"Uh, yeah, I'm looking for a Halloween costume," the rather nervous looking teen replied, rubbing uncomfortably at the back of his neck.
It was painfully clear to Babbingtree that this boy wasn't the most confident person in the world, looking rather awkward and uncomfortable as he stood there gazing aimlessly around the store. "Well you're definitely in the right place for that, young man," Babbingtree told him with a smile, finding his demeanor amusing, well aware that he had numerous items and outfits in the store that could soon change that. "What sort of thing was it you were after?"
"Uhm, well, the thing is, it's not really for me...it's for my girlfriend."
"Oh I see, your girlfriend," Babbingtree chuckled, thinking for a moment that another one of those 'curious cross-dresser' sorts had entered his store.
"Yeah, she...uh, she thought it'd be a good idea if we chose each others costumes for Halloween," the teen continued, ignoring the owner's giggles, "You know, sort of for fun. But I'm...I'm not exactly sure what to get her."
Sensing that the boy was sincere (shy and geeky; yes, but sincere all the same) and that this outfit was not for him, Babbingtree was rather relieved, happy to have a genuine customer with a genuine problem to assist (rather than endlessly watching a parade of sexually confused, yet curious young men perusing the female only costumes with no intention to actually buy), this being the kind of thing that he lived for. "Well don't you worry about that, son, Dr. Babbingtree is here to help. First thing's first though, you'll have to tell me a little about this girlfriend of yours."
As shy as he was, the boy found himself strangely enough opening up to the wizened old man behind the counter, answering as soon as the question was asked. "Uh, okay. Her name is Vicky and well, she's kind of like me," he said, "Into comics and movies and computer games and stuff....except, y'know, she's a girl." This much seemed obvious enough to Babbingtree, the likelihood of her being a cheerleader or prom queen or anything being pretty slim to nil, seeing as this young man didn't exactly seem all that high up on the social ladder.
"Well that doesn't give me a lot to go on..." the store owner replied, scratching at his long gray beard, waiting for the young man's name.
"Uh, Reece, Reece Taylor," the teen quickly answered, the words continuing to just spew out of his mouth, as if outwith his control. "We haven't actually been going out very long, only for like three months. And she's my first girlfriend so..."
"So you don't want to choose badly and mess things up, right?"
"Yeah, something like that."
"Well, as I said, don't worry, I'll help you find the perfect costume," the old man once again smiled, stepping out from behind the counter and placing a reassuring hand on Reece's shoulder, "And all for a low, low price. Now come, follow me."
Doing as he was told, Babbingtree then led Reece towards the back of the store where the majority of the costumes were located; all sectioned off into various categories in the many different racks, and all of them covered by a thin plastic sleeve (presumably to keep them from getting dirty or damaged). "Wow..." Reece muttered under his breath, having never seen so many costumes before, and especially not inside a store that had looked so tiny on the outside.
Watching as Babbingtree searched through the many racks, pulling out the occasional giant bunny or witches costume, before shaking his head disparagingly and putting them back, he eventually turned to his young customer and said, "Now, I'll level with you here Reece, I could just give fob you off with some fuzzy cat costume or something and tell you that your girlfriend would love it and think that you're the most awesome boyfriend ever or whatnot...but you and I know that just wouldn't be truth. You see, this to me appears like some sort of test; a test by your girlfriend to find out exactly what kind of boyfriend you really are."
This however seemed a little far fetched to Reece, and he responded somewhat skeptically, "Really?...You think?"
"Of course! Why else would she get you to choose her Halloween costume?" Babbingtree asked, grabbing Reece once again by the shoulder and giving him a playful little shake, "Take it from me, son, there always doing this kind of thing; women. You won't believe the amount of young guys that come in here in this exact same situation as you are right now, with no idea what costume to get or why. And you know what I tell them?"
"No, what?"
"I tell them that the best thing to do is to stop trying to guess what this 'Vicky' of yours wants and start thinking instead about what you want. What kind of costume would Reece like to see his little lady all dressed up in for Halloween? That there is the best place to start." Although he had been somewhat skeptical at first, thinking that perhaps this old man was just having some fun (which he clearly was, the store being very much a magical and mischievous place that changed the lives of all who entered, though usually in a good way), Reece was gradually being taken in by his words, believing more and more of what was being said, much to Babbingtree's delight. One night of dressing up in a silly costume and going to some ridiculous party every year may seem like fun to most, but not to him, not when he could use his knowledge and his powers to benefit his customers even more, in a way perhaps that even they didn't quite expect. "Take this sexy nurse outfit for example," he continued, suddenly pulling out another costume from somewhere nearby and holding it up, "Do you think you'd like to see Vicky dressed up in something like this? Something that'll please you a lot more than it'll please her...if you know what I mean?"
Reece of course knew exactly what he meant, but that didn't stop him from feeling a little shocked at the suggestion as he pictured his cute and geeky (and in others mind's no doubt, slightly plain) girlfriend dressed up in an outfit like that. "I, uh....I don't know about that..." he nervously muttered, not entirely sure what kind of reaction that would provoke. Not that this mattered to Babbingtree of course, knowing all to well that as shy and as unassuming as he appeared, and as worried as he was about not upsetting or angering his girlfriend, Reece was still just like any other teenage boy and sex was definitely almost always on his mind.
"Reece, my boy, Halloween, playing make believe and dressing up is all about fantasy..." Babbingtree assured him, putting the nurse's costume back and directing him towards a variety of similarly themed outfits, "...and about desires. If you want to get anywhere with that little girlfriend of yours then you've got to stop all this worrying and learn to explore these desires." Then, as if suddenly reaching into his very head and picking out his thoughts, the old man continued, "Now you may not have been going out for very long and things may not be proceeding quite as quickly in the physical department as you may like, but believe you me, you pick her out a sexy little costume for Halloween like she's clearly wanting you to, and I assure you, you'll have yourself a night you won't long forget."
This was music to Reece's ears, Babbingtree basically saying exactly what he wanted to hear, having long wished he and Vicky could progress past the kissing and cuddling stage of their relationship, but being to shy and nervous to take things any further himself.. "You...you really think so?" he said, being almost wholeheartedly ready to believe that a mere Halloween costume could do all this for him, as if there was also some sort of magic here at work...which of course there was.
Flashing the young man a big, satisfied grin, happy that his plan was working, Babbingtree then replied, "I know so," before indicating to the various costumes before them and asking, "Now tell me, Reece, what's your fantasy?"
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