Peace and Rock'n'Roll

[Redeim]

Mali glanced at the shirts hanging on the rack with little care. How could a place as nice as Bloomingdale's have such horrible t-shirts? He thought to himself. He was hoping his eldest brother was working so he could get a discount. Smiling, he found the gem hidden among all the rocks. It was a jacket and shirt combo he wouldn't expect to find in a place like Bloomingdale's. He smiled, taking it and bounding up to the cash register.
"No," Enzo replied simply from across the counter.
Mali made a face, "pas de plaisir (no fun)."
Enzo raised an eyebrow, "Do you have the money for that?"
"Employee family discount?" Mali tried, gritting his teeth at his brother.
Enzo shook his head. "Put it back, Mali."
Mali groaned, returning the shirt to it's original place, then going outside the store, people watching.
Enzo wandered behind him, pretending to check something at the front of the store. "If you want it so bad, why not try to get a job? You're old enough and our green cards are on their way." He suggested.
Mali made a face, "The last thing I want is a job, frère aîné (older brother)."
Enzo began walking back into the store, "It's up to you." He replied simply.
Mali crossed his arms, now feeling a little more grumpy as he watched the people pass.

[ivanatemps]

Helen smiled as she walked out Aeropostal with a new jacket. She looked in the bag and pulled the tag off, slipping her new orange hoodie on over the light blue tank top she was wearing, and crumpling up the bag. She stuffed the bag into the back pocket of her jeans and headed over to a soda machine nearby. She grabbed her change out of her pocket and put it in, thinking for a moment before pushing the button for Pepsi. When it rolled out at the bottom she leaned over and picked it up twisting the cap slightly to let the pressure out. She unscrewed the cap as she turned around and looked for a trash can to discard the bag into. She spotted one next to the entrance to Bloomingdales and shrugged, replacing the cap on her soda as she walked over to it. She reach into her pocket and pulled the empty bag out, tossing it in the trash can. Having completed her current task she turned to look fo her next destination, instead she ended up walking into someone. She looked at the boy and started mubbling her apology "Oh, sorry. I didn't see you there. And I'm really clumsy, and I wasn't paying attention, and..." She bit her lip when she realized that she was rambling. "Sorry."

[Redeim]

Mali raised an eyebrow as an amused smile formed on his face, "You must be... considering I wasn't moving." He told her, not trying being rude, just playful. He uncrossed his arms, instead putting them into his pockets.

[ivanatemps]

Helen nervously started to push her hair behind her ear but stopped herself and dropped her hand. "Yeah, sorry. Again." She started fiddling with the cap of her bottle, not knowing what else to say. "Uh, well...Er, I'm Helen." She held out her hand.

[Redeim]

Mali giggled softly, extending his hand, "I'm Mali, nice to meet you." He told her with a smile. "And don't worry about it, I'm fine." He assured her.

[ivanatemps]

Helen shook his hand and then stuff her own in the pocket of her hoodie. "That's an interesting name." She smiled a little. "I've never heard it before."

[Redeim]

Mali smiled, standing up straight. "Oh yeah, I'm half Thai." He told her. "My mom named me." He explained, not daring to tell her his mother was expecting a girl, and "Mali" actually meant "flower" in Thai.

[ivanatemps]

"Oh, cool." Helen nods but her smile fades, thinking of her own mother who died when she was three.

[Redeim]

Mali noticed her smile fade and a look of concerned crossed over his face. "Did I... Did I say something to offend you?" He asked her worriedly, not wanting to lose a friend before they were even officially friends.

[ivanatemps]

Helen looked at him and shook her head "Oh, no, it's just...well I never really knew my mother. She died when I was three." She shrugged and smiled again "Anyways, so what does Mali mean?"

[Redeim]

Mali was about to apologize again, only to start sputtering as she asked what his name meant. "I uh... I don't remember." He lied, somewhat ashamed of his name meaning.

[ivanatemps]

"Oh" She absent-mindedly tapped the side of her bottle and thought of a question to ask just so she'd be able to keep talking to him "So why are you here at the mall?"

[Redeim]

Mali pointed in the general direction of the Bloomingdale's. "My older brother works here." He told her simply. He shrugged, "And I was trying to get a discount from him." He joked lightly, showing her a toothy smile.