Are my eyes deceiving me?! Another update the next day?!
You guessed it!
I wrote Chapter 4 before I uploaded Chapter 3 and I decided to go ahead and upload this Chapter because Finals are next week. And you guys already know how Finals cause people to go into overtime. There would be a big possibility that I wouldn't be able to update so I took the option to give you a 2 for 1 deal ;)
I also find it hilarious how the reviews for last chapter were talking about a certain aspect of Ali's "behavior" and this chapter just so happens to highlight over that. What a coincidence. :D
And now onto Chapter 4…
CHAPTER #4: A Cracked Out Barney
Italics means thoughts, emphasized word or action. Bolded is a flashback. (….) is an indication that time has passed.
"You could do it for the money (money, money).
But the money makes them all the same."
A grey voice and sound of drum claps fill the room, slowly getting louder and louder.
"Everything's sunny (sunny, sunny).
But the sunshine fades away."
A desperate hand comes out of the bedsheets and blindly searches for the phone on the night stand beside the bed."
"Everything's black… (Everything's black)
And white…. (And white)
No g-"
The phone alarm is shut off followed by slight bed movement. The hand brings the phone to the sleeper's face as she looks at the time with squinted eyes.
10:30am – Wake up!
The sleeper tosses the phone beside her as she slowly rises up from her sleep. Rubbing her eyes and sitting up in her bed for a few moments, she decides that it's time to start the day and get ready for another day's work.
The sleeping beauty groggily gets out of bed and shuffles towards her bathroom. She turns on the hot water knob, places both her hands underneath to gather some water, bends down, and splashes her face to awaken herself. With her face leaned over the sink, she grabs her small hand towel hanging from the wall besides and pats her face down. Drying her face, she stands up and proceeds to look at herself in the mirror, examining her own face as a whole. She sighs to herself.
"Time to get ready."
…...
"Thank you for shopping with us, come again!" Alison says as she hands a receipt to a paid customer. When the customer leaves, Alison logs out of the computer at the checkout and commences to punch out to begin her lunch break. With everything set, Alison walks back to the break room to eat something she already had prepared. She is greeted by two other coworkers, Miranda and Amy, who are conversing at a table, also eating lunch.
"Hey, Alison," the both greet the blonde at the same time.
"Hey, guys" Alison responds while digging in her bag to pull out a container filled with her leftover Chinese food that she had at the house from last night. She walks over to the microwave and punches in one minute. As soon as it starts, Alison turns around and leans back on the counter.
"Have you guys heard from Stacey? I haven't seen her around recently."
"Stacey got fired," Miranda tells Alison as she takes a bite into her subway meatball sandwich.
"Fired?" Alison asks, completely taken back.
"Mhmm," Miranda sounds as she chews.
"Remember about a week ago when we were all called in because short staff from our sale day?" Amy, a short, preppy blonde, fills in.
"Yeah…" Alison crosses her arms in front of her.
"Well, Stacey called in sick. She had the sore throat, runny nose, watery eyes. I mean, the whole nine. So, they let her off the hook, telling her to rest up. Low and behold, her Facebook told a whole 'nother story." Amy begins to explain. "Remember that bonfire in New Jersey that Rebecca was throwing last week?"
Alison nods her head. She remembers as Rebecca, a former Lush worker, had invited the whole shop to go to her bonfire last Friday night. However, nobody could go to the party because of the last minute work call-ins. While everyone was excited for the bonfire, Alison was indifferent about it. Moving to Philadelphia, Alison didn't have friends the way she did in Rosewood. She only kept around a couple workers from work and one or two from school. The only reason Alison was contemplating going was because she was bugged by Miranda and Amy constantly. When everyone got called in to work, she didn't have the same feelings about missing the party as everyone else did. It was more like an, "Oh well," kind of emotion.
"Anyways, Stacey lied about being sick, just so she could go out to the shore to go to that bonfire. There had tagged photos of her on Facebook."
"But nobody told Kelly because even though that was a shitty move, nobody was that upset to get her in trouble because we all do some things under the belt when nobody's looking." Miranda says as the microwave beeps.
Alison takes out her Chinese filled container, closes the microwave door and pulls up a seat with the two other girls. Even though Kelly, their boss, is pretty cool, she doesn't tolerate anything unprofessional.
"But listen to this," Amy leans in as she lowers her voice just a bit, "Courtney obviously couldn't go either. She and her boyfriend, Aaron, were supposed to go together but Courtney tells him to go without her because she didn't want her being called-in stop him from enjoying the night. She trusts him so she figured he'd hang with the other guys and just enjoy himself."
"Which, I wanna say, I would never do." Miranda adds in quickly.
"Do what?" Alison asks as she shuffles around her rice with her spoon
"Allow my boyfriend to go to a bonfire with a whole bunch of other girls while I'm not there. If you looked at the event invitation, there was a lot of people going. It wasn't gonna be a small bonfire with about 10, 15 people. I'm talking about a full blown, night beach party."
"So, yeah. She tells Aaron to go ahead and go," Amy continues with the story. "So, I'm with Miranda and Jamie taking a quick break and I decide to check out pictures from that party. I'm scrolling through the pictures for a while then I come across Stacey, posing as healthy as she could be. Miranda was like, "You sly, bitch"." Amy chuckles at the remembrance.
"Yep," Miranda comments as she bites into her sub.
"Then I see her in another picture sitting next to Aaron and I'm like "What the hell? That's Courtney's boyfriend." Like, at the time, I didn't even know he went. So I'm looking at the picture of them and they look like they're talking to each other so I go to another picture. In the other picture, Aaron is posing with Stacey with his hands around her waist while she's all on him and I'm like "Oh shit" and show Miranda and Jamie. Now, hey. It could mean nothing. It could have been just a friendly picture."
"Until you realize there's a video," Miranda chimes in.
"A video?" Alison raises an eyebrow.
"A video!" Amy raises her voice as she lunged forward. She quickly recovers and brings her voice back down to a hushed whisper. "A video. Everyone is dancing to music and drinking and you see in the corner, Aaron and Stacey dancing on each other. A few seconds later, you see them start to kiss but then the camera moves so you miss it."
"But there was no doubt there was interaction between the two." Miranda states.
"So now, we're sitting here like "should we tell Jamie?". That's when Miranda decides to do it. Fast forward, Jamie saw it, got Stacey fired, most likely kicked her ass, and she broke up with Aaron. All in one day."
"Must suck to get fired on your day off, huh?" Alison takes a spoonful of rice into her mouth and shakes her head. The other girls laugh as they continue to add in their comments. Years back, Alison would have indulged herself well into this gossip. However, now hearing everyone's stories, all she could do is shake her head. Not really commenting much on her ex-coworkers fate, Alison learned to not involve herself in the limelight. She already has her "Hall of Fame" star in Rosewood.
"So, subject change," Miranda starts off, "Who was the girl at the bar from a few days ago? Is she from your Art school?"
"No. Someone I knew from back home." Ali replies as she takes a swig of water from her water bottle.
"An old friend?"
"Uhmm..Yeah you could say that. We didn't really talk as much but," Ali shrugs her shoulders, "We ran in different circles, I guess."
"I've realized that you never talk about life back where you came from. Rosemary, I think it was?" Amy tries to remember the name of the town Alison came from.
"Rosewood," Alison politely corrects her. "There isn't much to talk about, really. It's a small town where everyone knows everyone's business. It's a fairly posh town so it was constant competition which I wasn't really into. I really just kept to myself most of the time." Alison lies.
Living in a whole new city, Alison did not want to bring her past with her. The last thing she wanted to do is tell her friends who she used to be. Someone that needed to be in the center of attention. Someone who liked to have little minions follow around her as she walked around like a Queen bee. Someone who blinded a girl, got a boy locked up, publicly humiliated others. No, she liked the feeling of starting brand new. Of being seen as who she is now because really that's all that counts.
"Well, you guys definitely looked like y'all were fairly good friends from how I saw it." Miranda slowly brings her last piece of her sandwich before she sneakily adds in, "Looked like you guys were flirting with each other…"
"Wait, what?"
"WAIT. WHO?"
Both Alison and Amy blurt out in confusion. Alison confused on how Miranda would ever draw that conclusion and Amy confused on who Alison was flirting with.
"The girl who worked at the bar at the Rittenhouse we went to for lunch." Miranda states in-between chews.
"A girl? We're playing that game?" Amy questions while looking at Alison up and down. "Who is this chick, Ali?" She asks in complete curiosity, raising one eyebrow up and down.
"Ok, no. That definitely wasn't flirting, Miranda." Alison defends herself in this sudden accusation.
"Looked like it to me."
"You weren't even with us to know if flirting was even going on. You were too busy laughing on the guy working there."
"Laughing on who? So you guys go and find hookups without me?" Amy says feeling out of the loop.
"There was no 'hook-up'. I don't flirt, period. I just have casual conversations. Besides, I don't even like anyone here. And I definitely wasn't flirting that day. It has been three years since I've seen her and it was refreshing. Refreshing to see someone that I didn't hate from back home." Alison defenses as she scoops another spoonful of rice.
"Ok! So nobody is gonna tell me who she is?" Amy asks again as she frantically looks in-between Alison and Miranda.
Miranda crumbles her subway bag as she gets up to throw it away, "Then prior to seeing her, if I do recall, she was the same one that came in the day earlier. Alison, I read body language, Ok? That was more than friendly posture you had going on. Especially how you were making her laugh and resting your hands on her."
"What?!" Amy exclaims trying to follow the story.
"Well, you need to go back to whatever body reading school you cheated from because one, that was an exaggeration you just did. And two, I was just trying to be nice seeing that I almost ran her over before she walked in." Alison gets up to empty out the remains of her container.
"WHAT? You tried to run her over?" Amy exclaims now even more puzzled than before. "Can someone please explain because I'm so fucking confused?"
Alison rinses out her container in the sink before putting it back in her bag, "I'm going back to work. Goodbye, you two nasty step-sisters." She calls out before exiting the break room, leaving Miranda and Amy by themselves in complete silence.
"…Ok, what the fuck just happened and why am I now just hearing about it?" Amy asks as she gets up, feeling left out in such a big secret.
Miranda shrugs as she and Amy walk out the break room, "Why do we have to be the ugly step sisters? I'm at least a solid 7."
…...
Hours pass by as the store fluctuates from busy to practically empty. Alison and Amy, standing behind their registers, are secretly on their phone, trying to beat each other on Trivia Crack before a bell rings at the door, causing them to put their phone away.
Amy says to the new comer, "Hi! Welcome To Lush!"
When Ali looks up, she sees the potential customer walking towards them.
"Hi… I wanted to know what kind of Bath Bombs you guys have. I never had one before so I don't know what to look for." The customer asks the girls.
"Sure! Alison can show you. She knows all about them." Amy directs as she points them both in the direction of the Bombs.
"Sure, follow me." Ali says with a light smirk on her face. Alison moves from behind the register and walks besides the buyer, leading them in the direction.
"Now, who's doing the stalking?" Alison mumbles under her breath, making sure she can't be heard. "Because I feel like you're purposely stalking me at this moment."
"I'm just here for the Bath Bombs," Emily coos. "It's not my fault this is the place that has them."
Tempted to say something, Alison remembers the conversation she had during break and decides not to.
"So, what are you looking for?"
"Something pretty." Emily responds trying to find the right words, "I love colors and also maybe with glitter?"
"Well, what colors do you find the prettiest?"
"Purple is nice. Uhmm…Purple, blue, orange, gold. Gold would be pretty too."
Alison picks up a multi-colored, purple Bath Bomb. "Well, this one has purple, pink with some blue and orange. Do you like this one?" She hands the Bomb to Emily.
"Yes! This is really nice. What is this called?"
"It's called the 'Phoenix Rising'. Its royal purple and gold-dusted, with a cinnamon stick in the center. When you throw in this bomb, it sinks to the bottom of the tub and slowly rises up, like a phoenix, fizzing out a spicy apple and cinnamon scent. Perfect for warming up in the tub on little chilly days like today. The spicy scent of cinnamon is also excellent for stimulating tired minds and bodies."
Emily examines the Bath Bomb in total awe of the deep set purple. While examining, she catches, in the corner of her eye, a big golden egg. "What's that?" she points at the attraction.
Alison walks over and grabs the golden Bath Bomb, "This is our 'Golden Egg'. It's a spectacular mixture of a Bath Bomb and a Luxury Bath Melt to create the Bath Bomb Melt. Its creamy, moisturizing cocoa butter exterior encases a fizzy Bath Bomb center, and the whole egg is dusted in a delicate golden luster. It has a classic honey and toffee fragrance with it that makes it all the better."
Emily grabs the golden bath bomb and holds it to her nose. She nods at the pleasant smell then looks back to Alison. "How are you so knowledgeable on all these products? It's like you have a set description on every one of them in the back of your head."
Alison puts her hands in her back pockets, "If you're going to be selling something to people, you would at least want to know what their getting so when they ask you a question you know how to respond. The worst is to have no idea of a product and having to make up something. When people ask you what drink is the best or how they taste, how do you respond?"
"Well, it's a part of the job to test each beverage for that exact reason. You can't be a bartender if you never drank before." Emily responds, cradling both bath bombs in her hands.
"Exactly. Besides that's how I outsell everyone in the store," Alison whispers, "But don't tell them I said that." Alison gives a light hearted smile. As she looks past Emily, she sees Miranda and Amy talking behind the checkout counter. Here we go.
"So, what do you think? Would that be all for you?"
"Yeah. I think I'm gonna try these two out to see how I like them." Emily walks besides Alison who is walking towards checkout.
Miranda leaves before Alison gets there, however, she lets out a knowingly "cough" when she walks by Alison. Alison ignores her as she begins to ring Emily up. "Do you know how to start them up?"
"Just throw them in the water?" Emily responds, uncertainly.
"Basically, yeah. You just fill your bathtub with warm to hot water, drop in the Bath Bomb and lay back to enjoy its lovely color and gorgeous fragrance. Some Bath Bombs contain flower petals and others have secret surprises like the Phoenix Rising one you chose. If you prefer not to have these pieces floating in your tub, wrap the Bath Bomb in a recycled nylon before using it." Alison informs the brunette, "That'll be $18.25."
Emily takes her wallet out from her back pocket and starts to put money together. As she is focused on her wallet, Amy looks at Alison and gives her a big grin before hiding it when Emily looks back up. "Here you go." Emily gives Alison a $20. "What happens if you mix these two together?"
"Actually, with the two you brought, it would be a perfect mix because the Phoenix is a fragrant Bath Bomb while the Golden Egg is a Luxury Bath Melt. Mixing them would definitely make your experience even more memorable." Alison flashes a friendly smile at Emily while handing her back her change. "$1.75 is your change," Alison rips the receipt from the machine, "And here is your receipt. Thank you for shopping with us, come again soon."
Emily smiles at both Alison and Amy and walks out of the store with her new Bath Bombs.
Amy instantly turns to Alison but Alison cuts her off before she has the chance to say something.
"No, Amy."
"Alison," Amy says in a husked, teasing voice. "She is hot!"
Alison takes hand sanitizer from under the counter and begins to rub her hands. "Amy don't listen to anything Miranda says. She's trying to turn a friendly interaction into something it's clearly not."
"I'm not!" Amy responds back still eyeing the blonde, "I don't have to when I can see things for myself. I could see why you almost ran her over."
"No you can't since the reason why was because I simply wasn't paying attention to the road. So, whatever you're about to say, is already invalid." Alison quickly interjects with a tone that reminded herself of the old her.
Amy puts her hands up in surrendering mode, "Okay. I hear you. But she's so pretty, I want to be her."
"Why?"
"Because she's gorgeous! She could probably have any guy she wanted, looking like that."
Alison mentally laughs as she pulls out her phone and opens Trivia Crack again, "Something like that. Now hurry up and answer the question so we can go to the next round."
…...
An hour and a half passes and Amy and Miranda have already clocked themselves out of work of the day, leaving Alison alone with the rest of the workers. She continues to assist customers and until a peculiar customer walks through the door. Someone wearing a black tee and jeans, with their skin, below the chin, covered in purple/pink stains and golden glitter. Looking like a Teletubbie that went to a rave, the person walks hastily towards the checkout counter where Ali stood.
Alison, recognizing who it is, turns her head to the side while she tries to hold in her laughter with all her might. When she finally has the strength, she slowly mutters out, "H-How can I help y-you, Miss?" still trying not to laugh.
Emily puts her purple stained hand up, dismissing Alison and her struggles, "I would like a refund on the Bath Bombs I received."
"What was wrong with it?" Alison says with her eyes closed trying her hardest not to laugh even harder.
"Well, first of all, I look like a cracked out Barney. When I dropped it in the bath, the water was gorgeous! It had deep purple and gold swirling around along with the glitter. I felt like I was in a potion. But when I got out and drained the tub. My relaxation turned into displeasure very quickly. My tub at home is still stained after two scrub downs and I have this glitter all over my body. Even in places I rather it not be." Emily explains in a calm but irritated voice.
"May I?" Ali gestures to see Emily's hand. Emily holds out her hand and Alison feels around. "Well, at least you're extremely smooth…" She brings Emily's hand to her nose, "And smell like a warm cinnamon apple pie." Alison chuckles causing Emily to withdraw her hand back.
"This isn't funny, Alison. I have work tomorrow. I can't go in looking like BoohBah from PBS Kids!" Emily complains as she crosses her arms in front of her.
"Ok. Relax. For your tub, A little bit of scrubbing bubbles should do the trick. As for your skin, it will wear off within the next washing. Unfortunately, I cannot give you a refund on your Bath Bombs since you already used it. But, because you came all this way looking like PB&J Otter from Playhouse Disney, I'll credit you a discount of 15% off your next purchase. You normally need a coupon for it but I'll just pretend like you had one and you could use mines. How does that sound?" Alison questions as she genuinely feels bad for the brunette, even though she's still laughing inside.
"Fine, that'll work." Emily responds as she runs her stained hand through her hair. "This is really embarrassing."
"I'm so sorry," Alison apologizes as she should have warned Emily of the chance of it staining. "Can I interest you in one of our body lotions? We just got a new ship-"
"No, thank you." Emily interrupts the blonde mid pitch. "I think I had enough of Lush Cosmetics for the day." She says as she looks up at the Lush sign on the wall. "I'll see you later. Bye."
"Bye. I'm sorry for your magically stained adventure..." Alison tries to say seriously but ends up snickering before she can finish her sentence.
Emily squints her eyes at the laughing blonde, turns around, and walks towards the exit.
Alison regains her composure as she watches Emily leave. That definitely was worth today's pay…
There was fluff for the day, you fluffy bunnies!
If you have ever shopped at Lush and got the Phoenix Rising, there was a huge chance, you've came out looking like a sparkly unicorn threw up on you and your tub. I should know. -.-
I decided to switch up and show this Chapter from Alison's point of view so you see in her daily habitat.
To respond to one of the Guest's comments, first and foremost, thank you for taking the time out to read my story! I appreciate ALL of my readers. But the reason why I show the main characters interacting so much with others because it is life, ya know? I don't want to just skip to the OTPs without developing the characters out a little more. Like for example, seeing Alison react to that gossiping session shows you just how much Alison has matured over time.
We've reached over 1,000 views, guys! Time to pop the bubblay! I know I say it every chapter but I honestly can't thank you guys enough! I'm almost close to say the L-word to y'all… You know that word, "Like" :X
I will send out Chapter 5 as soon as possible. Be on the lookout!