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Jaws dropped. Neither of the brothers had quite expected that reaction out of her. Let alone, how loudly she'd said it. Elzo blushed a light pink before bending out in a fit of laughter. Marlo sputtered, brain still trying to formulate words into sentences. "Hey, maybe you can cook for us sometime then? Give us that fashion show?" He kept laughing, Marlo kept wanting to melt into the floor and kick his brother simultaneously.

"I..." Oh god, if you poured water on his face you might get steam. "I think that your purchases are none of our business. I was only doing what was proper and decent. I will not judge someone solely on what they buy." But it did give a different perspective now didn't it? Standing ridged as a board, Marlo managed to offer his arm this time. "I just need some slacks now. You're welcome to join me...if you don't mind manically laughing moron that is."

Elzo was wiping tears of laughter from his eyes, and didn't look ready to stop just yet.

He looked at his brother. Then at Jada. "Yes. It's between his legs and requires a blot of brute force. I would suggesting kicking." At that Elzo's laugher stopped and was replaced with a snort. "Man, low blow Marlo. Telling a girl to hit me in my most valuable assest."
"If that is the valuable part of you, I'm almost ashamed."
"I'm not."
"Shut up Eli. I'm not the one making a spectacle of myself."

Standing upright, Elzo seemed content to glaring daggers at his brother's back. Daggers which would be returned later in the form of 'This is why you don't have a girl friend' remarks. Walking with Jada arm his arm was foreign in some ways, but, it wasn't unpleasant. Hardly, he could easily see why his brother would enjoy it. "It's alright. I'd rather help out someone then just leave them with that..that guy." Looking up ahead, the clerk from the bookstore was hiding behind a fern. And failing at the hiding part.

"Speak of the devil and he shall appear. Do you want me to take care of this?" His grip had slightly tightened on her arm. Once was a chance encounter, this? "******** creeper." Elzo had stopped behind them. Even he could agree with Marlo. Both brothers looked ready to attack. "Persistant bugger isn't he?" Marlo nodded then asked. "It's up to you Jada, we can ignore him, or confront him. I'm fine with either." The clerk kept looking through the fern, as if he was utter unnoticed.

They would have to be overly stupid not to notice her reaction. They might sometimes be stupid, (even Marlo), but neither were THAT stupid. "Elzo." The tone was commanding. "Way ahead of you." Dropping the bags at his brother's feet, Elzo smiled, waved and walked away, back from the direction they had came. Taking a second to pick up the bags, Marlo gave Jada's hand a firm squeeze. "Don't worry. We'll take care of this. No violence just...precautions." Marlo's eyes were avoiding the general direction of the stalker.

"...Cooking isn't that hard once you get down the basics. As for aphrodize...I don't think so, but, I'm no English teacher so I don't really care. The meaning carried all the same." His face reddened at the kiss. He had to remind himself that this was acting. He was pretending. Even if it felt nice. "I'm around a 24. But to be honest...Not that sure. It's changed." He walked her into Sugarcane Republic. Pausing to ask if he could set the bag behind the count while they shopped.

Stalker clerk was now outside the store, face pressed to glass. "You need anything?"

"Fondue is, or it can be, quite complicated. Better to start with something a little less...messy. And less involving an open flame." It sounded like he had a story behind that. He did, but he vowed never to share it. "You should come down to the community center. I'd be happy to help you cook." At last, something he said in a more relaxed tone.

He had only considered a certain pair of pants before Jada offered her own choices. "Oh." he sounded bland for some one who was in fact, surprised. "Yes. It should work." How did she know men's sizes? Maybe he didn't want to know. Nodded his thanks and entering the changing stall, he didn't consider who was now alone.

And he didn't consider how brazen the stalker clerk was.

Re-emerging, he caught sight of two things at once, one was Jada, smiling, the other, was the clerk, only a few feet behind Jada. Marlo considered ways to go about this. He could confront the man, he could call in Elzo, or, he could try once more to drive the guy away. First option meant a possible fight, second meant legal papers, third was bad, but, least amount of risk.

Grabbing her by the arm, Marlo pulled Jada into the tiny dressing room. "s**t." He was trying to be quiet. "He came into the store. Listen. We're going to try and chase him off passively okay? You've got to look flustered, like I just tried to...do something, anything to you." He was unbuttoning the dress shirt. "When you exit, look slightly angry with me, and say something like 'not here' or 'wait until we get home'. Something. Anything. We need to make him think you're taken. If this doesn't work..." Marlo was tense. It might not work, given the earlier incident, but it was still better then a direct confrontation or getting mall security involved.

"You okay with that?"

You could hear a bit of heavy breathing outside of the stall. Jesus was the guy not getting the hint? Undoing the hair tie, he looked like a shorter, lighter version of Elzo. A few ruffs and the look of lustful male was complete. Looking Jada up and down, he thought it was good. Not too much not to little and-
"Here." He undid the first button of her shirt, showing just a bit of neck line. "Okay. I think we're good." he had to swallow the thoughts of having his 'wicked ways with her'. Yeah. Great word choice. Just ignore it.

"And I promise you, I won't let him touch you okay?" He smiled at her, trying to look confident. Such was the predicament they were in. A quick text to Elzo and then-
"Showtime." Opening the door slightly, he gave her a light shove, enough to send her stumbling back and he did the same. It had to look like she was resisting. It was up to her if she said anything or not now. Light blue eyes registered the clerk's shoes going back, out of the way. Waiting.

God strike him down where he stand, Marlo was having to swallow his own own spit to keep himself from drooling. The split second view of her like that, worn, disheveled, combined with that airy tone. He was a doomed soul. Out of the corner of his eyes, his mind registered what she and he could both see. The stalker had not taken the hint.

Before he could pull her back in and wait for Elzo to come with back up, Jada had made a bold move. One that in all honesty, he was not going to pass up. Male pride welled up and very quickly and hand lifted her off of the ground and the other held her head to his.

So much for acting on his part.

In his defense, she instigated, and he didn't turn it into a French kiss. But he did lift her up, take her back into the dressing room stall, and let out a very deep, masculine, "No." Slamming the door behind them, dropping her back down and letting her head go, Marlo's breathing was slightly ragged. Since when did he just jump into things like that? Pinning Jada to a wall, he rested his head to the side of her's, eyes closed.

Elzo would have scolded him for passing up a peek down her shirt.

"You...were convincing." His voice held that tight strain of self control. Looking up at her, there was a moment of pause. He could kiss her now. No one could stop him. He had to force himself to look away ******** NO."

Stalker was peeking over the stall door.

That was it. "Elzo, where the hell are you?" Cue slamming the dressing room door open. What is this?" he point at the stalker clerk "I don't even-"

"Sorry, bro. Had to grab a few extras."
Elzo was standing in the doorway of the store. Behind him, two mall cops, the book store shift manager, and a cashier from Elizabeth's secret.

When all else failed, take the legal route. Get the b*****d fired.

At the first whimper, he felt that cold wash of guilt. At the second, regret, and the full on tears- "Oh s**t. I'm sorry Jada. Christ on a cracker. I'm so sorry." Marlo knew he'd take it to far. The second he let his control go this is what happened. People got hurt. He should have taken the aggressive route, not passive. As Marlo began line after line of apologies, Elzo was gunning for the creeper, blue eyes furious.

Alas, creeper was quick on his feet and managed to slip through a rack of clothes and out the door, barely dodging mall security and a good shopping Samaritan. "********, he got away." Switching off the with Elzo, Marlo began to give the two mall cops the run down of the events, who just nodded and took notes.

"It'll be okay. Me and my bro will kick his a** you hear me?"
"Miss. We need a statement." The taller of the two cops stood behind Elzo, waiting for the crying to subside. Marlo hugged her from the other side of Elzo. "It'll be okay." It seemed like the right, comforting thing to do anyway.

"One sec and we'll go okay?" Going back into the stall, Marlo reemerged, back in his starting outfit. As he went to the count to actually buy the clothes, he was turned away, ('For what happened'). This was perfectly fine by him. "I have the bags. We're ready to go." Marlo lifted the ten plus bags of Jada's purchases along with his own.

"Don't have to tell me twice." Elzo was a pro at this thing. Grabbing girls and whisking them away. For both noble reasons, and for more...wicked ones. Marlo just fine with that. Less bodily contact he had with Jada the better. Running out of the store with Jada in his arms, Elzo we headed to the far entrance. Right behind him was Marlo, keeping pace, even with god knew how many bags hanging off his person. Track and field plus the gym payed off in strange ways.

Stopping at the mall entrance, it was easy to grab a cab, fill the trunk with the bags, and the trio slid inside, Jada squished between the two boys. "Where too?" Both brothers asked at the same time. Both brothers glared at each other. Marlo offered first. "If you have a car, we can drive around for a bit in hopes of loosing him if he's still following you. Or, we can send you home if you think you'll be alright by yourself." Elzo made his offer, "Or we could see you home. You could repay us then." This earned a rather hateful glare from Marlo. They would be talking about Elzo's manner in dealing with stressful situations, that they would.