I folded the crisp new $100 bills, but not before gazing upon it. The bills in this day and age are so colorful... I shrugged and smiled and placed the bills into my pocket. As I walked out of the bank I glanced at the sky. For this time of year, it was about 10:15. You learn to tell the time by the sun when you've lived as long as I have. I wandered down the street whistling a little tune and watching the people as they went about their everyday routine. There was a larger man seeming to argue with himself in front of a pastry store. I can only assume he lost the argument because a few seconds later he went inside. I continued down the street, mostly to get an idea of the current fashions. They were many and quite diverse. There was a teenager with an orange mohawk and ripped shirt and shorts holding another one of those boards with wheels. I made a mental note to ask what those things were. They looked fun, but also a little dangerous. I moved to the side as what appeared to be a very stressed mother walking briskly while talking to a small plastic object she held to her ear as her two daughters dressed in sun dresses skipped alongside her. I acquainted myself with the fact that the plastic object could only be a telephone. I smiled to myself and grinned, "Technology". Apparently I didn't say it quiet enough because the mother gave me a very stern look for a moment and then continued talking on the phone.
As I rounded the corner, I had to stop myself short because I had almost run into a girl. I blushed as I looked at her. Her shirt was ripped and barely there and there was an excessive amount of flesh protruding from her brassiere. I closed my eyes, bowed my head and moved off to the side to let her pass. As she walked away, I found that the jean shorts she was wearing was also barely there with a fair amount of buttocks hanging out of the bottom. For all of that, I could tell she was athletic and very tone, but it still took me a while to get over the fact that women wear things like that in this day and age. With a final swish of her long, brown, curly hair, she disappeared around the corner.
I continued to walk, watching the people as I did until I found the clothing store I had spied from earlier this morning. I pushed open the door and was surprised to hear a bell sound. I looked up to see a small bronze bell still swinging from where the door hit it. I smiled. It was nice to see that some things have not changed in the past half century. At the sound of the bell, a pretty young woman walked out from behind a rack of jeans saying as she walked, 'Welcome! How may help...' she cut off as soon as she saw me. I raised an eyebrow and looked down at my now obvious out of fashion clothes.
I chuckled and responded, 'Ah, yes, I seem to be a bit out of fashion...' She seemed to be staring at my face but blushed and looked away as I finished my sentence.
She seemed to mumble, 'No, it's not your clothes I was looking at...' I tilted my head to the side and raised an eyebrow. After seeing my expression, she seemed to recover. 'Welcome! How may I help you today?'
I smiled back. "I came to renovate my fashion sense," I said with a flourish,"I hope you can help me because fashion is not my strong suit... obviously", I added with a smile and a wink.
She giggled cutely, hooked her arm in mine and directed me towards the men's section. "Well, let me see what I can do for you!" I placed my hand over her arm and let her lead me. She glanced at my hand and blushed again. I wondered if all girls were this excitable these days. She brought me to a full length mirror, turned me away from it and then took a couple steps back, crossing her left arm across her stomach to hold her right elbow, and her right hand curled with her index finger placed onto her bottom lip. I felt that every inch of me was being weighed and measured... it was an... odd... feeling. She started to walk around me slowly, talking to herself and touching various parts of my clothing. I caught a few words... 'Good posture' 'Tall and toned' 'Rugged'... I blushed at the last wishing again I had taken more time to shave properly. Still, I bore her scrutiny knowing it would pay off in the end. She had the manner of an experienced tailor and only half the years.
"Have you given any thought to what type of clothing you'd like to purchase?"
"What type?" I responded quizzically.
"Yes. Type. Casual, business, business casual?"
I blinked, wishing I had paid more attention to fashion the last time I was out and about in the world. I went with what I thought was a safe answer, "All of the above?"
She grinned and a wicked light shown in her eyes. I suddenly feared I had said the wrong thing. "Wonderful!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands together. "First I have to see how you wear the clothing..."
"Wear the clothing? Don't I wear it like anyone else would?'
She giggled, putting her hand to her mouth. "You're funny. You really have no clue about fashion do you?"
I laughed with her, "I did say as much." We laughed together.
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So ends another another part of the story. I'll try to get another part written soon. For now... I'm tired. lol. Time for bed. :D