New News 2 You

Mall Nights

By: Summer

Chapter One

BAM!

“Wake up,brats!!! Time for SCHOOL!” My Mom screeched as she trudged through our closet-sized hall. I would never get used to waking up to that damp,rotten smell of our new house. Well not really. New would be the OPPOSITE of our house. More like old and rotting. When we bought this two years ago, Dad had been away for six months. And not at a vacation. He was fighting evil terrorists and crazed Iraqians and all that and he still will be for six years. Even worse, my Mom is the meanest person you could ever meet. Without him and our giant house, she just cannot control her temper, I guess. But this was kind of rediculous.

“Hey. How are you?” My sister Lindsay was awake. She was 11, and I am 16. You’d think we wouldn’t get along, but with Mom the way she is we kind of have to. Arguing would make Mom even worse, and then we would have no one to support each other. That would totally suck. And I know Lindsay needs a shoulder to cry on sometimes. Sometimes the roles even reverse. So we need each other. Like when Mom slapped me clean across the face. And it hurt.

“I’m good. You?” I asked.

“I’m fine, but you know, Mom is the normal.”

“Yeah,” I agreed. Oh wait! I forgot to tell you my name. I’m Jake Greenfield.

Chapter 2
When I didn’t find Lindsay at home after school, I panicked. Mom wasn’t home. She was at a friend’s house, and probably gambling and betting the little money we have.

“Lindsay? Where are you?” I asked. I checked in the kitchen, the living room, and both bedrooms. She was nowhere to be found. Then I thought of something. She probably was walking home. Our house was fairly close to our school, so whenever we don’t feel like taking the bus, we walk home. I convinced myself that she was fine and that I didn’t have to worry. Why should I?

After an hour of waiting, no one was home. That never happened! With our house phone, I called some kids that were in Lindsay’s class. All of them said that she took the bus. WTH?

Then, once again, I remembered something.

” Wouldn’t it be great to run away?Like so we didn’t have to be around mom? I know it sounds mean, but she really has problems,” Lindsay said about a week ago. I knew how logical it was. Since mom is abusing us, if we ran away she wouldn’t get in trouble with the cops because we wouldn’t be there anymore, and we are free of her. But still….

Well now when I think about it, Lindsay was hiding a full suitcase in her closet. Why didn’t I ask about it? I looked in her closet. It was gone. Okay, don’t panic, Jake. I thought to myself. Now. What is Lindsay’s favorite place in the whole, wide world???That’s where she probably went.

The mall.

Chapter 3

I was taking the bus with some money I dug out of my wallet. Now I only had a couple of coins. Anyway, when I arrived at the mall , I gazed in shock. We never go to the mall. I mean, I was there a lot with mom and dad in the old days, and a couple times with my friends recently, but dang! It was huge! I usually think out my plans. But there was one flaw, the people. Soooo many people! I think I never realized how many people had money to lose. So how would I find Lindsay in this crowd???

We didn’t have cellphones. Or location devices built into us. So knowing girls, I looked in all of the clothing stores first, then all of the jewelry stores, then all of the toy stores. I looked in all of the stores in the whole mall. Once. Twice. Three times. By that time, the cherry- red sun was setting, and I was hopeless. How would I get home? I couldn’t take te bus because I couldn’t buy the eight dollar ticket, I definatly couldn’t walk, and hitch hiking is something I will never do. And I couldn’t leave Lindsay alone. I was walking out of the mall, thinking about where I would sleep tonight, when I saw a girl with brown hair, lots of freckles, and green eyes. She was wearing a worn out Yankees cap and sitting on a towel by the doorway of the mall. LINDSAY!