It was coming close to the end of the school year which meant long hours in the library and endless amounts of cramming for final exams. Piper focused her attentions on finishing with a decent grade – at least, she tried. It proved difficult when a certain drop dead gorgeous, lesbian drug importer kept invading her thoughts. She knuckled down and did her very best to avoid the distractions, however.

She couldn't afford that sort of distraction. Not now anyway. There was too much at stake here. She didn't want to have to return home only to tell her parents she'd failed at the final hurdle. Fuck, they'd probably disown her. No, she had to keep her head screwed on, forget about Alex Vause and get her degree.

It was virtually impossible at first and Piper often found herself thinking about the other woman at inappropriate times. It had been almost a month since they'd had dinner together though and the fantasies were growing less frequent. She managed to convince herself it was obviously just some sort of weird phase she'd been going through at the time and even went on a few dates with a guy named Jason. He wasn't the sharpest tool in the box and Piper wasn't even sure how he'd gotten into college but he was cute. Yes, it had definitely just been a strange phase.

"I can't believe that's it," Polly exclaimed excitedly with a bounce. "No more lectures, no more papers, no more exams. We're done!"

Piper had joined Polly at one of the rickety tables in the college courtyard for a coffee after the last exam. It still hadn't sunk in yet. No more classes. She wouldn't be coming back here next year.

"It's all well and good now," Piper frowned as she took a sip of her cappuccino, "but Polly, this means we have to join the real world. We're gonna have to get jobs and act like proper adults." No more getting shit faced and sleeping in till 3pm. Her Mother would have a fit if she behaved like that under her roof. She'd been hoping to get a job so she'd at least be able to afford rent on her own apartment but that hadn't even worked out.

"Ugh, I feel so old," Polly wrinkled her nose, "all the more reason to make the most of this weekend though."

There was a huge party planned to take place at the local off-campus nightclub to celebrate the end of the school year and Polly was dragging her to it. Piper wasn't really into the whole nightclub thing. She much preferred to have a few quiet drinks in a nice bar. Nightclubs were too loud. Too busy. And the floors were always sticky, she dreaded to think why that was.

"Is Jason going to be there?" Polly asked with bright eyes. "He's so cute, I could eat him all up. So cute he managed to turn you straight again, huh Pipes?" Her best friend wiggled her eyebrows playfully and Piper simply rolled her eyes at her.

Piper didn't know what to do with herself now that she didn't have lectures and seminars to attend and mostly just lounged around her apartment reading and watching movies. It was nice not having to rush around for once and it was nice not freaking out about the deadline of her next essay. She knew this was the calm before the storm – the storm being the big wide world away from college. Her parents would expect her to make good use of the tuition fees they'd paid and get a job right away. She'd feel guilty if she didn't. She was only twenty two though, wasn't this the time to be living life to the fullest? Did she really want to be stuck with a nine to five job? She knew she didn't, it was certainly what was expected of her though.

The young blonde sighed and dragged herself off the sofa. The big party was tonight and there was no getting out of it - she'd called Polly and faked period pains but for some strange reason her best friend knew her cycle wasn't due for another two weeks – so it was time to shower and get ready.

"Where's Jason?" It was the first thing Polly asked her as Piper stepped out of the cab and met her best friend outside the venue. Really?

"Nice to see you too, Pol," Piper said drily with a shake of her head. She could hear the loud, thumping bass from inside and already wished she was back at home in her pyjamas. These heels were killing her. "I haven't spoken with him in the last couple of days." She shrugged at Polly's shocked stare. Honestly, they'd been on a few dates and Polly seemed to think they were destined to get married, have babies and live happily ever after. Jason was lovely but he was also very boring. Piper didn't want boring she wanted exciting. She wanted adventures. Polly was the one looking for a future husband already, not her.

"Jeez, let's just get in there and get this over with," Piper muttered, linking arms with her best friend and begrudgingly dragging her inside.

"You were in Rio de Janeiro for two fucking weeks. How is it you still look like a fucking ghost!? I don't get it." Alex Vause simply shrugged her broad, bare shoulders at Izzy and proceeded to sip on her cocktail. She flew back into Connecticut yesterday morning and was feeling majorly jet-lagged. She was normally up for a good time and these kinds of parties were great for finding potentially new candidates but this was the last place she wanted to be right now. Izzy was due to graduate soon though and if she wasn't going to let the girl get into her pants, the least she could do was show her face here.

"Perhaps I forgot to tell you. I'm actually a vampire," she responded with a bored voice, letting her gaze wander across the room from where she leant casually at the bar.

"What's wrong with you, Vause? Still all caught up on blondie?" Izzy sneered up at the older woman. Her words had apparently struck some sort of nerve and she earned herself an ice cold frosty glare. "What did you see in her anyway? I didn't think little stuck up bitches were your type."

Alex continued to glare at her friend – if you could call Izzy that anyway. She wanted to tell her how Piper wasn't a stuck up little bitch. She certainly came across that way at first glance . . . like one of those little lost rich girl, over privileged types. But she wasn't. She was somehow different. Alex didn't want to seem like a complete pussy though and gave her shoulders another shrug. It wasn't like her and Piper had made any contact since that dinner night anyway. "I thought she'd make a good runner," she admitted. It was a half truth. She had thought that at first. She had all the necessary credentials and probably had enough stamps in her passport to avoid suspicion. It had been the reason Alex had approached her on that first night back in the bar. It's how she recruited most of her young mules – the old Alex Vause seduction normally did the trick.

"Oh my gosh, I think someone just grabbed my ass." Piper squeaked and clung onto Polly for dear life. Another thing she didn't like about nightclubs – everyone was just so . . . close. Hello, had no one heard it was rude to invade another person's personal bubble? And guys just presumed it was okay to cop a feel whenever they felt like it.

"Embrace the ass grab, Pipes." Polly shouted with a giggle as she tried to push her tiny body through the crowd in order to lead them in the direction of the bar. If she could get a few margaritas into Piper's system her best friend would loosen up in no time at all. "I think you should be flattered. They obviously liked the look of it enough to want a feel."

Polly made no sense whatsoever and Piper grumbled moodily under her breath. She knew she ought to lighten up. After all, this was probably one of the last college nights out before she had to move back home but she just didn't seem to have it in her. Maybe she just needed some alcohol. Maybe she just needed to embrace the ass grab as Polly had so aptly put it.

They'd somehow made it to the bar and Piper squeezed up beside her best friend. "Two margaritas," Polly leant in and yelled to the bartender in order to be heard over the loud music. "And please make my friend's here an extra strong one."

Alex was still leaning against the bar, her gaze drawn towards the dance floor where she watched the mass of drunken, gyrating bodies with a bored expression. If she had to be here she was going to at least make the most of it and look for some fresh new recruits. Noone in particular grabbed her attention though.

That was until she saw a tiny little thing shoving her way through a crowd made up of people almost twice her size. She had even managed to drag her friend through the crowd with her – impressive. It wasn't until the tiny woman stepped up to the bar and practically screamed at the bartender for a couple of margaritas that Alex noticed who her friend was.

Piper Chapman.

A smirk crept slowly to her lips. Perhaps tonight wouldn't be a boring waste of time after all.

*** I've tried to switch it up a bit by adding Alex's POV as well. I think I suck at writing more than one person's POV but let me know what you think! :) ***