(Started as a prompt (Item: Slushie, Location: Arcade, time: Midnight))
"Hi." A nervous voice interrupted Rachel's thoughts as she stood in front of the slushie machine. She couldn't decide between lime or coca cola, but it wasn't like she was in any hurry. She didn't want to go home yet, and she had no where else to be.
The redhead wore her hair short, red strands hanging an inch past her ears. She had on a spiked choker and she was nearly spilling out of a tight black corset top. Her stomach was exposed, and her low-rider jeans were well worn with strategic patches of skin showing through. Her belt matched her choker, and she had on boots that looked like they could break bones.
The girl greeting her looked familiar, and was maybe a year or two younger, with brunette hair hanging past her shoulders. It was naturally curly and though some effort had gone into straightening it, it had been for naught. She had big, intelligent brown eyes, and was wearing a t-shirt one size too big. The logo on it was new and proudly proclaimed to the world that she was a student at Xavier's Institute.
"Huh. I used to go there." Rachel nodded her head at the girl's shirt. "Graduated last year. I saw you around. I'm Rachel."
"I know." Kitty smiled at Rachel. It was hard not to know the face of the daughter of the school's headmistress. "You look a little...different. Oh! I'm Kitty Pryde."
She was adorable, and just Rachel's type, and she didn't know what to do with herself. "Cute. What are you doing out so late?"
Kitty's cheeks tinged red at the compliment. "Classes are canceled tomorrow. There was some kind of issue in the science lab." From the way she said that it was like she was used to such things. Rachel understood - nothing ever went normal at that school. As long as the public never found out it's real purpose though, it wouldn't be a problem. At least she hoped so.
The brunette got a mischievous smile, and grabbed two cups. "Let me buy you one and we can hit the arcade across the street."
"It's almost midnight. It's closed!"
"That's not gonna be a problem."
"Miss Pryde, I think your middle name is going to be trouble." Rachel watched as Kitty filled the cups with the icey drink and then followed her to the counter.
"That's me, Miss Summers. Kitty Trouble Pryde." She paid, then took Rachel's hand and pulled her out of the mini-mart. They walked that way for a block, hand in hand. Kitty could feel the heat in her face, but she didn't want to let go. She'd seen the redhead when she'd first come to the school, but had never had the nerve to approach her.
"You should have."
Kitty shot a look at Rachel. "Naturally. You really shouldn't pry, you know."
"And you shouldn't broadcast your thoughts so loudly." Rachel let go of Kitty's hand and put her arm around the girl as they crossed the street and headed around towards the back of the arcade. "And I mean it. I feel like I missed out on a couple of years of having a possible friend."
Leaning in, Kitty rolled her eyes. "I'm more trouble than I'm worth."
"So am I. But you approached me tonight." Rachel had never made friends easily. She'd had a couple, and a boyfriend that had lasted all of two weeks, so she was lonely. She didn't feel like she belonged. Meeting someone like Kitty would have been nice on those darker nights.
Kitty was always so far ahead of the other students academically that she didn't make many friends either. But she'd seen Rachel standing there, and her last six months of 'extracurricular' activities had given her a boost in confidence. "Yeah, I did."
She didn't gave Rachel anything more to that answer, instead stopping them in front of a blank wall behind the arcade. Before the redhead could protest, she'd pulled them through the solid brick and into the arcade proper. "As long as we don't turn the lights on and avoid the machines up front, no one is gonna know we're even here."
"That is really handy." Rachel sipped from her slushie cup and watched Kitty as she pulled out several rolls of quarters. "What, breaking and entering is just fine, but getting free arcade plays isn't?"
"It's only fair, right? I mean we're using the electricity by taking the games off standby." She handed Rachel a roll. "You're already an accessory, you might as well enjoy yourself."
Kitty bounded off towards one of the games, and Rachel found herself admiring how tight those jeans were. "T-R-O-U-B-L-E," she muttered under her breath. She was amused at some of the surface thoughts that Kitty kept shutting down. Fast enough ignore, but not fast enough to hide. The girl was crushing, which was even more adorable. But Rachel didn't want to completely assume. Kitty had to say something.
"All right," Kitty muttered. This was her favorite game, a fighter with swords and other weapons. She liked how responsive it was and she'd always had a thing for swords and knives, so it was just the kind of game for her. She glanced back at the redhead and ran her tongue over her lips to wet them. Trying to disguise a crush around a telepath was damn near impossible, and Rachel was so ridiculously hot like that that she was going through her slushie faster than she wanted. Rachel leaned in behind Kitty and the brunette swore she could feel every curve of the other girl's torso through her t-shirt.
"What did I say about broadcasting, Kitty?"
Her breath was so warm that Kitty had to shut down several more thoughts before they went too far. "Uhm... Sorry." She told herself to breathe, and instead sped through her next words. "Sodoyouknohowtoplaythisone?"
God save me from cute girls, Rachel thought, moving from behind Kitty to in front of her. Kitty's surface thoughts were a complete mess now. "Yeah I press the buttons until I beat your ass."
Cracking her knuckles, Kitty put in some quarters, "Oh it's on now."
The battle waged out in full high-def in front of them. Both characters were the more agile, fast type, but Kitty kept parrying and deflecting Rachel's attacks. The redhead punched her fist against the side of the game cabinet. "Okay seriously how the fuck are you doing that?"
Kitty took Rachel's hand. "Here. Press here and here, and then push the stick in the direction of my attack."
Rachel stared at their hands, too distracted to hear her and glad it was dark in the arcade as her face grew warm. She had to ask Kitty to explain it again, and their next fight was a lot more fair. She pushed the brunette to the edge of the arena.
"Damn girl." Kitty laughed at Rachel's aggression. The woman was screaming obscenities at the screen and Kitty felt almost guilty when she flipped behind her character and kicked her out of the ring.
"I hate you." Rachel grabbed her cup and angrily sipped at it while glaring at her new friend. "Lets play something where we work together or this friendship is going to be really short lived."
"What happened to beating my ass?" Kitty taunted her, smacking her hand against her own hip. "I coulda sworn you promised me that."
An invisible hand thwapped Kitty right on her buttcheek and she let out a squeal. Laughing, Rachel moved over towards a game with a pair of large rifles. "There, happy now?"
"Jesus." Kitty stared at Rachel's back, then bit her lip and followed. She stepped up to the game and picked up the gun. "A little to the left next time."
To her satisfaction, Rachel inhaled some of her slushie and started coughing. When she could breath again, she joined the other girl at the game. "Trouble. I could have sworn you looked like this really shy girl who used to sit by herself under the tree."
The coins clunked into the machine and it started up the intro sequence. Kitty brought the weapon to her shoulder. "Life's too short for that. Enjoy it while you can."
Rachel wondered what that meant, but she didn't dig that deep into Kitty's thoughts. It wasn't right to violate her privacy like that, uninvited. Surface thoughts were one thing, but people had mental walls for a reason.