Mari & Ilna-you're the best.
McRollers-thanks for reading.
Notes at the end of the story.
I Know Victoria's Secret (1/1)
By the time Kendra and Grace were ready to head to the mall to pick up the things they needed for the new semester, the outing had grown into a girl's day that included Catherine, Elizabeth, Carrie, Kaitlyn, and Angie.
After grabbing breakfast they decided to hit the clothing stores first then work their way through the rest of the list as the day went on.
"Good thing we got an early start," Elizabeth said as she looked around at the throngs of back to school shoppers crowding the stores.
"Oh look." Kendra spotted something she liked in a window and darted into a store. Just inside the entrance she pulled a flowy white top off the rack and held it up against herself. "Do you like this one?"
"It's pretty," Grace replied. "But you don't have a great track record with white shirts."
Kendra barked a laugh. "That's for sure. I can go weeks without dropping food on myself but as soon as I wear something white … bang."
Kaitlyn pointed to a rack of tie-dyed shirts a few feet away. "You should get one of those." She chuckled. "Then if you drop food no one will know."
As she watched the girls move on to look at a rack of shorts, Elizabeth smiled softly. "Seems like just yesterday I was taking you shopping for your first day of school."
"I remember." Catherine squeezed her mother's arm. "I only wanted to get camo because I wanted to dress like my daddy."
Elizabeth looked at Carrie and grinned. "That was until she spotted a little t-shirt with a sequined butterfly on it. Then she was sold on anything sparkly."
As the girl's continued to look around Catherine noticed that Angie's attention was focused on a teenager standing in front of the mirrors outside of the dressing rooms.
"Nothing looks good on me," the clearly frustrated girl said. "We might as well go home. I'll just wear sweats everyday."
"You look good," the friend who was shopping with her said. "That color really brings out your eyes."
"Unfortunately it also brings out my thighs," the girl grumbled. "This one is a definite no."
"Try on the jeans with that blue shirt," her friend suggested.
"One more thing," the girl said in a defeated voice. "Then we're leaving."
A few minutes later Grace, Kendra, and Kaitlyn had all selected a few items to try on and headed for the changing room. As they were checking for open stalls, the girl from earlier came out in a pair of blue jeans and the same flowy shirt Kendra had been looking at, except in blue.
"See," she spat out as she looked in the mirror. "It's no use. I look fat in this too."
Before anyone knew what was happening Angie crossed the few feet to the mirror and stood beside the girl. "I think you look very pretty," she said. "Dat shirt looks like a fairy shirt."
The girl couldn't help but smile a little. "Thanks," she said softly. "But it just doesn't look right on me."
Catherine took a few steps forward. "I agree with my daughter. I think that outfit looks great on you."
"Lieutenant Rollins." The girl recognized Catherine and was immediately flustered. "I … thanks for saying that but …"
"But what?" Catherine asked.
The girl turned her back to the mirror and looked over her shoulder. "These jeans make my hips and butt look so big."
"You're being too hard on yourself," Catherine said. "The fit is perfect."
"I tell her the same thing all the time but she never believes me," her friend said.
"That's because everything looks good on you." The girl pointed to her friend's slim figure. "You're built like a clothes hanger."
"Maybe," Carrie said as she joined the conversation. "But I gotta tell you I spent a whole lot of my teenage years wishing I had more curves. You look fantastic. I would buy it in a heartbeat if I was you."
Catherine nodded. "I agree. And by the way your friend is right. That is definitely a great color on you."
"Really?" The girl looked in the mirror again, struggling to see herself as the others saw her.
"You could get some sparkly shoes to wear," Angie said excitedly. "Or some boots like mine." She held up her foot to show the girl her footwear.
For the first time the teenager took note of the outfit on the small, curly haired girl standing beside her. A pink Minnie Mouse shirt with sequins, camo shorts, work boots, and doggie earrings.
Catherine noticed the girl assessing Angie and said, "She has very eclectic tastes but she knows what she likes."
The girl knelt down and looked at Angie. "Well, I think you look absolutely adorable."
"Thank you." Angie beamed. "I think you look very, very pretty too."
Just then Kendra and Grace emerged from the fitting rooms. Kendra, who had swapped her white shirt from earlier for a green one in the same style smiled at the girl in front of the mirror and said, "Twinsies."
"Looks better on you though," the girl replied.
Kendra shook her head and indicated her bust with a small laugh. "No way. You fill it out a lot better than I do."
"I'm not sure it hides enough of … " the girl trailed off as she indicated her midsection.
"It looks great," Kendra assured her. "I always used to think things made my arms and shoulders look big. I grew up on a ranch and after all those years of tossing feed sacks and hay bales around I thought I looked like a linebacker in everything I tried on."
"For me it was my cheerleader thighs," Grace said. "I used to worry they looked too muscular to wear a nice skirt."
"But you guys both have great bodies," the girl argued.
"You do too," Catherine said. "All bodies are different but they're all beautiful. Embrace what's different about you. And most importantly wear what you like and don't worry about what people think."
The girl looked in the mirror again and this time her eyes held a small sparkle. "I really do like this outfit."
"Then you should get it," Catherine said.
Carrie and Elizabeth nodded in agreement. "Absolutely."
"It looks great," Kendra said. "And honestly, now that I see the blue on you I think that might be the color I want too."
The girl smiled in the mirror just as Angie piped up and said, "Don't forget the sparkly shoes though."
THE END
This story was inspired by a song by jaxwritessongs that really struck a chord with me as a person who has gotten up and run at least 5 miles every morning for decades, convinced that I have to "work off" whatever I ate the day before.
For anyone who hasn't heard the song I suggest you search it out, but the words are as follows.
God I wish somebody had told me when I was younger..
That all bodies aren't the same
Photoshop, itty bitty models on magazine covers
Told me I was overweight
I stopped eating, What a bummer
Can't have carbs and a hot girl summer
If I could go back and tell myself when I was younger, I'd say
Pssst
I know Victoria's secret
And girl you wouldn't believe
She's an old man who lives in Ohio
Making money off girls like me
Cashing in on body issues
Selling skin and bones with big boobs
I know Victoria's Secret
She was made up by a dude
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