A/N I don't own Osmosis Jones, or its characters; they are owned by Warner Bros. The rest, I DO own.
Devilgirl123: Thanks :D
Chapter 4
The next day, when Annabelle stepped into work, Mr. Greens came up with his usual monotone expression. "Ms. Waters, I do hope you're only coming here as a customer."
She raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Why?"
"Because your red boyfriend, who wanted to remain anonymous, came here, saying you wanted to quit. So, you don't work here anymore."
Annabelle scowled darkly, cursing Thrax in her head. "First of all, he's not my boyfriend; we've only known each other for a few days."
"I couldn't care less; all I know is you don't work here."
"But, Mr. Greens, this is the only job I can get with my…differences."
"It's been two years since you got this job; there are other jobs that will accept half-viruses." He left abruptly, finishing the conversation.
Sighing sharply, Annabelle turned on her heel and exited the H-Z Bar. She was going to have a serious conversation with a certain red virus. She stopped when she realized she didn't even know where Thrax lived, much less where he would be at the moment. Then, she remembered he was part of the Immunity. The Immunity must have everyone's address; she could ask Martha if she knew where Thrax lived. Then, she could give the virus a piece of her mind.
"I don't know about Thrax, but Ozzy called, asking where you were." Martha said. "He said he, Drix, and Thrax wanted to take you somewhere as a surprise. Why do you wanna know where Thrax lives?" The white blood cell had a mischievous tone in her voice.
Annabelle huffed, adjusting her cell phone against her ear. "It's not what you think. When I came to work, Mr. Greens said my, quote unquote, 'red boyfriend, who wanted to remain anonymous,' said I wanted to quit. So, I was fired from my job before I came in."
"If someone says who it was who talked to them, it doesn't make them anonymous anymore, doesn't it?"
"Mr. Greens was never for secrecy. But anyway, Thrax got me fired, and I want to 'tell' him how I feel."
"How do you know it was Thrax who got you fired?"
"Because he came in when I was working yesterday, and Mr. Greens 'met' him. Where did Ozzy say they'd be anyway?"
"They'd be at their apartment; they live behind the left retina. They should be in the lobby. If not, Ozzy said to ask for, 'Jones, Drix, and Muerja. Private Eyes.'"
Annabelle blinked in confusion, but didn't question the names; she figured it was either Ozzy's idea of a codename, or it was their job. "Okay, thanks, Marty. See ya later."
"Yep, see ya."
As soon as Annabelle clicked her cell phone off, she stepped out of the lobby of her apartment, haled a taxi, and was on her way to the left retina. After paying for her ride, she stomped into the lobby, but only found Ozzy, Drix, and Almira; no Thrax. Ignoring the waves from the white blood cell and cold pill, Annabelle yelled, "Thrax! Thrax, where the hell are you?"
"He told you she'd be looking for him." Drix said to Ozzy.
"Yeah, but it's 'cause she's mad at 'im, not because he's 'the hottest virus, literally and figuratively.'" Ozzy countered back.
"Thrax, get out here!" She yelled. She turned to Ozzy with angry, blue eyes. "Where is that virus?"
Before Ozzy could answer, Thrax stepped out of the rest room, tossing a crumpled piece of paper towel into the trash can. "Did I hear someone callin' my name?" He asked.
Annabelle grabbed the collar of his coat and pulled him down harshly so they were at eyelevel, squeezing a surprised gasp from him. "You got me fired!" She snarled, not caring that people were staring in bewilderment and amusement at a red blood cell hybrid cutting a virus down to size. "Don't you know that was the only job I could get? And now, because of you, I don't have a job!"
"Annie, baby, relax," Thrax smiled, removing Annabelle's hands from his coat, and standing up straight. "It's all part of the plan."
"See, Thrax told us you worked in a dumpy place," Ozzy said, laying an arm across Annabelle's shoulders.
"It may have been a 'dumpy place,' but it was the only place I could get because of my eyes and skin."
"Girl, this was two years ago! Things've changed in Hector!" Ozzy countered.
"So, we looked around, and we think we've found a place that is to your liking." Drix took over. "We explained about your eyes and skin, and the owner said as long as he meets and talks with you, it shouldn't be a problem to hire you."
Annabelle raised an eyebrow. "What kind of job?"
"We talked with your friend, Martha—she's a great girl, by the way," Ozzy explained. "And she mentioned you liked singin' an' dancin'."
"But I'm not that good a singer," Annabelle protested, nudging the white blood cell's arm off. "And I'm not a dancer either."
"Well, we won't be the judges of that," Drix said kindly. "The owner of the club will."
"What is this club?"
"It's in the shoulder muscle; it's called, 'The Bladed Shoulder.' Don't give me that look; I didn't name it." Thrax frowned, playing with the chain around his neck. "Though, to be honest, it ain't really what I'd call a club."
With a shrug, Annabelle sighed, "All right, I'll bite. Where is it?"
"We're takin' you there," Ozzy said. "Consider it an apology for Thrax gettin' you fired."
"I still think we should take my car." The virus spoke up, ignoring the jibe directed towards him.
"Well, we ain't in a hurry."
"In a hurry?" Annabelle asked, confused.
"You should see his car," Drix explained as everyone walked out of the lobby, with Ozzy and Thrax still arguing. "It was made for speed. But," He raised his voice, making the white blood cell and virus pause in their bickering. "We may need both cars. You, me, Thrax, and Almira can barely squeeze into your car, Ozzy, and we have an extra passenger with us."
With a smug look at Ozzy, Thrax strutted around the corner of the building, with Almira following close behind. "The guy loves his car too much." Ozzy grumbled, crossing his arms.
"You love your car too, Ozzy." Drix pointed out with a smile.
"Yeah, but not as much as Red does."
"He loves his car more than Thrax loves his." Drix whispered to Annabelle, making her laugh.
With a rumble, a sleek, orange, fast-and-furious-looking car crawled around the corner, pausing at the curb. Through the flexible window, Annabelle saw Thrax sitting in the driver seat, triangular black sunglasses on his nose, and a serpent-like grin on his lips. Almira was sitting in the backseat.
Now, Annabelle wasn't a car fangirl. She couldn't tell the kinds of cars apart, and she didn't go to car shows. But she did know a cool car when she saw one. And Thrax's car was certainly a candidate for a cool car. Her eyes widened, and a big, impressed smile grew on her face. "I'm riding in this bad boy!" She exclaimed.
"Hop right in, Annie," Thrax grinned as she stepped into the passenger seat. "Plenty of room."
"I'm the only one who knows where this place is, so you'll have to follow me, Thrax," Ozzy said, poking his head into the car. "An' that means you're gonna have to go the speed limit."
"Yeah, yeah, just get goin'," Thrax scowled, pushing the white blood cell's face out.
Ozzy and Drix got into the former's blue convertible, and drove down the arteries, with Thrax right behind. "Bubble-Butt's right; this baby was made for speed." Thrax spoke up.
"'Bubble-Butt'?"
"That's what I sometimes call Drix; ya didn't see the bubbles keepin' him afloat?"
"Does he care?"
"'Bout the name? He didn't like it, at first, but he doesn't care now. So," He lowered the right side of his sunglasses to grin at Annabelle out of the corner of his eye. "Ya forgive me for gettin' you fired?"
"Let me see this job you have for me, and then we'll see." She bargained, crossing her arms defiantly.
"Mm, fair enough."
"Plus, getting me fired isn't something I'd expect someone in the Immunity to do."
"Well, babe, I ain't one to play by the rules. I may be part of the Immunity, but I'm still a virus; I'm still a rebel at heart. Jones may not play by the rules either, but compared to Big Daddy Thrax, he's a saint."
Annabelle chuckled softly at that, letting her arms relax. She didn't really expect Thrax to totally play by the rules. He was right; he may be a vaccine—a tamed virus—but he was still born a virus, and nothing could change that. Plus, she liked the carefree, rebel attitude the Red Death virus had; it made him interesting.
A/N Annabelle's ex-boss isn't going to appear in the story anymore. I don't think anyone cared though; he was kind of a nasty guy.
BTW, Annabelle hasn't told Ozzy, Thrax, Drix, or Almira that she's half-virus; all they know is she isn't a pure red blood cell.
When Annabelle gets made, you know it. She gets really snappy, and isn't afraid to throw a punch or two, if needed. And she isn't intimidated by tall viruses with claws; if anything, Thrax should be intimidated by HER. Luckily, she wasn't totally angry; if she was, he'd probably be covered in bruises XD
Have I mentioned how much I LOVE Thrax's car in OJ? Personally, I wouldn't drive a car like that, but it is awesome anyway; Annabelle seems to think so too XD
