“There’s got to be something in this damned mall!”
Kimberly Bowen cursed under her breath as she finished what must have been her eighteenth lap through the local mall’s concourse.
Kimberly was a slim 22-year-old girl, preparing to finish her final year of college. Cute was the word most people, friends and family alike, used to describe Kim. She had fairly straight chestnut brown hair that went down to just above her shoulders. Her skin was fair, and she had a small row of freckles that traced underneath her eyes and across the bridge of her straight, normal sized nose. Those freckles, in combination with her amber eyes, were mostly what drew the 'cute' descriptions. Her lips were fairly average, not too big, not too small. Her face was pretty, with a slightly angular jaw.
Four hours walking around here. She thought to herself bitterly. And I’ve got nothing to show for it.
Winter Break started tomorrow, and her friend Skye Weintraub had invited Kim and two of their other friends, Kim’s roommate Sarah Palmer and their mutual friend Jessica Martinez, to spend it at Skye’s country estate. Skye’s family was rather wealthy and spent most of their time travelling the world for work and pleasure, so the girls would have the place to themselves, or so Skye said. Kimberly had never met them or spent time with Skye outside of school.
While the home was apparently quite grand, its remote location in the countryside meant that connections to the modern world were slightly lacking. Internet, cable, and phone service were especially unreliable. Knowing that Skye’s liquor cabinet would only keep their interest for so long, the girls decided they would all try to bring other activities to keep things fun.
Sarah was going to bring her record player and extensive collection of vinyls. Jessica offered to bring lots of movies. Unsurprisingly, Skye said she was going to bring lots of stuff for drinking games and board games. That left Kimberly, who had confidently assured her friends that she would find something amazing before Break started on Friday.
That was three days ago, and she was no closer now than before. She had perused game stores, hobby stores, electronics stores, sporting stores, and had found nothing that was suitable.
Kimberly ran a hand through her hair, idly tapping her foot in frustration as she cast one last desperate gaze at the shops around her.
She did a double-take, her eyes catching on something she hadn’t noticed before…