The old mansion loomed over him as he trudged up the dirt road. Alex wiped the sweat from his brow, as the choir of bugs and frogs grew louder. It was a path he had tread many times. In that moment, he recalled the first time he visited this mansion just over a year previously. Back then it felt like quite a hike, but nowadays it hardly phased him. It was hard to believe that it had been that long since their first date, but the calendar didn't lie.
Walking up to the front porch, he stuck a hand in his pocket and felt a small leather bag. In it was an anniversary gift for Lilith, and though he put thought into it, there was still that small part of him worrying that she wouldn't like it; a slight anxiety which came with the territory of buying gifts for others, even those you know well.
He gave the door a few knocks, and as usual the door was answered by Caroline. She maintained a dour expression, though whether this was from genuine emotion or if she was going for a Lurch look, he could never tell.
"Oh, she just brought you up earlier today." She observed. "The lady of the house is in her chambers as usual."
After being told where Lilith was, he casually walked in. Everybody knew who he was, so it was basically like a second home for him at that point. He liked to think Caroline was warming up to him, but he had no proof of that.
Alex entered Lilith's bedroom, to find her reading a book in a rocking chair. She looked up from her reading, before quickly marked her place with a bookmark and closing it.
"Oh good, you're here. I was just wondering when you'd arrive."
"Sorry to keep you waiting." He awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "Ran into some traffic along the way."
"You weren't too late, so it's not really a problem. That said, your hair looks lovely today."
"Oh, thanks!" He ran a hand through the flowing locks. He'd been growing it out over the past year or so, and now it reached down to his upper back. "So anyway, you mentioned in your text that you had something planned?"
She nodded. "Yes, I was thinking we could head down to the beach tonight. I can't go during the day obviously, but it's rather nice at night. It's cooler, the stars are out, and there are far fewer people."
"That sounds nice. I always did prefer going to the beach during the winter or later in the day, if I did go at all. I don't like having to deal with crowds."
"That makes two of us. And for what we'll wear, I had a lovely idea." She went into her closet, then pulled out two white sundresses. "I found a sundress in your size, and thought we could wear matching outfits."
"Oh, you didn't have to do that for me!" He took the smaller dress so he could have a closer look. "This is really nice, thank you!"
"Why don't you try it on to see if it fits? Be sure to take everything off before you put it on too. Part of the fun with sundresses is they give easy access."
He cleared his throat. "I guess so. Well, let me just, uh..." he awkwardly shuffled into her closet and closed the door behind him. After disappearing for a brief moment, he opened the door again wearing nothing but the white dress. "What do you think?" He spun around so the dress did a little twirl. Just like his skirts, he wore the outfit with confidence. It seemed wearing more feminine clothing didn't even phase him.
"You look cute, but uhm..." she looked at the lower half of his body, to see a bulge under the folds of the skirt. It seemed the whole "no undergarments for easy access" thing had backfired just a little. "Your uh..." she gestured to his crotch "your bulge is rather distracting."
He looked down for a second, then back to her. "I mean, how is this different from you showing cleavage?"
"I can't quite explain it but that somehow feels different."
He shrugged. "Whatever, I don't think it'll be much of a problem either way. There shouldn't be many people around and it'll be dark."
"That's true, I suppose." She put her hands on her hips and shook her head. "Although, I do have to wonder about you sometimes. Normally you seem rather shy, yet you're incredibly confident when it comes to clothing."
"I think you got it wrong. I initially acted shy around you because that's how I am around people I'm attracted to. Normally I don't act that way."
"I see." She sighed with accepting smile on her face. Perhaps her perception of him wasn't entirely accurate. In any case, it seemed he was going to go through with it regardless of what she said. Though despite her initial hesitancy, she kept finding herself staring. She had to quietly admit to herself that he looked good.
"What?" Noticing her stare, he got a smug look on his face. "Like what you see?"
Being caught, she forced her gaze away from him. "Yes, you do! Ehm...well, I need to get my own outfit on, so if you don't mind," she grabbed her own sundress before hurriedly getting into the closet.
"What do you know," he thought "I guess she gets flustered too sometimes." He would keep this in mind for future reference.
She stepped out after a few moments, now wearing what was basically a much larger version of his dress. Seeing her in white was an uncommon sight, given that she mostly wore black. Just like how she told him not wear anything under his dress, it seemed she did the same. The outfit left a lot of cleavage exposed, and the thin material draped over the rest of her curvy body.
"Well, now after teasing me you're staring too." She observed, giggling. "The attraction is mutual it seems. Now then," she grabbed a duffel bag "let's get a few things together and head out, shall we?"
