Jenna

After doing some job hunting, I figured that my best bet would be to go to a nearby outlet mall to apply for work there. I'm sure some clothing or shoe stores would hire me. I mean, I'm stylish enough for that kind of job, right? If not, I'm sure I'll find someplace to work.

I finish applying my makeup and brush out my hair one last time. I usually don't wear that much makeup, but I apply a little extra for the occasion--not that I'm dressing to impress anyone.

Standing in front of my mirror reminds me of my high school prom night. I went with Tyler. His friend Josh has a little sister that is amazing with makeup. She did my hair and face. It was honestly probably the best makeup job I've had.

I sigh. I miss Tyler, Josh, Mark, and all the rest of their families so much. I'm not even sure if they're still in Ohio anymore. I'll have to ask my parents next time I call or visit them.

I dust on a little more eyeshadow before nodding at myself in satisfaction. Adjusting my top, I do a once-over in my bathroom mirror before turning off the light and grabbing my keys. I grab my purse off of the kitchen table and set off to the mall.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think we have any open job spots at the moment." The black-haired girl with electric purple eyeliner at the Sephora counter gives me a sympathetic look. 

I sigh, then offer a reassuring smile--more for myself than for her. "That's okay. I guess I'll just keep looking."

The girl leans closer to me. "I heard that Forever 21 is looking for employees. Try going there."

"Where is it at?" I reply, raising my eyebrows.

"The other end of the mall by the Converse store."

I smile as I start to walk away from the counter. "Thank you!"

She returns my smile. "You're welcome! Good luck!"

I stride out of the store and into the bright, early-morning sunlight, heading toward the other end of the mall. Smells from various food vendors drift through the mid-August air.

Strumming drifts toward me as I near the end of the mall. Live music. That's cool. Its volume increases until I hear someone singing along to it.

We're broken

We're broken

We're broken

We're broken

We're broken people, oh

We're broken people, oh yeah

I'm standing in front of you

I'm standing in front of you

I'm trying to be so cool.

Everything together trying to be so cool

Why is that voice so familiar? I ask myself. I round the corner to see the answer. A brown-haired boy stands in the shadow of one of the buildings playing a ukulele, another boy sitting next to him on a wooden cajun, tapping out a beat.

My heart stops and eyes widen as the realization hits me. The boy singing is Tyler Joseph. Tyler Freaking Joseph. My high school boyfriend. The boy I've been aching for.

His head is down as he sings. He hasn't seen me yet. Despite the excitement I'm experiencing from seeing him, I start to slip away into the crowd, trying to go unnoticed.

What are you doing, Jenna!? You're going to let him get away!?

"Yes," I murmur sadly. I was just a high school girlfriend. He's probably forgotten about me by now. I don't want to interfere with his life.

I listen to his singing as I walk away, the song seeming to fit the situation.

"I'm standing in front of you

I'm standing in front of you

Oh I'm trying to be so cool

Everything together trying to be so cool."

The singing stops. "Thank you so much," he says loudly, being no microphone available. I didn't realize how much I missed hearing his voice until now.

I cast one last glance behind me to see his eyes meet mine, then widen. He hands his ukulele to someone--wait, is that Mark!?--then starts to quickly stride towards me. And that is when I make the second stupidest decision of my life:

I bolt.

Tyler

I frantically wave to Josh after Mark takes my uke and run after the blonde, who is weaving through the crowd. I'm 99.999999% sure that that was Jenna Black.

What if she dyed her hair and that's not her? What if you're just being a creep and chasing down a random stranger?

What if it's really her? I counter. That shut him up.

"Why are you running!?" Josh pants, finally catching up to me.

"I just saw Jenna!" I exclaim.

"Hold up, what!?" he counters, slowing a little.

"There's no time for explanations, just follow me!" I reply.

Jenna

Tyler is still behind me. I slip into a random store to try to get him off my tail. My eyes adjust to the dimness of its interior. All four of its walls are lined with clothing--most of the fabric consisting of black. A register sits in the middle of the store.

I grab the nearest shirt and sprint to the register, causing the girl in a punk rock shirt standing behind it to jump.

"Do you have dressing rooms here!?" I ask a little too frantically.

She brushes back some of her lavender-dyed bangs. "Yeah. I can get you one." She grabs a set of keys and walks away from the register towards the back of the store. I walk behind her, keeping my head low.

She unlocks the door and holds it open for me. "There you go." She smiles at me.

"Thanks!" I reply, then hurriedly close and lock the door. I look down at the shirt I chose: a black one with a blue vertical line, a black horizontal dash, and a red line slanted to the right. Underneath that it reads, "Twenty One Pilots."

They've really made it this far, I think. They actually have merch now and everything. I feel bad for not keeping up with their music.

I lean against the dressing room wall, exhaling. One part of me is hoping that I lost Tyler and Josh. Another part of me is wanting to see them again. What do I do?

Tyler

Jenna disappears from my field of vision during our pursuit. I glance back at Josh worriedly. 

"Maybe she slipped into a store," he suggests, running ahead of me. He stops at a door and opens it. I follow him inside, walls of dark clothing greeting us. It's completely empty, except for the cashier. She smiles at us timidly.

"Are you sure she wants to be found?" Josh whispers as I proceed to walk through the store. "I mean, she was running away from you."

"Maybe I just startled her or something," I reply.

"Maybe..."

The purple-haired cashier walks past us to a door in the back and knocks on it.

"Are you okay in there, ma'am?" she asks.

"Uh...yeah, just give me a few more minutes," a voice replies.

"That's Jenna!" I whisper excitedly to Josh, who is over at the t-shirt wall.

"Dude, Hot Topic has our merch!" Josh murmurs back, obviously not paying attention. He unfolds a t-shirt and holds it up.

I smack his arm. "Dude, Jenna is in the dressing room!" I hiss. "Come on!" I drag him further towards the back of the store so Jenna won't immediately see us when she opens the door.

"Dude, I feel like such a stalker," Josh whispers as we huddle behind a clothing rack.

"It'll pay off. Now...how are we going to get her attention?" I ask.

Josh smirks and rubs his hands together. "I have an idea."

 Jenna

It's quiet for a few minutes. I actually do end up trying on the shirt for the heck of it, and it looks pretty good. It's a little pricey, though. I'm not sure how often I would buy a shirt for $20.00. Checking the time on my phone and deciding that seven minutes in the dressing room is enough of a wait, I take a deep breath and turn the door handle, stepping back into the store.

Spotting a packed return rack along the back wall, I walk toward it to hang the shirt up. My eyes sweep the store as I hook the hanger on the bar. I turn back to the rack to see a freaking head sticking out from among the clothing.

"So, tell me, how's Bon Queesha? I haven't seen my daughter in years."

I scream and slap the face, only to realize that it's the one and only Josh Dun, Tyler's best friend. I cover my mouth and slowly back away as he massages his whiskery cheek and untangles himself from the mass of fabric, only to bump into someone else. I whip around to see Tyler.

"I--how did you??? I--"

He grabs my hands. "Do you think I'd really let you go a second time???"

I stay silent. He continues.

"Please don't run, Jenna. I want to know you again. I regret losing touch with you. Will you at least go out to lunch with us? I'll never talk to you again after that if you don't want me to. I'm so sorry that I haven't talked to you in years. Will you please give me a second chance?"

    I stare at him in silence once more, then rush forward and crush him in a hug. "I missed you."

He hesitantly wraps his arms around my back, then rests his chin on top of my head. "I missed you, too."

A sudden squeal makes us break the hug. We turn to look at the lavender-haired girl standing by the t-shirt wall. She claps her hands together.

"I really didn't mean to intrude, but you guys are so cute!"

Josh butts in. "I know, right!? They really are!"

She waves her hands. "I ship it!"

"I do, too!" Josh gushes. He and the cashier step forward and high-five while Tyler and I roll our eyes. Josh hasn't changed one bit.

Tyler looks at me. "So, lunch?"

I nod. "Lunch it is."

  A/N: Last night I played piano for my church's talent show. It took a lot of hard work. I get bad performance anxiety, so my hands were trembling and my heart was beating about as fast as the tempo of Implicit Demand for Proof (120 BPMs) and my whole body was completely shaking by the time I got back to my seat. I'm really proud of myself, though. Here's the video (the channel name is not my real name)