Will steered the bus into the large strip mall parking lot.
"So this is a strip mall?" Puck asked, eyebrows up with a sultry grin.
"Correct" Rachel nodded.
"So are all the ladies going to strip or something?" Puck asked.
"Get you mind out of the gutter for like ten minutes, please!" Mercedes scoffed.
"I'll strip too" Puck said, looking at Sugar and Santana.
"You most certainly will not" Shelby said, glaring at Puck.
Puck laughed. "Fine, fine."
Will parked the bus and turned to look at them as they all began to stand up.
"Woah, just hold on a minute. Take a seat" He said, holding his hands up.
They sat down.
"Okay, just a few things I want to go over" Will said. "One, we are not spending the whole day here. Just so you know, we will be at the airport at five o'clock this evening. Our flight is at eight but we want to be there early and eat some delicious airport food..."
"Yum" Quinn rolled her eyes.
"...So my goal is to leave this mall at say two o'clock at the latest. It's ten thirty now. So if you want, you can eat here or if not, we'll get food on the way back to the hotel."
Kurt raised his hand. "Uh, why do we have to leave at two at the latest?"
"Because I doubt your rooms are in a neat conditions and you're all packed" Beiste said.
"That's true" Finn said with a chuckle.
"I'm not done" Will said. "Okay so two, I'm not sure how you guys want to split up in the mall, but this time, try not to leave anyone behind. We don't need another scare."
They all laughed.
"Don't worry. I've learned never to give my phone to anyone and to read all signs" Santana laughed.
"Great" Will gave a thumbs up.
"Can we shop now?" Mercedes asked.
"Yes, you can" Will nodded and moved to the side as they all excitedly exited the bus.
Will press the button that lowered Artie down to the ground.
"Okay so are we splitting up?" Sugar asked.
"Last time we split into three groups, right?" Mike asked.
"I think so" Rachel nodded. "But if it were up to me-"
"It isn't" Brittany interjected.
Rachel glared at her. "If it were up to me, we'd all stay together. I like it better when we're all together."
"I do too" Rory said.
"Don't get me wrong, so do I, but large groups can be busy" Tina said.
"That's true" Sam nodded.
"Well, we're not going to decide anything this way" Blaine said. "And we're actually just wasting shopping time. So here's what I propose. We stay together and if it gets crowded or unbearable, we split up."
"I like that idea" Finn said.
"Great" Kurt said. "Let's go." And on that mark, they all took off toward the mall.
"Now where to?" Tina asked loudly so all fifteen of them could hear. They had been shopping for twenty minutes and so far, nothing too bad has happened. They learned that if they're addressing the whole group, they gotta speak loudly and if they leave one store, they must make sure everyone is accounted for before they go to another one. A little overwhelming, but they've gone through worse.
"Let's go to the candy store a few shops down" Puck said.
"We have tons of candy still. We never ate our stuff from Universal and same with the stuff we got at Fun Spot" Mercedes said. "It's all in my room still."
"We can eat that on the plane or something" Quinn said.
"Let's go to that clothing store over there" Sugar said, pointing to a sign.
They mumbled an agreement and walked over to the store.
"I'm bored" Sam complained loudly.
"Deal with it" Santana snapped, strolling past Sam to look at the display of shorts.
Sam, Mercedes, Puck and Mike sat down in some chairs, waiting to leave the store.
"And now you see why I didn't want to go shopping" Puck sighed, resting his face in his hand.
Sam looked over at Mercedes, the only girl who wasn't looking at clothes. "Why are you here?"
"Because my mom and dad loved each other and wanted another kid. Plus, my mom once told me that my brother was the test-child and I'm the one they really wanted" Mercedes replied with a grin.
Sam paused, a bit confused. "I meant right now in this store."
Mercedes rolled her eyes. "I know, I just like messing with you."
Sam laughed. "That was quite clever."
"Thanks. I've been waiting to use that. Just don't ask me 'how did you get here?' because that'll require a different and maybe more mentally scarring answer" Mercedes smiled.
Sam shuddered. "Thanks for the tip."
They were silent for a moment until Sam spoke up again.
"You never answered my question."
"What was it again?"
"Why are you here and not looking at the stuff with the others?" Sam asked.
Mercedes chuckled. "Because it's not for me."
"What's that mean?" Sam questioned.
Mercedes' smile faded a bit. "Let's just say that even Santana will have trouble fitting into some of those clothes."
Sam blinked. "I don't get it...sorry. You'll need to explain this one to me."
Mercedes gave him a short glare before he realized he wasn't kidding. She shrugged. "This store is geared towards more...thinner...people. It'd be ridiculous to even bother browsing."
Sam finally clued in. "Oh...sorry."
"Not your fault."
"If it makes any difference to you, I still love you and think you're beautiful no matter what" Sam said, a bit quieter.
Mercedes turned her head so she could face him. "It makes a big difference. Aside from me, you're the only one who's opinion would matter to me. Well, maybe Kurt's too. Thank you, Sam. You always know just what to say."
Sam smiled and pretended to play with invisible suspenders. "All in a day's work."
Mercedes giggled.
"Guys!" Puck yelled loudly. They stood in yet another clothing store.
"What?" Sugar turned and looked over. Judging by Puck's loud and sudden tone, they all assumed something was seriously wrong.
"What's wrong?" Finn asked.
"We're bored" Puck sighed with a smile and pointed to Sam.
"I am too" Mike said quietly.
"Don't worry, we're leaving this store as soon as I buy this pair of knee socks" Rachel said, holding up a pair of purple and green plaid socks with lime green pom-poms on the tops of them.
"Wait" Kurt looked up from the rack of jackets he was flicking though. "You're serious about buying those? I thought you were just joking. Because girl, those are hideous."
Rachel glared at him. "Yes I was serious. I like them."
"Is she colour blind?" Blaine whispered to Kurt, who laughed.
"Unconfirmed" Kurt snickered as Rachel firmly took her place in the checkout line.
They left the store three minutes later. The next store they hit was a electronics store.
The boys raced to the largest TVs.
"Look! A ten-in-one remote control!" Quinn smiled, holding it up for the girls to see.
"That'd come in handy. I keep losing the remote for my TV so I have to keep getting up to change the channel" Mercedes said.
"There's a downside to this too" Tina said, looking at the product. "If you lose this, you're totally screwed."
They laughed.
"Hey Rachel!" Finn called from across the store. His head could be seen across the store.
"I am being beckoned" Rachel said and hurried off to where Finn was.
"Take a look at this" Finn said when Rachel approached.
Rachel looked at what it. It was a huge flat screen TV.
"When we get married and live in a house together, we're going to get a TV this big, okay?" Finn said, smiling like a hyper child.
"That's huge" Rachel said.
"I know right! So cool!"
"Don't TVs that big give you migraines? I think I'm getting a migraine just looking at it now" Rachel said.
Finn chuckled. "Who cares?"
Rachel shook her head and smiled. "Well, I'm gonna go over there, okay?"
"Okay" Finn said absentmindedly as he looked at a 3D TV.
"What did he want?" Mercedes asked Rachel when she returned.
"He showed me a oversized TV and said when we get married, we're going to get it" Rachel sighed.
"Aw he wants to marry you!" Tina cooed.
Rachel blushed. "Apparently so."
They didn't have a chance to say much more because the large group left the store.
They went into a girly clothing store.
"Ughhhh" Artie groaned. "There's not even a men's section here."
"Let's play a game" Sam said.
"Okay!" Rory smiled. "What game."
"We have three minutes to find the ugliest piece of clothing in the store" Sam said.
"And who ever loses has to try on all the other ugly clothes at once" Mike said.
"Awesome!" Puck smiled.
"Okay" Mike set his watch for three minutes. "Ready, set, go!"
Finn, Puck, Mike, Rory, Sam and Artie took off around the store, rifling through racks of clothes with competitive stares on their faces.
When the three minutes was up, Mike let the guys know.
"Time! Stop your search!" he called and the guys hurried back to the meeting spot, each clutching some article of clothing.
Sam had a bright yellow and dark red plaid tie. Finn had a pair of pink and blue zebra print girl shorts. Puck had a Hawaiian men's shirt. Artie had a pair of blue and purple checked socks. Mike had a rainbow bowtie. And Rory had a yellow and pink scarf.
"Yikes" Sam said, looking at all the clothes. "This is a quite ugly array of clothes."
"Okay on the count of three, shout out the person's item that you think is best looking. Or the loser." Artie said. "One, Two, Three!"
"Mike's bowtie!"
"Artie's socks!"
"Mike's bowtie!"
"Mike's bowtie!"
"Puck's shirt!"
"Rory's scarf!"
"Mike, it looks like you lost" Sam said with a smirk. "Have fun trying it all on!" They guys snickered and threw all their hideous clothes at Mike, who pouted. He gathered the clothes and sulked off to a change room.
"Okay, we can go now" Quinn said, walking up to the guys, a shopping bag in hand.
"Well, we'll have to wait a minute or so" Rory said with a grin.
"Why?" Rachel asked.
"Where's Mike?" Tina asked, noticing the absence of her boyfriend.
Sam and the guys laughed. "He wanted to try on a last minute outfit."
Finn walked over to the change room door and knocked on it. "Mike? You ready to model that outfit?"
"Just a second. These shorts you had aren't exactly my size" Mike growled.
Finn snickered.
A few minutes later, they heard the door's lock click.
"I'm coming out now" Mike mumbled, clearly ashamed and embarrassed.
"Okay!" Puck smiled.
"Mercedes, you may want to get your camera ready" Rory said.
Mercedes grinned and fished her camera out of her purse.
Mike slowly opened the door and stepped out. And the second his colourful outfit came into view, the howls of laughter began.
"What in the name of Alexander McQueen are you wearing?" Kurt gasped, seeing the outfit.
Mercedes took several pictures.
Mike wasn't wearing his shoes, so Artie's plaid socks could easily be seen as they were pulled up as high as possible. Puck's Hawaiian shirt that was covered in a cheesy palm tree pattern was too big on Mike, unlike the zebra print shorts that Finn had picked. The shorts were too tight to do up and Mike had refused to take off his pants to put them on, so he put the short shorts on over his black jeans. He wore Sam's tie loosely and his own bowtie clasped at his collar. Rory's scarf was draped around his neck.
"That makes Berry's outfits looks good" Santana snickered.
"Can I take it off now?" Mike asked, blushing. "People are staring." It was true. Other shoppers were trying to discreetly stare, but it was so obvious by the points and whispers and laughs.
"Anyone want a picture with Mike?" Mercedes asked, waving her camera around.
"I do!" Tina smiled and ran up so she could stand next to Mike. She slung and arm around his shoulders and made a thumbs up with the other hand. They smiled as Mercedes' camera made a small 'click'.
"Okay, as much as I'd like to stay and laugh over the ugliness of Mike's outfit, we don't have all day. So go change so we can go!" Quinn said and Mike hurried off to the change room, taking off the scarf and tie as he ran.
"Rory, come on out" Quinn said, gently knocking on the door.
"No! I'm wearing a freakin' skirt!" Rory shouted.
"I know. And we all want to see" Rachel said. The guys had played the ugly game again in the next store and this time, Rory had lost.
"Listen, Irish" Santana said. "You either come on out and face the music on your own free will or I will come in there and make you get out here by force."
Rory squeaked in fear. So he unlocked the door and came out. New Directions burst into laughter yet again. Rory's face turned red and he awkwardly shifted on the spot.
"Suddenly, Mike's outfit wasn't so bad" Sugar said.
Rory wore an orange and sky blue plaid button down Tshirt, purple and black striped knee socks with pink lace edges, a tie with several goofy cartoon faces on them, a green and yellow belt with hanging beaded tassels, a gold and silver cheetah print long sleeve shirt that he wore under the plaid shirt and finally, a purple ruffled skirt with yellow flower prints on it that went to Rory's knees. He, like Mike, refused to take his pants off so his blue jeans under it all made the outfit that much more funny.
Mercedes took several pictures of Rory.
"Give us a twirl" Finn shouted.
"I regret coming to the mall" Rory sighed, and twirled around like Finn had requested.
Quinn laughed and pushed him back into the change room stall. "Get changed so your embarrassment can end and we can leave."
"Let's eat here" Rachel said as they arrived at a soup and salad bar.
"Salad? That's so healthy" Sam said in disgust.
"Good. In case you have forgotten, we've pretty much eaten unhealthy junk food for this whole trip. And half of that junk food has been pizza" Quinn said.
"Pizza is healthy" Finn said.
"Not really" Blaine said.
"Sure is. Here, I'll break it down for you" Finn smiled. "Pizza dough is made with grain and wheat and eggs and stuff like that so it's part of grains food group. The pizza sauce is made with tomatoes so that's a vegetable or fruit, depending on how you look at it. So that makes the sauce part of the fruits and veggies food group. The cheese is made from milk and dairy, making it part of the dairy food group. And finally, for those who prefer toppings of pepperoni, that is a meat, which contains protein, making it part if the meat and alternatives food group. Therefore, pizza covers all four food groups, making it healthy."
"I worship this guy" Rory said with a grin to Sam and Quinn.
"That is just ridiculous" Kurt shook his head. "The grease they use to cook it is crazy. Plus the tomatoes are ether fake or have been preserved in salt for years. The cheese and pepperoni are also most likely fake."
"No, that's only if you get it from the grotty places" Finn shook his head.
"It's a wonder that you're not obese" Kurt said to Finn.
"You should go a a diet. Just like Lord Tubbington" Brittany said, patting Finn's arm.
"That's great. I'm starving" Santana marched into the line for soup and salad.
"Ooh" Tina hummed. "They have chicken noodle..."
The teens had finished their healthy lunch and were now in a men's clothing store.
"I like shopping but this is sooo lame" Mercedes sighed. The girls were standing by the door as the boys perused the clothes.
"I agree but at the same time, I'm glad that Finn at least cares about his wardrobe. Shows that he has self respect" Rachel said.
"That's true. Even Rory asked for clothes shopping help the last time we came to a mall" Quinn piped up.
"That's good" Rachel nodded.
The guys finally sauntered over to the girls. Finn and Mike were carrying plastic bags.
"We can leave now" Sam said, opening the store's door.
"Good. This place is boring" Brittany said.
"Now you know how we dudes feel every time you girls run off into some girly chick store" Puck snapped.
No girl could argue with that so they all silently walked down the path, in the shade as the sun was scorching hot.
"Wanna go in here?" Mercedes asked, pointing to the store's sign.
"No!" Artie said. It was an expensive jewelry store.
"I am the only one who can afford to even walk into that store anyways" Sugar smiled proudly.
They kept walking and finally agreed to go into another clothing store for both males and females. The store was dimly lit but very cold, which was refreshing.
"Ooh, look at that" Tina said, pointing Mercedes in the direction of a sequined top. Mercedes squealed and ran towards it with Tina and Sugar close at heel.
"Oh good" Mike said to himself as he saw a display of belts across the store. "I need a new belt."
"Same" Finn said and followed him.
"Hey Ems. What do you think?" Will asked, holding up a brown and red striped sweater vest.
Emma blinked. "Um, well, it's very nice but do you really need another sweater vest? Um, maybe you should uh, branch out a bit."
Will looked deflated. "You think so?"
"You have more sweater vests than Sue has tracksuits" Emma giggled.
"Oh, ouch" Will smiled and put the vest back on the shelf.
"Hello" Shelby said, walking into the store that Will and Emma were in. "Sorry I took so long. The scanner wasn't working at the check out."
"Not a problem" Will said. "What did you buy?"
"Some fantastic jeans. When I'm just at home with Beth or doing chores, I can't wear the skirts and stuff that I wear to work so these are great" Shelby said, opening the bag so Emma could peek in.
"Emma, don't you have some work jeans too?" Will asked. "Now that I think about it, you always wear skirts and blouses."
Emma nodded. "Yeah I don't actually own a pair of pants. I prefer skirts."
"Maybe you should consider investing in pants?" Will suggested.
"They're really comfortable" Shelby said when Emma looked like she was thinking about it. "Plus, you don't have to shave when you wear them."
Emma laughed. "That may be the selling point."
"If you want to go take a look, the store next door has some great jeans" Shelby offered.
"Okay" Emma said slowly. "Why not. There's no harm in looking."
"I'm back" Beiste said, walking over to them. She had a bag in her hands. "What's going on?"
"Shelby and I are convincing Emma to try on some jeans as she only ever wears skirts" Will answered.
Beiste chuckled. "I'm her opposite. I never wear skirts."
"When was the last time you wore a dress or skirt?" Shelby asked.
Beiste paused, thinking it over. "Prom" she snorted. "And that was a pretty hideous dress too. It was brown and orange plaid and wasn't fitted at all. Like some hideous curtains or something just draped over me."
The adults laughed.
Beiste raised a finger at Will. "And before you ask, no I don't have any pictures. Burned them all."
Will snapped his fingers. "Darn" he smiled, but he was joking.
"So, Emma" Shelby said. "Let's go find you some pants!"
Emma shrugged and the four adults left the store and entered another one.
"What style are you looking for?" Shelby asked. "Fitted? Flair? Boot cut? Skinny?"
Emma looked confused. "Uh...comfy?"
Shelby laughed and pulled several pairs of blue jeans off the rack and handed them to the ginger.
Emma, holding the jeans, walked to the change room door and used her foot to shut it. The handles of public change room stalls were discussing and there was no way she'd touch them.
"Woah, Emma!" Will gasped when Emma came out of the change room, wearing a pair of slim navy jeans.
"Do they look okay?" Emma asked, looking in a nearby mirror.
"They look fantastic" Will nodded.
"Very cute" Shelby agreed.
Beiste nodded.
"You think?" Emma asked, looking at her rear end in the mirror. "I dunno. My legs feel so constricted."
"You'll get used to it" Shelby said. "They look great on you. You should get them."
Emma nodded and gave a smile. "Okay. I think I will."
Kurt was looking at a pair of green skinny jeans. All of ND was spread out over the large store.
Suddenly, Kurt heard a loud clatter. He turned to see Blaine fall down, along with three tall mannequins. Kurt gasped and dropped the jeans to run over to Blaine's aid.
"Blaine! Are you okay?" Kurt asked, helping Blaine up from the floor.
"Ow" Blaine said and swore.
"What hurts?" Kurt asked.
"My ankle. I think I twisted it" Blaine looked down at his left foot, which he couldn't apply pressure to. He had to lean on Kurt to stand. Kurt put an arm around Blaine's shoulder to steady him.
"Are you okay?" Kurt asked, worry in his eyes. "You're really accident prone." He said, remembering Blaine bloody nose.
"I guess. It hurts like heck" Blaine sighed. "And I know. I'm so clumsy."
Rachel came over. "I heard a clatter. What's the matter?" She asked then laughed at her rhyme.
"Clever" Blaine smiled but it was more of a grimace. "I slipped. The floor is wet there and I slipped and twisted my ankle, knocking over those creepy things."
"Mannequins?" Kurt supplied as Rachel bent down to pick up the mannequins and properly stand them up.
Blaine shuddered. "Yes. Monstrous things, they are."
"What?" Kurt asked, helping Blaine limping over to a bench so they could sit. "What do you mean?"
"Mannequins. They creep me out" Blaine gave a small smile.
"Why? They're just clothes models" Kurt said as Rachel went to see if she could find some ice for Blaine.
"They have no faces and that's creepy. Plus, when I was nine, Cooper had gotten a job at a small department store. One day, when I was there, he locked me in a dark storage room with a bunch of mannequins because he knew I disliked them and it was so dark that I knocked them all down and was in there for an hour, scared out of my mind. Needless to say, he got fired three days later and I got scarred for life" Blaine said, blushing a bit but shivering at the memory.
Kurt chuckled a bit and gave Blaine a sideways hug. "Aw, I'm sorry."
Blaine leaned into the embrace and sighed.
"First spiders and now mannequins. Why do I feel like Cooper is responsible for all your physiological issues?" Kurt asked, gently rocking Blaine back and forth.
Blaine lightly chuckled. "That's because he is. Stupid older brother."
Kurt kissed Blaine's head. "No matter. I still love you."
"Isn't that adorable" Rachel cooed as she came with an icepack wrapped in a plastic shopping bag. Blaine sat up a bit and turned his body so his twisted ankle was elevated on the bench and rested on the icepack and his back was towards Kurt, who simply wrapped his arms around Blaine's torso.
"Where did you find an icepack here in a clothing store?" Kurt asked and Blaine winced at the coldness.
Rachel smiled in a boasting way. "I told the cashier that an innocent shopper slipped in her store and has a twisted ankle and is in desperate need of an icepack. I think she felt bad that she gave me one from her own lunch pack, so we'll have to return it and it smells like leftover broccoli casserole."
"Thanks a lot Rachel" Blaine smiled at her.
"Yo Rach" Artie said, wheeling over to her. "Finn wants to know if- hey! What happened here?" Artie saw Blaine's foot.
"I slipped and twisted my foot" Blaine smiled meekly.
"Sucks" Artie frowned. "Luckily we'll be on our way home soon so your injury won't ruin anything."
"That's true" Blaine nodded. "Good timing, I suppose."
Five minutes later and several explanations from Blaine as to why he couldn't walk normally, New Directions were ready to leave the store.
Kurt helped Blaine up from the bench and Quinn ran and returned the ice pack to the cashier.
"Sorry about this" Blaine said as he leaned on Kurt and hobbled put of the store, several paces behind the others.
"It's okay. I don't mind at all" Kurt shook off the apology.
"Thank you" Blaine smiled.
Kurt smiled. "Lean on me, when you're not strong, and I'll be your friend. I'll help you carry on..." he sang in a low voice.
Blaine laughed.
"It's one forty nine" Mike alerted the group.
"We're leaving in like ten minutes" Finn said. "We might as well start heading back to the parking lot now."
"Yeah. It'll take us a while now that we have Cripple McHop-Along to deal with" Santana said.
"Oh, Santana. You're care and concern for my unfortunate injury is overwhelming" Blaine rolled his eyes.
"I care about you" Brittany beamed at Blaine. "And that's mostly because you remind me of the garden gnomes in my nanna's garden."
"Uh...thanks Brittany" Blaine have a half smile.
"I think this was a successful day of shopping" Rachel said, swinging her and Finn's joined hands between them.
"I guess so" Mercedes said. "Bittersweet, though."
"Very true" Tina nodded.
"Look" Rory said, pointing. "It's Mr. Schue and Ms. Pillsbury and Ms. Corcoran and Coach Beiste."
Sure enough, the four familiar adults were waiting by a small shop. They were sitting in the shade.
"Hello guys" Beiste said to the teens as they approached. "Have a fun time shopping?"
"Yeah" Sam nodded.
"That's good. So are you guys ready to- oh! Blaine, what happened?" Will asked, seeing him lean on Kurt and limp.
Blaine sighed as this was the eighth time explaining his mishap. "I slipped in a puddle and fell, twisting it."
"That's terrible" Shelby said. "Where did the puddle come from?"
Blaine shrugged. "No idea."
"Are you alright?" Will asked.
"Yeah."
"He's a trooper" Mercedes smiled.
"Super trooper!" Kurt and Rachel chimed together, referring to the hit Abba song.
"Well then, if you're all ready to go, let's get going" Will said, digging keys out of his pockets and twirling them on his finger.
A/N
Haaay Gleeks! Here is chapter 40. Wow, 40! I never dreamed I get this far! :D *highfives myself*.
Hope you liked this chapter! I had fun writing it! :)
Thanks to my faithful readers, I love you more than a druggie loves his drugs.