A/N: Thanks to my beta girlies: Ninmesarra and Prettyflour! XO for your hard work :)

Unfortunately, I'm not SM therefore I own nothing but the plot line for this. Hope you all enjoy it!

I'm updating a day early! And most likely, will continue updating on Wednesdays now. Thursdays are getting to be too busy :)

~*C2C*~

TJ Maxx. Kohl's. Sears. JC Penny's. Macy's. All these stores and Alice had coerced me into the fitting room for what seemed like hours at a time in each one. None of the clothes she was recommending were really my style. I hate dresses. I hate skirts. I am so much more a jeans type girl. Give me skinnies, flares, boot cut- it doesn't matter as long as they are jeans. I am not really a suit type person either, but I must wear those to the office.

The fact that Eric is taking me to a museum requires a more sophisticated approach to dressing than my jeans and Beatles t-shirt. I still can't believe that Angela thought I'd hit it off with someone that wants to take me to a museum. I slept through history class- daily- and she was usually the one waking me up so I wouldn't get detention. Oh well, a dare is a dare and I will follow through- if it's the last thing I do.

Alice found the red dress she had recommended the day before and I tried it on. It was a red silky halter dress that wrapped and tied just under my bust line. It accentuated the barely there swell of breasts and flared out at the hip into a just above the knee length. I had to admit, if only to me, that it made look hot. I could probably handle that if they allow me to get flats. Heels are a hazard to my health.

I added it to the growing pile of to-purchase items (thanking my lucky stars that it was big sale weekend). The dress really was flattering. I managed to talk the girls into a pair of sparkly red kitten heels to pair it with rather than the six inch death traps dangling from Rose's fingers. Would they never learn that the accident-prone and heels combine as well as oil and water?

I convinced them to give me a rest and we headed for the food court. I decided on Taco Bell and ordered my two tacos and drink. My order was the first done- the others having chosen Chinese and pizza- so I found a corner table and slid onto a chair.

I'd just finished slathering my tacos with hot sauce when the girls sat down. Angie turned her nose up at taco, "Bella, how can you eat that? It's like Grade A dog food… ick!"

Snickering, I replied, "It's better than the cheese pizza that you are consuming that looks like it was dipped in a pot of grease before they served it."

"Okay, well, anyway, have you decided which dress to wear tonight?" Alice interrupted.

"I thought I'd wear the dark gray one and accent it with the black belt and my black ballet flats. If I'm going to be doing a lot of walking on this date, then I need to have shoes that I know I can walk in. Besides, I don't want to kill the guy on a first date. Can't you see the headlines in the paper now? Death by Heel- Woman loses shoe and it stabs date." So maybe I'm a bit melodramatic.

After rolling her eyes at me, Rose informed me, "The red dress really is your best bet on this date, Bella. Oh, and Embry wanted to know if you would be up for bowling next weekend?"

"Me and bowling? Do you even know me at all? Remember last time we went bowling? Ugh, did I not end up losing the ball behind me? No, that does not just happen on Wii Sports, ladies. Wasn't it Ali's toe that the ball landed on and subsequently broke?"

"That's the beauty of it. You can let him teach you how to do it right!" Rose said.

"Yeah, Bella, she's right. It's the perfect opportunity to let him put his arms around you. And, I've seen Embry and he is a beautiful hunk of man-flesh. You are going to die when you see him," Alice squealed.

"If he's such a gorgeous guy, why does he need you to set him up on a date, Rose?"

"Oh, that's easy. He had his heart broken by Leah Clearwater. The man eater. She cheated on him with his cousin," she paused for dramatic effect, "Emily."

"Oh my God. You have got to be joking me. So, I guess she's not really a man eater then, huh?" I couldn't help myself, I had to say it.

I had to laugh at the round of ews, gross, icks, and Bellas that they shouted at me. I looked down at my watch and noticed that it was already one thirty. Time to get the heck out of the mall. We'd been shopping since eight that morning. I threw my trash away and waited for the girls to get rid of theirs. We made our way to the parking lot, loaded down with bags that we quickly stashed in the trunk.

On the way back to my house, we passed my favorite thrift store. I made Rose pull over and hurried to jump out. I went in and searched through the racks. I love vintage clothing! It has a past and is so much more than just a shirt. Okay, so what if I'm weird? It makes me happy, so it's ok, right?

I found the cutest tunic. It was white with eyelet lace edgings and a big brown leather belt to cinch it at the waist. I had to have it. It would be perfect for my date with Emory… er, Embry… whatever his name actually was. Maybe I could have Rose write it down for me. It's not going to go well if I can't remember his name.

I found a few other tops that I had to have and some more jeans- I couldn't live without them! Another pair of chucks- these were purple; and an awesome new purse- it was from a top designer with a hefty original tag; I made it mine for only ten bucks. Alice said it was hobo bag. Will she never realize that I don't care what they are called? If I like it, then I do and if I don't, oh well!

We were back at my house by three. Eric was picking me up at six and I had to put all these new things away and get ready to go still. The putting away part shouldn't be too hard, but the getting ready part, that could take forever!

I laid out the red halter dress and realized I'd forgotten the heels in the car. I quickly called Angela since it was her car we'd used today. She said she'd bring them by after dropping off the other two girls and picking up Ben. I threw my phone down on the bed and hurried into the bathroom.

I jumped into the shower to wash the smell of greasy food and too many perfume samples from my skin. Once my body and hair were free of the filth, I slipped into my undergarments, plugged in the hair dryer, and combed out my tangles. I stuck my headband on and applied my make-up. It is so hard to blink when you aren't used to putting on eyeliner! I managed not to make a huge mess with it.

Shortly after that, I had my foundation, eye-shadow and blush applied. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't get the eye-shadow right. After adding some more, I looked like someone had punched me in both eyes. I washed it off and started over. Thank god for the oil-free stuff. I didn't have to scrub too hard to remove it. After two more tries, and thirty minutes later, I finally had it applied as well as I was going to be able to.

Squeezing smoothing serum into my naturally frizzy hair- the one trait I got from my mother, dammit- I worked it through to the ends. I got the flat iron out of the box and turned it on, praying I wouldn't burn myself. Once my hair was dry, I grabbed the straightener and started running it through my hair. Of course, since the powers that be hate me, I did manage to burn myself three times. I closed my thumb in it, touched my ear with it, and dropped it when I was working on the front, so I now had a big red spot on my forehead to try to conceal. Bless the make-up sales lady for recommending I buy some concealer.

I glanced at the clock and noticed it was already five o'clock. I had one hour to finish. Angie still wasn't here with my shoes either. I made sure to unplug my hair appliances and dashed to the bedroom to pull on my slip and sort through my jewelry. It took twenty minutes to untangle all my necklaces to get the one I wanted. Finally getting it clasped on behind my neck, I found the hoop earrings that matched and stuck them in my ears.

My hair kept falling into my face, so I grabbed the loose strand and pulled it behind my ear. Of course, it got stuck on my earring and ripped it just enough to hurt like hell and make it bleed. I decided to forego earrings and grabbed a tissue off the nightstand by the bed. Squeezing it to my ear, I managed to stop the blood flow.

Pulling the zipper open on the side of the dress, I heard the doorbell. Assuming it was Angela I threw the dress on the bed and ran down the stairs. I opened the door- in only my bra and slip- to come face to face with the guy I assumed was my date. "Eric?"

He was standing in my doorway with his mouth hanging wide open when I remembered, Oh my God! Bella! You are standing in the open doorway, facing a stranger, in your UNDERWEAR! I ran back up the stairs, trying not to slip, while I called over my shoulder, "I thought you were Angela bringing my shoes! Come on in. I'll be back after I'm dressed!"

I didn't hang around to see if he came in or not. I was completely mortified. And to be honest, I'm not sure that's a strong enough word. Humiliated, mortified, chagrined, horrified- take your pick, or better yet, use them all. I double-checked the time. Five thirty. Who in the world shows up for a date THIRTY minutes early? I wasn't quite so embarrassed now, but rather peeved off.

I snatched my clutch out of the closet, throwing in my lip gloss and a few tissues, my credit card, ID, and some cash. I dialed Angela on my phone, while I did that.

"Bella, I'm pulling in now."

"That's good, since my date is already here."

"Oh my. He's more excited than I thought he would be, to be there thirty minutes early," I could hear Ben laughing in the background.

"Yeah, well, just come on in and bring my shoes upstairs. I thought he was you, bringing my shoes and answered the door in my underwear, Ang."

"You what? Oh Bella. I'm so sorry!" I didn't believe that because I could tell she was trying not to laugh. I heard the door open downstairs and told her I'd see her in a minute.

Her feet were loud on the steps as she made her way up. My bedroom door was open and she giggled at my still-red face. "It could be worse you know. You've opened the door naked before."

"Oh my god. I would have died… Thanks for bringing my shoes," I said as I took the box from her.

I sat down on the bed and slipped the death contraptions on my feet. Standing too quickly, I teetered on them for a moment. I huffed a sigh and glared at Angela. "Why did I let you guys talk me into these?"

"Because they look totally sexy with your dress." She gave me a once over and asked, "Where are your earrings?"

I had to fill her in on that crisis too. It was not my day. Not at all. She had no words. All she could do was shake her head.

"Well, I'll go tell Eric you'll be down in a moment. I need to go. Ben and I have plans. See ya later, B!" she said with a quick side-hug.

"Later Ang!"

I glanced back in the mirror one last time. After stowing my cell phone in the little purse, I walked to the top of the stairs. I was focusing hard on staying upright in these damn shoes.

"Wow," I heard his whisper and glanced up at him. He was kind of an adorable-cute. His black hair was spiked up and he was wearing black-rimmed glasses over his baby blue eyes. His smile was wide and I noticed he had crooked teeth. It wasn't a major deal-breaker or anything; I just had a thing about smiles. His eyes crinkled at the corners. Dressed in a black suit with a blue shirt and tie, I was taken aback at how young he looked.

Opening my mouth to ask his age, whether it was appropriate or not, I felt my foot slip and went sliding down the last five steps. Thankfully nothing was broken- except the right heel on my shoe. (Talk about buyer's remorse!) I was going to be bruised in the morning; that was for sure! I laid there for a moment to calm my breathing when I noticed my slip and dress had ridden up and was now around my waist exposing my underwear- as if he hadn't seen enough already. I stood quickly and threw my shoes up the stairs.

"I'm Bella. The klutz and danger magnet," I told him, sticking my hand out for him to shake.

He gripped it lightly, "I'm Eric. Eric Yorkie."

"I figured that. And just so you know, I usually charge for peep shows. I guess tonight was your lucky night," I tossed a wink over my shoulder as I opened the coat closet. I found the ballet flats I was looking for and slid my feet in them. "Ready to go?"

I could see Eric swallow as he nodded with wide-eyes. I could tell this was going to be a long night already. I was going to need a drink before it was over. I hope my favorite barstool is empty when I stop by!

~*C2C*~

Can't wait to hear what you think!