ARACHNE

"It's not my face, it's my body," now the lady's voice was not distant anymore. She was slowly getting nearer to the door.

"Don't you have hands?" I asked. "Yes, I have hands". "Then that's all you need to create my suit," I smiled. I knew she could feel the smile in my voice. Suddenly the door slightly opened and I saw her head. She was peeking outside as if she was scared of a monster lurking from the woods. And then she looked at me. Her pitch-black eyes were so deep I felt like they were staring into my soul. Her long amber-colored hair was glowing in the sun as if it was covered with dew and her silky creamy white skin looked so soft you would think she had bathed in milk and honey. The high cheekbones and full lips created perfect harmony.

"Stunning!" that was the first thought that crossed my mind. I was gazing at her and couldn't turn my eyes away. She was looking at me with confused and widened eyes. White teeth were showing from her lightly open mouth. She looked like an innocent kid who couldn't understand why her mother was angry.

"Hello!" after a few seconds I came to my senses.

"Hi, you are very stubborn you know that?" she giggled. Little dimples appeared on her cheeks. They looked like tiny half-moons.

"Yes, I know" I laughed, "can I come?" The lady was contemplating for a while and then told me, "Come in, but be prepared for what you are going to see."

She fully opened the door and I stepped in. She was standing in front of me. I was looking at her face, arms, chest, waist and couldn't understand what she had been talking about but then my eyes ran down her body and there it was or should I say there they were - her legs but they were not legs beautiful women have. There was no silky white skin. Instead - six brownish dark thin legs covered with fuzz. They were spider legs, skinny like a stick, and bent in three places. They were growing down from her waist and then sticking out to left and right. It was the most horrible thing I've ever seen. I gasped from surprise and shivered from dread and disgust. The woman noticed traces of fear in my eyes and opened the door to show me off, "You can leave," she said but I shook my head.

"Sorry, sorry" I tried to apologize. "It really is unusual but it doesn't bother me. I'm here for a suit and nothing else".

I tried to sound convincing and looked straight into her eyes. It worked and she closed her door. She looked offended and turned her back at me. Her voice got formal: "So what kind of suit do you want?" But then she turned around, "By the way, my name is Arachne."

"Nice to meet you Arachne, I'm Nico" I smiled but Arachne didn't smile back. Her eyebrows were frowning. She was mad at me because of my reaction. Arachne took a long tape measure and drew nearer to me. Her spider legs were moving one after another. When one of her legs landed on the floor it sounded like someone had tapped on a wooden table. Arachne started measuring my proportions. I looked around. Old furniture looked like no one had touched it in a while.

"You haven't had costumers lately right?" I asked but regretted my words in a second.

"Yes, people are scared of me," she said without looking at me. I wanted to make her smile so I started talking about myself. "My brother has a wedding. He has a white and black themed wedding. He told me I shouldn't look more handsome than him."

Arachne giggled. Tiny half-moons appeared again. The thought that she wasn't mad anymore made my heart at ease. "Well, what can you do, it's his day," she said with a sweet voice.

She was wrapping the tape around my body and her soft fingertips touched my skin. It felt like touching flower leaves. When she stood up to measure my chest, Arachne's face was just a few centimeters away from mine. Her lips were glossy and red just like a rose after morning rain. When I was looking at her face I completely forgot about her spider legs. At that moment the only thing that existed was Arachne's bright eyes and soft lips. Arachne finished the job and started drawing the pattern on a paper.

"I have no idea what kind of suit I want. It's up to you. I trust you." I told Arachne, who was focused on the pattern. "Okay, then you should come back tomorrow," said Arachne with a serious face.

"Sounds good!" I tried to sound as cheerful as possible. We said our goodbyes and I left the sewing shop.