After his therapy session, Vera tells Sam they're going to the grocery store, and she's driving.
"Uh—not to be mean, Sis, but I don't trust your driving. You said yourself, in group, twenty-seven moving violations."
"You win. He told you to drive." She smirked and tossed him the keys. "There's an outlet store next door. Wanna go try on lingerie before we shop?"
Sam stopped walking, his face stoic, his manner calm. Holding his arms outstretched, he turned in a slow circle. "Is there anything about me that screams I wanna try on corsets?"
Vera eyed him critically, admiring the view as he turned around. "You take all the fun out of shopping, Sam. Mind if I do?"
"Two outfits. I haven't got the patience for more."
"Five."
"Three and that's my final offer."
"That's what I wanted in the first place. Don't you just love negotiations?" Swinging her hips, she led the way to the desk.
Sam and Vera checked out and drove into town. He was surprised at how trusting the facility was. They could easily have driven far away in the Ravenwood vehicle, taking the grocery money with them. But they weren't prisoners and, as such, were treated with independence and respect. It made Sam feel good knowing that they were trusted. Then again, they were very low risk, being there voluntarily. The guests in the lock down section of Ravenwood, were not.
When they arrived at the shopping center, he hopped out of the van and opened the door for Vera. She was so stunned, she nearly fell out in his arms. Supporting her, he laughed.
"Not used to gentlemanly treatment," she replied, slightly offended. "I'm used to doing for myself."
"Just a word of caution then, I also open doors to buildings, hold chairs when you sit, and play guard dog if someone hassles you."
"If all men were as adorable as you, I'd never go for chicks," she stated as they walked into the outlet store.
True to her word, Vera chose only three outfits and tried them on quickly. None of them were lingerie, Sam noted, although she did try on a new bra. After paying for it, she went back to the dressing room to put it on, wearing it with her new top. The bra pushed up her chest and the new top showed it off.
Dancing around in the parking lot, she nearly got hit by a car because she wasn't paying attention. Instead, she was watching the movement of her chest. Sam grabbed her by the waist, whisking her out of the way. The driver went by, shaking his head as he raised a single finger salute.
"Did that asshole just flip us off?" Vera asked. She wasn't angry, simply curious.
"Yeah. You nearly walked in front of him, Vera."
"Really?" She laughed. "Didn't notice. I was watching the girls dance." She did a shimmy, shaking her chest nearly under his nose.
Sam laughed, holding his hands in front of his eyes—peeking. "Put 'em away! Emma would kill me for even looking. Not that they aren't nice to look at...."
Vera took pity on him and put her flannel shirt back on, covering herself.
"Why are you so excited about your boobs? All girls have 'em."
"Because, until I got to Ravenwood, I didn't have any. Look." She pulled out her driver's license. Her hair was cut short and ratty with bright blue streaks. Her eyes were deep set, her cheeks hollow. "Too many drugs. And I was anorexic. I have a psycho mom," she explained. "She always wanted me to be slender and ladylike. I wanted to be muscular and play baseball. She couldn't understand. No man will ever think you're pretty, Vera Lynn!" Her voice took on a distinctly Southern accent. "I was in beauty pageants when I was little. That's why I play so many instruments. A pageant participant needs to be multi-talented."
"So, you any good?"
Vera glared at him. "I'm very good. I won a lot of contests."
©2020 Dellani Oakes
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