ciɳɗy (ciɳɗɛʀɛʆʆɑ) ѵɑkɑʀiɑɳ (silvershoes) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2016-08-13 12:03:00 |
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Sharon was very much looking forward to having some girl time with Cindy. She wasn’t the girliest of girls by any stretch of the imagination, but she did like shoes. And not wearing sexy shoes for most of her pregnancy was pretty killer. Pantsuits were always stepped up a notch or three by a set of fuck-me-heels. The ones she’d tried to wear when she was pregnant were stretched out and didn’t really fit anymore. The ones she hadn’t were now too small. The ones she’d purchased during her pregnancy to fit her swollen feet didn’t fit anymore now she’d lost some pregnancy weight. So that meant a trip to the goodwill to donate half the shoes in her closet, and then a shopping spree. Thankfully, Cindy was game. The plan was to meet at Shoegasm, so Sharon showed up and stepped in through the front door, glancing around at the different styles they had on hand while she waited for her friend to arrive. Shoegasm was always a safe haven, always home for a footwear fashionista guru like Cinderella. Leliana technically ran the place now, ever since Cindy transitioned to being head of Internal Security at the Agency, but she’d kept the decor the same with the vibrant, cheerful, retro pop art on the walls and the funky, fresh music that played at low volume through the speakers. Even the iconic glass slippers were still there, displayed in the front window, a unique sort of decoration to attract customers. Cindy arrived not long after Sharon, dressed casually, in her favorite pair of broken-in jeans and her favorite pair of boots, the cartoon kawaii kitty on her t-shirt expressing its love for donuts. God, she was turning into a cat person - helped that her own cat, Bigby, was so freaking cute. “Hey!” she waved at Sharon, slinging her purse over her shoulder. “Ready to dive right in and do some shopping?” Sharon turned as the door opened behind her, and broke into a bright grin. She’d come from the office, so she was still wearing work clothes: slacks, blazer, blouse. And the boring work shoes that didn’t quite fit--the ones she’d purchased during her pregnancy. She was very much looking forward to ditching them and coming home with something amazing. Whenever Sharon thought of shoes, she thought of Cindy. Go figure. “Hey!” Sharon lifted her arms to wrap them around her friend in a quick greeting hug. She nodded, pulling back. “Absolutely! I don’t even know what’s in season. You’ll have to guide me!” “Ah, you’ve come to the right person, my friend,” Cindy responded with a wink, after she’d returned the hug - she was far cuddlier than her ‘smash a boot heel in your face’ exterior would suggest. Mostly with friends, however. Strangers? Not so much. But Sharon was one of her very best friends - both her and Veronica, since some of her other pals kind of faded away. She guessed it happened sometimes. And speaking of boots, she motioned toward one of the displays with a flick of her head, reaching up to brush aside those ever-present blonde bangs. “Velvet’s actually going to be a thing for fall of 2016,” she said. “Sometimes it’s done well, when it’s more subtle, rather than a whole crapton of crushed velvet. Also metallics and shoes with funky designs on the actual high heeled part - Dolce and Gabbana comes to mind.” To demonstrate, she plucked a pair of heels from the shelf. “It’s kind of two in one go - velvet and embellished, but I don’t know. It’s a lot. How are you feeling about it?” Serious question. Orange County tended to do that to people. Made them fade away into the background, or flee in panic. Not all the people, obviously, but a lot of the good ones. They’d all lost someone special to them. But they’d all found someone special, too. Sharon was glad that she had Cindy and Veronica on her side. Two of her best friends in the world. Sharon moved with Cindy over to the pair of shoes with the gemstones on the heel and blinked at it. “Wow.” She said, trying to figure out what she did feel about it. Her initial, gut reaction was that it was… tacky? But the more she thought about it, the less she hated it. It was different. “Huh. I dunno. They’re kinda… funky. Reminds me of bellbottoms and disco balls.” Cindy was having trouble deciding how she felt about it too - her assessment would also be that it was tacky, and not her style, but the Dolce and Gabbana’s were popular with a certain crowd. The ‘carry my dog in my purse, everything over the top and dramatic’ crowd. “Disco balls,” she laughed, shaking her head. “Yeah, these embellished heels are a little much. Let’s go for something velvet that’s less...ostentatious?” She scanned the shelves a little, selecting a pair of heels with a little less, uh, flair. They were crushed red velvet on the simpler side but classy, the color was a pretty and bright crimson, and they were also anke-wrap high heels. No other gemstones or weird-ass things glued to them. Oh, Valentino, you were always helpful. “How many pairs of hot red heels do you have? Because every woman needs at least one.” “I have a pair of red hot heels at home,” Sharon said. “My feet slide around in them, though. I think I stretched them out when I was pregnant.” She frowned a little, looking over at the second set of heels. “I can see why velvet’s coming back into style. God, this color is amazing. But … man, if they even got the slightest bit wet? Wouldn’t that get completely ruined? Not that it rains much here.” Sharon moved over toward the boots. Tan leather, soft and pliable. Sharon loved wearing kick-ass boots. Ankle-high, knee-high, thigh-high… okay, maybe not quite that high. But did she already have too many pair? Were they even in style? “I think it’s kinda like suede - if you let them dry and treat them well in general, they’ll last awhile but otherwise, yeah, velvet’s sort of a gamble,” Cindy said - damn, they were so cute though! She actually had a couple pairs of velvety pumps, to be honest. They were prized relics in her shoe closet. “Maybe since your old pair of sexy red shoes is stretched out, we could go with something leathery for a new one?” Genuine leather or faux-leather; being that she was a vegetarian she went with faux leather personally. Not everyone did. But boots, she was always up for boots too. “Actually, sexy red patent leather boots are going to be a thing for fall. Slouchy ones also. I’m of the opinion that they’re always a good investment.” “I could probably be persuaded to buy a couple pair of velvet heels,” Sharon said, glancing over at the array of styles and colors. “And definitely yes on the boots,” she added, turning her eyes to the red boots they had on display. “Slouchy boots sound totally sexy. I need a little of that in my wardrobe.” Sharon wandered around the shop for a couple of minutes, trying things on. She ended up finding four pair she wanted to take home; two heels, two boots. Of course, there were others she liked a lot, but one could only bring home so many brand new pairs of shoes. ...right? She managed to wrangle them all to the register. “Now,” Sharon smiled to Cindy after she paid for the shoes, “I believe I owe you a giant iced coffee or something.” Sexy red shoes and boots - you really couldn’t go wrong with those. And this gun-touting fairytale princess may have purchased a little something for herself too. Maybe. She knew Garrus would just smirk, or make a quip about how the extra closet she had for shoes was now overflowing, but whatever. The Louboutin’s were a red laced-pattern pump with a nude base, the heel looking very hypodermic. Super sexy, and she had to have them - so it was a good decision. “Or something,” she teased, tucking the handles of her shoebox bag over her arm. “Iced coffee though, that sounds perfect. And you can tell me how things are going with your manfriend.” Cindy needed the deets! Sharon gave a little laugh. She actually felt her cheeks flushing at the mention of her manfriend. Funny how love turned her into a fourteen year old girl again. She led the way back outside and toward the parking lot so they could stow boxes in cars, then it was just a hop, skip and a jump to the nearest cafe. Right? It’d been a while since Sharon had been to Shoegasm, but she could have sworn she remembered something within walking distance that had iced coffee. “Things are pretty amazing with my manfriend,” she offered as they moved together. “...um, really amazing, actually. I think he… I think he kind of proposed.” There was indeed a coffee shop near Shoegasm; being that it was in Huntington Beach’s historical district, the quaint place was tucked away in one of the old world villages. They did a good Turkish coffee but also an amazing cold brew as well - decent selection of pastries and treats, nice baklava. Cindy would no doubt be indulging in something sweet. Good to hear that things were going well for Blondie and her manfriend though (the dopey expressions and blushes were common when it came to amore) and then...“Wait, what do you mean he kind of proposed?!” She stopped in her tracks. “Like, he’s going to eventually propose with the ring - “ Because Sharon wasn’t wearing one, keen bluebell eyes would have noticed, “...and the whole ‘one knee’ thing eventually? It was just a testing the waters sort of deal?” Sharon stopped with Cindy, going a little sheepish. God, all this talk turned her into such a girl. Not that she didn’t like feeling loved. Special. But it made her turn to mush just thinking about it. “We were talking about the future. Things got pretty serious, and… well, that I want to give Viv a brother or sister some day, and he wants that, too. He said he’ll marry me first. But I stopped him there.” She smirked softly at the memory of that conversation. “I told him I expect the ring and the down on one knee, and all of it. I didn’t consider that an official proposal.” “Oh, whew, okay - that makes sense,” Cindy nodded. She thought it was some half-assed thing, but as it turns out, they were just discussing the idea in regards to what would happen in the future. Which wasn’t a bad thing at all - in fact, it was probably smart. Her and Garrus hadn’t really discussed it - being proposed to was kind of a huge surprise, but she felt like they both just knew it was going to happen anyway. “Damn, that’s a lot - marriage on the horizon, another baby. It’s good though. Good you have someone who’s serious about you and you’re serious about too. I’m here for whatever you need as you two navigate all this, even if it’s just help picking out shoes.” She held the door open to the coffee shop when they arrived, motioning for Sharon to go first. The scent of pastry, of things baking, was one that she welcomed to hit her in the face anytime. “Celebratory baklava, in honor of such glorious news,” Cindy grinned. “And iced coffee too, of course.” Sharon gave a chuckle, glad that Cindy was so supportive. She’d told Leon, and he’d freaked out a little. Which she could totally understand. It was a big change. Well, it was the promise of a big change. Sharon didn’t want her friendships to change, but they would. Wouldn’t they? It was inevitable. She smiled warmly at Cindy, relieved this conversation went well. “Baklava and iced coffee. It’s a date.” And she moved through the door into the cafe. |