The Project

"Working late, huh? I'll wait for your call then. Goodnight, babe." "Goodnight." She closed her phone. "Sorry about that," she said to Steven.

"I don't mind, really," he reassured her. He looked curious but she didn't volunteer any information about Ben. She wasn't really sure how to refer to him at this stage, since one date hardly qualified him as her boyfriend.

Julia thought some more about the original topic of Steven's presentation. "Have you thought about what you're going to wear?" she asked.

Steven finished his box of noodles and put it down. "Wear?" he asked, confused at the abrupt change of topic.

"When you're giving your presentation to management," she explained. "You should really wear something a bit more professional-looking than your usual clothes."

"What's wrong with my usual clothes?" He sounded a bit hurt.

"Nothing is wrong with them," she explained gently. "You just need to tailor your wardrobe to the audience, just like you tailor your content to the audience."

He looked down at his t-shirt as understanding dawned. "Oh," he said. "I don't think I have anything better I can wear."

"Come on, you must have something nice," she replied impatiently. "What do you wear when you go out on a date?"

Steven looked rather uncomfortable at that line of questioning. "I haven't really had many dates," he said eventually. "I guess I would just wear my favorite t-shirt."

Julia sighed. "Let me see what's in your wardrobe."

Steven led her to his bedroom with a worried frown. She belatedly realized she should have asked before going into his bedroom. Luckily it was tidy, with no dirty laundry or anything embarrassing in sight. Steven was remarkably well house-trained for a young man.

His closet, however, was not so impressive. It contained of dozens of t-shirts and an old black suit which looked like it hadn't been worn in years. "You're right. You really don't have anything else." She made a snap decision. "Alright, I'm taking you shopping. Lunchtime tomorrow, ok?"

"You're taking me shopping?" he asked in bewilderment.

"Yes," she insisted. "You do want the executive management team to take you seriously, right?"

"Yes, I guess so," he reluctantly conceded. "But surely you have better things to do with your lunch break than go shopping with me."

"Don't be ridiculous. I love shopping," she said with a smile. "One of my favorite pastimes as a little girl was dressing up Barbie in new outfits."