Don't Mind My Hands

[Joza Perl]

​

Ever since the release of Csilla Chic and Bodyguard Chic, Heartbeat had seen an upswing in custom wardrobe requests. This had Joza ferreting around Heartbeat Boutique more than usual, a tailor’s tape measure around her neck and a small pair of glasses perched on her nose. She didn’t actually need the glasses—though one would imagine they came in handy when examining the finer details in stitching—but she wore them anyway out of some burst of fashionista creativity. Or whatever it was she called it.

The boutique on Lianna held a certain cutesy charm, woven with elegant trim and complementary colors. That was, if one liked pink. If [member="Bato Golden"] didn’t, well, then he’d have to suffer though it all the same. Either way, the actor would be welcome with open arms given that Zeltrons knew their customer service. Coincidentally, none of them were aware of the fact that he was an actor. Joza had a vague idea when he’d mentioned an actress buddy in their correspondence, but admittedly hadn’t had the time to snoop around on the holonet for information. That, and she unfortunately was not a fan of action movies.

When Bato would arrive, he’d find himself greeted almost immediately by a blue skinned Twi’lek who would wrap both of her arms delicately around one of his. “Welcome to Heartbeat Boutique, Mr. Golen~” There’d be just a hint of a purr to her voice, though detectable. She’d lead Bato to a little couch situated behind a coffee table and gesture for him to sit. “J—Miss Perl is in the back and will be out shortly.”

 

[Bato Golden]

As Bato Golden walked through the doors of the Heartbeat Boutique, he became astutely aware that he underestimated the expected amount of pink. Wall to wall pink. Blindingly pink. Hell, it was nearly offensively pink. Bato had half a mind to put on his sunglasses, but he doubted it would help much. He knew fashion designers were usually a bit eccentric, he hadn't anticipated [member="Joza Perl"] to love the color pink that much as to drown a perfectly good room in it.

Which was all fine with him. Bato rather liked the color. A touch of it could make normally aggressive or overpowering ensembles workable, and a light salmon tone worked with pretty much everything, so long as it was in a floral pattern. And who didn't like flowers?

He flashed his most charming movie star (B-List, anyway) smile at Twi'lek woman who escorted him to the waiting chair. The staff here was certainly accommodating. When ushered, he took a seat without any complaint, and waited as patiently as Bato Golden could. Which is to say, it wasn't more than three seconds until his resolve broke and he started chatting with the greeter. "You've certainly got an interesting aesthetic in here, huh?"

 

[Joza Perl]

The Twi’lek giggled and squeezed his arm a bit before letting go once they’d gotten to the couch. She’d turned to grab a small tray when he’d prompted her, but looked back at him with a pleasant smile on her face. “Oh, so you’ve noticed?” The sarcasm was prevalent in her facial expression, but managed to stay out of her voice. “Well, you know Zeltrons and how they feel about pink.” Bending down, she offered Bato a generous view of her low cut top while placing the tray on the table in front of him. It had an assortment of fresh fruits and cheeses on it, garnished delicately with some greenery. “Can I get you anything to drink, hun?”

“Alright, that’s enough, Nona. He’s here for a meeting, not a lap dance.” Joza had appeared from the back room, bemused expression on her face and a folder of fabric swatches beneath her arm. She shooed the Twi’lek away with a flicker of her wrist before turning her attention towards her guest. “You must be [member="Bato Golden"], yes? I’m Joza Perl, nice to finally meet you in person.” She flashed him a bright smile, not bothering to hide the once-over she gave the man. “Did you have any trouble finding the place? I do hope that none of the girls were too forward with you.”

 

[Bato Golden]

Bato couldn't help chuckle when Joza made her entrance by shooing away the Twi'lek greeter. He rose off the couch and stood up to properly meet his host, greeting her with the same smile as before, but just a touch more genuine. "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Ms. Perl. You've got some lovely decor in here." He gave the room another sweeping glance. "Definitely a brave choice, but now everything matches." He was only half-joking; going nearly monochromatic for a room was a difficult thing to pull off. Still, it worked for the atmosphere the entire boutique was giving.

Judging from [member="Joza Perl"]'s roaming gaze, he was making quite a strong first impression. First the greeter, now Joza herself. If he wasn't busy enjoying the view, he'd almost think there was a pattern here. Regardless, he certainly wasn't about to object to the warm reception. He shook his head when she asked her next two questions. "It wasn't too hard to find. Find the right street, then follow the smell of perfume. Couldn't miss it if I tried." At least, he thought it was perfume. He didn't know much about Zeltron, and for the life of him he couldn't remember anything about what little research he had done. Still, it was a wonderful smell.

His attention shifted from Joza herself, to the folder she carried. "Oh, are you working on something?"

 

[Joza Perl]

Heartbeat Boutique was pink, no doubt about that. But it wasn’t teenage-girl-store-in-a-mall pink, but rather employed softer shades less offensive to the eyes. The overall design had been carefully selected to ensure that the colors complemented eachother to give off a vaguely elegant cute-little-store vibe. Seeing as how [member="Bato Golden"] had yet to vomit, Joza took it as a compliment.

“Brave, hm? It’s not easy being pink.” She chuckled softly before adding in a more graceful note. “Thank you. Heartbeat originally started off as a dance studio, but over time we expanded to include accessories and now, clothing.” The studio in question happened to be across the street, larger than its original location that only comfortably held a few dancers. Heartbeat’s growth hadn’t been rapid, but fairly steady. Turns out that Zeltron dance instructors had some merit based entirely on their race.

“Good, good. This place does stick out like a sore thumb!” Tilting her head back a tic, she laughed softly while urging him to sit with her. Aside from being hedonistic creatures, Zeltrons were known for their vibrant appearance, so it stood reason that a building owned by a Zeltron would look like it materialized directly from the streets of downtown Pleasure City.

Joza placed the folder on her lap, opening it to reveal a plethora of fabric swatches. “Actually, this is for you. Or rather, your project. Part of the reason I’m glad we get to meet in person is to see what colors work best with your skin." At this point, she squinted a little and leaned in a bit to inspect his complexion, this time in a purely clinical manner. “You seem a bit on the warmer side.” Flipping through the fabric samples, she arrived on a group suited for his shade depth. “Do you have any preferences? Any color you pop in or can’t wear?” As she spoke, the Twi’lek returned with a tray—a pitcher of ice water and a small pot of tea accompanied with two glasses. “Tea, the way I like it, love. Please and thank you.” Absorbed in looking between Bato and the swatches, she didn’t look up to Nona.

“Would you like something to drink, Mr. Golden? Please, help yourself to the refreshments.”

 

[Bato Golden]

At [member="Joza Perl"]'s request, Bato sat down beside her, leaning slightly to get a better look at the folder. "I haven't really given the whole color issue much thought before now. I'll have to rely on your expertise." The action movie ensemble was a time honored formula by this point; black leather jacket, neutral pants, boots. Aside from that, Bato hadn't considered different colors he could wear. With the exception of gold, of course, but that was far too gaudy. Without much of an opinion on the issue, he'd have to defer to an expert's opinion. "I'm afraid I'm at a loss here. What do you think I'd look good in?"

"Oh, thank you." Bato looked up at the Twi'lek carrying the beverage tray. "It's Nona, right? Could I get tea with a bit of milk in it, please?" Once he finished his request, he turned his attention back to Joza. She seemed incredibly focused on matching his complexion with the swatches in her folder, and he certainly didn't want to distract her by moving around too much. Besides, there were a few questions he was curious about.

"Earlier, you mentioned you owned a dance studio. What made you decide to start with dance instruction?"

 

[Joza Perl]

“Mm, maybe navy. Oh! Or a nice charcoal gray.” She held up swatches alongside his neck, humming to herself brightly. There was a spark in her eyes, and it was clear that the Zeltron was enjoying herself. Meeting new people was always a favorite, especially when they wanted to talk about clothes or dancing. Bato seemed to want to talk about both, which made her extra friendly towards him. Even if he was just being polite, it made little difference in Joza’s eyes at this point. And so, Pandora’s Box had been opened.

Nona smiled sweetly at Bato and turned around to fix Bato his tea, cringing only slightly at the mention of Joza’s dance studio. Here we go…

“Oh, Heartbeat House?” The Zeltron snapped to attention, lowering the fabric back into the folder before dog-earing the corner with a clip to come back to later. An almost dreamy smile slipped onto her face as she recalled her first little studio. “I’m a dancer by trade, actually. Grew up on Zeltros, so I danced and waitressed for most of my teenage years. Eventually after I’d left Zeltros, I set up the first Heartbeat House a few blocks away.” She conveniently left out the whole Jedi order/scratchy robe/dated a Sith debacle. That probably wouldn’t make for the best business talk.

"Wasn’t the best area or the best building, and it wasn’t big enough to hold more than six dancers comfortably. Didn’t really expect much to come of it, but it actually did pretty well. I guess maybe being a Zeltron had something to do with it.” She shrugged and laughed softly, having grown increasingly more aware of her people’s reputation in the entertainment industry. Especially when that entertainment involved tits and ass, and how to move both in a pleasing manner. “So, I ended up expanding to the studio across the street. Much bigger and easier to hold larger classes in. So,” Retrieving a tape measure from her bosom, she stretched the first six inches or so of it out with one hand, giving Bato a smile that could be considered a few tics below wicked.

“Am I measuring you today? Or is that not necessary?”

Her back turned, Nona rolled her eyes before turning to hand Bato his tea, pleasant expression back on her face.

[member="Bato Golden"]

 

[Bato Golden]

Bato listened to Joza's story with his full attention, and while his eyes lacked the same eagerness as the woman telling it, he was clearly interested all the same. "So, how does one go from dancing to fashion anyway?"

"Measurements?" Bato nodded briefly to Nona as he accepted his tea. He took a sip while he pretended to think about it. He already knew his answer, but stalling slightly might afford him the time needed to stop wondering how long that tape measure had been in there. He rose from his seat and straightened out his clothes. "Yeah, let's do that."

[member="Joza Perl"]

 

[Joza Perl]

“Kind of go hand in hand a bit, don’t they?”

She hummed idly, rising with him. “Arms out.” She commanded with a flick of her wrist, moving closer to [member="Bato Golden"] if he complied. Pulling the measuring tape further out, she fitted it snugly around his chest, brushing a hand against the muscle of his back pectoral for a brief moment.

“Started off designing dance costumes. Hip scarves, those shiny bras with glitter on them, you know. Guess I had a knack for it, because branching out wasn’t too difficult.” She chuckled, taking note of his chest measurement before scribbling it down on her datapad. Next, she moved down to his hips, careful not to do anything that wasn’t PG-13, of course. Couldn’t help but admire what she could feel of his muscle tone.

“I do cosmetics, too. You know, lotions, foundation, all that.” Also armor and grenades, but that was less lighthearted. “Which reminds me, you’ll have to let me know how you like MyShade. I’m always looking for feedback, and I’m generous with free samples.” Her voice edged on teasing there.

“How’d you get into acting, then?”