The sound of footsteps snaps me back to looking deeper into the store, my eyes finally catching a look at the source of the voice from before.
"Can I help you find anything?" asks the plump older alternative woman, a grin forming on her lips as she sees my hair. She waddles around from behind a row of battered old wardrobes and assorted cabinets, the styles and colors all clashing with one another and give off the impression that this store may just have anything in stock or a least would take anything to sell.
The older woman appears to be in her mid-to-late forties, her pale doughy face spotted and marred with a variety of wrinkles and laugh lines that show her age. Her hair appears a little dry as it cascades down to her shoulders, the effects of bleaching and dyeing having taken their toll. The dark black strands dance about her as she moves towards us, a single bright purple length of hair fluttering in her fringe immediately drawing my eye.
Metal lines her ears, with small shimmering pieces of surgical steel juxtaposed with wide industrial bars that cross the entire length of her cartilage. A ring sits neatly in the side of her button nose, the small silver loop resting perfectly against her skin. Her gray-blue eyes widen as she looks down at me from across the way, their gaze locked to the water smattering of blue hair atop my head.
She stands a little over 5'6", easily a few inches taller than me while being dwarfed by my redheaded companion. Her rounded plump form is dressed in a lacy black dress, the fringes of the long sleeves and hem being lined with ornate and downright intricate lace patterns. The dress however seems a little small on her larger frame, the light fabric leaving little of what lay beneath unseen from her sagging bust to her flabby belly and thighs.
As if noticing her state of dress, the older woman continues to walk towards the counter, fetching a large black coat from somewhere on the floor. As she leans to grab her clothing both Anna and myself can't help but stare at her large rear and hips as the short hem of the dress rides up and pulls tightly over her.
"Sorry" she groans, standing back up and placing a hand on the small of her back as she feels her age. "I figured no one would be in today so I..." she mutters, sliding the jacket over her dress and buttoning it up. Again, her eyes lock onto me as her grin returns. "Oooooh I love that color on you dear" she coos, fiddling with her own hair as she quickly becomes distracted. "Though I'm guessing it looks better with the...you know" she continues with a light chuckle, nodding to the rain outside.
"I...uh..." I stammer, unsure of how to react to the compliment.
"So..." the older woman proclaims, pausing as she lets the word hang in the air for just a moment. "Are you two here for...an umbrella?" she asks, chuckling to herself again as she looks over our drenched states.
Before either Anna or myself can respond, the frigid cold chilling us to our bones and the alcohol addling our minds causing us to freeze up under the woman's question, the older woman quickly interjects again.
"I'm sure you could just stand in front of this tall glass of water" she says with a snorting laugh as she pokes fun. "Her awning ought to keep at least one of you dry" she continues, causing Anna to blush intensely as she looks down at her newly acquired chest.
"H...Hey!" Anna squeaks in offense, her overly sensual and breathy voice failing to carry the full weight of her displeasure.
"Oh shush dear, I'm only kidding" the older woman replies light-heatedly, waving one of her weathered hands at Anna dismissively. Her plump fingers are adorned with all manner of rings, some filled with dark and moody gemstones in a variety of colors while others are merely ornate and gothic pieces with expertly designed filigrees.
Anna goes to open her mouth again, though all that slips out is an affronted breathy squeak before she folds her arms over her chest in a grumpy fashion. However, as she tries to cover her chest she quickly runs into a problem as the massive fatty mounds defy any form of restraint under her slender toned arms. Eventually, she merely huffs again, pouting as she leaves her arms at her sides.
"Um..." I begin, wanting to break these two up before Anna blows a gasket. "We...just moved here and kind of need..." I stammer nervously, trying to work out how much to divulge to the older woman.
"Clothes" interjects a very grumpy sounding Anna, obviously not used to being talked down to by someone that was technically younger than she was or at least had been.
The older woman lets out a slight hissing sigh as her eyes dart over the two of us, the gears in her head spinning as she tries her best to size us up. "Well..." she mutters softly, glancing deeper into the store and at a row of clothing racks and baskets well in the back right corner. "I mostly don't get much in the way of clothes" she continues, raising a hand to what was the beginning of a double chin. "But...when other students move away they tend to leaves 'bits and bobs' behind which I seem to end up with" she explains, her choice of words leaving it plain that she thought we were both students like the others.
"That's fine" I blurt out, swaying a little as I feel myself warm back up from the short ice-cold shower outside and the tipsy feeling quickly gripping me once more. "We're...kind of desperate" I explain, chewing at my bottom lip as I look up at the woman behind the counter.
"Well..." she muses, practically humming the word out as she returns to her thoughts. "I'm not sure how much will fit you, either of you really" she explains, working through her memory as she tries to remember what clothes she even had anymore. "You're a little...little dear" she mutters with a grin, causing a pang of emotional pain to strike my heart. "And you're...well...you're...one-of-a-kind sweetheart" she goes on to say, levying her eyes at Anna and tilting her head a little.
Both Anna and I just stand there in shock, glancing at each other as we both wrack our rapidly dimming minds on what else we could do to find some clothes. Noticing the two of us exchanging worried glances, the older woman claps her hands together to draw our attention once more. She begins to waddle out from behind the counter, the long black coat now covering her down to past her knees.
"I do like a challenge though. Come on, follow me and I'll fetch you what I can" she calls out, not even stopping for us to catch up as she heads towards the back of the store.
After a short moment of confusion I begin to race after the woman with Anna following along behind me shortly after. It doesn't take long for Anna to overtake me though, her eagerness to find some clothes driving her to practically jog through the store.
As we both follow along to the back of the store I'm left looking at the place in awe, my mind struggling to really take in or understand the place. The mustard walls are illuminated by a series of odd and ornate lights hanging from the ceiling by aging chains, the wiring leading to the fixture being entirely visible before disappearing beneath the base of a glass shade in the shape of a tulip. They were all clearly vintage, probably as old as the building itself, though they had been meticulously maintained and cleaned over the years.
As my eyes are drawn down to the room at large I quickly begin to lose track of any form of organization. Rows of items rest against the walls, hiding the dark fluted wood of the skirting boards behind piles of loose furniture and random smaller household items. Separate rows of items line the showroom floor, some even having their own shelves for support. However, I can't seem to find any rhyme or reason to what is placed where. Large silver mirrors are placed alongside coffee tables and shower caddies, A dusty old CRT TV rests atop a dining room table along with a pile of old romance novels.
For a moment I catch Annabelle staring at the books, causing me to jab her in the lower back.
"Money...remember..." I hiss under my breath, watching as her shoulders slump as she remembers her financial situation.
As we approach the back corner of the shop we're met with several racks of clothing. However, it is immediately apparent that if we had searched ourselves we would have been here all day and night. The racks are positively covered in various items in all manner of styles and sizes. While the base layer appears to be on coat hangers the lion's share of the clothing has just been draped over the top into a completely unmanageable mess. Wicker baskets sit at either end of the racks, the large containers overflowing with clothing and threatening to topple to the floor.
"I thought you said you don't get many clothes" I mutter, my eyes wide in shock at the display.
"Oh, I meant I don't often get clothes sweetheart" the older woman coos back, shifting back and forth through the racks in search of specific items. "I do get them and...well...most students come here with clothes so...well, I never really sell much."
I chuckle nervously as I watch the older woman fling clothes to the wayside, gathering a pile in her pudgy arms from whatever she doesn't discard. My eyes are drawn to the back wall of the room, immediately noticing a small door with a hand painted sign.
Changing Room
One Person!I let out a snorting laugh as I read the second line, noticing the different paint used in writing it. The older woman glances over at me before looking at the sign, a grin forming on her lips at her handy work as she tries to let out a disapproving huff.
"Don't get me started" she says with a chuckle, whipping a few more items from the racks and baskets before dropping them on a nearby nightstand. "Some people..." she muses under her breath, shaking her head at the memory of whatever created that new rule.
Turning back to face us she lets out a long drawn-out breath, a faint layer of sweat having started to form on her forehead after the flurry of activity she had just performed. "I think these will fit you, but feel free to have a poke around in the...she begins to explain, trailing off and wincing as she sees the mess of clothes as if for the first time.
Wiping away some of the sweat she begins to waddle back past us, struggling to squeeze between the clothing rack and Anna's overwhelming bust before easily sidling past me. "I'll be up the front if you need anything dears, the prices should be on the clothes" she mutters, wincing a little as she looks at some of them. "Assuming I remembered."
"If there's no price are they free?" coos Anna, letting her age show as she unironically blurts out the terrible joke all customer service people hate to hear.
The older woman merely glares at Anna, causing the towering redhead to flinch slightly. "No" she says dryly, turning to head back towards the front of the store.
"Thank you...um..." I begin to squeak, eager to make up for my friend's faupar.
"Vivian" calls back the older woman, looking over her shoulder with a smile just for me. "And it's my pleasure dear."
I smile warmly at Vivian as she wanders off, quickly losing sight of her amongst the racks and shelves soon afterward. I feel warm and fuzzy inside as I linger on the smile, on being called dear, and not simply because of the ample amount of scotch slowly making its way into my bloodstream.
"She really thinks we're..." I begin to whisper, hoping Anna can hear me. However, as I turn to face the goddess of a redhead I find her already pawing through the pile of clothes that had been left out for us. I watch as she begins to quickly sort through it all, shaking out each item before placing them into two separate piles.
I slowly begin to walk over to her, tugging at the hem of my dark green sweater as I begin to pull it over my head. I'm thankful for the shirt I had been wearing to the Flash Sale, the lighter black cotton top having been saved from much of the rain and becoming a cheap and ugly but efficient impromptu dress. I slowly bundle up the sweater in my hands, wincing as I hear the water soaking the wool being to wring out and onto the hardwood floor.
Anna merely throws me a critical glance, her eyes begging me to stop and to keep quiet as she works.
I watch in silence as she sorts the clothing as quickly as she can, the substance of the two piles quickly taking shape. To her left lays a pile of tight workout clothes, sports bras, spandex shorts, and bright leggings and yoga pants making up the base of the mass. Atop the workout clothes rests a few items of business attire, though even from my angle it looks like they would be a tight fit on Annabelle's voluptuous form. Finally, intermingling with the whole of her collection is a range of tighter and skimpier items. A short low-cut black dress, a tight white pleather mini-skirt, and a tiny bright orange crop top rounding out the selection.
To her right is an entirely different pile of clothing, the sizes being far smaller than those to her left. I watch as she places items of clothing there intensely, quickly realizing that these would make up the clothes I'd be wearing for the foreseeable future.
The base is largely made up of a wide variety of items. Fishnet stockings, a sheer black long sleeve top, a pair of thigh-high boots covered in buckles and chains, a black skirt with a red tartan underlay, some black pairs of tights covered in several different patterns, and a red and black checked dress immediately catching my eye. Beyond the somewhat edgy clothes rest a few tight button-up work shirts, some ruffled blouses, and a few pairs of creased black work pants and tight skirts.
Swallowing hard I watch as she drapes a long conservative dress over the top of the pile, a grin forming on her juicy lips as she glances over at me. It completely covers the chest, a series of cute light brown buttons the white lapel of the salmon pink number.
"You'd look sooooooo cute in..." Anna begins to drunkenly coo.
"Shut it" I grumble, walking up behind her as she continues her sorting.
"You are ab-sol-utely trying this on" she coos, giggling to herself as I just continue to glare.
"I said shut it" I grumble more loudly, my sweet adorable voice failing to carry the anger I was feeling inside.
Thankfully, Annabelle quickly returns to finish up her work. She quickly begins to drape a series of more revealing clothes atop my pile, though barely any of them look like they'll remotely fit me. A pair of tight black leather shorts, and an absurdly clingy black tank top appearing to be the only items that would have any chance on my petite yet busty frame.
Despite my displeasure at the clothes I feel something click in my head, my eyes lingering on the dark moody clothes at the bottom and the tight revealing clothes at the top. I feel a wave of nausea crash against me as I struggle to turn my attention away from the edgy and alternative numbers that I had been sorted. It was like night and day between looking at the sheer top and the green sweater bundled in my arms, my mind snapping between revulsion and need as my eyes dart between the items.
I don't have much time to think about the sensation tugging at me, the urging to wear those and only those 'fantastic' outfits, as Annabelle quickly lurches towards her pile to the left and races off to the changing room.
"Me first!" she coos, racing to the back room with a mixture of displeasure and excitement on her face. "I need to get dry.." she squeals, tumbling into the small makeshift dressing room before closing the door behind her with a slam.
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