"This denim jacket is gorgeous and the lace embellishing the shoulder area adds an original touch... You should try it..." Ivy hands me the garment and holds my bags so I can walk closer to the mirror. "You look amazing..."
"I'll take it then," I answer smiling and giving it back to the owner of this vintage store who shoves it in a bag along with the flower dress and a sweater I already bought here. "Thank you for coming with me today, Ivy, I love your favourite shops... I'll take this braided leather belt too... Can we go somewhere to grab a bite? I have to stop now or I'll spend every penny of my salary this month, I've lost count of the amount of clothes I bought this evening. Oh look, I love this shirt..."
"Okay, we'll better go to eat something before you end up bankrupting yourself," my sister laughs her ass off while handing me some bags. "You have an eye for fashion, finding good bargains easily, Vinnia hates coming to Chelsea Market because she feels she needs to check every clothes rack to make sure she's buying the right stuff, whereas you can find what you like instinctively and it's always on sale."
"Do you think it's one of my druidic talents?"
"It could be," Ivy laughs amused again. "It's a useful power when you go shopping with a limited budget. Let's go to Sarabeth's, they have the best coffee in the city and their scones with jam are famous..."
I follow my sister delighted, dodging hundreds of people carrying bags or sitting down on benches holding a drink or some food, everybody looks happy and relaxed here and the truth is that I understand them because I've had the time of my life too and my hunter isn't giving me problems for a change. Today has been a good day despite it started with a big fight: my girlfriend refuses to take my money.
We celebrated Vinnia's successful show last night having dinner in a Japanese restaurant but didn't extend the party to the early hours in the morning because the designer was exhausted, I felt better after my conversation with the artist in the entrance hall and understood she was right: I'd been working hard, my life was upside down suddenly and stress was taking its toll on me. Ruby ran a bath for me with her wonderful oils and soothing herbs and I was able to sleep all night long. I still believe we're moving too fast concerning our relationship, like a runaway train that could go off the rails in the next turn, but I can't fight against a goddess and a stubborn witch so I've decided to go with the flow and enjoy my time with her as much as I can.
That was my firm intention when I got up and made breakfast, gave some food to Morgan and took my phone to check my bank account and see how much money I had and how much I could spend to buy clothes that evening with Ivy. Numbers got me baffled for a second till I understood what was going on: I had been living with Ruby for a month, I'd moved all my stuff to her apartment and terminated the rental agreement of my old studio. The owner had given me the deposit back and I wasn't paying the usual bills like light, water, food... And I never paid transport since I was going to the parlour with my boss. Not only could I afford buying clothes at Chelsea Market but I could also buy a gorgeous shirt I loved from Vinnia's collection... That was wrong. Ruby came into the kitchen yawning, poured herself a coffee and kissed my forehead while stealing a piece of my toast with jam.
"What's the matter now?" she asked noticing my furrowed brow.
And war broke. She stared at me in disbelief when I explained the problem and suggested that she should charge me a rent because I was living in her home, she flatly refused and I answered that, at least, I should pay my expenses and go to the supermarket from time to time. The witch was shaking her head and eating my breakfast while I was speaking and I got angry, the cat hid under the kitchen island when we started yelling at each other, I threatened with packing my things and going back to my old apartment... Ruby swore she'd tied me to the bed to stop me from leaving and brought out her status as High Priestess that allows her to do whatever she thinks it's suitable to keep her coven safe... I yelled that I wasn't going to allow her to boss me around using that excuse... and suddenly, a crystal vase with flowers that Ivy had left on the coffee table shattered scaring the death out of us.
