Colin's posts

"It's... awkward to explain." Lindsay replied.

"Let's... let's just say I'm his type." he told her.

He then led her to where they wouldn't be seen, and used his mana to make them disappear from where they were, appearing in an alley elsewhere in the city.

They stepped out from it, and walked down a couple of blocks, before stopping at the store in question. When Kalin looked inside, she saw various designs of shirts, pants, skirts, dresses, various things. And they all looked extremely well-made, ranging from simple and understated, to flashy and attention-grabbing.

When they stepped inside, a chime echoed throughout the store, which was larger than it seemed, but not massive.

"Jaden?" Lindsay called in.

Kalin then saw a male appear from behind a curtain in the back. But a very stylish and almost feminine male. His skin was paler than the norm, he had a black knit cap on his head, with two long blonde bangs sticking out from under it. He had a slender build, which was shown off by his light blue skinny jeans and his grey form-fitting tee.

"Lindsay!" he exclaimed, before snapping his fingers, and disappearing into a hole in the floor that suddenly formed. At the same time, a hole in the ceiling appeared above them, and he dropped down from it, landing right in Lindsay's arms, which were placed up instinctively.

"Hello!" he greeted him excitedly, wrapping his own arms around the brawnier man's neck, and then looking at Kalin.

"Well, hello to you, there!" he greeted the child.

"Not at all." Lindsay responded.

"He's made mistakes in the past, but everyone has. It's not right to judge people on that, especially when he's built up the life he currently has." he told her.

"But no. He's not a bad guy at all. He's friendly, he's personable, he's.... friendly..." he repeated.

"Quite friendly to those he likes, and those that are his friends." he told her further.

"You'll see when we get there." he then said, looking around.

"Hm." he mumbled.

"You mind if we teleport there?" he asked. "It's a bit of a distance from where we currently are."

"For better or for worse." Lindsay chuckled in response.

He then received a text from someone, and when he answered it, Kalin saw him sigh heavily.

"...hm." he mumbled.

"Kalin, feel like getting fitted for some more formal wear?" he asked her.

"We can go to my friend's boutique right now if you like."

"They are." Lindsay replied, looking at her.

"But the thing is, ANY kind of corrective lenses are at risk when I do my job." he told her.

"Plus, we're talking about constant wear." he went on.

"I'll wear my contacts to my job, but I'll wear glasses all other times." he continued.

"I suggested the contacts to him, and he agreed to give them a trial run." the optometrist then interjected. "He agreed, so we're discussing his final choice." he went on.

"They work just fine, but I don't know if I could ever get used to them." Lindsay added with a sigh and a shrug.

"Contacts aren't for everyone." the doctor reassured him.

Lindsay merely nodded in response.

"And I'm paying to have them made right now." he told the doctor. "I want her to walk out of here wearing her new glasses." he said further.

"I would have done so, anyway." the doctor responded.

"She needs this. Her current glasses are doing NOTHING for her." he stressed.

"Oh, how are the contacts working for you?" he then asked Lindsay.

"They feel weird." Lindsay responded. "I may go back to my glasses." he said, inadvertently letting Kalin know that he, himself, needed corrective eyewear.

"Indeed." Lindsay said.

Sure enough, about 50 minutes later, Kalin was at her appointment, and the doctor had given her an examination, and a battery of tests. When they were done, he shook his head.

"My, my, my." he said.

"You really needed this update." he commented. "Your old prescription is borderline useless to you." he said further.

"Now... we'll need you to pick a pair of frames." he told her.

"And don't worry about price at all." Lindsay interjected. "Pick whatever you think looks good or feels good, or both." he said.

"You'll see when we go to see him." Lindsay told her.

"Besides, you'll need some really nice outfits, just in case." he reasoned.

"Special occasion wear and such." he said further.

"At any rate, glasses first." he told her.

"We'll have some made for you in NO time."

"..............." Lindsay was silent as he heard that.

"In.... in theory." he said.

"Well... I mean... it'll be cheaper because I'm friends with him." he told her.

"Actually... that's... that's technically not true." he then said further, before pausing.

"It'll... well, it'll be cheaper, because... you'll see." he sighed.

"Just... trust me. It'll be cheaper."

Lindsay shook his head some.

"It'll be okay." he replied.

"The good thing about my side jobs is that they pay REALLY well." he told her.

"So I'm not exactly hurting for money. No matter how strong your prescription is, I'll be able to pay for it. I have wiggle room in my budget." he continued.

"I wouldn't have offered to adopt you if I hadn't." he reasoned.

"And after that, we'll get you a larger, more proper wardrobe." he went on.

"I have a friend who's a fashion designer. He'll be able to help."

Lindsay smiled in response to that.

"A defense attourney." he said.

"A fine choice in career." he told her, before receiving a text.

"...I can get you fitted for new glasses in about 50 minutes." he told her.

"Someone bailed on an appointment, so there's a free slot." he went on.

"That work for you?" he asked.

Lindsay paused for a moment.

"...right, I need to watch my mouth." he said.

"Though... what do you mean?" he asked.

"It'll be your life?" he asked further.

"What do you plan to DO with your life, anyway?"

Lindsay just chuckled.

"I went straight to the top." he told her.

"Remember, I'm a hired merc for the head of the Council." he said.

"I recently had a job, and then spoke to her after her business had concluded." he went on.

"And even though my application to adopt you would have been denied fairly early, due to my current career choices, she knows I'm reliable and trustworthy, and that I can provide a good life for you." he said further.

"So I filled it out alongside her, and she approved it." he finished.

"Yes, I subverted the system, but... well... technically, the system was okay with it." he then laughed.

"Duly noted." Lindsay replied.

"I'm getting you an appointment now." he told her.

"You need new glasses, and you need them NOW." he said.

"So I'm getting you some new ones, and I'm getting them... well, hopefully, today." he added.

"Just need to see if they have the time."

"Ah." Lindsay said.

"Of course." he responded.

"Yes, you really should get an updated prescription for your glasses." he agreed.

"....how bad has it been for you?" he then asked.

"I realize you've been using that outdated prescription ever since you've been here, at least." he commented. "So how bad IS it?" he asked further.

As he asked, he took out his phone, and seemed to be sending a text to someone.