Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 As a kid I spent the summers wearing swimming trunks.\u00a0 No shoes, no shirt, no problem as the old saying goes.\u00a0 And during winter, I wore enough furs to make an Eskimo jealous.\u00a0 They don\u2019t call us the Icebox of the Nation for nothing after all.\u00a0 But I had some girlfriends that thought they could teach me how to dress good.\u00a0 I generally let them have their way since I couldn\u2019t tell the difference anyways.\u00a0 A shirt was as a shirt, right?\u00a0 Oh silly me.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Jack fingered the tag on the inside of the dress jacket and sighed.\u00a0 Sorenson Styles.\u00a0 He usually didn\u2019t think about brands.\u00a0 A shirt was a shirt after all.\u00a0 But this was a special case.\u00a0 He\u2019d worn their stuff before The War, back when it wasn\u2019t even a brand.\u00a0 Just a certain girl who had been trying out new things to see if she could make people look good.\u00a0 Or at least make him<\/em> look like less of a total slacker.<\/p>\n He snorted and shook his head, examining the full suit he wore.\u00a0 This had been her second<\/em> business, her escape from the pressures of her real<\/em> job.\u00a0 It was turning into a nice little business empire in its own rights if the fact that she was selling it in this store of all places was an indication.\u00a0 And he\u2019d spent about as much time dithering as he could.<\/p>\n Jack slipped the left sleeve up his arm, carefully.\u00a0 The shoulder was still tender and he didn\u2019t want to hurt it.\u00a0 He pulled it up, and then slipped his right arm into the right sleeve, the motion far more difficult than it would normally have been.\u00a0 His left shoulder screamed as he moved wrong, a body-freezing complaint that brought tears to the eyes.\u00a0 It faded quickly though, and he pulled the jacket up the rest of the way without copying that particular motion again.\u00a0 The dress jacket finally resting on his shoulders, he breathed a sigh of relief and flicked its collars into position.<\/p>\n Then he pulled the sleeves down and walked out of the dressing room into the massive store, eyes scanning for Taylor and Jennifer.\u00a0 He saw them sitting where he\u2019d told them he could still dress himself, and he had to wonder if maybe he\u2019d been a little quick on that point.\u00a0 He still felt the dull ache in the left shoulder, but he smiled at the girls.\u00a0 Taylor\u2019s eyes opened wide as she came to her feet and walked over with an appraising look.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a bit\u2026white,\u201d Jack muttered in what he figured was one of his better understatements.\u00a0 The Western-style trousers were white.\u00a0 The western shirt, with actual snaps<\/em>, was white.\u00a0 The tie and jacket practically shone<\/em> white under the store\u2019s bright lights.\u00a0 And the white cowboy boots and cowboy hat just filled out the overpowering color choice that even he<\/em> never would have picked.\u00a0 But she\u2019d been adamant.<\/p>\n \u201cYou look good in white,\u201d Taylor said with a smile and stepped close, bringing hands up to grab his tie and tighten it up against his neck.<\/p>\n Jack cleared his throat and glared down at her.\u00a0 \u201cThat\u2019s tight.\u201d<\/p>\n She just raised an eyebrow at him, and gave the tie a firm pat.<\/p>\n \u201cIt looks better that way,\u201d Jennifer smiled from her seat, her legs crossed as if she didn\u2019t have a care in the world.<\/p>\n Jack tilted his head back and forth, working his jaw against the constricting noose.\u00a0 \u201cI can\u2019t breath.\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor gave him a very unladylike snort and shook her head.\u00a0 \u201cLots of people breath in something just like this.\u00a0 They even sing,\u201d she added with a smile.<\/p>\n Jack sniffed, showing his distain for said singers.\u00a0 \u201cStuffy old songs that nobody listens to on account that they\u2019re boring.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHigh class performances that command lots of money,\u201d Jennifer corrected with a smirk.\u00a0 \u201cBut don\u2019t worry.\u00a0 We aren\u2019t making you go black tie.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack lifted the white tie over Taylor\u2019s shoulder so Jennifer could see it and raised an eyebrow at her.\u00a0 \u201cI think I figured that one out already.\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor laughed.\u00a0 \u201cOh, Jack.\u201d\u00a0 She leaned her head against him to keep from falling over in her mirth, and he felt his determination to resist the suit melt away at her touch.\u00a0 \u201cYou really are<\/em> a Neanderthal, aren\u2019t you?\u201d\u00a0 And that brought it right back up.<\/p>\n \u201cExcuse me?\u201d Jack growled with a glare she couldn\u2019t see.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re excused,\u201d Jennifer answered and he turned his glare to her.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, the more you make fun of me, the more you make me want to throw this out, right?\u201d he asked with a wave of his good arm.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t really properly point out the suit with Taylor leaning against him though, and Jennifer just smirked at him.<\/p>\n Taylor patted his good shoulder and shook her head as she leaned back to look up at him.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re not gonna want to do that until you take it out for a spin and kick the tires.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack snorted.\u00a0 \u201cAnd what makes you so sure about that?\u201d<\/p>\n Jennifer actually laughed at him.\u00a0 Laughed<\/em>.\u00a0 \u201cBecause we know you.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack frowned at her and reached between him and Taylor to grab the tie with his good hand, ready to pull it off.\u00a0 \u201cLook I think we need to try something else out.\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor grabbed the hand with a firm grip and stopped him.\u00a0 \u201cJack, I forbid<\/em> you to take those clothes off until after you\u2019ve taken us for a walk,\u201d she ordered in a tone that left no question as to whether or not she was willing to budge a centimeter on the subject.<\/p>\n \u201cTaylor,\u201d he whispered in a mollifying tone and tried to extricate his hand.<\/p>\n She slapped it and glared at him.<\/p>\n \u201cI think she\u2019s serious,\u201d Jennifer piped in and jumped to her feet with a broad smile.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t have any choice in the matter.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cOh, I have a lot of choice,\u201d Jack answered her in a wry tone and tried to back away from Taylor.<\/p>\n She held onto him and he looked down to see her glare intensifying.\u00a0 He noticed the flaring in her eyes and gulped.\u00a0 \u201cNo,\u201d Taylor whispered uncompromisingly.\u00a0 \u201cYou don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack swallowed again, recognizing the steel in her expression.\u00a0 She wasn\u2019t asking him for anything.\u00a0 She was demanding that he respect her expertise and experience.\u00a0 She set her jaw, and a silent plea filled her eyes.\u00a0 She knew she knew what she was talking about, and if he wasn\u2019t willing to give her a chance\u2026<\/p>\n Jack blinked away from that thought and let out a long breath.\u00a0 She really had spread her wings in the last twenty years.\u00a0 He was more proud of that than he could say.\u00a0 Now he had the choice of respecting those wings or cutting them himself.<\/p>\n And he could never do that.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he whispered with a slow smile of defeat.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s better,\u201d Jennifer said with a mocking smile.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re learning.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNow don\u2019t be getting ahead of yourself,\u201d Jack answered in a self-deprecating tone.\u00a0 \u201cYou might still be needing a clue-by-four.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, it\u2019s a good thing we keep those in stock,\u201d Taylor whispered with another slap on his good shoulder and stepped away.\u00a0 She ran her eyes up and down his tall white-clad frame and nodded in approval.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re ready for the big reveal I think.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack sighed and shook his head in doubt.\u00a0 \u201cAre you sure?\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor smiled at the question in his voice that replaced the defiance of before.\u00a0 \u201cAbsolutely,\u201d she intoned and turned to the man who had been helping them.\u00a0 \u201cPlease place this on my account and burn<\/em> what he walked in with.\u201d<\/p>\n The department manager gave her an approving smile, but Jack grunted in protest.\u00a0 \u201cHey now.\u00a0 Those are perfectly good clothes!\u201d<\/p>\n Taylor sniffed dismissively.\u00a0 \u201cTwenty years ago, maybe<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0 The stress she gave that final word suggested that she wasn\u2019t convinced that they\u2019d ever<\/em> really been perfectly good, but that she didn\u2019t want to argue about it.\u00a0 She met Jack\u2019s eyes again and pursed her lips in thought.\u00a0 \u201cI know you, Jack,\u201d she said, her voice serious again.\u00a0 \u201cAnd I know clothes.\u00a0 The clothes don\u2019t make the man any more than the man makes the clothes, but clothes and men complement<\/em> each other if you do it right.\u00a0 Please trust that I know how to do it right.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack returned her gaze, and this time saw far more simple confidence than any fear that he would ignore her.\u00a0 She wasn\u2019t demanding anything now.\u00a0 And this time, he didn\u2019t surrender out of a wish to refrain from hurting her.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d he said because, in the end, he really did know her.\u00a0 And he trusted her.<\/p>\n \u201cGood,\u201d Taylor whispered and turned back to the man at the counter.\u00a0 \u201cBurn<\/em> them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, Ma\u2019am,\u201d the manager answered without hesitation.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd if he likes this, he might want to buy some more,\u201d she added with a smile, and the manager matched her expression, obviously recognizing how much money that could mean in the future.\u00a0 \u201cNow let\u2019s go,\u201d Taylor ordered, slipped her arm inside his left, and began moving him towards the exit with a gentle pull that only slightly<\/em> aggravated the shoulder.\u00a0 And he wasn\u2019t about to admit even that much to her.<\/p>\n Jennifer came to her feet and met them short of the door, slipping an arm inside his right, and Jack had the undeniable feeling of being a prize bull on parade.\u00a0 They led him out of the largest store in the Empire State without hesitation, and walked onto Fashion Avenue like they owned it.<\/p>\n The noises of people moving and talking washed over him.\u00a0 Bright colors clashed from hundreds of fashions walking back, and beyond them vehicles hovered down the street, keeping well below the skyways linking buildings up and down the street.\u00a0 They moved silently, only their horns calling out to warn pedestrians not to step in front of them.\u00a0 Above them all, lanes of more traffic crisscrossed each other in the skies of Old New York, climbing up to the very tops of the tallest towers and beyond.<\/p>\n Jack cleared his throat as he worried about just how public this was.\u00a0 Someone had already tried to kill them and he hated the idea of being out in the open.\u00a0 Of them<\/em> being out in the open.\u00a0 They shouldn\u2019t be risking themselves like this.\u00a0 He hesitated and Jennifer\u2019s grip tightened.<\/p>\n \u201cDon\u2019t even think about running,\u201d she murmured under the noises of the city that never slept.\u00a0 \u201cCharles is right.\u00a0 They won\u2019t try anything here.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s too public,\u201d Taylor added with a pleasant smile, but her eyes demanded that he keep up his part of the plan.<\/p>\n Jack pulled in a deep breath, let it out, and just barely stopped himself from shrugging.\u00a0 On the one hand, his left shoulder still wouldn\u2019t like that.\u00a0 And on the other hand, they\u2019d already told him not to shrug, or else.\u00a0 He really didn\u2019t want to find out what \u201cor else\u201d really meant.\u00a0 So he suppressed the shrug and gave them a joyful smile that betrayed none of his worry.\u00a0 \u201cYes, Ma\u2019ams,\u201d he whispered, too quietly for them to hear, but rallied himself and led them into the midst of all the busy people rushing on their way to work, or shopping, or whatever it was they were doing in the middle of Old New York.<\/p>\n One person stopped in her tracks, eyes wide, and Jack smiled at her shocked reaction.\u00a0 Another young lady slammed into her, catapulting the first one into a stuttering run to keep her feet under her.\u00a0 The second woman rocked back in surprise, one foot reaching back to keep her from falling, and her eyes flicked around in alarm, hoping nobody saw her stumble.\u00a0 And then her gaze landed on Jack and the girls and she<\/em> froze too.\u00a0 Only her lips mouthed silent words as her brain tried to catch up with her eyes, and she swung an arm up to point at them.<\/p>\n Just in time to nearly take the head off a man walking between them.\u00a0 The man stopped as her hand flashed in his face, and turned what had to be an annoyed look at her.\u00a0 But Jack saw the anger in his shoulders droop at the look of shock on her face, and the man slowly turned to follow the course of her hand.\u00a0 Jack smiled as the man saw them, and the man\u2019s eyes went wide in shock.\u00a0 In a handful of seconds filled with minor collisions like those, the entire crowd stumbled to a halt and just looked at them.<\/p>\n Not at him<\/em> of course.\u00a0 Oh, he was<\/em> a Cowboy, which made him at least moderately famous.\u00a0 But he wasn\u2019t in uniform, and he didn\u2019t think anybody recognized him for who he was.\u00a0 The girls were another matter.\u00a0 Not everybody liked<\/em> their music of course.\u00a0 Nobody<\/em> could write music that everybody<\/em> liked.\u00a0 But anybody who listened to music, anybody who spent any time on the nets at all, at least knew of<\/em> T&J.\u00a0 Their pictures had been featured on the front pages of more magazines than Jack could count, and here in Old New York many had actually seen them in concert.<\/p>\n After a long moment of frozen shock, the crowd began to take pictures of the celebrities in their midst as they parted like the Red Sea.\u00a0 They weren\u2019t looking for pictures of him of course.\u00a0 Or at least not only<\/em> him, though he supposed he was in most of the pictures.\u00a0 He was<\/em> after all the lucky bastard sandwiched between one of the richest singing duos out there.\u00a0 As he scanned the crowd, he saw the looks of jealousy in male and female eyes in almost equal measure.\u00a0 Jack smiled at them all.\u00a0 He\u2019d be happy to let them just keep on feeling jealous.<\/p>\n Jack sucked in a satisfied breath and guided the girls down the sidewalk with a confident gait.\u00a0 It wouldn\u2019t be fair to say he strutted like a rooster, but if he were being honest with himself it wouldn\u2019t be far off.\u00a0 He\u2019d never been a suit and tie person, but as some of the very nice looking young ladies began to notice him, his smile grew.\u00a0 Taylor\u2019s arm tightened and she looked to the side.\u00a0 Jack followed her gaze to see a couple women talking amongst themselves, and they flushed as they noticed him watching.<\/p>\n Jack smiled at the reaction and kept moving, eyes flashing across the crowd.\u00a0 He spotted numerous others doing the same, and he focused on them, listening through the noise.\u00a0 He couldn\u2019t understand most of them, but many of the words he picked out suggested they thought he looked real<\/em> good.<\/p>\n They made good time down Fashion Avenue, only a few clumps of people slowing them down.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019m impressed,\u201d Jack said as they cut out of another one, which had sported more than its fair share of people looking to touch their idols.\u00a0 It wouldn\u2019t be proper to accuse them of groping after all.\u00a0 Jack let a sigh out as he realized he wasn\u2019t actually being fair there.\u00a0 No one had actually groped any of them, but his northern Minnesota upbringing still told him they were being way too familiar with girls they didn\u2019t know.\u00a0 \u201cI expected Empire State hedonists to find an excuse to do a bit more crowding around you.\u201d\u00a0 He frowned as he considered that it might not be a compliment to say that, but Taylor and Jennifer laughed.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is Old New York,\u201d Taylor answered with a pat on his wrist.<\/p>\n \u201cThey see lots of celebrities here,\u201d Jennifer added with a shrug.<\/p>\n Taylor winked at him.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re sorta part of the landscape.\u201d<\/p>\n Jack snorted.\u00a0 \u201cWell, obviously some parts of the landscape are better than others then.\u201d<\/p>\n The girls smiled and patted his arms.\u00a0 Jack smiled as if he\u2019d said nothing but the truth.\u00a0 And he had<\/em> been truthful, so he didn\u2019t even need to act.<\/p>\n Taylor glanced at three young ladies whispering about them.\u00a0 \u201cSo what do you think?\u201d<\/p>\n He smiled at the three girls and waggled his eyebrows at them.\u00a0 \u201cWell, you just might be right about me being able to find a use for this suit after all.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYes, I can see it now,\u201d Jennifer said in a sweet voice.\u00a0 \u201cThey whisper sweet nothings in your ears, whisk you off to somewhere private, and sneak a knife in your back,\u201d she finished in a dark tone.<\/p>\n Jack blinked at the twisted end of the story and looked down at her.\u00a0 Her eyes were serious and he sucked in a deep breath as a chill ran down his spine.\u00a0 She was right.\u00a0 That would<\/em> be a good tactic for whoever had tried to kill him.\u00a0 \u201cAh, like I\u2019d actually let anyone I don\u2019t even know whisk me off to somewhere private,\u201d he returned in a jocular tone.\u00a0 Then he looked over at Taylor as he squeezed both of their arms for a second.\u00a0 \u201cNow, somebody I do<\/em> know and trust is a totally<\/em> different matter,\u201d he finished with a wink.<\/p>\n They slapped his arms for that comment, but it was totally worth it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hello, my name is Jack.\u00a0 As a kid I spent the summers wearing swimming trunks.\u00a0 No shoes, no shirt, no problem as the old saying goes.\u00a0 And during winter, I wore enough furs to make an Eskimo jealous.\u00a0 They don\u2019t[…]↓ Read the rest of this 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