Lightning
A/N: Although it seems that Smile1 is the only person reading this story, I will continue writing because I want to. I would just like to mention that getting reviews is like a little Christmas in my heart, so please, bring me joy and review my work.
Chapter Five: Non-Emergencies
The next night, at 5pm, Rory stepped out of her shower, put on a bathrobe, went to her room, opened the closet door, and stared. What on earth was she supposed to wear? She didn't know where they were going. Thus, she didn't know if she should go fancy or casual. This was the biggest problem with dating. She may not have had a lot of experience in this department, but she did know that there is nothing more vexing to a woman than not knowing the appropriate attire for the situation at hand. All dates would be better if the guy said, "I will pick you up at seven and this is a skirt and heels situation." So it would be a little gay at first, but if everybody started doing it, life would be much easier. Great Rory, that can be your college thesis, How To Reform The Dating Attire Problem, but you still don't know what to wear and you've already wasted ten minutes, she shouted into her mind. Ugh! She had to call her mother.
At the same time over in Tade's room, he stepped out of his bath, shook the water off of his body, walked out into his room, and stood, stark naked, staring at all of the crap he owned. What the hell was he supposed to wear? He didn't even know where he was taking her. His brother, Essien had once warned him that he should always give his date an advanced clue about what she should wear, but how was he meant to do that when he couldn't even dress himself. "Why don't you figure out where you're going before you pick your clothing," he said aloud to himself. "Yeah, that's a good idea. Nice. But where are we going? Where is there to go? I mean is there a Yale Zagot? Probably not. Should I try and go fancy? You know, really wow her, or should I play it cool?" he asked himself. Ugh! He had to call Essien.
"Mom! Mom! Please pick up!" Rory whined into the answering machine at her mother's house. "It's an emergency!" she tried. She heard the phone be turned on followed by a loud clatter, a scratchy, static noise, and heavy breathing.
"Rory? Are you ok?" a gruff man's voice answered. After some shock and confusion Rory recognized the voice as Luke's.
"Luke?" Rory asked still confused as to why Luke was answering her mother's phone.
"Yeah, it's me. What's wrong? What's the emergency?" he asked still worried about what could have caused Rory's frantic phone message.
"Why are you at my house answering the phone? Where's mom?" she asked without any hostility, only confusion.
"Oh, I'm, uh, your mom's still at the inn, I'm, uh, well, I'm making dinner for her tonight." Luke answered, ever so slightly embarrassed.
"Oh." Was all Rory could say. Lorelai hadn't told her that there was anything going on with Luke. Well, she wouldn't jump to conclusions. She would ask her mother about this at another time because she was rapidly running out of time.
"What was the emergency Rory?" Luke broke into her thoughts.
"Oh sorry, emergency was a bit of an overstatement to anyone not in my situation, although to me it is quite serious, hence the flustered message on the answering machine that you must have heard, which may have been frightening, but I didn't think anyone besides my mother would be there and she always knows how to fix non-emergencies, because you know, she is the queen of the non-emergency." Rory babbled.
"Rory. Rory! I stopped understanding you a while back, but your mother won't be back for another hour or so, but I'm guessing that's to long for you to wait, so, uh, maybe I could help with your problem. Unless it's a mother-daughter thing or just a woman thing because I really can't help with anything like that, and I really don't want to either." Luke began to babble himself as he tried to help without getting too involved.
"Don't worry, it's not a woman thing." Rory rushed with reddening cheeks. "I'm just, uh, trying to figure out what I should wear on a date I have tonight, and I can't come up with anything. I don't know if you could help, but I don't know, I mean you go on dates, occasionally, maybe you could tell me what I should wear." She said with hope.
"Oh, I don't know. This isn't really my thing." Luke said getting tense.
"Please Luke, I'm going on my first date with a really nice guy that I met yesterday, but he didn't tell me where he's taking me and I don't know if I should go casual or fancy or how to meld those two together. I just need some guidance." Rory quickly forgot who she was talking to because she had gotten so desperate for help.
"Oh, well if you just met yesterday this means it's a spur of the moment date so he probably doesn't know where he's taking you yet either." Luke replied losing some of his inhibitions as he realized that he might be able to help Rory. "So don't worry. He's in worse shape than you are. My suggestion is that you go with something casually dressy, you know. If you go too fancy and he wasn't going to take you to a fancy restaurant he's going to feel like crap, but if he is going for a fancy restaurant and you're not dressed appropriately he'll change his plans for you, but then he'll probably be uncomfortable in his own dressy apparel." He rambled as he began to get absorbed into the situation.
"Luke, I'm really glad that you can relate, but you're just making me more freaked out. I still don't know what to wear." Rory quickly said into the phone with a slightly raised voice as she tried to break into Luke's conversation with himself.
"Do you have a black skirt?" Luke asked.
"Yeah.
"Do you have sort of nice looking flip-flops or other flat sandals?" he asked with an outfit forming in his mind.
"Yeah. I have black ones, green ones, brown ones, and blue ones." Rory said slowly trying to see where Luke was going.
"Oh good. Do you have a blue shirt that matches the blue sandals? Maybe a button-down shirt or a non-cotton t-shirt?" he asked.
"Yeah. I have a sleeveless, V-neck, sweatery material thing with a sort of striation going on. How's that?" she asked with a growing smile of confidence on her face.
"Perfect." He said with a smile of his own. "Was that helpful?" he asked suddenly getting worried again when he realized that he had just given Rory fashion advice.
"You were wonderful. Thank you Luke." She said genuinely.
"I'm just glad I could help. Have a good night Rory." He said contentedly.
"You too Luke. Bye." Rory said before hanging up her phone and returning to her closet with new confidence.
Back in Tade's room he was pacing the floor (still naked) as he waited for his brother to pick up the phone.
"Essien's Salon and Spa, this is the prince's life-partner speaking." A male voice came through the speakerphone in a joking tone.
"Hey Mark, it's Tade. Is my brother there?" he asked.
"Yeah, he just walked in." Mark answered. After some shuffling sounds another male voice came through the speakerphone into Tade's room.
"Shombay! How can I help?" Essien exclaimed good-naturedly.
"I'm having a wardrobe crisis." Tade replied.
"So you decided that the person to turn to in your hour of need was your dear faggot of a brother." Essien finished with a smile.
"Exactly.
"Well it's a good thing I live to serve my baby brother. Now, please give me the context for this fashion emergency." Essien ordered calmly. He leaned back in his leather armchair and kicked his feat up on his desk. He was sitting in the back office of the salon and spa he owned and ran with his boyfriend in New York. At the mention of the words "fashion emergency," Mark, a few employees, and even a couple of regular patrons of the establishment looked up to hear what was going on. They all knew Tade. Everyone knew Tade. When Essien saw the interest on everyone else's faces he spoke into the phone, "Shombay? I'm going to put you on speakerphone ok?" he asked as he pushed the speakerphone button.
"Yeah, ok." Tade spoke. "Hi everyone." He said to the other people he knew would be listening in on this conversation.
"Hey!" he heard from the people on the other end.
"We're all here, kid, tell us what's going on." Mark said.
"Well, I met a girl." Tade said.
"Ooooooooh." Was the loud response he received from the multitudes on the other end of the phone.
"Yeah. I met her at school yesterday and she's amazing and beautiful and we danced in the rain and watched Aladdin and I'm supposed to pick her up at seven tonight but I don't know what to wear and I don't even know where I'm taking her yet and I know that that is mean to her as well because she's probably freaking out about what to wear too, but I can't help her until I help myself which can only be accomplished by you helping me. You see my problem?" he exhaled.
"We understand." Essien responded. "The fist thing to do is figure out where you're taking her. You're out at Yale though. Where do you take a person out there? I don't suppose they make a Yale Zaggot." He said mostly to himself.
"Do you want to go casual or fancy?" asked Lena, the girl in charge of the shampooing department.
"I guess I'd like to go casual because I don't want her to feel like the whole prince thing means that I only dine at five star restaurants." Tade explained.
"You already mentioned the prince thing? Wow. You must really like this girl." Essien said.
"Yeah. I really do, but we haven't been on a date yet and I only have an hour and fifteen minutes to make sure that I can win her over." Tade elucidated.
"You're a great guy, Tade. Just take her to a place where she'll be focused on you and she'll be amazed." Lena assured.
"Thanks Lena." Tade said with a smile.
"The problem is that we don't know anything about New Haven so we can't help with where exactly you should take her, but as for clothing, I'm thinking you wear the black, Prada pants, with a plain white t-shirt, with that belt with the turquoise buckle, and then wear that turquoise jacket with the zippers." Essien revealed.
"Thanks Essy, everyone. You've been a huge help. I think I have a plan for where I should take her. I'll call you tomorrow and tell you how it went. Bye." He said with a smile.
"Bye!" Called everyone.
"Good luck little bro." Essien said before they both turned off their phones.
Tade returned to his closet with new confidence. This was going to be a good night.
A/N: When I started writing this chapter I thought it would have the actual date in it, but it seems that I got somewhat long-winded in the pre-date jitters so I will put the date in the next chapter. I will post soon.