Sixteen the Hard Way -17.2- Cute

“Sweet!?” I protested, but that only made them giggle.

Mom suggested “Adorable!” as an alternate description, so I just went back into the booth to take the lovely, sweet, adorable garment off. Easier said than done, I’d forgotten the hook-thing at the back of the neck and managed to unzip the top of the dress before figuring out something was wrong.

“You need help?” Donna offered from the hall.

“No!” Last thing I needed just then was my sister to deal with in close quarters. “Stay out!” I warned her.

“Well, hurry up!” she urged. “We have these other dresses for you to try on, too!”

I finally got the blue dress off and hung up and just stood for a moment, leaning back against the padded wall of the changing booth. A glance down reminded me why I wasn’t leaning with my forehead against the wall, a pose I’d been using for years when dealing with Donna’s antics.

I sighed. I could hear them babbling on the other side of the door. “This navy skirt suit would make a good choice for going to school! This yellow sundress with the big pink and green flowers would really attract the attention of the boys! And how about this floofy orange top? It’s almost the color of her hair!”

I wasn’t at all sure I would even be going back to school. Maybe after I joined the foreign legion. And why would I want to attract the attention of boys?!

I briefly considered just running out the door, perhaps screaming as I went. The picture in my mind was funny enough to distract me from my angst, if I’m using the right word. It didn’t look as if I were going to be able to escape this ordeal, and they really were just trying to help me.

I took down what looked like the larger of the two green jumpers and checked the label to be sure. Medium. Maybe it would fit. I followed the prescribed method of putting the thing on, undoing the zipper front and stepping into the wide pants leg part, then pulling it up and zipping the front.

Wonder of wonders, it seemed to fit. It didn’t look too bad, other than being girl’s clothes. The cut was kind of … wait a minute. I turned from side to side, looking at various angles. Hmm. It fit trimly in the waist and flared out over hips I didn’t really have. The zipper stayed where I put it and I could control how much skin I showed. With not a little reluctance, I decided that this would work.

It was definitely girl, but not super girly. I posed a bit in the mirror, trying a big smile on. OH SHIT! I closed my eyes and checked it out again. Yes, the jumper skort made me look cute!

“Joni!” Donna called through the door. “Have you got the jumper skort on? Can I see?”

“I suppose,” I began but she had already opened the door and come into the booth a couple of steps, Mom right behind her. “Oh, Joni! That is just so cute on you!”

“Argh!” I mentioned. “Cute is a four-letter word, you know!”