I can't remember when I saw my first example of sexy Velma cosplay. It was probably over 15 years ago, before we had Instagram and before cosplay was a common thing. At the time, it was probably quite surprising, that a minor character from an old cartoon was not only being cosplayed, but being cosplayed in a sexy fashion. At the time, the idea was probably to be surprising and subversive: Daphne was the designated cute girl, while Velma was the nerd in dowdy clothing. But for some reason, the idea of sexy Velma Dinkley caught on, and now, a dozen years later, it is a common cosplay. What started out as a subversion has become a cliche.

Not that I am objecting too much. The idea of our shy sidekick getting her chance in the limelight makes sense as an appealing dream to a lot of us, and even while it is titillating, it manages to be wholesome. Sexy Velma cosplay is just one of the things the internet's unusual pattern of emergent behavior has brought about, and will probably be seeing it for a while.

Also used in the context of monetary exchange: “If you have to ask how much it costs, you can’t afford it” is a known idiom for expensive commodities (and often sexual work) attributed to John Pierpont Morgan.

There’s loads of other known idioms and quotes beginning with “If you have to ask…”(Armstrong 2020; Rowling 2020; pjswmkj 2016), all resting on the assumption that being unsure about {topic} means that…

It was only for a single night.

Mid August and the humidity settled in so heavy you put up your hair and decided to wear a dress when we went out, which you never do.

You drank a bit too much and danced by yourself because I did not. You knew though. You understood that you were being watched; being savored. All hair and skirt spinning on the patio under those cheap Chinese lanterns. Your blue eyes sparkling bright as flares.

I…