Bonus 3: A Day at the Mall

It was the last week before the big battle royal at Devil’s Cove, Ferral and the others had been resting from all their intense training. On the final day, Ms. Clare had pitched the idea for the four to head out to the Central City Mall for a few hours while she and Mr. Buck prepared something special for them. She handed them each $40 to use, telling them to use it appropriately.

“Remember you guys,” she said, “be back here no later than four. We’ve still got that family photo shoot at five.”

Ferral joyfully nodded and said, “You got it, Ms. Clare!” Giving her a thumbs-up. “Bye!”

“Let’s get out of here!” Ezekiel exclaimed, heading out of the open window.

Leona hopped out next, followed by Ferral, and lastly by Belle. She dived out, her shoes accidentally hitting the window frame and cracking the glass.

Belle popped head up and chuckled, embarrassed. “Sorry, Ms. Clare,” she said, then turned to follow the others.

The side of Ms. Clare’s lips twitched; she let out a sigh. “I’m starting to think they just refuse to use the door.”

Mr. Buck laughed, patting her on the back. “Ahhh, let them have their fun,” he said, “kids are weird like that.”

The four made their way through the streets of Central City. It was quite a beautiful day. Blue skies with clouds drifting peacefully above. The sun provided the perfect amount of warmth. The city was bustling with life, cars moving smoothly through the streets while people walked along the sidewalks and through the streets, either heading to work or simply out for a stroll.

They stopped in front of the massive building, gazing in awe. The Central City Mall was the third largest building in the entire island, housing dozens after dozens of shops, arcades, and restaurants. The building itself was three stories, but it was wide. The four made their way inside, and a blast of cool air hit them in the back of the head as they walked through the sliding doors. There was so much to do, it was almost overwhelming.

“Woahhhh,” Ezekiel gasped, “this place is awesome!

“I’ve never been here yet,” Ferral said. “It’s so big.”

“We’re going to have so much fun!” Belle exclaimed. “Yeah!”

“Yeah!” Ferral added.

“Overstimulation!” Ezekiel shouted.

Before they would run off, Leona kicked Ferral, pinning him to the ground with her foot, and wrapped both her arms around the twins’ necks.

“Hold it, chuckleclucks!” she said. “We are in a public space, so we are expected to act civilized. That means don’t go running around and acting like idiots, idiots.”

A young man came up to the group. He looked greasy. “Can you step on me next?” He asked in a deep and sleazy voice.

Disgusted, Leona knocked him out with the back of her fist. “Get away from me, fucking creep.”

She had let go of Ezekiel to attack, the goat experiment looking back with an eyebrow raised. “Civilized, huh?” He commented, chuckling.

“Shut up and move,” Leona pushed him, then let go of Ferral and Belle.

They looked around the area, getting their bearings of the place. They had stopped by the water fountain that was in the middle of the mall on the first floor. Leona told the others that they would all split up, do whatever they wanted to do, and meet back at the fountain three. With that, they went their separate ways; Leona went to simply explore, while Ezekiel would be at the nearest or coolest arcade. Ferral and Belle stuck together. Well, Belle simply dragged Ferral along is a much better way of putting it.

“What should we do first, Ferral?” Belle asked. The two were wandering the second floor.

Ferral smiled and replied, “Food!”

Belle laughed, rolling her eyes. “I should’ve figured,” she said, jokingly. “Well, if we’re going to find a place to eat, then let’s…”

She stopped mid-sentence when one of the restaurants caught her attention. “Oh my gosh!” Belle exclaimed. “No way!” Her eyes lit up, and she grabbed Ferral by the back of his collar, pulling him along.

“Gah! Belle…you’re choking me!” Ferral said while his heels dragged on the floor.

They stopped in front of a colorful restaurant. Belle let go of Ferral; he gasped for air. Ferral turned around to see the place they had stopped, which was painted with bright reds, blues, and yellows. He recognized these colors and the text above the doors. This restaurant was themed after the Korean romance drama Belle watched. ‘My 1st’ is what it’s called; she made Ferral watch all six seasons of it, plus two movies.

“Do you see this Ferral?!” Belle said, shaking with excitement.

“Mmhm,” Ferral nodded, “Wonder what kind of food they got?”

“Let’s go inside!”

The two entered the restaurant. It smelled great. Ferral already started drooling. Belle was much less interested in the food but was awestruck by the aesthetic. They waited in line, looking up at the menu; many of the seats were filled with people, the majority the same age as the two. They’d be lucky if there was a table empty.

“So many options,” Belle said. “Wonder what we should get.”

Ferral examined the menu, then pointed at the screen on the far right. “Look there,” he said, “They’ve got a meal for two people for $60! We combine our two $40, ask for that big meal, and still have $20 left over. Math!”

Belle looked at the meal he was pointing to, nodding in agreement. “That sounds great! But…it’s a couple's meal, and we’re not a couple, Ferral.”

“That’s fine,” Ferral said. “We can fib a little.”

“You’re right. Let’s get it!”

The two ordered the meal, managing to grab a booth after another group of people left, and they waited for their food to be served. On the third floor, Leona strolled around, not really finding anything interesting. She took a look at some clothes and some weights. She began to wonder if this mall stuff was overhyped, but that was until she passed by a bakery. The smell of the sweets beckoned to her, and Leona backed up to look at the shop. She gazed at a sign for a multi-flavor cheesecake. Keeping a straight face, she wiped off her watering mouth and swiftly entered the shop. Much like Ferral, Leona had quite the appetite, but also carried a heavy sweet tooth. Especially for cakes.

The inside was clean and cute. A few tables with people trying various desserts and having either tea or coffee. Leona marched straight to the front counter and slammed her money down.

“I want what's on the sign,” She said, pointing toward the front window.

They gave her a pink box that had the cheesecake, and Leona left without another word. She sat on a bench with the box on her lap. She opened it to see the various flavored pieces. Leona took a gulp, picking up a strawberry piece and tossing the whole thing into her mouth. As she chewed, Leona let out a sigh, resting her head back.

“It’s so fucking good,” She said, her mouth full.

Ezekiel had spent all of his time on the second floor, in a big arcade. He was a master at all of the games, drawing lots of attention from people who were in awe. Meanwhile, Ferral and Belle finally had their food brought to them. There were six large plates filled with different meals. It didn’t take long for Ferral to start tearing through them, Belle having to smack him to slow down. He laughed and apologized.

“Hey, Ferral,” Belle said.

“Mn?”

“We should go to school together. You know, after all of this fight nonsense.”

Ferral nodded, swallowing some food he had in his mouth. “Yeah, that sounds awesome! We’ll get the same classes, I’ll study to be a biologist, and you’ll do whatever it is you want!”

Belle giggled. “I haven’t thought that far ahead yet,” she said. “I wanna be a writer, yeah, then I can make all sorts of romance stories.”

“Ouuu, a writer? Cool, I can’t wait to see them!”

“You’ll be the first to read them.”

Ferral took a drink of water and said, “Think of all the new friends we’ll make, too. Normal humans will think we’re so cool, I’m so excited.”

After their meal and once the time was around two-fifty, Ferral and Belle headed back to the fountain and waited for the others. Leona came walking over with a crushed pink box and a smile on her face. Ezekiel was walking beside her, carrying lots of prizes he won with his tickets. They left the mall and went back to Clare’s apartment. They swarmed her and Buck, going on about their time at the mall.

“Alright, kiddos,” Buck said, calming them down. “You can tell us more about it later. We’ve got a photo to take."

They agreed and went to take this family photo.