Chapter 20

August 25, 2018 (Saturday)

Author: Katherine Couture

I have not had to write like this in a very long time, so please bear with me as I trot out some rusty skills.

After Beth and Rhee split from us, I led Mare to the unmentionables section to show her some things there and explain the organization of the area. I also explained about manufacturers, sizes, colors, and styles. I was showing her some bras when a young woman interrupted us.

“Excuse me. I probably need help finding a bra or two and I’d like them to fit better than anything else I’ve tried.”

She wasn’t Kai, but she was shaped quite similarly, and I was happy with Mare when she responded, “Oh. I might be able to help you with that. I’m Maren. While it’s only my first day working here, I have a friend with the same ... challenge you do.”

“Umm, how do you know what my problem with bras is?”

“My friend, Kai, is like you in that she has a very narrow torso, but with her breasts riding very high. Like yours, her breasts aren’t that large, but relative to the circumference of her torso, they’re larger than you might expect. Bra manufacturers produce products for the common sizes, as you know, in combinations of torso circumference and cup size. I don’t know what your measurements are, but I can see that you’re outside the range of what most bra manufacturers make. While we carry a line of regular bras that fills in a lot of the odd size combinations, I doubt that line can help you. If you’re sure of your measurements, we can check that line first. However, we have other options for breast support, not just bras.”

The young woman said that her breasts had grown recently, so the poor fit she’d had was now worse, and because I was sure Maren didn’t know what she’d need to do, I told the young woman, “We can measure your circumference if you’d like, and you look to be between cup sizes, too. My breast-support specialist is here today; I’ll go get her.” I turned to Mare and told her, “You can explain the solutions available if she doesn’t fit any of the bra sizes we carry.”

Mare nodded, so I headed to the breakroom. When I stepped into it, I saw some naked girls, some sari-clad girls, and some girls donning their clothes. At my query as to her availability, Alyssa began donning her dress, leaving her panty and bra behind, but putting on her shoes. As we returned to the floor, I explained about the customer. We found her with Mare who was explaining about wraparounds.

When she finished, Mare turned to Alyssa and stated, “I explained bandeaus and wraparounds.”

Alyssa responded, “Well done, Maren. You’ve been amazing on your first work day here.” She turned to the customer and after quickly sizing her visually, said, “Maren is correct about your torso being something of a rare architecture. I also agree that you will probably not find a bra anywhere that will fit you comfortably. However, I can measure you if you’re not willing to trust my eye, and I won’t be upset if you don’t trust it.”

“Maren was explaining about these ... other options, and they sound ... interesting. Can we start there and go back to bras if that doesn’t work?”

“Of course. However, I’d be very surprised if neither a bandeau nor a wraparound does not work for you. I can gauge your size if you won’t mind me staring at your bust and then your back for a few seconds.”

“No, that’s fine.”

Alyssa walked around the young woman, probably either a junior or senior in high school, then said, “Do you mind if we use this opportunity to train our new staff member about these?”

“No, but it seems like she doesn’t need a lot of training. She figured out what you said with just a glance.”

“I did, but you’re not quite as ... far out on the rareness scale as my friend, so I was happy to get a more experienced opinion, and Alyssa is the very best.”

Alyssa pointed out the appropriate size in both styles to Mare, who then told the customer, “Another advantage of wraparounds and bandeaus is that they come in a much wider variety of colors and hues, which enables them to pass for halter tops and tube tops, simplifying your wardrobe a bit. Would you like to take one of each to a booth?”

“I’m not sure how to put the wraparound on.”

Mare demonstrated donning the wraparound over her top, to which the girl said, “Oh. That’s easy! I think I might like these!”

Alyssa and Mare led her to the changing area, so I tidied the bra section a bit and watched the floor, paying particular attention to the fetish section. We had recently installed something Alyssa had suggested. The fetish section is mostly about sex, and Alyssa suggested that a three-sided booth, that is a booth with no door, just an open side, might be used by that crowd. The entire area is outside of the glassed portion of the store for obvious reasons. We have long noted that most semi-nudity we see on the floor occurs in that section. Given the line of customers in there, I’ll probably have to put one or two more of them in. I thought Alyssa’s suggestion was good when I heard it, but it’s being used even more than she thought it would be. I decided to be proactive about it, so walked over there.

There were two people, clothing items in hand, waiting for someone else to exit the booth. As I walked up to them, a guy and a gal whose body language suggested they didn’t know each other, I asked, “You’re okay with the open side to the booth?”

From inside the booth, a woman said, “It’s great, but you either need to make it wider to fit more people or put more of them in.”

I looked at the two waiting and elevated my eyebrows.

The woman took the hint and said, “I agree with her. I’ve always loved this place, and that booth tells us weird, fetish folks that we’re appreciated. Personally, if I were the owner, I’d go with a couple of longer booths.”

“You think longer booths won’t encourage sexual activity?”

The guy replied, “Not ... per se. Some of the garments require assistance in putting on. While it’s possible to fit two people in there, it’s really tight.”

“That’s an excellent point. I’m sorry we didn’t think about that. I’ll let the owner know. It might take a while to figure out how to fit two wider booths in here without greatly reducing display space.”

The woman in the booth came out topless and said, “You’re the only real game in town, so we can be patient.”

“The owner and I greatly appreciate the feedback. For your help with this, when you check out, please tell the associate checking you out that I said you were to get the Dalmatian discount. That’s a one-time thing and covers only one item. We change the word every day, so please don’t try to use that in the future.” I looked the woman over again, then told her, “Nice bust.”

It was obvious that I surprised her, but she recovered quickly and asked, “You don’t mind that I’m out here topless?”

“I don’t mind under certain conditions: No minors present, no sexual activity, not visible from the main floor.”

“Truly?”

“Yes. The fetish crowd seems to be ... more open about bodies, but you’ve also been respectful in how you push the envelope. I recognize you, but I think I’ve never gotten your name as you always pay in cash. You may pass on what I said, but if you do, please pass along my admonition, too.”

“Thanks ... Katherine.” She had to squint to read my nametag, and she added, “We greatly appreciate this place because we don’t have to go through El Paso traffic to see stuff in hand ... and trying stuff on ... before buying it.”

“That’s precisely why this section is here. It’s not a huge money-maker for the store, but it’s one of the things we do to serve our community. It’s imperative that the fetish community police itself here because the section is the least profitable one on the floor.”

The woman nodded and said, “I know. I had to go to El Paso once last year to find something you didn’t have in stock. I was surprised that your prices in this section were at or below those in El Paso. The community here is not large, but we’re very appreciative.”

“And I and we appreciate that the fetish community has never caused us problems. So long as that record is maintained, we’ll continue to serve that community.”

“Katherine, I’m ... Jessie.”

“Jessie, it’s nice to finally put a name to your pretty face and nice bust. Thanks for your trust.”

The customers waiting for the booth stayed for the whole conversation, then gave me thanks as well as their names; Cynthia and Marcus. That caused Jessie to introduce herself to those two, and I left the three of them talking, Jessie’s nice bust still on display.

[Personal aside: I hope the girls don’t mind the LA journal including such store-focused details in my contributions.]

[Beth’s response to Katherine’s personal aside: The girls greatly appreciate the addition of store-focused details in our journal. We’ll certainly be putting a lot of soccer details in it. Thanks, Katherine. We love you!]

When I stepped back on the main floor, Mare was back in the breast-support section, and helping that young woman, and the young woman seemed happier than she was earlier.

When I reached them, the girl-woman turned to me with a smile and said, “Thank you. Thanks for hiring Maren and Alyssa. They were both right. These are so much more comfortable. Is there any chance there are color options for these you don’t have?”

“There are, and quite a lot. Would you like to look at catalogs? So long as you’re not in a rush, there would be no surcharge for ordering single items if I can order them when I place a larger order. That can mean a delay in getting the items, though.”

“Thanks! I’d like to do that!”

“I would need your contact information if you made a special order so I could let you know when the item or items have come in”

“I’m Phoebe Maris.”

[Apparently, it’s bird day, today.]