Lately, I've been in an exceptionally good mood. I've been smiling more often and feeling incredibly joyful. Today, I even felt like cleaning and organizing my apartment myself, a task usually handled by the apartment cleaning service.

"Hello, you don’t need to come to my apartment today. I plan to move some furniture and sort out some unused items," I told the cleaning service on the phone.

After the call, I began my 'apartment makeover' mission, starting with my bedroom. It wasn’t very messy, so I managed to tidy it up in less than an hour. I changed the sheets, blankets, pillow covers, and bedspread.

Moving on to the living room, I found that it wasn’t very cluttered either. After inspecting the entire apartment, everything seemed clean and orderly. There was nothing left to clean or organize. I was unsure whether to feel pleased with the cleaning service's excellent work or disappointed that my plan for a thorough clean-up had failed.

It wasn't even halfway through the day; it was just half-past nine in the morning, and I was already feeling bored. I flopped onto the sofa in the living room, grabbed the remote from the table, and started flipping through TV channels. After almost fifteen minutes of switching channels, I couldn’t find anything interesting to watch.

Just as I was about to switch the channel again, my phone rang.

Who could it be? Sarah had texted earlier saying she’d be out of town for a few days, so it couldn’t be her as she’d be on the plane by now.

Amelie? I saw her name on the screen. What could she want? I picked up the phone and answered the call.

"Hello, Amelie?"

"El? Sorry to bother you..." Amelie said. "Um, El, do you have any plans for today?"

"No plans, I'm doing nothing. I’m just lounging around in front of the TV, not sure what to do. Bored..." I replied honestly.

"Great timing. Um, El, can I ask you a favor?"

"What do you need, Amelie?" I asked, curious.

"Come with me to shop for clothes. I don’t know who else to ask. I don’t have any friends here, and even in my old town, I didn’t have close friends," Amelie laughed, but it sounded a bit hollow, like she was mocking herself. "What do you think, El? Will you come with me? If you don’t want to—"

"I will! Of course, I will, Mel! Why would I refuse a good friend like you?" I cut her off, knowing she felt hesitant to ask.

"Are you sure, El? Will you really come with me to shop for clothes?" She asked again, wanting to make sure.

"Do you know, Amelie ... I love shopping for clothes! One of my skills is finding great clothes at prices way below retail, like a discount hunter," I chuckled. I could hear Amelie laughing on the other end too.

"Ha ha, you're funny, El. I’m terrible at bargaining and finding deals. So, I didn’t make a mistake asking you. Let’s meet at the mall. My brother is heading that way too. How does that sound?" Amelie asked. I could hear someone talking to her in the background, probably that was her brother. I was curious about Amelie's brother. I wonder he must be beautiful as Amelie, but he was a man, i bet he must be very handsome. But I didn’t dare to ask, fearing she’d start asking about my personal life in return.

"Alright. Which mall should we meet at, Amelie?"

"Well, my brother said the mall that sells the brands I like is Star plaza. How about that, El?"

"Star Plaza, right, Mel?" I wanted to make sure. It wouldn’t be funny to go to the wrong mall.

"Yes, El. That’s right, Star Plaza. I’ll leave in half an hour."

"Okay, Amelie. See you there." I ended the call and quickly shifted from lounging mode to going out mode. Fortunately, I had already showered, so I just needed to find the right outfit and do my makeup.

***

'Amelie, I’m in the parking lot at mall. Let’s meet at the coffee shop near the entrance.'

I sent a message to Amelie, letting her know where we’d meet, so it would be easy to find each other. Soon after, I received a reply from Amelie.

'Got it, El. I’m stuck in traffic before the mall’s traffic light. Hopefully, it won’t be long.'

I put my phone back in my small handbag on the empty seat beside me. After fixing my hair and ensuring my makeup was still perfect, I got out of the car.

Star Plaza was one of my go-to spots for healing and refreshing. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve visited almost every mall in this city. It’s understandable since, during the day, I sometimes turn into an unemployed person with many activities. Activities like window shopping and exploring the city.

The coffee shop on the ground floor was also one of my favorites. Besides offering various coffee drinks, I could order other beverages there too. At the Star Plaza coffee shop, I usually ordered a matcha latte or green tea latte. Though not a coffee drink, this favorite drink of mine was made from matcha powder mixed with milk. Matcha latte and green tea latte didn’t contain coffee.

After paying for my matcha latte and tiramisu, I chose a seat at the front of the café to make it easier for Amelie to spot me. While enjoying my matcha latte and tiramisu, I opened my favorite online reading app, Mybard on my phone. I was so engrossed in reading that I didn’t notice Amelie had already sat next to me.

"Wow, El... when you’re serious, you really tune everything else out, don’t you?" Amelie laughed softly.

I quickly put my phone down and laughed too, "The story is just too good, Mel."

"It must be really good. You didn’t even hear me calling you. I wanted to introduce you to my brother."

I looked around Amelie, searching for her brother.

"Unfortunately He’s not here anymore, El. he just dropped me off," Amelie pointed towards the mall entrance, not far from the café.

"I was calling you, but you didn’t hear me. Since he couldn’t stay long, he had to leave."

I sighed, realizing I’d have to curb my curiosity. Maybe it was a sign that I shouldn’t be too nosy about Amelie's family.

"Aren’t you going to order a drink, Mel?" I asked.

Amelie shook her head, "No, I’m still full. I had milk and a cheese sandwich on the way here for energy before our shopping spree. You should finish yours first, El," Amelie pointed to the food and drink on the table.

"Hah, I can finish this in one go, Mel. Don't worry!" I chuckled.

"Take your time, eat and drink first. Then we’ll go shopping..."

***