“You know how I feel about that,” he said. “I told you when you picked it out.”
“What did you say, again? That it makes me look like I’m—”
“Being strangled,” he finished. “So that’s a no. Try this.”
I stepped back, startled, as a dress was flung over the top of the door, its hanger clanking. The top had thin, gauzystraps, the skirt ending in a series of layers, all of it a pale rose color.
“Pink?” I said.
“Don’t be gender biased. Just try it.”
I slipped out of the black one, then pulled the dress down, removing it from the hanger. Looking at it up close, I had more doubts: it was so simple as to be almost plain, the fabric delicate and thin.
“I don’t think this is me,” I said. “How strongly are you opposed to the cape?”
“I’m not answering that,” he replied. “Put it on.”
I did, turning my back to the mirror as I slid it over my head, easing the straps over my shoulders. When I looked down, all I saw was pink.
“This is a no,” I reported.
“But we haven’t seen it yet!” the salesgirl said. “And he picked it out himself!”
I sighed. At this point I’d leave with nothing to wear and Roo would have himself an actual girlfriend, not just a pretend one. Oh, well, I thought, and opened the door.
He was standing right outside, the salesgirl a few feet behind him, a grin on his face. When he saw me, however, he immediately stopped smiling.
I looked down at myself. Was there a cutout I had missed, exposing me? Could the entire thing be not just thin and delicate, but transparent?
A quick, panicked check confirmed neither of these was the case. But he was still staring at me. “What?” I said,crossing my arms over my chest anyway. “What’s wrong with it?”
He blinked at me. “Nothing,” he said. “It’s—”
“Perfect,” the salesgirl sighed. “You look incredible.”
I did? I turned, facing the mirror on the dressing room door to see for myself. And while I wouldn’t have said perfect—nothing was, in clothing or otherwise—I did have to admit that it worked. The color, which warmed up my skin and the beginnings of a tan I’d gotten since I’d been here. The cut, which emphasized my waist and made me look tall, even in bare feet. But there was something else, too, that had nothing to do with the dress itself. Roo had seen something in it, and recognized a part of me that matched. How could someone know you better than you knew yourself? Especially if they really didn’t know you, not at all.
“I’m not convinced,” I said after a moment. “The fact it’s lacking a cape is kind of a deal breaker.”
“You want a cape?” the salesgirl asked, dismayed. “Well... I guess we could look for something....”
“She’s kidding,” Roo told her. Again. Like a translator I never knew I needed. To me he said, “Seriously, though, you should get that. You look great.”
I felt my face flush, hearing this, and quickly turned back to the mirror. Which was stupid, because of course he was still there in the reflection, although he immediately turned his attention back to the shoe rack. What was happening here? We were friends. Not even that. Acquaintances whose parents had been closer than close. Butrelationships were not passed down like hair or eye color. Were they?
I looked down at the tag, hanging from my armpit. The dress was ninety bucks, which I knew was a lot more than Bailey had spent on hers from Bly County Thrift, even with the alterations it had needed. Nana Payne, though, would have plunked down three times that without hesitating, for herself or me. It’s important to remember this, I told myself, whether I was here three weeks or always. Don’t forget.
“Okay, I’ll take it,” I said. “But only because we have ice cream to sell.”
“And you don’t want a cape,” the salesgirl said, clarifying.
“No,” Roo and I replied in unison. Then he looked at me in the mirror again. And smiled.
After I paid, it was back to the parking lot, where we were still one of the only cars present. Which did not make me any less nervous about having to drive out of there.
“You know,” I said as Roo slid into the passenger seat, “you can drive if you want.”
“Not our deal,” he reminded me, shutting his door. I stayed where I was, outside on the driver’s side. A moment later he swung it open again. “Are you getting in?”
