A/N: Hey everyone! I've been on Fanfiction for a while, publishing for other fandoms, and I've really wanted to write something for OITNB. I haven't been part of the fandom for too long, so I just wanted to dip my feet into OITNB Fanfic by writing a couple of one-shots before delving into multi-chapters. So, I hope you enjoy this random one shot, and let me know what you think!
Call Me
"Polly, I promise this will just take two minutes," Piper repeated as she dragged her best friend into the college library.
"It's fine Piper, but be quick, I'm starving!" Polly replied with a slight whine as they made their way to the second floor.
Piper made her way to the Gender Studies Section of the library, searching the shelves for a particular book. Almost finished with her term paper for her Women in Theater class, Piper realized that she had completely forgot to cite a book that was essential to her paper's argument, and insisted that she and Polly stop at the library on their way to dinner to grab it.
Running her finger over each book while scanning the call numbers, Piper was able to locate the book; a somewhat worn, paperback edition with a large image of Ophelia from a rendition of Hamlet on the cover.
"Got it!" Piper exclaimed, spinning around to find Polly leaning against a shelf with her arms crossed.
"Great, now let's get out of here," Polly replied, turning quickly and making her way out of the stacks. "I really don't want to miss taco night."
"Right, taco night! We better hurry," Piper giggled, catching up with Polly.
"If we miss it, then this book better have been worth it," Polly grumbled, half serious.
"Don't worry, it definitely will be."
A couple hours later, Piper and Polly were back in their dorm, settling in on their homework. Piper grabbed the book for her term paper, flipping through it quickly in search of the index. While skimming the pages, a small, folded scrap of paper fluttered out of a page in the middle of the book, landing on Piper's bed.
Curious, Piper picked up the paper, unfolding it and reading the short message inside. Her eyes widened as she gasped.
"What is it Piper?" Polly asked, looking up from her reading.
"Oh my god, look at this!" Piper waved the paper, and Polly crossed the small dorm room, snatching the paper out of Piper's hand. Her eyes skimmed the text and she suddenly burst out laughing.
Scrolled across the paper, in all capital letters was a brief, straightforward message:
FOR A GOOD TIME
CALL ALEX
857-555-6698
"Oh my god!" Polly exclaimed, continuing to laugh. "That is the last place I would expect to find this."
"Is it really that funny?" Piper asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It's just – you see these messages scrawled on bathroom walls all the time, but in a college library book? Some guy must really be desperate... or perhaps they're a real asshole," Polly pondered.
"Hmm," Piper hummed, grabbing the paper back from Polly and twisting towards her trash can, ready to crinkle up the paper and toss it. Suddenly, a hand flew out and snatched it back from her.
"What are you doing!" Polly gasped, holding onto the paper.
"I was throwing it away," Piper said slowly, not understanding Polly's actions. "Why would I keep a stranger's phone number?"
"For fun," Polly rolled her eyes as if it were obvious. "Come on, how funny would it be if you called this Alex?"
"Not funny at all," Piper retorted. "What would I even say, Oh hi, I found you're number in a book that says you're a good time, now what?"
"Come on, just call!"
"No! Absolutely not!"
"Come on Piper! Do something crazy for once!"
"I do crazy things all of the time," Piper replied indignantly.
"Like what?" Polly scoffed.
"Well, I hang out with you. No one can understand why I put up with you," Piper said with a smile, pleased with her quick response.
"Shut up. Now come on, just call, if they answer, you can just hang up."
"You promise you'll leave me alone if I do?"
"Promise."
"Fine," Piper sighed, extending her hand. Polly grinned, dropping the paper in her hand. Reaching for her phone, she took a deep breath, hoping whoever was on the other end of the phone wouldn't answer.
Ring
Ring
Ring
Ring
The ringing stopped abruptly, and Piper inhaled sharply.
"Hello, please leave a message after the beep."
Piper let out a breath. It was one of those general voicemails, without a personal recording from the phone's owner. Which was great, because then this whole thing could remain anonymous and –
Beep
"Shit," Piper said into the phone without realizing it. "Um, I mean, not shit. Just forget I said that," Piper face palmed, then turned to stare at Polly in horror. Polly was staring back at her eyes wide.
"Keep talking," Polly hissed. At Piper's shocked expression, Polly continued. "You can't just leave a message for someone saying 'shit'. Make something up."
Nodding, Piper forced her voice to remain calm. "Hi, this is Piper. I found a note saying to call Alex for a good time. But, uh, you aren't answering, obviously. So I guess you lost out. Sorry. Have a good day," Piper cringed as she hung up quickly and dropped her phone on her bed like it had burned her.
Again turning to Polly, Piper began blushing as she saw Polly laughing at her.
"Holy shit," Polly wheezed. "You are one of the least smooth people in the world. No wonder you have so much trouble going up to guys."
"Shut up," Piper whined, tossing a pillow at Polly. "That was not funny. It was humiliating."
"Oh please," Polly scoffed. "You randomly called a stranger, it's not like you're going to have to see them tomorrow."
"Right," Piper trailed off as her phone buzzed. Unlocking it, she stared at the new text message. "Fuck."
"What's wrong?" Polly said.
"It's Alex," Piper muttered, still staring at her phone.
"What?" In a flash, Polly was again off her bed and next to Piper, reading over her shoulder.
857-555-6698: You called?
"Shit. Shit. Shit. What do I say?" Piper looked up at her best friend, her eyes wide.
"Say what you want. Or don't say anything at all. You don't know Alex, whoever he is, and we go to an all girls' school, so it isn't like you'll run into them on campus."
"You're right, you're right. I'm not going to respond," Piper said firmly, once again pushing her phone away from her.
After about ten minutes of quiet studying, Polly stood up. "I'm going to shower," she announced, going to her closet to grab her caddy and towel.
Piper nodded in acknowledgement, continuing her work on her essay. She was just finishing it up when her phone buzzed with another text.
857-555-6698: You call me trying to proposition me and then you ignore me?
"What?" Piper gasped, shocked that this Alex thought she was propositioning him. Without thinking, she typed out a quick response.
Piper: I did NOT proposition you. I said I was told to calll you for a good time, so I did. The end.
A minute later, her phone buzzed again.
857-555-6698: That sounds like a proposition to me…
"Ughh," Piper groaned, texting back a response. She wasn't sure why, but she felt like she had to. She couldn't let this random person think she was trying to hook up with a random person.
Piper: It was not a proposition.
The response was almost immediate.
857-555-6698: So, are you looking for a good time?
Piper: NO. Look, I found your phone number in a book that said to call you for a good time, and my roommate dared me to do it. That's it. End of story. I'm not interested.
Piper's phone was silent for two minutes, and she thought that Alex had finally gotten the message. Leaving her room to get ready for bed, Piper was feeling pretty pleased with herself. Sure, she looked like an idiot for accidentally leaving a message on a stranger's phone, but she was able to get out of it pretty easily, and she could move on.
Or so she thought.
When she got back to her dorm, Polly was already in bed, her side of the room dark. Piper climbed into bed and grabbed her phone to set her alarm. However, when she unlocked her phone, she was greeted with a new text.
857-555-6698: But what if I'm interested?
Piper couldn't help but smile. Alex was persistent, she'd give him that much.
Piper: Now who's propositioning?
857-555-6698: Me.
Piper: Eh, not tonight, I'm heading to bed. Maybe some other time if you play your cards right.
857-555-6698: Goodnight Piper.
Piper: Goodnight Alex.
And that's how it began.
Every day, at least once a day, Piper would receive a text from Alex. Most of the time it was flirty, asking Piper if today was the day Alex could proposition her. But some of the time, Alex would text her just to say hi and ask how her day was.
And for some reason, unknown to both Polly and to Piper herself, Piper would respond. Alex would always initiate the texting, but Piper would keep up the conversation, enjoying Alex's banter and flirting.
After a week, Piper added Alex to her contacts, finally giving up the charade that she would eventually stop responding to Alex's texts, and establishing the tentative relationship that was building.
Alex: What are you up to?
Piper: I'm doing my reading for American Poetry.
Alex: Anything interesting?
Piper: We're currently reading Robert Frost. We had a discussion today about his poem The Road Not Taken. Apparently it doesn't mean what everyone thinks it means. Frost just took the path at random and decided the choice was important when retelling his story at a dinner party. But really, shit just happens the way that it happens.
Alex: … Wow
Piper: I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bore you, I've just never thought of the poem like that.
Alex: Hahaha no, it's totally fine. I just don't think I've ever received such a scholarly text before.
Piper: Fuck you
Alex: Gladly
Alex: Any chance you aren't drowning in school work tonight?
Piper: I wish. But I have midterms next week, so I should probably just focus on that.
Alex: Alright kid, but don't study too hard
Piper: I'll try not to
A week after her midterms have ended, Piper ends up at a house party that kids at one of the neighboring schools were throwing. A little more intoxicated than usual, she finally texts Alex first.
Piper: Hey
Alex: Hey yourself
Alex: I wasn't expecting to hear from you, it being a Saturday night and all
Piper: I'm finished midterms and I'm celebrating! I'm at a frat party at Williams, you should come by!
Alex: Now that sounds very tempting. Unfortunately, I had to go home this weekend.
Piper: Is everything all right?
Alex: Yeah, everything's fine. It was my mom's birthday this week, so I wanted to come home to celebrate.
Piper: Aww, that's cute.
Alex: Don't let that get out. It'll ruin my reputation.
Piper: I'll try to hold it in.
Piper: I think I like you.
Alex: Hahahaha How much have you had to drink?
Piper: Shut up! Not too much. But enough.
Alex: Okay kid.
Piper: You're making me regret texting you.
Alex: Well, we can't have that. Guess what?
Piper: What?
Alex: I like you too. Now go enjoy your party.
Piper smiled as she slid her phone back into her jeans, looking around for Polly so she could rejoin the party.
"I still don't understand why you still text that Alex person," Polly stated as they walked across the quad.
"I told you, Alex is very nice," Piper blushed as she replied firmly. She was tired of explaining this to Polly. Her conversations with Alex have continued over the past few weeks, though they have yet to align their schedules enough to meet.
"But you've never even met him!"
"So, we talk all the time?"
"For all you know, he could just be some creep feeding you bullshit in hopes of meeting you and killing you."
"Well that was dark," Piper snapped as they passed a group of girls, Piper subconsciously checking them out. Scanning the group quickly, recognizing several from her Biology Lab, Piper's eyes were drawn to a tall, dark haired girl. She was staring at her phone as she walked, her eyes squinting behind her secretary glasses, back pack slung over a leather jacket clad shoulder.
Apparently, Piper had been staring long enough for Polly to notice as they passed the group, causing Polly to roll her eyes.
"I'm sure Alex is really going to love the fact that you check out girls all day long."
"Hey! I'm allowed to be attracted to both boys and girls!"
"Yeah, but I'm sure your boy toy wouldn't want to know that you gawk at tall, hot girls every time you pass them."
"For all you know, Alex could be a girl," Piper shot back, and Polly's eyes widened briefly before returning to a neutral expression.
"Has Alex told you she's a girl?"
"Well, no," Piper amended. "But he hasn't explicitly stated he's a boy either, so you never know."
"Hmm," Polly sighed as they continued to walk in silence.
"Hey Blondie! Wait up!" A voice called out behind them. Piper turned, recognizing the voice as belonging to her lab partner, who was chasing after her, notebook in hand. Look behind Sarah, Piper noticed the girl with the secretary glasses following her, still looking down at her phone, seemingly disinterested as to why she was following her friend around campus.
"Hey Sarah, what's up?"
"Look, I had the flu last week, so I wasn't in class," Sarah began. "And since we have a test next week, I was wondering if I could borrow your notes to copy the ones I missed?"
"Sure," Piper smiled, glancing at Secretary Glasses again, who was still engrossed with her phone. "No problem. Just stop by room sometime tomorrow."
"Thanks Piper! You're the best!" Sarah exclaimed.
Apparently, something Sarah said caught Secretary Glasses' attention, because her head shot up to stare at Piper, eyes wide. Piper stared back, holding eye contact as the girl studied her, growing more confused as Secretary Glasses slowly unfurled a smirk, her eyes filled with delight.
"Piper, huh?" Secretary Glasses finally spoke, her voice soft but slightly raspy. Even her voice is hot Piper thought as she nodded back dumbly, growing more confused by the second.
This seemed to please Secretary Glasses even more, her smirk growing as Piper nodded.
"Come on Vause," Sarah interjected, turning to leave. "I've got to get to class."
"Right," Secretary Glasses, or Vause, nodded, glancing at Sarah before looking back at Piper. "I'll see you around Piper." Vause said that with certainty, as if it were not a question of if, but only of when.
Piper could only nod in response.
"See you later Piper, thanks again!" Sarah called as she walked away.
"Right," Piper muttered before yelling back. "Anytime."
After watching Sarah and Vause walk away, Piper turned back to Polly, who was wearing a horrified expression.
"What?" Piper snapped, feeling herself turning beat red.
"Once again, you have no skill," Polly scoffed. "Apparently not with guys or girls."
"Fuck you," Piper said, pushing Polly slightly as they began walking.
"Come on Piper, she was totally checking you out and eye fucking you, and you did nothing!"
"She was?" Piper asked without thinking, pleased with that development.
"Yeah, but I thought you had Alex?" Polly mocked, and Piper once again shoved her away.
Maybe we should meet.
Piper had been staring at Alex's text for the past hour. Alex had texted her out of the blue, after four days of radio silence. Piper had even tried texting Alex first to start a conversation, but Alex had ignored her. She had figured that Alex had gotten bored, or moved on, or disappeared, whatever. Apparently, the opposite was true; Alex wanted to meet up, and Piper didn't know what to do.
A part of her was desperate to meet Alex, to confirm that Alex was a real, breathing person. But what if Alex wasn't who she expected? Or what if Piper wasn't what Alex expected? She loved the flirty texting, but Piper wasn't sure she was ready for it to stop if she and Alex didn't click.
Still staring at her phone, Piper's phone buzzed again.
So is that a no then?
Sighing, Piper taps out a response.
I want to, I'm just nervous.
After days of silence, Alex is clearly ready to talk, as a response comes almost immediately.
Of what?
Piper hesitates briefly before deciding to just be honest.
That I won't be what you expect.
Alex's reply made Piper smile.
How do you know I have expectations?
As Piper was replying, another text came through.
Unless you have expectations…
Piper deleted the text she was about to send in favor of responding to the latest one.
I honestly have no expectations. I just don't want you to be disappointed in me.
Alex: Trust me, you won't disappoint kid.
Piper: I hope not.
Alex: Listen, I'm around this weekend. One of my friends is throwing a party at a house on Chapin Way on Saturday. Why don't we meet up their? Say eleven o'clock?
It was happening. It was happening. They were finally going to meet.
Piper: Okay. See you Saturday.
This was definitely not Piper's crowd. She had dragged Polly all the way to an off campus party, thrown by a complete stranger, and she felt that she and Polly stuck out like sore thumbs.
She had agonized over what to wear, to make sure that everything, her hair, her eyeliner, her shoes, looked perfect. She was in a tight black club dress and heels, expecting a party with booming bass and club music, like most of the other parties she had been to. Instead, she was in a house that looked like it had seen better days. Rock posters lined the living and dining areas, and people with ripped jeans and band shirts were milling around, listening to some song with an extremely long, and loud, guitar solo.
Piper felt like Polly was practically glued to her as they stood in the hallway, people pushing passed them to get to various points in the house. Occasionally, someone would glance at them, look them up and down, and kept moving. No one greeted them, or pointed them to a place to grab a drink, making Piper feel even more out of place.
"Are you sure this was a good idea?" Polly asked, grabbing Piper's arm as someone brushed by Polly.
"I think so," Piper muttered, still looking around the room with wide eyes. She glanced down at her phone. She hadn't heard from Alex in a few hours, since she received at text in the early afternoon confirming their plans for the night. She was nervous, and feeling uncomfortable in this strange house, that her eyes kept darting around to look at people. As if Piper will subconsciously know who Alex is as soon as she sees them.
After a few minutes of standing in a corner her phone pinged with a new text.
What are you wearing?
"Oh thank god," Piper sighed in relief.
"What?" Polly asked, trying to read the message on Piper's phone.
"It's Alex, asking what I'm wearing, so we're still on," Piper replied as she texted back quickly.
Black dress, one shoulder. Currently standing in a corner awkwardly.
"Shit!" Polly swore as her phone went off.
"What?"
"I think it's Kevin," Polly answered. Kevin was Polly's current fling, who reluctantly agreed to meet them at the party to make sure they were safe. "I think he's here."
"Well go find him, I'll just stay right here."
"Are you sure," Polly looked around the room suspiciously, as if expecting to find someone just waiting to pounce on Piper the minute Polly left.
"Of course I'm sure," Piper rolled her eyes. "You'll be gone for like thirty seconds. Nothing's going to happen."
Polly nodded once before turning and leaving. Piper glanced down at her phone before studying the room. A game of beer pong was going on, eliciting shouts and cheers from the crowd. Just through a doorway on the other side of the room was the kitchen, where a man seemed to be acting as the bar tender. Hoping to calm her nerves, Piper headed towards the bar.
"What can I get you?" the man said as he grabbed a glass.
Piper looked at the ingredients on the counter, trying to make a decision. "Can you make anything?"
"Sure, we've got a ton of stuff back here."
"Hmm," Piper sighed. "I'll have a margarita then."
"That I can do for you," he said, turning away.
"It's a little cold out for a margarita," a voice to her right said. Turning, Piper found herself staring at someone very familiar. Secretary Glasses was apparently at this party, and Piper couldn't help but let her mouth fall open.
"It's…you," Piper stuttered, glancing down quickly, trying to be subtle as she checked out Secretary Glasses. Piper had to admit, she looked good, wearing tight black jeans, a white tee shirt and a leather jacket.
"It is me," Secretary Glasses smiled. "Piper, right?"
"Yes," Piper nodded. "And you're, Vause?" Piper thought that was what Sarah called her when she saw her at school.
The taller girl laughed. "Yeah, Vause. But I prefer to go by Alex," she answered, smirking.
"Alex," Piper's voice trailed off as her eyes widened, realization dawning on her. "You're Alex?"
"I am," Alex said, smirking again. "It's nice to finally meet you, kid."
"You too," Piper said, her voice filled with awe. This wasn't exactly what she had been expecting, but then again, it might just be perfect.
"So," Alex began, her smirk falling slightly, morphing into something a little more hopeful, and a little more vulnerable. "Am I living up to your expectation?"
"I told you I didn't have any expectations," Piper said, still trying to wrap her head around what was happening. She glanced at Alex again, once again noting Alex's vulnerability and nervousness, and Piper couldn't help but smile. "But if I did, you definitely have."
Alex smiled at this, a genuine smile, and took a step closer to Piper. "Well, I'm glad," she said huskily, reaching out to grip Piper's waist.
"Piper Chapman!" a voice cut through the kitchen. Piper turned around to see Polly marching towards her, Kevin trailing behind. "What the hell? You said you'd wait right there!"
"I'm sorry Pol, I just wanted to grab a drink."
"Ugh whatever," Polly said, turning to face Alex. Polly cocked her head, concentrating, as if she should remember who this person was, before it suddenly dawned on her. This was the girl Piper had been creepily staring at a week ago. Turning back to Piper, Polly asked "Aren't you supposed to be meeting Alex?"
Alex chuckled and Piper grinned sheepishly. "Uh, yeah," Piper began. "Polly, this is Alex."
Polly's expression flickered with surprise before she rolled her eyes. "Of course you are."
"Nice to meet you Holly," Alex smiled.
"It's Polly, actually," Polly said, slightly annoyed.
"Of course," Alex said, bored. She then turned back to Piper, again smirking. "So, do you want to go somewhere and chat?"
"Sure," Piper said, grinning.
"So, are you good then Piper?" Polly cut in.
"Yeah," Piper nodded, still grinning at Alex. "I'm good."
Hours later, Alex and Piper were sitting on the back porch, drinking out of a shared bottle of pinot grigio.
"So, you knew it was me, that day?" Piper said, leaning into Alex's side.
"Not until Sarah said your name, then I totally knew," Alex laughed, shifting so her arm rested against Piper's back.
"Then why didn't you text me? You went AWOL for like a week," Piper faced her, pouting slightly. "Was I not what you expected."
"Actually, you were pretty close to what I hoped you would be," Alex admitted, blushing a little. "I just wasn't sure if you would go for someone like me. I had to think about whether it would be worth it keep pursuing you. I wasn't sure how you would feel about me."
"So you decided I was worth it?" Piper pressed, her head falling on Alex's shoulder.
After a moment, Alex responded. "You were always worth it. It was just whether I could prepare myself for rejection if I wasn't what you wanted."
That admission made Piper's heart swell, and she buried further into Alex, her head pressing into Alex neck. "I'm so glad we met."
"Me too Pipes," Alex murmured, her lips brushing against Piper's forward. "Me too." Suddenly, Alex stood, and reached for Piper's hand. "Come on kid, let's get you home."
Alex walked Piper home, their hands tangled together loosely. Every once and a while, Piper would look down at their hands and her smile would get a little wider. When they reached Piper's house, Alex turned again, smirking at her. Piper had begun to associate that with Alex, when she's happy, she smirks.
"I had a great time tonight," Alex said softly, her smile turning a little more genuine.
"Me too," Piper replied, her grin matching Alex's. " Thanks for talking me into this."
"Oh, anytime."
"So, are you going to stop texting me now that we've met?" Piper joked.
"Hmm, maybe," Alex replied thoughtfully. "It depends."
"On what?" Piper said, faking offense.
"On how well you can kiss," Alex shot back.
"Well, there's only one way to find out," Piper murmured, her gaze flicking to Alex's lips.
"Hmm," Alex sighed, her head ducking towards Piper.
Piper braced herself for the moment Alex's lips met hers, though she found herself woefully unprepared. Unprepared for the jolt that shot through her when their lips finally met. Unprepared at how soft Alex's lips would feel against hers. Unprepared for the thrill and pure joy she felt as Alex deepened the kiss.
When they pulled apart, both girls were dreaming.
"Do I pass?" Piper asked, leaning back into Alex.
"With flying colors," Alex smiled, kissing Piper again briefly. "I'll see you soon, kid."
And with that, Alex turned and headed down the walkway.
"Text me!" Piper called after her, still standing at her doorway.
Alex laughed. "I don't think you'll have to worry about that."
Piper checked her phone before she went to bed, smiling as she opened a recent text.
Have dinner with me tomorrow? Was all the text said, slightly surprised at how forward Alex was.
Absolutely. Goodnight Alex.
Goodnight kid