Chapter 1 – first meeting

Alex stood in the bathroom, trying to be as quiet as possible. She needed to get herself together before she started her waitressing shift at Orange Café. In the last few months of her 19 years on this earth, she went through the same ritual many times, but it just kept getting harder. She peeled off her black t-shirt and pyjama shorts before getting in the shower. The purple marks on her stomach were already starting to show, but at least there was no blood this time. She just needed a moment to pull herself together before going to work. She let the warm water run over her tired shoulders, wincing slightly at the pain in her stomach. She needed to keep it together for her mum and little sister Lucy, it was the only way she could protect them.

She got out of the shower and slowly got dressed in her uniform, heading out earlier than usual to make sure she didn't miss her bus. Just before she reached the front door of the small apartment she shared with her mum and Lucy, she felt a rough hand on her shoulder "have a good shift Alex, don't forget to keep your mouth shut". Robbie would never miss the opportunity to try and intimidate Alex, but the truth was that she didn't care what he did to her, she just needed to make sure he never touched Lucy.

Her mum, Diane, had always worked so hard to provide for Lucy and Alex, working multiple jobs to keep a roof over their heads. Life had always been so hard for Diane, and Alex was really happy when Diane finally met a nice guy in Robbie. Diane had met Robbie at the diner where she worked one night, and they really hit it off. At first, Robbie was nothing but kind to Alex and Lucy, and after 6 months he moved in with them and helped Diane with the bills. This meant that Diane could finally just work shifts at the one job, giving her more time at home with her daughters, especially Lucy who was only 10 years old. Lucy was absolutely ecstatic when Diane told her she would be home more and do all the usual things like take her to school and watch movies together. But slowly, in the last 3 months, Alex saw a dark change in Robbie. He always told her how beautiful she was, just like her mum, but Alex never thought much of it. Quite frankly Alex spent most of her time with her best friend Nicky, so she wasn't at home that much. She snuck home late one night, having been out smoking pot with Nicky, talking about girls and how they wanted to travel the world one day. Eventually, around 3 am, Alex stumbled through the front door and woke up a drunken Robbie from his stupor on the couch. He stumbled towards her, slamming her against the closed front door "What the fuck do you think you're doing! You're getting too fucking cocky for your own good lately. Your mum told you to be home hours ago, she might be stupid enough to buy your excuses, but I'm not". For a moment Alex couldn't quite comprehend what was happening, her and Nicky had gotten themselves insanely high over the past few hours and her head was spinning. Before she knew it, she felt Robbie's hand slide under her shirt, grabbing at her breasts. "You've always been beautiful Alex, maybe it's about time you start being nicer to me. Keep me occupied before Lucy gets older." Survival instinct kicked in and she tried to push him away, causing him to heave his knee into her mid-section. She fell to the ground unable to breathe, unable to process what just happened…..

Alex quickly shook the memory from her mind before pushing past Robbie and running out towards the bus stop. She blinked back the tears and just focussed on getting to work. "Hold it together Vause" she told herself. She so desperately wanted to tell Diane what was happening, but it wasn't that simple. She was sure Robbie would never hit Diane, and the fact that Diane didn't have to work so much anymore made her so happy. Right now she would do everything in her power to protect her family, she would figure out a solution later.

Alex was exhausted after her shift, which finished around 10pm. She slowly walked towards her apartment block, noticing a young blonde woman, not much older than Alex, hastily shoving boxes into the building lobby. Alex was taken aback by her piercing blue eyes and blonde hair. Something in her said "don't let this opportunity pass you by".

"Hey, need a hand?" said Alex.

"That obvious I'm struggling with these boxes huh?" the woman smiled, and continued talking.

"Hi, I'm Piper, and yes some help would be great. I'm new to the building, proud new resident of 3B"

"Great to meet you Piper, I'm Alex. 3B, that's just a couple doors down from my place" Alex smiled broadly at Piper, thinking to herself, "This woman is gorgeous! Play the game Vause, get yourself into her apartment".

"How about I help you with those boxes, show some neighbourly hospitality" Alex smiled again at Piper, who looked relieved at the offer. Piper nodded her head, gesturing towards the boxes still in her car. In her enthusiasm, Alex bent over to grab a box and felt a sharp pain run through her abdomen and down her right leg. "Aghh, fuck" Alex clutched her stomach as she put the box back down. "Hey are you ok?" The blonde looked genuinely concerned. "How about a new deal, I'll finish with the boxes, and you go pick up the pizza I just ordered from Benny's around the corner?"

Alex felt the embarrassment rush to her face, but wanted to move on quickly. "Ok sure, work must have been harder on me than I thought!"

"Great, it's already paid for, so I'll see you back here soon". Alex smiled back at Piper and made her way towards Benny's. She didn't know what it was, but there was something about those blue eyes that just drew her in. All she knew was that she wanted to get to know Piper, and she had no desire to rush back to her apartment. Lucy was having a sleep over tonight, so Alex felt more relaxed about staying out.

"This could shape up to be an interesting night" thought Alex as she walked around the corner.

It was getting late, but Piper was so damn happy. She had finally escaped her parents house and was going to make it on her own. She was so sick of her mother trying to turn her into a yuppie housewife, and of her dad's complete apathy towards his family. She was desperate to get out on her own. She had just finished her Arts degree, and wanted to try her hand at writing. She got herself part time work at the local library, which gave her some extra cash and the time to write her book of short stories. She was 22 and wanted to try her hand at writing, she didn't want to look back in 20 years and regret not trying. Who knows how long this new found courage would last, it didn't really matter. So long as she could escape her parents, Piper was happy. She had money her grandmother had given her on the side to help subsidise rent. She figured if the writing thing didn't work out in 6-12 months, she'd need a plan B. She was scared, and prone to running away from her problems, but all she wanted right now was her own space.

Her best friend Polly helped her scope out potential apartments, until they found something in her budget. It wasn't much, but it had all she needed for the moment. When she came to view the apartment twice before, she kept seeing a young dark haired girl leaving the building. She was beautiful, but she always looked so sad. Piper didn't know why, but that young girl kept finding her way into Piper's mind. Why did she look so sad? She was gorgeous, she could have anyone she wanted.

Piper was finally moving in, and Polly had bailed on her as usual. Piper now found herself unloading boxes from her car late at night, desperate to just get into the apartment. She suddenly heard a voice from behind her, it was the dark haired girl, whose name she learned was Alex. She seemed kind, but there was still a sadness to her eyes. Piper was secretly ecstatic when Alex offered to help with the boxes, even though she was basically a stranger. "She doesn't even know me, but she's kind enough to offer a hand". Piper then noticed Alex clutching her side, "damn, guess I am moving these boxes on my own". But she didn't want the brunette to leave. So Piper suggested Alex go collect her takeaway and meet back at the apartment. As Alex walked away, Piper was lost in thought, "Am I insane? Oh well, I've got to at least try and make some new friends during this little independence experiment…..