Plaid

There was a knock at the door.

"I'm almost finished!" Bob called out. This was the first time in days he'd gotten to the bathroom first, and he wasn't going to be rushed.

"But I've got to go," Barb whined from the hallway.

When don't you? he silently retorted as he started washing his hands. For as long as he could remember, the bathroom was constantly occupied for the first two hours of every day. He loved his three sisters, but in the mornings they could be a royal pain.

He looked at the calendar that his mother had posted on the wall next to the light switch. There were only thirteen more days until he could move into the dormitory, thirteen days that already felt like an eternity.

"Bobby!" Barb yelled, sensing he was done.

"Okay, okay," he gave in and opened the door.

Anticipating that he might change his mind, Barb planted her foot on the threshold. At fifteen, she was the closest to him in age, but she was much stronger. He stared at the foot as though a tree had suddenly taken root.

"I can take a hint," he said and squeezed by her.

His youngest sister Susie was just leaving her room as he walked by. "Hi, Bobby," she greeted him.

"Morning, Susie," he said, and smiled. Of all of them, the seven year-old was the kindest.

"See you downstairs," she called out as he opened the door to his bedroom.

Judging from the view out his window, it looked like the weather was going to be cold and wet. "Long sleeve shirt," he muttered and opened his closet.

His mother had gone on a clothes-buying binge in preparation for college, but he didn't see the point. His favorite clothes were all he needed.

"Good morning, Robert," his father said as he bounded into the dining room. Breakfast was already on the table, and his mother was pouring the last of the orange juice.

"Morning, Dad," he said and found his usual spot facing the largest window in the house. Amy, the middle sister, barely acknowledged him from the opposite corner of the table.

His mother smiled at him. "Are you planning anything special with your coworkers today?"

What an odd question, he thought. Why would he do anything special?

"It's customary to go out to lunch on your last day," his mother said, reading his mind.

"With those guys?" he blurted out. Bob was actually looking forward to never seeing his coworkers again.

"Jonathan..." his mother pleaded with his father for help.

"It doesn't always work that way," his father said, winking at him.

There was a rumble from the living room as Barb and Susie raced each other down the stairs.

"Girls," his mother called out by habit.

Barb stopped half-way to the table and glared at Bob. "Are you wearing that again?"

"What?" he asked defensively.

"You look like a dweeb! Do you want to scare off your customers?"

"It's a bookstore," he answered. "You can't scare off nerds."

She arched her eyes disapprovingly. "If you want to die alone, it's your choice," she said and then ignored him while she sat down.

He studied his plaid shirt, puzzled about how a shirt could have such a major impact on his future.

"She may have a point," his best friend Chuck suggested as they headed downtown in Chuck's old car.

"What point?" Bob asked, watching the traffic.

"If you want to get a girl, you've got to impress them. I wish I had sisters to show me the ropes."

So that was what this was about! "I've gotten plenty of dates without taking Barb's advice."

Chuck glanced at him. "Dude, that was back when you were a jock. A year is a long time."

Bob had assumed the change was due to everyone shoring up their grades to get accepted into college. Senior year had been particularly rough for him. He had even used prom night to study for a test.

"I think your sister's onto something," Chuck said as Bob prepared to get out of the car. "Think about it."

"If it's such a big deal, why did she wait until now to tell me?" he countered.

"Maybe she's finally had it with the plaid," Chuck offered and grinned as though he'd said something funny.

The bookstore was crowded for a Friday morning. Bob's boss Mr. Edelstein automatically assigned him to the front desk to help Andrea, one of the four other clerks.

"Hi, Andrea," he said as he took his place next to the computer terminal and scanned the crowd that was lined up in front of them. He didn't recall any special events scheduled for today.

She practically ignored him as the line separated like a zipper opening. Normally, he would have brushed off her behavior as a reaction to the amount of customers, but he became suspicious as the load began to dissipate and she remained totally focused on her work.

"You okay, Andrea?" he asked her when only a handful of customers remained.

She looked at him with contempt and turned back to her terminal.

He briefly considered another explanation for her behavior. Andrea was the only other clerk younger than thirty, and this was her last day too. Maybe, like him, she just wanted to get it over with.

"Alright," he said forcefully when they were finally alone. "What's wrong?" One thing a house full of females had taught him was the value of directness.

He was astonished to see tears in her eyes. The rest of her face radiated hatred.

Don't back down, he told himself as she noticeably tensed. He half expected her to hit him.

"How could you?" she asked icily.

He resisted the urge to reply with a question and forced himself to relax. Then the two magic words then flashed in his mind.

"I'm sorry," he said as sincerely as he could.

Her eyes registered surprise for an instant and then narrowed into cold suspicion. "I don't believe you."

At any other time he would have thrown his hands up and barked, "Whatever!" After all, he could barely stand her on most days. But now there was something very important at stake, a basic truth he had to test.

"I'm sorry I wore plaid today," he stated.

Andrea threw herself at him. He stood his ground, waiting for the pain of impact, but instead he felt her tongue penetrate his lips as she wrapped her arms around him.

As his mind reeled with surprise, his body reciprocated, pulling her to him in an embrace that nearly made him dizzy.

"What's going on out there?" he heard Mr. Edelstein call from a distance.

Bob wouldn't have answered if he knew.

"Did your coworkers do something special for you?" Bob's mother asked him after Chuck dropped him off.

"You could say that," he called over his shoulder as he headed straight for his bedroom.

He threw open the closet and smiled as he removed Andrea's phone number from his pocket. For the first time in his life, he was glad his mother had forced him to shop for new clothes.