AN/ "YOU ARE TRASH. WRITE SOMETHING LAPIDOT." thanks me, for writing such an inspirational note for future me, really helped bring this story together. I own nothing.
Cold. It's really cold.
Lapis huffs as she slams the door of her friend's big orange truck "We can't have another late charge, Lappy.." she stuffed two Redbox movies into her hoodie pouch and continued grumbling to herself, "be a dear and take these back to the box please," Her voice was nasally as she mocked her friends whom had sent her out here to do their bidding because that's all she ever does anymore. Wake up, go to work, come home and follow orders from her roommates. She deemed this unfair, but what bothered her most was that she didn't mind this at all for the longest time. She just accepted it as part of every day life, part of her life.
"Lappy do this, Lappy do that-"
She accepted it.
She was everyone's little bitch and she was sick of it.
"Neptune damn this, I'm a goddamn Lazuli! I'm fuckin' 23! Put myself through school. Moved MYSELF out. Got a well paying job and became the goddamn CEO of the awful place! The fuggin shit 'm I doin here?!" Her words becoming slurred and riddled with obscenities as she kicked the tire of the large beast of a vehicle before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. Calming herself as she lost her cool for a moment there. She was still garbed in her bed attire sense she got off work; blue flannel pajama pants and a blue hoodie with a big pink printed fish stretched across it's back representing an old swim-team she once took so much pride in, short dyed blue hair pulled back into a little pony-tail, To complete her look, she also wore black converse that had seen some better days. She clearly looked ready to take on the town, good thing this town she resided in wasn't too big, so she didn't have to worry about what she looked like most of the time.
"Fuck November and being so cold..." Now she was starting to regret not wearing a bra as well as socks.
Trudging up to the building, the automatic doors parted for her. It was just shy of midnight, so people didn't stick around the 24hr grocery outlet long, thankfully. She spotted the Redbox machine just inside the door across from the rows of shopping carts. Something about it seemed odd though, it was turned awkwardly and it sat all sideways..
Must be dumb punk kids.
She went about doing her business so she could get the hell out of there as soon as possible. Tapping the screen once to gain the attention of the machine so the blunette could return... these movies..? Why wasn't the screen registering her commands? She pressed harder, as if pushing on the screen would make the machine feel her despair and take pity on her "Machine Senpai, pleeeeaaas! Don't do this to me, I've had a long day and I really just want to return these movies before midnight so my roommates will get off my damn back! Please NOTICE ME ALREADY!" She ended her dialog and laid her forehead on the cold painted metal of the large box, feeling particularly pitiful. There were other Redbox stations around town, but none that she could get to before midnight.
"Oy, don't ya cry on the screen now-" A voice sounded from somewhere causing her to whip her head around and look for the source of the voice. It sounded female, but unused and rough, like car tires on a gravel driveway "I just cleaned that."
"What?"
"I didn't stutter, here.." suddenly a person walked out from behind the machine. A woman. A short woman. A short blonde woman who wore thick glasses and who's hair stuck up at weird angles, who's red shirt was rolled up at the elbows, black grease and dust caked onto her thin hands, forearms, and into the knees of her khakis pants. She rubbed her hands into an already dirty tan hand-towel before laying the rag over her shoulder and offering her hand to the blue-clad woman "The machine is busted, but I can scan these individually."
Daym. Jake from StateFarm got hot.
"Uh.. so what happened?" Handing over the movies, the girl vanished behind the machine again, a few beeps sounding seconds later.
"Kids, that's what happened."
"Heh, that sounds typical of this town."
"I've pulled so much crap out of these machines before, ever sense people figured out how to fool the box, they put anything they could think of in the cases and keep the DVD's for themselves," the girl grumbled before pulling something closed in the machine and opened something else, coming to stand in view of the blunette again, "Like this, check this out" she handed Lazuli the case of what read as The Incredibles.
"Okay, good movie. What's wrong with it?"
"Open it."
So she did. Her eyes went wide as she eyed the face of a smirking frog looking back at her with smug eyes. No DVD in sight.
"Well, what an incredibly rare meme you have here!" She half laughed at the snort sound the smaller made as she took it back, writing something down on an Ipad before putting "The Incredible Meme" back into the machine.
"It's damn ridiculous and it costs our company a butt-load of money."
"What's the worst you've come across so far?"
"That's a tossup between a used condom and a 24carrot gold ring with a note addressed to some girl named Lapis-"
"What?" The blunette's mouth fell open, she couldn't tell what was more insulting, that the ring that was put there by someone for her was tied in line for the worst things found in the machine with a used condom, or that the ring was there in the first place for her of all people.
"The package deal came with a credit-card with what I also assume was Lapis's signature, I bet the guy got the ring with that card too! Poor girl.."
"W- WHAT?! Credic-card?"
"Right? That's what I said."
"I had that card and account closed too after an expensive transaction!"
"That's good, keep the guy from going on that spending spree- Wait.." She all but fell from behind the machine with haste when she put two and two together. A surprised expression on her face as her green eyes met with blue from behind those thick glasses "You're Lapis?" Blue nods, her choppy bangs bouncing about a little with her motion.
"Yeah! Lapis Lazuli," for some reason, she felt it necessary to extend her hand for the other to shake. The blonde looked to the hand before running her own over the towel once again, deeming the appendage clean enough, she slipped her much smaller hand into the taller's firmly.
"Peridot, er.. sorry about the mess." There were indeed black smudges left behind on Lapis's hand after the exchange even after she bothered to wipe her hand off first, guess one can only get so clean when on a job pertaining to dirty business.
"No worries, just shows how hard you're workin! You don't happen to still have that ring and my card, do you..?"
"Yeah, In a lock-box in the company vehicle, if you'd like I'll run and get it?"
"If it doesn't bother you too much, I mean... you are the one on the job, Peridot."
"Doesn't bother me in the slightest, it's your property and I'm getting paid by the hour anyway!" She laughed something that sounded like "Nyeh nyeh nyeh" before closing the machine slightly and sprinting out to a truck that's much to big for such a small lady. Lapis nodded to herself, looking at the machine with a little smile. So, it was just opened, not turned in an awkward manner. Easy mistake on her part. The blonde jogged back a few minutes later, thin plastic case in hand.
"What movie was it in?"
"The Notebook," that made Lapis facepalm. Now it was starting to sound like a dumb stunt Amethyst would pull, this was just too cheesy, even for her "Weird right? I've never seen it, but apparently it's a great movie." She opened the case for Lapis, passing it over. Lazuli's smile broadened as she took the case but didn't expect the ring to be suspended. The lone ring decided now was a grand time to escape. The gold piece slid and flipped off the edge of the case, plummeting to the floor, too bad for it though, Peridot snatched it out of the air it just before it hit the floor, in the process, she lost her balance and ended up on her knees in front of the blue eyed woman.
"Nice catch."
"Hey thanks, here, I believe this is for you" looking up at the other from her position, Peridot held the ring out to her.
Applause sounded from around them.
Wait what?
Lapis looked around before her face went white, people had gathered around the aria and were clapping. Some of them had their phones out and were taking pictures of... them? What? Peridot had also taken this time to look around at the people too, she recognized a few of them as people that worked in the grocery store, but was curious as to why there was this spontaneous cheering and clapping, was it because-
"Oh shit.."
Green eyes landed on the ring between her index and thumb that was extended to the other woman. Lapis in kind looked down at the ring too, seeming to register their positions almost as soon as Peridot did. Both their faces exploded into deep pinks that only darkened as someone from the crowd shouted "SAY YES! SAY YEEESSS!"
"Peridot.."
"This isn't- Holly wow, I mean... I didn't, this doesn't-! I- I-"
"Yes"
"What?" She drew her brows together at the other woman in confusion "But we literally met like-"
"-Let's humor them, for shits-and-giggles."
"Uh, alright" She stood as Lapis offered her left hand to her and took it in hers, slipping the gold band onto her ring finger easily. Lapis wrapped her arms around the shorter's shoulders, putting her face in the crook of the little technician's neck as the mass of people whistled, whooped, and cheered wildly for them.
"You smell like a car repair shop and cinnamon" This made the short blonde laugh a little as she gently put her hands on her waist and pushed her back enough to get a look at her, Lapis complied, arms laying comfortably atop the shorter's shoulders as blue eyes met green for a second time that night.
"I guess were supposed to kiss now, right?" Peridot started to look apprehensive for a moment, biting her lip nervously as Lapis held her gaze.
"Mm, probably.." blue brought a hand up and gently placed it on the side of the other's jaw, gently stroking her cheek with the pad of thumb before leaning down, hooded eyes becoming lidded. The blond met her half way in much of the same manor and for an instant, the world was silent as their lips made contact.
But only for an instant.
The people were roaring with excitement about these strangers getting engaged to the point that the store employees were pressuring people to get out before they broke or stole something.
"Well, uh.. that was interesting."
"Indeed" Lapis dropped her arms and stepped back, the blonde almost looked saddened by the loss of contact but recovered quickly. She adjusted her uniform shirt a bit and took the IPad out of it's bulky hip hostler and typed a few things out before passing it to Lapis along with a little pen.
"I need your signature as proof to your claim" blue nodded, taking the thing and putting down her signature neatly before handing it and the little pen back. She also handed back The Notebook's case as well, having taken the note and her card back. Curiosity overtook her for a second and she opened the note before laughing a minute later. Peridot shook her head and laughed a little as well, she had read the note prior to this experience, so she could understand the humor in this situation.
Lapis; You're welcome.
"My goddamn friends, wow!" she managed to get out between giggles.
"With friends like those, who needs enemies."
"My thoughts exactly" She continued to smile as she watched Peridot open the machine again putting the empty case back in the machine for later, typing a few more things onto the IPad before holstering the device and taking a little key form the open machine, stepping back and pulling the large metal face closed, locking it with the same key.
"So.." Peridot turned and gave the taller a shit-eating grin before folding her arms in front of her chest, leaning on the Redbox station for support ".. Machine Senpai, huh?"
...
"What really?" Lapis laughed breathlessly as she laid out on the couch, the TV playing a movie long forgotten after having been seen nearly six times already by the rooms only occupant at the moment. Phone warm on her ear as she listened to another talk with her. Hoodie is also forgotten, tonight attire is more simple, shorts and a tank-top. Blue hair fallen wild across the pillow like a river over stones. Her left hand that had been resting above her on the arm of the couch came over her to graze her smooth belly in a content yet playful way, a gold band proudly glistening in the dark on the second to last digit. Fingertips grazing over the thin material that separates her warm soft skin from her mischievous hands "You'd do that for me~?" A blush crept up onto her cheeks as she bit her lip a little, she could feel her heart picking up it's pace, hard and heavy escalating into fast and fluttering with the other's words. Fingers dancing low on her belly, playing around her bellybutton innocently enough to make her gasp slightly "yeah, I'd like that.." Long toned legs spread slightly, a familiar sensation building under her fingertips that makes her purr into the phone-
A light flicked on as her friend and roomie Amethyst stood in the doorway giving her a dirty look, "The Notebook? Again? Seriously?!" She motioned to the TV with her words "And what the hell man, It's three in the morning, who are you talking to?"
"Uh.. It's Peridot, from Redbox."
END-
AN/ WAAAAAAAAAAAHH THIS HAPPENED! SORRY NOT SORRY!
My face when it was the fandom that found them in the grocery store in front of the Redbox vendor. lelelel
Amethyst: Peridot, from Redbox. At three in the morning. I don't think so.
Amethyst: *takes phone* What are you wearing, Peridot from Redbox?
Peridot: NOTHING, YOU CLOD! *insane laughter probably sounding like "Nyeh Nyeh Nyeh" here*