"Woah look at this!" Nicole picked up a beautiful amethyst cluster. The purple hue vividly contrasted her pale skin. Her facial expression quickly changed when she looked at the price tag. "Never mind." Antonia looked over smiling at the girl. The two had decided to go to the mall over the weekend. They thought they needed a little bit of therapy after a rough week. Nicole really needed to get away from everything and Antonia simply wanted to spend her money. They walked around the store looking at all the cute dream catchers and tarot cards. "Hey, Nicole. Do you believe in all this stuff?" Antonia peered over some special stacks of different cards. "Well, people have to believe in something. I mean it doesn't have to always be the same thing but as long as it makes you happy." She turned to look at some jewelry on the display rack. "Oh, Toni these are so cute!" Aventurine crystals dangled at the bottom of gold geometric-shaped hoops. "Those are nice." She grabbed them looking at the gems. The earrings felt like ice in her palm. "Yup it's got to be real," she thought to herself. She knew that the typical chain stores at the mall sometimes sold fake glass stones as real precious jewels. However, Antonia was really good at picking up what was real or not. She turned the box around to see the price. "Yeah… They are definitely real."

The two girls left the store empty handed but not until they went into the next place. "You wanna go in here?" Nicole pointed up at the sign smirking. It was Hot Topic and she knew Antonia couldn't resist. "Of course, doll. I wanna see what odd things they'll have this time." They walked in immediately greeted with warm smiles and plenty of compliments. The employee fold shirts stopped when they came in. "Oh my god! Your outfits are just so cute!" Nicole was wearing a pastel pink and yellow sweater with navy blue leggings. Her white fuzzy boots had gold buckles on the side. Her hair was tied into two French braids with little ribbons tied at the ends. Antonia was wearing a plaid green skirt with a black long-sleeve shirt. Her sheer tights were a teal blue that also was an accent color on her skirt and makeup. They walked around to what was currently popular. Antonia walked around making mental notes of the different items on display. Personally, she wasn't really feeling the vibe of the store. It had changed a lot since the first time she had ever gone. It seemed like the things she would usually go for aren't available. She thought that the jackets and dresses on the wall weren't even hot at all. She then grabbed a few accessories and approached the cashier. Nicole on the other hand grabbed several items. She had a collection of socks, a jacket with an intricate bug design, and a cute Pusheen plush. The cashier had sparked a conversation with Antonia, but she was then sidetracked by a group of girls that walked in. A group of tall girls walked in making fun of the different items in the store. They complained about how "ugly" the clothing was as well as messing around with the organized objects on the shelves. "The receipt is in the bag." The cashier handed the bag over and Antonia walked over to her best friend. Nicole was currently being flirted with by the boy with the green hair and snake bites. Antonia laughed at the jokes she made with Nicole but decided to step away and to give them space. She told Nicole she was going to wait for her outside. Walking out of the store, she took out her phone to look at the notifications that blew up and sat on the bench. It had gone off many times but she didn't pay attention to it. Then she saw the messages from Samuel.

R u busy later? Do you wanna call to work on the project

I can do around 8. Hope that's not too late

?

She looked at her screen for a moment and thought about what she was going to say before she responded.

Yeah that works for me!

I'm shopping anyways so I'll text you when I get home

Nicole looked at her and was interested as to why she was smiling at her phone. "Who are you texting?" She looked up, her smile slowly fading away. "Oh, Samuel just wanted to see when we could work on the project together." Nicole nodded and looked at the girl with a big grin. Antonia tried to stay serious, "Why are you looking at me like that?" She giggled walking away from her. The two had then decided that they wanted to eat a little snack. Eventually, they settled on sharing a cinnamon roll and getting their own bubble tea.

"Do you like him?"

Nicole finally asked her after a few minutes of talking. Antonia knew what exactly she was talking about but played dumb. "How do you mean?" She frowned and looked at her in the eyes. "Toni, you know who I'm talking about." Antonia tried to keep from laughing but failed miserably. Nicole was also chuckling but knew it was going to be a serious conversation. "Are you asking me if I like Samuel?" Nicole's face got serious as Toni's shifted around in her stool. The two were sitting next to a countertop shoulder to shoulder. "I don't think I like him. Like I don't know him that much so I can't really say. But I do think he's a cool mate. We have been getting along well…" Nicole smiled at her, taking her fork and cutting a piece of the cinnamon roll. "I'm sure you guys would make good friend if he continues to talk to you, but you have to be careful with him Antonia. I've seen him get violent in fights and he's always getting into problems with other people. I just don't want to get involved with the wrong group." Nicole put the dessert in her mouth and began chewing. Of course, Antonia heard her out. She in fact did see how he would get when things went south during class. He made sure to get people back when they did him dirty. It was something she would have to keep in mind every time they interacted. "I know, love. I don't really trust his friends since Jiya has told me a lot about what happened when they used to hang out. I'll make sure to keep my distance from him after the project is over. Ya' know? I just wanted to be nice since he asked me for the favor. And I'd feel bad if he failed a class if I knew he tried." Antonia was hoping Nicole would understand. It was in fact true. Samuel had put more effort into his classes since his graduation had been put on the line. And if she was in his footsteps, she would want someone else to do the same. She looked over to see what Nicole would respond with. The girl simply grabbed a napkin to wipe the frosting off her lip. "I know you're trying to be nice. And it was really generous that you decided to help him… but don't get upset when he turns your back on you. Samuel is not someone you would want to be friends with. He's is just trying to get something out the way and will probably pretend that you didn't work together after the project." Antonia took a deep breath looking at her tea. A droplet that collected from the condensation on the plastic cup slid down on the countertop. "I guess I was a bit afraid to tell him no. I didn't want to embarrass him or make him mad. It just seemed like he really wants to get a good grade and pass." She and Nicole made eye contact. Nicole had a smile on her face. She wasn't mad at Antiona. Not at all. She just wanted to look out for her and needed to make sure she wasn't going to make a stupid mistake. Antonia, however, was afraid that Nicole was going to say something harsh or make her feel bad for trying to help him out. "Antiona, I know you are just trying to help. That's why people like you. They know they can depend on you and might want to take advantage of that. Other people value that and want to make that person someone they can rely on. That's why you're my best friend. I'll always have your back and you'll always have mine." Antonia felt relieved that Nicole was hearing her out. She's right. They have each other's back. If Samuel does try to do something, her friends will also do anything to help her out. They won't let her down.

It was quiet for a little bit until Nicole brought up another important topic. "You know... I don't really trust Jiya." Antonia looked at her very confused. "Wait? How?" Nicole took a deep breath and raised her eyebrows. "When you mentioned Jiya, it kinda feels like she's leaving out details that she doesn't want to tell you about." Nicole grabbed the tea, moving the ice and boba inside the cupwith her straw. "What do you mean she doesn't want me to know? Not know what?" Antonia turned in her chair, full body facing Nicole. "She was like their ringleader. She was always planning how to get away with things. She's apparently been like that since she was little." Antonia didn't blink for a moment thinking that Jiya had never mentioned who was really in charge of their friend group. "When I moved from New York to here, I was already friends with Joesph and Karen. They also lived in New York but you already knew that. So, when Karen moved before everyone she ended up at the middle school Billy and Seymour, and like all those other guys were at. She got along with them really well, but she didn't like how they were always getting in trouble. Well since her uncle was a cop, she and Garth tried to see what they would do after school since there were always places getting vandalized and stolen community events. Richard and Victor always would see her stealing from the rich schools and the concession stands. Jiya was always sneaking out and was good at knowing when the corner stores would open and close." Nicole had completely put her drink and fork down. Her eyes were set on Antonia."She got really mad at Karen the day she lured them to her uncle and all got arrested. They usually let her off the hook sinceshe was "troubled" but that one time Jiya and her friends had to do community service. They were so mad that Karen did that but only Jiya knew that it was Karen who was behind on it. The other's thought that she had just cut them off one day." Antonia took all this in. She had so many questions but didn't know where to start. "Is that why Karen always seems hesitant to say some stuff unless its a few of us? But how did she end up with Wally if she was really good friends with Mikron and those mates?" Antonia pull the sleaves oncer her palms and put her hand in between her thighs. She was very conflicted on how someone would be friends with Joseph and Mal. Nicole shifted around in her chair, "It began with Wally." She snorted and rolled her eyes. "That flirt managed to get under her skin. You know he tried to connect with her by telling her he didn't have "real" parents. He doesn't talk to his biological parents. He was living with his Aunt Iris' but decided to seesome other family members and just stayed here since that summer. In January, they were officially together and she dropped them and it made a lot of issues. She all of a sudden stopped talking to then and they started to think she was like Karen. Angel was really mad because she would try to talk to her and Jiya would act as if they were strangers. I think she just gave up anyways. But yeah, that kind of sums it up." Antonia inhaled deeply. They sat there quietly again.

Antonia spent the next few minutes contemplating her friendship with Jiya. How did she even know if she's just trying to get them all back? Did Jiya actually see her as a friend or was she just some other classmate? "Jiya probably hates everyone in the group. But then again people can change, right?" She looked around the mall. She saw couples getting close to one another. Children were screaming with laughter. The food court smelled like burnt cheese and soy sauce. Shethen looked at Nicole who too felt a little awkward. Nicole had been wanting to tell her for a very long time. She just wanted to be aware but she knew Jiya was a completely different person than she was just last year. It was still very new to everyone. She looked at Antonia who was in her in thoughts. Soon, an old women walked in front of them. She was beathing heavy and used her cane to make her strides more swift. The old lady suddenly let a gas slip out and it was very loud. The two girls looked at each other saying nothing. Nicole shut her eyes tight and Antonia pressed her lips together. The girls laughed for a while until it died down. They began talking about how some old people lived carelessly beforeplanned out what other stores they wanted to go to.

Soon the girls were hopping around different makeup stores. They were getting the feel of what trends were going to be in for the holidays. Some stores were already decorated for the holidays and had Christmas sales starting. It was only November, and the excitement couldn't be contained. The girls looked at all the newly arrived pallets. They were too scared to touch the shadows, not wanting to ruin the powder. Using their imagination, they tried their best to see if it was worth wanting to by. Thankfully an employee came up to check on them and they were able to swatch the colors for them. Nicole was practically dying over one pallet as it glistened against the employee's olive skin. She was a great reference as she was able to indicate how the colors may look on different skin tones. She touched one of the shadows tapping Nicole's eyelid. The delicate formula felt like butter. Once the girls were done with their decisions they went to go buy their desired makeup. "You go ring up. I think I want to get something else." Nicole walked over to the cash register and made her purchase. Antonia quickly walked back to where they had been earlier. She grabbed the palette Nicole loved so much and knew it would be an amazing Christmas gift. She watched to see Nicole get ahead in line before moving back. She didn't want to get caught and ruin the surprise. The girl with pink hair then got a phone and headed towards the exit. She was totally out of sight of her gift. At the counter, Antonia was being hounded by other girls admiring her makeup. They kept pointing out the teal eyeshadow she was wearing. Of course, Antonia was flattered, face red like a tomato as the compliments piled on. When she left the entrance, she saw Nicole's face turn white. "What happened doll?" Nicole showed Antonia her recent call. It was Rachel. "She called me asking if I wanted to attend a girl's night next weekend." Antonia looked at her and then widened her eyes. "Oh! Kori messaged me yesterday night. So, they must be hosting it together. What did you tell her?" Nicole looked at her phone to see that there was a bunch of messages in her notification hub. "I told her I would let her know." Antonia looked at her not knowing how to respond. "Well, do you want to go? I mean if it's a girls' night Joseph won't be there." Nicole slowly panicked. She immediately began to imagine scenarios in which Joseph would walk in giving flowers to Rachel and not her. He would bring her food in another scenario, pulling her away from the group while Nicole ran away crying. Her face got red, and the girl began stuttering. "Oi. Snap out of it. If you don't want to go, we don't have to." Antonia gently rubbed her back and guided her down to the restrooms.

There was a long line outside one of the stores. "Woah. What's going on here?" Nicole was curious as to why a single store had been taped off and had a limitation on capacity. "OH MY GOD!" She walked up to the window, face against the glass. "Awww that's so cute! I want one!" A giant penguin plush was in the display. The brand new store was a Korean plushie shop, filled with limited edition items. "Ladies please step away from the window." An employee came up to gesturing to leave. Nicole looked at the line considering if she wanted to wait. Antonia then looked over and the record store was just a few shops down. "Hey. What if we come back here later? Do you just want to go somewhere else until the line goes down?" Nicole looked back at the penguin as they began walking. "Yeah, I guess. We can go to another store." Soon enough they were smelling candles and checking out different lotions. The girls were then giggling the whole time they were in the store at Spencer's. There really isn't much to give away as many people know what the store selling to its older customers. When Antonia and Nicole decided to stop being immature, they made their way to the record store.

Walking in, they were immediately greeted by a girl with purple hair. "Heeeey, Toni!" It was a girl named Elizabeth from her theater class. "Hi Liz. How are you?" Nicole looked around to see that the store was already covered in plastic snowflakes and red tinsel. "I'm good girl. Hey! The other day you were talking to me about some new wave bands and mentioned some albums. I saw some over there by the Christmas tree." The girl continued organizing the posters in the dividers. "Thanks, mate. I'll make sure to check 'em out." Antonia smiled at the girl and turned to face Nicole. However, her best friend was already hypnotized by the CD's on the tray labeled "New Releases" that couldn't be resisted. Nicole picked the case up looking at the cover. She liked how intricate the album covers could be. The artist really took their time to make sure that their buyers would be interested in picking up the music to sneak a quick tune. "Hi, Antonia." The goth turned around to see Angelita at the cash register. She was leaning on the counter looking around checking to see how the store was running. "Oh hi, Angel. I just now remembered you work here." Nicole too then turned to see the teen organizing the pins and stickers by the counter. "Yeah, I'm here after school all the time now but I thought why not work this weekend too." Angelita cupped her face looking at the girls. She was admiring Antonia at the moment. She was nothing more than her classmate. But Angelita really did want to be friends with her. She wanted the type of life the other girls at her school had. She wanted to have parents that cared and gave effort into making arelationshipwith their child. Antonia and Nicole were so much nicer compared to the other girls. "Why do they have to be friends with them?" Angelita thought to herself. Nicole put down the CD and then thought to herself. She looked at Angelita and asked, "I want to buy some music, but I don't even know where to begin?" Angelita ran from behind the counter and gave Nicole a history lesson on music.

Antonia decided she wanted to look for those albumsElizabeth was talking about. She picked a few to chose from but didn't know what to go with. "A Flock of Seagulls? I have this on CD. I don't need any more pop tunes… Lemme put this one back." She ended up having to choose between Depeche Mode and The Police. She really wanted to add to her collection for her record player. While she was very occupied with wanting to choose a vinyl, Samuel walked to the counter putting a box on the floor. His hair was down, slightly wavy, and damp from a shower earlier that afternoon. He made eye contact with Nicole but said nothing, turning right around and looking at the wall. Walking back to the storage room, he spotted Antonia holding both vinyls looking defeated. He smiled to himself grabbing a bubble envelope from the office desk. He opened it to reveal stickers of musicians, instruments, and popular band logos. He walked to the counter to refill a plastic container with the stickers. He then was tapped on the shoulder, excited he turned quickly. "What are you doing?" Dominic was looking at him tosee him organizing the magazines against the wall. "Oh... Hey mate...Taking inventory…" Dominiclooked at him weird but figured he was just trying to waste time. He made his way to the storage room walking from the counter, then noticed Antonia walking up to Nicole who was still looking at the CD's. He stopped in his tracks and returned behind the cash register. Samuel soon faced the boy with faded hair who was looking at him with a serious expression. "Wot? Did I do something?" The boy signed nothing, rolled his eyes, and went back to the office to return to his break.

"What should I get? I can't choose one but I really want both." She looked at the two vinyls Antonia was holding. She didn't know how to respond as she didn't recognize the band names or covers. "I don't know Toni. You might have to buy both before you go crazy." She giggled looking back at the CDs. "You're no help," Antonia responded sarcastically walking back to the vinyls. She then saw Elizabeth talking to Samuel near the entrance. Antonia kept moving forward and started to get nervous. She didn't know why but she couldn't help it. She felt her face grow warm as his voice got closer. She turned the vinyl pretending to look at the price tag to see Samuel in her view. There he was approaching the office door near the Christmas tree. He cocked his head to the side when they made eye contact and smiled. "Hey mate, what cha' looking at?" Antonia tried to play cool as if she wasn't waiting for him to say something first. "I'm having a hard time picking between albums." She looked at him hoping that it would get him to begin a conversation. He walked up to her grabbing the Depeche Mode vinyl. He took a quick glance and shook his finger at Antonia. "You're taking this one." He held on to the vinyl yet pointing to The Police. Antonia shifted her feet a bit and smiled, "Okay, Sting it is." Just as she was going to put the album under her arm, Samuel put his hand out to her."Oi, love. There's a special color vinyl one if you want me to grab it for you. It is more expensive but it's worth the price." She looked at the album then at Samuel. "I think I'm fine with this one mate." "It's really mint. The colors in it are to die for. You don't want to take a glance?" She got nervous shaking her head now. She actually wanted to look at it and knew it would have been spectacular. She just didn't want to be alone with Samuel."No, I think I'll stick with this one. Thanks."

She walked over to get in line behind a guy who was complaining about some band that replaced a singer. Nicole tapped on Antonia's arm with a CD case. She turned around to see Nicole holding up an Ace of Base album. "Oh, that's a good one." She nodded and responded to the goth, "I'm also getting this Lady Gaga one. I like the colors on this." Antonia and Nicole chatted in line until the guy was finally done making failed attempts to flirt with Angelita. Antonia put the item on the counter, "This is all you're getting?" Angelita looked surprised that it was the onlyitem Antonia was getting. Especially since she knew she could afford much more. She shrugged but smiled knowing she really was just trying to scope out the store. Samuel came back from the office, leaning on the glass eating a granola bar. He had a crooked smile where one dimple was visible on their side. "I personally would've bought both." Angelita rolled her eyes and joked, "Yeah you mean you would've taken both?" She pushed the buttons and the total came up. Antonia pulled out her card and slid it into the machine. Nicole looked at Samuel and noticed his position. His back was against them, elbows on the glass, baggy black cargo pants, and a usual ripped band tee. Expect his head was tilted ever so slightly where he would catch a good glimpse of Antonia from the corner of his eye. She grabbed her bag and moved so Nicole could get checked out. "I LOVE Lady Gaga! ARTPOP is literally her best album." Angelita squealed in excitement to see that Nicole made a good choice in her CD selections. The two began talking about the artist and Antonia tuned in. "My friend Johnny is having a concert." Samuel grabbed a mini flyer from the side of the other cashier register and showed Antonia. "He sings really well. It going to be at the L Street bar and it's only a five-dollar cover." She looked at it reading the details. It was going to be next weekend, the same day that the girl's night was supposed to be. She turned to Nicole who was also interested in seeing the show. She nodded at Antonia and the goth looked at Samuel. "We can try to go." He took her bag and slipped the paper inside along with a few stickers. "That's what I'm talking about!" Angelita shot him a nasty look knowing he was just trying to flirt with her. She didn't mind the flirting, she just didn't want those brand-new expensive stickers to be given out for free. Especially since she ordered them herself. "Alright I'll see you later." Antonia looked at him and the boy slightly blushed at her. "Call me when you get the chance to work on the project, love." Antonia waved to him goodbye as she and Nicole headed out the store.

"I think you like him," Nicole stated her opinion outside in the parking lot. Antonia looked at her confused. She was smiling at the goth, not at all did she look concerned. "And I think he likes you."