The conversation at dinner left me so overwhelmed and frustrated that the instant I was allowed to leave the table, I ran up the stairs to my room. Fighting the urge to slam the door, I shut myself inside, flopped on my bed, and screamed into my pillow. If that wasn’t bad enough, Dad came knocking on my door a few minutes later.

Even though his tone was not as stern as it was during dinner, his words hadn’t changed. 

“I know it seems like I’m being hard on you, but we do not go out of our way to just let you hang out at the mall. You have a job to do, Aqua. I don’t want you wasting your summer chasing after boys.”

I rolled over onto my back and draped an arm over my face. “Dad, how do I put this… it’s the mall. Half the people inside are my age. And it’s summer vacation. What am I supposed to do? Ignore everyone that wants to have a conversation with me? I’m there practically all day.”

Dad sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. “What’s this kid’s name anyway?”

Not this again. I told him and mom already. But I took a deep breath anyway and said, “His name is Sean Mori. And despite whatever Mom told you, I promise that he showers.”

Dad laughed, which eased my nerves a bit. I lowered my arm off my face so I could see him better.

“Just promise me this one thing,” said Dad. “Make this Sean take you out on a date before anything else. Then if he’s serious, we want to have him over for dinner one of these days.”

My dad was so old fashioned, but that was the best I could hope for from him.

I sat up on my bed and smiled a little. “Dad, I can’t make anyone take me out on a date.”

Without missing a beat, Dad started rattling off all the ways that I could.

Suddenly, my pager went off. I went to check it and instantly froze.

“Um. It’s Sean,” I said, glancing warily at Dad. “I never gave him the number to the house…”

I know that my puppy dog eyes were working because Dad made his grumpy tongue-click noise. He nodded at the pager and said, “I’m starting to regret that I gave you that thing.”

“Please, Dad? Can I send him our number? I promise we won’t be talking for long. And I’ll come right downstairs afterwards to do the dishes.”

It was definitely working. Dad’s defenses were starting to crumble. Finally, he groaned again and said, “Fifteen minutes, Aqua. I mean it.” 

I nearly threw the pager into the ceiling. “Yes!”

Soon our wireless landline was ringing and I was shoulder-checking my brother off of the path to answer it first.

“Xavier,” Dad called from the den, “let your sister answer the phone. Go finish your homework.”

Xavier rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out at me. I did the same and snatched the phone off the receiver. I didn’t start talking until I made it back up to the privacy of my room.

Sean and I both said “hi” at the same time. Then we said “what’s up”. Then “jinx”. There was suppressed nervous laughter on both ends. I had to find a way to get a grip and be normal around him.

“So anyway, do you like the movies?” Sean’s question took me completely by surprise. 

“Yeah, I do.”

“What kind? I don’t really have a preference.”

Wow. Sean was letting me pick out the movie. I knew he said he didn’t care either way, but I still felt like this was a test. Still, I tried to prioritize honesty over impressing him.

“I’m not that into romcoms or horror flicks.”

Sean snorted. “Okay, well that’s like half the stuff that’s out now.”

Quickly, I said, “I liked the Titanic when it was out.”

“So you’re into Oscar hopefuls, got it.”

We narrowed down our options and eventually settled on a film called The Staring Contest. None of us knew that much about it, but the trailers were all pretty cool and it was supposed to be based on a true story. Plus most of the movie was shot in black and white, so it would give a nice vintage feel in the theater.

We talked a little more after that. When I told Sean that I only had fifteen minutes on the phone, he said, “Parents put you on a time limit?”

I didn’t want to admit it, but, “Yeah, unfortunately.”

“Been there. Guess I’ll see you tomorrow, then. You alright with splitting the popcorn?” He suddenly apologized. “To eat, I mean. Not to buy. I’ll do that part. I mean… unless you don’t want popcorn or you really want to pay–”

“Whatever you want to grab at the concession stand, I’ll share it with you.” 

It was easy to be cool about Sean’s little hiccup when he couldn’t see how hard I was grinning on the other end. 

As we wrapped up our convo, I couldn’t help thinking how nice this was. Talking to Sean without having to bring up ghosts or haunted numbers. I did the dishes with a smile on my face and went to bed in a daydream. My mind kept recycling all of the things Sean and I would do and talk about on our date the next day. I had never kissed a boy in the darkness of a theater before, but that might all change.

Sean Mori. 

He might have been the center of all of the mall’s ghost stuff, but it was good to know that he could also be a normal teenager. Even better, he made me feel like I could be my normal self around him too.

***

Mom had already dropped me off in the parking lot and drove away before I saw the yellow tape wrapped around the main entrance of Ocean Park Mall. 

Not that many people came to the mall this early. It was mostly employees. It seems like all of us were huddled outside of the front. I found Elliot.

“What is this? Why are there cops here? Oh hey, Aqua.”

Apparently she had gotten there shortly before I had. There was murmuring all around us. The sky was gray. Rain was in the forecast. I really wanted to get inside before my hair got wet.

The palm trees punctuating the smooth entryway got blown back hard by the wind.

“I’m going to need everyone to move back!”

Security made the down-wave motion with their hands, trying to get us to comply. Police pulled out more tape to expand their territory.

“Aqua, look! Isn’t that–”

No. No, it couldn’t be.

Sean Mori was being walked out of the building by two cops. His hands were behind his back. Even from all the way in the parking lot, I could hear the rattling of the handcuffs.

“It is. It’s Sean. Jesus Christ.”

I wished Elliot would shut up. I wished I could look away.

“Does this mean the mall is closed?” Someone next to us asked.

Thunder struck directly overhead. The sky spilled its guts all over the parking lot.

Someone pulled out a megaphone. “Go home. Mall’s closed until further notice.”

“Hey!”

My skin jumped at the harshness of the policeman’s voice as he roughly guided Sean Mori to the parking lot.

“You have the right to remain silent!”

Most of Sean’s face was covered by his long hair. Through the gaps in his bangs, I caught snatches of his reaction to what was happening. I hardly recognized him like this. He looked so scared. Something told me that getting arrested wasn’t the thing that made the muscles in his face stretch like that.

“Oh, six, oh, eight…”

“Young man! You have the right–”

“Eight. Twenty-five!” 

Spittle sparked from Sean’s trembling lips as he repeated the numbers over and over again. He was still grinding them out when they put him in the back of the car.

What was happening?

“Aqua. Look!”

Elliot shook my shoulder and pointed out the gurney flying out of the entrance to the mall. There was a body bag lying across the top.

It didn’t seem empty to me.