Robin des Bois ✓

ten. Date With The Devil

"Remember that black dress I bought you for twenty bucks on that sale?" Tina asked, her voice still a tad shriller than per usual.

"No," I admitted earnestly.

"Well, you better find it, cause you have nothing else even close to semi-formal."

I went through the racks of clothing until I found the black dress Tina was probably referring to, at the very back of my closet. "Oh, this one... I didn't  even remember I had that." I pulled it out and looked it up and down critically. "Isn't it a bit... I don't know... out there?"

"Guys love dresses that are 'out there'," Tina assured me. "The more skin is out there, the better."

"Wait a sec, I'm just going to put it on." I threw the cellphone onto my bed and slipped my shirt and pants off.

"Put on some sexy lingerie just in case!" Tina yelled, loud enough for me to hear even as I wiggled into the skintight dress. "You know that matching red ensemble you have? He's gonna love it."

"Who said he's getting to see it?" I said, my cheeks flushing.

"Call it female intuition. Your curfew is two AM, by the way. If you don't get your ass home on time, I'm calling your dad."

"Okay, but since when do I have a curfew?" I tried to sound dignified, but amusement seeped into my voice anyway.

"Ever since I have to worry about you getting pregnant, young lady."

I rolled my eyes as I pulled the dress down over my thighs. It was made of a material that resembled silk and it had thin spaghetti straps, a slit that went almost to my panty line and a back that was so uncovered that it was bordering on indecent. I stared at my reflection in the mirror. "I can't wear that, Tina! I look like a hooker."

"You look like a classy hooker," Tina corrected as I picked my cellphone from my bed. "A high class hooker. This was like such an amazing find, it's totally something Naomi Campbell would wear. You're lucky you're so tall, only tall chicks can pull that off. And you have to wear your high heels."

I groaned. "I'm tall enough without them." I touched my hair and winced. "And my hair's a mess." It had gone back to being it's former curly, messy self, and it surrounded my hair like a lion's mane.

"Just put on some eyeliner and you'll be fine. And if you really want to knock him off his feet, don't wear a bra. Guys love it when a girl's nips are showing."

"You're kidding right?" I froze, eyeliner midway to my eye, and gave my reflection a skeptic, disbelieving look. "I don't think Boston is ready for the nipples."

"It takes revolutionary people to change the face of fashion. I guess you're just not one of them."

"Whatever." I muttered. I didn't even want to knock Alexei off his feet... or did I? According to the plan I'd mentally devised in the last few days, the only objective of our dinner was for me to ask him a couple of well-aimed questions and catch him red-handed. Or something like that.

I finished applying the dramatic black cat-eye Tina had recommender with my tongue sticking out between my unusually red lips, my brows furrowed in concentration.

"I'm all set, I think." I said.

"Take a picture before you leave, I want to see how you look before your first date, babygirl."

"You make my sound so pathetic."

Tina snorted. "You're going on a date with one of the hottest guys to have ever graced this city and you're talking to me about pathetic? Stop that nonsense. And have fun. But you know, not too much fun. Have safe, condom-wearing kind of fun."