My mom put things on layaway at Clover on the regular. My grammy bought me and my brother a hot dog and an Icee at the counter most times I went with her. My mom said no every time.

My friend got caught shoplifting baseball cards there. I didn't steal any and somehow managed to just keep walking when security stormed down the ramp to the mall and grabbed him. They were apparently really nice and showed him how many cameras had been on him while he waited for his mom to pick him up. I called my mom from a payphone. She knew something was up when I said my friend was getting his own ride, but she didn't pry.

When I moved into my first apartment, my mom and I went to the mall after the Clover became a Value City and she helped me pick out a set of Revere Ware pots and pans. I still have two of them. My mom loved Value City. My brother and I made fun of her a bit because we thought it was cheap and shitty.

Clover's gone. Value City is gone. My mom is gone. I wish I had gone to Value City with her more.