Unconditional

Chapter 15

The shame I felt was nothing short of a tsunami.

"Ah, don't thank me. I'm grateful we were able to find your son, it's dangerous for children to be alone at such young ages."

The woman, who I now know as Pamela, nodded as she wiped her nose with a tissue.

"I was so worried, you don't understand how much of a lifesaver you are." Her raspy voice gave way to the intense emotions she must have been feeling. "He's always had a habit of waddling off but never far. I mean how far can toddlers go in the first place..."

Malikai gave her a reassuring smile, "Keep a good eye on him next time, we're lucky he had only wandered to nearby stores. A mall this big can have bad consequences if he hadn't been spotted by the guard."

You see, this entire circumstance I had walked in on- was nothing more than Malikai being an amazing human being. A wave of humiliation came crashing over me once more while we stood outside the storefront. How could I have allowed myself to feel jealous when I didn't know the whole story?

When I arrived back and saw the two embraced, I turned to stone for a short while. My mind was filled with many ideas, excuses, and assumptions. But as Malikai looked up, he gave me a small raise of the lips as he motioned me over. By the time I made my way over, they had parted but the sound of the woman's cries became apparent.

Malikai quickly explained the situation to me. The woman who had lost her son was looking around frantically when he decided to ask if she needed help. With his quick thinking, he went to talk to one of the workers who then called security and therefore found the boy nearby. Being informed of that, they were told to wait for the guard and boy to return outside the shop.

It seemed the entirety of the situation was a lot for the mother, rightfully so, and to which he provided comfort to the overwhelmed woman. That being the moment I witnessed.

The small boy, nearing three years old, was quite fine in comparison. Of course, not understanding the severity of things, the little one had made lots of fun making memories at the stores. A world so big left many things to learn and see for children, I was glad he wasn't traumatized from the incident.

"Yeah, this little guy was making a fort in the clothes when I stumbled upon him. Almost three stores down, you have quite the explorer ma'am." The guard joked as he adjusted his belt. Metal jiggling alerted the child as he reached a hand to grab the security guard's keys.

As the security guard politely told the boy no, Malikai gave a final smile to the woman and guard.

"Thank you for your help sir," Mal spoke as he pointed his direction at security before turning to Pamela and the small child, "And you two stay safe. Be good for your mama alright?"

The little boy giggled, a big open-mouthed smile shining brightly on his face. A high-pitched squeal of what I could only imagine to be agreement and excitement flew into my ears. How precious.

"Thank you again for your help, truly. God blessed me today by placing you in my path today." Pamela's gratitude could be felt as she leaned forward to give Malikai a brief hug once more. A moment later, I felt her warm hands wrap around me. Taken aback, I embraced her in the short expression. I suppose strangers and hugs aren't that bad...

Saying our goodbyes, we were then able to continue on about our date, though it felt completely different than before.

The sounds of the mall seemed to be muffled while I kept my attention on Mal. My eyes scanned over him, the fitted attire catching my eye once again before noticing the bag in Malikai's palm.

Reaching my hand out to carry the paper shopping bag, Mal pulled his arm away. Shaking his head, Malikai shot me a cute, toothy smile, before walking forward.