Jennifer glanced back at the mirror one more time as she rounded the corner of the aisle. Suddenly she collided with someone. She shuffled backward and regained her balance easily thanks to her thick-soled shoes, cursing in surprise and at her own foolishness. She righted her head and saw that she'd run into a young man, about her age, in an orange jacket and jeans. He was holding a vampire cape on a hanger, and some other thing had been dropped on the floor.
"Woah! I'm sorry," he said, somewhat frazzled. "You okay?"
"Yeah," she muttered, throwing her tousled hair back over her shoulder. "Yeah, I'm all right. I wasn't watching where I was going. It was my fault."
"You're very kind," he smiled awkwardly. "I wasn't paying attention either, though. There's so much to look at here." He paused to check out her dress. "That's a great outfit. Are you shopping for costumes?"
"Y-yeah," Jennifer answered, raising an eyebrow. Wasn't it obvious by the way she was dressed? "Same for you?"
The guy nodded. "I need something for a Halloween party. I haven't dressed up in years." He bent down to pick up what he'd dropped. "You look like you don't even need a costume, though."
Jennifer was still a little addled. She wasn't sure if she heard him right. How could he not see her outfit and makeup? "Sorry, what do you mean?"
He lifted up the other costume from the floor. It was a flamboyantly purple '70s suit jacket with a white ruffled shirt. "You're a goth, right? You're perfect going to a Halloween party just as you are."
"As I am...?" Jennifer felt distracted, but she wasn't sure why. He clearly had the wrong idea about her outfit. She searched for the words that would clear up the confusion...for both of them. "I'm a... I mean this is a... a goth..."
"Uh, yeah," he said, smiling awkwardly. "You're the nicest looking goth I've ever seen, actually. Trust me."
The genuine compliment brought a wave of clarity and she decided to hold onto the thought. She gave him a smile with her black lips and, feeling more at ease and inspired by her flashy ensemble, she dipped into a little curtsy. "Thank you."
"And a graceful goth, too!" he remarked with surprise, though she could tell it was another compliment. "Sorry, you have much better manners than me. I'm Kelan."
Jennifer was starting to get suspicious of his praises. Nobody ever sweet-talked her this much unless she was cruising the bars. But he seemed like a really trustworthy person. And this wasn't a bar. Who would stake out weird old costume shops looking for a date?
She was suddenly aware that she was dallying in her response. Without thinking, she curtsied again. This time she lifted her dress with both hands, dipped her head low, and placed one foot in front of the other before bending down. She was almost all the way into the dip when she realized what she was doing. Why was she this awkward? "I, uh, I-I'm Jen--" she stammered, pausing to take a breath as she straightened herself back up to say her name properly.
"It's really nice to meet you, June," he smiled and bowed to match her formality.
"A-actually, that's...," she started to correct him, but then wondered why she should. It was nice to meet him.
He picked up on her obvious hesitation. "Oh, sorry, I don't mean to take all your time. I was looking for the racks where these came from. I'm having second thoughts about what to wear."
"It's no bother, really," she was quickly compelled to say. "Might I, um... help you find the section? I think I saw some vampire costumes on my way to the changing rooms."
"S-sure!" he smiled sheepishly. "Thank you."
With a sweep of her skirt, June began to walk in the direction of the changing rooms, figuring the best way to find the section she saw was to retrace her steps. Kelan followed by her side. She noticed him glancing at her hair and dress. It seemed like it should feel awkward, but she was happy to be noticed. It meant she picked a great outfit. She put those positive feelings to use by focusing on keeping an even, dainty gait.
A nagging thought in the back of her mind made her wonder why she was taking this detour for a stranger when she wanted to find her friends. June figured it was because she was just very kind. And she trusted that he wouldn't take all of her time. She'd find where he got the costumes from, and by then, Cliff and the others were sure to be around. They'd run into each other eventually.