Jared was a hardcore jock. It wasn't unusual to find him hooking up with the hottest girls at school; many of them were on a list that was kept pretty secret so he always knew who to get next. As the fall homecoming dance was coming around, he decided he was going to ask the girl at the top of the list, and in order to do that, he needed to find the most unique, and preppy, looking suit that there is. These, he thought, could only be found at the most hidden consignment shops. So he searched until he found Gary's consignment shop, the perfect place to find what he's looking for.
As he walks in, he is bombarded by how big the shop actually was. There was all sorts of things, ranging from home decor and furniture to clothing, which is exactly what he was looking for. Jared went straight to the men's section of the store, and as he was searching for what he wanted, a man came up to him and introduced himself.
"How are you doing, today? My name's Gary, and if you have any questions or need any assistance, feel free to talk to me."
Jared responded, "So like the shop keep? Thanks for the help... Actually I do have something I'm searching for. Can you bring me something I can ask out a girl to a dance with? Like a suit of some sort like on the rack here? Or just help me pick something out, I don't know..."
Gary began to pick up on something, "You're unsure of what you want? Lets start off with something basic..." Gary then goes to the back and returns with a white cotton shirt, some khaki pants and some worn-out brown leather dress shoes. "Here's something to get you started. I would give you more, but I only allow three items in the dressing room at a time. It's so people don't steal things."
"O.K...." responded Jared, unimpressed by the "selection" the man gave him. He wasn't trying to be some nerdy freshman, but he was kind of nervous to go beyond something safe and basic. Maybe it wouldn't hurt and he could always try something else on. He headed over to the dressing room and closed the door. It was small, as dressing rooms typically are, and there was an antique looking mirror in it.
"Wow keeping with the theme, I see..." Jared muttered under his breath. He sat down on the bench, took his shoes off, and stood back up. He started to take his shirt and pants off, but faced opposite from the mirror so he would be surprised when he turned around. He put on the shirt, buttoned all of the buttons up to the collar, then put on the pants and tucked the shirt in. After that, he sat down and put the shoes on. Once again he stood back up, and felt a little restricted by the clothing. He looked down at himself and made an observation that the clothing, although it was long enough, was for a much skinnier person and that Jared was too muscled to fit in it. He decided to give a look in the mirror and check himself out.
When he turned around, he was met with what he expected. The same old him but in clothes that looked like they were about to burst at the seam. He stared at himself in the very basic, freshman-looking clothes, and wondering if this was what he wanted until he noticed something unusual. In the image before him, his hair began to part on the side and make a greased comb-over, typical of a sheltered, conservative boy. He was shocked to see his reflection do that as he was sure that he didn't do it. As he reached up to feel his hair, it felt like what it had been before: a faux-hawk that he had been sporting for years.
Not long after did he notice another change in the mirror; his reflection was losing weight, and was losing it fast. His reflection, although it didn't get any shorter, seemed to have lost quite a bit of fat and muscle definition. His 6'3" frame looked to be about 115 pounds in the mirror. Again, he looked down at himself, and saw the same old 205 pound muscly frame and the seams of the shirt threatening to rip with any sudden moves.
Jared was getting really confused about what was going on but he couldn't seem to rip himself from viewing the mirror. As soon as the last change in his reflection finished, eyeglasses with an extra bridge for strength appeared on his face and his skin's color drained from a nice tan to an almost white pale. Once more, he reached up to his face and didn't feel the glasses and the skin on his hands was his usual tan.
He was in shock. His reflection looked like an awkward, lanky 14 year old who was just going into high school, but he was still the same old Jared. As if all of those changes weren't enough, a conservative red and white polka dotted necktie began to tie itself onto Jared's neck in the mirror and brown suspenders buttoned onto the pants in the front, jumped over his shoulder, and buttoned in the back. He then, finally, was able to break his gaze from himself in the mirror, but he was still in awe. Every movement he made, was reflected by this scrawny, almost nerdy Jared.
But wasn't that who he was? A lanky freshman who was getting to go to his first homecoming? He had already asked out Barbara, another freshman, just so that he could ensure that she wouldn't be taken. Wait, wait, wait! That's not who he was! He was king of the school! No wait, maybe king of the freshman chess team? As his identity confusion was giving him trouble, he noticed one more thing change in the mirror. A navy blue with red argyle sweater-vest appeared on a hanger in the back. The jock was screaming on the inside, 'That's not mine! I'm not wearing that!' but an every increasingly powerful, and innocent, voice was urging him to put it on. Eventually, Jared cracked and grabbed the vest off the hanger. As he did began to put it on, the changes solidified on him: his hair greased into a side part comb-over, his muscular frame vanished replaced by a wiry one, glasses appeared on his face, his skin went pale, a conservative tie tied itself around his neck, and suspenders attached to the waist of his pants, pulling them unnaturally high. After he was done, the person he always was on the inside revealed himself. A name embroidered itself onto the breast of the sweater-vest: "JAMES". It was as if the old Jared had never existed.
As the last of the changes were done, the new James came out of the dressing room bringing the t-shirt, shorts, and boat shoes out with him. Gary came up to him and asked him what he thought, "So kid, what did you think?"
James responded in a higher pitched voice, "Oh Mr. Gary, I didn't quite enjoy them, so you can keep them. I like what I'm wearing enough! Thank you so much for your time!"
And with that, James left and reality changed so that Jared never existed. Who is next to be changed by the shop?