He flew across the pavement, dodging the cracks which no boy his age dared to step on. He was superman now; the symbol was stuck to his tummy, on his pyjama top, his costume. His shorts were brown, a sensible colour chosen by his mother to avoid the inevitable stains they came across. Stripy socks stretched out of his flashing trainers which were wearing out with each enthusiastic step he took. He took another flying leap over a crack and was caught by his mother, “Nate!” She glanced at him sternly “I need to buy your school clothes and you are not making the process any easier.” Nate grabbed tightly onto his mothers hand and plodded after her into the crowded shop.
“Now,” his mother began as they got the rail of clothing, “I know you haven’t thought about this much, but your first day of school is next week and that means the pyjama top comes off.”
“Mummy, you don’t understand,” he informed her, “I can’t be superman without my costume.”
“I know, but now you get to play the grown up school boy instead.” She walked to the fitting rooms with Nate still clinging to her hand and a white shirt and sharp black trouser in tow.
Nate slumped onto the chair and waited while his mother took the clothes off the hangers. He did not understand why she was always in a rush as they were no in a hurry. But this was how his mother always was, rushing with everything; he always assumed that was why she was constantly so tired. As he pulled the shirt over his arms it reminded him of getting into a cold bath, instantly wanting to get out as the crisp cold stiffened your body, but knowing it had to be done.
His mother buttoned up his shirt and when she finished cupped her hands around his face. His cheeks were so fresh and young, but burned in her cold hands. She ran her dry fingers through his hair, which was in desperate need of a cut, and watched it bounce perfectly back into place. His eyes gave her a questioning look; he was so inquisitive and eager, something she wished she could learn from her four year old son.
“Now there’s a big boy, I hardly recognised you.” She said as she finished tucking his shirt in.
“Mummy, I want to go, I don’t like these clothes and I don’t like school.”
“Don’t be silly Nate.” She said irritably, “All boys want to be grown up.”
“I don’t, I want to be superman.” He glanced out the fitting room door and ran instinctively. Away from his mother and the hand that guided him through the shopping centre. The cold floor slapped his feet and his legs lagged as the oversized clothes weighed him down. He turned his head sharply searching the space around him for his mother, his heart bounced out of his chest as his hands became clammy and he dropped to the floor knowing he was lost. Avoiding the eye contact of anyone around him as he fought the oncoming tearing welling in his eyes, he crawled into the corner of the shop sheltered by racks of clothing.
He waited with tucked his knees up to his chin, and pictured himself in his bedroom at home, knowing his mother was in the next room, having the feeling of safety without even knowing it. As the general buzz of the shop began to fade back into his conscious, he opened his eyes to the other people around him. He watched a woman pass by and looked up at her not knowing who she was. As he thought about it more closely he realised she did not know who he was either. She had not sat on the comfiest sofa in his lounge, tried his mother’s hot chocolate or waited hours for his superman top to come out of the wash. Comparing himself to her, he realised the she had a life which did not involve him. His eyes widened and he watched her more closely, she walked slowly, browsing the clothes and allowing the heels on her shoes to tap rhythmically against the floor. Her polished nails wrapped the strap of her bag which was held closely to her side. She held her chin high in the air although she was already taller than most, and twitching her mouth every so often as she put back items of clothing. She hardly seemed to notice as she crossed another man’s path. He stumbled around her letting his bag play loosely with his oversized coat. His thick framed glasses sat lop sided on his nose, but it didn’t seem to bother him as he got out a dog eared piece of paper and headed back off in the opposite direction.
The tears dried off his cheeks and he pushed himself off the floor, as he got up a crease formed between his eyebrows as he looked around. He did not feel so lost any more, watching people around him made him feel safer, almost as if he knew them. He let his feet cushion each step, pushing him upwards and making him feel stronger as he searched for his mother. But nothing around him seemed familiar yet, he had not thought about anything but his superman pyjama top and his mother earlier.
Only now did he remember his mother telling him to stay where he was when he got lost. So he stood firmly on the spot and called her name as clearly as he could. He hoped she would be proud of him for doing what she told him. A sick longing to please and impress her swept through his body. Nervousness poured into his tummy to form an unpleasant feeling of adrenaline and drive to spur him on. Just as his hands started to return to a clammy, panicked state the familiar face appeared in the aisle. She stood still with new wrinkles appearing on her face, blossoming around her mouth and eyes. He rushed towards her and threw himself into her desperate arms. A blanket on her perfume folded around him, filling his tummy with feeling he had never felt before, something he would associate with his mother, the feeling of relief. He lifted his head away from her neck and she pressed her lips hard against his forehead. His mother’s scrawny mouse brown hair was tied back roughly out of her face and the remains of yesterdays make up were still etched in her face. She was wearing her garden shoes still with pieces of wet grass stuck on which clashed dramatically with the faded twenty year old trousers. But she did not feel embarrassed and worried about how age had changed her, because as she looked at her son she knew that in his eyes, she was perfect as she was.
“Mummy I’m so glad you found me,” he whispered gently.
“Me too Nate,” she murmured simply back in his ear. She got up and allowed him to lock his hand in hers. She remembered the pyjama top clenched in her unconscious hand. He surprised her as he did not mention it on the walk back to fitting rooms. Instead of instinctively throwing himself in boredom, for the first time he looked at himself in the mirror. He gazed at his appearance with the new clothes on and saw himself as his dad.
“Mummy, do I look like Daddy in these clothes?”
“Yes, I guess you do look like Daddy’s little boy.” She replied barely glancing at him.
“Mummy I’m not a little boy any more, look how old I look.” He smiled smugly at himself, barely noticing the superman top being tugged back on over his head. When his mother finally managed to get the pyjama top on she placed her hands on his delicate body, and slowly breathed out as she realised he could not stay like this for much longer.