I woke up this morning to the smell of bacon creeping in my room. I felt a rush of excitement knowing this scent only fills the house before my mother goes to work. I had plans today to go to the mall but with my mom working I know she's gonna rope me into watching my little sister. I really want to hang out with my boyfriend today, Mikey. We’ve been together for six months now but we haven’t yet met each other's family. We decided having family involved in the relationship would add unnecessary pressure. Hanging out has always been a challenge. I'll usually say I’m going to a friend’s. Even then though my mom still won’t allow me to go sometimes.

Sitting up, I see the sun peeking through my window. I hear my mother call my name meaning it's time to go downstairs and see what the day will hold. “Good morning mom,”.

 “Good Morning Julia! I have to work today so I need you to stay and watch your sister.”  my mom says back while buttering her toast. “I can’t today mom, I have to go to Jenna’s and work on our science fair project. It's due on Monday.” I say fast trying to leave the room before she has time to fight me on it. “No Julia, I’m asking you to watch your sister today. That is what you'll’’ be doing.” 

Looks like there isn’t getting out of watching Lucy. I walk to my room texting Mikey to let him know I’m not gonna be able to attend our mall date. He texts me back almost immediately and gives me an idea. It may not be a great Idea but it definitely is an idea. He says Lucy should come to the mall with you. “Lucy come here,” I scream. Lucy scurries up the stairs and bursts into my room. “Would you wanna bring a friend to the mall today and shop for a while?” I ask her unenthusiastically. She considers for a moment before she responds. “ I want to, but all of my friends are busy today. Maybe we could just go?’,” 

“Okay, be ready in two hours.” I respond

Two hours have passed and I’m wearing my favorite jeans as Lucy and I walk into the mall. I text Mikey to meet me by Pandora. I took Lucy to the play pace and slipped out without her noticing. Now I stand at Pandora waiting for Mikey.  “Hi Mikey!” I exclaim when I finally see him. “Hi Julia!” he responds. I let him know Lucy’s at the play place by herself, meaning I'm only comfortable hanging out for 20 minutes or so. He insisted we start shopping and don't waste our time together. We walk into Pandora and begin to browse. I don’t see anything that catches my eye until I spot a silver necklace with a heart pendent on it. I look at it for a bit longer and ask the sales clerk If i'm able to try it on. Seeing it on myself made me want it even more but I knew it was expensive. I tell Mikey I'm ready to go. “Why don’t you go get Lucy and I'll meet back up with you in a few?” Mikey asks.  I agreed because Lucy had already been left alone for about 15 minutes.

As I strolled back towards Pandora, with Lucy, I heard a blaring alarm start to fill the mall. I've never heard this sound before and wasn’t sure what to do. I continued walking towards Pandora hoping Mikey would know what to do. As I inch closer to the store I see a guard cuffing Mikey and I feel a wave of panic run through my body. Mikey tries to explain himself but the guard proceeds to tell me Mikey was caught trying to steal the necklace and due to its price of $500 they will have to call the police. This made my stomach drop. I knew my mom was working today and there was a high chance of her responding to this call. What will my mom think when she realizes my boyfriend is the mall thief? Before I can finish these thoughts of panic I turn around to see my mother coming. I see my mother glare at me as she notices I'm lingering around the teenage boy being arrested.  I take a deep breath unsure of what is about to happen and casually greet my mom. “Hi mom. I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here,” I don’t even have time to explain before she becomes furious and redirects me away from the situation until she's ready to talk to me.  

Finally my mom strolls over to me and stands silently before she says “So that’s your boyfriend?”  I'm embarrassed by this as I didn’t want them to meet this way so instead of replying I just stare down at my feet. “Julia, I’m not mad you have a boyfriend but I am mad you didn’t tell me you were bringing Lucy to the mall.” Still having nothing to say I peek past mom to see Mikey uncuffed chatting with the workers. Feeling calmer knowing he's okay I say “Mom, I am sorry for not telling you about Mikey and for bringing Lucy to the mall. I never wanted you to meet Mikey like this. This is not who he is,”. Mikey suddenly appears next to my mom and gives me a warm smile. My mom silently let me know I’m not off the hook before turning to him and asking If he has time for lunch with us. I immediately loosen up as I realize I should’ve just told my mom about Mikey from the beginning.