Make My Way

Chapter Forty-Two

Aria's POV

Xavier and I decided we should book a hotel first, so I called up one of those hotels that you only find in gambling centered cities. It had a night club, slot machines, and a bar all in one. The whole package. We booked the room and decided to stop by the store for the clothes and tampons and stuff. We figured if we just checked out together, it wouldn't be as weird.

We split up inside the store to find clothes. I knew he was going to make me wear something either inappropriate or uncomfortable so I decided to do the same. I didn't want to make him look bad because I had to spent the next twenty-four hours with him, so I found another solution. I'd make him look gay. He was straight (I know, I asked and made sure) so I thought it'd be funny.

I found some cheap skinny fitting khakis and a simple fitted gray shirt. I knew he was wearing gray Vans, so it would coordinate very well. Almost too well. That together only added up to $15 so I grabbed a $5 gray hoodie and a $10 black, leather jacket that was on sale. It was more than I had planned on spending, but it was worth it.

We met up by the checkouts, clothes, condoms and tampons in hand and found ourselves in luck. There was an open self checkout. We bought our items and shoved the clothes into each other's arms before disappearing into the bathrooms to change.

I pulled my clothes out of the bag and groaned. What the heck Xavier?! Inside was a pair of skimpy size 2 cutoff shorts that would have been tiny if they fit right, but I'm a size 4 or 5ish. The shirt was a simple, low cut gray shirt with a decorative pocket. I threw the shirt over my head and after a few minutes of hopping around the small one room bathroom, I finally got the shorts over my butt.

I stepped outside and heard Xavier from in the men's room cursing out something that started with a "f" and ended with a "you Aria." I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. When he finally emerged, he was glaring at me.

"Do you know how long it took me to get these pants on?! I think they're cutting off my circulation!" He spun in a circle showing me how the fit.

"Well you have to admit, they make your butt look great," I said smirking. He actually looked extremely hot in his outfit, as well as gay.

"Well let's see yours then." He took my old clothes from my arms and posed with my hand on my hip.

I did a 360 spin to show him and said, "You can't be serious though, right? It's the middle of winter in South Dakota!"

"I'm completely serious. And by the way, those shorts make your ass look great," he told me, now sounding very, very gay.

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms again. I stared him in the eye and said, deadly serious, "I look like a prostitute."

"I mean I was going more for stripper but same difference, right?"

He can't be serious. I played along. "Well if I'm a stripper, so are you. At a gay night club."

He shrugged, "I'd make a lot of money."

"Which you'd then go spend on some kind of prostitute."

"Depends on how much I make. How much are you going for these days?" he asked and nudged me playfully.

I shrugged and smiled at him, "Well, that depends on who's asking. How much are you willing to pay?"

"Oh, if you gave me five minutes free, you'd never even ask for money."

As much fun as that was, I ended yet there. "Really though. Do I need to wear this outside?"

"You betcha," he said, "Race you to the souvenir shop across the street!" He sprinted out the door and I sighed before following after him. The cold winter air bit at my skin, so I got inside to the warmth of the gift shop. Xavier had already found the shot glasses and picked one out. He moved to the checkout line and pulled out a five dollar bill from the envelope. He bought the glass and put it into his coat pocket.

My teeth were chattering. "Xavier, I'm freezing. Please?" I complained, rubbing my arms which were still covered in goosebumps.

He groaned, "Fine." He shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders before guiding me outside, arm still wrapped around me. "So, where do you want to go next?" he asked.

"Let's go eat. I'm hungry."

"Sounds good to me," he said and we looked around for somewhere to eat. Finally, we settled on a little diner nearby. The reviews online had been great so we decided to try it. We went in and were guided to a small table towards the back of the restaurant. We both ordered burgers because that was what they were best known for. They really were great burgers, but their fries were better. They were hot and perfectly salted, with a slightly crunchy outside and a soft inside.

We talked all through the meal, carrying on parts of our conversation from the ski lift. When we had finished eating, our waitress came to give us the bill. She said, "Oh, I just love seeing young kids out on dates. It makes my day! You two are just too cute!" She handed Xavier the bill and I realized I still had his coat around my shoulders.

My legs had finally started to warm up but we had to go back outside to wait for the trolley. There was a stop right outside the restaurant at 1:00 PM, in just a few minutes. When it arrived, we rode it to a section of town with a lot of people walking around, the perfect place to cross a few more things off of our list.