“Mmm,” she purred, licking her bright red lips. “That would be a good one. Do you have any idea what you want to be?”
I gave my head a shake, causing my long ponytail to brush against my elbow. I had already turned my nose up at hundreds of costumes. I was getting ready to give up.
“Lex? Why don’t you go as something like this? Blow the socks off your boys.”
When I looked over to where she stood about thirty feet away, I could barely make out the flimsy scrap of fabric she held.
“Um, what the heck is that?” I walked over to her, careful to avoid the nosy saleswoman that had been after us since we walked in the door.
“It’s a Jane costume,” she giggled. “You know, Tarzan’s woman.”
“Oh shit, no way.” I laughed but refused to accept the tiny outfit when she extended it to me. “I’d like to wear a little more than that. And, I think I get enough of that “me Tarzan, you Jane” shit as it is from those guys.”
“But, it would make your boobs look amazing. Mine aren’t big enough to wear something like this.” She tried to hold the small leopard print material up to my br**sts and I snatched it out of her hand, returning it quickly to its hanger. She gave me a dirty look and said, “Suit yourself, but it would have been perfect.”
I wandered aimlessly from rack to rack. From Little Bo Peep to the Wicked Witch of the West, I considered and rejected everything. The sales lady decided she was brave enough to ask me one more time if I needed assistance. I successfully resisted the urge to bare fangs and snarl.
“Alright, you’re trying this on if I have to wrestle you into it myself.” Jez approached with a gleam in her eye and something black and red clutched in her hand.
“Jez…” I was wary of what hideous outfit she was going to thrust at me now. She grabbed my hand and dragged me unwillingly into the nearest change room.
Once inside she tugged lightly at my black velvet tank top, rushing me before I’d even gotten a look at what she held. “Just hold on a minute here. What are you trying to do to me?” I grabbed the red and black costume from her hand.
A black strapless corset dress laced in red trim along with a silky red cape made me raise an eyebrow in question.
“It’s Little Red Riding Hood. It makes perfect sense. You are the big bad wolf so you might as well be the innocent little vixen as well. Just put it on. You’ll knock ’em dead if you wear this.”
I had to admit that it was a pretty sexy costume without being overly trashy. Jez may not be straight, but she was one of my best friends. So, even though I would never change in front of my guy friends, changing in front of her wasn’t as awkward as one might think.
She took my coffee cup and motioned for me to get moving. When I’d exchanged my comfy blue jeans and tank top for the costume, I had to do a double take at my reflection in the mirror. The dress clung to my curves, passing my thighs and rear end but ending well above the knee. My boosted cle**age was certainly eye catching. It looked better than usual. My running shoes didn’t look as good as knee high boots would, but I could easily envision it.
The cape was just a little longer than the dress, brushing the back of my knees. It was incredibly soft and a glance at the price tag made me think that for that kind of dough, it had better be.
“This has to be the one. You look amazing. What do you think?” Jez stood beside me; her reflection in the mirror nodded in serious approval. “Just make sure you wear some lipstick on Halloween. Red will really make your eyes pop.”
I rolled my eyes at her, watching my reflection as I did so. I loved the outfit and the irony of being Little Red Riding Hood kind of appealed to me.
“I like it,” I conceded, and she smiled knowingly. “Does this mean I get to pick something out for you now?”
“Not a chance.”
Twenty minutes and nearly a day’s pay later, we were on our way out of the mall.
Jez had settled on the black and yellow Kill Bill costume I’d suggested. I had my moment of gloating at that. She admitted that I was right. No one else could rock that outfit like she could.
It was dark already; the sun descended long before supper during the fall. Arys sure didn’t mind. It gave him significantly more freedom.
The parking lot hummed with the energy of dozens of dimly lit lights. Jez continued to chatter on about the latest hot lady she was dating as we made our way to the car.
“Can you believe that? She actually told me that she’s dating two other women as well as me. That’s some nerve alright. I have to break it off.”
“Hey, hypocrite,” I said, pulling out my car keys as we drew closer to the Charger.
“Aren’t you practically always dating more than one person?”