Megan and her genie made it to the mall just before noon. She had to admit, it was kind of weird to see him in normal clothes. She tried not to stare, but it was surprisingly kind of hard. She just couldn't help but think how normal he looked – almost like a real person.
Of course, the arcade was on the far side of the mall, but Megan didn't mind – it wasn't like she was in a big hurry. They walked slowly from one end to the other, checking out the window displays as they went. The genie had a kind of wide-eyed look as they walked.
"Are you ok?" Megan asked him finally.
"What was that?" he asked, tearing his eyes away from a group of preschoolers running around the play area.
"You just seem pretty excited considering we haven't actually done anything yet."
"I'm just looking." he shrugged. "I've never been to a place like this."
"Really?" she asked. How could he have never been to a mall before?
"Most people wouldn't take me here." he told her flatly.
"I can see that." she nodded.
The only reason she'd brought him along was because all her friends were still in school. She almost felt guilty about that, and she found herself vaguely wondering if maybe she should offer to take him out sometimes. But then, she'd already said he could go out when she wasn't there, didn't she?
"So what kinds of things do you like to do?" Megan asked without really thinking.
"What?" He stopped and turned to stare at her.
"Oh..." Megan started.
She was about to apologize to him; he probably didn't have any hobbies, did he? But he didn't seem to notice her sudden discomfort.
"I don't think anyone's ever asked me that before. At least, not in a long time."
"So, I guess you're not a big fan of video games then?" Megan tried not to get her hopes up on such a long shot.
"I don't know – depends on the game, I guess."
"Really? You know what those are?"
Megan had been trying to think of a way to explain the concept to someone who was probably way older than her great-grandparents. The idea had seemed pretty hopeless.
"Yeah. PlayStation, right?" he nodded. "Idiots wish for them."
"Oh..."
"Well, one idiot." he amended.
He seemed suddenly nervous, like he hadn't actually meant to say that. He quickly added, "Not that everybody's an idiot. Just some."
"Well, that would be a dumb thing to wish for anyway." Megan said, thinking. "I mean, why not just wish for a million dollars or something? Then use part of that to buy your own."
The genie actually laughed. It was the first time he'd sounded even remotely happy about anything since she met him. Megan had to admit, it was surprisingly reassuring; at least it meant he could lighten up once in a while
"That's what I'd do anyway." she shrugged. "At least you get more out of it."
"I would too."
"Yeah?"
It never occurred to her that he might have an opinion on that kind of thing. Well, she guessed he did have to listen to a ton of bad wishes.
"So, what's the worst wish you've ever heard?" she asked.
YOU ARE READING
Nobody Likes Megan McGowen
Teen FictionHaving a genie is always complicated. Bringing him to school makes everything worse. Nothing ever seems to go Megan's way; she doesn't have that many friends, she's late for everything, and she's barely passing her classes. It seems like she's doing...
