𝕊𝕥𝕦𝕡𝕚𝕕 ℂ𝕦𝕡𝕚𝕕 ➶

𝕋𝕨𝕖𝕝𝕧𝕖: 𝕊𝕒𝕪 𝕐𝕖𝕤

"Are you sure you don't want to be doing this with Morticia or CC or one of your other girl friends?" Deuce asked, borderline whining. "Why do I have to tag along?" Dress shopping was obviously not his idea of a good time, not how he anticipated spending his Friday night.

"No. And you promised to pay for the dress," Valentina reminded him as they walked from the shuttle drop-off to the first of Jericho's boutiques. "Unless you want to give me your credit card--"

"No way in hell."

"I would give it back afterwards! But fine, if you don't want to give me your card, then you have to go to each store with me until I find my dress."

"You know, Gomez would pay for whatever you wanted in a heartbeat. If the Thorpes have 'fuck you' money, then the Addams have 'no, fuck you' money. It's one of the reasons Vincent keeps trying to one-up Gomez."

"I don't want Gomez to buy my dress. I want you to." Simple as that. She hadn't really thought about it much more than that. The boy deserved a bit of punishment for what he pulled. He could have gotten her killed, after all. In fact, he almost did!

Deuce looked at her for the longest time before sighing and shaking his head. "Lead the way, I guess."

Nothing caught her eye in the first shop. They seemed to be marketing to an older consumer base. All the dresses looked like things her mother would wear.

She had better luck in the second store. She tried on a handful of things, but there was a flaw in every one. One didn't fit well, another's color wasn't quite right... So on and so forth.

The third shop wasn't technically a boutique, more of a thrift store. But to hell with that! It sold clothes, didn't it? It did... Just not evening clothes.

After over an hour of being in and out of dressing rooms, Deuce begged for a break. So they stopped at a nearby coffee shop called The Weathervane Cafe.

"Is there any way we could speed things along?" He asked before taking a sip of his Americano.

Valentina stopped blowing bubbles in her vanilla latte with soy milk to say, "Hey! Thank your lucky stars you're not the one having to try on all these dresses. I'm exhausted!"

"Well, there's only one store left, so I hope you find what you're looking for in there."

The name of the boutique was encouraging. Wicked Beauty. Apparently it was owned by an outcast, one of Nevermore's alumni that fell in love with Jericho and couldn't bring themselves to leave it behind.

The selection was promising, too. Lots of gowns in a variety of styles and colors, all of which she could see on one of her classmates or another. Did it specifically tailor itself to the students attending the Rave'N?

That's when she found it. Her dress.

The dress was a cotton candy cloud dotted with tiny, iridescent glitter hearts. With its pastel pink tulle overlay, sweetheart neckline, and gently puffed sleeves, it looked like something Marie Antoinette would wear if she were reborn into the modern day.

The cropped ribbed bodice kept it from looking too much like a little girl's frock. The length might be a teensy bit of an issue, seeing as the gauzy fabric ended just above the knee... But she was pretty sure she could get away with it, especially if she wore nude stockings.

Unabashed as a colt, she flirted with the mirror, gave it a smile and a wink, even did a little spin so it could see her from all angles. But once she was done having her fun, she carefully undressed, treating the gown like it was a sacred relic.

"All done!" She told Deuce after getting back into her civies and leaving the dressing room.

He looked up at the ceiling as if all his prayers were answered. "Thank God. Let's check out and head back to Nevermore. Also, be a doll... If Gomez asks where you got your dress for the Rave'N, tell him you brought it from home, 'kay?"