Day 11 - 4:27 pm
"Charlotte, you're zoning out again." A hand waved feverishly in front of her eyes, causing her to blink rapidly. She was snapped out of her dazed state and looked over to the blue haired girl next to her in the taxi, who was currently motioning for her to get out. "We're at the mall, I was debating on leaving you in here. You're lucky that I am a good friend." Kristie scoffed as she took a step out of the taxi. That's right, she was on her way to go find Cole a birthday present.
She was so caught up in what had happened this morning. Kristie had came back to her dorm around nine in the morning screeching at Cole and Charlotte to wake up. This morning, she had been sprawled across Cole on the couch, the two of them sound asleep after that horror movie. That was, until Kristie decided to barge into the room and scare the life out of the two of them. After that, they all went their separate ways to class, and here they are now.
Cole's birthday is on Friday, although he still has not told her this yet, and Charlotte knew she had to find him a birthday present. So she asked her best friend to go to the mall not only to help her find Cole a gift, but also to help her pick out a dress for the Winter Social that was coming up next week.
The Winter Social is this huge event that the college throws in honor of the Winter Solstice each year. It was basically an excuse for the college students to get involved with their peers and community, and also allowed them to have some fun at the same time. Charlotte didn't go to it last year since she did not know many people, but this year Cole had asked her to go. Now, she was on the hunt to find the perfect dress.
Charlotte and Kristie stepped into the busy mall shortly after paying the cab driver. People buzzed by in blurs from rushing around for early Christmas shopping. The entire mall smelled of pine due to the gigantic Christmas tree standing tall in the center circle. Signs advertising early sales were plastered across the walls over a multitude of shops.
"Kristie, I'm honestly clueless." Charlotte groaned as her eyes scanned over the names of some of the shops that surrounded them. Honestly, she never had to buy a gift for a guy before. She had a younger sister at home, no fatherly figure, and her ex (surprisingly enough) was never into birthdays. He didn't believe in them so much that he actually skipped over her birthday completely as if it had never happened. "What the heck do guys like?"
"Sex." Kristie shrugged, tucking a strand of damaged hair behind her overly pierced ear. Charlotte proceeded to swing her hand out to lightly hit her shoulder, but she just rolled her eyes in the process. "I'm kidding, no pressure. I know it's different for you since you're a virgin, so you want to make sure it's with Mr. Right." She lightly nudged Charlotte as they continued to make their way to the JCPenney. "Get him something lowkey, you have only been talking to him for what, eleven days now?" She questioned.
Charlotte let out a small sigh before she nodded her head. It's true that they've only been talking for about eleven days starting today, but she felt something different with him that she had never even felt with Harry. Cole just started this fire in her that made her want to keep coming back for the warmth. He not only protected her, but he made her feel safe. Actions amount to nothing if the comfort is never felt.
"Well, give him something he needs. Has he told you about anything he's been needing or wanting to get, yet he hasn't?" Kristie suggested as she made her way over to the shoes, gasping at a pair of black heels with gems on the heel. Charlotte decided to look around the men's aisle, hoping inspiration will spark if she was physically there.
After a few minutes of wandering around the men's section with absolutely no luck, she ended up walking towards the accessories section. Of course, men's accessories included hats, watches, wallets, keychains, and other items like that. As she wandered throughout this section, she landed upon the hats and beanies shelf. That's when it struck her. A flashback came back to her mind as she picked up a men's black beanie.
"Yeah, I lost my old beanie last winter. Let me tell you a secret, you do not want to be caught in New York in the winter without a cap on your head."
Charlotte ran her fingers over the soft fabric in her fingers, deciding that a beanie would suffice. She also decided to buy him a pair of warm, black gloves along with it. Now he didn't have to complain about his ears and fingers being cold during the winter holidays. Kristie came running over with a JCPenney shopping bag in her hand, a wide grin spread across her lips.
"I loved that pair of shoes back there." She squealed as she clutched the bag to her chest, following Charlotte to the register. There was no wait in line, which was oddly satisfying, and the lady took her items to ring them up. "So, finally found him something?" She asked, glancing at the gloves and beanie that were now in a bag. Charlotte swiped her debit card through the reader, signed her name, and was soon walking out of the store.
"Yeah, beanie and gloves. Perfect set." She beamed as the two of them began their trek through the mall. "Where to now?"
"Well, you said that you needed a dress for the Winter Social, and I figured that we could swing by Victoria's Secret on the way out. Just in case you and lover boy decide to–" Kristie was about to finish her sentence with a wink, but Charlotte once again jammed her arm into her side while she reluctantly accepted her offer. The two girls made their way inside a little local boutique held inside the mall. There was a curvy woman at the front desk with a beauty mark above her plump lips. Her hair was sleek and blonde, and her baby blue eyes popped out with the help of her shimmery eyeshadow.
"Hello darlings, fittings for dresses?" She asked, which Kristie spoke up and asked for the two of them to be fitted. The busty lady came out from behind the desk and led the two of them towards the back where the walls were lined with a wide variety of dresses. Long dresses, short dresses, extravagant dresses, sparkly dresses, elegant dresses, this boutique had it all. The busty lady, who's name tag read the name of Crystal, called out to another employ who emerged from the back. This girl was the complete opposite from Crystal. Her hair was dyed black and she had a few facial piercings. She wore a tight black dress that hugged her skinny, pale hips. Kristie and her seemed to hit it off immediately.
Crystal began to ask Charlotte a series of questions as she sized her to see what would match her style and what occasion it was for. She told her that she wanted something long and preferably had sleeves considering this dance was in the winter. Although, she did admit that she didn't have a specific color or style in mind. Crystal noted everything she said before she went off into the dress racks, pulling a few from different colored categories. Charlotte saw Kristie's helper also go towards the dress racks, pulling mainly from the black, grey, and red dresses.
She came back with five dresses in her arms: The first one being dark red with sequins covering the fabric, the second being a matte black dress with a slit for the left leg, the third being a royal blue two piece, the fourth being a form-fitting white dress with small lace decoration, and the fifth being a pale pink dress with a mermaid flare. Charlotte was in awe at the beautiful dresses, and she knew that she'd have to try them all on to find the perfect one.
Crystal left her alone in the dressing room so she could strip down and try on the dresses. After each dress she tried on, she'd walk out so she could show Kristie, who was doing the same as she was. Charlotte had already ruled out the red dress because it barely covered her nipples since the top of the dress was far too tiny, and the pale pink dress because she was unable to keep the top up because her cup size was much too small. She may only be a B cup, but how hard was it to find a dress that was proportionate?
Kristie, on the other hand, already found her dream dress for the Winter Social the moment she slipped it on. It was a beautiful gunmetal grey dress with sequins running down the bottom half that flared out like a mermaid. It looked absolutely stunning on her body, and Charlotte showered her best friend with compliments. As Kristie was obsessing with her helper, who's name turned out to be Grace, Charlotte went back into the dressing room to try on the last two dresses. She stripped off the royal blue two piece and tossed it into the reject pile.
She had no luck with the black dress either. It was too big around her stomach region, yet too small around her hips and bum. That too was thrown in with the rejected garments. Last, but certainly not least, the white dress. With a deep breath, she slipped the lace fabric over her body, pressing her arms through the sheer sleeves with detailing over them. In the mirror she gazed at her figure and fell in love in a blink. The fabric hugged her curves and was small enough at the top that it stayed in place. The bust cut a v-line down to the middle of her sternum, and entire dress just had this elegant air to it.
Stepping out of the dressing room, Kristie stood up with her mouth agape. "Charlotte, it's beautiful." Kristie cried out as she made a circle around her. "You have to get this dress, it's perfect for the Social." She beamed, causing Charlotte to blush. It truly was a stunning gown, and it was within her price range too. She went back into the dressing room to strip the dress off before Crystal helped her put it in a bag to preserve it.
After the two of them paid for their dresses, they made their way to Victoria's secret. Kristie urged Charlotte to try on a couple of 'sexy outfits' just in case her and Cole were 'in the mood' apparently. She ended up leaving with a fancy black bra and a couple of lace panties. Kristie came out with much more, even buying one of those sexy one-piece contraptions that Charlotte didn't even know the name of. After that, they left the mall.
The taxi ride seemed much shorter than it actually was as it dropped the two girls back off at campus, where they soon approached their dorm building. "Hey Charlotte, I think I need to tell you something." Kristie said, scratching the back of her neck as she unlocked the door to their dorm. The two put their clothing in their respective closet spaces before Charlotte took a seat on the couch and Kristie sat on her own bed. "Okay." She let out a long breath before she began. "First off, I am so sorry for Becky. I know she was pushing you and I didn't even stand up for you."
"Don't worry about it, Cole ended up bringing me back here and he wasn't even mad about it." Charlotte laughed lightly as she tucked a strand of her brown hair behind her ears. "Although, I did make myself look like a fool." She said with an eye roll.
"Trust me, you didn't actually. Everyone was surprised that you stood up to her though, it was golden." She clapped her hands together with a grin before she got back to her serious business. "Second, and possibly the most important, do you remember how she brought up the fact that Cole liked girls who had experience? Then saying that he liked girls like her?" Kristie fiddled with her thumbs nervously.
"I do remember that, but why are you bringing this up? That girl gives me migraines just by thinking about her."
"Well..." Kristie trailed off, her eyes leaving Charlotte's for a moment as if to not worry her, yet all that made her do was worry more. "She wasn't really lying." Kristie finally let her eyes come back up to meet her best friend's. "Andy told me that her and Cole had a fling. Actually, he told me that Cole has had flings with a few other girls."
Honestly, Charlotte didn't know how to take this news. If Cole had done sexual things with multiple girls, did that mean that's all he wanted her for? There's no way. Although, the two of them technically were not dating yet, and he hadn't even said that he loved her. She didn't even know if she loved him yet, she just knew that she wanted to spend all of her time with him. Just the thought that all of this was a lie made her sick to her stomach with anxiety.
"Charlotte, he refused to give me details, but he thinks that Cole might be using you."
AND ANDY DROPPED THE BOMB. MAYBE ANDY IS TRYING TO HELP CHARLOTTE, OR MAYBE HE WAS DRUNK AND IT SLIPPED.
The world may never know.
On other news, I can't believe this story reached 3k reads today! Thank you guys so much for reading, commenting, and voting!
Also I have no clue why I used that picture of Cole for this chapter.