Sonic: Earthbound

Chapter 22

The week seemed to breeze by. By midweek, Alex was more or less fully recovered from her cold, and early Friday evening she was preparing for her date. She stood in her bedroom, still wearing the jeans and T-shirt she'd worn to classes that day, but her closet door was open and there was a pile of clothes on the bed. Tails was sitting on the edge of the bed, offering her moral support as she prepared for her date with Patrick.

"So... this is kind of embarrassing to admit, especially at my age, but I've never actually been on a real date before. I seriously don't know what to wear!" Alex continued to rifle through her closet, tossing clothes onto the bed. "Like, I want to look nice, you know? But I don't wanna look like I'm trying too hard. How nice is too nice? Oh, but I don't wanna look too casual either. Then he might think I don't care. Oh man... this is hard!"

Tails sat on the edge of Alex's bed, his red and white sneakers kicking absently. "Well, I'm happy to help out, Alex. Though, I'll be honest... I've never been on a date, either. I wouldn't really know what the best thing to wear is. Are you sure you wouldn't rather have Sonic help you out with this? I mean, he might have a better knowledge of what looks good on a girl."

Alex tilted her head thoughtfully. "Hmm... Yeah, I guess so. I just thought maybe you'd like to help. I know Sonic and I have been friends for a while, so I didn't want you to feel left out. We're still getting to know each other, too, right?" She gave Tails a sweet smile and ruffled his hair.

The fox boy's fluffy dual appendages waved and wagged. Although he suggested passing the task off onto Sonic, he was pleased that Alex requested his help with this. If one thing could be said, Tails always wanted to be as helpful as possible.

"Though..." she said thoughtfully. "I guess Sonic is more age appropriate. Maybe he'd have some good insight. But I don't know if he'd want to be bothered with this sorta thing, you know?"

Tails shrugged, smiling. "I mean, I'm always happy to help in any way I can. I promise to do my best."

Alex rummaged around in the back of her closet and emerged with a black cocktail dress. "Wow. I haven't worn this since my Aunt Edith's wedding. What do you think?"

Tails tilted his head. "I don't think it's bad. Maybe... something with more color?"

"Too dark. Noted. Honestly, it's the only dress I own. I'm not a 'dress' sort of girl. What about a skirt?"

She picked up two skirts from the bed. One was long, white and lacy, and the other was short and pleated with a black and purple plaid pattern.

"What do you think? The long one or the short one?"

Tails brought a hand to his fuzzy cheek, rubbing it in contemplation. "I think... the short one. Do you like that one? Is that a good choice?"

Alex laughed. "You sound so uncertain. Stick to your guns, Tails. If you like it, say it with confidence."

"O-Oh... Okay! Then... you should wear the short purple one!"

Alex held the skirt up to herself and stood in front of the mirror. "Hmm... I guess it does match my hair... the purple and all." Grinning, she nodded to herself. "It's sexy and sporty. Good choice, Tails."

Tails let out a sigh a relief. "Phew... Thank goodness. You're right Alex. This is hard. I'll take modifying and repairing the Tornado or hacking into a security system any day."

Alex tossed the skirt onto a place of pride on the bed. "Now it's time for tops!"

And the process repeated until two tops were selected.