Hey, hows it goin? Wanna go out Friday? Puck.
Tina stared at the message and thought about how Puck-like it was – no courtesies, no messing, just blunt and to the point. It was unchartered territory for her, nobody had ever asked her out before as she had always been very shy and introverted despite her outward appearance. The only reason Artie had paid her any attention was because she had actively sought out his company. To now find one of the school's most notorious jocks asking her out was daunting and she wasn't convinced about it being such a good idea but a small voice in the back of her mind argued that she should go for it seeing as she wasn't exactly inundated with offers.
She let her thumb move quickly over the keys.
Where were u thinking? Speak tomorrow about it.
There, that should buy her a bit more time to make a decision about Puck.
Tina let her gaze roam around the walls of her room before it settled on her schoolbag and the homework and textbooks that waited for her. She pulled a face, she didn't dislike homework, she quite enjoyed it when she got started – it was the getting started that was the problem. Tina had been blessed by the seemingly stereotypical Asian gift of being academically good and she had no need to rush at the moment. Her grades remained high and all her work and assignments were up-to-date and any homework she had wasn't actually due until next week. The sun shone warmly outside her window and she grabbed her everyday bag, threw her purse and other bits and pieces that girls always seemed to carry with them before plugging in her earphones and heading out towards the mall.
Head bobbing in time to the strains of The Pretenders's 'Brass In Pocket', the goth scanned the choices of the coffee bar trying to decide how much of a caffeine hit she needed. She had pretty much exhausted the options that the mall offered, picking up a new nail polish of the glittery purple variety with matching eyeshadow and lipstick as well as a new top and skirt. As she looked at the big beverage menu, she saw something out of the corner of her eye through the large window. Across from the coffee bar was a small clothes shop she never paid much attention to but for some reason, her eye had been caught by a display in its window. Ducking out of the queue, Tina made her way over to have a closer look.
It was a million miles away from her chosen style. This was a dress for the likes of Quinn, Santana or any of the Cheerios girls. It was cut with a V-neckline at the front and back and was sleeveless with ties at the top of the shoulders instead while the material was soft and chiffon-like with a light lining underneath and the colour was a powdery lilac. By some invisible power, Tina went in and asked the friendly assistant to try on the dress.
Inside the cubicle, the goth shed her big black boots and lace hold-ups along with her black clothing before stepping into the dress and pulling up the zip. Tina must have stared at herself in the mirror for what seemed like ages because she heard the assistant call out to her to ask if she needed any help. Tentatively, Tina lifted aside the curtain to show the assistant who took one look at her and smiled broadly with genuine appreciation. The bodice hugged her torso before floating gently out to sit just at her knee.
"What do you think?" asked Tina shyly. She didn't recognise the Tina Cohen-Chang who had looked back at her in the mirror. That Tina looked like she might have fit in with any of the other girls at school, she looked gentler, more approachable not like the shy defensive girl who dressed in order to keep other people at a distance.
"You look amazing," enthused the woman. "Wait there a moment," she instructed as went over to another row of racks while Tina continued to gaze mystified at her reflection.
The assistant returned with a pair of little flat white pumps and bade the girl to try them on with the dress then urged her to do a twirl which Tina obeyed with a shy little spin. It fascinated her to see the way the dress swished and moved around her with barely a sound – for once, Tina felt like a proper girl and teamed with the pumps, she had a sudden desire to go skipping through a meadow of cornflowers while birds sang and bunnies hopped around her. It was all very ungoth-like but she didn't care. Tina sighed as she realised how proud her mother would be when she found out her daughter had bought something 'normal' out of her own volition.
It was a forgone conclusion that Tina would buy both the dress and pumps and she went for a last spin when she stopped and went a deep shade of red. Inside the doorway, Finn was leaning against a pillar, mouth agape as he blatantly gawped at her. They stared at each other silently whilst the assistant looked from one to another before breaking the silence.
"Can I help you, sir?"
Finn shook his head but was unable to say anything. The woman looked concernedly at Tina. "Are you alright, miss? Do you know him?"
"Oh, no, it's OK," recovered Tina. "He's in my class at school." She didn't know why she said that instead of saying he was her friend. Perhaps it was because she knew he wasn't really her friend but just someone she sometimes spoke to at school. What was troubling her now was the fact he had seen her out of her comfort zone and what the consequences of it might be.
The assistant eyed Finn suspiciously. "Are you sure? I can ask him to leave."
Finn seemed to remember where he was and who with and looked at Tina apologetically. "Sorry Tina. I was walking past and saw you here and um…" he floundered. He knew how it would sound if he said he went in just to watch her – it would be a quick call to the police to report a peeping tom, especially if that shop assistant had her way.
"Honestly, it's fine," she said reassuringly to both of them, her composure now back in place. "I guess it is a bit of a surprise to see me in something like this," she said it more to herself than anyone else. She then turned to Finn. "So, uh, what do you think?" she prayed that he wouldn't tell her she looked stupid or out of place.
He took a moment before speaking. "You look… pretty. Really pretty." He smiled at Tina who could only bite her lip shyly.
Finn had taken one of his occasional trips to the mall, simply to wander around and clear his head. He didn't have a lot of money to spend but he enjoyed just being out of the house and every so often, he would see something that warranted his attention enough to buy it.
He was on his way towards the music store when a flash of blue and black hair had made him turn to look. He stopped, not believing his eyes. Through the store window, he saw a figure which looked like the goth in his Glee Club but it couldn't possibly be. Goths didn't wear soft summery dresses or twirl in front of mirrors. On closer inspection, he saw that it was, indeed, Tina and she was almost unrecognisable – in a good way. It was an once-in-a-lifetime moment and Finn went inside the shop, unable to tear his eyes from her.
The dress she wore showed off her gentle curves and the smooth skin of her throat and arms while the shoes completed the outfit with a feminine air. She was, in a word, beautiful. Then, of course, she saw him and the spell was, if not broken, then at least interrupted.
Seeing that she was now going to get little response from either of the two young people, the woman took charge of the situation and spoke to the goth. "If you want to go back and get changed, I'll ring through those items for you."
Tina was about to do as the assistant suggested when Finn stepped in. "No," he said as both females looked at him in surprise. "I mean, erm, could you just take off the tags and we can carry home the other clothes."
"Finn, what do you think you're doing?" hissed Tina. She knew it, she just knew it! The dumb jock was going to humiliate her and all because of a stupid dress!
"It's cool," he replied soothingly. "Listen, it's a really nice day, you got a summer dress, you might as well wear it out."
Tina looked askance at the woman who shrugged. "He's right, it's a perfect day for it."
Finn smiled triumphantly and ushered her to gather her regular outfit from the cubicle which the assistant placed in a bag and he carried as Tina paid for the outfit.
Tina looked helplessly at Finn as they walked together. The flat shoes felt a bit awkward as she was more used to her chunky boots and the dress felt odd – too light, too loose, too… girly. It was fine when she had been in the relative security of the shop but out here in the open, she felt exposed, vulnerable and very, very self-conscious. She eyed the bag containing her safe, comfortable clothing but Finn had it.
"Where are we headed?" she asked, tugging at the material of the skirt of the dress as they left the mall. She had the definite feeling that the lining was beginning to ride up her legs.
"To the park, we can grab a juice or something, catch some sun and people-watch." Part of him was wondering what he was doing, basically cajoling her into going with him by holding her goth clothes ransom. It didn't fit the natural order of things, jocks and goths weren't meant to mix but there was something compelling about her and he wanted to find out more.