*Thank you everyone for all your feedback, I appreciate it greatly*
Stephanie arrived at her apartment deciding it would be best to change and shower in an environment she didn't currently live in. Standing in the entryway, she stripped down and threw the clothes in a plastic garbage bag. Not wanting to part with her clothes, she figured it was best to drop them off at her parent's house for cleaning. After all, her mom was accustomed to these kinds of things.
After what she felt was a thorough cleaning, Stephanie dressed and decided on a purple v-neck sweater and jeans as the summer air was trying to turn cooler as autumn approached. Rex was sufficiently being fed with a grape and some cheerios when the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"You up for some pizza, white girl?" Came Lula's voice.
"Always."
"Good. Then get yo' ass down to Pinos."
"I'll be down in a jiffy, but I got to make a quick stop."
"That's good, cuz Perv Man is out. Something about the dog track, but I'm positive he said he was going to dog fu…"
"No, no! That's okay! I'm leaving now." Stephanie hung up and grabbed the plastic bag of Bob barf clothes heaving it over her shoulder Santa Claus style. Stephanie decided to take the stairs and bounded down to the parking lot. Fortunately, Tuesday afternoon bingo was preceded by lunch at the senior center, so the lot was nearly empty and she was able to park near the door.
She walked up to her white Toyota Corolla and opened the back door to throw her bag in. "Shit!" She looked at the door handle in her hand and threw the bag and the door handle in the back seat. "Good thing no one ever rides in the back." She muttered.
The drive to her parents house was quick, especially since her stomach kept reminding her how hungry it was. Retrieving the barf bag from the back seat, she raced up the steps into the house.
"Hey, Mom!" She yelled going back to the kitchen. Her childhood home was modest and fit her parents well, but the lack of additional bathrooms made it horrible for family functions or basically just living with more than two people. The fact that Grandma Mazur had moved in after Grandpa went to the big fat fryer in the sky made livability nearly impossible. "I brought my laundry over, could you wash it?"
"This isn't more of your job is it?" Came a voice from the refrigerator.
"No, the dog threw up on me."
"Well, at least it's not the dumpster again. Would you like to stay for lunch? I picked up some sliced ham from Giovachinni's Market."
"No, thanks, I got a lunch date."
"With another man? What about Joseph?"
"Not with another man, I'm still with Joe. It's an office meeting."
"Well that's a relief. How about dinner then? You could bring Joseph. I'm making pork chops."
Mom always knows the right things to say. "Dessert?
"Chocolate cake."
"I'll be here, but I can't exactly vouch for Joe. See you at six."
She quickly made it to Pino's, and parked on the street. Apparently everyone had the same idea the girls did about getting lunch. Stephanie checked her watch and saw that it was just before noon. At noontime, the usual business lunch crowd packed the bar area getting an early start on happy hour. By one, it was usually down to a few stragglers and all day drunks. She walked in and immediately spotted Lula and Connie at the back wall engrossed in animated conversation.
"…don't see why not. Wolverine would just flex those mighty pecs and slice Spidy's web into oblivion with those massive metal fingers. Woo!" Sliding into the table next to Lula, Stephanie imagined the conversation she had just entered into was going nowhere.
"Hey! What's going on? Anything new and exciting?" Stephanie chimed in hoping to lead the conversation to a different direction.
"I hope you don't mind, but we already ordered." Connie said with a wave of her hand.
"Yeah, lots of meat. And olives so we get our vegetables. Batman would be proud!" Lula said sipping her soda.
"Nah, no problems, I'm starving."
"Ooo, you got here just in time, pizza's here!" Lula excitedly said burying a napkin into the depths of her breasts. The girls looked with greedy eyes as the waiter placed the pizza on the table. The girls all dove in like a pack of wolves on a three-legged cat.
" So what's been going on?" Stephanie said taking a big cheese dripping bite out of her slice.
"Oh, Stephanie, Lula has the dirt. We're talking fresh." Connie said shaking more cheese onto her pizza.
"You got that straight! I was down at TPD today getting my skip…"
"You got a skip?" Stephanie asked with a mouth full of pizza, clearly shocked.
Lula just stared and continued on. "Hmph, I was down at TPD and saw first hand that they got a new hire."
"So?"
"Hey! You let me finish, white girl! You as bad as her." She waved with her hand at Connie, flinging cheese against the wall. "Anyway, Trenton's got a new hire and she is hot! It took me forever to figure out what she was doing there cause nobody knew. But by only the way Lula can, I found out she's here for a position in homicide."
"Homicide?" Stephanie asked dropping her cup on her plate.
"Yeah. And she's here to stay, too. You all want that last slice?" Lula asked picking the sausage off the pan and stacking it on the last slice. Both girls declined and Lula shoveled it. "I'm telling ya, she is like that sexy Jean from X-men. Down to that sexy hair and cut. No one really knows anything about her either except she's from Miami."
"What no record? She had to have transferred with something." Stephanie stated pointedly.
"I'm sure we'll pick up something tomorrow." Connie said checking her make-up in her mirror. "I gave Ranger the information this morning."
"Is that what you handed Batman? I was wondering. Thought you was telling him you were free or something Saturday night. I was going to tag along."
"Figured he would find the arrival of Ms. Walker interesting. Besides, I have orgasms just thinking about the searching tool and resources at Rangeman."
Lula let out a gasp.
"Holy, shit! It's her!" Lula exclaimed looking at the door. "And look who's with her!"
