You know, something came to me a few days back. We haven't seen Audrey in the Problems series outside of the Envy Problems story in a very long time, and even then her time in the spotlight has been brief. I thought I'd change that.
IMPORTANT- For all of you new readers, I'd recommend taking a look at the Redhead story of Relationship Problems, or Hairdresser and Party Girl before you read this.
This little story I threw together was supposed to be a sequel set after the events of Party Girl, actually, but it ended up taking another shape entirely. Want to see more of Audrey in future? Let me know.
I hope you enjoy!
Ride Home
It was funny how a single moment – one little phone call, could flip everything upside down for the whole night.
"You there? I need a favour. Nothing too big. It'd be great could pick me up from Lusties. Stupid fucking cab service's busy! I'll be waiting for you by the door! Later!"
If only it was that simple.
Adrenaline surged, crackling through every nerve of the body as though a current of electricity. With each finite second, the scenery slid by, a blur overtaken by the roar of an engine, the speed of a cheetah, the howl of a wolf. Two souls zipped along an open road, ducking and weaving around the early morning traffic, a wide, majestic moon looking down upon them.
Tonight had taken a few unexpected turns, that was for sure, but it wasn't all that bad when everything was said and done. Screaming to a stop at the side of the road, a duo prepared to disembark, the driver, windswept and blonde, carefully dismounting before turning a careful gaze toward his passenger.
She was a treasure – the kind of beautiful gemstone you had a hard time finding in even in the most upmarket jewellers in the fanciest part of town. A ruby so big and shiny that even the wealthiest of the nouveau riche struggled to get their hands on her.
"Ohhhh C'mon Mike! The fuuuuuck? Y-you-"
A hiccup as the girl, bright red, petite and frilly, grabbed for his shoulders in a wobbly attempt at finding support, nails digging in hard.
"Stop wriggling, Audrey, or you'll fall off the back…."
Okay, maybe she was a flawed gemstone, uncut and fresh from the mine, but that didn't make her any less wonderful - although getting a good grip of her as she wiggled and wriggled, giggling like an innocent little idiot, wasn't the easiest task.
"Hehe… Relaaaax. I- I only had a few drinks… j-jus one or two to unwind…."
Finally getting a reasonable enough hold upon the waist of his lady, Mike Winters mustered as much strength as he could, bringing her away from the back of the bike with care, keeping her petite form held close until he slumped against the adjacent wall, bringing her down to ground level.
Eyes cast toward the lights of the gas station, a single, lonely attendant stood behind the connecting convenience store counter, a soulless gargoyle with pale skin and a spotty complexion, Mike sighed.
"I didn't think picking you up from Lusties would mean driving downtown. Okay, fine."
Letting out a short breath, halfway between sweet and sour, he ran a hand through his untidy peroxide hair. A few pieces were missing from this quirky puzzle, big ones at that, as well.
The tone of a big brother would work better compared to an angry authority figure. Audrey was always the same when she got this wasted, giggly and sweet, silly and flirty. Given the amount of booze she could hold for someone so small, it didn't take a genius to work out how out of it she was.
"So give me the details," Mike continued, sitting down beside her with a tiny, welcoming smile. "Just how many did you drink? Cuz I'd say you're pretty hammered, Miss Belrose."
A desperate attempt to count on her fingers – many a lopsided, seasick stagger and uneasy hiccup. Damn. The redhead could barely find her fingers to count, let alone give a number.
"I- I dun- dunno… Maybe… six or seven of the strawb- strawberry ones… few shots… lil vodka…. S'okay… s'okay… I'll be g-gud in the m-mornin'."
"Ohhh my god Audrey." Scooping her up with little in the way of protest, Mike sat the party girl on a little green plastic stool left beside one of the gas pumps, giving a stern glance before moving for his motorbike and cutting the engine, pulling out the key. "Stay put for a sec. Don't move till I'm back. Gonna gas up and grab you some food, get you sobered before we hit the road again."
An excited little cheer hiccupped its way out as Audrey did her best to stay upright, swaying from side to side. "Yesssss! Food! Gimme some- I wan' cheese puffs! Gimme some fuckin cheese puffs…."
Was that a request or a demand? Either way, Mike could do little more than shake his head, giving her a short, comforting pat on the shoulder before making his way toward the gas pump he needed. Tonight's little adventure had sure taken its toll on his gas.
"Should've known better," he whispered under his breath, keeping a watchful eye over his petite charge. "Nothing's ever simple when it comes to Audrey… Always an unexpected laugh or something impulsive… Girl's a bundle of booze and adrenaline held together by Band-Aids."
Halfway through refilling the tank Mikey felt a tug against his arm – his attention pulled toward a frighteningly green-faced girlfriend. There she stayed, looking at him through quivering puppy dog eyes, still swaying from side to side like a ship at sea.
"I don' feel very well…. Gonna be-"
Those words alone sent everything into overflow. They were the signal, the all-important warning thrown into the open after a night of far too much drinking. Without so much as another word she stumbled, caught luckily in the split second that Mike had to put up the gas pump.
"Uurrrrgl…."
It all went down in the blink of an eye, like something out of a movie. By the time, Mike even realized it, having had to nurse her so many damn times before, Audrey was doubled over, an ungodly sound of discomfort wrenching out as the contents of her stomach spilled out across the concrete in a rainbow of colors.
The best Mike could do was hold her hair back, giving a comforting rub of her arched back between each violent heave, more and more grungy liquid than he ever thought possible coming out of the petite young woman until finally, she flopped back and slouched over his shoulder with an exhausted groan.
"Don't ever let me drink again…. NEVER-EVER!"
Cheese puffs weren't going to be enough for this level of drunk.
A balancing act was the only way Mike could describe his efforts when he returned from his exchange with the stony-faced teen behind the gas station counter. Audrey needed drying out – it would make the rest of the journey home a million times easier.
Maybe that was why he thought it was a good idea to buy so much food. Thankfully, there were only a handful of people to watch as came across the lot with two bags of cheese puffs under his arm, a hot dog in one hand and a coffee in the other – with the key to his bike held between his teeth.
Audrey chuckled at the sight, having long since parked her behind on the ground far away from her puddle of stomach contents, the ruffles of her dressed tarnished against the grubby concrete. She made grabby hands, catching the falling bags of brand name nibbles as Mike let them go, tearing into one of them like a hyena deprived if its pickings.
"Thanks! Fucking starving!"
"Yeah well…." Mike kneeled at her side, placing the coffee down on the stool left beside the gas pump. "Make sure you drink this, too. Double expresso, milk, extra sugar. Just the way you like it."
Halfway through the first bag of munchies to ease her booze munchies, Audrey locked eyes, a cheese powder smile cutting through the tension of Mike's mood. He wanted to be mad at her so bad – yet between her bitchy comments and stupid moments, she always showed this side of the coin – one so carefree and harmless it warmed even the coldest of moods.
Sighing, surrendering, he reached for a small tissue from the packet in his front pocket, handing it over with a tiny showing of compassion. "Why can't you be this sweet when you're not frazzled?"
"Because you might get bored of me if I start acting nice all the time."
Hearing those words stung – way more than Mikey cared to let show. It was better to say nothing, stand back up, unbutton his shirt and cool off. Almost a year together and almost two of knowing Audrey Belrose brought enough confidence to ignore small snipes like those.
'Would I still be here if I didn't care about you?'
He needed a walk, some time to stretch his stiff legs. Setting down the hotdog in its little cardboard carton next to the coffee, Mike slipped his hands into the pockets of his pressed black pants, heel of his shoe tapping against the ground.
"Stay put and finish you're food. I'll be back in a second."
"Fine," Audrey snorted with laughter, giving the hot dog uncomfortable, strangely intrigued looks. "H-hurry the f-fuck back."
Eying the minute hand as it moved across the sleek, well-designed face of his silver watch, Mike let out a sigh, tapping the timepiece with his fingertip. "You good to go? It's been over an hour… I wanna get you home before the hangover kicks in."
By now Audrey looked the smallest hint more alive – a shade of the color back in her usually porcelain complexion. Coffee. It worked wonders for draining the D out of 'drunk'.
"Yeah… sure," Audrey spoke with a short, snarky smirk, bending down to tie the lace of her fancy ribbon-lined shoe. "But we're not done just yet. There's one last place your sweet ass is taking me."
Mike sighed, looking again toward his watch again – a cool rising impatience bubbling to the surface. "It's past four in the morning sweetheart. Nowhere's open right now."
"I didn't say I wanted to go to a store, did I?!"
Climbing to her feet, more or less halfway back to her usual, fiery self, Audrey brushed down her dress and spun on her heels, giving a deep, demanding stare with those bright red eyes.
Hands on hips, she set the tone, somehow smiling even through such a sharp, stabbing stare. "I wanna stop by the Outlook before we head back to your place. Not been up there in sooooo long!"
The Scenic Outlook? It sure was an unusual request. Not unreasonable, but strange was the best way of putting it. Still, it didn't look like Audrey was going to give in. The look across her face spoke so much without the need for any words.
"Alright. If that's what you want then let's go." Caving in, Mike brought the key from his pocket and made his way across to the neatly parked Kawasaki, giving it a short once-over with a thoughtful expression. It's color matched his mood right now, cool and maybe a tiny bit sharp.
Even to his nocturnal lifestyle, four in the a.m. was a little late to be doing anything this active. Still, as much as he wanted to, it was very hard to turn her down. No matter how intense his girlfriend could be, armed with a viper's tongue and a burning hot mood to match her bright, striking style of dress, she always found a way to bring him around again with that confident smirk.
"You won't regret it Mikey! Hehe! What I got I planned? It'll totally make it worth your while."
Her talk of a plan left him even more confused. Audrey's 'plans' usually ended up involving drinking, clubbing, an extremely long shopping trip or usually all three in a single day. With all of those options off the table right now, thankfully, what else did she have in mind?
His mind busy with a wave of thoughts, Mike swung a leg over his bike and kicked away the break, slotting the key in the ignition, its turn bringing a low, calming growl.
"Hop on. You're ready to go, right?"
A momentary pause and the redhead took a few steps back, looking off toward the doors of the grungy convenience store with a flash of urgency.
"Gotta go piss. I'll be right back!"
Yep, a rough gemstone was the right way to describe her. That much was pretty obvious. Giving a short nod, Mike watched as Audrey swung around and made a hasty beeline, sidestepping a customer loaded down with boxes of groceries to escape through doorway.
Some music would work wonders right now, and lucky for him, there was always music on hand, wherever he went. With a brief smile, the singer glanced toward the squared edges of the small C.D player he'd just recently had fitted into his bike. Sure, C.D's were old news nowadays, but that wasn't an issue for somebody with such a wide collection. Feeding the disk into the mouth of the device, the powerful chords of an electric guitar chimed to life.
'I tell myself… only fools rush in. Only time will tell if we stand the test of time. It's got what it takes, so tell me why, can't this be love? You want it straight from the heart? Then tell me why can't this be love?'
"Oh Van Halen… you guys give me the strength I need sometimes. She great but dammit, she's a handful…."
The sky looked awfully calm tonight, cloudless and bright, dotted with dozens upon dozens of lights and stars. It brought a peaceful feeling. There was no way in the world he'd wish the time he spent with Audrey, no matter how chaotic it was sometimes, away. She'd brought many happy moments, times when they'd curled up on the floor of his apartment stitched up with laughter at just how weird the world could be sometimes.
"Never change…. I know you can be loud and obnoxious… but keep on being you…."
Before he realized it, Mike found himself looking across the way – gazing with interest into the window of the store. By now, Audrey stood by the register impatiently, throwing a crumpled bill on the counter, arms flailing in an annoyed gesture at the poor kid working night shift.
A shake of the head was all the blond could muster.
One blazing hot party girl and a packet of cigarettes leter, they were good to go at long last.
"Hold on tight. Don't let go."
"Yeaaaah I know… I know. Fuck. What are you? My dad?"
Pulling to a stop at the side of the road, parking up and pulling out the keys, Mike looked on with amazement at the scene ahead. There they stood, towering above the entire town on a wide hillside, gifted with a true birds-eye view of the whole of Glenberry. Like twinkling stars, the sprawling collection of buildings large and small sparkled.
It was impressive – so impressive in fact, that it became impossible to contain a whistle of appreciation. "Damn…. You can see everything… the bay lit up with lights, the downtown stretch… everything…."
Audrey arrived at his side, taking a sharp, sudden grip of his arm and holding on tight, leaning her head of straightened crimson locks against his bicep. "Well… I figure since you're better than half the trash I've dated before we'd come take a look at it together."
Despite the sharpness of her words, even during a compliment, her actions spoke very differently, It didn't take long for the tight, almost painful grip she held to loosen, turning into something halfway toward an embrace as she brought one of her slender arms around Mike's toned, shirt-clad middle.
"Never been up here with a girl before…."
If anything, the stillness, the silence, broken only by the soft chirp of crickets and the occasional passing car, brought Mike to feel safe, at ease. It didn't matter how harsh Audrey could be, not at all. For some reason, especially right now, he could tell her anything if he wanted to. She'd pretend not to listen of course, but in her own ass backward way she always did.
"You better make the most of it then… cuz you're up here with the hottest girl in town right now. Fuck I spoil you…"
A laugh slipped out, one Mike couldn't help no matter how hard he tried. A whole night of driving around, making sure redhead was okay, sobering her up, taking care of her, and of course she'd say something like that.
"Hey! What the fuck's so funny?"
He dismissed it with a wave of his free hand, instead reaching out to take the firecracker into both of his arms. At first, she flinched, a soft yelp of surprise sliding out at the sudden closeness, but in the end, she finally breathed out and relaxed, going from a stiff statue to a harmless teddy bear.
"Nothing. Shut up and hug me."
Audrey snorted at that, her silver necklace, a precious gift for a very precious lady, shining against the glow of the moonlight as it enveloped the two in its radiance. "What makes you think you can talk to me like that, huh? I should kick your ass to the curb, fucker…."
A tenderness to her threat of sorts – the frilly diva instead shuffling closer, squeezing tight as if her whole life depended on it.
"Because," Mikey chuckled, placing a tiny, fragile kiss upon her head. "I've woken up next to you nearly every day for almost the past year…. I know you get sick of hearing me say it but… I love you, Audrey…."
His words caused a shiver from the porcelain party girl, her long red nails digging into the fabric of light blue shirt. "You better… cuz… I could go out to the club and grab any guy I wanted…."
She looked up, innocently, the slightest of fear in her quivering eyes. Mike didn't think anything of it, instead just smiling and caressing one of her pale cheeks with delicate fingertips. "I dare you to go into town and find someone that'll take care of you like I do…."
"Hmph," Audrey scoffed, a deep crimson washing over her face as she hid away against his chest again. "I totally could and you know it…."
It was the perfect moment to drawn her in – bring everything home. His lips curving into the smoothest of smiles, Mike ran his fingers through Audrey's hair, taking the time to cherish every second of their time together like this.
"No matter what… you mean t-"
Out of nowhere, the redhead brought her eyes up, locking them together as green and red sparked together, placing a finger upon his lips. "I love you too, Mikey…. Now quit being all squishy."
Locked in a warm embrace they stayed – bathed in the moon's glow, as the town shone below. It had been another eventful night, true, but even as Audrey backed away in the end, slowly leading Mike back toward his bike so they could head home, he found an innermost beacon alive and well in his heart.
Moments like these? Night's in Audrey's company? He wouldn't change them for the world.
End
I hope you enjoyed this little outing with Audrey and Mike. You're more than welcome to leave some feedback and let me know what you think. I can't express how fun it was writing Audrey in a nicer light again.
As always, keep on supporting Huniepop or Huniecam Studio. I'll see you in the next Hunie chapter!