We managed to finish all of our shopping; Olivia even found some clothes for herself. She stopped at Victoria’s Secret, and picked up a few cute bras and underwear that I couldn’t wait to see on her.
I gave a donation and got my gifts all wrapped, and they did an excellent job; I would have never been able to wrap anything half as well as they did.
We put our purchases in the back of her dad’s car and went back into the mall to stop at the food court for lunch.
I grabbed a foot long sub, and Olivia found the healthiest possible thing in the entire mall; some kind of noodle and vegetable Thai soup. I was sure it was a vegetarian dish, if not entirely vegan. Instead of a soda, she got herself a fruit smoothie.
I watched in amazement as she somehow managed to eat this noodle soup with chopsticks expertly, like she used them every day.
“What?” She asked, laughing. “You’re staring at me like you’ve never seen me eat before.” She protested.
I shrugged. “I’ve never seen anyone eat soup with chopsticks before.”
Olivia laughed. “Well, you don’t really eat the liquid in this dish. Once I eat the noodles and broccoli and everything I’m pretty much full. This is delicious. You should try it.” She offered.
“No, thanks. It looks like something from the x-files.”
Olivia laughed, glancing down at her bowl. “It’s a heck of a lot healthier than your meat filled murder sandwich.” She challenged, pointing her chopsticks at my sandwich.
“Alright, I’ll try your lunch if you try mine.” I offered.
Olivia shook her head. “You’re terrible.”
I smirked. “But you love me anyway, right?”
Olivia laughed sweetly. “Yes, you’re very lucky.”
“No kidding.” I chuckled. “Not many girls would haul me into a dressing room and molest me.” I smirked.
Olivia’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open. “She gaped at me in disbelief for a moment, then grinned. “Yes, and that might be the last time I do that for a while.”
“Aww… that’s so unfair!” I protested.
Olivia laughed sweetly. “Okay, maybe we’ll see.” She mused.
I grinned, satisfied with that answer. “So what are we doing after this?”
“I don’t know. What time are we supposed to be at your house for dinner?”
I shrugged. “Whenever. My mom wants you to help her cook, so…”
“Okay, so three or four maybe?” Olivia offered. “It’s one now… maybe we could take a drive to my dad’s place? I’d like to change…”
I frowned. “Why? What’s wrong with what you have on?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Well, I don’t know how appropriate it is for meeting your family. I need to make a good impression.”
I frowned deeper. “Why?”
Olivia laughed. “Well, I want them to like me.”
“I don’t understand why.” I shrugged. “I’m their kid and they hate me.” I laughed.
“Isaac,” She scolded lightly. “I’m sure that is the furthest from the truth.” She insisted.
“Not really.” I mused. “You’ll see when you meet them. But if you want to stop at your place I’m cool with that. It’s been a while since I’ve been to the Phil Tower. That’s if they’ll even let me in. Security might stop me at the door and kick me off the property.”
A worried expression crossed Olivia’s face. “What does that mean?”
“I might have gotten really drunk and really stoned and thought it would be a good idea to sneak out onto the roof and trip out to the city lights.” I shrugged lightly.
“Oh my.” She mused.
“There isn’t really a place we could go in this city where I haven’t been in trouble in.”
“Okay, well I guess that’s good to know. At least I can be prepared for when the Tulsa police swarm us and try to charge me as an accomplice.” I knew she was kidding, but there was probably a hint of truth, or at least some truth about the part concerning the Tulsa Police Department. The TPD had been out to get me all year, or at least some members were.
I thought it might be best if I didn’t say anything, so I took a long drink from my coke instead. I was sure that anything I could possibly say would incriminate me.
I watched Olivia eat her noodle and vegetable mush and ate my sub in a series of huge, ravenous bites.
I waited for her to finish, before I stood and helped her with her jacket. I shoved my arms into my own leather coat and brought our trays to the garbage can.
Olivia looped her arm through mine. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course.” I answered.
She laid her head on my shoulder as we walked toward the car. “Is it hard?”
I frowned. For a brief moment, I thought she was asking something entirely different. Then I remembered Olivia wouldn’t have been so forward.
“I mean, is it hard not to fall back into your old patterns? I mean, you were drinking and doing drugs for so long, it must be hard to deal with the temptation.”
I drew in a deep breath. “Yeah, it is. Especially being at home and knowing everyone is watching me so carefully and just waiting for me to make a mistake… sometimes it’s all I can think about. I mean, I always think that if I could just have one drink to take the edge off, everything would be a lot easier, but I could never just stop at one. Christmas is especially hard. There’s just something about this time of year that makes all the cravings resurface. I think it’s because the holidays are supposed to be for families to be together and I’ve never felt like I belong in mine. I always feel like I’m standing on the sidelines of my own family, you know? They’re so perfect all the time, and I’m the only one who’s ever made a mistake. Or at least a mistake that can’t be fixed or taken back, you know?”
Olivia’s expression changed to worry. “I’m sure that’s not true.”
“It is. You’ll see today when you meet them.” I insisted.
“I’m sorry I brought it up.” She said quickly. “I just see the expression on your face when you talk about the past. They seem almost like good, memorable times for you, but at the same time it seems like an event that has drastically changed you and your outlook as a person.”
I smiled and pressed a kiss to her hair. “You should go into psychology.” I mused.
Olivia looked up at me and her smile matched my own. “I was actually thinking you should. It might be beneficial for you and it might help other people if you became an addiction’s councilor. You’d be very good at it, I think.” She offered. “Not that I’m telling you how to shape your future or anything, I just thought it might be good for you.”
I smiled lightly. “Maybe. I don’t know, I never really thought about the future. I mean, I never really saw myself with one. Who knows?” I shrugged.
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