“Give her some space?” Gabriel asked. “She’s shy.”
“Sure,” Gretta said. She undid the corset and then showed it to me. “Just pull it on. It’s going to take an extra pair of hands to tie it up behind you. I can come back...”
“I’ll do it,” Gabriel said. “I’ll stay in here. She’s more comfortable with me. She gets shy around people she doesn’t know.”
“Oh,” Gretta said, and while her eyes were curious, none of her other features said anything other than a willingness to please. “Just call me in if you need.” She went to the door and stepped outside, closing the room behind her.
“Yeah, she probably thinks I’m pervert now,” Gabriel said. He shrugged and then held up the dress. “Just strip down into your underwear. I think you can leave the bra on.”
I turned slightly, and Gabriel turned partially, too. We talked a good game, but when it came to show time, I was still nervous. I could see out of the corner of my eye that he was focused on the dress, touching certain parts of it, which left me to get undressed down to my underwear and bra. The panties were modest, like shorts, and the bra was a racerback bikini type with the clasp in the front. I’d been in less around him, but I still covered my stomach with my arms. “Now what?” I asked.
He moved while focusing on positioning the dress low and in front of me, the skirt draping on the floor. I had a feeling he was keeping me in his side view to try to make things easier. “Okay, just step into the middle. That might be better than trying to lift it over your head.
Placing my hand on his shoulder for balance, I stepped into the open corset and dress. He pulled the whole ensemble up my hips. The corset part got caught at the widest part of my hip, and he tugged.
“Ugh,” I said, getting lifted nearly up off the floor and brought back down as he jostled me. I grabbed onto his shoulders to hang on. I was breathing in the citrus, the fragrance stronger now that I was so close, and it was a little heady, making my nose tingle like I was going to sneeze.
“Hang on, let me unlace this part,” he said. He hooked his fingers into the cord and tugged at it to loosen.
This time it slid up my hips easier. He tugged it up over my chest, and then held it up against my body. His breath was warm on me as he was so close and so focused on the dress. I’d seen this look a lot on him, when he had an image in his head, and he used me as his model. It was my cue to simply do as he told me, because he wouldn’t stop until he got the results he wanted.
He twisted the dress around until it looked like it was on right. I stuffed my breasts into the top of the corset part. He leaned back a bit, watching as I did, and then tilted his head. “I hate to say this,” he said, “but you might need to take that bra off. It’s white and this is black and the dress material there is see through.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t get a dress like this,” I said. I knew Gretta had said that it would have sleeves, but I wasn’t sure if it would be enough. The top felt like it would slide off and expose me, and I wasn’t sure if I was comfortable.
“I think it can work,” he said. “Give it a chance.” He reached out slowly toward the top hem of the material at my chest. “Don’t freak out. I’m just adjusting.”
I nodded and put my hands behind my back, allowing him to do what he wanted.
He smirked and shifted the material. “The light in here is kind of bright, and the homecoming dance will probably be a lot darker. But if we can make it look good in the light, it’ll look fantastic in the dark. All mysterious and shit.” He tugged the material that went between my breasts down a bit. “I need Gretta. I don’t know if you’ll need a bra for this at all. Hang on a second. Let me get her.”
Gabriel went for the door, and a moment later, Gretta was standing in front of me, surveying. “You’ve got it on backwards, sweetie,” she said with a smile. “This corset ties in the front.”
“What the fuck?” Gabriel laughed. He placed a palm on his forehead and rubbed. “I was starting to wonder.”
Gretta smiled and then approached me, her hands out. “Let me?” she asked. “I’ll be gentle.”
I swallowed and nodded. With Gabriel there and that I was covered up mostly now, I felt a bit better about it.
Gretta twisted the corset top around until the laces were going up my stomach. She tugged at the bra top, which came up a little higher and actually covered the bra I’d been wearing better. She smoothed out the lower dress part, and then started tying up the laces. “Wait until you’re tied in,” she said. “You’ll see.” She started pulling on ribbons firmly, tugging me around. “This should be supportive, not squeezing the life out of you. You should be able to breathe easily, but feel like it won’t fall off and shouldn’t need to adjust. You can use reversible tape on the bra top to make sure it stays in place.”
“We should probably do her hair up,” Gabriel said. “Like in a sweep.”
Gretta nodded, getting to the top part of the corset and threading the final laces through and tying it off. “Up is best. You want the shoulders exposed as much as possible. She’s got nice ones.”
“Tell me about it,” Gabriel said. He stepped up next to her, his arms across his chest again as he studied me. “This might work.”
Gretta stepped away toward her collection of items at the table. She pulled out two black scarves and started weaving them around my shoulders to make fake sleeves. They were just a few inches wide and hanging just off the shoulder, but once they were in place, it really did make a lot of difference. I didn’t feel so exposed.
“You should move around,” Gretta said. She motioned to the mirrors on the other side of the room. “Walk over there and then back?”
I started walking as she asked, turning and looking back at them through the mirrors. It gave me a chance to really see what the dress looked like. The waist made me look a little smaller, but the skirt flowed out loose, and gave me a bit more shape than I really had. With the faux sleeves in place, it made for modest black attire. In the light, you could see the corset ribs moving up. In some parts, the corset was see-through with lace.
“It’s a bit goth on her,” Gabriel said. “But I see where you’re going with it.”
“It was meant for a goth-costume.” Gretta was smiling through the mirror right at me. “And look at her. She walks like a human.”
Gabriel started laughing. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Heel to toe,” she said. “Girls these days walk on their toes first, and it annoys me. You have heels for a reason.”
I was wondering why she made the comment. Was she trying to make me feel better? Maybe she was worried I was put off by her some way when I rejected the idea of her being in the room with me while getting dressed.
Gabriel rolled his eyes and then curled his fingers at me. “Okay, okay, let’s show the others.”
I sucked in a breath, wondering how I was going to face them.
“Hang on,” Gretta said. She went to the door and picked up something from the floor just outside. She came back in with a black feathered mask and a pair of black shoes with a thick heel and ribbon around the ankle part. “Let’s get her in gear. Probably not exactly what she’ll wear, but might as well sell it.”
Costume Design
A little bit later, I was stumbling back down the hallway in the shoes. Gabriel was holding onto my arm to make sure I didn’t fall over; I hadn’t ever worn anything with much of a heel.
I had the mask on over my face, and it just covered the crests of my cheeks. I was grateful for that. The guys couldn’t see me blush.
In fact, with the mask, it was a little hard to see. I used Gabriel a lot to show me where to go.
The others were talking, but the moment we stepped out, they all went quiet. Gabriel moved me to the platform in the middle and continued to stand with me, holding up my hand. I was looking down, for the most part watching my step and where he wanted me to stand.
I thought before he’d looked really handsome in his fitted
shirt and with the way he’d styled his hair, but under the platform light, he was particularly stunning. I felt braver about staring at him through the mask. He met my eyes often, with a smile and slight lift to his brow. He was pleased.
Gabriel gestured toward the dress. “Try to focus on the shape,” he said for everyone to hear. “We can add color.”
No one was saying anything, and it made me nervous. I had to look up.
Kota had his mouth open, his eyes wide.
Luke had a side grin, his head tilted as he looked at my legs.
Victor sat up, scooting to the edge of his seat. I could see, even from a distance, his fire eyes as they seemed to light up in a blaze, very intense.
When I finally mustered the courage to look at Mr. Blackbourne, he stood up and started walking around the platform. His face blank, emotionless. His steel eyes were everywhere. He circled around me.
I held my breath, waiting. The corset was firm, not letting me slouch at all. It stopped me from shaking. I thought I might like corset dresses.
“Remove the scarves?” Mr. Blackbourne asked quietly.
My cheeks had been warm before, but now they were very hot. Without the scarves, my breasts were more exposed, and they’d all see the bra straps.
Gabriel threaded his fingers through to undo the knots of the scarves that were tied together. Mr. Blackbourne stood behind us, a little off to the side so I couldn’t see him. I focused on the others. Victor was sitting back, curious and observant. Kota had stood then moved closer and was now focusing on me. Luke hopped up and then moved to circle the platform.
“It doesn’t even look like her,” Luke said, then leaned in toward me, arching his neck. “That you underneath?”
I started to giggle a little. The humor relieved some of the tension in me. “Yes,” I said. “It’s me.”
Gabriel removed the scarves and stepped away, circling to the front. “I think I like the sleeves better.”
Mr. Blackbourne moved around, still on the floor, standing between Luke and Kota. He reached out and pointed. “Yes, but they should be hanging more, I think. A wave, like the dress. The dress part might look better, too, if it was lower in the back, or more draped.”