Of course Kenzi had forgot the damn present. She had one thing to do, Bo thought as she left the car -that, by the way, really needed to be scrapped -complaining about the rain that had ruined her perfect dark hair.
Celebrating Tamsin's birthday had never been simple. That woman wasn't simple.
First of all, she hated growing old. From her twenty-fifth birthday she started to complaining about her imaginary wrinkles and loss of memory.
Bo tried to explain to her that maybe getting drunk every time she had occasion was unhealthy for her brain, but the pretty Icelandic blonde seemed to not pay much attention to that.
By the way, on the other hand Tamsin loved to party, almost as much she loved to receive gifts.
The only problem was...there was no gift. Bo spent the last two days buying decorations, booze, food and other booze, adding it to tons of beer. She even made a cake, the last of a roundup of baking failures. She wanted to write a name on it but, as Kenzi suggested, that poor cake had been tortured enough.
When Kenzi called to tell her she forgot to buy something for Tamsin, Bo had to stop dreaming about the long, warm shower post work, and come up with something.
Her pay as bartender would not allow her to buy expensive electronic gadgets, which surely Tamsin would have broken in a matter of days.
Clothes? No, Tamsin had her own way of dressing, better not risk it. Within two hours Bo had shot dozens of shops and nothing seemed to satisfy her friend's tastes. She was in about to give up and invent some excuse about how the dog had eaten her gift, when Bo saw a wooden sign of a shop in a hidden alley.
Curious, she entered the lane, approaching a graceful little store. It was small, lit by large windows and so full of shelves that it was hard to Bo distinguish what was actually inside. The sign reads 'Useless things'.
"A good marketing strategy", she murmured ironically. Bo entered the shop, followed by the jingling of an old little bell. Although it was a clean, friendly place, chaos reigned. Stacks of books hindered the passage and the high shelves were full of kinds of objects, old or simply strange. The sound of Bo's footsteps was amplified by her heels and besides no one else seemed to be there. Judging by the many empty boxes stacked in a corner near the counter, that place must have just opened, or about to close.
Bo let her big brown eyes scour every centimeter of that place. She picked up what looked like a weird stuffed cat, watching it amused.
"I wouldn't buy it if I were you."
Bo jumped on the spot and turned around to see where the voice was coming from. In a corner of the store a woman was slowly descending a wooden ladder with a book in a hand.
'Beautiful legs', she thought. 'Ok stop looking at them, even if they are so long and winding...No! Bo. Stop.'
The woman carefully placed the book on the counter before turning to Bo. She had long golden hair, big hazel eyes and by far the most beautiful smile that Bo had ever seen. The blonde seemed amused by the reaction of the woman.
"Someone told me that the cat you're holding brings good luck, but only to those who treat him well."
"Then I better buy something else. The person to whom I want give it has an insane passion for guns and little patience with animals. This two factors don't get along."
The owner of the shop laughed, and Bo felt the world stop around her. She didn't realize that she spent the last minute staring at the woman. The blonde cleared her throat before pointing a finger to another shelf. This one was full of old vinyls.
"Is someone's birthday?", the woman asked. Bo nodded. "Yes, and she's a very complicated person."
"She obviously is, if you happened here." The two women laughed.
"Sorry", Bo said, "Can I know your name?"
The blonde extended her hand. "Lauren."
Bo squeezed it. It was slightly larger than hers, but much more delicate. "I'm Bo."
"My pleasure, Bo."
Lauren glanced at the vinyls. "Is this person a relative of yours? A friend?" She paused for a moment, grinning slightly. "Girlfriend?"
Bo shook her head, laughing. Was that a bitter smile? "No, not a girlfriend. She's a friend of mine, an old friend. I know her since I was fourteen and I still don't know what to give her. Her tastes are a little difficult." She snorted, looking around and Lauren couldn't stop from laughing.
"Does this friend of yours have particular tastes? Classical music, indie...pop?"
Bo laughed at the word 'classic'. Tamsin wasn't exactly the type. "Let's put it this way: my friend is a first class wrangler, always ready to kick someone's ass and complain about how the world has gone to hell. In fact, I think she needs a little relaxation."
"I understand...let's see..." Lauren went to the counter. She rummaged in some boxes and took out several objects. Bo raised an eyebrow at the sight of a pack of incense, a mat and a CD of relaxing music. The blonde packed up the objects precisely, then returned to the shelf of vinyls and pulled out one. She packed that too, without giving Bo the chance to see what it was.
When Lauren had finished, she handed Bo the bag full of things -now closed in pretty colored packages. Bo touched her finger for a second, while taking the envelope. "Well...uh...thanks. How much do I owe you?"
Lauren looked up while thinking and Bo couldn't help herself from smiling. The blonde was too cute. "Fifteen dollars", she finally said.
Bo eye's widened. "Only fifteen?"
Lauren counted with the fingers the objects as she listed them. "Two yoga Cds, a mat and incense. Fifteen dollars."
"And the vinyl?"
Lauren winked to her, making Bo melt on the spot. "That is priceless. Come back to tell me if your friend liked the gift.
"Oh," Bo said, "you can count on it."
...
A.N: So, hello everyone! This is my first fan fiction, and since English is not my first language, I sincerely apologize for every mistake I made and will certainly do. Please tell me if you like it, I'd love to continue this story but I'm also very insecure about my writing skills. Every critic is accepted! Tell me if I can continue it!