by M. L. Young
“Don’t you want to try it on to make sure it fits and you like it?” I asked.
“I usually don’t bother,” he said, continuing to browse undershirts that were laid out on a table.
As the two of us shopped, I found a few other shirts and a pair of flat shorts that would be good for late spring and summer. He picked out some V-neck shirts, the rich ones that I choked upon seeing, and a few ties that he said would switch up his look for work. I’d noticed that he’d had much more variety in his wardrobe since we got together, but I wasn’t sure if that was because of me or not. Maybe it was just a coincidence.
“How do you like these?” he asked, holding up a dark gray pair of sneakers.
“They look good. I think they’d match your new shirts and shorts well,” I said.
“Do you have these in a twelve?” Blake asked Joshua.
“Yes, sir. Let me go get them for you,” he said, going into the back.
Two other workers took all the clothes we picked up and took them to the counter as Joshua came back out with the shoes.
“Would you like to try them on?” he asked.
“No, that won’t be necessary. I trust they’ll fit. Did you like anything else?” Blake asked, looking at me.
“No, I think that was it,” I replied.
“I believe that will be it for us,” Blake said.
Nodding, Joshua began to ring everything up as the other workers started to fold and wrap everything. Blake took out his wallet, waiting for the total, as I just stood there and watched the total climb.
“Okay, that will be $3,456.78,” Joshua said.
My jaw tried to drop but the pure shock of the total kept it tightly hinged to my skull. How in the hell did this shit cost that much? We could’ve gone anywhere else and gotten the same stuff for two hundred dollars, maybe three hundred max.
Blake handed his black card to Joshua, who quickly swiped it and returned it to him. Blake signed the receipt, handed it to him, and put his wallet away.
“The items will be delivered later today to your residence. Thank you once again, Mr. Hunter. It’s always a pleasure,” Joshua said.
“Likewise, and have a good day,” Blake said before grabbing my hand and walking out of the store.
“What now?” I asked as we walked outside.
“How about a little something for you?” he asked.
“I suppose I could do that,” I said, thinking of how I needed a new dress. “No super fancy places, though. A department store is just fine.”
“As you wish. Any ideas?” he asked.
“Yeah, one,” I said, thinking of the store where I was supposed to have had a job not too long ago.
People looked at Blake and me as we walked into the store and heard the faint sound of elevator music playing in the background. I could see some of them whispering, not because we were together, but because he was here in this store. I didn’t know he was as well known by the public as he apparently was, but I tried not to let it bother me. I guess this was a small price I’d have to sometimes pay for dating somebody of his stature.
“I want to get a new dress for when we go out. I’m sick of wearing the same one all the time,” I said.
“Well, it looks like the women’s section is upstairs,” he said as we looked at a store map.
Taking the escalator up, I was reminded of when I came here for that interview. I wondered if I’d see anyone from that day, maybe one of the other applicants spraying perfume or performing another function, but I didn’t, at least not that I knew of.
There was a separate section for dresses of all types, from formal to casual, and even prom dresses that were out early with sale prices. They all hung from a myriad of wall poles and carousels spread all around with large red signs that read “sale” or “discount”. I knew Blake didn’t care about spending the money at a nicer place if I wanted to go there, but I was still a little weird about him buying me things anyway. I was getting better, a lot better, but I was so used to being fully independent and poor that getting new things was a bit of an adjustment.
“I like this one,” I said as I picked up a pale pink dress that was tighter in the bust and flowing in the bottom.
It didn’t show any cleavage, and it even had some texture in the top. I knew it’d be nice to wear to a dinner or even to meet more of his friends or family.
“It’s nice, I like it,” he said.
“Would you still think I was cute if I wore this?” I asked.
“I think you’d look beautiful if you were in that,” he replied.
Smiling, I handed it to him and had him hold onto it as I kept looking at some of the sale and clearance rack items. The dresses looked like a rainbow as I ran through them and picked out a few more that could be used for a variety of occasions. There were sexy ones, conservative ones, and some that were kind of in the middle. Blake liked them all, and since they were marked down I didn’t feel too bad having him get them.
After about half an hour in the store, and noticing he looked bored, I decided to call it a day and we walked downstairs to pay. The girl at the counter, who looked about my age, scanned all the tags and took off the security tags. When the price came up on the screen I could see a look of confusion on Blake’s face.
“That will be $74.32,” the woman said.
“That’s it?” Blake asked as he looked at me.
“That’s it,” I replied, smiling back at him.
He handed her his black card and she swiped it before he got the receipt and looked it over again.
“I can’t believe all that was so cheap,” he said.
“Hey, that’s what you get for buying sale and clearance items,” I said.
“But you got five dresses. Surely there must be a mistake somewhere,” he said.
“Nope, no mistake. You even scored another twenty percent off for our weekend sale,” the cashier said.
“Wow,” he replied, grabbing the stuffed bag from the counter.
“Maybe you’re going to the wrong place,” I said as we walked away.
“Maybe I am,” he replied.
Blake and I went to lunch after shopping and talked a lot about anything and everything we could think of. He told me he made our travel plans, and that we’d leave in less than two weeks. As I heard him tell me it was set in stone, I felt a bit of nerves come over me.
What if his family didn’t like me? I knew that they didn’t have a ton of bearing in his life and he cared more about his own opinion than anyone else’s, but I didn’t want them to hate me or something. Maybe they wouldn’t think I was good enough for him or that our small age difference was too large, or there would be something else that wouldn’t spell good news for me. I didn’t want to dread seeing them in the future, if Blake and I were even still together. I guess I’d always dreamt about being loved and accepted by a boyfriend or husband’s family, and that they’d sort of become the family I wished I had growing up. A happy, cohesive unit who were always there for one another.
“Is your family friendly?” I asked as we sipped our coffee.
“I guess as much as someone can be. They aren’t in-your-face happy and friendly, but they definitely aren’t mean or anything like that—at least my mom isn’t,” he said.
“But your dad is mean?” I asked.
“No, not exactly, but he’s more of a reserved man, I’d say, and I think that it comes off the wrong way sometimes. He just doesn’t like to be the center of attention,” he said.
“Kind of like me, I guess,” I said.
“Exactly like you, so I’m willing to bet you two will get along just fine,” he said.
“What about your friends back home? Will I be meeting any of them?” I asked.
“Possibly, we’ll see. I don’t have many friends back there, at least ones who I want to see, but there are a few who are good, especially Jeremy,” he said.
“Who’s he?” I asked.
“A friend who lived down the street from me grow
ing up. We were always good friends, but I wouldn’t say best friends or anything. We never shared any deep dark secrets or passions, but we hung out a lot and did stuff together. He stayed in town after graduation and became a mechanic, and he’s one of the only people I know from home who hasn’t asked me for money or tried to get stuff from me,” Blake said.
“Wow, that must be tough, having people ask you for money—especially people you don’t see often or talk to,” I said.
“It can be, but it’s to be expected. It’s kind of like when you win the lottery, but I guess not as bad. With that people think you didn’t earn it, so they feel you must share it, but with mine I built it from the ground up and they know that, so they aren’t as grabby. Maybe it’s a little different with my case, though, since I have so much—especially in comparison to a lottery winner.”
“Do you stay in contact with any of them outside of being home?” I asked.
“No, not really. None of them have my number, at least none that I know of. We don’t have much in common, especially now with the company and my lifestyle, so it’s best to just go our separate ways and maybe see each other every once in a while when I’m visiting,” he said.
“That’s rough. I’m happy you’ll get to see them, at least the ones worth seeing. I think it will be interesting to meet people you know who aren’t rich or business owners. No offense to Brian and Maggie, I loved them, but they aren’t exactly your every-day average people anymore,” I said.
“It’ll be a stark contrast, that’s for sure,” he said, taking another sip.
Blake and I spent the remainder of the day walking around the city and going towards the water to see Alcatraz from afar. There were a lot of tourists about, many of them getting on the boat to go to the prison, though we opted not to and instead just took it in as the sun set and cast the sky in a fiery blaze of oranges and yellows.
These simple moments with Blake were some of my favorites. He’d proven to me time and time again that you don’t need some fancy dinner or expensive night to have a good time. Sometimes all you need is the person you care about and you can be all right. I think he was figuring that out more and more as time went on, too.
I wasn’t going to stay the night tonight, since he had a flight in the morning for a quick business trip up north, but I came back to his place for dinner that he ordered in. He got us Thai food, a big spread, and we ate it in the media room and watched a movie as we snuggled up together and fed some appetizers to each other. I didn’t care much about the movie, as it was one he picked that I’d seen before, but I didn’t say anything and instead acted like I was super into it. It was more important that he was happy and enjoying himself.
It was almost sad when our night came to a close and it was time for me to go home. I said I’d take a cab, but he insisted on driving me, stating that he was my boyfriend and it was his job to make sure I got home safe. I told him it wasn’t necessary, but he wouldn’t concede and I finally caved and told him he could take me.
We got into his SUV and I immediately turned on the seat warmers. The leather began to heat up and keep my somewhat frosty butt warm. Traffic wasn’t too bad, which was a shame, because I loved just sitting in the car with him, the radio on low, holding his hand as the city lights twinkled all around us. It was just a simple time together that never got old.
After what felt like only a minute, Blake pulled up to my building and I looked up and felt a bit of sadness come over me. I wasn’t going to cry, nothing like that, but as I looked back at him and saw him staring at me, I didn’t want to leave him. I didn’t want him to leave the city for a few days and I just wanted to go back to his place and feel him against me as we cuddled all night long.
“Well, this is it,” he said.
“I’m going to miss you. You better not forget about me while you’re gone,” I said.
“Forget about you? Never. I’ll be sure to text you in the morning,” he said, holding my hand.
“Good, I’ll be waiting for it,” I said.
He leaned in, kissed me softly on the lips, and then backed up and kissed my forehead as I closed my eyes and smiled. I grabbed my things from between my feet, opened the door, and closed it before getting into the building and turning back around.
I saw him waving at me, a frown on his face, as I waved back and he soon pulled off of the curb and drove away. Here’s to the next few days without Blake..
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Blake
There was always work to be done and it seemed I was the one who always had to do it.
I was traveling to Seattle again today to finalize the contracts on the new offices and break the first ground, so to speak. I wasn’t required to come, as the contracts could’ve just been sent to the office, but I insisted on it, as I liked to be a part of everything. After all, I built this company, and I wanted to be present whenever we expanded. It seemed only fitting.
I’d thought about asking Penny to come on this trip with me like she did last time, but she had school soon and I knew she wanted to get a head start on some midterm papers so that she wouldn’t have to worry during our trip back home. Besides, I wasn’t here long and wouldn’t have much time to sight-see. I was going to be missing her badly, but I thought it would only make me appreciate her more when I got back to San Francisco.
As I boarded the jet with two of my business colleagues, I checked my phone one last time and saw that she’d sent me a picture. I opened it and saw her smiling face in bed, the covers up to her chin, the caption inviting me in. I smiled a little, though nobody else saw it, before I replied that I’d love nothing more than to be with her right now. Why couldn’t I see that face every morning when I woke up? Maybe someday, if things kept going well. You never know what the future has in store.
I turned off my phone, grabbed my laptop, and turned it on to a podcast that Grace had downloaded for me. The flight attendant brought us breakfast and drinks, though I suppose we were too busy to eat together. Instead they were drowned in paperwork as I sat here and relaxed all the way there. Sometimes it’s nice to be the boss.
I caught a glimpse of the mountains as we approached Seattle and I couldn’t help but look out the window with my sunglasses on and revel in the majesty that they exuded. It was too bad Penny wasn’t here to look as well. I knew she’d like this type of thing.
A large black SUV picked us up on the tarmac and I immediately turned my phone back on and saw a text from Penny saying she hoped I had a good flight and to Skype with her later tonight if I had time. I knew my schedule would be pretty tight even at night, but I could always make time for her. She was worth it.
There was a team of people standing outside the new building as we approached. The landscapers had done a phenomenal job, even though a small half-inch of snow covered the fresh dirt and mulch that had been spread around the facility. They all clapped as we pulled up. They even had a banner with the company name and logo on it, and the front of the building displayed our name and logo too. It was nice seeing it out front and not just in a placard inside the building like at our headquarters.
“Good morning, Mr. Hunter,” Kenneth, the man I was here to see, said.
“Good morning, Kenneth. I assume all is well here. Contracts are moving?” I asked.
“Yes, sir. They’re inside now waiting for your signature,” Kenneth said.
“We’ll get to them in a second. First, let’s welcome all these people and get them inside for the opening,” I said.
I shook all their hands as I read their nametags and surprisingly remembered a few of them from the employee sheet I’d gotten a few days prior. They all seemed happy to meet me, but they might just have been happy to have a job in this market.
As we walked inside, I smelled the fresh paint and wood flooring that was laid throughout the building. When we designed this place, it was important to me that we kept the spirit of Seattle and Washington as a whole and kept the outdoors in as much of the space as we could.
This wasn’t going to be a sterile working environment, but a different kind of extension of our headquarters back home.
I was shown around the floors, which were laid out just like the other ones. Only a few people had offices of their own, and the rest were in cubicles that offered enough work privacy without completely sectioning people off from their peers. There were beanbag chairs, skateboards, massage chairs, snack bars, and so many more things that I felt were great for keeping happy employees moving.
There were tables with lunch set up, including an ice cream bar and soda fountain manned by old-timey-looking workers to bring the experience fully together.
“Before we begin, how about we go and sign?” Kenneth asked.
“You’ve been patient enough. Let’s go,” I said.
Kenneth led my team and me to the largest office in the building and we sat down as he presented the contracts that we’d gone back and forth on many times before. The company’s lawyers were there, making sure it was the contract we agreed upon, before cameras were taken out to record this momentous occasion.
“They look good,” one of our lawyers said.
Grabbing a pen from a wooden holster, I placed the tip against the paper and took a deep breath in. This moment meant so much to me, and I only wished Penny were here to see it. I would have loved nothing more.
I signed my name on the line and heard the popping of champagne bottles as pictures were taken and I shook hands with everybody. I was handed a glass, as was everyone else, and we all toasted before taking a sip and going out to the rest of the festivities outside.
I’d done it. I’d finally officially expanded the company.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Penelope
I spent the morning attempting to make a resume for Maggie, but it was going nowhere. I’d decided to revise the one I used for Blake’s company, as it seemed like a good starting place, and I needed to talk more about school in it. I even contemplated just stating I had already graduated and just telling Maggie in the e-mail what I did, since I wouldn’t be hired or starting there until after graduation in a couple months anyway.
