The young mother had worked hard over the summer and decided there was no better gift for herself than to renew her closet with some Chanel, and some Prada, too.
She felt no guilt about spending her savings on a shopping therapy, because last year it had all stopped at Nick's toys, her son. Now it was her turn to daydream.
Luzia's fascination was so great that she couldn't help but post a few things on her social media. A video in front of a fitting room mirror, a photo with the new Zara store behind her and even a selfie with a young model walking around.
Luzia certainly seemed like the happiest woman in the world, until a notification other than a like, popped out. Her bank was warning her credit card was being maxed out with one, two, ten purchases!
She didn't know what the heck was going on and her heart almost exploded when she confirmed that her credit card was not in her purse. From the shock, all the bags immediately fell to the floor and an incoming call made the situation worse.
“Mom, your card gives more presents than Santa, why didn't you tell me before?” confessed Nick amusedly.
Luzia was speechless. Only seconds later she reacted, and a shriek could be heard throughout the mall that paralyzed even the most compulsive shopper.
“Nick, for pity's sake, what store are you in?” asked the hysterical mom who had forgotten her son amidst all the shopping.
“Mom, I don't know, but my new friends are happy with their inflatables and action figures,” replied the boy somewhat sheepishly as he heard his mother shout.
The poor mom looked pale. She could not get the fact that her happiest day in a long time had turned into a nightmare.
In the midst of so many emotions, she wanted to cancel the credit card, but first she saw another purchase being reported, perhaps the juiciest of all. It was $3000!
In front of Luzia's almost hopeless figure, several people slowly approached, among them a couple of security guards.
“Excuse me, miss, is there something we can help you with?” asked one with urgency.
“My son!”
“What's wrong with your son?”
“My son, my card,” Luzia stammered before fainting.
The guards looked at each other in confusion, not knowing if something was really wrong or if she was just another woman fainting from carrying so many bags.
Everyone around Luzia was guessing what had happened or trying to revive her, until a bizarre scene played on one of the mall's screens.
It was Nick and his friends—other kids— in inflatable T-rex costumes. They were running like crazy after the crowd. Many fled believing it was a new scene from Jurassic World; others were simply recording lives to show the world the funniest moment of the year. The guards who previously watched over Luzia, sought to surprise the T-Rex horde for capture, but in the highest level of mischief, the children dropped packets of marbles that made the guards skid as if they were stepping on babana peels.
Such an embarrassment prompted the mall owner to call security and immediately order to close all entrances. Everyone was trapped.
Suddenly, many of those who were just filming or watching took the whole thing as a challenge to get the mischievous mini dinosaurs, and so began a chase that would see deflated costumes, crying children and the occasional fat guard reporting that the strange menace was beginning to subside.
Meanwhile, Luzia regained her senses, but not by any medicine or first aid, but by the appearance of her ex-husband Sander and his thick voice.
“Luzia, my dear, what is all this?” he asked very seriously as he saw her ex-partner reacting to his presence.
But she still didn't have the strength to answer. That's why she only pointed at the cell phone screens that were transmitting live.
Sander, who had gone to the mall because he was just bored, clutch his head when he realized how his past was still haunting him. Luzia was being overtaken by Nick's misbehavior and he had to come to the rescue.
Thanks to everyone watching live on instragram, Sander came across his son, who in his torn costume, was asking for his mom, while sobbing on the floor among other worried mothers.
“Get off, leave him alone, he's my son,” Sander shouted as he dodged people.
Sweaty, disheveled and tearful, Nick's eyes lit up when he saw, as if it were God, his dad opening his arms and lifting him up to kiss his cheek.
Sander wanted to take his son away all at once from this nonsense, but other children's moms stopped him, explaining what had possibly happened.
“You won't expect me to carry the can,” Sander concluded with a wry smile on his face after hearing everything that had happened.
“It was you who let that Tazmanian demon go free,” claimed one.
“Irresponsible dad, shame on you!” shouted another furious mother.
But Sander had it. He had already located the source of the disaster: Luzia's credit card. Then, gesturing for everyone to keep quiet, Sander brought the piece of plastic closer and the others saw that it was not really him who had been careless.
The mall owner joined the fray, who did nothing more than divide the cost of all the damage caused among the parents present. His face changed color all the time and he had doctors near him in case the worst happened: he stopped seeing.. seeing money in his pockets.
Days went by, and among arguing, sterile debates and family psychologists, Luzia and Sander came up with the best solution so that the shopping would never be again a Jurassic bankrupt.
From now on, Luzia would only go for Fruti of the Loom, H&M and Forever21 at Amazon. Sephora fragrances? Begging not to be sent a lemonade-filled knockoff, and intermittent fasting so that no blouse would fit above her belly button.
As for Nick, he was still counting all the toys his parents were supposed to pay until the end of times.
“What if we ask Santa to make those toys and bring them to the mall?” suggested the child in his innocence.
