A raven haired toddler ran around her legs, the smell of baking wafting through the apartment pleasantly. Not a hair out of place despite the flour covered brightly patterned apron, Lorna looked like she'd just stepped out of 1950s edition of Good Housekeeping. "Ooh," she murmured quietly as the oven timer went off. She smiled at the wide eyed little girl watching her curiously as she peered inside the oven, switching it off once she was satisfied they were golden brown, just like the recipe book said. "Looks like the cookies are done!"
As she placed the baking tray down on the counter, the loud trill of the doorbell interrupted her state of domestic bliss. The baby in the corner of the room wailed at the sudden awakening, and Lorna's hands were full as she bounced the baby on her shoulder whilst herding the older child with her to the front door.
"Who's come to see us, hmm? We don't usually get visitors." Lorna's tone was upbeat, but there was a heaviness in her voice despite the smile. She opened the door, expecting it to be Franny who'd forgotten her keys, or the jerk her sister had married, and almost dropped the baby in surprise when a different, but equally familiar face stared back at her.
The toddler stared up at the stranger, suddenly shy, and hid behind Lorna's legs. The stranger gave her a little wave, flicking the ash from her cigarette onto the hallway floor. Her gaze flickered back up to Lorna's open mouthed stare. "Aren't you gonna invite me in, doll?"
Nicky.
Her lips mouthed her name, but no sound came out. Instead, Lorna nodded wordlessly, ignoring the tiny tugs on the hem of her dress. She stepped aside, steering the small child out of the way. "Oh, you can't smoke in here. It's in the lease...plus, you know, the baby," she explained. It was like she was talking to a stranger. So stilted, almost painful to not fling herself into Nicky's arms.
"Oh," Nicky said, almost disappointed with the lack of any real response. With one final drag on the cigarette, she nodded amicably. She stubbed the cigarette out. "Sure thing."
Lorna absentmindedly rubbed circles in the baby's back, trying to quiet both his snuffles and her own whirring thoughts. After not so subtly checking her makeup in the mirror behind her, Lorna placed the now calm baby down, staring down at him in his bassinet.
Nicky threw herself down onto the couch, her feet aching from the walk over. The toddler eyed her suspiciously. "Hey, kid. What's your name?"
The sound of Nicky's voice kicked Lorna into reality once again. She turned to face Nicky and placed her hands on the little girl's shoulders. "She's shy," Lorna explained apologetically. Seeing Lorna smile down at the tot made Nicky's stomach flip. She looked so motherly, so content. Was she about to ruin things? "Her name's Aurora."
"Like the princess?" Nicky asked, one eyebrow raised. An impish grin lit up her features. "I guess you always did believe in fairytales." She looked around the room. It certainly looked like Lorna was living the dream - at least, her dream. Husband, house, babies. Nicky's eyes settled on the bassinet. One baby was a wakeup call, and she was half hoping Lorna had realized that she didn't really love Vince when she'd had Aurora, but the baby in the corner was a stark contrast to Nicky's hopes. "What about the baby? You and Vince have been busy."
Lorna sat down next to Nicky, pulling the toddler onto her lap. "It's a beautiful name," she said indignantly. "And the baby's not mine. He's Franny's little boy, Luca. I just look after him while she's at work."
"Oh," Nicky said after a moment. The lack of Vinny was obvious, but Lorna didn't elaborate, and Nicky didn't ask. Instead, Lorna just nodded.
"Listen, Nicky, let me put Aurora to bed and we can talk. You only got out, what, a week ago?" Lorna asked. Like she hadn't been counting down the days on her calendar. Like she hadn't marked off every day until the day last Thursday came, and like she hadn't tried to get over the disappointment when she didn't show up at her door on Friday. Not everyone had been as lucky as she had been when she was granted early release upon learning of her pregnancy. Nicky certainly hadn't been, and had served the rest of her prison sentence alone.
Nicky nodded. "Okay," she agreed. "I'll wait."
Lorna snuggled into Nicky's side. The smell of her hair permeated her air space and to her surprise, it left her almost choked up. She had forgotten what it felt like to feel so safe, to feel loved. She pulled the sheet up under her arms as she played with Nicky's hands. She smiled as she entwined their fingers together; their hands fit together like a puzzle piece. What a day.
Nicky laughed. "Why does us talking always end up like this?"
Lorna shrugged, not caring that her hair was a mess and that her lipstick was smudged beyond repair. "I don't know. It's better with a bed, though," she giggled. She looked up at Nicky, who stared out of the window wordlessly. "What are you thinking about?" Lorna asked, her eyes flickering up to try and catch Nicky's vacant gaze. Nicky looked down at the girl curled into her side and offered her nothing but a quirked eyebrow.
"Freedom," Nicky admitted. She sniffed and broke eye contact, instead electing to stare out of the window at the sun setting over the city.
"Yeah?" Lorna asked, a half smile creeping onto her face. "It feels good, doesn't it?"
"Hmm," Nicky said flatly. She might have been out of prison, but she still wasn't free. As soon as Litchfield had released her, she'd run right back to one of her many vices. With a long drawn out sigh, she comforted herself with the fact that at least spending the night with Lorna wouldn't get her ass thrown back in jail. "Yeah," she said finally. She rested her head against Morello's head and breathed in the smell of her perfume. "It does feel pretty good." Nicky said. "So does watching the sunset. I missed the world in there."
"The sunset?" Lorna asked. She glanced out of the window and saw that dusk was falling rapidly over the city. She gasped and flew to the window. "Vinny….shit, Nicky, you have to go!"
"What are you talking about?" Nicky asked lazily from the bed. Her head rolled on the pillow to the direction Lorna had run to. "Are you joking?"
"No, you have to go," Lorna insisted, shoving a bunch of previously abandoned clothes to Nicky's bare chest. Her messy hair flew around her head, a stark contrast to the perfectly pinned hairstyle she'd worn only hours ago.
"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Nicky exclaimed. She sat up in the bed, shaking her head. "Seriously?"
She flung herself across the room, white knuckles appearing as she clutched the window frame. "Vinny's gonna be up any minute, I can see him. Please, Nicky - just get out!"
Nicky's eyes widened. "You are serious!"
"Of course I'm serious, Nicky!" Lorna tore her eyes from the window and pulled at Nicky's arm, making attempts to shove her sweater back over her head.
"Cut that shit out!" Nicky protested, snatching the sweater back and throwing it easily over her own head. She shimmied into her skirt but made no attempt to leave. She stepped into her shoes, still aghast. "You're fucking crazy!"
Lorna's face wore a pained expression. "I've been told," she whispered, her eyes still glued to the window. "You don't understand, Nicky, it's not that I don't-"
"I understand fine!" Nicky snapped. "Like always, you've gotta be there for Vinny. Forget about me, as usual. Just don't come crying to me when it all ends in you doing something crazy. I don't need a murder conspiracy rap."
Lorna felt her words like a punch to the gut. She didn't meet Nicky's eyes as her own filled with tears. Instead, she just handed her the jacket that had ended up thrown on the floor. "You need to go," she repeated. She stared at the floor. "Please just go."
As Nicky stormed out, Lorna pinned her hair back into place. She stared at her own face in the mirror, feeling disgust at herself as she touched up her makeup. When Vinny burst through the door with that "honey I'm home" smile, he couldn't see through her mask like Nicky would have.
"Vinny!" Lorna exclaimed as he came in the door. Looking past him to see Nicky scurrying down the hallway, a pissed expression on her face, Lorna slammed the door shut and embraced him in a kiss. "How was work?"
"Work was good," he laughed. "Did you miss me that much?"
Lorna forced herself to smile. "It's just hard, being at home with the kids…" she trailed off.
Vinny nodded uncomfortably. He always hated talking about feelings, especially bad ones. "What happened to your dress, honey?" Vinny asked. Lorna cast her eyes down on herself, and saw a bright red stain on the mint polka dot pattern around her neckline.
"Oh," Lorna said, covering the lipstick stain with her hand. "It's...it's tomato sauce. The baby must have dropped some on me," she whispered, her eyes filling with tears at the thought of involving her little girl in her web of lies, and at how easily the lie had tumbled from her lips. "I'm so sorry, Vinny."
"Hey," Vince laughed, pulling his wife in for a hug. He kissed the top of her head. "It's okay. Aurora probably had fun." He smiled fondly at the thought of his little girl and his wife.
"Yeah," Lorna said softly. "But you saved up for months so that I could afford this dress." An acid rain of guilt poured down on Lorna as her husband simply rubbed circles in her back. He was a good man, she reminded herself, as she shied away from his touch.
"I know. But I'll get that promotion and you can have every dress you want." He laughed. "Well, within reason. Babies are expensive too." Lorna rested her head on his shoulder. He always said what he thought she wanted to hear, but he never got it right. Lorna pushed away the feelings of guilt and of resentment. "Don't be sad, honey. I love you."
Lorna nodded, burying her nose into his shoulder. "I know you do."
A/N:
Hi, lovelies! I hope you're all doing well.
Please tell me what you thought in a review. Who's looking forward to the new season?!
Stay safe and happy
- Star xo
