Captivated by shadows [h.s.]

13.

"What are we doing in a mall?" I ask as we walk through the large sliding doors.

Niall shrugs his shoulders. "There's a lot to discover here. What did you use to do with your friends in a mall?" he asks a counter-question,

"Oh well, I haven't been out with friends that much." I mumble, looking down at my feet.

"Why not?" he asks, perplexed.

"I don't know, I've never really felt comfortable in places like this. There are people everywhere who are just waiting to judge you."

"What would anyone judge you for?" he looks at me, amused.

"I don't know, maybe for my clothes." He stopped abruptly.

"You think people judge you for the way you dress?" I nod. "Why should others care about how you dress?"

"I know, it's stupid." I look down at my shoes, embarrassed.

I should learn to shut my mouth.

"Excuse me?" I could hear Niall say, which made me look up again. He walked over to an older man sitting on a bench. "What do you think of my friend's outfit?"

My eyes widened. "Niall, what are you doing?" I look at him in horror.

"Her what?" asks the older man.

"Her clothes. What do you think she looks like?"

Oh God, is this really happening?

The older man now looks at me and scans me from top to bottom, while I give him an apologetic look. "I like it," he says after a few seconds.

"What exactly do you like about it?" Niall asks another question.

"Oh God, no Niall, that's enough." I walked towards the two of them, pulling him along with me by his arm. "Sorry to bother you and thank you," I called over my shoulder to the man before turning the next corner with Niall in tow. "Are you crazy?"

"So he liked your outfit." he started laughing as we walked side by side again.

"You can't just approach random strangers and ask them what they think of my outfit," I say, shaking my head.

"Yes, I can. Shall I prove it to you?"

"No!" I say a little louder than I intended, whereupon some people turn their heads in our direction.

I am ashamed of myself.

"Take it easy, angel. What's going to happen?"

"Nothing, but we don't need to draw all the attention to ourselves. There are too many people here. It's exhausting enough without everyone paying attention to us," I could hear him sighing next to me.

"Do you like any of it?" he asks me, to which I turn my head towards him.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"The rings," he points to the shop window, in front of which I had stopped without even noticing. "You wear a lot of rings, do you like any of them?"

"Oh, no, it's all right, I just wanted to have a look." He rolls his eyes and reaches for my hand.

"Now don't be such a pain in the arse." He pulls me into the shop by my hand.

"Niall, please stop," I whisper, but he ignores me.

It couldn't get any worse

"Hello, would you mind if we had a look at some rings on display in the shop window?" He asks a cashier standing behind the till.