Better Than This

25

"We're still going, right?"

Savvy rifles through my closet, hanger after hanger scraping the metal rail. She wants to find the perfect outfit for me. Something hot. Something I typically wouldn't wear. But my closet is filled with t-shirts and sweaters, so I'm not sure what she thinks she's going to find in there.

"Yes, Savvy. We're still going. You—" I notice the black cardigan in her hand. "Nothing too risqué, okay?"

"Sure. I'll just pass over all these corsets and mini-skirts." She hangs up the sweater, scanning the other half of my wardrobe. Crossing her arms, she lets out a nice long sigh. "You may have to borrow something of mine."

Of course, Savvy looks gorgeous in a tight white tank, a bare bit of stomach peeking out above low-hanging jeans. Large hoops hang from her ears and her hair—black on the bottom and blonde on the top—falls around her face in a luscious ponytail. "You have to look hot."

I glance down at myself. I need to put on some makeup, sure, but I don't think I'm dressed that bad. "And this doesn't count?"

"No." She slides each hanger over, evaluating the outfit for a second time. "You have to look amazing, like, Alex needs to see you and be like, 'why am I with this other hoe?' So, you need to wear something that will make him hard. Really hard. And really fast." She selects an item and presents it to me. "I didn't know you had a miniskirt."

I don't. It's a skirt from a few years ago that I forgot I had. "That won't fit me."

She tosses it over. "Try it on anyway. And," she spins back around, "you can match it with this. Oh, and a black bra. You have to make sure he sees it." She presents me with another item from my early high school days. It's a snug red cami with spaghetti straps.

"That," I point to it, "is for sleeping in."

"Not tonight."

"I'm not whoring myself out for Alex. That is not what this is."

"No. You're right. That's not what this is. This," she presents the clothes again, "is about reminding him why he drew all those pictures of you. Even though he already knows. I told you—you two have been eye-fucking each other since you started this project. And I don't know what the deal is with this 'girlfriend'," she air-quotes the words, "but he sees you in something sexy, and he's going to lose it."

I sigh.

Savvy must sense that I'm wavering because she holds the clothes up again, showing them off.

Rolling my eyes, I stand and snatch them from her. "Don't get too attached. I'm only trying them on."

"That's what you say now."