//------------------------------// // The Mall // Story: The Man & The Siren // by Oldtakufanboy //------------------------------// I woke up from the sun's rays beaming down onto my sleepy face. "Ughh…morning already?" I said as I gave out a stretch. I got up from the couch and headed over to the kitchen where I start making my breakfast. As I sat back onto the couch with my cereal bowl in hand, I grabbed the remote with my other hand and turned on the TV. "Good morning, folks, our top story is about a tragic accident involving a mother who was killed from sliding on the slippery road. It is said from witnesses that-" I switched it over to HBO, just because I can't stand those tragic stories. On HBO, they were playing Labyrinth; a great movie that came out from the 80s. "Who doesn't love this film." I said to myself as the opening credits finished while I began eating my cereal As fifteen minutes passed, I then heard my bedroom door creaking. Sonata must be awake. As Sonata came into the living room, she gave out a big yawn while stretching out her arms. "Good mornin', Jackie." she said groggily. "Good morning. Did you sleep well?" I asked. "I slept like a rock. Your bed was really comfy." she said as she rubbed her eyes. "Good to know." I said while giving her a smile. Sonata then walked over to me and sat down on my right watching the movie. She seemed confused, but I could tell that she liked the film judging by the way she never took her eyes off the screen. She then turned her head towards me with astonishment in her eyes. "What is this film? It looks really good," she said in a not-so groggily voice, but with the voice of astonishment. "It's called Labyrinth. It's about a girl that goes into this fantasy world to rescue her younger brother from the goblin king, Jared. If she doesn't make it in time, her little brother will turn into a goblin." I explained to her as her eyes lit up with amusement. "Ohhhhhh, this sounds like a good film," she said as she turned her head back towards the TV. "I never knew she would be into this film. I always thought girls would like watching newer stuff. Man, I really don't understand women." I thought to myself as I continued watching the film with her. The movie has ended and Sonata clapped her hands as if she was a little toddler that saw magic for the first time. "I can tell that you really liked it." I said to her as she finished her clapping. "I totally did. That was a good film," she said with a huge smile on her face. "Also, would you later tonight wanna wa-" I was cutoff when I heard the sound of grumbling coming from Sonata's stomach. "Hehe. I'm getting hungry," she said as she patted her stomach. "Would you like to get me you some breakfast?" I asked. "Sure, Jackie." "You stay here and I'll be right back with a bowl of cereal." I said to her as I got up from the couch with my empty breakfast bowl and headed into the kitchen to prepare Sonata's breakfast. I came back to the living room with a new bowl of rice crispies and handed it over to Sonata, along with a spoon. "Thank you, Jackie." she said as she gave me a cute smile. "Y-your welcome," I said as I sat down with a blush upon my face. Sonata slowly ate her cereal, while I flipped through the channels to find another movie to watch, only to find nothing good was on. "Might as well get ready." I thought as I stood up from the couch. "Where are you going?" asked Sonata as she gulped down her last bite. "I'm gonna take a shower. After my shower, I will take some clothes out for you to wear for the time being today and then it will be you who gets in the shower." I explained. "No prob. I'll stay in the living room while you get yourself cleaned." she replied as she got up from the couch and placed her bowl into the sink. "Okie dokie." I said as I went to my room to grab some clothes. As I got my clothes, I headed into the shower and got started cleaning myself up. As I got out, I headed back into my room to grab ahold of some clothes Sonata could wear for the day. I pulled out for her a long-sleeved ACDC shirt, black jeans, socks and an Aqua Teen Hunger Force jacket (It's winter and it's freakin' cold out there). After picking out her clothes, I walked back into the living room and handed over Sonata the clothing. "Here are the clothes you'll be wearing for the time being." I said as I sat down right beside her. "Thank you. You're so sweet." she said while giving me a smile that would make me blush. "Your w-welcome." I said as I looked away from her. "Ok, I'll be back in a bit." she said as she hopped over to the bathroom. "I think today will be fun…I hope." I thought to myself as I sat down on the couch with a little of nervousness,"I hope I'm not called a 'perv' when I go into the lingerie store with Sonata." Ten minutes have passed and Sonata came out into the living room holding up the pants with both of her hands. "Um, Jackie. Do you have a belt?" she asked. "I do," I said as I got up from the couch and walked over to my bedroom. As I grabbed a belt, I then grabbed ahold of my wallet, which was inside one of my drawers, including my iPhone and keys. I came back into the living room as I handed over the belt to Sonata, who snatched it from my hands and quickly tightened the belt around her waist. "Much better," said Sonata as she gave herself a twirl. "Good. Now let's head out to the mall." I said as I grabbed ahold of my now dried ACDC Jacket and walked over to the door to unlock it. "Ladies first," I said as I held the door open for her. "How gentlemanly of you." said as she passed by me standing in the middle of hall waiting for me. "Alrighty, the lights are off and now to lock the door." I said as I locked the door shut. "It's very nice of you to do this for me. You're a sweet guy." said Sonata from behind. "Thanks Sonata. I'll always be nice to you." I said as I ruffled her hair. Sonata gave me a smile as I retracted my hand. "All right. Let's go." I said as we both walked towards the elevator. As we made it to the parking garage, I pressed the button on my keys to figure out where my car was. It' been a while since I used my car. The last time I used it was two months ago when there was a sale going on at Rasputins. "There it is," I said as I pointed to the car with the taillights glow. As Sonata and I sat in, I started the engine and plugged my iPhone into the car to listen to my tunes. "Here Sonata, you can be my DJ and play some music." I said as I handed over my iPhone to her. "Really? Are you sure?" she asked. "Of course. In fact, you are my very first DJ. When my parents were still alive, they always asked me to play a song from the iPod. I always picked their favorites. Now, you, Sonata, will be my very first DJ." I said as Sonata's face began to flush. "It's…it's an honor." said Sonata as she turned on my iPhone and went to my music and flipped through it," Oh, this one!" she said as she played the song. My eyes lit up with surprise. "Sonata, you have a really good taste in music." I said as I began to drive out of the parking garage and heading over towards the mall. "We're here," I announced as I parked the car. Sonata and I unbuckled our seat belts and got out of the car, with my key in in my hand; I pressed the button on my keys and locked the car. "Ok, Sonata, let's go and get you some clothes." I said as I looked over to Sonata who was looking away from me while twirling her hair with her index finger. "Um…Jackie. Could I ask you something?" she asked. "Sure," I replied. Sonata's face went a little red as she looked up at me; I wonder what's up. "Could we…um…hold hands…if that's good with you." she said as her face got as red as a cherry. I walked up to her and slowly reached out for her left hand. The moment I softly grabbed ahold of her hand, she made a tiny little yelp. "You ok?" I asked. "N-no. I'm fine. Let's get going." she said as she dragged me towards the front doors of the mall. As we got in, Sonata let go of my hand and looked around the mall with awe. It was as if she's never been in a mall before. "Is this your first time at the mall?" I asked as Sonata, who was looking in through the window of a store," Sonata?" I asked again getting her attention. "Yes. I've never been here. Not even when I was with my sisters. This place is huge." said Sonata as she stretched out her arms, giving everyone their attention towards us. "Um, Sonata. Could you please calm down? People are staring." I whispered quietly as I walked over to her. "Sorry," she whispered back with a little blush. I turned back towards everyone, who went back to his or her business around the mall. "Come on, Sonata. Let's go the…" I gulped over what I was about to say," lingerie store." "Whazz a matta? Embarrassed to go into a lingerie store with me? Too bad. So sad. You have to-" I stopped her mid-sentence as I immediately grabbed ahold of her hand and marched over to wherever the hell the lingerie store is. "Come on, let's just get this part of my day over with." I said as I looked around the mall for a lingerie store. 5 minutes later... "Here it is," I said as I looked at the logo of the store as my body trembled,"God, I feel like a pervert if I enter this place." I thought to myself. "Victoria's Secret, huh? Why of all places here? It looks…risqué. Did you bring me here so that I can wear something sexy for you?" she teased me as she nudged me on the shoulder. "Let's just get in," I said with a blush on my face as I dragged Sonata into the store with me. As we entered, I notice that no women were giving me any looks at all…huh. I reached over to my left and grabbed ahold of a bag. "Well come on, Jackie. Let's browse around," said Sonata as she dragged me forward. For ten minutes we've been looking around the store and I've been feeling embarrassed the whole time. Five minutes ago, Sonata and I were around the panty area and I noticed two women looking at us. I then notice them whispered to one another, which I could guess they are saying something like, "Why's that guy here?" or "Ew, what a creep." I gave out a sigh. "I wanna get the hell out of this store," I thought as I waited near the dressing room area. "Done! I've tried them on. They fit perfectly. The bras too." said Sonata as she got out of the dressing room. "Good for you. Let's get out of here," I said as I grabbed ahold of both the bag with her undergarments and her hand. As we got to the line, I was getting quite a bit of stares from the women in front of Sonata and I. "What's wrong?" asked Sonata. "It seems that I'm becoming the eye candy of this place." I said as I kept my eyes in front of me without looking Sonata in the eye. "I guess you can't handle the pressure being here, huh?" said Sonata as se nudged me on my right shoulder. "Absolutely," I said quietly to myself. As we made it the cashier, she was giving us a rather confused look as she checked through the bag. "That'll be $40.91," said the cashier. I took out my wallet and handed her the money, including the change. "I'm sorry, sir, but may I ask what are you doing here? I've been hearing nothing, but rumors of a man and his girlfriend going around the store for about fifteen minutes." said the cashier as she cashed in the money and handed over the bag. "Ok, let me make myself perfectly clear to you and every woman in this store," I said as I turned around towards all of the women in line who were wondering from the start why I'm here," I'm not a pervert. I'm just here with my friend to get her some undergarments just because she's homeless and her sisters left her alone on the streets. I'm a nice guy willing to provide her food, shelter, and everything else for her to live." The women, the cashier and Sonata looked at me with surprise; Sonata came up to me and hugged my right arm and rested her hand on my shoulder with a tear coming down her left eye. I couldn't help, but pat her head. I turned back towards the cashier who looked as if she was about to cry. "Now you know, ciao." I said as me and Sonata walked out of the store. Sonata's arm has been wrapped around my right arm ever since we got out of Victoria's Secret. "Ok, now that we're done with that store, how about we go to Hot Topic. There are clothes over there that I know you'll love to see. It's been a while since the last time I went there. I wonder if there's anything new." I said as she and I walked down the escalator to our destination. As I looked over to Sonata, she had a bit of a flushed face, which was starting to remind me of that manga image my friend Blake showed me two weeks ago. "I wonder why she's blushing like that? I bet it must be because of what I said back over at Victoria's Secret. Well whatever, at least we're at our destination." I thought to myself as Sonata and I got off of the escalator. 2 minutes later... "Here we are," I announced as Sonata and I stood in front of Hot Topic. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go in," said Sonata as she gripped onto my hand and dragged me into the store. Inside the store, we looked around and saw quite some new things in stock; they had new buttons, new anime stuff, etc. "Welcome," said the cashier a feet away from us. "Let's go look at the pants," I said as Sonata and I headed over to the girl section of the store. "Oh! How about this?" said Sonata as she reached over to a pair of jeans that were dark blue. "Sure, remember that this shopping is all about you" I reminded her as I grabbed ahold of the pair of pants she wanted. "Oh ok, then I would also like this skirt as well," she said as she reached over to the anime stuff an found a Sailor Moon skirt. "Now, we need to get you some socks, shirts, and a jacket." I said as she and I walked down towards the socks. "Is their anything here that catches your interest?" I asked, as Sonata observed the socks, wondering which pair of socks would be good. "How about these?" she said as she took out a pair of Jack Skellington socks. "As you wish," I said as she hugged the socks with glee. "Now the shirts," I said as she and I walked over to the shirts. "See anything you like?" I asked. Sonata turned her head towards me and shook her head. "Nope. These shirts look too girly. How about those over there?" she said as she pointed over towards the rock band shirts, which were hanging at the area for men clothing. "You wanna wear a guy shirt? You sure about that?" "Hey, you said that this shopping is all about me right?" she said giving me a cute pouty look. "You're right, I did say that. Come on, let's see what they got." I said as we together walked over to the shirts. As we got there, there were so many good band shirts that I wondered which shirt or shirts caught her attention. "Oh, I like this one. It's one of my favorite bands that I listened to when I was back with my sisters," said Sonata as she grabbed ahold of a Gorillaz T-shirt with Noodle on the cover with Japanese words that meant 'DARE'. "I never knew she was into Gorillaz. I grew up with that band." I thought to myself. "Good choice, Sonata. I like your taste in music. I should let you know that I grew up listening to the Gorillaz. My favorite song by them is Feel Good Inc." Sonata's face lit up and she gave out an adorable squee. "That's also my favorite song by them." she said. Just then, speaking of Feel Good inc, the song began to play around the store. "OMG, the song is playing," said Sonata, as she got all giddy. I couldn't help, but let out a chuckle. "What a coincidence," I said to her. "I know," she said as she calmed herself down. "Anyway, back to clothes shopping. Find another shirt." I said. "Okie Dokie," she said as she looked around at the shirt designs. "This one looks cool. It's from that band called Led Zeppelin," said Sonata as she reached down to find the design of the shirt she saw. As she found it, she held it in front of me and it turned out to be the image from The Hermit. "Cool choice, Sonata. Now let's find a long sleeved shirt." "Sure," she said as she skipped over towards the anime section. I cocked an eyebrow. "Why would you want to go be around this area?" I asked. "I noticed this Orange long-sleeved shirt the moment we walked in and I was curious to know what it was." said Sonata as she grabbed the shirt and showed it to me, revealing that it was a Dragon Ball Z themed long-sleeved shirt. "You sure you want that? That seems like something a guy would wear." I said. "Of course I do. I remember seeing the Battle of The Gods movie down at the theater last year way before me and my sisters split up and came to your school." "Oh man, if Blake heard that, he'd instantly wanna be friends with her." I thought to myself. "Now all I need is to find a hoodie or a jacket." said Sonata as she walked over towards the hoodies and jackets. She scrolled through them till she stopped and held up a Metallica themed hoodie. "I'd like this one," she said as she turned over towards me, pointing at the hoodie. "Sold," I said as she hung the hoodie around her arm, along with the socks, pants, skirt and shirts. "Let us go to the cashier then." I said as I grabbed ahold of Sonata's free hand, along with my free hand. "Next please," said the Goth-looking cashier as Sonata placed the clothing on top of the counter. "Here you go," said Sonata after placing everything on the counter. "Find everything good?" asked the cashier. "We sure did," replied Sonata. "Okie dokie, that'll be $230.41" said the cashier. "Here you go," I said as I handed the cashier my debit card. "Will that be credit or debit?" "Debit, please." The cashier scanned my card and handed it back to me. "Here you go. Would you like a bag with that?" asked the cashier as she handed me the receipt. "Sure," I replied as the cashier placed the clothes inside the bag and handed it to me," Thank you." "Your welcome. Have a good day." "You too," said Sonata as she and I headed out the door. As we walked back towards the entrance, I heard a loud growl, which I could take a guess it's Sonata's stomach. "You hungry?" I asked as she and I stopped in our tracks. "Yep. We haven't even had lunch yet. What time is it?" asked Sonata. "Here, take this bag." I said as I handed over the Victoria's Secret bag. Sonata took the bag as I used my right hand to reach down into my right pocket for my iPhone. As I turned it on, it says 1:21 PM. "It's 1:21. Yeah, let's find a place to eat." I said as I put my iPhone back into my pocket. "How about there," said Sonata as she pointed over towards Taco Bell with little of drool coming down the corner of her mouth. "Sure, let's go get something to eat. I'm getting a bit hungry too." I said as she and I headed over towards Taco Bell. Inside Taco Bell, there weren't that many people. Odd, usually when I pass by, it's crowded. "What would you like?" I asked. "I'll have a…shredded chicken soft taco and a small coke, please." said Sonata as she pointed towards the menu. "All right. I'll go order and pay while you find us a place for us to sit. Here, take this as well." I said as I handed over the Hot Topic bag over to her. "Okie dokie, I'll be waiting for you." she said as she grabbed ahold of the bag with her other free arm and skipped over towards an empty two seat table. "Hello, welcome to Taco Bell, may I take your oder?" asked the friendly cashier with a smile upon her face. "Yes, please. My friend would like a shredded chicken soft taco and I'll have a cheesy potato burrito, along with two small drinks, please." "Ok, that'll be $7.56." said the cashier as I reached into my wallet and handed her eight dollars. "Here you go, forty-four cents is your change. We'll call you two up when it's ready." said the cashier as she handed me over the change and two small cups after I put away my wallet and put the change in my pocket. "Thank you," I replied as I grabbed ahold of the two small cups and walked over to the soda machine and poured cocoa cola in both cups. I placed a top and a straw in both the cups and walked over towards Sonata who was sitting down with a smile upon her face with the two bags on her lap. "Here you go. A coke as requested." I said as I handed over the cup to her. "Thank you very much," said Sonata as she grabbed ahold of the drink and took a sip of it. I sat down across from her and took a sip of mine. I couldn't help, but stare at her as she took another sip of her drink. "I can't believe this is happening. I never knew that I would ever be hanging out with Sonata like this. It seems as if we were on a date of sorts." I thought to myself as I felt my cheeks get a tad bit warm. Sonata placed her drink down and cocked an eyebrow at me. "What's wrong? Your cheeks are flushing?" asked Sonata. "It's nothing. I would like to say that I'm having a good day hanging out with you today, even though we haven't done anything fun." I replied. "Same here. It's fun hanging out with you too." said Sonata as she rested her head on her knuckles while taking another sip of her drink. "So, what would you like to do tomorrow? I don't have school till Monday thru Friday and I won't arrive home till 8 PM." I asked Sonata. Sonata raised her head and placed her index finger on her mouth, thinking about what we should do tomorrow. "How about a movie?" she asked. "Sure," I replied. Just then, we heard the speakers of the establishment call our number. "I'll be right back with the food." I said as I got up and headed over towards the counter. "Here you go, sir." said a worker as he handed over the tray with our food. "Thank you," I replied as I grabbed ahold of the tray and walked over towards Sonata. "Here we go. Dig in." I said as I handed over Sonata's shredded chicken soft taco. "Thank you," she said as she unwrapped her taco and took a bite out of it, which made her purr. "I guess you really like it." I said after taking a bite of my burrito. "I really do. Jackie, you are the best." she said with a face that reminds me of that screen cap that Blake showed me from an anime called Sekirei. "So cute," I thought to myself as I gave Sonata a smile," Anything for you, Sonata." I said, which made Sonata blush a little. "Aw, you're making me blush." said Sonata after taking a bite of her taco," Instead of being all 'lovey-dovey', how about we finish our lunch." "Sure," I said after taking a sip of my drink. "That was delicious," said Sonata as she threw away her wrapper. "Very," I said as I did the same as the both of us left the joint with both bags of clothing in my hands. 5 minutes later... "Um…Jackie?" said Sonata as she walked by my side with a little blush appearing on her face. "Yes?" I asked. "Can we do something like this again?" I couldn't help, but smile at her. "Sure. I wouldn't mind coming back here with you." I replied. Sonata gave me a smile as she hugged my right arm. "For realsies?" she asked. "For realsies," I replied. She hugged my right arm tighter as we made our way through the entrance doors. "I have to admit that today was a good day, even though all we did is look around for clothes." I thought to myself. I then began to feel my heart beating quicker than ever…. Strange. "Why is my heart beating so qui-" I was cutoff from my thought as Sonata pointed towards the car, which was twenty feet ahead. "There's where we parked. Good thing I remembered because of the Metallica sticker placed on the cars back window." she said as she retracted her arm. "Damn, she's cute," I thought as we stopped at the back of the car. "Ok, could you hold onto the bags, please." I said as I handed over the two bags. "Sure," she said as she grabbed ahold of the bags. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my keys. I pressed down onto one of the buttons and the back door automatically flipped open. "Ok, you can put them in," I said as Sonata placed both the bags into the car. I pressed onto the same button on my keys as the back door automatically closes. "All right, let's go home." I said as she gave me a nod. We both walked over to the front of the car as I pressed another button on my keys to unlock the doors. We hopped in and placed over our seat belts. I placed the keys into the ignition as the car began to come to life. I looked over to the clock, which said 1:51 PM. "What do you want to do when we get home?" asked Sonata, getting my attention. "I guess we can find something to watch on TV till the new episode of Parasyte comes on tonight." I said. "Oh, that show? How about we watch where we left off. I believe we're at the third episode." said Sonata as her face lit up with glee. "Sure. We can do that." I said as I gave her a smile, while going in reverse. We drove out of the parking lot, as I used my right hand to reach into my pocket and handed over my iPhone over to Sonata. "You know what to do," I said as she took my iPhone out of my free hand and connected it to the car's stereo. She flipped around through my songs and finally clicked on it. She played the song On Melancholy Hill. "Oh, this is a good choice. This one is my 3rd favorite by the Gorillaz." I said as I made a turn," Why play this?" I asked. "W-well… I just think it's a beautiful song. That's all," she said as she stared out the window as we drove past Sugarcube corner. "Not as beautiful as…well… never mind." I blushed. We had a somewhat awkward moment as the car became silent with the exception of the music. 35 minutes later… Jack's Apartment "Ok, go put those clothes away and- Oh shoot!" I said as I placed my hands on my face. "What's wrong?" asked Sonata as she set the bag of clothing onto the kitchen counter. "I forgot to get you some PJs!" I said as I sat down on the couch," Shit! I'm such an idiot! I totally forgot to-" I was cutoff as Sonata ruffled with my hair. "Don't freak out. I wouldn't mind wearing some of your night clothing till you get enough money. I can wait." said Sonata as she retracted her hand from my head while giving me a smile. "O-oh, well then, ok." I said as I began to feel calmer. "How about we continue from where we left off on Parasyte? I want to know what happens next till the next episode is on later tonight." she said as she sat down on my left. "Ok. Also, what would you like for dinner tonight?" I asked. "How about I make you dinner tonight?" asked Sonata. "You can cook?" "I can. For realsies. Before I met you when I was still living with my sisters, I know how to make beef stroganoff, a grilled cheese sandwich, and a few more other things." "Wow, I didn't know that." "Because you have been so kind to me, I want to make it up to you by making you dinner." she said as she patted my back. "Well, ok ok then. Cooking is on you tonight." I said. Sonata jumped onto me and hugged me tightly. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I promise that I won't disappoint you." she said as she broke the hug. "You welcome…Sonie." I said as I grabbed ahold of the remote and turned on the latest episode of Parasyte.