Gabriel dragged me inside the bathroom and shut the door. He dug out one of the shorter black skirts from the bags and splayed it out on the counter. It had lace layers on the outside. I remembered it because he had asked me to spin when I tried it on and the lace material feathered up as I moved.
He hung up a more modest black t-shirt with quarter sleeves and a hot pink stripe across the stomach. “Okay,” he said. “Put on the underwear and the skirt and shirt. Call me back in here when you’re done. I’ll wait outside.”
“What are we doing?” I asked. Couldn’t I just put it on and throw some shoes on and go?
“It’s runway time,” he said. He patted me on the cheek. “We’re going to show the guys your new look.”
I bit my lip as he left. I made sure to lock the door behind him just in case he decided to pop his head in.
I picked out a pair of black boy-cut panties with hot pink hearts all over them and one of the black bras. I squeezed on the skirt and tried my best to slip the shirt on without getting it too wet. My hair was still damp.
When I had it on, I unlocked the door and opened it a crack, calling out for Gabriel. He filled the doorway, blocking Luke and Victor as they peered in from over his shoulder. Gabriel shut the door in their faces and cursed at them before turning on me. His eyes glided over my body and his face lit up.
“Yeah,” he said. “That’s hot.”
“Are you sure I should wear this over to Kota’s?” I asked. It seemed a little more dressed up than I was expecting for the evening.
“It’s perfect,” he said. “Stop worrying.” He dropping a small duffle bag onto the counter and he searched it for a hairbrush and blow dryer. The blue plastic of the blow dryer had “Coleman” written on it in black permanent ink and looked ancient. “Sit,” he said, snapping his fingers at the toilet.
I perched on the closed toilet seat and let him brush out and blow dry my hair. He applied some leave-in conditioner with a heady scent that made me want to sneeze. He added volume to my hair, brushed it straight, and removed what little wavy curls I had. He dug out a single black bobby pin to tuck locks of hair behind my ear and out of my eyes on one side. When he was satisfied, he backed away, head tilting as he considered his work.
“Stand up,” he commanded.
I stood and he had me perch on top of the cabinet this time. He fished out a pair of thigh high socks from one of the clothing bags and opened the box. He tenderly lifted my foot, placing my heel on his thigh as he rolled and readied the sock and slipped it over my foot. I was blushing, embarrassed that it really felt like he was dressing me.
He smoothed his palms over my thighs when the socks were on, as if testing if they might unroll or slide down. I watched his face as he did it, looking so serious like he had a vision of what this would look like in the end and he was working so hard to make sure it happened. I was breathless, not wanting to disappoint him.
A soft knocking rattled the door in the frame. “Hurry up, you all,” Luke said. “We want to see.”
“Fuck off,” Gabriel said. He opened a box of high heeled boots. He unzipped the side of one, tucking fingers around my ankles to push my toes into the shoes.
I gripped the side of the counter to hang on as he angled my feet in and zipped up.
When they were on, he planted a palm on either side of my hips. “Hop down,” he said.
I let him pick me up and place me on the floor. I wobbled in the heels.
“Step back,” he said.
I did with my palms pressed to my thighs, fingering the lace of the skirt and trying not to sway in the boots.
His lips parted, his eyes losing the determination, and simply brightened into that crystal blue. He made a low whistle. “Perfect.”
“Gabriel...”
He went to his bag, pulling out a tube of lip gloss and a small, brown, unidentifiable bottle. He placed the bottle on the counter and opened up the lip gloss. He pointed the brush tip toward my lips. “Pretend you’re kissing me,” he said, smirking.
A giggle escaped my mouth but I tried to pout my lips at him, unsure of what he wanted.
He laughed. “Fuck me, you’ve never kissed shit.”
“Hey!”
He squeezed my cheeks together until I was making a fish face. He applied the lip gloss. He mimicked a move with his lips like to press my lips together and I did. He rewarded me with a pleased smile. “One more thing.” He threw the lip gloss back into the bag and picked up the bottle of liquid on the counter. He held it up for me. “I think this is you.”
I lifted an eyebrow at him, unsure of what he was talking about.
He uncorked the bottle and held it close to my face. “What do you think?”
I blinked in surprise at him but he held it up toward my nose. I breathed in a fragrance; a soft musk with a fruit and sweet undertone. Just the scent of it left me feeling excited and soothed at the same time. “I love it.”
He beamed, picking up my wrist to get me to hold it up. He dabbed the perfume onto his fingers, dropping some on each of my wrists and then at my neck.
“Forgive me,” he said. He leaned in to me close enough to put his nose to my neck and breathed in. When he drew back, his eyes rolled in his head and he sighed. “Oh yeah. That’s it.”
“Where did you get it?” I asked quietly.
“I made it.”
I tilted my head at him. “You? You make perfume?” Is that why he often smelled different every time I came near him? Did he experiment?
He smiled. “Sang, you don’t know the half of it.” He brushed his fingers through my hair again, nearly combing the new fragrance into it. He made me twirl once more. When I finished, he nodded, satisfied. “I’m going to step out and close the door. I’m going to pull those bozos in the hallway back and get them in the kitchen. Don’t come out until I come to get you. Okay?”
“Okay.”
He winked at me and had me stand behind the door so the others couldn’t peek in. He stepped outside, cursing at Luke who tried to wriggle past him.
As I waited for Gabriel, I checked myself in the mirror. The girl that stared back was a surreal look-a-like from how I looked this morning. My hair was the same chameleon color, straighter and silky. I had the same small nose and the same green eyes. The lip gloss was a tea rose pink, and matched the blush that swept over my cheeks and nose. The skirt’s lace swayed when I wobbled on the heels. Still, it was moderately conservative. With the socks high on my thighs, I was only showing maybe four inches of my skin. The style was playful and cute. There was something else in the black as well, and the boots. I wanted to say dangerous. Was that who I was?
Gabriel popped his head back in. “You ready?”
I released a puff of air. “No,” I said, but I moved forward anyway. I wanted to get this over with.
Gabriel walked ahead of me, blocking my entrance into the kitchen. I spotted North and Silas first from over Gabriel’s shoulder. They were leaning against the far wall, heads tucked together as they talked. They turned their eyes on us, and they smirked in a way that told me they had seen this a hundred times before. Gabriel liked to make an entrance with his live dolls.
Gabriel side stepped.
I tiptoed forward to stand next to him, my eyes on the gray tiled kitchen floor. No matter how I tried, the smile wouldn’t leave my face. I resisted the urge to touch my lip, afraid of smudging the lip gloss.
A gasp drew my curiosity and I glanced up.
&
nbsp; Heads were tilted, eyes were wide, mouths were open, all except Gabriel, who grinned like a madman.
At first I was worried they were horror struck that such a plain girl was all dressed up and that I looked ridiculous. Silas swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing and his lips parting again, his eyes narrowing on my boots and up again to the clothes and my face. Victor’s eyes erupted into a wildfire, sweeping over and over again along my body. Nathan whistled in a low tone. Luke’s head tilted in the other direction, and remained perfectly still as he stared. North roughed his fingers through his hair and away from his forehead. Kota’s cheeks were red and he mumbled something but with my heart thundering in my ears I couldn’t catch it.
Gabriel was beaming. He hooked an arm around my neck to pull me close. “That’s the best reaction I’ve gotten out of them yet,” he said. “We should have picked you up a long time ago.”
Kota swallowed. “I’m not sure she should wear that to school. If Danielle wanted your clothes before, she’ll rip them from your body, now.”
“School?” North asked. “I don’t know if I want her leaving this house.”
Time OFF For Good Behavior
The guys collected their bags and my book bag to walk over to Kota’s house. The new clothes were to remain on Nathan’s table for now. Gabriel only took out pajamas for me that evening and a set of shorts and a t-shirt for the next morning. I wasn’t sure how Gabriel took over the reins of what I wore but it seemed so important to him and I didn’t have the heart to question it. Part of me was grateful. I was always unsure what was the right thing to wear and Gabriel’s decisions lightened my burdened mind. I already felt guilty that Victor bought the clothes. Letting Gabriel make decisions about them eased that. They weren’t my clothes. They were ours. Sort of.
The skirt did feel amazing. The lace tickled my thighs when I walked.
Gabriel wanted to walk over in front of Danielle’s house to parade me like a model in case she was watching. Kota and the others didn’t want to egg her on.