Elias had not realized he was inviting her to come with her outside this store -- merely to escape together. But after Charlie made her awkward invitation, he found that he couldn't turn her down. Even if he rarely ate fast food and tonight had already made dinner for himself and Dov. He wanted to spend more time with her. He wanted to learn more about her. And perhaps he could even learn, first hand, what she'd like as a gift. Not that he would tell her that he was planning anything. To her knowledge, he didn't even know that her birthday was coming up, and that's the way Elias preferred it for now.
"Yes," he agreed with her. "Anywhere but here."
He felt as uncomfortable as a man could, standing in the aisle between the women's personals section and the women's dress clothing section. Neither place was anywhere he belonged. And so, with a gesture to indicate Charlie should lead the way out, he stepped back onto the tile pathway. They walked a few feet in silence, and although Elias was typically all right with being quiet even in the company of another, he didn't want Charlie to feel uncomfortable in his presence. Usually, people liked some form of nonsense -- small talk, they called it -- when they were walking with someone. He would oblige, as best as he could.
"So, how's your job going? Are you still having to work nights?"