Chapter 7
Red was talking to Gloria about the choices for dinner when Alex and Nicky walked in.
"You call this load of crap dinner?" Red asked Gloria aggressively at Gloria as she tasted the stew in the pot, "This is rubbish, even a homeless dog wouldn't eat this shit"
Gloria grabbed her wooden scooper and pointed it at Red, "This 'shit' came from the package that they gave us. I don't have control over the produce that comes in, if you want to complain, then call the fucking president and see if he gives a shit about what food we eat"
"I think now's a great time to jump in" Nicky said as she walked to stand next to Red, "Red, we need to talk"
Alex gave Gloria a look that said, 'You don't want to get involved'. Gloria understood and handed Vause the wooden scooper, "Make sure she doesn't touch my pot", she said before leaving the kitchen. Alex eyebrows furrowed, confused as to what to do with the wooden scooper in her hand. She put the scooper into the pot and walked over to where Nicky and Red were sitting.
"What the hell was that at lunch?" Red spat angrily, she was holding a knife in her hand which made her even more threatening.
Nicky shrugged her shoulders while Alex defended herself, "She was going to drag Piper into this so I told her to back off"
Red had a calm look as she raised her eyebrow, "So Chapman's involved now?"
"No!" Alex shouted immediately, Nicky gave her a look that said, 'Tone it down a notch', "Piper isn't involved, we keep this between the family"
Red wasn't convinced, Piper was her bunkmate and also friends with most of her family, there was no way Piper wasn't going to get involved, "Okay", she didn't want to argue with Alex over this matter, the tall women was stubborn.
"Oh, but just wait, the day just keeps getting better" Nicky said, she grabbed a toothpick from the metal table and chewed on it with amusement, "Vause, tell Red about Kubra"
Alex told her everything that happened, about Piper and Kubra's release. Red stood there with unamused expression, Alex wasn't able to tell how Red felt about this.
"So, Chapman is here for another 3 years and you think she won't get involved in this shit with Vee" Red asked. The blunt question mad Alex's mouth dropped, after everything that she had just told her, she decides to ask about Piper's involvement.
Nicky had a huge grin plastered on her face, this was the most amusing thing she's seen all day, "Oh this is going to get good"
"You're fucking kidding me, right?" Alex shouted angrily although Red simply shrugged her shoulders.
"What's there to kid about?" Red asked calmly, "I am her bunk mate, you are her girlfriend, sorry, ex-girlfriend. You can try to keep her out of this but it's not going to last"
"I will keep her out of this shit for as long as I can" Alex said stubbornly, Nicky's smile didn't falter for even a second.
"I give it 3 days max" Nicky said, Red shook her head.
"She's already involved. Vee isn't going to let your little interaction be forgotten. Chapman made quite the first impression on her. Speaking of Chapman, where is she?" Red asked
Alex fixed her glasses while muttering, "Passed out drunk"
Red demeanour was now changing, "She just got back here, how the fuck did she get drunk already?"
"Hooch" Nicky said, she was still amused by this situation.
"Fucking Washington" Red muttered under her breath, she walked over to Gloria's pot and started to stir it, "When was Kubra's trial?", she suddenly asked
Alex looked at Nicky who just shrugged, "a couple months ago, probably 3"
Red hummed thoughtfully as she stirred the pot, "What're you thinking ma?" Nicky asked
"3 months" Red said, she added extra salt into the pot, "The new inmates that have been transferred into here. Kubra could have hired any one of them to kill you"
Alex thought Red was fucking around, "Funny", she spat as she leaned against the cabinet.
"There's nothing funny about it" Red dropped the scooper into the pot and looked straight into Alex's eyes, "If Kubra is as resourceful as you say he is, then he can easily hire someone in MAX, who was on the list to transfer here, to kill you"
Nicky let out a nervous laugh, "So what? Do we question every new inmate that comes in here?" She asked, "Hey inmate, were you hired by a drug dealing sociopath to kill my friend Vause over there?", Nicky imitated.
"Real Classy" Alex replied, she crossed her arms over her chest, "What do we do Red?"
Red wasn't sure how to approach this problem, she was still surprised that Vause had come to her for help considering how stubborn she was, but she knew she had to give some credit to Nicky.
"We can't do much until we find out who is the hitman, until then don't let your guard down. Vause, avoid being alone when possible. Anyone who gives you the wrong impression, you make a mental note of them" Red said firmly, she didn't know if there was even a hitman or not, but she knew that if Vause lost her shit in here, then she would be lost forever, "Now get the fuck out of my kitchen"
Alex shot Red a grateful smile before leaving the kitchen. Nicky stood and followed Vause, but Red tugged on her arm gently and muttered, "Keep an eye on her, make sure she doesn't lose her shit in here". Nicky nodded her head understandingly.
-00—
Piper woke up with a splitting head, she groaned in pain as she grabbed her head. She noticed the difference in her bed, the once concrete slab that caused her back to ache, was replaced with an uncomfortable mattress.
She suddenly remembered being transferred from MAX to Litchfield, and she instantly wished she was drunk again.
The last thing she remembered was following Poussey to the library to grab her secret stash of hooch. The 2 of them sat in the library and talked about how they had gotten to this point in their lives. Piper just wanted to forget about all of this crap, the alcohol made it easier to forget, but it didn't work as well as drugs. It was a close second though.
Piper threw her legs over the edge of the bed and forced herself to sit up, she felt nauseous and dizzy, but she wasn't going to throw up. She has been through worse. Her throat was sore and her headache was growing, she would kill to have an aspirin.
Piper noticed that the room had gotten darker and while there was still chatter filling the dorms, she could tell it was night-time, 'How long have I been asleep for?'
"Hi Piper" A timid voice made Piper look at the Asian girl who looked frighten as hell, she recongised the girl from the bus.
"Soso right?" Piper asked as she gripped her head in pain. Soso nodded her head, "What's wrong? Why do you look so scared?", that was probably a dumb question since they were in prison. But she didn't think anyone would hurt a new inmate.
Soso walked into Piper's bunk and sat next to her, "I got bunked with Brandy", Piper looked confused.
"Who's that?"
"She's white" Soso said
Piper shot her an incredulous look, "Gee, that helps a lot"
"The bald one, she had a neck tattoo and she was on the bus with us" Soso replied innocently.
"What about her?" Piper asked, her headache was getting worse and Soso's naiveness was only making it worse
Soso suddenly moved closer to Piper as she whispered, "I think she's a Nazi"
Piper wanted to face palm her forehead so hard, but it would only add to her pounding headache, "I don't even want to know why you think that", she stood up, ready to leave to get herself some water but Soso reached out to grab her arm.
"Please" Soso begged, "Can I sit with you at dinner?"
"Do whatever you want" Piper sighed with annoyance as she left the cubicle to go to the cafeteria, Soso quickly stood up and followed her.
-00-
Piper was waiting in line with Soso behind her, she was talking about the new food privileges, "It is so degrading, they should feed everyone the same food. No one should get special treatment", Piper ignored everything that Soso was saying.
She was holding her tray with nothing but a cup of water on it, Red noticed there was no food on her tray and gave her look, "Not hungry?" Red asked, Piper looked up to see Red eyeing the cup of water.
"Nope, just thirsty" Piper replied as she moved down the line, Red was still looking at her weirdly, she wanted to escape Red's gaze but at the same time she really couldn't care less. Piper walked out of the line, she felt like she was in high school again. She looked at the tables in the cafeteria and tried to decide where to sit, she saw Nicky, Morello, Alex and Big Boo sitting on the far right table, and she knew that Alex was looking at her, but Piper didn't want to talk to any of them, especially not Alex.
"Why not sit with your friends?" Soso asked as she pointed at a staring Alex who looked confused as to why an Asian girl was pointing at her. She was hoping Piper would sit with them, but seeing how she was standing in front of the cafeteria looking around like a lost child in a playground, she knew she wouldn't be able to talk to her tonight.
Piper wanted to punch Soso for pointing at her, "Rule number 1, do not point at other inmates", Piper said in a low voice, she walked over to an empty table and sat down. Soso sat across from her and started to dig into her food but she instantly spat it back out.
"This taste disgusting" Soso said as she spat out her food, Piper just shook her head as she sipped the cup of water, "Do you want to try some?"
Piper look just as disgusted, "I'm good". Piper wanted to go back to sleep, but she knew that she had to at least stay here long enough for everyone to finish eating.
"Are you sure? It's really disgusting" Soso said as she took another bite, but slower this time. Piper slouched on to the table as she leaned her head on her palm.
"How'dy Partner" A high pitched voice spoke, Piper instantly knew who it was, Lolly Whitehill, "You know this food isn't that bad. I have been to prisons where the food was literally chucked on the ground, stepped on and then fed to the prisoners"
Piper was seriously regretting this seating arrangement, "That's great to hear Lolly"
Piper buried her head in her arms as she tried to drown out the voices. She found the chatter and laughter that filled the room, comforting in a way. When it was silent, she could hear screaming, screaming for help, begging someone to get them out of their cell. She remembered hearing people banging on their cell doors and cursing at the guards for their release. But some days, it was quiet, sometimes it was as if the whole place was deserted. The place was almost like an abandoned building and it drove her to madness, she craved for someone to talk to, for someone to touch. When she got a new cell mate, they were either fucked up in their own way, to the point where she didn't want to get involved with them or else it would lead to her getting in more shit than she already was.
She noticed that the chatter started to die down, and she also felt Lolly nudge her arm, she looked up and glared at Lolly but Lolly just gestured her head to indicate that someone was hovering over them.
Vee and her gang were staring down at them, Piper automatically assumed that Vee was trying to feel dominant in this situation, Piper took one last gulp of her cup of water and stood up, she got ready to leave until Black Cindy took a step-in front of her to block her path, "What the hell is this?" Piper snapped, her headache was still pounding and hearing Lolly and Soso talk about the worse food that they have ever eaten, did not help.
Black Cindy shrugged her shoulders calmly, as if she didn't understand what was going on, "Sit down", Vee's voice commanded, Piper was going to protest but she saw in the corner of her eye, that Alex was standing up and ready to march over here if things got messy. Nicky pulled on Alex's shoulders muttering something to her that made Alex sit down, but she was still watching Piper like a hawk.
Piper decided the best thing to do was to listen, so she sat back down and fiddled with her cup. Vee shot a look at Soso that told her to 'get the fuck out of my seat'. Soso quickly scurried over to the other seat, Piper noticed that the other black inmates were standing up, they didn't want to sit on the table, they wanted to intimidate her. Lolly looked between the 2 and muttered, "Shit is going to get real"
"Are the rumours true?' Vee asked calmly, her eyes were locked onto Piper's face, like a missile locked onto their target.
"You have to be more specific"
"You were in maximum prison, yes?"
Piper didn't know where this conversation was going, she simply nodded her head.
"Drugs are pretty accessible in there, am I wrong?", Piper had a bad feeling about this, she looked up to see Poussey giving her a sympathetic look.
"Just tell me what the fuck you want" Piper was getting sick of these games, she knew that Vee wanted something from her.
Vee smiled at Piper, she liked the fire that burned within this girl but she also knew that this girl could be potentially dangerous to her if she was on Red's side, "I'm running a business" Vee said as she took out a small packet with cocaine in it and waved it around, she made sure she was hiding it from the guard's view.
The other black girls looked just as shocked as Piper was, "Vee, what are you doing?" Taystee asked, it was dumb of Vee to be waving around a packet of cocaine in the middle of the cafeteria. Vee ignored her and grabbed Piper's hand, she put the cocaine in Piper's hand.
"A welcoming gift" She muttered before standing up and leaving with her group. Poussey was the only one who looked genuinely concerned for Piper, she slightly shook her head as she walked off with Vee and her gang. Piper quickly shoved the cocaine in her underwear.
Piper didn't know why she took the drugs, there was a part of her that told her to take it and use it. she should've told Vee to piss the fuck off and shove the cocaine up her ass. Well, the cocaine was shoved up someone's ass in order for it to get smuggled in here.
Pipe slammed her palm on the table, "Fuck" She shouted as she stormed out of the cafeteria. Everyone looked at Piper who had just stormed out.
-00—
"What the fuck was that about?" Big Boo asked as she ate her food. Alex wanted to chase after Piper but Nicky grabbed her arm and told her sit her ass down.
"If you don't want her to get involved, then don't get involved with her" Nicky said simply, Alex knew what Nicky was saying made sense, but she didn't like the interaction between them. She could feel the tension in the room, and so could everyone on this table.
"I know how much you care for her sweetheart, but wait for her to come around. She needs time to process, and so do you" Morello said as she reached over the table to grab Alex's arm comfortingly.
