A/N: So sorry for the late update. Home internet was down. It's super long and I hope you like it, you'll probably hate me by the end of the chapter but leave your outrage in a review :) Sadly no easter eggs for you I3Vauseman. Enjoy.
CHAPTER TWENTY Part five
"So what if I am?" Piper called back.
Alex threw herself onto the bed. This damn girl was going to be the end of her.
Alex knew exactly what she had to do to get this girl but it wasn't all as easy as people thought. Sylvia was a cruel bitch that knew exactly how to push everyone of Alex's buttons, good and bad. The shorter woman could take Alex down in just a few words and the raven-haired woman knew that. If she broke up with her then there was the risk that Sylvie could go around spreading bullshit rumors , or there was the risk that she could go into Neptune's diner and give her boss yet more ammunition to blackmail her with.
Sylvie was a crazy bitch but no one knew her like Alex did. The raven-haired girl always told people that she loved Sylvia, or she told some that she was with Sylvie for the sex but in reality she was fearful about what would happen if she left.
Alex knew how toxic the relationship was between them but she just needed a little push to end it. Piper obviously wasn't a big enough push.
"You ready?" Piper asked as she poked her head back round the door. Alex had been so absorbed in her own thoughts that she forgot entirely about getting dressed. "Seriously Al?"
"Shit Pipes, sorry, I'll go get dressed now." The raven-haired girl grabbed her pile of clothes and dashed into the bathroom rushing to get ready for the day.
Piper could have joined Diane and Elizabeth in the living room whilst they waited for Alex but the blonde had a better idea. She grabbed Alex's make up and mirror and placed them on the bed, the mirror propped up against the black bars that adorned the bottom of the bed.
"Thanks." Alex panted as she walked into her bedroom. Her hair was slicked back into a neat ponytail aided by water.
As Alex sat to do her make-up Piper leaned forward and placed a kiss upon Alex's exposed shoulder. She let her thumb rub the area where she had just kissed and Alex shuddered a little.
"You look so pretty without make up." She said simply as she moved to rest her chin on Alex's shoulder.
"So do you." The reply was short and simple.
"You smell really good too Al." Another kiss was placed followed by the thumb rub and Alex shuddered again.
"So do you."
"Your lips look so pretty."
"So do yours."
Piper leaned in and placed a chaste kiss upon the pulse point behind Alex's ear.
Alex fought with herself not to turn around and attempt to capture Piper's with her own. She knew that Piper would turn away if she did. She made the rules of this dangerous game that she was playing, very clear. The blonde was going to tease Alex as much as she wanted and Alex wasn't allowed to retaliate.
Piper Chapman was playing dirty. She was speaking Alex's language and that was the only way that she was going to get through to her.
"Today is going to be interesting." Piper commented as she exited through Alex's bedroom door and into the living room area.
Alex sighed heavily. Today was definitely going to be interesting and torturous for the raven-haired beauty.
She carefully applied her winged eyeliner and stepped out into the living room.
"Look at that kid, you look like a mini me!" Alex said as she saw Liz wearing almost the exact same outfit as Alex.
Alex wore a plain black vest top with a lacy trim with black and grey biker jeans and of course her leather jacket and black Doc Martens.
Elizabeth was wearing a black vest top with a white outline of a my little pony character on it, black leggings and of course the brand new black Doc Martens and leather jacket.
"Aww, look at my beautiful girls, let me get a picture!" Diane seemed unbelievably happy as she pulled out her phone to take a picture.
Alex and Elizabeth stood together in front of the cream wall. Piper remained seated on the couch as Diane lifted the phone up.
"Piper, you are a Vause girl are you not? Get in the picture!" Piper beamed from ear to ear and Alex's smile grew wider as she saw Piper walking over. The three girls stood together and smiled perfectly as Diane snapped the picture and tears welled in her eyes. "This is one for the albums!" She gleamed as she viewed the image.
Piper pulled out her own phone from her pocket. "Come here Diane." The oldest Vause did as she was instructed and sauntered over to the group still cooing over the picture on the phone screen. "Selfie." Piper said as she organized everyone. Alex lifted Elizabeth up and sat her on her hip as Piper repositioned the camera. "Everyone say cheese!" Piper snapped the picture and immediately set it as her home and lock screen.
"Alright then, let's get going. Liz since its your birthday you are in the front all day." Diane knew exactly what she was doing, the same thing she had been doing for ages, she was trying to get Alex and Piper together.
Elizabeth fist pumped the air and scurried out the door followed by Diane as she grabbed her keys. Piper followed and Alex shut the door behind them.
Elizabeth raced to the car and Diane chased after her warning her not to trip. Alex let out a small chuckle at the idea that for once it wasn't her telling her that. Piper stood beside her and smiled as they made their way downstairs.
"How about cinema, then zoo then out for supper?" Diane asked as she twisted her head around to speak to Alex and Piper who were situated in the back of the car.
"Sounds good to me." Piper said and Alex simply down turned her lips slightly and nodded in an aloof manner. There was definitely something playing on Alex's mind.
As they arrived at the cinema Piper, Elizabeth and Diane made easy conversation and quickly molded their conversation into a discussion about what film they were going to see. They decided upon a kids film that Elizabeth chose as it was her birthday after all. Alex just stood and stared at the posters plastering the walls.
"We are going to get snacks Al, do you want anything?" Piper asked as she pulled Alex from her fixation.
"Uhm, yeah, get me some milk duds and a soda, I'll give you the money back later, i just need to nip to the loo." Alex spoke without looking at Piper and seemed awkward as she walked away.
Piper shot her best Vause look Alex's way and then walked to the counter where Liz and Diane were buying snacks.
Meanwhile, Alex stood facing the bathroom mirror. "Fuck." She muttered under her breath as she looked at herself. "Fuck her, fuck this." Alex threw her hands up in exasperation and then ran one through her long black locks before moving to rub her eyes, stopping just short so as not to smudge her eyeliner. She sighed once more before composing herself and heading out to the foyer where Piper, Diane and Elizabeth all stood waiting patiently.
"Good to go?" Diane asked and Alex nodded. The youngest and oldest members of the Vause family began walking away but Piper lingered to speak to Alex who seemed to have no intentions of moving.
"You alright Al?" The blonde questioned as she held out Alex's soda and Milk Duds.
"Yeah, you go on ahead, take my stuff with you please, I'll catch up in a minute, just got to make a phone call."
"Better make it count." Piper commented as she walked away wiggling her bum in the gloriously sexy manner that she new Alex loved.
The raven-haired girl couldn't help but release a playful smirk which she attempted (and failed) to hold back with her teeth. She pressed the phone to her ear and listened intently as it rang. By the fourth ring she was getting impatient and was not too pleased to be kept waiting.
'This is Sylvia's voice mail please leave a message after the tone.'
Alex sighed loudly as she waited for the tone and then gathered her thoughts when she heard the beep.
"Hey Sylvie it's me. We need to talk." With that she put the phone down and turned the phone to silent before pocketing it and walking towards into the film theater just on time.
"Hey Al, where you been?" Diane asked as Alex took the seat that had been saved in front of her.
"Had to make a phone call sorry." She hushed as she took her place next to Piper.
The movie theater darkened and the opening trailers began to play. Alex reached to grab the drink in the cup holder but Piper swiped it away before her fingers could even make contact.
"Hey, that's mine!" Alex teased playfully.
"I payed for it." Piper stated before wrapping her lips around the straw making sure Alex was watching. She lifted one eyebrow and Alex reciprocated. Piper was playing a dangerous game and Alex was about to join in.
"Well since you are wearing my black skinny jeans, I'm allowed to take them off of you is that how it works?" Alex leaned into Piper and whispered into her ear as she ran a hand up from Piper's knee to mid thigh stopping to pluck at the material before removing her hand.
Piper dropped the straw from her lips immediately and placed the soda back in the cup holder. This time Piper leaned into Alex and whispered into her ear "I guess so."
Alex wasn't expecting Piper to be so suave about it, she was sure that she was going to freak out and brush her off exclaiming that she couldn't until Alex was single.
The rest of the movie was spent in silence with Piper cheekily pinching the drink every other time Alex wanted a bit. There was also a bit of mid-movie tussling from Alex and Piper over the pack of Milk Duds that were still in Piper's possession. In the end Diane took the packet from the both of them as if they were school girl children again. They both playfully sulked at each other before laughing again.
When the movie had finished the four of them headed out to the car and then headed to the zoo.
"That one looks like you Al!" Piper teased as she pointed to a baboon.
The pair stood close, leaning on each other as they lazily stood in front of the monkey enclosure waiting for feeding time.
"No, that one over there looks like you." Alex pointed too a distant part of the enclosure.
Piper squinted her eyes hard but couldn't make out anything other than branches. "I don't see anything."
Alex took a step back and placed herself directly behind Piper. The raven-haired girl leaned in carefully and placed her lips just next to Piper's ear. The blonde's breath hitched as she felt the warmth.
"Just over there." Alex wrapped her left arm around Piper's slim, toned waist and her right hand moved to grab Piper's lifting it to point to where she meant.
The blonde stumbled over her words as Alex's breath lowered and a kiss was placed behind her ear. "I...I don't see anything."
"Never mind. It must have gone." Alex suddenly dropped everything and walked away from Piper to go and join Elizabeth and Diane.
The exasperated blonde released a breath that she didn't know she was holding and moved to join the rest of the family. "This girl will be the death of me." Piper thought to herself as Alex flashed her a smug grin.
Piper wasn't sure whether to be worried or relieved as Alex took a backseat approach for the rest of the zoo until they reached the petting zoo.
"See anything you like?" Alex queried as she sat on the stool next to Piper.
"Maybe. What's it to you?" Piper didn't even look at Alex as she spoke, instead choosing to focus on Elizabeth and the young girls interactions with the guinea pigs she held in her lap.
"What may that be?" Alex asked throwing Piper the typical Vause look.
"Oh, I bet you can guess, she's tall, dark-haired, has the most beautiful eyes and can attract quite a crowd." There was a hint of sarcasm held in the blonde's voice but Alex didn't seem to notice it.
"Yeah?" Alex asked both intrigued and confused, she expected that playing this odd game with Piper would be lengthy and not this easy to win.
"Yeah, she's over there." Piper pointed to a short distance away where a young family were stood admiring a black haired llama.
Alex simply tutted. "I should have guessed. This one plays hard to get and you just jump on to the next tall hot girl you find. I didn't peg you for that kind of girl Piper Chapman, I'll have to keep my eye on you."
"If you remember Alex, you aren't playing hard to get, you are in a relationship." With this Piper stood and walked over to interact with Liz who was more than excited about the guinea pigs. She did not seem impressed and Alex wondered for a moment if she had overstepped a mark and ruined the whole game.
Alex remained sat on the stool. She ran a hand through her thick black locks and bit her lip slightly. Her phone buzzed and she was oddly eager to see who wanted to speak with her today.
1 NEW MESSAGE - SYLVIE
WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT WHAT?
She couldn't help it when a smile crept across her lips.
TO: SYLVIE
MEET ME OUTSIDE THE MALL AT SIX.
Alex typed the message out as quickly as she could and pressed send before she could go back on her intentions.
1 NEW MESSAGE - SYLVIE
FINE.
Alex knew that Sylvie was not exactly pleased by her words but this was something that needed to be done. The raven-haired girl stood and walked over to the family, crouching to the left of Piper.
"I need you to come to the mall with me later." She said to Piper as she carefully placed her knees against the cold floor.
"Why?"
"Because we need to talk and..." Alex paused to think of a better reason without telling her that Sylvia was going to be there "...I forgot to pick up Liz's last present."
"Fine." Piper sighed before standing and walking over to the rabbit pen.
Alex couldn't help but let her mind make the comparison between Sylvie and Piper and their both equally unimpressed 'Fine.'
Supper came and went without any more game playing or flirting and Alex was regretting her comment more and more. Not the one to Sylvie as she thought she would, but instead the one to Piper about playing hard to get. The realization must have hit the blonde as she was no longer playing. Alex was a grown woman capable of making her own decisions, and her own mistakes. Piper was capable of realizing when she was over stepping a mark. As fun as the little game was the blonde had realized that she was trying to steal someone's girlfriend from them and even if it was just that bitch Sylvie, it was wrong.
She took a step back from the situation and re-evaluated it. Alex was in a relationship and Piper was trying to lure her away from it, as much as Alex told her the relationship was 'complicated' she now looked at it very simply. Alex was taken. Simple as that.
After supper the four returned to the apartment for an evening of music, dancing and general jollity. Piper was invited to sleep over for another night and after some begging from Elizabeth she agreed. There would be no cuddling like there was before and Piper would tell Alex that she would sleep on the sofa.
Alex seemed indifferent to Piper's decision and remained aloof when begging was taking place.
Half past five came and went and at quarter to six Alex stood abruptly from her place on the sofa where she seemed to be sulking childishly as she watched her mom, Liz and Piper dance and laugh.
"Come and dance with us Alex." Piper had asked trying to make an effort for Elizabeth's sake.
"Not really my thing." She had said brushing it off quite casually.
Piper had raised her eyebrows and left Alex to her sulking on the sofa.
Now she seemed alive, no longer sulking but still not particularly happy.
"Where are you going?" Diane asked as Alex had pulled Piper aside from her dancing.
"We forgot one of Liz's presents, we have to go pick it up from the mall. I need to borrow the car." Alex said with a sombre expression.
"Can I come?" Elizabeth asked as she excitedly jumped about.
"Then it wouldn't be a surprise would it silly?" Piper told Elizabeth. She knew something was going on and she sure as hell knew it wasn't anything to do with Liz's birthday.
"We won't be long, I promise." Alex said as she kissed her mom and sister goodbye.
Piper repeated the motion as Alex grabbed the car keys from the bowl.
"Be back soon." Piper called as she waved goodbye through the closing apartment door.
Elizabeth and Diane went back to dancing as soon as the pair left not really caring for Alex's suspicious manner but Piper had coined on.
The pair walked in silence down the heavy metal and concrete steps and into the parking lot.
Piper was the first to break the silence when they got into the car. She couldn't stand it any longer.
"Alright Al, cut the shit, where are we really going?" Piper twisted in her seat to face Alex who was just shifting the car into reverse.
"The Mall." She said calmly as she watched the mirrors intently.
"Okay then, what for?" Piper asked realizing that that part of her statement had perhaps been true.
"To get Liz's other birthday present." She once again remained calm and gave Piper nothing to quibble about.
"I'm calling bullshit." Piper announced as she huffed loudly and crossed her arms like a kid in a tantrum, she might've even stamped her foot if she hadn't been sat cross legged.
"You can call whatever you like." Alex scoffed, she was the master of handling things completely wrong and this was no exception.
"I'm not going to sleep in your bed tonight, I'll sleep on the sofa."
"Don't be like this Piper."
"Don't be like what? A good friend? Someone who doesn't make advances on a girl who already has a girlfriend?"
"Seriously Piper, you are giving me whiplash, this morning you were all teasing and playful and now this. I don't know where I stand with you."
"You don't stand anywhere Alex, you just sit in the sidelines and watch the world go by like none of this concerns you."
To this Alex had no reply, she knew Piper was right, instead of stepping up and facing her problems she just sat back and waited for them to blow over just hoping to god that they would. Until today when she decided to actually do something and for a moment she wasn't sure if she regretted it or not.
"See, you can't even give me the courtesy of a reply when you know damn fucking well I'm right."
Alex sighed heavily, her mind was at odds with itself right now and thank goodness that Piper was too absorbed with her own rant to notice that they had gone around the roundabout three times.
"I'll sleep on the sofa, you will take the bed, don't try and argue it, you know mom wouldn't have it any other way."
Piper knew that was true but it stung slightly to know that she was going to be in Alex's bed without Alex.
"Great input on the conversation there Al, changing the subject, real smooth. You said you wanted this time to talk but so far this conversation has been pretty one sided."
Once again Alex didn't really know what to say. She couldn't just come out and say that she was dragging Piper to the mall so that she could break up with Sylvia and have Piper witness it so that she would know that she wasn't lying. It was just too risky, the whole situation could go terribly wrong and Alex's throat ran dry at the thought of Piper and Sylvie fighting again. She swallowed, hard.
"The mall will explain it all." The only words Alex could manage didn't really make too much sense.
"I really hope the brick building will be a better conversationalist than you."
Alex rolled her eyes at Piper's comment, she couldn't quite believe how much they sounded like a married couple.
Piper continued her childish sulk all the way to the mall and remained silent throughout the rest of the thankfully short journey.
Alex pulled into the parking lot and immediately, wordlessly got out of the car and began walking towards the mall, she assumed Piper would follow obediently and she did.
"You are late." Sylvie said as she tapped her foot impatiently.
"Sorry. Traffic." Was the only response that Alex gave.
"Short and sweet. Something's wrong." Sylvie folded her arms and threw a questioning look at Alex as she came closer.
"Yeah, it is, we need to talk."
"Yeah, so you said."
"It's about me and you."
"Well I guessed it wouldn't be about American literature or world peace." Sylvie quipped.
"Well, you guessed right." Alex lost her cool demeanor for a moment and let herself relax back into the state of familiarity that she knew all too well even showing a smile for old time's sake.
"So..." Sylvia pushed as the pair just stood silently for a moment.
"You know what this is about." Alex quickly realized what she was doing and pulled her iron gates back up.
Just then Piper came up behind Alex. "You have got to be kidding me." The blonde yelled as she caught sight of Sylvia and Alex talking. "We came to the mall so that you could see her didn't we. Couldn't go one day without your little sex cow eh? You could have left me at home if you were gonna come here just to fuck her." Piper could feel her rage bubbling and she did nothing to try and swallow it down.
"Piper please..." Alex began but was quickly interrupted by Sylvia.
"No fucking way Alex. No fucking way." Sylvie raised her hands and placed them atop of her own head before letting them fall limply to her sides. "I cannot fucking believe you Alex." She raised her hands once again but this time she ran them through her hair.
"Sylvie, it's not like that, just listen..." The raven-haired girl was trying her damn best not to flip out right now. She felt like her heart was being pulled between an old mule and a carthorse. She felt obligation to the old mule who had been her cart puller for so many years but the mule was no longer strong and even though she felt attached to it, it was time to retire it. The carthorse was new and unfamiliar but beautiful and strong and exactly what she needed.
"I'll listen when you want to do this privately without your one man fucking audience." She pointed to Piper who was standing right behind Alex defensively.
Sylvie walked away and for a few short seconds Alex considered following her, for what reason though she was unsure. She took a step forward and then stopped herself turning on her heel instead to talk to Piper.
"Listen Piper, I can explain..." This time Piper interrupted her.
"You can explain later, right now we have to go and pick out a present so we don't disappoint Elizabeth." Piper really couldn't care for the reasoning behind the situation. Her anger had been dispelled by the fact that Alex did not follow Sylvia when she left.
Alex just nodded. She no longer looked alive, she looked exhausted, more like dead inside. Nevertheless, she followed Piper, wordlessly, into the shopping mall where they grazed by window upon window of things that Elizabeth might like but really had no need or particular want for. It was meant to be yet another birthday surprise, they couldn't disappoint.
That was when Piper walked past the shop window filled with animals and she back tracked turning to look again. A group of guinea pigs hustled and bustled about the play pen running from one end to the other and back again.
"Al, we have to buy her guinea pigs, she loved the ones at the petting zoo, I'm sure she'd love to have her own. It would give her a sense of responsibility, she'll love it." Piper was not going to give up until Alex agreed and the raven-haired girl was already aware of this. She had suffered first hand on more than one occasion because of Piper's stubbornness.
"Mom would kill me, there would be sawdust everywhere." Alex made the comment but she knew damn well it would mean nothing to Piper. The blonde had already set her heart on buying Elizabeth guinea pigs and in all honesty Alex knew that she would love them and that Diane wouldn't be too mad after seeing how much Liz enjoyed them.
"I'll tell her it was all my idea." Piper practically had her nose pressed up against the window now.
"Damn right you will."
"Is that a yes?" Piper was almost squealing now.
"Let's go pick out some guinea pigs then." Alex couldn't help but let a grin plaster her face at Piper's excitement.
"Those two there, in the corner snuggling, let's get those." Piper jabbed her finger against the glass before darting inside the shop and locating the nearest assistant.
Alex followed obediently and as the man plucked the two unaware guinea pigs from the enclosure and placed them into a cardboard box with holes in the side and a carry handle, she went in search of a cage to keep them in. Something Piper had obviously not thought of. Alex picked out a cage package that came with all the basic things you would need to keep guinea pigs indoors plus a book on how to look after them and even a few treats and toys. It all cost a pretty penny but Alex knew it was worth it just to see the look on Piper's face right now as she cooed through the holes in the box let alone the look on Elizabeth's face when she saw them. The raven-haired girl handed the woman at the till the money and as she looked back and forth between Piper and her empty wallet she couldn't help but grin which must have seemed bizarre to the cashier as she commented on it.
"Going broke just to keep the girlfriend happy huh?" The cashier asked as she pressed the buttons on the till.
"Pardon?" Alex wasn't sure if she had heard correctly.
"I saw you through the window, she was practically begging you."
"She's not my..." Alex interrupted her own sentence to look back at the blonde and as she did she let a huge grin creep across her face. "They're actually for my sister's birthday."
"Well I hope she enjoys them." The cashier grinned as she passed Alex her change and a receipt. Alex promptly stuffed them into her wallet and pocketed it without looking which disheartened the cashier as she had scrawled her number on the back.
"Come on blondie." Alex yelled as she hefted the cage from the counter.
Piper followed obediently and Alex kept having to look back just to check she hadn't walked astray as she kept her eyes firmly trained on the guinea pigs in the box.
As the pair climbed into the car there was an odd silence, it was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable but it was somewhat expectant, they both knew what was to follow. It was once again Piper that broke the silence.
"Start the car and you can tell me all about why we were supposed to be here on the drive home."
Alex didn't reply, she just brought the engine to life and began to drive. She waited for Piper to bring up the conversation, not because she was avoiding the subject but purely because she had no clue where to start or if she would ever stop.
"Why?" Piper spoke as they pulled out of the parking lot.
"Why did I drag you here?" Alex asked, she shot Piper an exasperated glance and Piper was suddenly aware of how tired she looked.
"No. Why did you let her walk away? Why didn't you follow her?" Piper sensed an air of discomfort as she spoke knowing that this was not one of Alex's strong points.
"I've told you before Piper, it's complicated." Alex saw that as the end of the conversation, they had had the same talk quite a few times and it always ended with the same sentence. Piper would then keep quiet and not say anything other about it. Not this time.
"It's not complicated Alex, answer the question, why didn't you follow her?"
Alex sighed deeply. "Because i didn't think it was worth it."
"What wasn't worth it?"
"Us. Me and her, it's nothing. When I met you I just wanted to hold you and protect you and kiss you goodnight and she stood in the fucking way, but then she was there at the end of the day when shit got tough, the night you and I argued, she was there. When I was pissed at you about Lucy, she was there and I'm just not sure what the fuck I want anymore." Alex slammed her hands on the wheel as they hit yet another red traffic light.
"Alex look at me." Alex just turned her head towards the window even further away from Piper's gaze. "Look at me Alex!" Piper almost yelled.
"What?" Alex snapped as she whipped her head around to face the blonde.
"You look tired, do you want me to drive?" Piper looked concerned, she had lowered her voice to almost a whisper.
"No, I don't want you to fucking drive, I just wanna get out of this fucking traffic!" She snapped at Piper again and this time Piper turned away towards the window. Alex's face eased slightly and she sighed deeply. "I'm sorry Piper, I just.."
"Don't Alex." Piper left her comment at that, today had been a stressful, busy day and the blonde wanted nothing more than to curl up in bed and sleep.
The car remained silent for most of the ride. Alex spent most of the journey opening and closing her mouth just trying to figure out the right words to say so as not to fuck it up any further. She had done enough damage already. Piper spent most of the trip with her head pressed against the window fighting back tears, she had no idea why but she had an unfathomable urge to scream and cry and dig her heels into the ground. The blonde bit her lip as tears started to fall, she did not want Alex to see her this way, she didn't want Alex to feel sorry for her or want to hold her or anything like that. She wanted Alex's decision to be entirely fair and unbiased. Piper realized that she couldn't just play God at every opportunity she got, she had to sit back and let this happen, whatever this was.
Piper sniffed and disrupted the silence.
"Are you crying Pipes?" Alex reached her arm out to touch Piper but soon retracted it when the earlier scene of 'Don't Alex' flicked through her mind. Piper had sounded so hurt.
"No, I think I might be allergic to guinea pigs." This was Piper's half-hearted attempt to create sarcasm. It wasn't too successful.
The pair spent the rest of the journey in an odd silence, it wasn't uncomfortable but they both felt burdened with tiredness. As they pulled into the apartment block's parking lot Piper spoke. Her tears had long dried up but she wasn't yet willing to ask any of the hundreds of questions that ran through her head.
"Let's go play happy families." Piper said as they stepped through the huge double doors at the front of the building.
There was a million and one comments that the pair could have come up with concerning the irony of the Chapman girl wanting to play 'happy families' when she was so sick of playing it at her own home.
"We're home!" Alex announced as they swung through the door. Diane was washing up in the kitchen and Elizabeth had just gone to put her pajamas on and so she came running when she heard the front door.
"Did you get my surprise Al?"
"We sure did kid, sit down, Piper has it." Alex put a little too much emphasis on the 'we' part of the sentence which made Diane wonder.
Elizabeth dived onto the sofa excitedly and sat with her legs outstretched in front of her.
"What is it?" She asked as Piper placed the cardboard box on her lap.
"Open it and see, just be careful." Piper said as she squatted to the floor in front of Liz.
Elizabeth very carefully opened the cardboard box and gasped when she saw what was inside.
"Guinea pigs!" She squealed as she lifted one from the box.
Piper stood and lifted the other from the box and pushed the box aside placing the black guinea pig back down onto Liz's lap.
"What are they called?" She asked, her young eyes filled with delight darted between Piper and Alex.
"They don't have names yet, you get to name them kid."
Her eyes grew even wider at that and she grinned at the Little furry creatures that were squealing and squirming in her lap.
Diane came over to view the new members of the family and looked at Alex with some skepticism.
"That one is blonde like Piper and that one has black hair like Alex." Diane stated as she pointed to them.
"Oh yeah, I just chose them because they were cuddling and they looked super cute." Piper clasped her hands together clearly pleased with her choice of birthday surprise.
"I'm gonna call them Alex and Piper."
"Thats cool with me kid but I'm just gonna call them squeaky and noisy." Alex quipped as she set about sorting the cage.
Piper laughed at the idea of the names and then leaned forward to tickle the blonde guinea pig behind the ear. "Hey mini me."
Diane took a seat by Liz to share her enthusiasm whilst Piper moved to assist Alex.
When the cage was all set up , which was pretty quickly despite some slight arguments about the placement of items, the guinea pigs were placed inside.
"Look, Piper and Alex are cuddling!" Elizabeth yelled excitedly as she pointed to where the pair of animals had settled in the corner.
"Those names are gonna take some getting used to." Piper quipped as she nudged Alex. The raven-haired girl didn't seem too impressed.
"Alright then Liz, you've had a big day today so it's off to bed with you. Alex, I want a word with you later." Diane said as she took Elizabeth by the shoulders and guided her into her room.
Alex was all too familiar with that phrase and it didn't usually mean she was in trouble so she wasn't too worried, however, it did usually mean a barrage of questions.
"I haven't gotten you into trouble about the guinea pigs have I? I'll tell her it was all my idea."
"Hey Pipes, don't you worry, it's not about the guinea pigs, you saw how Liz's face lit up. Mom loves seeing Elizabeth happy." Alex reassured as she stood and tapped Piper on the shoulder. "Although mom will want to talk to me pretty soon so you might want to go and chill in my room, my iPod is in there for you to listen to and there's plenty of reading material about."
Piper stood and made to leave before Alex shouted her.
"Hey Pipes, thank you for being here and making Liz's birthday extra special, we all appreciate your company."
"Some more than others." Piper mumbled under her breath as she walked away. Alex could hear it though.
Alex dragged her fingers through her hair and then took a seat on the sofa waiting patiently for her mother who would, no doubt, be launching a spanish inquisition about whatever subject she had chosen today.
"You there Al?" Diane asked as she stepped back into the living room area heading for the kitchen.
Alex had slumped her body down past the back of the couch and so she was no longer visible unless you were stood over the old royal blue sofa.
"Yeah. I'm here."
"You know what we need to talk about right." Diane said as she sat down on the sofa next to Alex.
"I have my suspicions."
"Well then sit back and listen."
Alex slipped back into a comfortable position and only half listened to what her mom had to say, her mind was wandering about thinking about what Piper may or may not have being doing in her bed room.
"Okay Al?"
Alex brought her mind back to the room and nodded at her mom. "Yeah mom, thanks for the advice."
Diane simply nodded at Alex knowing full well that her daughter wasn't listening and that this particular situation was one she would have to figure out for herself. She stood up and walked to her bedroom. She paused to say goodnight to Alex and then disappeared into her room.
Alex walked into her bedroom knocking once gently before pushing the door open.
"Hey I just came to get some pajamas, I won't be bothering you for long." Alex announced as she stepped inside the room.
Piper was entirely oblivious to Alex's entrance because she had the headphones to the iPod in on what appeared to be the loudest volume possible. She appeared to be listening to one of Alex's favorite bands which pleased Alex immensely. Another thing that pleased Alex was the fact that Piper was sat on the bed in nothing but her sports bra and boy shorts.
"Someone is making herself at home." Alex almost shouted as she knelt on the bed ready to pull a headphone out.
"Shit sorry Al!" Piper gasped as she pulled the headphones out.
"No problem, I'm just gonna grab my pajamas and then I'll be out of your way."
Piper opened her mouth to speak but quickly closed it again when she realized she had nothing to say.
Alex shamelessly stripped down to her underwear facing away from Piper and towards the wardrobe and pulled on a loose tee and boy shorts.
Piper sat and watched in awe as Alex's slim figure appeared from under her vest top, her shoulders strong and defined and her skin so deliciously soft.
"Sorry, I forget there's people here sometimes." Alex was lying through her teeth , she knew exactly what she was doing and that it had the desired effect when she turned and saw Piper's mouth open slightly.
Piper again made an attempt to speak again but failed to form a sentence.
"Night Piper." Alex left the room and pulled the door shut behind her.
Piper really wanted to get up and follow Alex out but she didn't. She knew she would probably do more harm than good to the both of them.
Alex stumbled over and eventually came to rest on the sofa where she didn't lie down but instead sat up. She wasn't tired but didn't really feel like fighting Piper for the iPod. Instead the raven-haired girl threw her head back against the back of the sofa and stared at the swirling darkness that was the ceiling, she had a lot of shit to think about and now was the perfect time to think about it all.
She hadn't had much time to think though when Elizabeth came creeping through the living room to the kitchen to get a drink.
Elizabeth wasn't surprised to see Alex awake, this frequently happened. "Why are you still up Al?" She asked rubbing her eyes tiredly. "Piper is probably waiting for you."
Alex sighed. "You know me and Piper are just friends right?"
"Yeah, but you should be more than that."
Alex's eyes shot open. "I have Sylvia remember."
"Yeah, you should get rid of her."
Alex turned her head to her young sage. "Come sit with me for a minute Liz."
Elizabeth came and sat beside Alex with a glass of water in her hand a sigh upon her lips. Sometimes Alex couldn't believe that another person had been involved in the making of this child as she seemed to be the miniature version of her mother.
"Alex, I want you to be happy. Mom says you don't need presents for your birthday as long as everyone is happy, but you aren't happy and I want you to be."
Alex sighed, "I don't know what to tell you kid."
"Don't tell me anything Alex, do something about it."
Alex tilted her head at Elizabeth wordlessly.
Elizabeth looked at her older sister and then passed her the phone from the coffee table. "You know what you have to do Alex, Sylvie doesn't make you happy anymore, Piper does."
It was daft to be receiving such advice from a seven year old but it finally made sense. "Thanks kid."
Elizabeth walked away wordlessly.
She lifted the phone to her ear and on the third ring it picked up.
"Sylvia, about earlier...yeah...we still need to talk..."
A/N: I know you all hate me now but ah well, at least I updated. Hope you enjoyed it, please leave a review :)