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The Con
By Melanie Ezell
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The choice of costume at an anime convention can have wider reaching side effects than one might imagine.
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Josie looked over her shoulder at the couples out on the dance floor as she tried to shove her way through the crowded room. She had to get out of there, and fast. It had been a fun idea, and an opportunity she couldn't pass up, but there had just been too many close calls already tonight, and she wasn't sure if she could handle another.
"Hey, catgirl, wait up!"
'Oh, no.' Josie did her best not to wince when she heard the voice calling her, but all hope of escaping before someone she knew spotted her vanished when Greg popped up in front of her. 'Great, just what I needed,' she thought as she looked up into the eyes of one of the few people she could honestly call a friend in her other life.
"Hi!" Greg smiled down at her, holding out his hand. "I'm Greg! Love the costume."
Josie's breath caught in her throat as she realized he didn't recognize her. Then again, this was a fairly big convention, he probably wasn't expecting to be able to recognize anyone. Gingerly, Josie took his hand and shook it lightly. "Uh, thanks. Yours is pretty cool, too." It was. Greg had pulled out all the stops this year, devoting hours of work and research to create the most accurate costume possible, until now he was the spitting image of Onizuka from 'GTO' as 'Doraemon'. Josie knew exactly how much effort had gone into his costume- she had been at his house most nights working on the parts of it with him for the past week.
Her costume, on the other hand, was another issue entirely. 'Golddiggers' had been a favorite comic of hers for a long time, that was true, but what had ever possessed her to dress as a catgirl like the ones in the manga?
"You leaving?" Greg's voice caught her attention again, drawing her back to the here and now.
"Oh! Yeah. It's, ah, a bit crowded in here."
Greg nodded. "Yeah. Come on, I know a place where we can cool down." With a shock Josie realized Greg was still holding her hand from the shake, but it was too late for her to jerk it away as he began to lightly pull her towards the doors.
"Where are we going?" She asked, mentally screaming at the fact that he was holding her hand while silently hoping wherever they went was very public and very easy to escape from.
"Out on the balcony, it's right over here." With one more gentle tug Greg pulled her through the glass doors and out onto the second floor balcony overlooking the pool and hot tub of the hotel where the convention was being held. As soon as the door closed behind them, Greg dropped Josie's hand and walked to the railing, looking out into the stars. Not sure what to do, Josie crossed the balcony to one of the benches and sat herself down, wrestling with the tail of her suit for a moment before wrapping it around her waist. Greg gave her another smile, and she felt herself start to blush under his gaze. "That really is an awesome costume. I bet it took a lot of work."
Josie just sighed and nodded. As much time as they had spent together working on Greg's costume, she had spent at least twice that in the privacy of her room at home getting the costume she was wearing ready. She had even had to suffer the embarrassment of ordering several of the items in person at the local costume shop just to get the right pieces. The leopard print leotard, the corset, the breast forms...
They stayed together in silence for what felt like forever to Josie before Greg finally turned around and offered her his hand again. "Ready to go back in?"
Not knowing what else to do, Josie took his hand and stood up. "Okay."
Together they returned to the dance floor, where the DJ had changed the tempo from the fast paced rave-esque music of earlier to a softer, slower tempo beat perfect for couples. Greg asked the question with his eyes, and not seeing any other choice Josie nodded. She had thought of this kind of thing happening before, but never imagined it would actually happen. 'I'm going to slow dance with Greg. Oh god.'
Greg lightly placed his hands on her hips, and knowing what was expected of her Josie raised her hands to his shoulders. Slowly, they began swaying to the music. Greg never made a move to pull Josie in any closer, a small favor that Josie was very thankful for.
The dance gave Josie a chance to think, and as the song ended she worked up the courage to speak again. "Thanks for the dance, Greg, but I really have to be going. I'll, uh, see you some other time?"
Greg took his hands from her hips, and walked her to the door. As she turned to leave, he leaned in close enough she could feel his breath on her shoulder, sending shivers down her spine, before speaking softly into her ear. "Good night. I'll see you Monday at school- Jeremy."
***That's all, folks. If someone else wants to continue from here, feel free though.***
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Comments
I did like it, and I think
I did like it, and I think it would be worth continuing.
By somebody other than me because I couldn't write my way out of a paper bag...
Some days you're the pigeon, some days you're the statue
Cute romance
This was a sweet story, but the nitpicker in me must point out that a tiger-striped leotard was the wrong way to go. She should have gone with spots, not only to match Gold Digger's Cheetah:
But it would also resonate with a certain other Josie who was a catgirl:
Thanks
Noted and modified, thanks a bunch!
I coulda sworn I've seen a golddiggers character with tiger stripes, but that might have just been in one of the artist's 'how to draw' books.
Melanie E.
Stripes
There are some stripes on minor catpeople in Gold Diggers, but the main female feline is Cheetah.
Carrie Kelley
aka Robin of the Dark Knight aka Catgirl has tiger stripes.
Very Well Done
I have to agree with the others, it was quite well done and has the potential of being picked up again.
A note to the author; While you may not feel the need or desire to expand this into some sort of serial at this time, do like I do with interesting ideas; Keep it in you haversack. Perhaps someday in the future, when you're of a mind to or in the mood, you'll find this tasty little morsel is but the beginning of literary feast.
Nancy Cole
"You may be what you resolve to be."
T.J. Jackson
Sometimes A Quickie
...is all that you need.
I think this was a fine story, that stands alone, just the way it was written. It has all the structure and punch of a good short story -- emotion, encounter and reveal.
I can see why some readers might want to spend more time with the characters and get to know them better. That's not the point of a short story, though. It's a specialized artform, not a chapter of something else. Now that she knows that he knows, this same ground can't be trodden the same way again, or to the same effect.
Mission accomplished. At this point, the good short story writer goes on to write another short story.
A good short story is a nugget of treasure, satisfying and valuable in its own right, and deserves to be appreciated on that basis.
Another + vote
Seconded. This was cute for a little short story, and the cre of making assumptions: I thought Josie was that Josie from the band.The last moment reveal was a little cruel, but kinda cute, I can see some interesting date happening.
That's Why I Chose
that particular name :)
I'm glad people liked this, though it also kind of depresses me that a short little piece like this that I turned out in less than half an hour is stronger than my longer serial work, judging by votes, some parts of which I've been working on for days, even months.
Melanie E.
Don't Look At It That Way
You shouldn't compare your long and short fiction like that! There are a number of factors at work here.
Firstly, the audience here at Top Shelf has grown tremendously lately, since folks kind of gave up waiting for FM and came looking for something to read. Recent posts are garnering much higher numbers than earlier ones, in general.
Secondly, there is something immediately accessible about a short story. It's complete and easy to read, and usually with only a single main idea that the reader can either "get" or "not get".
Your longer work is a work of love, maybe even art. The impatient often pass by art without even trying to get it. That doesn't make the art less beautiful or significant or the message less potent. Those of us who take the time and effort to read it, and appreciate it, benefit a great deal from it.
Yes, McDonald's sells a lot more "meals" than even the finest steak house, and people do seem to gobble them up, and go back for more, but that's no measure of quality, or anything else really. Just whim, mood, and wanting to eat somewhere bright and shiny with no commitments.
One other thought... Your long fiction has you carefully crafting situations, characters and complicated plots. The fact that your mind is practiced at doing this, and you've raised your skills to that level is the reason you could just take a single thought and tear out a story wrapped around it in record time and tickle a few fancies with it.
Nothing has been wasted. Your work is good and has served you, and us, well.
Very Nicely Said
Thanks for explaining that to her, Pippa. I'd started to write something along those lines myself but wasn't nearly as articulate.
Eric
Thanks, ya'll
I really didn't mean that to sound as whiny as it came out :)
Rest assured, there's no danger of me stopping my long stories prematurely or anything, I was just a bit surprised is all. I know what I prefer, and that is longer stories- I just sometimes forget that not everybody else does too.
Consider it a gateway story?
Besides, sometimes we all just need a little WaFF.
The Con
I think that Jeremy/Josie has a boyfriend.
May Your Light Forever Shine
May Your Light Forever Shine
How did I miss this?
Sweet and very nice.
Hugs
Grover
PS: It is annoying when something you write off the cuff gets a hug response when longer stuff you pour your heart and soul into get barely a mention.... Sigh. That's life I guess!