As Good as a Gold Card [Alyce, R]

[JACK WES URKIN]

Today, Jack had agreed to take Alyce shopping. Now, most of the time he would not have cared very much about anyone but himself, but this case was unusual. After the time they had spent together and the trip to the gym, this was an interesting proposal. The time had been taken out for the two of them to go shopping, though mainly because Jack was very picky when it came to women and their clothing. If this woman was to be his supposed significant other, then he would make sure she had the best that he could offer. It seemed nice on one hand, but on the other it was also slightly selfish as well. She would become a reflection of himself in how she looked and acted. He wanted her beautiful and strong, just like he was.

"Now," Jack paused and gave her a once over, "This is a prepaid." He handed her the credit card. "There's about ten thousand pounds there. We can get you the best of whatever is necessary. Your interests will be taken into account as much as mine." His eyes shifted up and down her body, "I'm sure we'll find things we both like." A wicked smile formed on his face and he nodded. Looping one arm through hers, he smiled and then continued on down their road until they came to the first store. This one was strictly a dress store in up-town London. Pulling Alyce inside, he smiled at the woman behind the counter.

"Excuse me, miss, this lady here will be needing the best that money can be." Jack slid his own credit card out to the woman and smirked slightly, "I'm sure that you'll be able to accommodate us." He nodded at the lady as she swiped his card to check the credit. She gave him a quick nod and then smiled to the both of them. Once it was clear that they would be serviced quite well today, he turned to Alyce and smiled.

"So, what will it be first?" Jack smiled.

[ALYCE JULIET AYERS]

Alyce smiled as they entered the upscale outdoor mall. He had promised to take her shopping and was now making good on that promise. It was nice really. She would've thanked him, but her jaw still hurt from the last time he'd punched her in retaliation for her insubordination. She'd covered most of the fading bruise with makeup, and she struggled to carry on smiling. She also wore a large black sunhat, despite the fact that the sun wasn't out in order to hide an also fading black eye.

The store they had entered was called something that looked a lot like french. From the outside, it was obvious that it was it was chocked full of designer clothes hot of the runway. Beautiful red carpet dresses hung in the window, covered in feathers and sequins, in varying shapes and styles. They were beautiful, for sure. But they didn't feel like her. She rubbed her hands against her faux leather skinny pants.

But, in order to look appreciative, she began to thumb through the racks. A cute, short black bandage mini-dress caught her eye, but the clerk took it from her and placed it back, ushering her into a changing room and throwing her a bunch of large dresses and gowns in behind her before Alyce could utter a word. She quickly pulled on the first number. It was gorgeous, for sure, but she felt... uncomfortable. The color suited her, the black being her very favorite, but with the open back style, she felt exposed. She pulled on her black hat again, and came outside the dressing room at the attendant's urging.

DRESS::www.net-a-porter.com/product/94199

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[JACK WES URKIN]

Jack watched the attendant usher her into the back room and then rested himself in a chair outside the dressing room. He pulled out his cell phone and set it to camera mode, waiting for her to come out for the first time. After some rustling around she appeared. Of course, his lips were parted slightly by this vision of beauty. She looked absolutely fine in the black dress. Even with the open back, which he was certain was not too much to show, she looked amazing. The smile on his lips could not have been hidden.

"Well Alyce, that looks amazing on you. I think we'll take that one. What do you think? Fit alright? Snug? Doesn't feel loose?" Jack tilted his head to the side and looked up and down the dress a little more carefully now. There still seemed to be an almost perfection with it on her, like it was made for her. The thought had come to having tailor-made clothes for her, but he could still do that after they picked out whatever they had.

As he waited for an answer, he pressed the picture button and took a couple of snapshots of her in the dress. He liked it and would be possibly even putting it into a magazine later. There were plenty of connections for him through his art business. His eyes followed their way back up the curvy lines of her body that were slightly concealed by the dress. She did look good it in and he was quite happy with it.

[ALYCE JULIET AYERS]

Alyce felt uncomfortable. Incredibly uncomfortable. The feel of the long gown felt wrong. She couldn't fight in it, and it bothered her. She shook her head 'no' at his questioning, before disappearing back into the dressing room. The attendant looking upset, possibly disappointed, but not discouraged.

"Try the green one," the pump, homely attendant urged, picking up on his feeling towards her showing more skin. She did seem slightly worried about Alyce's lack of words, in addition to the bruises on her arms.

Alyce carefully removed the gown, taking note of the price tag, and it's exorbitant price. She folded it up before moving onto the emerald colored dress. It was a beautiful, thin silk. She pulled it on, noting the beautiful way it fell on her. She again pulled on her hat, taking a look at herself in the mirror.

Walking out for them to see, she looked into the full body mirror, pulling the hat down further over her face. Her hand went to her black eye, any forced smile falling off her face. She turned around in a circle for Jack. The dress fit her perfectly. It gave her the look of a delicate insect, showing a lot of skin with it's largely open back, low neckline, and front slit. But it was still some how... elegant.

DRESS::www.costumersguide.com/atonement/post2.jpg

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[JACK WES URKIN]

Jack watched her disappear back into the dressing room with her slightly discouraged sound. He happened to like the black dress on her, but he wondered why she had said she did not like it. Perhaps it was too form fitting or open at the back, he was no psychic. Still, he would accept this for now. Nodding just a bit, he waited until he heard a whisper from the changing room. He would have to wait to see what it was.

When she came out with the emerald green dress on, he tilted his head far to the side and his eyes widened. With a slight movement, Jack was up and admiring the sides of the dress, even as she turned. He was so stunned by the emerald silk cloth that he had forgotten entirely that he was holding his cell phone in hand ready to take pictures. Once he had circled him a couple of times he smiled and nodded, "I think you look brilliant in it. How do you feel about it?" He smiled and then went back to the chair he was sitting in.

"You can get anything you want, you know. Or nothing, if there's nothing here you like." Jack shrugged his shoulders and smiled at her. He really did like this dress, even more so than the black, because it looked incredible on her. "And I've even got a few surprises for you later, but we'll see them later." He grinned slightly and nodded as he relaxed back into the cushions of the chair, watching and waiting.

[ALYCE JULIET AYERS]

Alyce loved the dress. She ran her finger over the details in the back, and then examined herself. She was showing major side breast, but with some tape, she was sure she could fix that. She then ran her fingertips over her arms, counting all the bruises that they touched. Each one hurt and seemed to be it's own shade of purple. She then looked at the price tag. It was stiff. Almost seven thousand pounds. She considered it for a second. His words rang in her hand and she found herself nodding her head 'yes' to Jack before disappearing back into the the dressing room.

She threw back on her faux-leather skinny pants, her black turtleneck, long sleeved shirt that had a bit of her own blood on it, and her black pumps. She pulled on her hat again for the last time, running her fingers through her long hair as she bent over to pick up the dress. She opened the door and handed it over to the attendant, who smiled as she calculated up her own commission on the incredibly expensive piece.

Alyce stopped again in front of the mirror, looking herself over. She felt so embarrassed, so dirty. She felt the need to hop back into a shower, but was too scarred to get naked. She pulled the hat down again, and turned, flashing Jack a small, pained smile.

She then stepped from the full length mirror and towards Jack, sliding her shaking hand inside his.

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[JACK WES URKIN]

Jack felt a twinge of guilt when he saw some of the bruises around her body and then covered his face. The last thing he wanted anyone to see was him actually feeling bad for something, but he was almost certain that Alyce had seen it before he covered it. He went over and paid for the dress that he had just bought her and sighed softly, letting the breath flow out of him so gently.

"Alright, we'll keep looking." Jack hooked the newly bought dress in it's bag over his arm and nodded, taking her hand gently in his. He squeezed her hand softly with both hands and then looked her in the eyes. There it was, the same twinge of guilt there before, but this time it was in his eyes. It was hard to look at her in public when she had basically pledged herself to him and not feel guilty. The pain he had inflicted on this girl when they first met was extreme, the kind of extreme that was hard to get over. At the same time, he was trying to show her a different side that was not so bad. He still felt the same hateful crazy tendencies, but it was something he could control and even enjoy other things.

"Man I'm an asshole." The thought occurred to him as he took her hand in his. The damage was already done, he could only hope that she would forgive him for it. Someday.

"So, what's next? Purse? Shoes?" Smiling, Jack looked around at them, his expression filled with hope. He knew that he simply could not buy her happiness, but it at least showed her that he was willing to put a foot forward. This made him feel just a bit better on the inside. She would get nice things for being with him, and if she were patient, she might just see more.

[ALYCE JULIET AYERS]

Alyce noticed the way he looked at her. The way he held her hand as though he was trying to steady her. The guilt in his eyes hit her hard, and almost made her feel bad for looking so weak. She squeezed his hand gently, leaning her head against his shoulder.

In her heart, she knew he didn't love her. And that he would do that to her again before she died, but she couldn't help but stay. She had convinced herself that he needed her. And she would stay as long as that was true. Because the real truth was, she loved him. In her own twisted way, she loved him.

She nuzzled him softly, before pulling away because it was causing her jaw immense pain. When he brought up the topic of more shopping, she smiled softly, her dimples obvious.

"Do you think we could get some ice cream?" she whispered, asking softly, looking up at him with her adorable eyes, despite the right one being ringed in an abusive purple.

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[JACK WES URKIN]

Jack felt a slight wave of relief wash over him once she squeezed his hand back and leaned against him. This was the first real wave of relief he had felt in a long time. It was almost refreshing and even though he would never tell her, he appreciated it greatly. With a soft breath, he nodded to her and looked back in front of them.

There was something to be said about feelings when it came to Jack. He believed that there was no way he could ever possibly love anyone, not even himself. The fact of the matter was that the small bits of humanity that were left in him despised him for what he had become. Tragedies had been committed in his name and it was something he would never forgive himself for, but the rest of him simply failed to care. For now, he would use this girl. The future was something he could not see. Not yet.

Jack practically flinched when he saw her pull away. It used to be that he would flinch when she went to be affectionate, but now it was when she pulled away. This time, however, it was due to the pain and he felt even worse. Taking a deep breath, he forced a smile onto his lips when she smiled up at him.

"Absolutely." Jack responded almost immediately, glad to do something she wanted. The opportunity presented itself in such a way that he knew she wanted ice cream, so he was happy to oblige. "Soft serve, Dip'n'Dots, or what?" He tilted his head to the side and asked curiously. There were plenty of things in the mall here and it would provide them both some enjoyable delight.

[ALYCE JULIET AYERS]

"Dip 'n' Dots..." she whispered. Before straining on her tippy toes to give him a softly kiss on the cheek. She knew he wouldn't approve, and would probably try to quickly shrug it off, but if she was ever going to be allowed to cheek kiss him, it would be now.

She pulled away, and forced herself to lean up against him despite the pain, lacing her slender fingers into his. She had noticed that it had almost pained him when she'd released him, and it made her smile a little. He did care.

They reached the Dip 'n' Dots stand quickly, and Alyce pointed to the the Strawberry flavor and the small size cup. The employee handed her the cup of freeze dried ice cream, and she handed over a few pounds. Alyce then walked a few paces and took a seat on the bench nearby. She crossed her legs and then took a small bite. It felt good on her jaw. She resisted the urge to also put it on her eye and arms. But at least it tasted delicious.

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