Chapter 63: Chapter 63
The door opened with a creak, and Owen and Mary stumbled inside, their laughter echoing in the small entryway. Drip, drip, drip—the sound of water droplets hitting the entrance carpet.
"Ha…!" Mary parted the strands of hair stuck to her forehead, laughing. "Did we really have to run back too?"
"Hey, you loved it," Owen replied, grinning.
"Sheesh." Mary continued fixing her hair and showing more of her pretty smile. "Playing in the rain…you know, sometimes, you think you're too old and cool for something only to be totally proven wrong."
"Glad you finally understand my wisdom."
Isabella, sitting in the living room and typing away at a new script, glanced over. "Why are you two wet?"
"Phrasing," Mary replied. "Also, we got you Mountain Pew and a new mic, so no complaining."
Isabella's excitement was palpable. "I thought you said you were broke."
"Again, phrasing. Broke for my standards, not yours."
Owen stifled his laughter. He saw how much money Mary brought over. It was in the thousands and with Euros conversion, that number nearly bumped up to ten thousand. Issue was: Mary lived a lavish lifestyle and she had to spend that money wisely in order to get back home. Tickets weren't cheap and neither were bribes. Today was supposed to be a pseudo-message. "I'm getting you stuff today so don't ask me again."
"Here, here!" Ophelia ran up to them with towels, her giraffe head bouncing. Owen couldn't tell if Mary was offended by the giraffe or loved it.
"Thank you." Mary hung her long, black hair to one side, drying it with the towel. "I got you a gift, by the way."
"Ooh, what? What? A dog!?"
"Hell no. When did you ever want a dog?"
"I was just thinking about it, that's all. I saw a cute video of a Pitbull!"
Owen pulled up the white shopping bag containing Isabella's Mountain Pew and Ophelia's gift.
"First, we should get dried," Owen said, putting his towel on Mary's head. He walked to his room, slipping the shopping bag over to Ophelia who quickly darted over to Isabella to open their gifts. Mary kept drying her hair as she followed Owen to his room. His closet contained clothes for her so even though she came to the country empty-handed (save for her handbag), she had clothes to change into.
"I'm going to take a shower first," said Mary.
Owen passed her a fancy red feather robe. It was what she usually wore for bed.
"Thank you," Mary said, throwing her towel over to him and turning on her heel to go.
Twenty minutes later, Mary was done showering and Owen switched in. After another twenty minutes, he came out with towel around his neck, grey sweatpants and a black compression t-shirt. A little tight but laundry was tomorrow so he was going to have to suck it up.
Walking into the living room, he saw Isabella with her laptop and a can of Mountain on her lap. Across the TV were Mary and Ophelia.
"—edge paint is cleaned and lining is properly attached. Look at the threads, sturdy too. Not double or triple stitched at pressure points. I checked everything." Mary was explaining to Ophelia just how great her gift was. Ophelia nodded, not quite understanding but smiling and appreciating the gesture nonetheless.
What Mary got her was a luxury purse. Yep, the woman who never went outside was gifted an item specifically intended to be used outside. While shopping, convincing Mary was impossible. She was dead-set on a purse and there was nothing Owen could do about it.
"As thanks, my friend, I expect the usual." Mary leaned back, legs crossed. Donned in a bridal robe that was long and silky and puffy at the sleeves, she looked like a regal queen. The scarlet hue brought a certain ferocity and dignity to her black hair and naturally sharp eyes. "Put on the news."
Ophelia grabbed the console controller, then stopped. "Err, on WuTube?"
Mary rolled her eyes. "Sure, just put on the news. I have to have a certain vibe before Owe—oh, he's already here."
Owen marched in, smiling. Seeing his three girlfriends together was nostalgic. 'It's like summer all over again.'
"Nice shirt." Mary eyed up him. "Nice slutty waist too—"
Ophelia covered Mary's mouth. "Ummm! Food! Can you make food for us?"
Owen blinked twice and nearly exploded into laughter. He held back, however, and pulled on the strip of white that was his towel, using it to dry his hair. "Sure. Requests?"
"Didn't I say to put on the news," Mary whispered to Ophelia before answering his question. "Ahem! Mate to go please!"
"Do we have the stuff for that?" Ophelia asked.
"Ophelia, your job is to put on the news, not ask questions."
"We don't," Owen said. "But I go out and get the stuff for it."
Mary looked him up and down. Owen dried his hair and flung the towel over his shoulder. Her brows narrowed. "The hell you're not. Not in that outfit at least."
"What's wrong with it?" he asked, confused.
"First, the grey sweatpants. That's manwhore behaviour. Second, the shirt. No need to show off your waist." Owen looked increasingly concerned by her remarks. Elbow on the armrest, Mary put a fist to her cheek. "What?" Owen didn't change his concerned look. "Ugh, now I understand how guys feel when their girls walk in skimpy clothes."
"O-okay…?" Owen looked at Isabella for help. She met his gaze for less than a second. Weird. She wasn't that occupied by her laptop. Looking at her, it felt like…she agreed with Mary on some level.
Wow. Now that was rare. Maybe Mary had a point? He wasn't too sure but if that was what they wanted, then that was what he would do.
He turned and headed back to his room. "I'll go and get changed then."
"No manwhore clothes!" Mary yelled. "Actually, wait, hold on, I'll pick your clothes for you. Wait up!"
'I'm just going to the gas station…'
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone