The minute Lan pulled up to the curb the next afternoon, I was out the door wearing my grey winter coat lined with white faux fur and a matching white Horze Maddox winter hat. In my hand, I had the boots Courtney bought me still in the box with the receipt. I slid into the passenger seat, buckled my seatbelt, and we exchanged optimistic smiles about the day ahead.

As we pulled into the street, she glanced curiously at the box. "What's that?"

I had been considering the avenue I would take in order to fund my online drivers' course without Courtney knowing about it from every possible angle. Credit card purchases would show up on her bill, and I didn't want to beg my friends for the money. "Oh, I was wondering if we could swing by the shoe store to return these on our way back?"

"Oh." Her tone was surprised but not in an annoyed way. "Sure, we can fit that in." She peeked up at the rear-view mirror and smoothed her eyeliner with her index finger. "You know, Davianté has been texting me nonstop. What happened last night?"

This was not a topic I wanted to start on our girl's day out—or any day. I tried to act cool. Courtney's talk about foster care frightened me, and I didn't need Lan or Davianté calling social services over what happened so I would be taken away from everything I loved—my friends, my school, or my own room with my own closet of clothes. Who knows what foster parents or siblings would be like—or how far away they lived from my school—so I down-played what had happened. "I just burned the back of my arm on the skillet last night. We didn't have Neosporin. No big deal."

She squinted at me and then set her eyes on the road. "He said your mom was eager to get out of his house, and that you gave him a look."

I sat upright like a water flask. "What do you mean a look?"

The sun reflected off of her hoop earrings. "Like you were in trouble or something?"

I was unpleasantly surprised he had picked up on that. It annoyed me because it meant I had to explain and lie to cover for Courtney. "He said that, did he?"

She nodded.

I laid my head back. "He's worried over nothing. I'm fine. You know my mom. She's overbearing at times."

"Well, I'm glad there's nothing to worry about." She turned on the radio and we sang our hearts out all the way to Southlands Mall. She turned slowly down the main street where shoppers pushed strollers, couples held hands, and families bustled from store to store in the brisk afternoon air. The sun was buffered by cotton ball clouds.

We sat on a bench to lace up our skates which took a surprisingly long time. Skates are such an unnatural feeling. First of all, my feet felt like they had been hammered inside the bark of a tree. Second, I couldn't bend my ankles or my body would tip over. Third, the blades lifted me four inches off the ice. We were gliding and the only way to control ourselves was to shift weight from one foot to the other. I had only done this a handful of times. I was better at roller skating because at least the wheels don't dig tracks into the floor so you can turn easier. Lan was better at it. We started out and my skate immediately hit a groove in the ice. I was waving my arms backward in circles. I almost fell on my butt which I tried so hard not to do because there was enough water on top of the ice that my pants would be wet for the rest of the afternoon. Lan caught my arm and helped me along until I got into a rhythm. The rink was in the center of restaurants, jewelry shops, and clothing stores.

As we weaved through ice skaters I told Lan about Olivander getting into our house and how Wendell had to come get him. She told me her parents were getting a new surround sound system installed in their living room. I could hardly wait to come over and watch movies when it was done. Lan spotted a boy skating. He was Asian too. She had dated white boys before, but she said her parents preferred she date a guy that held the same cultural ideals. Unfortunately, there were not that many to choose from. This guy was sort of a show off on skates, but cute. He could jump and skate backwards, and lean into deep curves while maneuvering his feet.

"I'm going to try going backward." She did a 180-degree turn and pushed off backward, straight down the middle of the rink until she lost momentum and slowed to a stop. She put on a helpless expression. I could tell she did it for attention, and it worked. Within a few seconds, the guy was skating over to her, asking her if she wanted him to show her how. She nodded and they tried to do it together, bending their knees and looking into each other's eyes. He had slowed down, but when he noticed she was still having trouble, he put his arm around her waist to try and help her along.

I kept making rounds, and the next time I noticed them, they appeared to be exchanging phone numbers.

As the afternoon wore on, we went to eat frozen yogurt, even though we were freezing. On our way back home, we stopped by the shoe store where we went to return the boots.

I approached the counter trying to have confidence like an adult. I raised my chin and stood straight, reaching into the bag and pulling out the box and receipt. "Hi. I bought these recently, and I'd like to return them."

The lady at the register wore a red polo shirt and, the name on her badge said Suzi. She didn't smile. She flicked her eyes from me to the box and opened it to inspect them. "What's the reason for the return?"

"They just—" I cupped my hand around my neck nervously. "I got them for a friend and she didn't want them." I don't know why I lied; I guess I was afraid she would tell me I couldn't return them if I didn't have a good excuse.

Suzi gave me a pointed stare. "I'm going to need your ID to return them."

My feet ran cold. I hadn't expected I would need an ID to return boots with a receipt. "I—I'm sorry—why?"

She gave me a callous look. "It's our return policy, ma'am."

Did she just call me ma'am? Like I was an adult? I blinked, as I considered giving up, but then I planted my feet in front of her station, determined. I needed this money.

She pushed the box toward me. "You can't return more than three products in six months."

I placed my hand on the top of the box. "But I've never returned anything before."

"We have to keep track of your ID number in case you have future returns."

My eyes fell to the boots, and then I turned to Lan. I folded my hands in front of me as I begged, and gave her a sad face in hopes she would rescue me. "Will you return them for me?"

She nodded and took her wallet out of her purse. I watched her hand over her ID. How grown up it must feel to do that. The cashier counted out the money to Lan, then Lan handed it to me and I put it in my pocket. A little over two hundred dollars.

I returned home before Courtney even knew I had been gone.