521 Mall Visi (2/2)

\”You do.\” Zeke said.

\”Yea, why not?\” Noah chipped in. \”Kyle's just being a jerk. You can't be a normal teen without a phone.\”

\”Kyle didn't mean it.\” Dave told me. \”He's just been going through something. You know how weird he's been.\”

I nodded slowly, accepting Dave's excuse for Kyle. He really had been 'off'.

I looked up at Mr. Atkins. \”I don't have any summer camps in mind, so you can give that money to Kyle so he can do his pitching camp. The one that he really wants to do.\”

\”What are we going to do then?\” Noah asked.

\”You don't have to do that Jake.\” Mr. Atkins told me. \”A budget is there for a reason. We can't just let everyone go and do what they want without knowing the consequences.\”

I shrugged. \”I'm just saying...I don't mind.\”

Mr. Atkins sighed. \”We'll have to talk more about this tomorrow. For now, hurry up and finish eating. Check your suits and then we'll hit the mall.\”

\”Do we really have to wear suits?\” Noah asked. \”Is a dress shirt good?\”

Mr. Atkins shook his head. \”You five will all wear suits. Formal wear. I'm talking slacks, belt, tie and jacket. The whole nine yards.\”

I gulped. I didn't have anything that formal. The best I did was wear Noah's hand-me-downs.

\”I probably have something for you.\” Noah told me, noticing my discomfort.

\”And I have something for you, Noah.\” Dave nodded. \”I was only a little taller than you my freshman year. Not as scrawny though.\”

And just like that, our Saturday morning was filled with closet digging, clothes searching, and constantly trying on what could fit. It took us hours to put something together with clothes constantly being passed around. Shortly before lunch we came up with a list of who still needed what.

Me-shoes

Noah-shoes

Kyle-shoes and belt

Zeke-shoes and jacket

Dave was the only one who had a full outfit with no problems. Meanwhile the rest of us didn't have the right shoes that Mr. Atkins requested. Zeke was able to give Dave his old ones, but the twins shoes were too big for me and Noah.

We piled up into the car and headed for the mall. It was rather quiet with Mr. Atkins still being upset with Kyle.

When we arrived at the mall, Kyle couldn't keep up the silent treatment. He sighed very loudly and looked down at me as we got out of the car. \”Jake. I know what I said was mean and uncalled for.\”

\”It's okay.\” I told him quickly, ready to ease the atmosphere.

\”No, it's not.\” Mr. Atkins came around from the driver's side. \”Kyle, what you said wasn't only wrong, but hurtful. I didn't raise you boys to be like that. I want to see more love, care, and compassion out of you. Understand?\”

\”Yes, sir.\” Kyle hung his head in shame.

\”You should ask for reparations.\” Noah whispered, just loud enough for the others to hear.

Zeke's face twitched and he cracked a smile.

Mr. Atkins sighed again. \”Noah, how do you even know what that is? Aren't you too young to be learning about these court terms?\”

\”You're never too young to know the law.\” Noah proclaimed proudly.

Mr. Atkins just shook his head.

\”What are reparations?\” Kyle asked, confused.

Dave rubber his two fingers against his thumb, the universal sign for money. \”Better hide that wallet.\”

Kyle looked offended. \”You would scam your own brother??\” He asked Noah.

Noah shrugged, looking harmless. \”It's not a scam. It's the most common way to make amends after you offend someone.\”

\”No one is paying anybody.\” Mr. Atkins waved his hands to break them up. \”This isn't a court of law. I'm the judge, jury, and prosecutor. Let's get a move on.\”