I guess I should have learned from all those sappy chic-flicks Bianca made me go to, that the phrase 'what could go wrong' is a trigger phrase. Meaning, things most likely weren't going to go wrong, until that was said.

And what dumbass said it? Me. Stupid, dumb, vocabulary-deprived me.

"Welcome to Poke's Outlet. May I assist you in finding anything special today?"

I blinked, the overly-perky greeters voice bringing me back from my world of thoughts. "Oh uh, no thanks."

Smile twitching, she stepped away. "Enjoy your time then."

Shooting Black and odd look, I stepped into section labeled 'dresses' and began filtering through a rack. Lace backing, sequened backing, net backing, no backing. Geez, was there a new growth in the back fetish industry or something?

Sighing, I switched racks, my eyes peering over the top to glance at Black, who was steadily staring at the ground as he mindlessly turned over dress after dress. So much for not minding, huh? Oh well. You got yourself into this, buddy.

Taking a small, form-fitting purple dress off the rack, I slung it over the fold of my arm and kept searching. Unfortunately, there wasn't much color variety. It was either purple, pink, black or red. Where were all the blues? Or greens? Or even yellows? (Yeah, I know, yellow party dress, gross. But it's nice to at least know I have options.)

Finally, I came across a solid black dress with lace backing and a zebstrika print wasteband circling around the torso. Slinging with the other dresses, I approached Black quietly. "You find anything?" I asked.

He looked up, startled. Handing me two dresses, he looked around.

Giggling, I paired them with the others and grabbed his sleeve. "Come on, I need to go try them on."

Locating a sales woman, I quickly got her attention and booked a stall, seating Black outside of it, on a small leather bench. "Be right out." I said quickly, shutting the door.

Once firmly out of site, I breathed a sigh of relief. Hanging the pile of dresses on the side, I slowly began to undress, pinkening. I still couldn't really believe that I was here with Black instead of Bianca.

Slipping on the first purple dress, I zipped up the back and stepped backward, looking at my figure in the mirror. The sinched waistband made my hips look a little too big. And my boobs. And so did the next dress, and the next, and, well, pretty much all the dresses I picked out.

Sighing as I slipped off the last one in my pile, I stared at the two in Black's. Picking up the first one, I flipped it around and studied it. Straight black with shiny sequins on the body, it looked pretty snug, and had a very open back, not to mention a deep neckline.

Hesitant, I slipped it on and stared at myself in the mirror. I wasn't quite sure how I looked.

"White? Did you die in there?"

I jumped, turning toward the door. "Uh, no.'

Laughing. "Then come on out and show me one already."

Going wide-eyed in the mirror, I knew I had to suck it up and leave the safety of the stall. "One sec. Coming!" I said, throwing on my cardigan on top of it. There; now I didn't look quite so hooker-ish.

Opening up the door, I pre-blushed as I stepped out of the stall- nearling running smack into Black. "Oh, uh, hi." I said, as he took a step back.

Studying me up and down, he smiled. "Looks good."

"Really?" I said, fiddling with my necklace.

Nodding, he narrowed his eyes. "Give methe cardigan though."

As embarrassing as it was, I have to point out the humor in a guy saying the word 'cardigan.' Let alone a straight one. "Sure." I mumbled, whipping it off. Might as well get it over with now.

Snatching it from me, he smiled. "That's a thousand percent better. I like it."

Just as I opened my mouth to reply, the sales woman from before walked up, a coffee-induced smile on her face. "Looks hot on you, babe. Absolutely sexy."

I blushed. "Uh, thanks.'

She turned to Black, and winked. "You're hot, too. You two make a stunning couple." She said, whisking away.

Now it was his turn to blush. "That's twice now."

I raised my eyebrow. "Huh?"

He shook his head, handing me back my cardigan. "Nothing. Here, go get changed."

Shrugging, I took it from him and ran into the stall, ripping off the dress. Dressing, I picked up the one with the zebra belt, and I paused, running my fingers over the one Black picked out. I looked at the pricetag; I had enough for both.

Stuffing both into my arms, I ran out of the stall, making sure i had everything. Hanging the others on the return rack, I stood in front of Black, his dress tucked tightly into the other one; hidden. "Let me check out and we're good."

Looking down at the zebra dress, he smiled and shrugged. "I'll meet you outside."

Thankful, I approached the counter and set the dresses on the top. Running over to grab a pair of slim black heels, I set them on the counter and pulled out my wallet, smiling.

"Is this all?" The woman asked.

I nodded.

"Sixty seventy four." She said, typing in the price on the register.

Surprised at the cheap-ness, I handed over the money quickly. "Could you bag them together?" I requested.

Smiling, she nodded. "Of course. Nice choice, by the way."

"Thanks." I said, watching as she slid them in to the bag.

She handed me the bag and my change. "And I wasn't talking about the dress, either."

Confused, I stepped aside to let the customer behind me through, and slung my bag over my shoulder. What the heck did that mean?

Shaking the thought away, I stepped out of the store, coming face to face with Black. "Good to go." I said, gripping the dresses tightly.

Stuffing his hands into his pockets, he looked onward toward the mall. 'Where to next?"

I looked at my watch, checking the time. "Well, I have about, thirty seconds until I'm supposed to be home. So I guess it doesn't matter."

He blinked. "What?"

I sighed. "I need to go home." I clarified.

He nodded. "Oh, well, let's go then."

Once we left the mall, our idle conversation got even quieter, silence beginning to take over. I cleared my throat, wanting to say something. Anything. "Uh, thanks for coming with me." I said at last.

Looking at me, he smiled. "No problem. I had fun."

"Really?" I asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. I can't wait to see you all dolled up at the party."

I blushed. "Dolled up?"

He smiled. "D'uh. I mean, you are going to be, right?"

I stalled for a second, pretending to switch arms with the bags. I really wasn't planning on it. I mean, sure, I was going to wear my hair down, and straighten it or something, but I wasn't going to put on makeup or anything. It was just a stupid party. It was all about the dress, anyways, right? "Well..."

He punched me lightly, looking too much like a guy for me to think about him being in Poke's Outlet just five minutes prior. "C'mon. You have to be. You know Bianca will be."

I pursed my lips. "But I hate getting dolled up.'

"Why?" He asked.

I looked away, chewing on my lip. "I just don't." It was too much work for too little reward.

"Oh well." He said, exhaling. "I was looking forward to it."

I blushed. Damn. Guess I was now.


Yay! Chapter 9 to be up, soon!
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