Sharing Scars

8-Leah

8-Leah

"So why did you drag me to the mall when I know you're supposed to be back at school tutoring Nate Reed?" Ian asked.

I sighed, "I like him, Ian."

"Duh!" He said, sarcastically, but then elaborated, "Anybody can see that you're falling for him."

"Anybody but Nate, apparently." I grumbled.

"Nate knows. He's got to. If he doesn't then he's either stupid or two blinded by his own feelings to see yours."

"You think so?" I could hear the hope in my voice.

"Yes, now what are we doing here? You hate shopping as much as I do." Ian shuddered, looking around at all the stores.

I ducked my head to hide my grin. Some people thought Ian was gay, but I knew that he wasn't. He talked about girls he was crushing on, all the time, but never did anything about it. And he despised shopping. I despised shopping, but this needed to be done. I squared my shoulders and explained, "I have some money of my own now, from the tutoring, so I'm going to buy me some clothing that actually fits."

Ian's eyes widened, but he didn't comment further. We spent the next several hours, spending most of my earnings. We were headed toward the exit, when I stopped in front of Victoria's Secret. There were sale signs hanging and I zeroed in on those. I might be able to afford one last store. Ian turned around, finally realizing I'd stopped. He came to stand beside me and snickered, "Thinking of getting some lingerie to seduce Lover Boy with?"

I elbowed him, "No, but I'm tired of the granny panties dad makes me get from Walmart."

Ian shuddered, "I love you, Leah, but I don't care to know about your panties."

I grinned at him, "Wait here?"

Ian shrugged, "Sure, but Leah...I know you're on this kick of wanting to express yourself. Just make sure you're expressing you and not who you think Nate wants you to be. If he doesn't love you for you, then he's not worth the effort."

I nodded and headed inside. It wasn't the first time Ian had given me that same lecture today. He'd said something similar in every store we visited. He'd seemed more serious now though. Maybe it was because I was about to enter a store that sold undergarments. Undergarments were serious business. I picked out several things for myself. Several pairs of lacy, silky, yet modest underwear and a couple matching bras. The last thing I picked out, I did have Nate in mind, however. It was a matching bra and panty set. It was mostly black sheer, but with a tiny red roses stitched through the fabric.

Rejoining Ian, I sighed, "I'm broke again."

Ian frowned, "Are you ok with that? It's not too late to return all of this stuff."

I shook my head, "No, I'm ok with it. This needed to happen. Whether it be now or after graduation, there is no way I'd be attending college in the crappy clothing my dad picked out."

"So, how will this work? You can't let your dad see you in your new clothes." Ian asked, on the way to the car.

I shrugged, "I do my own laundry, so that won't be a problem. Dad is sometimes gone before I come downstairs in the morning. If he's not, I'll just change at school. I'll have to change back, before I come home at night. I'll make it work. I'm going to have to have you bring my cloths in though. We'll combine them in as few bags as possible. If dad asks, we'll tell him that you bought some new clothes and wanted my opinion of them."

"I know he thinks I'm gay, but I still can't believe your dad lets me in your bedroom." Ian muttered, heading toward my house. It was almost six. I quickly condensed my new purchases into two bags and then Ian dropped me off at the corner. He then circled the block, giving me enough time to enter the house and go through my nightly ridicule from my father.