The Stranger I Bumped Into

✦ chapter 26 ✦

❃ Lauren's POV ❃

This whole day, I have spent my time shopping. I still need to buy a gift for Noah. I bought the girls their gifts already. I got Natalie a perfume that she wanted, Abigail a Polaroid camera and Jennifer some make up from a brand I knew she liked. I've also bought Ryan and Jacob Christmas presents. I also want to buy something for Noah's dog, Riley. Maybe a chew toy or something.

I walk into a shop that had mostly everything in it. I aimlessly walk around, my eyes wondering over the shelves. They stop once I spot a mug. But not just any mug, a mug with Noah's name on it. I smile, knowing it was perfect for him. I quickly pick it up and head to the cash register. The person behind it was a scrawny looking guy with glasses. It looked like he was still in high school. I pass him the mug and he scans it.

As he puts it in a bag, he asks, "is this for your boyfriend?"

I wish.

I shake my head and say, "no, just a friend."

It looks as if he doesn't believe me, but he says nothing. He hands me the bag and I say a polite 'thank you', before walking out. I walk past stores, window shopping until something else catches my eye.

Ray Ban sunglasses.

They would be perfect for Noah. I walk into the glasses shop and it doesn't take me long to buy it. It was a bit pricy, but totally worth it. I know that Noah has been obsessed with them. I happily skip out of the shop. There was only one more gift to buy. Rileys. I walk to the pet store and my eyes rake over all the things I could get for my favourite pug. My eyes land on a familiar figure. His back was turned to me so I couldn't tell who it was, but once he turned around, I knew exactly who it was.

"Kevin?" I say.

He whips around and looks at me. His eyes show recognition and he gives me some what a smile. "Lauren, right?" He asks, walking towards me. He wore the uniform for the shop so I knew he worked here.

I nod in answer and smile. "How are you?" I ask.

"I'm good, you?"

"I'm alright." I say and shrug. Oh you know, I'm not pretending to be someone's girlfriend. "You work here?" I ask the obvious, making sure there isn't any awkward pauses.

He nods. "Yeah. Can I help you with anything?"

"Well, I want to buy a gift for a pug. Any ideas?" I ask.

He thinks it over for a minute and I wait like the patient person I am. He finally nods and says, "you could get him a chew toy." I go to respond, but he interrupts and asks, "wait, it's a boy right?" I nod and say, "a chew toy sounds good." He also nods and leads me to where all the toys are kept. There was a specific area where the chew toys were. "So, these are all your options." He says, motioning towards them. I smile in thanks and scan the toys. There was a hamburger, a simple circle, a carrot, a football and the classic bone. My eyes lands on a particular bone which was black with white spots on it.

Perfect.

I pick it off the shelf and smile in satisfaction at Kevin who stood patiently beside me. "This is the one." I say and he nods. "Is that all you needed?" He asks. I nod and we both walk over to the cash register. I pay and am about to thank Kevin, when someone interrupts.