The jacket was hanging on a clothes rack filled with many other articles, some of which not really seeming to complement one another. There were clothes from recent years, sure, but there were also clothes from as far back as the 1800s--at least, that's only when Doug could assume they were from. He thought the organization a bit strange, but he shook it off and was about to turn back when the jacket caught his eye.
It was a pretty old thing; he estimated it to be from the early '80s, by the looks of it. The blue denim of the shoulders met with black leather extending all the way down to the wrists. The color of the denim was a bit faded, as one might expect, but it was in surprisingly good condition. The waist of the jacket was slightly tattered with a bit of white fray hanging off of the ends, but Doug thought it added to its looks. Having been so enthralled by the jacket, he hadn't even noticed that he had walked over and picked it up until the old lady came up to him.
"Ah, yes, that's quite a nice jacket you have there," she said from behind, startling him out of his stupor. Looking down at the jacket in his hands confusedly, he wondered briefly how he had gotten there before his thoughts were interrupted by the woman. "Would you like to try it on?" she asked, putting on that creepy smile again. Despite how much her smile unsettled him, for some reason he felt compelled to put it on.
"Uh, yeah, sure," he answered, though he wasn't entirely sure why. He could've sworn he saw her eyes twinkle momentarily.
"Good, good. I'll show you to the changing area, then." Doug quirked an eyebrow at her.
"I don't think I really need a changing room to put on a jacket." The woman chuckled slightly in response.
"No, but don't you want to see how you look?" He couldn't really argue against that; he actually was interested in seeing what it looked like on him. After a brief moment of silence, the woman smiled. "Come with me, then." She put an arm around his back and walked him to the back of the little shop. There was a makeshift changing room set up. Well, as much of a room as one could expect from a shop in a flea market, at least. It wasn't really anything special, though; a small portion of the stall had been sectioned off with a heavy curtain hanging from a metal track mounted on the ceiling. The area was little, but that hadn't stopped the woman from putting a full-body mirror inside, apparently. She practically pushed Doug into the cramped space, not bothering to draw the curtain since he was only trying on a jacket. Standing in front of the mirror, he began to put it on.
As his arm slipped through the sleeve and his hand emerged through the wrist, his arm began to tingle slightly. The sensation felt a bit odd, but he passed it off as static electricity from the hairs on his arm. He experienced a similar sensation as he put his other arm through the other sleeve yet still paid no attention to it. As the jacket slid into place around his chest and torso, the first thing he noticed was how small it was compared to his body. The jacket was obviously made for someone just a bit shorter, as it ended a little too high. The sleeves were comfortable enough, he supposed, but overall, it was apparent that he simply did not have the right body for it. He had left the front open, and while he didn't look bad exactly, his body didn't complement the jacket very well. He could clearly see how his shirt was distorted by his gut; now, he wasn't quite fat per se, but his gut was larger than he would've liked. Those feelings of low self-esteem and shame came back as he put his hand on his belly and gave the excess fat a slight jiggle. He sighed dejectedly, wishing he could be better for Kate.
The woman seemed to think differently, though, as she came up behind him and again and marveled at his appearance. "Well, aren't you just dashing! If I were dating you, I would consider myself lucky to have someone as handsome as you." Doug raised an eyebrow at her. He didn't say anything, but he knew that the woman was probably just trying to be nice. Even so, he felt a brief wave of... pride? It was a strange thought since he wasn't one for egotism, but it almost felt like a bit of arrogant pride surging through him upon receiving the compliment. He quickly brushed it off, though, turning his attention back to the jacket. You know, now that he was looking at himself a second time, he really didn't look all that bad. Sure, he was a bit chubby, but that shouldn't stop him from wearing it. With renewed confidence, he turned to the woman.
"So, how much for the jacket?" he asked, already making to grab his wallet.
"Well, normally it would be about $20, but I'll tell you what: since you're just so charming in that jacket, I'll let you keep it for free. How does that sound?" Doug froze right there, looking at the woman in surprise.
"Seriously? Sweet, thanks!"
"Oh, don't mention it. Now you just go out there and make those ladies swoon!" As Doug walked out of the stall, the old lady noted how much he had already changed. Before, he had tended to walk with a bit of a slump and looking at the ground, his gait had improved so that now he walked with his back straight and his head held high. He also seemed to have thinned out a bit, for now his shirt showed only a hint of a belly. It was fairly small, but his personality seemed to have changed too. He appeared to be more confident than he used to be, and the new slight swagger in his step showed that. She could sense that it wouldn't get too out of hand, but hey, a bit of cockiness is attractive to most girls nowadays, right? Satisfied with her work, she went back to her counter and waited for the next customer to come.