Charlottesville Fashion Square
Charlottesville Fashion Square is one of the original venues for Chris's Love Quest exploits. Like all of his "Attraction Locations", it hasn't done much for him, as his behavior has led to several run-ins with its management and security personnel, ultimately resulting in a ban from the mall. Owing to the mall's popularity with Chris as a social and Attraction Location, it has since became a place of hallowed ground among trolls, weens and Christorians alike.
Chris and the Fashion Square
Chris was first introduced to Sonic the Hedgehog at the Fashion Square Sears in "mid to late 1991", playing a demo version of the original Sonic the Hedghehog Sega Genesis game there.[1]
It was in this mall where Chris met Anna and "The Tale of the Crazy Pacer" got its start.
It was also where he had his heart smashed down to 15% by Hanna, and presumably where he (accompanied by his father) went on his "date" with Emily, who was later rescued by The Man in the Pickle Suit. It's safe to say that, at one point, a large portion of Chris's time spent outside the house was at this mall.
Due to the numerous misadventures he has had there, this place holds a significant role in Christory – and has since become something of a pilgrimage location for the CWC community at large. Be sure to say "hi" to the manager should you ever visit!
Chris vs. Fashion Square
Chris has gotten himself into trouble at Fashion Square on a number of occasions over the years.
On 5 August 2004, according to CWC's Diary, Chris's attempts to fish for a girlfriend with a Red String of Fate were cut short by a jerkop who destroyed that particular Love Quest accessory. A month later, on 6 September, he had another run-in with a security guard who was apparently treated to a rendition of Chris's "Lonesome Virgin story".
11 September 2004 saw Chris's first partial ban from the mall, forbidding him from returning without a parent to accompany him. His diary doesn't explain exactly why he was banned, but Sub-Episode #1 dramatizes the day's events. Reading between the lines of the comic book version, Chris was loitering and soliciting with his Attraction Sign, became belligerent with security, and was arrested and removed from the mall.
Chris was apparently able to return to the mall unaccompanied by the next spring. On 29 March 2005, the infamous date with Hanna took place, after which Chris emitted an anguished "NOOOOOOOO" that led him to being banned from the mall once again.[2][3] Vivitheg's AIM chat indicates that the ban (which again prevented Chris from going to the mall without a parent) was still in effect towards the end of 2008.
According to the reports of a field agent, Chris was seen sperging at the mall accompanied by his parents in the summer of 2010. Subsequently, on 31 August 2010, he was spotted (and filmed) hanging out at the mall alone. This suggests that either the bans have expired, or Chris has managed to evade yet another ban.
In early 2012, Chris's leaked Facebook statuses revealed that he had returned to loitering at the mall on a regular basis. His "normal plan" at the mall, according to the leaks, is to "sit, hang and wait for a Ms. Right".
On 4 February, he managed to get himself in trouble again, by leaving flyers decrying Michael Snyder around the mall. A security guard found them and attempted to speak to Chris about them. Chris then fled the mall and drove away.
On 31 March, he managed to get himself in trouble for a second time this year, this time by yelling on his phone towards his trolls. Security guards came to confront Chris, but he ended up fleeing the mall once more.
On 28 April, Chris released a Facebook message stating that, on the 25th of April, he had received the ban-hammer for getting angry in the mall when he answered some calls from the trolls.
On 17 December 2014, an apology letter with a date of August 15 was leaked. The letter has Chris blaming trolls and stress for his misdeeds, and asking the manager to allow him and Catherine to shop there.
On 26 December 2014, Chris attempted to evade his ban from the GameStop there and (dressed like a clown) tried to vandalize the store's Sonic Boom display. When he failed and staff made a move to call security, Chris left, but not before macing an employee. With the police called in, Chris somehow evaded arrest at the mall. Reports from a police radio mention that Chris was still banned from the mall at that point.
On 20 March 2018, Chris again trespassed at the mall and was charged. As a result he was sentenced to the Therapeutic Docket, resulting in the charge ultimately being dropped.
The End?
Malls have been declining as a whole since the 2010s, due to the increasing popularity of online shopping websites like Amazon and eBay, and Fashion Square is no exception; throughout the late 2010s, several stores in the mall have closed due to dwindling customers, while some of the mall's biggest tenants like Sears went bankrupt, leaving the mall with big chunks of unleased space. The mall reported in February 2020 they had defaulted on $45.2 million of loans.[4] While it still operates, with 28 stores, restaurants and booths still open, it is a shell of its former self, with the only two "anchor locations" left being two Belk stores, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have likely not helped matters.
When Fashion Square was threatened with closure in February 2020, Chris wrote on Twitter, "Well, this is most disappointing. Very Much a LEGEND, in association with myself and my history: Charlottesville’s own #FashionSquareMall is falling on hard times and may become lost. I feel mildly distressed from this event."[5]
On 13 June 2021, Washington Prime Group, the owners of Charlottesville Fashion Square, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as the main reason. [6] [7] The mall was later auctioned to a local lending company a few days later. [8]
In September 2022, The Home Depot purchased a large chunk of the mall, save for the Belk woman's store and JCPenney. Two years later, they would announce their plans to demolish the former Sears space to begin construction on a new Home Depot store. Only time will tell if this plan goes through and the rest of the mall goes away with it, but while its fate is uncertain, it's highly likely it may wind up closing for good sometime in the 2020s.
Comic references
Sub-Episode #1: "Jerkop-tastropie"
Dramatization of Chris getting busted by mall security for loitering.
Sub-Episode #2: "The Rise & Fall of My Heart"
Dramatization of a girl who works at a Starbucks trolling Chris by taking him out on a date.
See also
References
- ↑ Cwclight#First Sonic the Hedgehog drawing by JCWCSP
- ↑ Vivitheg's AIM chat
- ↑ Jackie E-mails - Part II
- ↑ https://dailyprogress.com/news/local/fashion-square-mall-facing-imminent-default-analysts-say/article_3ac06a61-626f-5f64-bbaa-4953c3c815a0.html
- ↑ February 2020 social media posts
- ↑ https://kiwifarms.net/threads/random-chris-updates.23605/post-9219328
- ↑ https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/14/business/washington-prime-group-mall-bankruptcy/index.html
- ↑ https://dailyprogress.com/business/local/watch-now-fashion-square-mall-auctioned-to-lender-for-20-2-million/article_15ea6df2-e67b-11eb-9274-0bff086e95e0.html
