"Where are we going Father?" asked Aaron as the BMW M5 rumbled along the highway. Ivan carefully controlling the acceleration so that Annette didn't get unnerved.
"Well it's not every day that my boy turns 13. I thought we'd do something a little different this year" said Ivan as they turned to an exit.
They pulled into the parking lot of an upscale tailoring and shoe shop that specialized in men's suits and shoes. Ivan noticed Aaron's eyes flash with excitement in the rearview mirror and smiled to himself.
"Welcome to Thompson's suiting. I'm Thompson the owner, how may I help you?" a tall imposing man dressed in a black pinstriped 3-piece suit greeted them in an impeccable British accent.
Ivan clapped Aaron on the back. "My boy here has just turned 13. He seemed to really like the formal look of his new school uniform, so I thought getting him a properly tailored suit might be a good thing" he explained.
Mr. Thompson bowed. "You do your generation credit young man. Most teenagers gravitate towards filthy and torn rags these days" he said.
Aaron inclined his head as well. "Thank you, Mr. Thompson. May I take a look at your fabrics?" he replied in his clipped and formal tone.
Mr. Thompson nodded and addressed Ivan and Annette. "I admire your parenting skills. You have raised a most civilized young man." he said causing Ivan to beam with pride and Annette to frown.
Aaron was mesmerized by the bolts of high quality fabrics and the smell of wood as he looked around the shop, running his hands over each bolt of fabric, feeling the texture. He came across a roll of supple black leather and felt a surge of electricity go through him as he ran his hand along its soft, supple surface and its distinctive smell tickled his nostrils. He let out a sigh, took a deep breath and regained his Stoic composure.
"Excuse me Mr. Thompson, do you make suits with this leather?" he asked.
"Only the blazer and sometimes the pants. However, I must warn you that the tailoring of leather is quite expensive" replied Mr. Thompson
"I see. Father, I would like a black leather suit if we can afford it please" said Aaron, his Stoic demeanor cracking a little, his eyes shining with hope.
"Well Aaron, if it is what you truly want I don't mind splurging a bit. How much would it cost Mr. Thompson?" asked Ivan, as Annette suppressed a groan.
Mr. Thompson looked between the 3 of them slyly.
"I'll make you a deal Mr. Zakhrov. The total cost of materials will be 2000. As a token of my admiration to you for raising such an impressive young man, I shall waive the tailoring costs." he told Ivan.
"We have a deal." said Ivan.
Mr. Thompson snapped his fingers and a beautiful young woman, dressed in a perfectly tailored black skirt suit and high heels materialized from the back of the shop. "Escort Mrs. Zakhrov to the waiting room." he ordered her.
"This way, ma'am," said the woman with a slight Mandarin lilt and steered a dazed Annette with surprising strength for her small frame towards the waiting room.
After Aaron's fitting, he and Ivan returned to the waiting room to find Annette sitting on a sofa with a steaming cup of tea, the young woman standing beside her like some sort of guard.
"Good day gentlemen. I'm Mei Ling, Mr. Thompson's assistant," the woman introduced herself with a slight bow.
"Hello, Ms. Ling," said Aaron in his usual clipped voice while Ivan inclined his head politely.
"You know. I don't appreciate you two acting like I'm not even here!" snapped Annette.
"Now dear, Aaron and I just got a little carried away. We didn't mean to ignore you," said Ivan.
"Black leather Aaron? Really? And just what do you think you are doing Ivan? I think you are being far too indulgent!" snarled Annette.
"I don't see anything out of the ordinary, people besides bikers wear leather jackets these days," said Ivan defensively while Annette glowered at him.
"Don't you think a formal leather suit is odd Ivan? And aren't you worried about how Aaron seems to be drawn to some bizarre things in bizarre ways? First it was women in high heels, then it was that school uniform of his and now this fixation with leather. Where are these things coming from?" she asked, her frustration boiling over
"Mr. and Mrs. Zakhrov, it is uncivil to argue like this in front of your son" interjected Mei Ling coldly, halting their argument.
Ivan flushed. "My apologies Ms. Ling. Annette, can I speak with you outside? Aaron, stay here with Ms. Ling" he said before hauling a protesting Annette to her feet and steering her out of the shop.
----
In the store's parking lot, Ivan hugged a sobbing Annette.
"I just want him to be normal!" wailed Annette into Ivan's chest.
"He is normal. He just has some odd tastes and odd preferences that he'll likely grow out of Annette. Don't worry," said Ivan soothingly.
Annette's sobs slowly subsided, and she regained her composure.
"I suppose you are right. But I am still worried about his odd fascinations and his cold demeanor," she said as she dried her eyes with a box of tissues Ivan held out for her.
"Well relax a little. It's his 13th birthday. Please, let's celebrate it and not make Aaron feel like an oddball" Ivan urged.
"All right," Annette sighed as they made their way back to the shop.
----
Aaron closed his eyes, took several deep breaths and opened them as he ran his hands over the soft black leather of his new suit.
The suit was tailored to fit him perfectly. The blazer accentuated his broadening shoulders, tapered his narrow waist and added length to his upper body.
The black leather pants were slightly wide to accommodate the black leather ankle boots, the black satin shirt and black silk tie finished off the look, giving him a sharp monochrome silhouette. Mr. Thompson offered him a small tube of hair gel, and he slicked his thick black hair backwards.
As he stepped off the raised platform of the fitting room, he felt a strange sense of power and belonging wash over him. The heady scent of the leather, the sound of it creaking as he moved combined with the clicking of the boots he wore, filled him with an energy and confidence that even his uniform couldn't hope to match.
Ivan let out a low whistle as he saw Aaron approach. "Damn son, you look good! I was skeptical at first, but damn!" he said in awe.
Mei Ling looked Aaron up and down appreciatively. "You look very handsome, young master Aaron" she complimented him, blushing slightly.
Aaron turned towards Annette,"Something wrong Mother?" he asked.
"I-I think it looks good on you," said Annette, averting her eyes from him.
"Father, the passes you got for the play admit two people each right?" asked Aaron.
"Well yes," replied Ivan unsure of where this was going and worried about Annette's reaction to Aaron.
Aaron then turned towards Mei Ling. "Ms. Ling, This may seem forward of me, but would you like to join us for the play and dinner afterward?" he asked her
Mei Ling blushed and giggled "I would love to" she said.
"Mr. Thompson, is that alright with you?" asked Aaron.
"Oh it's fine by me. Off you go and get changed Mei, remember it's a black tie affair" chuckled Mr. Thompson as Mei Ling hurried to the back of the shop.
"Master Aaron, could you wait in the fitting room while I speak with your parents in private for a minute?" asked Mr. Thompson.
Aaron nodded and left for the fitting room.
"What's wrong, Annette?" asked Ivan, his arm around Annette.
"I don't know what came over me. I just felt he looked dangerous," said Annette holding back tears.
Ivan squeezed her shoulders in reassurance. "He may have looked intimidating, but he's still our Aaron. You don't have to be scared of him," he said soothingly.
"Aaron's a very sensitive and perceptive boy. He could see that you were distressed, and his offer to Mei Ling was partly for her to keep you company Mrs. Zakhrov," said Mr. Thompson.
"And here I thought that Aaron had actually asked a girl on a date," grumbled Ivan
"Oh he did. This is just a bonus," chuckled Mr. Thompson breaking the tension and causing both Annette and Ivan to laugh.
Aaron was still waiting in the fitting room when Mei Ling emerged from the tailoring room in the back of the shop.
She was dressed in a black leather mid-thigh-length sleeveless dress with a mandarin collar, black leather over-the-knee boots with pointed toes and sharp, metal stiletto heels covered her legs and feet and black leather elbow length gloves covered her arms. Her silky black hair was done in a Chinese bun with two metal pins holding it up. Long silver earrings adorned her ears and she had changed her simple nude makeup to a more bold and sensual look, with black eyeliner and deep red lipstick.
"Shall we go?" she asked him. He offered her his hand, and she gently guided him to link his arm in hers. Together the set-off for the waiting room.
Ivan noticed Aaron and Mei Ling first. "Wow," he gasped, bringing Annette's and Mr. Thompson's attention to them.
Mr. Thompson pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of Aaron and Mei Ling. "They make quite the couple," he remarked.
"Indeed," agreed Ivan, snapping a picture of them as well.
Annette smiled and made an effort to keep her wits about her. "You look beautiful Mei Ling. And Aaron, you look handsome as well," she said.
"Alright, let's be off," said Ivan, and linking his arm with Annette's he led them out of the shop.
----
"I call shotgun Father, Mother can ride in the back with Ms. Ling" said Aaron, he opened the rear door for Mei Ling and helped her inside the car.
However, when he offered his arm to Annette, she scurried to the other side, opened the other door and got in herself.
Ivan watched Annette avoid Aaron with growing frustration. A wicked idea suddenly occurred to him.
"Aaron, you drive" he said tossing the keys to Aaron.
Aaron caught them and raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure Father? We will be on the highway and might get pulled over," he asked.
"I trust your skills. It's about time your mother did as well," said Ivan grimly as he opened the front passenger door.
Aaron nodded and got into the driver's seat.
Aaron started the car, its V8 engine rumbling to life. He engaged the reverse gear and cautiously pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street.
Once on the street, he engaged the drive gear and slowly started driving forward, ensuring that he kept a slow and steady pace.
"Master Aaron is driving extremely well!" marveled Mei Ling as Aaron smoothly merged onto the slow lane of the highway.
"Well at least somebody noticed," snarled Ivan from the front passenger seat, glaring at Annette through the rearview mirror.
Annette looked away from Ivan's gaze and out of the window.
"Do you like fast cars Ms. Ling?" Ivan asked.
"Well yes, I suppose," said Mei Ling, wondering what Ivan was up to.
"I see, and what do you like about them?" asked Ivan.
"Well I do like the speed and power they possess, and the sound they give when you rev their engines" said Mei Ling, answering Ivan's silent prayer.
Keeping a tight control on his excitement, Ivan glanced at his watch. "Aaron, we'll not make it on time at this speed. Step on it," he said.
"Are you sure Father? You know Mother doesn't like it. I'm at 45 mph already," said Aaron.
"Son, right now your date is the most important person here. I'll take full responsibility for your mom. You heard Mei Ling, she likes fast cars. Step on it" said Ivan.
"Don't you dare Aaron Zakhrov!" shouted Annette from the back seat. She silently cursed Ivan, Mei Ling and the BMW M5
"Sorry Mother, but Father is right. We have to make it in time." said Aaron, giving her a predatory grin as he turned on the turn signal to change lanes.
"Aaron, please!" whimpered Annette.
Aaron floored the throttle, Mei Ling squealed in excitement as the car's powerful turbocharged V8 engine roared in response and the BMW M5 shot forward at a rapid pace, accelerating from 45 mph to 95 mph within seconds.
"Bravo Master Aaron. You have excellent control!" she exclaimed excitedly as the acceleration stopped and Aaron maintained a steady 95 mph, well within the highway's 115 mph speed limit.
----
Annette breathed a big sigh of relief as Aaron pulled into the theater parking lot.
She grudgingly took Ivan's offered hand. "I hate you right now." she growled at him in a low voice.
"Hate me all you want. You needed to learn to have some faith in Aaron," Ivan growled back at her.
He handed a pass to Aaron and the four of them ascended the sweeping steps of the theater hall.
A big, beefy security guard in a crisp black suit with an earpiece in his ear stopped them at the imposing doors.
"The dress code is black tie, the young lady and gentleman here can go in, but you need to change Madam, and you need to wear a jacket sir" he rumbled at Ivan and Annette, indicating a smaller set of doors marked as 'cloak room'.
Annette opened her mouth to give the guard a piece of her mind, but Ivan gripped her forearm, and steered her away.
"I don't have a dress!" Annette snarled in a low voice as Ivan pulled her towards the cloak room.
"I anticipated this eventuality and took the liberty of packing you a dress and shoes," said Ivan as he pushed open the cloak room doors and steered Annette inside.
Seething, Annette grabbed the bag from him and stalked off to the women's changing room.
Inside the changing room, she opened the bag to find a shimmering black cocktail dress, along with a bag of lingerie, and strappy flat sandals. She growled in frustration, pulled off her comfortable sweater and jeans, and took stock of the lingerie Ivan had packed her.
It was obvious that Ivan had done the shopping himself, as the black front-closing, underwired strapless bra, lacy black panties and sheer black pantyhose were items she didn't have and would have never picked up herself.
With a look of disgust, she stuffed the bra and panties back into the bag. Sitting down on a stool, she pulled on the pantyhose, but due to her unfamiliarity with it, the sheer material ripped, and her feet stuck through the upper part of the pantyhose. Ripping the ruined pantyhose off herself, she quickly stood and changed into the dress and sandals that Ivan had packed for her.
She stared at the stranger reflected in the mirror. The straps of her simple black cotton bra were clearly visible under the thin spaghetti straps of the dress, the figure-hugging skirt of the dress came only up to mid-thigh, and did nothing to conceal the thick lines of her cotton panties.
"This is not the man or marriage I signed up for! How dare he try to turn me into his dress-up doll! Well. He will have to bear the consequences of forcing me into a dress that I hate! Let's see how he reacts to me showing up with my bra-straps and panty-lines exposed like the shameless hussy he wants me to be!" whispered Annette. Packing her jeans, sweater, and sneakers into the bag, she stalked out of the changing room.
Ivan was adjusting his cuff-links when Annette stalked out of the women's changing room.
"I packed you appropriate lingerie, and I packed you a battery powered shaver as well, it is in the front pocket of the bag," said Ivan, surveying Annette's frumpy appearance, and hairy armpits in the cloak room mirror.
"We don't have time for that!" growled Annette.
"We have 30 minutes, take it or leave it," said Ivan.
"Just how far ahead did you plan this?" asked Annette.
"Far enough to compensate for your stubbornness, now are you going to properly dress and groom yourself? Or are you going to embarrass our son on his 13th birthday?" asked Ivan, clearly near the limit of his patience with her.
Annette ripped open the front pocket of the bag, pulled out the shaver and stalked back into the women's changing room.