A/N: Hugs and kisses to my reviewers and beta, ShadowPast620.
Tossing a large Rubbermaid tote on the ground, Paul swung open the doors of his jeep, unzipping the back canvas window and throwing out his work shit into the bin to store in the house for the trip to Port Angeles.
Drill bits, empty soda cans, opened package of condoms…
…Shit! Were they still good?...
… junk mail, a hammer, a saw box, gloves, hard hat, tape measure, flash light, zip ties, electrical tape, fishing line…
…When the fuck had he gone fishing?...
…dried out handy wipes, WD-40, a vice, extension cord, pack of fuses, razor blades, caulking gun, special edition Playboy…
Pausing to glance at the cover, Paul immediately threw the magazine aside to the trash pile. He more than loved the female figure, but the big tittied bimbos of his thoughts had been replaced by the image of the small girl currently cowering in his house. If he was being honest with himself, he had more than passing thoughts of stripping her naked and sucking on those tiny globes until she whimpered in pleasure.
The imprinting warred with his baser, male desires. A tit was a tit and it galled him slightly to think he now only desired one pair. The fact that he'd rather rip off his own dick than cause his imprint harm seemed both natural and foreign to him.
Paul didn't think he liked these new feelings at all. Not one fucking bit. He was happy to have a mate, but trying to rationalize it drove him bat shit crazy. Urchin was his mate. She belonged with him. He was hers. Others were insignificant. End of story.
Giving the now offensive magazine an extra kick with his boot, Paul returned to clearing out his jeep, disgusted that the thing had somehow become a dump site.
How the fuck had he managed to store so much shit in here?
"What are you doing?" Leah asked as she came up to the side of the jeep, rubbing her arms in the brisk morning air. Paul jerked mildly in surprise. He had heard her pull up, but his brain had been too occupied with other shit to dwell on the source.
"Cleaning out my shit, so I have room for the stuff I need to buy Urchin," Paul explained, tossing a mix & matched collection of screwdrivers into the open tote box.
"Paul," Leah's grating voice screeched in his ears, "there is no way all four of us can comfortably sit in your shit mobile to drive to Port A."
Failing to pause, Paul still shoveled more shit out of his jeep. Was it like a fucking black hole of vehicles? "Leah, I could give two shits if you're comfortable, and what the hell do you mean, four of us? Did Sam get suckered into tagging along, too?"
Back cargo space finally fucking empty, Paul zipped the canvas into place and then kicked the tote to follow him to the passenger side door. Yanking it open, he pulled the front seat forward and gaped.
Had he always been such a fucking pack rat? Christ, there was enough shit back here to look like he lived in his jeep!
Paul's wolf was less than pleased with the unintentional pun.
"No, Mr.-I'm-supposed-to-able-to-smell-a-fucking-clue-a-mile-away," Leah cut into his thoughts. "Sammy has not decided to join us on this adventure. I asked Kim to come along since the more females the merrier."
"That," Paul remarked with over exaggeration on the word, "is a shitty idea. I agreed to let you go because my urchin might feel a bit overwhelmed and need a friendly female for support. For whatever sick sense of humor the spirits have, she seems to sort of like you. Kim, however, she has never met and I don't want her to feel crowded. She's nervous around large groups of people." Picking up an overly crumpled paper bag, he sniffed once and tried not to gag. Apparently that was where he had accidently left a work lunch three weeks ago.
How the fuck did I not smell that until now?
"She can't be that nervous, or you wouldn't be going at all," Leah huffed in growing ire.
Dropping the offending bag, Paul leaned further into the jeep, his voice slightly muffled. "Wrong again. We haven't even left the house and I can already hear her picking at the threads of her clothing in anxiety. Once we're in the city I figure we can move quickly through the shops and she won't have too much time to become nervous about all of the new faces. Bringing Kim is a new face she won't be able to get away from if she wants to."
"There is nothing wrong with Kim!"Leah exclaimed. "Christ, does Jared know how you really feel about his girl?"
Paul spared a glance towards Leah and then wished he hadn't when his fingers scraped against something sticky and jiggly under the car seat. What the ever loving fuck…"Jared has nothing to do with this; not directly at least. Urchin did take his wallet, though, and I'm sure when she finally has to see his face again, she's going to flip the fuck out a bit. Bringing Kim with us is like using a trail of goddamn breadcrumbs for Jared. Does he even know you're dragging his imprint along?"
Paul was far from squeamish, but he sure as hell didn't want to know what his fingers had found under the seat. Pulling out of the back, he bent over the tote and retrieved a roll of paper towels. They, too, were kinda fucking dirty, yet he still used them to wipe his fingers off, unwinding a huge wad to use as a glove to grab what had felt like a huge snotball under his seat.
"Jared is not her fucking keeper, Paul," Leah said, taking a step away from the side of the vehicle when Paul removed whatever funk he had stored in his nasty ass jeep. Even if Kim wasn't going with them, Leah was not about to ride in that shit. "She's free to do as she pleases. But if you think I'm going to go to Port A alone, with you making googley eyes at your girl the whole fucking time, think again!"
Paul simply nodded his head approvingly. This could be easier than he thought. "Good point. Why don't you and Kim frolic off by yourselves and I'll take Urchin alone. Win, win."
"Wrong, wrong, loser," Leah smirked, immune to male manipulation. "Do you think I'd trust you enough to buy her normal looking clothing? I'd bet Sam's left nut that you don't even know what her size is."
"Sam will be missing his body parts if you try that shit too many times. As it happens, I know she has a twenty inch waist," Paul announced proudly.
"Which means shit as far as girl clothing goes," Leah remarked snidely before doing a double take. "Really, a twenty inch waist? Jesus, that's…are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure," Paul said with absolute certainty before frowning and losing a part of his confident edge. He would bet the house that Leah's surprise was not the usual bullshit girl envy. "Why, what's wrong with that?"
"It's unhealthy. I mean, I knew she was small which is why I grabbed her kid's clothes. I just didn't realize she was that small. Oh, that reminds me…" Reaching into her coat pocket, Leah pulled out a bundle of rags and tossed them towards Paul.
He watched the tatters fall to the ground. "What the fuck are those?"
"That would be what's left of the clothes I had to borrow last night," Leah said happily before toeing the remains. "I don't think you'll be able to salvage them, though."
"Jesus Christ," Paul muttered, leaning over to pick the shit up. "Why would you bring back scraps? You could've just thrown it away."
"I don't know. I felt bad until I remembered I brought Arial stuff. Speaking of which, did she like it?"
Paul just shrugged. "She's still wearing it. I guess she fucking likes it."
"It's just like you not to give a fuck about what your girl is wearing, Paul," Leah accused, right back up in his face. "I spent close to a damn hour in the store, trying to decide what size she would fit into it until I gave up and just bought sweats. She's never going to fit in normal sized clothes."
"Which is why I'm trying to fatten her up to a nice twenty three; maybe even twenty four inch waist," Paul said. He liked his little urchin's body just fine, but if she gained a few pounds, she'd have fuck hot curves! His smile came back.
"Ugggh, I told you, girls don't go by real measurements unless it's for our bras," Leah grumbled, only adding more fuel to Paul's fantasy fire.
"Got that one covered too. My girl is a 32-B." Shit, if Leah didn't shut the fuck up soon, they wouldn't be going anywhere. Paul might have to take a second shower for the day.
"How the fuck could you know that?" Leah asked, once again surprised. She guessed accurately yesterday, but there was no way a man would know shit like that.
Shrugging indifference, Paul went back to cleaning out his shit mobile. "Same way I know that you're a 36-D, Kim's a 34-B, Nadine is the perfect 36-C, Claudia is a 34-"
"Stop it, you fucking pervert," Leah screamed, aghast that Paul even knew that shit much less spouted it out like a proud feat. "What the hell is wrong with you? Have you been eyeing all of the imprints boobs?"
Paul pulled back out of the jeep when Leah punched him in the kidney. It didn't hurt, but it was unwise to antagonize a werewolf as volatile as Paul. "Jesus, Leah, how long have you been banging a wolf? By now you shoul-"
"-because I KNOW Sam will be pissed off and for as sweet as Jake can be, he'll flip his shit, too," Leah threatened the unimpressed wolf.
Paul waited until Leah had calmed down before asking calmly, "Do you know what color Mr. Simon's house is?"
"It's grey," Leah answered automatically before scowling. "But what the fuck does that have to do with-"
"And do you ogle his house?" Paul cut in before she could work herself up. "Do you fantasize about owning it, or living there?"
"No, that place is a dive, but shit! I've seen it every damn day of my life; his house is on the way into the Rez," Leah explained.
"Exactly," Paul answered as if Leah had just stumbled across the answer to life. "I have seen every imprint both mentally and physically. I could give two shits about any of their chest sizes, but I can easily tell you what they all are. I am not a fucking pervert, especially when it comes to knowing my girl's clothing size, both normally and intimately.
Leah's stupor of incredulity only grew. "I swear to god, if you give me any details whatsoever about your girl's cooch size, I'll make sure Sam pummels your ass."
Paul tilted his head upwards to address the sky. "And with that final statement, ladies and gentlemen, your asses can stay here." Dropping his chin, he silently gloated when Leah's mouth snapped shut.
Both stared at each other for a few minutes, Leah finally remembering he owed her! "But you promised last night that I could-"
"Yes, you," Paul cut her off. "Not you and Kim."
Paul went back to cleaning out his jeep, casually watching Leah stand there and think about things.
"You know," Leah began slowly, pulling her arms tighter around her waist. "It's really getting chilly. Arial might be cold in your jeep since you only have the cloth top."
"No, Urchin won't get cold. I don't plan to have the fucking thing open and we're going to buy her warmer clothes specifically for the winter." With both seats cleaned out from underneath, Paul wondered if he should tackle the glove box, too. Fuck it! He wasn't an obsessive clean freak and the smell-de-funk had vanished with the last unidentifiable crap removed.
"Yeah, but you're a wolf," Leah cajoled. "You don't realize how those wisps of cold air can sneak in and creep up your clothing even if you can't see where it's coming from." Pausing as if in deep thought, she let her tendrils of manipulation wrap around Paul's head before dropping the final bomb.
"It hardly takes more than that to get us imprints unknowingly sick," Leah remarked offhandedly, turning to head back towards her SVU. She paced slowly, counting to herself and waiting until…
"Goddamn it, Leah! Fine, you fucking win. Let's all go in your vehicle," Paul yelled, slamming the tote closed to take back in the house. "But I'm driving and Urchin gets shotgun." Leah's laughter echoed throughout the yard as she vocally disagreed and jumped back into the driver's seat.
"I guess we'll have to wait until Black Friday until we can take her to a real mall," Leah sighed deeply, listening to Kim chatter about the necessities of a proper wardrobe. She was happy that at least Kim was talking. Unlike the two living statues sitting behind her, Leah thought, glancing at her mirror and instantly mimicking Paul's new expression.
Paul glared at the review mirror catching the blasphemous woman's frown. "Are you snorting crack? What moron with any sense of self respect goes shopping on Black Friday?"
"Oh, that's right," Leah mocked." Mr. Paul is usually balls deep in some bimbo's turkey." Glancing in the mirror again, Leah caught Paul's horrified expression; his eyes darting to the side to look at his girl.
"Sorry, Arial," Leah called out as an apology. 'I was just busting his chops."
The small owl eyed girl, looked first at Leah and then to the Paul man, unsure as to what she needed an apology for. Tentatively smiling she went back to look out the window.
"Do you like going to the mall?" Kim piped up, turning around in her seat to stare at Bella. Paul's groan and Leah's smack to her leg, told Kim she had asked the wrong thing.
"It's a tradition we started a few years ago," Kim continued hesitantly. "The guys rent hotel rooms and we drive to Seattle on Thursday night after we stuffed ourselves full at Sue's house. She makes great food!"
"Hey! I help," Leah cut in.
"Yeah, but you still aren't as good as your mom," Kim said.
"Don't I know it?" Leah mumbled, remembering her failure at last year's casserole. "Do you think we'll be able to get an extra room this late? With Paul and Arial that makes nine couples."
"Are you deaf?" Paul asked rudely from the back seat. "We aren't going."
Neither girl paid any attention to the snarky wolfman in the back seat.
"Nah," Kim said instantly disagreeing. "Next year we'll need an extra room, but this year I'm pretty sure Emily won't feel like going and Embry would pace a ravine into the mall's flooring as he pouted, worried Emily will go into premature labor," she reasoned.
Leah snorted unattractively. "That boy needs to calm down. My cousin is perfectly healthy and does everything on a timetable. The doctor already said her due date was February 2nd. She won't even allow for the first contraction to start until then."
"They are kind of freakish schedule keepers," Kim remarked thoughtfully before laughing.
"Right?" Leah asked good naturedly. "When me and Sam finally decide to have kids, I'll probably have to staple a post it note to his forehead.
"You might want to consider using the stapler on your mouth, too," Paul grumbled. "I'd suggest one of the commercial grade ones we use at work."
"No, but feel free to bring it home so I can show Arial how to use that shit on you. If any mouth needs commercial grade stapling, it'd be yours," Leah said, glaring once more at the mirror before turning back to traffic. She felt him grab the back of her seat and was startled when he spoke.
"Make a left up here," Paul directed, leaning towards the front of the car as Leah entered the city limits.
"Paul, I'm not taking some ass backwards roads 'cause you think it might be safer for us. The store is still a few miles away," she complained.
"I wouldn't dream of asking you to do that, Leah," Paul commented just as snidely. "I'd like to make a stop before we go shopping."
"Paul, there is nothing up here except…," Leah stopped talking as she thought about why Paul was making a weird request, the first and obvious answer flashing quickly. "NO! Your ass cannot possibly be hungry again. Didn't you shove that maw wide with crap before we left La Push? I swear, traveling anywhere with you guys is like toting a two year old and having to stop every damn half hour so they can tinkle."
Paul couldn't help himself. Batting his eyes, he gave Leah a look of pouting innocence in the mirror. "I promise not to tinkle, Mommy Leah," he said in a child's voice. Kim snorted quietly in amusement and Leah just continued to glare before Paul spoke again normally. "Now drive our asses to the damn bakery."
Food for a wolf was one battle even an imprint couldn't win. Paul was ass enough to probably start chewing on her seat if she didn't comply. Leah gave Kim a look who just shrugged.
"I normally wouldn't stop by there, but since we're already here, I could go for a croissant," Kim responded placidly.
"Fine," Leah grumbled, making the necessary turn. She knew by the time they walked into the bakery, her stomach would be demanding a cheese Danish and she might even grab some cherry fritters to surprise Sam with later.
"What kind of treat do you want, Urchin?" Paul whispered into his girl's ear when they stood in line in front of the long displays of baked goodies.
She turned her head to view the selections, a sense of her unease shocking Paul when she made no move to tell him what she wanted.
"Do you want a croissant like Kim's getting?" he asked again.
-nothing
"If you just want to point, I'll ask for it," Paul offered, thinking she might not know pointing was a perfectly fucking acceptable option. Her hands were clenched tightly to her side, making Paul reach out to brush a forefinger across the top of her closest hand.
"How about a Danish or muffin? They have lots of flavors…" Trailing off, Paul looked around the small establishment wondering what had his girl on edge. The place wasn't overly busy and few had even glanced their way. Urchin, however, had her eyes glued directly in front of her. Paul figured she probably didn't even fucking know there were other people around and was trying not to zombie zone.
Take charge, his wolf whispered in encouragement, Paul already planning to do that.
"I'm going to buy some doughnuts; a shit ton of variety and we can take the rest home with us for later," Paul told his girl softly. "Will that work for you?"
His urchin's unease began to ebb and she finally nodded.
"Good choice," Paul praised before delivering a quick peck to her temple and then straightening back up to stand directly behind his girl.
"Well," Leah demanded of Paul, hearing his approval. "What does Arial want? Or are you just going to make all of her decisions for her?"
Turning, she grabbed the girl's hand to practically drag her closer to the glass countertops. 'Pick whatever you want, Arial. Paul's buying."
"Stop forcing her to change her mind," Paul intervened, "She's already pointed to some doughnuts of her choice."
"Funny," Leah said suspiciously, giving him a hard look. "That would be your favorite, wouldn't it?"
Gently attempting to massage the tension from his girl's shoulders, Paul smirked. "What can I say? There's a reason we're together; she has fanfucktastic taste like I do."
"Bullshit, Lahote," Leah spat before stepping back over to the register to place her order. "Two cheese Danishes, three cherry fritters, a banana and blueberry muffin-"
Paul, who had been happily touching his girl's shoulders and wishing it was warm enough for her to wear a tank top, realized that Leah was still fucking talking. "Jesus Christ, Leah. Are you planning on the world ending suddenly?"
"- a croissant, a plain bagel with strawberry cream cheese, and an everything with veggie cream cheese," Leah finished before scowling at Paul.
"Is that all?" The cashier asked.
"No, he still has to order," Leah remarked, smirking when she stepped away from the counter.
"I'm not paying for all of that shit, Clearwater. Kim's croissant, Sam's fritters and ONE of whatever you want, but nothing else," Paul growled, no longer amused.
A brief verbal scuffle broke out between them, the Alpha's imprint leaving everyone's ears burning when she finally finished telling Paul off before changing her order and stepping away so Paul could finish his own.
"I'd like three powdered sugar, three chocolate, three blueberry, three glazed and then another dozen of random ones; maybe include a jelly, Bavarian, and maple. Oh, and two milks," Paul added as an afterthought.
Once everyone was seated at a table, Paul opened one of the boxes of doughnuts up, waiting for his urchin to choose what she wanted. She looked frozen to the spot.
"Here," Paul said, handing her a chocolate and a blueberry doughnut, classics as far as he was concerned. He chose the same for himself and had demolished them before his urchin had even tasted one of hers.
Leah dominated most of the conversation, talking to Kim about places to go beyond Port Angeles to shop. Not as far as Seattle, but there were a few nice sized towns located past the Port. Paul didn't really care either way. If they had to drive further to obtain the necessary items, so be it. However, his ass was not about to make ten fucking different stops just to end back up at the first store because they had already found what they were looking for.
His girl only ended up eating part of the chocolate doughnut and none of the blueberry. Paul didn't know if it was due to preference, or because she was full, the thought only bothering him more. How was he to learn what she liked if he couldn't make out any type of patterns?
"So, we'll start there and then figure out our best bet for the rest," Leah finished explaining to Kim and Urchin, despite the latter's lack of attention.
"Hey, Urchin," Paul requested quietly when she realized they were about to leave. "Put the rest of your doughnuts back in the box. You can eat them later, okay?" he suggested, wanting to high five his own ass when he had read her hesitation correctly.
She didn't have a jacket on to smuggle food out, her mannerisms fretful at the thought of throwing away perfectly good food. Her eyes stayed glued to the box when Paul did the task for her as if she'd never see a doughnut again. Paul really fucking hoped she'd give him another smile when they got home later and he let her have them back. Or maybe on the drive home. Leah was a stickler for not eating in her car and she'd gnash her teeth in the entire drive back to La Push, knowing even Sam would call her out for not letting an underfed homeless chick eat in her car.
She has a home, his wolf whined repetitively, making Paul grin just a little bit more
Leah pulled into the parking lot of a general merchandise store. Port A was certainly bigger than Forks, but it didn't have a lot of shopping places; not like Seattle.
"Come on, Urchin. Let's go get you some stuff that fits," Paul offered, holding his girl's hand and walking towards the entrance.
The closer they got to the door, the closer she inched towards Paul until he almost couldn't walk unless he wanted to trip them both. He could swing her in front of him, but they probably wouldn't move very far or fast judging from her slowing pace.
He didn't want to pull away from her; not when she obviously felt like she required his presence. Fuck, if he tried that -and not that he wanted to- his wolf would phase to kick him out of the way and be everything his urchin needed.
In the entryway, his girl jumped and cowered a little when a motion activated Halloween figure popped up from its display, cackling wildly.
"I can't believe it's almost Halloween," Kim cried out excitedly. The girl lived for any and all holiday celebrations, but the pack had made Halloween an exceptionally enjoyable occasion.
"Me, either," Leah agreed. Walking over to a display of candy, she casually sorted through the bin, too full to think about seriously buying some.
Once they were actually inside past the festive displays and his imprint was all but standing on his foot, Leah turned around to smile at 'Arial'. "This won't be as fun as it will be next month in Seattle, but we're not leaving until you have a ton of clothes."
Paul simply arched a brow at that statement, feeling Leah tug his girl away and hustle her further into the store, both Kim and Leah talking more than enough to make up for his urchin's silence.
Grabbing a cart, Paul figured he had some time to kill and could pick up a few things he had made a mental list of, yesterday's physical one having been swallowed to hide the heart doddle accident.
Paul Lahote with a shopping cart was a scary sight to behold. Walking directly down the middle of every aisle, his long arms would reach out to scoop whatever he wanted into the cart. He kind of looked like the Terminator choosing weapons as he tossed in sheets, blankets, an area throw rug —people dove out of the way when he didn't even slow the cart to choose that item—a utility box, a toothbrush, shampoo, conditioner—Leah had ranted for twenty minutes about the importance of that—a nicer, softer hairbrush, detangler…the shit never ended, Paul thought bemusedly.
He bypassed the make-up and shit, his urchin didn't need that crap, and continued on, thinking about what he would need for the utility box to transform it into a first aid kit. In the band aid aisle, he stared open mouthed at the multitude of sizes, shapes, colors and textures of the shitters. Little round ones for small cuts; funky ass shaped ones to wrap around knuckles; water proof and medical ones for blisters and then…each of the fucking ones still had differences: plastic, paper, cloth, adhesive, non-adhesive, hypoallergenic.
Refraining from slapping himself over the idiocy at not knowing what would work best, he decided to choose based on unity. Whatever company made the most choices of shape, he'd go with that.
The plan became flawed when there were more choices to be made: cloth sponges, absorbent and non absorbent gauze and the most practical but fucked up fuckers: butterflies. They were the smallest damn things he had ever seen, but promised to hold suture type cuts closed, kind of like a replacement for stitches.
Paul threw four boxes of the butterflies into the cart, mentally praying he never had to open a single fucking one for his urchin.
The rest of the aisles in this area of the store held a multitude of medical crap from antacids—Paul fucking wished his urchin ate enough to get an upset stomach—to analgesics. He threw five different types of that shit in his cart.
The very last aisle in this section of the store made Paul freeze, gulp uncontrollably and a cold-sweat break out on the back of his neck: girly feminine shit.
There were more choices here than there had been with the fucking band-aids.
Reminding himself that this was a natural part of his urchin's life, Paul pushed forward, staring straight ahead and not trying to look like a fucking pervert staring at cotton plugs. Letting his wolf memories surface, he tried to recall if any of the others bought this type of shit for their girls.
A fragment of a subdued memory erupted, a small green box. Paul reached for the literal one quickly, pausing when a second image appeared: a larger pink box. That, too, was here in the aisle and he debated, trying not to growl in panic when another image formed, a dark blue package.
"Pink? It's pretty fucking girly. Shit! Something about a lot of comfort with the blue one…the green ones are preferred? Oh, fuck me!" Paul snarled in hopelessness.
The goddamn memories of other imprint choices were there at his disposal, but no two were alike. The images kept coming at him like a tampon tsunami. Pads, panty liners…what on this god fucking earth were wings?
Buckling down hard, Paul backed up his cart to start the torturous aisle over. He was going to use the manufacturer plan again and chose six or seven items, failing miserably at attempting to look inconspicuous while hiding the products under his other shit.
Less than thirty minutes and he was off to find his girl and the harpies helping her.
"Where are her clothes?" Paul asked as he came to rest beside the girls staring at shoes. None of them had anything in their hands and that made Paul worry. He forgot all about his goddamn worry when Urchin stepped closer to him, once again trying to plaster herself to his side.
"We're picking out shoes," Leah mumbled, holding two different pairs of boots. Both had heels high enough to kill a stilt walker.
"Not those," Kim commented, pointing to the taller, black colored pair of height death. "If you go with the black ones, then we're going to be limited on what color pants we can buy. Plus, black is so traditional. Unless we're buying boots for a dress up occasion, it's passé."
"Did any of you bother to ask-" Paul tried to question, only to be completely fucking ignored. His gaze fell back to his urchin who looked really uncomfortable and kept turning her head in every direction as other shoppers walked by.
"I know," Leah sighed exasperatedly, "but the mink colored ones have a shorter heel. Arial Is already kind of short and standing next to the Jolly Furry Giant, known as Paul, she's going to be lost."
Kim smiled knowingly. At five foot six inches tall, she was the midget of the imprints…or had been until Paul brought his home. Even Leah, who was the tallest girl at five foot eleven, looked small next to the wolves and all of them felt dwarfed.
"True, but now that we're here, we can figure out what size she needs, pick up a pair or two to get her through until next month and then go to a specialty store in the city," Kim said consolingly before brightening up with another idea. "And, with knowing her size, we could always look online and order her something more in style."
Bella hadn't realized that she inched closer to the Paul man, or that she had done so more than once today. When she felt her fingers accidentally brush his denim clad leg, she froze. He didn't say anything; he wasn't even looking at her, but at the Leah woman trying to get her in trouble.
She couldn't own funny shoes like they were looking at! Those things would not allow for Bella to be able to run quickly and even if they did, they were much too fancy. If anyone in the Underground saw her wearing shoes like that, they wouldn't even wait until she slept before trying to take them. Like the mean man that had taken her Swiss Army knife, someone would beat her up, maybe even kill her and then take her shoes. Probably her warm fuzzy socks, too, if she still had them.
As nice as the Paul man had been so far, he wouldn't want to keep her forever. A couple of months and he'd get mean —hopefully not until spring—and make her leave. The idea of leaving made her feel funny in a bad way and Bella didn't like it.
She inched away this time, in the other direction from where these people were talking about shoes. Checking the distance again, Bella could see she was a normal distance away from the Paul man. A few more casual side sweeps and Bella stopped to see if anyone had noticed. She didn't know where she was going exactly and they'd find her easily enough, but she felt uncomfortable with the frequent gasps and squeals the Leah and Kim lady were making.
Looking to her side, she tried not to gasp herself. She knew she had moved at least two arm span's distance, maybe even three and yet the Paul man was still next to her, his long leg just a finger stretch away. Craning her head up slowly, Bella could see his face pinched tightly, lips drawn into a thin line. His eyes suddenly shot down to hers, his face relaxing and a small smile quirking the corners of his mouth.
"They're going to be here for at least an hour, Urchin. Do you want to just pick out a pair you like and then we'll get some other things?" The Paul man asked her. He nodded his head towards other shoes and Bella turned to stare at them before looking back open mouthed at the man.
He kept smiling at her, waiting for her to move and make a decision. Occasionally he'd cringe when the Leah or Kim woman would squeal loudly, but mostly he smiled at Bella making her think this was another test. The demons had always hurt her privately, but she had watched real people. In public they'd smile and look okay and then take the person they were mad at behind a building or something to start yelling or hitting. She didn't want to give the Paul man any reason to do this later at his house.
Bella tried to keep one eye on him to make sure he was serious as she went to choose a simpler, less fancy type of shoe. Boots were completely out of the question, even simple goulashes. Any type of walking or running shoe was equally unacceptable as they would be comfortable and something fellow Undergrounders would want. On a bottom shelf of clearance items, Bella picked up a pair of simple, plain grey clothed tennis shoes.
"Urchin…" The Paul man said quietly. "Those won't work. It's probably going to snow in a few weeks and your little feet will freeze in those."
A large pair of wide eyes stared at the Paul man before darting to a side display of socks. She knew the shoes wouldn't be as warm as a pair of sneakers, but socks helped a lot and she could probably smuggle a few pairs he had if need be.
"No, Urchin. Ten minutes outside with even two pairs of socks and those shoes and you could end up with frost bite," the man explained.
Bella tried not to huff at that. She knew what frost was and she had spent a lot of time trying to avoid the stuff. Socks were definitely the answer.
"Here, try these," he told her, grabbing a pair of light brown hiking boots. "They have wide traction on the bottom and are insulated to trap heat."
She could only stare at him in confusion. Did the Paul man want to make sure she was shoeless when he finally sent her away? Her only hope was to accept the mini boots, hide the shoes she had and be lucky enough to be allowed to take them with her.
Bella hid her disappointment and reluctantly tried on the pair he had placed on a bench. They fit perfect; a little too perfectly for her liking. She looked over the Paul man's shoulder to the row he had chosen them from and hopped over one footed to grab a different pair.
"What's wrong? They looked like they fit right; were they too tight?" He was staring at her unclad foot and then at the boot in her hand, his frown growing.
Using the boot not on her foot, Bella held it up to other shoes, looking for a pair that was bigger before he did something like hold her own shoes against the side of her foot. Bella knew they were a little longer than need be, but sometimes it was good to have an extra place to hide food or coins. Most people wouldn't dream of searching her shoes.
"The one on your foot is a five; try five and a half," the Paul man said still frowning.
Bella could count somewhat, but she had no idea what a five and a half meant and it must have shown. The Paul man reached over and grabbed another pair, patting the seat she had just left. Gosh he had long arms. He hadn't even left the bench he was sitting on.
"Sit down and try them on, Urchin," he encouraged his girl. "I guess the lining is thicker than I thought since I was sure the first pair would fit."
Four fittings later and Bella was informed by the Paul man that he had been correct; the five boot was what had fit best and were now sitting in the cart.
"Leah," Paul interrupted the still talking females, "Give me your keys, so I can go pay for this stuff and load it in your truck. Then I'll-"
"—Paul!" she cut off impatiently. "We haven't even decided on shoes yet and we still have to buy Arial some clothes. God, could you be any more impatient?"
"-Then I'll come back in to help Urchin pick out some clothes. You two have been yammering away like a pair of geese and didn't even bother to notice we've already decided on shoes."
"What? Which pair?" Marching over to the cart, Leah looked in to see what he was talking about. "Paul, those are really, really, fucking ugly. Do you want Arial to feel like she was dressed by a blind douche?"
"Nooooo," Paul answered slowly and sarcastically. "I'd like my urchin's feet not to freeze the second she steps out of the fucking house. I'd also like her to have a pair of shoes that won't send her sprawling on her ass the first time she mistakenly steps on a patch of ice. And above all else, I'd like to make these damn decisions before we're all hovering around on hydro-boards because shoes are no longer worn. Now can I please have your damn keys?"
Digging into her purse, Leah kept glaring at Paul. "You're such a pushy dick, Paul. I bet you just want to eat another fucking dozen doughnuts. Do you always get this shitty when you're hungry?"
"Yes," Paul agreed, catching the keys Leah tossed his way. "Now if you don't mind, can you help her pick out something other than shoes? I'd like to leave here before sunrise tomorrow."
Bella stood off to the side, listening to the exchange wide eyed. The Kim girl looked uncomfortable, but that Leah person was going to make the Paul man mad and then he'd probably take his aggression out on her when they got home. She really hoped the Leah lady would hush before he got madder.
When the Paul man turned back to face Bella, she tried not to cower at the expected hostility he would have. He wasn't glaring at her and even looked hurt when she slouched down.
"Okay, Urchin, I'm going to go pay for the stuff," he started to say before changing his mind. "Actually…" reaching into the cart, he pulled the shoes back out and tore off the plastic ring holding them together along with the tags which he set back in the cart. "Go put these on now since we're going to get them."
Staring dumbly at the shoes in her hand, she looked back to the Paul man trying to understand what he meant.
"It's okay; I'm about to pay for them. Go put them on and throw away the ones you're wearing. They're as useless as an Amish person with a computer," Paul snarked.
Bella wished he had told her she could keep the other shoes. If nothing else, she could've used them as a means of trade in the Underground.
In a world where warmth and survival were top priority, not much else was sought after more. Money to a degree, but even then, you had to be somewhat clean to use it at the stores and you definitely had to have shoes to even get in the stores. The Paul man had basically thrown away a paycheck in Bella's eyes.
With the new boots on, the Paul man had stooped down to adjust the laces, giving her a happy smile as he finally left Bella alone with the other girls. She watched him disappear around a display before turning her attention back to a waiting Leah.
"Come on, Arial. Sorry I couldn't save you from Paul's fashion retardedness, but I'll make it up to you buy helping you choose great clothes, okay?" With her hand held out, Bella took it gingerly.
The looks of determination on Kim and Leah's faces scared her more than any she had yet to see on the Paul man's.
"How about this one?"
"OH! This is a great color for her. What size did you say?"
"She's so small; she can definitely pull that type of outfit off. If I tried to wear a skirt like that, I'd look like a pig rolling around under a blanket."
"Red lace or black lace?"
"Black! Definitely black with maybe a red satin bra if they have any here like that. Paul would go nuts!"
Bella found herself backing away from the constant chattering women determined to make her try on everything in the store. She wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but she knew they had already picked up too many things: two pairs of jeans, a few shirts, and a sweater, all of which Bella held tightly to her chest, waiting for the Paul man to come back and yell.
Her face had turned bright red when Kim had handed her some frilly underwear and not just a couple of pairs but almost an armful with matching bras. Luckily Leah had distracted Kim with some type of nightgown and Bella had hastily ditched the undergarments into the middle of a nearby clothes rack, backing away before she could be caught.
"Miss?" A rude voice asked from behind Bella, causing her to spin around unexpectedly. "Were you planning on paying for those?"
The angry looking man must be the owner here, Bella thought, trying not to panic. She couldn't see or hear the Leah and Kim person to help out. Her eyes dropped to the clothes she still had and then looked back up, unsure of what to do.
His eyes dropped to the floor also, his voice getting uglier by the second. "You can't wear things before paying for them. You either go pay for those shoes now or take them off. Otherwise, I'm going to call the cops."
As soon as this person said "cops" Bella moved into action. Dropping to the ground, the first tear slide down her cheek as she struggled to remove the new shoes. The Paul man had secured the bows firmly, her shaking fingers unable to release the necessary knots to allow enough room for her foot to slip out.
"Why are you down there, Urchin? The Paul man's voice boomed from several feet away and gaining in volume. "Leah and Kim are on the other side of the store looking at jack-"
His voice cut off when she dared to look at him timidly. She hadn't meant to cause problems and now she was doubly in trouble from both him and the store owner.
"Hey, what are you doing?" he asked again, coming to kneel down beside her and oblivious to the scary looking store guy. The caring look he had froze when he saw another tear make its way down her cheek. "Shit, does your hip still hurt? Fuck, I thought you might've been limping. Here, hold onto to my arms and I'll stand you up. Do you want to try to walk or should I carry-"
"Sir, please step away. Unless you wish to be considered an accomplice, this girl needs to take off the shoes she was trying to walk out of here with, without paying for them."
Bella watched in terror as the Paul man slowly turned his head to notice the store guy. In one swift movement he was back on his feet and facing the owner.
The Paul man would never believe that Bella had not stolen something; she was a street urchin after all and no one ever believed them.
"That girl, as you so rudely refer to her, doesn't need to prove anything to you. I already paid for the shoes before I took some bulky items out to our car." Paul never broke eye contact with the salesperson when his hand pulled a receipt out of his front pocket.
"Here's the proof. Go ask the clerk if you don't believe me. She'll tell you that I only had the tags since I wanted my girlfriend to wear the shoes now."
The Paul man was getting louder with every word and people were starting to stare. Clumsily, Bella rose to her feet, unsure as to what she should do. If she still had her old shoes, she would've run out the door as soon as the owner had spoken to her, but being caught with the new shoes on her feet meant she had to give them back. The Leah and Kim lady suddenly appeared.
"What's going on?" Leah demanded, looking in pity at Bella.
Paul pointed to the clothes Bella had dropped on the floor. "Please go pay for that stuff, Leah. I need to take Urchin and get the fuck out of here before I lose my temper." Still straining menacingly at the clerk, Paul dug out his wallet to toss at Leah. "We'll meet you out at the truck."
Paul's left hand lifted from his side, the fingers uncurling to beckon Bella to approach. Knowing she had no choice, Bella shuffled her way in that direction, not daring to look up. When her fingers grazed the Paul man's, he wrapped his hand around hers to lead them outside.
"Don't be sad, Urchin," Paul spoke up, relieved to be outside and away from the fucking asshole, wannabe shop cop who had accused him of theft. "You did nothing wrong, that man was just an obnoxious prick."
Unlocking the passenger side door, Paul picked her up, setting her in the seat and automatically reaching for the seatbelt. When it clicked, he grabbed her hands, hoping to warm them up.
His girl was sending out all sorts of mixed signals and both Paul and his wolf were feeling a bit crazed. At least she hadn't cried, not really. To distract himself, Paul stared at her new shoes. They looked cute on her and he hoped she liked them. He had remembered to dry her socks from last night and figured the material was probably too thick to be comfortable in the boots.
When her fingers twitched, Paul looked up suddenly, wondering if she needed something. His own hands slowed their movements, waiting and watching as she duplicated his actions on a smaller scale. She let him clasp one hand and pulled the other out to lie atop his.
"Yeah, we're okay," he said mostly to himself, holding on to her for another minute before carefully pulling back to shut the door and get in on the other side to wait for Leah and Kim.
At the next store, the girls were exceptionally quiet as Paul hovered close by, glaring at any associate who even dared to look their way. Bella stood between them as they mumbled quietly over a large display of sweaters.
"Paul, do you think the blue one or green one would look better on Arial?" Kim asked, holding the sweaters up in front of Bella.
Wide-eyed, Bella looked at the Paul man, wondering if he had a preference. Out of those two choices, she was partial to the sky blue sweater versus the Kelly green one, but it wasn't her decision to make as she had tried to inform the Kim lady when asked earlier which one she preferred.
"The blue is kind of pretty, but I think the green would go better with those pants we bought her," Leah volunteered, studiously studying the colors.
"Which one do you want, Urchin?" Paul asked ignoring the other imprints.
Surprised at being asked, Bella carefully looked at the Paul man. She did like the blue one and as her hand hovered over another sweater on the display in the same color, his expression told her nothing. Carefully she moved her hand over a red one, a white one, a purple one and then halted over a pink one. It was really, really pretty and Bella liked it far more than the blue one. Lowering her hand to grab the sweater, she looked back to the man, watching his blank expression start to frown.
That was a bad sign.
Just as carefully she pulled back and continued her hovering exploration, finally stopping over a medium grey one when the Paul man started to smile.
"Arial, that's too mundane. What about this cinnamon colored one?" Leah asked grabbing a new sweater and causing the Paul man's frown to deepen.
The Leah woman was not threatening and Bella had no hesitation whatsoever about shaking her head no. She snatched the grey sweater up and clung to it.
"There's your answer, Leah," Paul answered for his girl. "She wants that one. Are we done?"
"She still needs a coat and lingerie," Leah informed him haughtily.
"Leah," Paul said warningly, "Urchin does not need skank clothes. We'll get a coat, but that's it."
"I meant underwear and bras, you ass! Plus she probably needs pajamas and socks."
Kim shook her head in disagreement. "We bought her underwear and bras at the other place."
"Yeah, I thought we had, too, but they weren't in the pile I paid for," Leah argued back.
"For fuck's sake! Does it matter? Go get her what she needs quickly. I'll take her to pick out some pj's and socks and you two meet us there," Paul snarled, unwilling to think about his urchin's underwear. Those types of thoughts would get him in more trouble than it was worth.
He led the small girl to an area of socks, randomly picking up various plushy ones. On the way to pajamas, he also snagged a pair of slippers for her. The night clothes shopping wasn't as bad as he had expected. This store had divided the practical away from the sexy and impractical and his girl never shook her head when he picked out some equally fluffy and plushy pj's.
Back in the coat section, Paul watched avidly as Leah placed a thick woolen lined coat on his urchin. It was caramel colored, ended at the bottom of her ass and cinched tightly in the middle, hiding nothing.
The coat was a piece of perfection for his urchin, illustrating once again what a beautiful woman she was. He could care less about the cost as he fingered the collar; smiling happily at the thought of how warm it could keep her until Leah's voice broke the solitude.
"That is a great coat for everyday wear. Now you need some gloves and a hat to keep the rest of you warm, maybe even a scarf. Paul, do you have an umbrella Arial would be able to use, or do we have to buy one of those too?"
"Why does she need an umbrella?" Paul asked, half dazed. He really liked how his urchin looked in that coat!
"In light snow the coat would be okay, but if it's sleeting, or more than a medium rain, something more would be required," Leah explained, much to his disappointment.
In the end, Paul bought his urchin a nylon ski jacket. The material would protect his girl from wetness and offered just as much protection as the wool one had, plus it had a built in hood. It wasn't like he planned to have his girl outside during a fucking blizzard, but if a strong wind was blowing, a hat could be lost easily. Not so with an attached hood.
Paul waited this time before the cashier handed him the receipt and then ripped off the tags to the jacket. He shoved the receipt in one of the pockets before bundling his urchin up. Not a lot of people were wearing coats like this yet, but she was fucking tiny and always felt cold to him.
After a late lunch at a nearby fast food place, Paul happily climbed into the backseat next to his urchin. He felt like a fucking mountain had been lifted off his shoulders now that he had stuff she needed. Ten minutes into the drive home and she was snoozing against the window, her head lightly tapping against the glass when the SVU hit a bump in the road. Paul let that shit happen once before he slid closer to her side and gently tipped her body against his side, manipulating the hood of her coat to use as padding.
It was strange how easily his urchin relaxed against him when she slept and was unaware of her surroundings. Resting his chin lightly on top of her head, Paul hoped she'd soon be as comfortable with him when she was awake, too.