The Ones She Left Behind

Chapter Eighteen

Darcy’s eyes were wide as she stared at the racks of clothing. Lani took her to the local mall in hopes she would find something in one of the many clothing stores. She had been in clothing stores on many occasions, but she never imagined she would actually be the one shopping for them.

She was mainly checking out stores that were tailored to teenagers. She wasn’t sure what she wanted, however. She knew Maggie’s favorite color was pink, but she wasn’t sure if she wanted to go with her sister’s style or come up with a style of her own. 

If I deviate too much from Maggie’s style, people will notice, she realized. However, that didn’t mean she couldn’t still make it her own in some way.

“Remember: I’m giving you one-hundred dollars to play with. If you want to have money left over to decorate your room, I suggest sticking with one or two outfits. You can always get more clothes next month.”

Darcy nodded as she started to walk away, but she stopped when Lani started to talk again.

“By the way, remember your school’s dress code. I don’t want to get any phone calls from the school because your skirt is too short or something like that.” Lani gave her a wink. “Next month, we can work on non-school attire.”

Darcy nodded, although she didn’t really have any plans for buying short skirts or anything too revealing, and she knew that her sister usually wouldn’t, either. The scars on Maggie’s body led to her appearing more conservative than most schools her age, and when Darcy had gotten a proper look at them herself, she had realized why, and so, like Maggie, she planned to keep them hidden as much as possible.

Walking over to a clothing rack, she mulled over her options. She knew Maggie wore pink most of the time, and if she tried to wear something different, people might find her suspicious. She re-examined the current outfit she had on--a solid light-pink top with long sleeves made out of lace and a pair of jeans. Maggie was pretty girly, and her wardrobe reflected that, much to Darcy’s dismay. Darcy preferred the color black, something that Maggie’s wardrobe was lacking. 

An idea occurred to Darcy as she noticed a rack of striped sweaters caught her eye. One in particular was light pink and black striped. Compromise, she thought as she drew closer to it. She found some that were Maggie’s size, and when she held one up, she realized it would be perfect. 

Next, Darcy needed to find pants. Maggie liked to wear skirts more than pants, but Darcy had managed to find a couple pairs of jeans in her wardrobe as well. However, Darcy had liked the idea of black jeans and other pants--something foreign to her sister’s current wardrobe. Maggie did have a black skirt, she remembered, and so black pants might not be that much of a stretch. She would be fine wearing her sister’s girly pink tops as long as she had some black pants to go with them, and so, next, she headed to the pants. She found a couple pairs of black jeans that were the same size as the ones she had on, and she decided those would be going home with her.

When she was finished browsing, she walked back over to Lani. “What do you think of these?”

Lani inspected the items in her hands and gave her an approving nod. “A little different, but I think they’ll look great on you.”

A little smile crept across Darcy’s face as Lani followed her to the cash register. As Lani paid for the clothes, Darcy couldn’t help but wonder what Maggie would think about her selection. Would it have been something she would wear, or would she trash them as soon as she came back for her body?

Darcy shook the thoughts away. She wasn’t going to let the potential war she was about to endure stop her from enjoying these experiences. She knew Maggie would come for her body sooner or later and that Topher would probably be with her, but she couldn’t let something that had not happened yet worry her during her first shopping spree.

Next, Lani led her to a larger store that specializes in home decor. Darcy had spent some time in stores such as these as a ghost, but not enough for her to be too familiar with the products and layout. Going off of her clothing idea, she thought it would be best to combine her tastes with Maggie’s once again.

“You have around sixty dollars left,” Lani said. “A nice comforter set here might cost around twenty to thirty dollars, so I suggest starting with that. You could even get a second set of just sheets, or you can pick out some other decorations. Just make it yours.”

As they approached the bedding section, Darcy looked through the aisles, trying to find something that would suit both her tastes as well as her sister’s. A comforter containing a black background with pink and white flowers caught her eye, and she immediately picked it up.  Darcy knew Maggie’s bed was considered a twin-size bed, and she looked at the packaging and saw that it matched. She hugged it to her chest. “I want this one.”

Lani chuckled. “You must be in a black mood today, or are you starting to go through some kind of punk phase?”

Darcy bit her lip as she wondered if she was overdoing it. Then Lani laughed again and patted her shoulder. Darcy felt herself tense up. Even though she had no history of a***e, Maggie’s body still responded to touch the same as if Maggie were still in it. It was the same with the dream, she remembered. Even though Maggie wasn’t in her body, her body still remembered.

“You look like you just got caught. It was only a joke.”

Darcy laughed off her discomfort. “Oh no, I was just thinking about how you’ll react when I tell you I want pink wallpaper and black carpet.”

Lani shook her head. “You better think long and hard about what you want before we put in new wallpaper and carpet because those won’t change.”

Darcy continued to browse the aisles. She picked out another sheet set, this time sticking with pink to avoid any other jokes from Lani, and she also picked out a pink shag rug. While she wasn’t getting any carpet, she thought that at least a rug would give the room more color.

When she was finished shopping, Lani paid for the items and they headed out of the store. 

As Darcy followed Lani out of the mall, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of joy welling up inside her. She never knew what it was like to be part of a family. While Lani wasn’t her first choice of caregiver, she couldn’t help but wonder if this was what shopping with her mother would have been like.

Her joy was soon replaced by the feeling of dread. Soon, she knew this would come crashing down around her. She wasn’t afraid of Maggie coming after her, but she knew Topher would be with her. If Topher knew what she did, she knew he would probably hate her, and he would stop at nothing until she gave up Maggie’s body. Before that time came, she needed to come up with a plan.

Once she placed her bags in the car, Darcy pulled out Maggie’s cell phone. Once she was settled, she looked through Maggie’s contacts until she found Diana. Perfect, she thought.

I might need your help after school, if you don’t mind. I’m really struggling in all of my classes. Would you be able to help me a little bit after school this week?

As she waited for the reply, Darcy smiled. Topher was only a threat to her if he got her alone.  If Diana agreed to help her, that would give him less opportunities. Her biggest concern would be night time, but she would try to take care of that as well.