How Green Becomes Wood

As they walked to the van, Sloan glanced at the way Alec and Claire were looking at each other and yelled out, "Shotgun!" to let the two lovebirds sit next to each other without them needing to try to find an excuse to sit together.

"Are we going to the thrift store first?" Sloan asked.
 
Alec pretended to groan for a moment, but he smiled at Claire, clearly excited to be able to sit with her. He let her climb in first and then followed after.

"The driver says yes," Xander stated before Alec could answer the question. "It'll be a lot easier to go to the thrift place first and then the mall instead of the other way around."

"Thrift store first would be my option, too," Alec said. "I know you aren't hugely thrilled, so we'll get that out of the way first. Maybe you'll find 'the one' there, maybe not. And nothing saying we can't go back for something if you change your mind."

"True enough," Xander agreed.
 
"That works," Sloan said, "I do love thrift stores, even if my mom hates how much I buy second hand, she thinks it's dirty."

"Your mom hates everything," Claire said, buckling her seatbelt, "I'm so excited for you to get to be in New York and away from it all."
 
"I've never been to New York. We should go on a day trip sometime!" Alec told Xander excitedly.

"Daytrip would be fun," Xander agreed. A few minutes later, he pulled into the thrift store Alec had dictated and found a parking spot. "Okay. Let's go... look at some dresses," he said.
 
"It'd be really easy for you," Sloan said, getting out of the car. As they walked into the store she said, "I don't know if I want to go strapless, but I'd like to have at least one bare arm, you know? My mom always says my shoulders and arms are really bulky and not feminine, but I like getting to show them."
 
Xander frowned as he got out of the car. "What's she talking about? Your arms are great."

"True," Alec agreed, following Claire out of the car. "Your arms are beautiful! Having straps of some kind would give you security, but maybe an off-the-shoulder look? Or a single shoulder? Hmm, what do you think, Clair? What would make her shoulders look beautiful?"
 
"You know what she's like," Sloan said as they walked inside, "She puts me into gymnastics, wants me to be good at it, I get really good at it, and she doesn't like the results."

"Whatever she's in will make her shoulders look beautiful," Claire said, holding Sloan's arm for a minute, "and she could do strapless, they have tape for that sort of thing. But I think one shoulder is very cool and kind of edgy, and that makes sense for you."

"Girl, I think you're the only person alive who thinks I'm 'kind of edgy.'"
 
Alec stepped over to loop his arm with Sloan's free arm. "Sloan makes everything look good, and the one-shoulder look would be perfect! Kind of edgy, which she totally is." He winked at Sloan.

Xander trailed behind rolling his eyes.
 
"Yeah, nothing's more edgy than a student council member," Sloan teased, "Just don't put me in pink, okay? That's so not my style."

"I'm wearing pink anyway, so we wouldn't dare," Claire promised.
 
"Nah, you're more like... a knight in training," Alec said thoughtfully. "Or something like that, I think."

When they got into the store, Xander pulled out his phone and set a time. "Okay, kids. You've got twenty minutes to search. You can't overload Slo with stuff to try on."

"Sir, yes, sir!" Alec said, saluting. "You'll look too, right?"

"Right," Xander said. "Ready? Set. Go!"
 
"Twenty minutes!" Claire replied, aghast, "In a thrift store!?"

"You better get going!" Sloan teased, walking with her hands in her back pockets towards the section where those sorts of dresses may be kept. As she went, she asked Xander, "Did you ever expect this?"
 
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