Chapter 3
Well…needless to say they didn't find a spot in which wouldn't cost an arm and a leg so they decided to drive around a little bit more. Downtown was a bit too busy so they decided to drive around more of Uptown San Francisco. Jill, being the kind of person that always HAS to go to the bathroom at the worst times decides she needs to use it when they are on Castro Street. Chris, just a little worried about this bickers for a minute and then finally loses, like always. They pull over next to a bar and they get out so Jill can go and do her business. Chris, still a little worried about the whole situation is reluctantly sitting in the car.
"What's the matter with you? I have to go, and when I have to go I HAVE to go."
"Well…then go, I'll just sit in here and umm… protect the car, yeah that's it…"
"…Right. Get your ass out of that car now and lets go…I'm not going in there alone."
"Jill…They're gonna be staring at this beautiful red Integra, and it's gonna be stripped and jacked in the time it takes you to take a piss and freshen up."
"Chris…that all can't happen in 2 minutes. Now get out and let's go!"
"No…you're not trusting me when I say this. I've seen it happen they literally stripped it in 2 minutes, and jacked what they wanted. So I'll just sit in here and protect your investment…I mean prized possession."
Chris, knowing he is about to lose this battle, reluctantly turns off the engine, grabs anything of value that he can see right off hand, and crawls out of the passenger side grumbling while looking forlornly at the car.
"Fine…don't listen to me, but don't be bitching to me when we are taking the bus home."
They get out and Chris, walking very slowly, goes into the bar with Jill right by his side.
"Go sit at the bar, while I go to the bathroom."
"Will you give me money for a drink? Considering you owe me BIG for this."
Jill shoves her purse at him "Here…take what you need." She says as she stands in line for the bathroom.
Chris starts to walk to the bar, and then turns back around. "Uhh…Jill, why don't you use the guys bathroom…the wait isn't that long, I really want to get out of here ASAP."
"Chris…Go sit down!"
He sighs and goes over to an empty stool at the bar. He sets Jill's purse on the seat next to his, but keeps a close eye on it. He orders a glass of water and sets his head on the bar. A minute later he feels a tap on his shoulder and Chris, a little shocked, jumps in fright.
"Hey Buddy, you alright? Can I sit down?"
Chris, a little uneasy, picks up Jill's purse and sets it on the bar next to his water. "Do whatever."
"Thanks a lot. My name is Jimmy. Are you new around here? I haven't seen ya in here before. "
"Uhh…just passing through really."
"Oh, I see. Do you want somebody to show you the ropes?" Jimmy says in a soft voice as his hand manages to make its way over to start rubbing Chris' leg.
Chris a little startled by the sudden movement jumps in his chair and his voice cracks as he speaks "Ropes?"
"Yeah hun, you know show you all of the good clubs and just show you a good time. I mean you are really cute…" he says as his hand moves over to Chris' manhood.
Chris gets up out of his chair with great speed. "Uhhh…sorry buddy I am already committed to somebody else."
"Oh…that's a shame, I thought we could have been good together. Well, the guy must be very lucky. If you ever break up with him here…give me a call." He hands him a business card.
At that very moment Jill comes storming out of the bathroom, more mad than a wild boar whose baby was just attacked. "Let's go Chris…"
Chris looks to her with the happiest look you have ever seen somebody look like. "Uhh yeah dear, just let me grab your purse. It was, ummm…interesting talking to you Jimmy…ummm yeah. See ya!" they take off with great haste and Chris is bitching like never before. As they are walking out the door they literally bump into Carlos Oliviera who was walking into the bar with his "friend" Steve Burnside.
"Aye, watch where…" He starts to say but then he recognizes the pair. "Chris? Jill? What are you doing here???" He says with amazement.
"Carlos? Long time no see, what are you doing in this neck of the woods?" Jill asks in a friendly tone.
"Uh, well you see…my friend Steve here wanted to take me to this new bar. You see…"
"Uhh…yeah, I guess that's cool…um we're happy for you two but we've gotta jet cuz I promised Jill I'd take her shopping downtown. So…later days." Chris replied as Jill was pulling him towards the door.
As Chris removed the keys from his pocket, he shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "That was weird…and…interestin…" He pressed the button to disarm the alarm and unlocked the doors. Chris then looked over at Jill, who was wearing an almost blank expression on her face, and asked he opened the door for her, "What's up wit you?"
"Let's just say that I'm havin' an…off day. Can we please go now?"
"Yeah, sure." Both got in and as Chris started the car, he silently thought, Mental note to self: Be nice to Jill or she'll cause bodily harm to me…don't want her to kill me…or maim me…or anything else that will cause me to get on her bad side… "So…where to Jill?"
"Just drive Kid, just drive. By the way, what happened to you in the bar?"
"Oh same old, same old. Sat at the bar, ordered a glass of water, watched your purse…got hit on by a guy…like I said, the same boring stuff that normally happens to me," he replied with a nervous grin, which caused Jill to smile.
"Well, thanks for waiting for me, and I'm sorry that it happened to you…but you have to admit, you're cute in the eyes of both sexes…" Jill smirked back at him.
Chris stopped at a light and gave her an expressionless smile. "I hate you, ya know that?"
"No you don't, you love me." Jill was reveling in the fact that she was using the same reverse psychology that Chris had used on her back at her apartment.
He continued to stare at her until his face broke into his familiar crooked grin. "Exactly."
The pair just sat in silence as Chris continued to drive towards the Union Square parking garage. After parking the car and arming the alarm, Jill looped her arm around Chris' right one and noted the expression on his face as he winced slightly.
"Oh yeah, sorry bout your arm…but it's not like you didn't have it coming to ya."
"Jeez…I wasn't drivin that fast…"
"Excuses, excuses." She rubbed his arm lightly as they walked out of the garage and towards the street area. "So, where are we headed to?"
"Your choice. I promised you that I'd behave, remember?"
"True, true. So…why don't we head over to…the San Francisco Shopping Centre? I hafta go buy some things at Victoria's Secret."
Chris just hung his head and groaned, "No way, I ain't goin in there with ya…WAY too embarrassing for me…"
"Well, that's a shocker…I thought most guys would do anything as well as use any excuse that they could just to go inside the store with their girlfriends. Why are you scared of a little store like that?"
"I'd rather not talk about it…" was the reply as a dull blush was creeping into his cheeks.
Jill decided not to push the subject as they continued to walk towards the bustling shopping center. Once inside, they ascended the escalators up to the higher floors and Jill practically had to drag a protesting Chris towards the direction of the store. "I swear, what's with you and this fear of this store. I mean, you can blast away zombies and other un-godly creatures with a shotgun, and yet, you don't have any nerve to walk inside Victoria's Secret with me. Jeez, I'd think even Chickenheart Vickers had more gusts to walk into the store with me that you do…"
"Hey! I take offense…fine, don't believe me…you'll see why I hate goin to that place…"
Jill just shook her head. "God…you are just like a little kid…"
Chris just gave her a look and began to stare at the ground as he trudged into the store behind her. He followed Jill around as she began to pick and choose things to try on while trying to maintain his nerve in check. It wasn't that he completely hated the place; it was just that he felt uncomfortable in the store. Especially since he actually was rather shy around other women, and of course, being inside a lingerie store did not help to ease his discomfort at any rate. When it came to women, he'd rather use his imagination than simply knowing what kind of underwear they wore, because he liked the fact that the opposite sex would always be a mystery to him, instead of just knowing everything, like most of his guy friends would claim.
After about twenty-five minutes, Jill decided that she had enough to try on and made sure that Chris remained in the chair that was near the dressing rooms, so that he couldn't take off without her knowing. Though he protested and sulked, Chris sat in the chair quietly as he gave her a defeated look. She ruffled his hair affectionately and handed him her purse, which he took without question and began to rifle through it for a stick of gum, as she walked towards the dressing room. As soon as he found the stick of gum, he began to chew it as he withdrew his cell phone from his right cargo pocket. Punching in a number, Chris listened to the dial tone until he heard someone pick up the receiver on the other end.
"Hello? Yes, I would like to make a dinner reservation for two at your establishment. What was that-Oh, uh-huh, yes it will be for later this evening at say, about 8:15? Yes, yes, okay-huh? The name is under Albert Wesker, yeah, it's W-E-S-K-E-R. You got that-yeah, thank you for your time." Chris let out the breath he was unconsciously holding as Jill came out of her dressing stall.
She gave him a sly look, which caused him to blush as she asked him, "Well, what do you think?"
"Uhh…you look great?" croaked Chris as he felt himself taking in every curve and detail of her body. Suddenly, he snapped out of it because of fear of causing a scene right there in the store, and smirked. "Really, you look fantastic. Do I get the honor of seeing you wear that later tonight?"
Jill playfully smacked his good arm. "Dream on…besides, I might plan something else for you later…"
"Oh really? Well, bring it. So, am I forgiven for today?"
"Nope, not off the hook just yet, Fly Boy. I'm gonna enjoy torturing you right now, in this store. So…just pray that your body can handle it…" Jill gave him a mischievous grin, which caused Chris to slightly glare at her, but also grin to himself. He watched her almost saunter off towards the dressing room as an idea sprang into mind. So…she wants to play rough eh? Well, let's see who ends up winnin this round of the battle of the wills… Just then, he was shaken away from his thoughts as a soft voice rang through his ears.
"Um, excuse me?"
Chris looked up and nearly passed out in his chair as he saw a cute redhead in front of him, modeling her choice of rather revealing lingerie in front of him. "Yeah?"
"I just want an honest opinion? What do you think about this? Does this look good?"
"I think that…it compliments your body perfectly, though I think the green would go better, since it matches your eyes," replied Chris as he felt the blush return to his cheeks.
The girl took a look in the mirror and nodded. "Really? Because I was just thinking the exact same thing…Thanks a lot," she turned and gave him a wink, "handsome."
Chris just slumped back in his chair and gave her a smile. "Glad that I could help." He watched her walk away, though his gaze fell onto her ass as she walked away. A smirk began to form as he sat there entranced by the way that the redhead's butt moved in her choice of lingerie. Suddenly, there were even more beautiful women asking him for his opinion on their choices. Chris was dumbfounded by the spectacle, but continued to answer their questions truthfully all while keeping his more carnal instincts in check. The few men in the store glared at him, since he was looking at some of their girlfriends modeling for him, instead of them. Jill, who was getting rather frustrated with the large crowd that had gathered in front of her, managed to poke her head out and see that the cause of the crowd was that practically every woman in the store was modeling for Chris. She managed to make eye contact with him, which caused him to wink at her and give her a sly smirk, and shake her head in understanding, as she knew that she had lost this particular battle of the wills as well as understood Chris' reluctance to enter the store. Alright Chris, you win. Jeez, I should've seen this coming. Walking into a lingerie store, especially with a guy that is as gorgeous, honest, and shy as Chris, and of course, the women flock to him. Really, I should've known better…
Meanwhile, Chris was enjoying all of the attention he was receiving from all of the women in the store. Though the best part was seeing the expression on Jill's face, which made him revel in the fact that he was right. He absolutely knew that he was in trouble as soon as they would leave the store, but he knew that it was well worth it. The entire escapade took nearly two hours to settle back down, and when both Chris and Jill went to the register, they were surprised to find that the manager had decided to give Jill a discount for half-price, because she was amazed that Chris had single-handedly pushed their sales to a high on a day that was not a holiday.
As they walked out, Chris managed to slip an arm around Jill's shoulders and simply say, "I told you so."
"You were lucky…"
"Just admit it, I won."
"Never…"
"…Right, you know that I won," he replied as he gave her a crooked grin.
Jill playfully shoved him aside as they walked towards the escalator. "Shut up. C'mon, Abercrombie Kid, your favorite store awaits. Oh and here," Jill tossed him all five of her bags, "carry these."
Chris watched her walk away and grinned to himself. "Right behind ya, Sweetheart…"
Once inside, the buying expedition went off without a hitch, save for the women and girls who gave Chris some looks as he tried on form-fitting t-shirts, shorts, and casual apparel that he was forced to show off for Jill. As for Jill, Chris glared at the guys who were staring at her, but gave her a grin to show that he was just kidding. As soon as they chose their clothes, Chris and Jill began to choose some things for Claire, because he knew that she was recuperating from a slight cold and was still feeling a bit drained from the constant sneezing and coughing. The pair walked out with approximately twelve bags between them, though two were for Claire, after nearly two-and-a-half hours of shopping. As they walked away from the store, Chris sat down on one of the benches and set the bags down. Jill was about to join him, but noticed that there were no other spaces available for her to sit.
"Oh, hang on-I'll let you take my-" Chris was then cut off as Jill decided to simply compromise and sit in his lap. Chris blushed as Jill wrapped an arm around his shoulders to steady herself.
"No need, Chris. Besides, you're a bit more comfy than the bench. Anyway, I know that you wouldn't try anything stupid with your best friend, right?"
"Of course I wouldn't Jill."
"Good." She then leaned her head on his shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her waist to secure her. "Oh, and thanks for today. I know that I haven't really been easy to deal with, especially with, you know…"
"No problem. Like I've always told Claire, I keep my promises. Besides, it's the least I could do for all of the times that caused you hell. Though, granted, I did have a lot of the things that happened today coming, but…the day's not over yet. And we still have a lot of things to do, especially since I'm gonna uphold my promise of being a perfect gentleman today."
Jill gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and ruffled his hair. "You know, I've always wondered about that…"
"What?"
"Your hair, how does it always manage to stay so…spikey…all the time?"
"Hair gel and yeah, it's naturally like that. Why?"
"Just wondering."
Chris eyed her suspiciously, though instead, he grinned and said, "Well, c'mon, I've got a whole day planned for ya."
Jill reluctantly let go of Chris and felt that she was already missing the pleasant weight around her waist as Chris let go of her as well. After gathering their bags, the pair was about to proceed to the women's Macy's, but then Chris looked as if he had just remembered something important.
"Hey Jill, could we hold up for a bit? I gotta go to J. Crew for a while."
"What for?"
"I gotta go buy some…shorts and stuff…" mumbled Chris.
Jill stared at him curiously and shook her head. "Mind repeating that so that us normal people can hear? What did ya say?"
Chris gave her a mild look before he stared at his shoes and said in a hesitant tone, "I gotta go buy some boxers and stuff…Happy?"
Jill rubbed her hand over her eyes and grinned. "Jeez, you are a little kid… I can't believe that you are still embarrassed about buying underwear. God, aren't men supposed to grow out of this-this phase when they finally grow up?"
Chris raised an eyebrow at her. "No-not really. Like you've said, I'm still a little boy. Which means that I have yet to reach maturity…despite the fact that I've already gone through puberty… So, in short, no-I haven't grown out of this phase just yet. An' don't think that I will anytime soon. So…pardon me while I go take care of some business." He then picked up the bags he was carrying and was heading towards the escalator when he stared at Jill quizzically. "You comin?"
She shrugged her shoulders and looked over at him as she picked up her purse and picked up her share of the bags. "Of course I am. Don't think that you could ditch me-"
He just rolled his eyes as Jill walked over to him. "Believe me, that the last thing that I would consider doing to ya…" replied Chris as he grinned his crooked little smile at her.
"Sure you wouldn't…"
The two of them headed to their desired floor and walked towards the store. As they wandered inside, Chris found the elusive articles of clothing and began to search for his size. Jill just stood back and watched with amusement as Chris managed to find about ten pairs of boxers to his liking, which were divided into three groups: plain, plaid, or patterned, and she tried to keep a straight face as he grabbed the ones he liked, but a few muffled snickers managed to sneak out. Chris just hung his head and continued with his task. All in all, it took him about twenty minutes to find and purchase the shorts, which made him feel slightly better since he was able to get out quickly without having tons of people staring at the items that he was carrying. Once they walked out of the store, Jill snatched the bag from Chris' grasp and began to examine the contents as they rode the escalator down to the street level.
"Hey-What the fuck?!"
"Relax Chris, I just wanna see what you bought."
"Right…it's not like you didn't see what I chose…"
"Hey, I only saw like a couple of them, not all of them-oh, those are cute… I like the light blue shorts with the little sailboats on them."
Chris stared at Jill as if he was going to kill her, but decided to just grab the bag back instead. "Gimme that…"
Jill saw the dull blush return to his cheeks and smiled. "Really, I like those shorts…kinda like the dark blue boxers with the glow-in-the-dark stars that you got from the GAP two weeks ago. They're cute, just like you are." She pinched his cheek in an affectionate manner and then kissed it. "Though, maybe you should stick to the more 'grown-up' patterns, Chris-chan."
Chris just grinned back at her. "Man…I haven't heard that nickname in awhile. The only other person, other than my parents, to have called me that is Claire…and that's when she says I'm actin' immature an' stuff…"
"Well, expect to continue to hear that for a long time Chris."
"Oh yeah…"
Once they made it to the street level, the pair walked back to the garage, placed their bags in the trunk of the car, and walked over to the women's Macy's, which was across the street from Union Square.