once prayed for but had long since given up on the notion of returning to my life.

This was people, normal and free people around me exerting their free will and going about their day: teenaged girls laughing and walking while thumbing away on smartphones, women pushing strollers with babies in them, old people congregated around benches, couples holding hands. I looked down at our hands with our fingers woven together and my heart lifted like a kite being pulled up by a gust of wind.

“Comfortable clothes?” He motioned toward a yoga store on the listing with his free hand. I nodded enthusiastically.

He motioned toward the shop, which was not far ahead of us, let go of me, which meant a small pain in my chest, that I thankfully was able to push back, and then he opened his wallet, handed me a credit card, and then leaned over and whispered in my ear, making me tingle, “Go nuts. Pin 3825.”

He sat on a bench and pulled his smartphone out of his pocket and started thumbing at the screen. I think I must’ve looked like a zombie for a second because he looked up and smiled and then jerked his chin toward the store.

I hesitantly went into the store, pushing back the urge to throw myself at his feet and hang onto his ankle. I took slow breath after slow breath to hold it together. The sales girl totally put me at ease. After buying a few pairs of capri length and full-length yoga pants, t-shirts, tank tops, and hoodies, I went to him and he took my bags and led me to a coat store where he told me to buy two coats while he waited on a nearby bench with my bags. I’d bought a Fall one and then a Winter one as it would be snowing in the not-too-distant future. I was kind of looking forward to seeing snow again so I could wear the gorgeous coat. After seven years of living in Alaska, a place I’d never wanted to go, I never thought I’d say that I looked forward to snow ever again.

I didn’t want to take advantage, but I didn’t want to insult him either by declining his kindness and shopping was fun.

At first, I had trouble deciding what I wanted and all the people around me was a little dizzying, but salespeople were more than happy to make recommendations.

I got two pairs of jeans. I bought a pair of sneakers. And then he let me loose into a higher-end department store and I bought new underwear, some toiletries (like bubble bath), thick fluffy socks, and I bought three pairs of ladies’ winter pjs and a bathrobe. I bought 2 pairs of long pjs and one pair of super soft fleece pink and purple striped shorts with a matching hoodie.

“Anything else you want?” he asked as I emerged from the department store. He was seated on a bench with my shopping bags around his feet. He had a cup of Starbucks in his right hand and he held another Starbucks cup on his knee with his left hand. He passed it to me. My heart warmed.

“Thank you. I can’t remember the last time I had one of these.” Actually, no. I could remember. Suddenly I could remember it as clear as day, so clearly I could smell the November Juneau air. It was on my way to the airport the day I’d left from Juneau airport to leave for Bangkok.

Chills ran up my spine as I sipped it. It tasted amazing. It was milky and sweet.

“Mm. Happiness in a cup.”

“Anything else you want?” he asked again. He didn’t look pissed off. He was smiling at me.

“No. Thank you for everything. So much. I think I’ve subjected you to enough torture today and spent enough of your hard-earned money. Thank you, Dare.”

He gave me a small smile and then lifted my booty of shopping bags from the floor all into one hand and slipped handles over his wrist so he could carry his coffee in that hand. My non-coffee-holding hand had two bags in it. He took them from me and transferred them onto the already full wrist and then grabbed my hand with his now free hand and we headed back to the car.

“Wanna go eat?” he asked.

“Sure,” I replied as he opened the passenger door for me and tossed all my bags into the back seat.

He drove to a little Italian place not far from the mall. He seemed relaxed as we drove, happy even. As we entered, a man in a suit approached.

“Ah, Mr. Dario! What a surprise! We are still getting ready for dinner, but come, sit. We will look after you and the beautiful lady.”

“Nice to see you, Augustus. Is Ed in?”

“I don’t think so yet, Mr. Dario. He’s expected any minute. Please introduce me to this lovely lady!”

“This is…” He stopped and looked at me. His face was blank. I was relieved he didn’t introduce me as Felicia, that he remembered I didn’t want to be called that any longer.

“Angel,” I extended a hand to the older Italian man. “Nice to meet you.”

“Angel. Bella! Face of an angel, Mr. Dario. Such a beauty. So lucky, Mr. Dario, so lucky. Right this way.”

We were seated and Dario was studying me. I gave him a smile. He didn’t smile back. He didn’t look angry but he was studying my face, trying to figure something out, I think.

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