Jillian was sitting at the kitchen table, casually eating some leftover pasta while glued to her phone. With every slow bite, she kept glancing at the time, counting down to noon. No word from Jason yet. She couldn’t help but wonder if he’d actually leave without her. After the rollercoaster they had been on yesterday and this morning, he wouldn’t dare, right? Just as she was about to lose hope, her phone suddenly blasted the “Rocky” theme song at full volume - it was her ringtone for Jason. Startled, she almost fell off her chair, sending her pasta bowl flying. She had cranked her phone’s volume to max, just in case.

Jillian was relieved she was home alone when she saw the name “Mystery Dick’’ pop up on her screen. Dad was at work, the twins and Lonnie were at school, and Mom was out running errands with June and Calvin. Normally, Jillian would have gone with them shopping, but she refused to miss this call. As she picked up her phone, she looked down at the bowl of pasta she’d knocked over.

“Crap!” she muttered, deciding to ignore the mess for now. She answered the phone with an overly sweet, “Helloooo?”

When she heard a sigh on the other end, a sound she’d recognize anywhere, she couldn’t help but giggle.

“Hey Jason, hooow’s it gooooing?”

“Are you still coming?” He said in a slight monotone voice.

He didn’t sound too happy, but there was something else in his voice, too.

“You bet my sweet juicy ass I am,” Jillian shot back without missing a beat. Jason groaned at her choice of words.

“Fine, I’m leaving in ten minutes. If you’re not ready, I’m going without you.”

Jillian’s mouth fell open.

“Ten minutes?! On what planet is that enough time to get ready for anything?!” She couldn’t believe how unfair his deadline was.

“Tick tock,” he said simply, and then hung up. Jillian stared at her phone in disbelief.

“I can’t believe he just hung up on me. That dick!”

Jillian rushed out of the kitchen and up to her room, tripping a bit on the stairs along the way. She quickly changed out of her clothes, fumbling a bit in her haste. She started searching frantically through her dresser.

“Where are my leggings?” she yelled, scattering clothes everywhere. Finally, she found her sky-blue leggings tucked in the corner of the bottom drawer. She struggled to pull them on as they fought to get over her butt. “Ugh, why are these so small?” She had them since she was fifteen, so the answer was obvious, but didn’t matter right now.

Jillian picked out a white blouse that was snug in some places and loose in others, with elbow-length sleeves that flared out. It buttoned up from her neckline down to her stomach, with pretty pleats along her chest. In front of the mirror, she quickly tried to tame her hair, aiming for presentable rather than perfect. A few swipes of light pink lip gloss later, she glanced at the clock and nearly had a heart attack. Nine minutes had flown by.

“Fuuuuuck!” she exclaimed. There was absolutely no chance she’d get to Jason’s place in under a minute.

Jillian grabbed her small purse, slung it over her shoulder, and raced out of her room, practically leaping down the stairs. Then she realized she’d forgotten her flats upstairs.

“Aaaaggghhh!” she yelled in frustration. She couldn’t believe it; if he actually left without her, she’d be pissed. She tried to tell herself he wouldn’t do that, though. He was just messing with her, like she often did to him. After slipping on her dark blue flats and dashing back downstairs—a whole twelve minutes lost since the call—she scrambled with her house keys in a panic. Finally locking up, Jillian turned and cut across the grass, running faster than she ever thought possible.

She pushed herself to the limit, wondering why she was going all out just to go shopping with him. Was it really worth it?

“Absolutely.”

She hadn’t enjoyed hanging out with a guy this much in forever. It wasn’t always exciting and there were tough moments, the good far outweighed the bad in her mind. They always seemed to work things out somehow. And when they were together… It just felt…nice. Like she could be herself and still be safe. Sprinting down the street, she finally hit the halfway mark around the bend.

She stopped in her tracks as Katia’s house came into view, noticing immediately that there was no car in the driveway.

Catching her breath, she stuttered, “N-no way... He... left?”

Her heart ached, the pain of disappointment swelling inside her. She really hadn’t expected him to actually leave her. Her brain quickly tried to convince itself it wasn’t a big deal, and it didn’t matter. But deep down… it mattered to her.

Suddenly, a car screeched to a halt beside her with its windows down.

“What the hell are you doing, you crazy fucking woman?!”

Jillian whipped her head around to see Jason glaring at her from his car, his eyes behind a pair of sunglasses.

“Wha... but you...” she stammered, staring at him, pointing to his house and then him.

“You ran past me like a bat outta hell! I’ve been parked outside your house for like five minutes already!” biting back the urge to enhance his sentence with a few more colorful words. Seeing the stunned look on her face, he figured he’d said enough.

“Well, are you getting in or what?!” he asked, motioning towards the passenger door.

Jillian snapped out of her daze and quickly moved to action.

“You never told me you were coming to get me!” she exclaimed, hurrying to the car and hopping in.

“I told you to be ready in ten minutes, not to be over at my mom’s place. And you weren’t even ready on time,” Jason retorted.

“You have no idea how fast I had to move to get this ready, you jerk! I didn’t even have time to put on perfume! So, next time, give me a proper heads-up, and maybe I’ll actually be on time!” She playfully smacked his arm, pretending to be mad, but the soft smile on her face as she buckled her seatbelt told a different story.

Jason just shook his head and muttered, “Women, I swear.”

Putting the car into gear, Jason drove them down the road, and they were on their way. Jillian couldn’t help but laugh and tease him.

“Oh, get over yourself, just cause it takes you a minute to change, doesn’t mean everyone else does.” She glanced down at her purse, the smile on her face refusing to fade. Resting her hands on her lap, she stared at her plain nails. She used to love having them all fancy and done up when the manicurist would come by once a month to her private hell. She wondered if Jason thought girls who splurged on their nails were stupid.

Noticing they were getting on the highway, she looked over at him. “Where are we headed?”

“We are heading to the city. What, you thought we were going to the run down local Ross?” Jason laughed a little. Jillian gave him a look, trying to figure out if he always aimed for the pricier lines of clothing.

“So, where do you shop then, Mr. Too Good to Dress for Less?” she joked, giving him a once-over. He was wearing a deep blue brand name polo, paired with dark blue jeans that fit him just right. And on his wrist was his watch, the same fancy one he had been wearing the first night. Even when he was working out, he wore it. It had to be pricey, considering how often he was showing it off on his wrist. Plus, those biceps of his were really making the short sleeves of his polo work overtime.

“I mostly shop online for stuff I really want. I often get suits as gifts or have a personal shopper pick out the fancy things for me,” Jason said, shrugging as if it were no big deal. Jillian’s jaw dropped a bit when she heard this.

“Wait, just how many figures do you make?” she asked, clearly shocked. He looked at her for a second, his expression hidden behind his sunglasses.

“Well, not that it’s any of your business, but I make just under a hundred thousand a year, and that’s before taxes,” Jason explained.

“What? But then, how can you afford all this fancy stuff and live in the city?”

She hated that she knew how much rich folk and businessmen spent on their luxuries. A hundred grand a year was nowhere near enough for the things he was mentioning.

“Haha, I don’t actually pay for any of that. It’s just one of the perks of my job. You really think I’d shell out my own money for a personal shopper? That’s hilarious,” Jason laughed, shaking his head. But inside Jillian’s mind, the wheels were spinning. What kind of job comes with an included personal shopper? Something didn’t quite add up.

“So..the fancy watch, was it a gift too?” Jillian asked, her curiosity piqued. Jason glanced at his watch, took it off, and handed it to her. Jillian was a bit surprised.

“Are you sure?” She looked up at him, eyes wide. He just smiled and nodded.

“It’s okay, I trust you.”

Jillian’s heart skipped a beat at his words. She knew how insanely expensive top of the line watches could be. As gingerly as she could, she took the watch from him. As soon as she held it, it hit her why he was so casual about it. “It’s a fake?!” she blurted out, examining the watch. It was a nice fake, but fake nonetheless.

“Haha, yep. How’d you figure it out so fast?”

Jillian shot Jason another smile with a slightly nervous laugh.

“Mostly just a lucky guess. It felt kind of light, so I figured it might be fake.” She was telling the truth, although her frequent shopping trips to overpriced jewelers had taught her more than she cared to admit about watches.

“My dad picked it up during his leave in Hong Kong. It looks pretty impressive until you get up close. I was trying to get it insured, but after getting it appraised, it turns out insuring a hundred-dollar knock-off doesn’t really make sense. You can’t really insure sentiment anyway,” he shared with her, opening up about the backstory of his not-so-luxurious watch.

Jillian held the watch a little longer, curiosity in her eyes.

“This belonged to your dad?” she asked gently.

Jason nodded. “Yeah, he was super proud of paying just over two hundred bucks for it. Told me to sell it if times ever got hard for me and Mom...”

His voice was light, almost laughing, but she could sense the sadness beneath his words.

“He must have been an amazing dad and husband,” she spoke softly, handing the watch back, their hands brushing against each other as she did. Jason clipped the mental band back onto his wrist.

“He really was, and tough as they come...”

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

After that, the car fell quiet as they headed into the city.

Jason didn’t head to one of those fancy specialized sports stores that care more about looking good than being practical. Instead, they stopped at a massive sporting goods shop that had something for every sport you could think of, plus loads of everyday wear. Luckily, it was pretty quiet since they went on a weekday afternoon. Though quiet still meant there were a bunch of people there, just spread out. As they strolled through, they chatted about some of the stuff they saw and even paused to check out the huge fish tanks in the fishing area. As Jillian pressed her nose to the thick glass, calling out to the fish, Jason found he had a natural smile on his face that refused to go away.

Both of them actually had a really good time just wandering around, checking stuff out and talking about this and that. Jason had already picked up a few things. They made their way over to the track and field section, on a mission for track suits.

“Jason, over here! Found them,” Jillian shouted, dashing ahead with a huge grin, waving him over as she waited for Jason to catch up.

“Uhh yeah, I knew they’d be here,” Jason laughed, and they shared a quick, happy glance before focusing again. He picked out three matching track suits to keep at his mom’s place, thinking he’d maybe visit more now for… reasons. They were just about done when a rather enthusiastic employee popped up.

“Hey there! Need any help finding anything, you two?” he asked, his smile almost too big for his face.

Jason was ready to dismiss the employee, but Jillian chimed in before he could.

“Got any changing rooms?” she asked, all sweetness. The staff member pointed over at a set of stairs.

“Yep, right down there, behind the stairs.”

“Thanks a bunch!” she replied, smiling back.

“No problem, just give a shout if you need anything,” he said, leaving them alone again.

“Planning on trying something on?” Jason asked. Jillian hadn’t picked out anything yet, so he was curious. She only gave him her iconic, devious grin.

“You will see,” she said before rushing off into the women’s section, disappearing behind some racks of clothes.

Shortly after he heard her voice call out to him. “Jason, I’m going to try some stuff on. Meet me at the dressing rooms!”

Trying to spot her in the maze of tall racks was a challenge, since she was pretty short. Watching some clothing on the racks move like she was moving through a field of corn.

“O-okay,” Jason replied, a bit confused, scratching his head. As he wandered, his eyes landed on some women’s running shoes.

“Maybe she’d run more if she had the right shoes,” he mused. The flat soled ones she wore were hardly fit for running.

He found a nice pair that he thought she might like. The odd desire to buy them for her welling up in him. But Jason had no clue what size shoes Jillian wore, so he just shook his head and put them back. He figured he’d offer, but ultimately, it was her call. As he headed over to the changing rooms, it was eerily quiet. Glancing around, he saw cameras stationed outside the changing rooms, but nobody was in sight.

The silence was so profound that Jason couldn’t help but call out, “Jillian... are you here?” His voice was barely above a whisper.

“Yeah, I’m in stall one, over in the corner. Come here, I need your opinion,” Jillian called back.

With a raised eyebrow, he followed her voice.

“Okay, what do you need advice on?” Jason asked, a bit wary.

“Just come in. It’s unlocked,” Jillian urged, beckoning him into her changing area.

“Did you pick out some shoo…es...?” He trailed off, his mind clearly somewhere else as he entered.

Once inside, he saw Jillian wearing a colorful, paint-splattered running crop top that fit her like a glove. Her perky nipples poked out from under the spandex. And the tiny compression shorts she’d picked hugged every crevice and made her butt pop delightfully. When she turned around to face him, the outline of her labia and the small nub between them were clear as day.

“Shit s-sorry!” He blurted out, already backing out of the changing room, pushing the door open. Just as he turned to leave, Jillian caught his wrist, making him stop in his tracks. He could’ve easily dragged her along, but he didn’t want to do something like that. Not with her in that outfit.

“Jason, stop! It’s okay, please stay?” she said, making him pause and turn back to face her. He gave her a worried look, his eyes kept darting downwards from her face and back. He took a deep breath and took a moment before finally relaxing.

“Alright, alright,” he agreed, then shut and locked the changing room door behind him.

Jillian flashed him a big smile when he agreed to stay.

“Thanks! Usually Mika would be here to tell me what she thinks, but now you get the honor.” She said, with an air of excitement, placing her hands confidently on her hips.

“So, what do you think? Does it look good on me?” She beamed at him, full of energy.

Jason scanned her from head to toe, noticing how the outfit hugged her figure erotically. Trying to maintain his composure, he awkwardly shifted the items he was purchasing to cover his growing arousal. Even though her overly skinny frame was not the most appealing, the outfit looked amazing on her. It highlighted all of her good aspects without showing off the bad too much.

“Um, first thing is, I think you are supposed to wear underwear with those. It’s kind of revealing... I can see…pretty much everything.”

Jillian just laughed a little. “So, we’re even for the show you gave me this morning, then?” He frowned, realizing she probably planned this from the start.

“Of course she did, I keep forgetting who she is.”

She gave him a playful smile and a wink. “Come on, tell me more,” she urged him to go on.

“Well... uh, it does look great on you and all, but I don’t think you need to spend so much on an outfit unless you’re actually competing. They’re pretty expensive and, you uh...” Jason’s voice faded as Jillian turned to check herself out in the mirror again. She struck a few silly poses and then did some stretches that were a bit too provocative. Bending her knees to squat, testing the stretchy fabric. Then doing some knee lifts. Each stretch showing off her best asset.

“Uh...” His train of thought completely derailed as he blatantly stared, watching her.

“Come on then, out with it. Tell me what you really think? I can take it. I’m a big girl.” Jillian teased, peeking at him through her red curls when she turned to glance at him. Jason was visibly struggling to maintain his composure, his eye giving a little twitch, teeth grinding as if he were caught in an internal battle.

“I think uh... I...” Jason stuttered, his hands clutching his items for dear life. “Keep it together Jason, remember who she is, what she did…” his mind trying to summon some anger to keep his cool. He had never felt this much pressure to keep himself under control.

Jillian, who was playing miss oblivious, looked back to check herself out in the mirror again. She watched his expression in the mirror. Jason felt like he was slowly regaining control over himself as she turned around. That was until she bent over to touch her toes. It was like there was a ringing in his ears that made him lose all sense of self, and in the end, he went silent.

Jillian stood up and glanced back at Jason, her curiosity piqued.

“ Hmm… Ja-SON!?” she yelped, surprised as he dropped his things and rushed her. Quickly backing her against the wall, trapping her there with his hands on both sides. Leaning forward so he was almost to her level.

“Woah there big guy, w-what’s this all about?” her words coming out in a nervous and excited stutter. Looking up into his wild eyes, she could feel a heat bloom in her abdomen. His imposing figure made her heart thump in her chest as she was smothered. The rush of feeling helpless under his muscular form gave her goosebumps.

“You… you’ve pushed me to my limit,” he said simply.

“Your limit, huh?” licking her lips, as she felt the heat radiate from his body.

“I can only let you get away with so much.” His voice was low and full of desire.

“Oh, yeah?” Jillian cooed, returning his gaze with one of pure lust. “Are you planning to teach me a lesson, then? Spank me like a bad girl?” biting her lip as she reached up to unbutton his shirt collar. It was obvious she was right where she wanted to be.

He was so close that his scent was once again overpowering her senses. If all it took was a pair of tight shorts to do this to him, she didn’t care what it cost. She was getting them. Jason gently grasped her hands as they worked on his shirt and pulled them away, pushing them above her against the wall. She gave him a grin thinking he was finally going to take control and have her right in there in the changing room. All it would take is one last push.

“Jason.” she whimpered softly, looking up at him. “Please... Take me however you want... I want you so fucking badly. I can tell you want me too. I can see it in your eyes.”

Since he had her hands contained, she leaned her head forward. Her lips found his neck, kissing and sucking roughly. Jason leaned against the wall more, trying to steady himself as he lowered himself even more, his chest pushing against hers now. Taking this as a sign, she became even more active, attacking his neck with kisses and rough bites. Her warm mouth on his skin sent several shivers down his spine. He fought so hard against the urge to touch her body, knowing that if he did. There would be no turning back. It was a part of himself he was afraid to let loose.

“Jillian... I can’t,” Jason said after several moments of quiet. Jillian lifted her lips off his neck with a wet smack.

“What? Why?” she asked, but resumed attacking his neck again, her tongue softly running against the wet spot she’d kissed as a parting gift. Jason let out a shuddering breath.

“Because... we’re in a fucking dressing room.”

Jillian slowly stopped attacking his neck at his words, but let out a slight whimper.

“I’m not risking getting arrested here... Please, just...” He started, but paused, letting go of her wrists. Her hands quickly moved to his head, fingers running through his short hair.

“If what, Jason? Tell me, and I’ll make it happen.” Lightly pulling on his hair with one hand, while the other moved down his face to caress his stubbled cheek.

Jason took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

“If you can wait... I’ll give you what you want,” he whispered. Jillian froze at this and frowned. “What I want?” A mild anger flashed in her at his words

“Jason, look at me,” she commanded. He did, their eyes meeting, as their faces were only inches apart.

“What?” he asked cautiously, searching her gaze for answers.

“What about what you want?”

Jillian’s question stopped him in his tracks.

“Yeah, I want this, but shouldn’t you as well, I’m not going to force you…Jason, what is it that is holding you back?”

Her words hit him like a punch to the gut. He'd been telling himself that this was just about her desires. Fooling himself, that it would just be a way to get her off his back. The realization that she wasn’t just interested in her own pleasure, hit him hard. The last few minutes were proof that he had his own desires that his body yearned for. It yearned for her.

Jason hesitated, his mind racing with uncertainty. How was he supposed to respond to such a question? He took a moment, his mouth opening and closing as he weighed his options. Finally, he met her gaze again with a plea in his eyes.

“Not here... please,” he murmured softly, hoping she would understand the gravity of his request. Seeing the smirk on her lips. It was clear she would not let him off easy.

“It’s gonna cost you,” she teased.

“Buy me these clothes and...” she trailed off, her eyes twinkling with mischief. He swallowed hard, the tension thick in the air.

“And what?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. A coy smile danced across her lips as she leaned in closer, her expression softening.

“I want you to kiss me,” she demanded, her desires laid bare in those words.

Somehow Jason found himself nodding without much hesitation, understanding dawning on him. The clothes didn’t actually mean anything, but the kiss... that was the true payment she was after. Taking a deep breath, he leaned in and unceremoniously pressed his lips against hers.

He wished he could say he swept her off her feet with an amazingly passionate kiss, but the image in his mind didn’t quite match up to reality. Instead, Jason puckered his lips too much, and it ended up feeling more like two kids that were playing house kissing. One you would call your first kiss just so the other kids wouldn’t make fun of you for never kissing a girl. It was over as quick as it began. Leaning back, he knew he messed up from the look of surprise on her face.

Jillian still grinned at him and lightly patted his cheek.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” she teased, nudging him to stand up straight.

Jason stood outside of the changing room as Jillian got dressed again. Spending his time banging his head against the wall by the corner for two reasons. The first was he still had a hard-on and wanted to hide it from anyone that might pass by. And the second was the painful image of himself kissing her with overly puckered lips. The memory needed to be removed by force and he didn’t have any lobotomy tools handy.

“I am so stupid. What the fuck was I thinking?! Why did I even try kissing her in the first place? I will never be able to live this down,” he screamed internally.

While in the changing room, Jillian got a text message.

“Why is there pasta all over my kitchen floor?” she had completely forgotten about the mess she made before leaving, and her mom came home to find it.

“I think I will deal with that one later.” Putting her phone away, she continued getting dressed.

Once she was done, they hurried out of the changing room area and paid for their stuff. As they got back in the car for the long ride home, an awkward air settled between them, making conversation impossible. Outwardly, Jason tried to keep his cool, but internally, he was fucking mortified.

Even though Jillian seemed to be smiling, he couldn’t help but picture her thinking about how awful the kiss was and how she was going to tell everyone she knew just how pathetic he was. This was by far one of the worst feelings he had in a long, long time.