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Copyright Oggbashan September 2008
The author asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
This is a work of fiction. The events described here are imaginary; the settings and characters are fictitious and are not intended to represent specific places or living persons.
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"Blast," Amelia said. "I wish it had ripped."
She had just caught the hem of her overall's skirt on a protruding shelf at the end of an aisle in the convenience store where she worked.
Her remark wasn't really addressed to me but I had to ask.
"Why did you want it to rip?"
"Because if it had torn I would have been given a new cotton overall dress instead of this heavy nylon monstrosity."
Amelia is my favourite shop assistant. I tend to hang around in the store whenever she's on duty. That evening, at the end of a hot and sticky day, I'd finished delivering the customers' orders and was waiting for Amelia and Mary to close the store. Mary was out the back recording the day's waste. While we were alone I hoped that Amelia would finally agree to one of my repeated requests to go out with me.
She obviously wasn't in a good mood so my prospects seemed worse than usual. I tried to continue the conversation.
"What's wrong with that overall? I think you look great in it."
"You would," Amelia snorted. "You don't have to wear it. You wear cotton trousers and a cotton shirt. Even Rowena can wear a cotton overall since she ruined her nylon one."
Rowena is the trainee. She had started only a couple of weeks ago. Rowena is tall and solidly built, even taller than I am.
"How did she do that?"
"She spilt bleach while cleaning the toilets. Even then it only took some of the colour out. She couldn't wear it because of the white splodges but the fabric is still strong. She's got a cotton one. That's much more comfortable than this."
"Couldn't you tear it and say it caught on the shelf?"
"No, Andy, I couldn't. It won't tear. It's almost indestructible and bloody hot in this weather."
"I'm sure it will tear..."
I reached for the hem. Amelia jumped away.
"No you don't! I'm not having you peeping at my panties. You couldn't tear it anyway."
"I'm sure I could."
I missed the calculating look in Amelia's eyes.
"Want to bet?" She asked.
"Bet what?"
"I'll bet that you couldn't tear one of these nylon overalls if you were wearing it. No knives or scissors -- just your bare hands."
"What do I win if I succeed?"
"An evening out with me."
That was worth winning.
"And if I lose?"
"You stay here, with me, while I catch up on my assignment for college. The boss lets me use the computer terminal after the shop's closed. You know what it's like at home. Oh, and you'll have to wear the overall until I've finished."
Amelia is one of a large family in a small house. She has very little space of her own and although they have a computer and internet access it has to be rationed between the siblings. She is studying retail management and hopes to be promoted once she has qualified.
I thought I couldn't lose. I like the way she looks in that royal blue nylon overall. It strains across her breasts. It has a back zip to a high collar, is fitted to the waist and has a tight skirt ending just above her knees. If I won I'd get to take Amelia out for an evening. If I lost, I'd still spend a couple of hours with her. Wearing a nylon overall if only she and I knew about it seemed a small price to pay.
"Bet?" She asked.
"Yes."
"OK. When we've shut the shop you can try to tear a nylon overall while you're wearing it."
Amelia, Mary and I went through the familiar routine of closing the store. Mary left through the back door and we closed it. The main area of the store was now alarmed and covered by closed circuit TV. We couldn't access it without ringing the owner and asking him to override the time delay on the system. The back door was locked and bolted but the alarm system hadn't been set because Amelia and I were still there.
"Make us some coffee, Andy, while I change," Amelia said as she went through into the women's staff area.
"OK," I replied thinking that I might be wearing Amelia's nylon overall shortly. Would I get in it? I was getting excited at the idea of wearing something that she had just taken off.
When she returned she put a large carrier bag on the table. We were in the cluttered staff room. The CCTV monitor flickered on the wall, switching from areas inside the darkened store to the outside cameras. Apart from the stock computer on a small desk there is a small kitchen area, a formica-topped table with four upright chairs, two armchairs and a battered settee long enough for four people to sit side by side. The room was rarely used by more than a couple of people at a time because we were too busy. The only times it was full would be when we had a rare staff meeting to be harangued by Joyce, our manageress.
As she turned to face me I could see that Amelia was wearing a flared tiered skirt and a T-shirt top cut low to show the swell of her breasts. My eyes dropped to her obvious assets. I nearly dropped the coffee mug I was handing her.
"Andy!" Amelia rebuked me as she grabbed the coffee. "Look at what you are doing."