Disclaimer: Not mine, just playing. Rated M for later chapters.
Description: Slightly A/U (and maybe OOC) story of another way Steph and Ranger meet. What happens when you can't see the face of the one person that totally captivates your heart, body and soul.
A/N: This hasn't been beta'd. I've also got a couple of areas where I want to add extra descriptions, but I wrote this offline and I really wanted to get this posted.
In Dreams
Chapter 1
Tick tock, tick tock. Did the time just stop and stand still or what? Feels like this class would never end! It was quarter to three and my last class of the day gets out at three. The last fifteen minutes felt like hours at this point. It's Friday afternoon and I have to meet Mary Lou so we can hit the mall before we head back to the dorms. We have to go shopping for masks. See, tonight is theme night at The Palace, they are holding a Mask, club style. We've been looking forward to this for the last month, ever since the club announced the event. We already had our dresses, shoes and jewelry, we just needed our masks. We found a shop in the mall the sells them. Two weeks ago we special ordered masks for the each of us and they're supposed to be in today.
Tick tock, tick tock. Five minutes to go. I silently started putting my stuff away. Ready to bolt from my desk and out the door as soon as the professor said "Dismissed". Tick tock, tick tock. Does this man ever shut up? I already know all of this material, Computers 101, the pre-req to everything. Ugh.
"Homework due next class, Ten page Power Point slide show on subject of your choice. Dismissed" the professor droned out before we all bolted for the classroom door. I was the first one out the door and down the hall. I could hear the air rushing past my head as I ran. If I had to be ready by 7 o'clock, we had to leave now.
Mary Lou was already parked at the curb by the time I made it out of the building. "Come on Steph, get your ass in here, we gotta go if we're going to keep on schedule for today. Hurry up!" Mare said as I flung open the door to her car and jumped in the passenger seat. As soon as I had the door shut, she was already pulling away, cursing me silently under her breath.
"It's not my fault and you know it. Watson and his fucking homework. Besides you can't be mad at me. I'm cute. I might even be adorable." I said to her with a wink. She gave a little laugh and was smiling again and sped up a little as we headed for the mall.
We picked up our masks, grabbed a bite to eat and were on our way back to the dorm to get ready. By the time we got there, it was already five o'clock, that gave us two hours to get ready. Thank God Mare and I both had single rooms, or we'd never have had time to get ready. I set out my dress on my bed, along with my jewelry, mask and shoes and jumped in the shower. I made sure every inch of my body was thoroughly scrubbed, exfoliated and shaved in all the right spots before I got out. After I got all lotioned up, I set to my hair and make-up. I ran gel through my hair to create loose curls, I then swept them to the top of my head in a classy up do. Little ringlets framed my face perfectly. A did my makeup light seeing as I would have a mask on most of the night and added glitter to my face to the areas that would be exposed. I donned my Victoria's Secret ensemble and slipped into my dress and heals. I stood in front of my floor length mirror to double check my look. I looked hot, downright seductive if I don't say so myself. My dress, //a black and red halter came to just about mid-thigh and with my 4" black leather FMP's. I held up my mask to my face. It covered the upper half of my face. It was black with red and silver swirls painted on it and intricate designs. I glanced back into the mirror. I looked like sex on legs. Perfect. I finished putting on my jewelry when my cell rang. It was Dickie.
Dickie and I have been seeing each other for a couple of months. He's a couple of years older than me and in his last year at law school. We met in Point Pleasant last fall. He knew tonight was the Mask, and had told me last week that he'd be there. I was hoping that he was, because Mare was meeting Lenny there and I didn't want to be a third wheel to them.
"Hi Dickie, are you all ready to go? I'm all set, I was just about to call and check on Mare. We're set to leave in twenty minutes."
"Sorry sweetheart, but I can't make it tonight. My Business Law professor assigned us a paper that he wants due first thing Monday morning, so I'm going to have to work on it all weekend. Sorry again but I can't afford to fail this class if I'm going to keep up my grades." he said sounding sad, but I wasn't buying it.
To say I was pissed was an understatement. We had this all planned out. The guys would meet us there, and none of us new what the other was wearing tonight. The guys were going to be holding a silk rose so that we could spot them out when we got there. Mare's was to be red, and mine blue, to match my eyes. That was Dickie's idea.
"You promised!" I almost yelled into the phone. I could almost feel the steam coming out of ears.
"I know sweetheart, but I really need these grades if I'm going to have a respectable resume to get into a law practice. You know I'd rather be there with you than doing this paper, but school comes first, you know that." he said. Ass.
"Fine," I replied trying to keep my voice level. "I'll see you next week then. Good luck with your paper." I finished hanging up on him and tossing my phone onto my bed. After standing there for a moment without moving, I had decided to hell with him. I wasn't going to let my night get ruined just because he had a paper due and didn't want to take one night off to spend time with me.
Still pissed but feeling slightly better for hanging up on him, I grabbed my mask and black clutch tossing in money, id and keys, and headed for the door and down the hall to Mare's dorm. I knocked once and heard Mare tell me it was open. I stepped in and called out for her.
"In the bathroom, almost ready!" I heard her from behind her bathroom door. A heartbeat later Mare opened the bathroom door and sauntered out. "How do I look?"
Mare was standing there in //a gold strapless with gold and silver sandals with a 3" heal. She was stunning. She had her mask in hand. It was a full mask, gold with white designs. She left her hair long and you could barely see the gold earrings glinting in the light.
"Perfect, Lenny's going to fall over dead when he sees you! Are you all set? We got five minutes. I want to get there when they open so we won't have to wait too long in the line." I said with a smile.
"Yea I'm good to go, just have to grab my purse. Lenny called earlier, said he was going to be a few minutes late but that he'd meet us by the bar. Have you talked to Dickie? Did you guys plan for a place to meet?" she asked as she started throwing stuff into her purse and grabbing her keys.
My smile faltered only slightly and on a sigh I replied. "Yea I heard from him, he called to tell me he has a paper due Monday and will be wrapped up in it all weekend. So it's just the three of us."
"Awww honey I'm sorry. I know you wanted him to be there tonight." Mare said as she came to stand in front of me. "His loss, because damn girl you look good." She grinned at that and I could help the smile crept onto my face. "I'm sure you'll have all sorts of guys falling all over you tonight."
"Yea Mare, sure. " I said giving her my best Burg eye roll. "Let's get going. The bar is calling my name already!" I said grinning as we headed out the door.
Mare's right, to hell with Dickie. I'm going to have fun no matter what tonight. Alone or not, either way I'm going to drink and dance the night away.
Chapter 1 word count: 1467