"Right, so check it out, me and my home girls are over there trying to enjoy a nice lunch at the mall, but every time we look up, y'all are all in our faces. We just want to know if there's a problem."

Cali folded her arms across her chest and waited for a reply as the 5 males seated around the table before her, became very still. After a few seconds of silence she realized they weren't going to respond. She let out an exaggerated huff and spoke again, "I don't know maybe it's all the weed you've been smoking so I'll try talking a little slower, Is. There. A. Problem?" she asked leaning into the table causing the boys to lean away. She straightened herself back up and waited for a reply again. The boys looked back and forth for her to one another before one of them finally mustered up the courage to speak.

"N-N-No ma'am. T-T-There's no problem." he stuttered nervously surveying the area for the appearance of a boyfriend or male relative. They really hadn't been aiming to start any trouble with the girls, and he now wished that he would‘ve stayed at home playing his Xbox like he had originally planned.

Cali stared long and hard at the boy who had chosen the speak. He had a young face with shoulder length hair that was straight at the root but curled up at the ends giving it that "bumped" appearance. The swooping bang that he was constantly brushing out of his eyes and tucking behind his ear gave him a feminine look that made Cali feel as if she were picking on a little girl. Deciding that the fun of intimidating the boys was over Cali shifted her weigh on hips and spoke.

"Good. Now if you would please take to gawking at something else we would greatly appreciate it."

"Y-y-yes ma'am" the boy stuttered again.

Cali turned away from the boys torn somewhere between laughing and feeling bad as she made her way back to her own table. Whenever they came to the mall she, along with her two best friends Lashay, and Monique, took turns making fun with a group of boys, any boys it really didn‘t matter it just always worked out to be a group of black boys. It wasn't that hard to bait them into doing something "offensive" seeing as how all three of them were attention grabbers for one reason or another, and once the boys had committed the offense one the girls would approach and call them on it, completely surprising them in any way that they could. However, today had been the first day that white boys had been baited and Cali was the only one willing to approach them. From the moment they walked into the food court Lashay had noticed them watching them from their table by the bathroom. Deciding to add a little spice to the game, she brought the idea to the attention of her friends. Monique adamantly refused to approach a group of white boys. Spanish boys she would do, black boys were perfectly acceptable, but she would not approach a white boy. After ordering their meal and choosing a table within the visibility range of the boys, they began to work their plan. It had been Monique's idea to approach them using the stereotypical black girl attitude, and the rest just fell into place.

Cali approach her table watching as Lashay's head was bent to her food in an attempt to hide her laugh, while Monique hid behind her cup trying to hide her laughter. It was only then that Cali allowed herself to laugh. "That was too easy," she replied sliding into her chair, with her back to the boys.

"You are too stupid. We heard ya ass all the way the hell over here" Lashay said laughing again.

"She said black" Cali said motioning toward Monique. "You know we can be loud. Shit you're loud."

"That was too funny." Monique said holding her chest.

"I was going to keep going but that boy over there had me feeling bad. He's all little, and was stuttering, and I just felt like a big meanie." Cali said half joking, half serious as she ended it with a pout.

"Well we have been known to be quite mean" Lashay said resuming her meal.

15 minutes had passed and the incident with the white boys had long since been forgotten as they sat at their table with empty plates discussing the up and coming school year. They were about to be seniors, and Monique had her own apartment with the help of her cousin.

"You know we're definitely going to be over there all the time."

"That's fine, it's only going to be me. Devon just needs the apartment for an address he wont actually be living there."

"How'd you get so lucky?"

"It's connections, not luck" Monique said leaning back in her chair to stretch out her legs. She then quickly flexed them again, and leaned forward, "One of them white boys is coming toward us."

"What?" Cali asked not daring to turn around and look.

"She aint lying dawg he's right-" Lashay cut herself off just before the boy got to the table.

"Excuse me?" Cali heard the voice in her left ear, but took her time looking to seem uninterested.

She looked him up and down clearly wearing a face of annoyance. It was the stuttering brave boy.

"What can I do for you, stutters?" she asked as if he had just interrupted her.

"My um...my friend, would, would l-like." he was visibly nervous as his eyes darted around the table to both Lashay and Monique who each wore equally annoyed looks on their face.

"C'mon stutters out with it" Cali said crossing her legs.

"My f-friend wants y-your n-number."

Cali responded with her eyebrows furrowing and her neck pulling back in a what motion while Lashay and Monique both busted out laughing. She made a sound in the back of her throat before she replied.

"Look..." she waited for his real name.

"A-Andrew"

"Andrew, tell..." she waited for the friend's name.

"L-Lucas"

"Lucas, that I don't do boy messengers"

"Y-yes ma'am" Andrew replied before retreating back to his table. Lashay and Monique were still laughing when Cali turned to face them.

"Can you believe that shit?" she asked laughing a little at the irony.

"Wait ‘til I tell everyone you got a white boy." Monique said still laughing.

"Monique, I love you, but I will kill you if I have to."

Lashay laughed watching the scene play out over Cali's head. Andrew walked over to the table informed them of the Cali's response, and the person whom she assumed to be Lucas came around the table and made a beeline for there's, "here comes L-Lucas" she said motioning with a head nod.

"Oh hell no!" Cali said standing from the table and grabbing her trash in one motion. She headed for the trash bins only hearing half of her friends protest.

"Hey!"

She heard him callout surprised at the pitch of his voice, it was much deeper than she expected it to be.

"Hey" he called out again picking up his pace to catch up with her. "Hey can I talk to you for minute?" he said touching her lightly on the arm.

She turned to face him a little faster than he expected causing him to take half a step back. He wanted to be able to brace himself if she swung. Cali hide her surprised at that fact that she hadn't noticed him earlier. His brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail with it‘s form existing somewhere between curly and straight without being wavy. She didn't have to be able to touch it to know that it was soft as he ran his hand over it nervously. His bright green eyes seemed to illuminate the corner of the room where they stood, but even with that she had seen cute boys of all different races, and she knew how to act around them.

"I have a name, and just so happens not to be Hey"

She didn't swing, which allowed Lucas to breathe easy as he spoke, "I apologize. I'm Lucas and you are?"

"Calijae"

"Calijae, it's nice to meet you, and might I say you have a very different name."

"Most of us do." she said bluntly not allowing any pretenses to build between them before turning to throw her trash away.

Lucas smirked with only half of his mouth, he liked her attitude even if it did come off as bitchy, it was real. "Well, I apologized before and I'm going to apologize again, now for offending you and your friends earlier. We hadn't meant anything by the gawking, as you said. It's just that I noticed you coming out of Footlocker earlier and they wanted to see who I was talking about."

"Um hm" Cali said walking away. Her voice clearly sending the message that she didn't believe him, even though his story did sound pretty legit to her.

Lucas turned and fell in step with Cali trying to figure out a way to ask the question he had approached her to ask. He couldn't think of any smooth way to transition into it so he decided to take her brazen approach.

"Can I have your number?"

"What?"

"You know, a group of numbers that are systematically grouped so that when dialed they lead to you"

Cali had to look away as a smile threatened to overshadow her hard exterior. He was a smart ass, she'd give him that.

"I know what a phone number is," she replied making an extra effort to roll her eyes.

"I apologize, I didn't mean to-"

"You know, you apologize a lot", she baited

"That's because I'm a man of manners," he bit.

"Or maybe it's because you're a super fuck up."

She watched him stop dead in his tracks while she kept walking this time not trying to hide her amusement.

"Wait, wait, wait..." he said once he recovered, "I'm no fuck up. No one wants to talk to a fuck up, everyone talks to me so I can't be a fuck up. You'd want to talk to me too if you knew me."

"Would I?"

"Yeah. Back home, like before I moved here there was this girl that I'm sure, had we not have moved, we would've talked. She was just like you" the end of his sentence trailed off as he realized his mistake.

Cali jumped at the chance to bust him up some more. The best part was she hadn't even baited that one.

"Like me in what way? Have we met before? Did you find my face book page and read about my-", Cali stopped suddenly. Lucas felt his face become hot as the whole food court seemed to come a stand still. He waited for her deliver what he knew was coming.  "Oh wait. You meant black huh? She was black like me. So what's this then? 1 nigga, 2 niggas. All the same?"

Lucas's mouth dropped open with shock and for a quick second she thought she noticed a change in his breathing pattern, but she was on a roll and couldn't stop now.

"So what it is?" she asked again with her hands folded across her chest.

"I...It didn‘t...I didn't mean it like that."

"So you fucked?" Cali asked through squinted eyes.

Lucas hung his head low into his chest, making Cali feel bad. She hadn't really been offended by his comment, and she might have played the role a little too well, but she wasn't about to break character now. So instead of slapping him on the arm and telling him she was just joking, she shifter her weight on her hips again and waited for his reply.

"I'm sorry. I apologize for wasting your time. I meant no disrespect." he said before stuffing his hands in the pocket of his jeans and walking away.

Cali smiled behind him proud of how well she had controlled that scene. She gave a sideways glance to the table that her friends were occupying and spotted Monique pointing at her and laughing. Cali made a laughing noise in the back of her throat before stepping in the opposite direction of her friends.

"Lucas, wait" she called out moving to catch up with him. "since we did that whole song and dance one of us might as well get something out if."

"One of us did. A confidence reduction and a verbal lashing."

Cali laughed, she had been good, hadn't she.

"Well add to that my phone number and you've got a pocket full of stuff to take home."

Lucas' face lit up, "Really?" he asked with a smile. Making Cali feel bad about what she was about to do.

"Yes really. Pen and paper please."

Lucas pulled a pen from behind his ear, that Cali hadn't noticed earlier, and a little note pad from his back pocket. She flipped to the end and quickly jotted down a phone number before handing both things back to him.

"So I'll call you then." Lucas said staring down at the phone number. He couldn't believe how things had turned out.

"That's what the number's for, and don't lose it. I don't give out my number twice." she said walking away to join her friends.