Author's Note: An anon requested a story, and I obliged. Enjoy! (At least I hope you do.)
Indentured servitude are the only words that fully encapsulate the past five years of Lauren's life. She is talented at making do with what she is handed, but the feeling of freedom, the feeling of being able to move about as she wishes, is a feeling she had long forgotten and missed.
She certainly couldn't remember the last time she'd just dropped everything to go shopping. Bo had called saying that she needed help at the mall and whenever the word help fell from Bo's mouth, Lauren would be there. It did however turn out to be less of an emergency than had been discussed over the phone.
A 'super sexy key club' were Bo's exact words. Not to be mistaken with lesser sexy key clubs, surely. There was an infiltration of some sort that involved a party, dates, and formal attire. It didn't surprise Lauren to hear her girlfriend's complaints about her lack of appropriate dress wear. In the end, Bo's choice was easy, predictable even; it was black, fitted, and displayed an ample amount of cleavage. All it needed was to be made of leather and it would have been the dress-form of the rest of her wardrobe.
"And now we find one for you," Bo said, grinning.
"What?" Lauren replied, that was not the plan.
"Try this one on," she encouraged, forcing a dark blue dress into Lauren's hands.
"I really don't think I need a new dress right now," Lauren murmured, placing the dress back on the rack.
"Oh, you definitely do. I've never actually seen you wear one, now that I think about it," Bo replied idly, mulling over a display, picturing the best colour, shape and size that would work for Lauren.
"I haven't had the occasion for one in a very long time," she explained, growing quiet.
"Good thing we have an occasion now then, you're going to be my date," Bo said cheerily, coming up behind the blonde and putting one hand around her waist, the other placing a dress against her front to check the size. "You are so trying this one on."
"I'm not sure I have the um—assets to pull that off," Lauren said, glancing at her own reflection in the mirror.
"Don't be so sure about that," Bo whispered into her ear, hand slowly riding up the doctor's waist.
"Bo, we're in public," Lauren protested, still staring at the plunging neckline of the dress before her. "I do not have the breasts for this."
"Try it on for me?" Bo asked, placing a kiss on Lauren's neck. She could see already the answer was going to be a no so she decided pouting might work instead. "Please?"
Narrowing her eyes, Lauren shook her head and let out a sigh. "Okay," she breathed, smiling begrudgingly. "For you. But let me find something else that might be more practical first."
She went off through the store on her own as Bo began her own search for shoes. The dress wasn't really important for Lauren, what she wore in the end was irrelevant. She had no desire to attract the attention of anyone during their little mission. A dress was just a dress. No matter the cut, the colour or the hemline, when Bo was in the room, no one's eyes fell on the wholesome doctor. No one's except for Bo's.
The light fae never invited humans to their celebrations, no matter how involved they were in their world. Lauren was no exception. This would be her very first formal party of any sort in half a decade; the idea, surprisingly, made her excited – regardless of their true intentions for attending. She'd never really given much thought to what she had been missing out. Until now.
"You bought it already?"
Lauren nodded.
"But I didn't even get to see it!"
Hair, make-up, heels; it was like prom all over again. Only perhaps this would go a little bit better and she wouldn't end up forgotten or alone by the end of the night. In the mirror, she looked herself over and let out a breath. It had taken a while to curl her hair, but she let it fall over one shoulder, content with the result.
It was silly to feel nervous; there was no logical reason Lauren could think of to be shaky. She grabbed her clutch from atop the dresser, finalizing her outfit, and smoothed out the fabric of the dress over her stomach. However nervous, she thought she looked pretty good. And Bo, well, if being drenched in skunk ape excretions hadn't been enough to turn her off; she would be more than pleased.
She would take the stairs one at a time, last thing she needed was to stumble. Heels always made one feel a little more elegant; they promoted improved posture and elongated the calves. Lauren certainly felt more elegant, but it was more than her shoes doing that work for her.
Though she was in Lauren's line of sight, Bo had not yet noticed her arrival. Taking one last moment to gather composure, she continued walking and watching as her ridiculously beautiful girlfriend turned around and laid eyes upon her.
Upon reaching the lower half of the stairs, she was met with stunned silence. The expression on Bo's face was all she needed to toss her nerves through a figurative window and smile with some semblance of confidence; almost arrogance. Bo matched her smile, reaching out to take her hand and guide her down the last few steps.
They caught each other's gaze, and both seemed to forget Kenzi was even in the room. Neither had ever needed words to communicate, they simply understood. And their current silence said enough. Bo's smile grew, softly running the back of her knuckles along the soft contour of Lauren's jawline.
Lauren's smile turned quizzical. "What is it?" she asked of Bo's widening grin.
"You look… breathtaking."
