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The sun shined through Mae's second story window bright and early, disrupting her sleep. She tossed and turned for a while, and was successful in getting extra sleep. But after a few hours she was fully awake. She couldn't postpone it anymore. She had to get up.
Trudging out of bed, she headed for her bathroom to take a warm shower. She rubbed her temples, looking at the gaunt reflection in her mirror. It was gonna be a long day.
She rubbed off some makeup from yesterday and washed herself from head to toe. Then she picked out an outfit for the day. She decided on some baggy Jean shorts and a cute strawberry top. She let her curls down today, only putting some leave in conditioner in her ends. She applied some mascara, lip balm, and then grabbed her worn out sneakers.
She didn't know what today consisted of. But she wasn't going to think about Connor today.
Mae made her way to her friend, Celeste, house. Celeste had been her friend for some years now. She only lived down the block in a nice stucco home with a beautiful German Shepard. The dog liked to bark though, which is why Mae didn't go near it too much. She always told Celeste the dog is going to annoy neighbors one day so bad that they will get it put down.
The girls headed over to the mall with some money Celeste's parents gave them.
Mae ran into the store called track records. It was a store selling old and new radio tapes, video recordings, and stationary. The store had a red glow theme to it. It attracted lots of people her age that were into indie music for some reason.
Mae's hands skimmed the smooth interior of a lot of the instruments. She stared in awe at the signed guitar by John lenon that hung on display. It was worth 50 thousand dollars.
When Mae was done there, the girls walked arm in arm to other stores. Celeste cracked jokes about panties at an underwear store and numerous sex toys making Mae blush.
The day was full of fun for the two.
But all good things must come to an end. Celeste's mom arrived in her yellow Volkswagen Beetle to pick up Celeste. Celeste stomped her shoes on the ground, whispering how bad she wanted to stay longer.
"You have T-Ball practice young lady." She said.
Celeste gave up her fight, waving bye to Mae and angrily getting inside the car. Mae was sure Celeste wasn't gonna call her later like usual, she'd probably be grounded. Or at practice. Which ever comes first.
Mae looked around the mall some more after her friend made her departure. She was alone walking in between crowds of people. Couples, families and friends groups passed her. She grabbed an auntie Annie's pretzel and lemonade and sat outside on the bench just as the mall was closing.
She ate her salty snack, watching everyone get picked up. Mae threw away her trash, took a last sip of her lemonade and threw that out too. Her small frame could be seen by passing vehicles walking along the sidewalk.
Harry was driving by when he saw the small girl trudging herself along. He stopped his car, pulled over, and slowly coasted to get to her. Mae turned, seeing Harry's reflection in the windshield. She turned her whole body, smiling.
"I'll give you a ride!" He yelled.
Mae hopped in the car and shut the door. Her legs would thank Harry for noticing her. Harry wanted to tell Mae she looked cute. But he refrained, thinking maybe it wouldn't be a good idea. She's still recovering from a breakup.
Harry and Mae arrived at her home where she felt most comfortable. They both walked inside the house. Mae went to the kitchen to get a water and she offered one to Harry too, who was standing in the living room looking at all the VHS tapes.
He almost laughed. He had the same case with video tapes too. Just not age appropriate video tapes.
"What's so funny" Mae said, taking a sip of her water. She looked so small standing so many feet away in another room practically, staring at him from far away.
Harry brushed his nose, having one hand in his pocket. "Its just that I have VHS tapes at my house too."
"Really." Mae said, her eyes lighting up as she set the glass down. Did he have Disney movies she could borrow? Did he have any he didn't want? She could use some new ones since all hers were all watched.
"Yes," he said, trailing off.
"Can I see them?" Mae asked.
"See them?" Harry responded, turning his head to look at the excited girl. She nodded her head. "Doll, I don't think you'd be able to handle what's on those tapes." He said, his eyes turning a darker shade of green. Mae could see it from where she was standing.
Harry walked towards the kitchen.
"What do you mean? Are they too inappropriate?" She asked, her voice getting quieter. Did Harry have those adult movies that she watched with Connor? Why would anyone want to watch nonsense like that, she wondered.
Harry walked closer to a confused looking Mae who was deep in thought. She still stood where she had been the entire time, watching Harry move closer to her. It was only now that she noticed how big he really was. He was tall, much taller. She noticed more features like the messy curls on his head, his rings were all different, and his sly smirk that lifted on each corner of his mouth.
"I could show you what's on the tapes if you'd like." Harry said, now almost chest to chest with her. His hands came up to grace Mae's cheek, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. Mae got goosebumps that ran down her arms.
"You can." She whispered, still unsure if he was talking about a Disney movie.
"Oh yes doll face, I can show you very well." He whispered darkly, a rasp clear in his voice as his eyes devoured her. He lusted after Mae. She was irresistible and he reached a point where he couldn't stop. He didn't want to either.
