maybe i’m afraid

“to each their own, right? we all have our things that we love.” hudson’s was obviously sports and he never really cared about the clothing he wore. as long as it was clean. he couldn’t help but laugh a little as he was called out. a simple shrug left his shoulders as he moved his eyes back to the blonde’s face. “you can’t talk about it and not expect someone to check it out. i mean, that’s not fair.” 

“Exactly. Everyone’s gonna like something that other’s don’t. That’s just how life is,” he shrugged. Callum crossed his arms across his chest and shook his head, “That’s completely not true. I didn’t check out your junk, so I’d say it’s a very fair argument,” he stated. Cal raised his eyebrows, “And before you go thinking I have a small dick because I can wear tight pants, there are ways of...hiding it.”

“Five people? Do you think I want friends? I’m fine with being a loner. But, I would like to know my siblings SO’s better so I can make sure they’re good enough for them.”

“Christmas morning of 2010.”

“There are many things I’d like to get rid of in this world, but I guess getting rid of racism would solve a lot of worldly problems.”

“i mean, yeah, i guess so. i don’t really think about women’s pants and accessories on a regular. it’s hard enough finding my own clothes.” he shook his head, trying to make sense of this conversation and how he ended up in it. his eyes drop to glance at the male’s lower half, nodding a bit. “all clothes are expensive but you’re probably right. everyone is jacking up the prices and women are still buying. it’s part of the market, unfortunately.” 

“I guess that’s pretty fair. I just like clothes a lot,” he shrugged. Callum liked looking nice and keeping up with trends. It as fun for him and also got him lots of dates. He squinted his eyes and licked his lips, “I’m sorry, but did you just look at my crotch? Dude, not cool.” 

“well… clearly people thinks girls don’t need pockets, so.” she started and laughed softly to herself, “honestly? i know that fashion nova’s pockets are pretty big. i think their reasoning is because bigger pockets makes your ass look bigger, but they fit everything in ‘em. if you wanna wear women jeans that much you can either get those or get women cargo pants?”

“I honestly think it’s mostly about bulkiness, but still. Girl’s have it hard in literally everything,” he sighed. “Wait, is that true? I never even thought of that. I’m not really into girl butts, but I might have to test that theory.” Callum gave her a look, “Cargo pants? No one likes cargo pants.”

“oh, yeah, yeah. they’re pretty dope as they say.” he shook his head, glancing at the other once more. honestly, he needed a bit more room in his pants than others. “because that’s not the point of pants for women. the manufacturer’s want them to buy other accessories so they can spend more money.” he shrugged a bit. “guys don’t usually need all of that. we have our keys, phone and wallet. that’s it.” 

“Don’t you think that’s a little fucked up? They make less money than men, but they have to spend more money than men if they want to be able to carry their keys, phone, money, and whatever else they need? I could probably fit all of that and more in my pockets. And another thing is, women’s clothes are more expensive. These pants were eighty dollars. My favorite jeans? Thirty dollars. It’s messed up.”

“ Yep! I mean, it’s convenient when I’m sneaking food into a movie theater, but otherwise it kind of sucks, ” Astrid chuckled. “ Depends, ” She explained, “ A cheaper purse is probably around thirty dollars, but some people buy two hundred dollar bags. ”

“I can definitely see the pros and cons there,” he chuckled. “But it just doesn’t seem very fair either way. Maybe in the future there will be pocket equality.”

“ i’m glad you tried it. seriously- i sometimes buy pants from the men’s section because i need deeper pockets. “ the woman looked at her own pants. “ o look this is one from last year and i can fit my entire phone inside the pockets; “

“I’m glad someone gets it,” he laughed. “Fuck gender roles,” he shrugged. Callum nodded then shook his head, “Yeah, all of my pants from the men’s section can fit my phone, keys, wallett, a pack of gum and at least two other things. Half of my phone sticks out in one of these pockets.”

“did you get lost or did you buy them on purpose?” hudson laughed a little, crossing his arms against his chest. “i heard all of that from my sister but i can’t say i’ve experienced them. you could wear a jacket. they have pockets.” 

“I bought them on purpose. These are dope,” he shrugged. Callum was very comfortable with his sexuality and masculinity, that he wasn’t afraid to venture from societal norms. “Yeah, but the whole thing is, you still have to buy or wear a whole other thing. Why can’t pants be enough? Why do girls need to buy a jacket or a purse when their pants pockets can and should be able to hold what they need?”

               she smirked slightly at him, “it’s the same mindset women have when they have to work twice as hard in a male dominated field in order to excel.” she closes the book and looked over at him with a softer look. “it’s all a scam for the benefit of a man but keep the jeans they make your butt look amazing. if you wore heels, your calves would be poppin’.”

“That is a good point. Fuck society,” he chuckled. Callum wasn’t really the kind of guy to get too into politics, but he knew what was fucked up and what wasn’t. The patriarchy? Fucked up. “Men are the worst,” he declared. “But thanks. I think I’ll just stick to the pants for now.”

“The worst ones are when they sew the pockets shut, so you literally can’t use them for anything. What’s the point in putting the pockets on the pants, if you’re just going to sew them shut? But to answer the question - that’s what purses are for.” 

“Shit, they actually do that? That’s so fucked up,” he scoffed. Callum was not a fan of the fashion industry’s sexism towards women. “If I were any good at drawing or sewing, I’d make women’s pants with pockets that are functional,” he huffed.

“which is why you should adopt the idea that if it doesn’t fit in your pockets then maybe you don’t actually need it for whatever you’re doing,” she more or less teased with a pursed lips. “no, but seriously. there’s been many times when i’ve had to do that. it’s not ideal, but– it’s something. honestly, the best idea is probably to invest in a new pair of jeans. ones with actual pockets. either that or get a bag or use my method.”

“Okay, but in my men’s jeans, I can fit my phone wallet, and my keys. Oh, and gum too. I can fit my gum in these pockets,” he frowned. “It’s pathetic.” Callum scratched the back of his neck, “I guess I’ll just stick to men’s clothes. no matter how cool the girls ones are.”

“ It’s only something I’ve been complaining about my whole life. Like, sure, there are purses, but sometimes i just want to use pockets. Why are you buying women’s pants? ”

“I totally get it, now. I’d hate having to buy a whole other thing just to carry my shit. How much are purses anyway?” Callum shrugged his shoulders and looked down at the pants, “Cause these are dope and I couldn’t find anything like them in the men’s section.”

         “excuse me? high school musical is a classic!” she retorted with a shake of her head, though an amused smile played on her lips. “it’s only to be used in drive thrus though. otherwise there’s only one genre of music that matters — and that’s clearly punk.” when the bag came her way, she immediately latched onto it and opened it up. “well, sir, i already chose the first destination. guess you didn’t enjoy it all that much did you?” ella claire teased, her eyes focused on opening up the small little box of the nuggets. “so now, treat me to a place. bonus points if i hate it!”

“A classic? You’ve got to be kidding me,” he shook his head disapprovingly. “I could argue that punk music is also no good, but I have a feeling you’re not to keen in letting things go,” he teased. Callum pulled onto the highway and shrugged his shoulders, “McDonald’s isn’t that fun, I guess.” He gave her a mischievous look and quickly did a U-turn on the empty highway, “I know just the place.”

              “ty prekrasno vyglyadish' ─ ” she shook her head realizing she hadn’t uttered an english phrase to the other, she had been so engrossed in one of her favourite novels that she seemed to have forgotten where she was. “it looks wonderful; makes your legs look bangin’.” she simply responds. “that’s why we have purses, it’s really unfortunate.”

Callum gave her a weird look, as that was a language he was sure he’d never heard before, but he decided to just ignore it. “Thanks,” he smiled and looked down at his legs. “That seems like such a scam. Like, why should women have to pay for more things just to carry around the things they need? That’s fucked up.”