The Unexpected Hero

Are You Kidding? It's Massive!

*Rubie's POV*

The man looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "But my shop's always been here," he stated, "how could you possibly miss it?"

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that me and my friend Lacey come to this street all the time to go shopping. It's strange that we've never noticed you before."

He got up from where he was sitting behind the counter. "So how may I help you?" he said in a deliberately posh accent, bowing as he did so. I hid my smile behind a hand and tried to control the shaking of my shoulders as uncontrollable laughter flew from my lips.

My laughter subsided and I gasped as he rose from his bow, with laughter twinkling in his eyes. He was so sexy!

"Actually, I came in here because I saw the elephants in the window. A friend of mine would really like them." I answered in a more controlled voice, more like the tone I use at work when I'm in meetings. I work as a graphic designer, see and Lacey works at the same company.

"Ah, so you're an animal lover?" he asked, seeming genuinely interested.

"Well, um no, not that much," I replied, somehow feeling guilty. "But me and my friend Alice really like elephants."

"So what exaxtly are you looking for then?" he asked, seeming exasperated at my attempt to keep him talking for longer so I had an excuse to stare into his sexy eyes.

"I have a costume party tonight and I don't have a costume," I stated clearly, "but I don't know what I want to wear!" I exclaimed, throwing my hands up in the air to emphasise my point. I was panicking.

"Step right this way, I have a costume room right out the back, for situations such as these," he said in his posh accent again, that delectable twinkle glimmering in his eyes again. I surruptiously wiped my mouth in case I'd been drooling.

He spun on his heel and I followed meekly, like a puppy. He stopped behind the counter and did something beneath the desk and I waited politely, not wanting him to think I was rude.

"Go ahead," he told me, gesturing to the door that I supposed led to the back room.

I reached out and turned the knob on the door and stepped through. He followed behind me, closing the door shut behind him with a small click.

I was subconciously aware of this as I stared in awe at the room before me. It was about three storeys high, with costumes lining every wall, like a costume library. But I would never limit myself to the word 'room' to describe this place, that term somehow implied it was so much smaller. This place looked endless, extending farther than the eye could see, much farther than it realistically should have been able to. What had I stumbled into?

I turned to see the man behind me, a cheeky grin upturning his lips.

"Who are you?" I asked softly.