Girls Night

"So I know you don't drink but I hope you don't mind me bringing some wine." Renee said, arriving at AJ and Punk's apartment the next night.

"Of course not." AJ said, welcoming her into the apartment.

"This is a lot bigger than I thought it'd be." Renee admitted, taking her jacket off and following AJ into the kitchen, "Nice kitchen. Always the most important part of a home."

"You think?" AJ smiled.

"Oh, yeah. But that's just because I spend about eighty percent of my time in the kitchen." Renee chuckled.

"You like to cook?" AJ smiled, taking the wine from her and putting it in the fridge.

"Yeah, it's like my therapy." Renee nodded, "And now that I've got a boyfriend it means I can make him try everything I make." She laughed to herself.

"I'm sure Dean isn't complaining about that." AJ smiled.

"Oh, definitely not." Renee said, "Congratulations about the job, by the way. Dean told me."

"Thanks." AJ smiled, "Yeah, it's just part-time and the woman there was really nice about giving me shifts that work around college." She nodded.

"It's always good when your boss isn't a dick." Renee nodded, "It's a shoe store, right?"

"Yeah, just a couple blocks away." AJ nodded.

"Well hey you've had plenty of experience with public service. You'll be great." Renee smiled as AJ nodded.

"I hope so. I just couldn't live here and let Phil pay for everything. I want to give something, even if it's not a lot, just until I graduate." She said, "I know he said he didn't mind and it was fine, I guess it's for me more than him. For my own conscious."

"Yeah, sometimes we just gotta ease our mind with things, right?" Renee nodded, "Plus it'll be good for when you're on spring break and summer vacation from college." She said.

"Yeah, I thought that." AJ agreed.

"I wonder how the guys conference is going. It was this afternoon, right?" Renee said.

"Yeah." AJ nodded, "I don't think they were particularly enthusiastic about it." AJ laughed a little.

"I mean… a conference is a conference." Renee nodded, "Ok, give me the tour, I'm ready." She smiled, dumping her purse down.

"Ok, follow me." AJ smiled, leaving the kitchen as Renee followed her, "This is the bedroom." AJ opened up the door, walking inside.

"Oh, nice. And with an on suite bathroom?" AJ raised her eyebrows, "Fancy."

"I know, right?" AJ smiled, "And then there's the living room." AJ said, dancing out of the bedroom and into the living room where Renee followed.

"Oh, this is cute." Renee nodded, "It looks so cozy." She said as AJ nodded.

"Yeah, there's still some stuff we wanna change and add to but we're taking our time." AJ nodded, "It still feels so weird that I actually have my own place." She shook her head. If you told her a few months ago that she'd be moved out, disconnected from her family and living with a man, never mind her friend whom she always spoke to at the bar, she wouldn't have believed it for a second. But it was the happiest she'd been in forever.

"This place is perfect." Renee nodded, "And it's so central. It's not far from college or your job, or the police station actually." Renee said as AJ nodded. She could see how excited AJ was to show her around and how proud she was of her new home. It was lovely to see.

"Yeah, I really love it." AJ smiled happily, "And I think Phil does too."

"Of course he does. Dean said he's never saw Phil so happy like this." Renee nodded, "And look, I wasn't gonna say it because I didn't know if it was appropriate. I only met Janine once at the bar and I didn't say anything to Dean in case he told Phil and he'd take it the wrong way but… I just got bad vibes from her. She just had these weird… aura around her. Like she was looking right through everyone." Renee shook her head.

"Yeah well the encounters I've had with her haven't been so pleasant either." AJ nodded, "Part of me is super glad she's gone away to her mom's house. Not just for me but for Phil too. He needs the space." AJ said, "They both do. Hopefully cooler heads will prevail and they can just settle the divorce in a civil manner." She said as Renee nodded.

"Yeah, hopefully." Renee nodded, "Ok, what food are we ordering because I am starving?" She smiled.

The girls ordered some pizza and Renee cracked open her wine, putting on a cringe but wonderful range of teen movies. AJ was having the time of her life. She'd never had the chance to spend time with a girl friend. She'd never had a girl friend. It was good to have someone to chat to and talk about her relationship with. She was experiencing a lot of first times over the past few months and she felt grateful to have met such lovely people in the process.

"I should have stopped two slices ago." Renee groaned, sitting her pizza crust down as AJ nodded.

"Yeah me too." AJ laughed a little, "Do you want more wine?" She asked, getting up from the couch to take the pizza box out into the kitchen.

"I'm good for now." Renee smiled as AJ nodded, walking off into the kitchen to dump the near empty pizza box beside the trash, "Ok, daunting question, I know." Renee said as AJ walked back into the living room.

"Go on." AJ smiled a little, collapsing back down on the couch beside her.

"Do you think Phil is the one?" Renee smiled as AJ turned to her.

"Yeah." AJ nodded, "It just… it comes so natural, you know? It's like… I always thought you had to work at relationships and there had to be conflicts and disagreements, sacrifices… but, this just feels so easy and amazing." She shook her head as Renee smiled.

"And what's the deal with your parents? You still haven't heard from them?" Renee asked as AJ shook her head.

"No." AJ shook her head, shrugging, "I'm not expecting to. They made their feelings perfectly clear about me when they threw me out." She nodded, "They didn't even wanna hear me out. They were more concerned about being associated with the girl who… was sleeping with a married man."

"Look, I don't condemn cheating." Renee nodded to her, "But I do believe that people can get caught up in moments." She said, "And Phil's marriage was basically over." She shook her head.

"My family don't care about any of that technical stuff." AJ shrugged, "I mean they have issues with his age, his job…"

"Yeah about the age thing…" Renee said, "Does it bother you?"

"No." AJ shook her head, "I know it sounds a little… weird right now because I'm still only twenty but in a few years it's not gonna be a big deal." AJ shrugged, "Plus he's really taught me a lot actually." She nodded, "He's not some little boy who doesn't know what he wants in life. He's set. He's polite. Treats me like I'm a princess." She smiled to herself.

"Look at you all in love." Renee smiled sweetly as AJ chuckled, "Does it annoy you sometimes?"

"What?" AJ asked.

"Having started out as being the other girl?" Renee asked, "Having people constantly think that you're being used?"

"Yeah, it's annoying." AJ nodded, "Even Janine thinks that he's just using me." She shook her head, "But I know Phil and I know what we have. People can think whatever they want." She shook her head. She was starting to get over the burden of caring what other people thought of her. She knew her feelings and she knew what she had with Punk. Everyone else's opinions simply didn't matter to them.

"Janine is probably just telling herself that he's using you just to make herself feel better." Renee nodded.

"I don't know, Renee. When she came at me at the bus stop, she just… she didn't make sense. I mean what woman finds out her husband is in love with someone else, and vows to take him back and fix their marriage?" AJ shook her head.

"She said that?" Renee questioned.

"Yeah. She said I need to let him go so he and her can fix things." AJ shook her head, "I swear she's like… not in love with him but obsessed with the idea of him being around." She said, "Like he's just a void to fill."

"He's lucky he got out." Renee shook her head, "Dean told me about the slashed tyres incident too. Sounds like she's losing her mind a little."

"Yeah, that's why I'm glad her mom came and took her out to the burbs." AJ nodded, "I think she had a few choice words for Phil first, though."

"Her mom?" Renee asked.

"Yeah." AJ nodded, "Apparently she's never liked him." She said, "Can't say he's gonna have better luck with my mom." She said as Renee laughed a little.

"Ahh, who needs them?" Renee shrugged, "You look really happy here." She nodded.

"I am." AJ smiled, "I've never really got to live for me before." She said, "It sounds extremely dramatic when I said it loud but it's true… all I ever knew was going to college, coming straight back and working in the bar, being told what to do by my parents." She said, "I've just never really got to make my own decisions and live my own life." She said as Renee nodded.

"And now you are." Renee smiled, "Is it scary yet? The responsibility?"

"No, I like it." AJ nodded, "I like… coming home and cooking dinner, doing some studying… and then Phil gets home and we eat together and he talks to me about his work." She smiled to herself, "There's no one around yelling at me or telling me off. I get to do things on my own accord. And I have someone that I can open up to now." She said as Renee smiled.

"Hey, you have more than one someone." Renee assured her.

"You've been great." AJ nodded, "I mean you could have easily treated me as the homewrecker like everyone else but you've been so kind and sweet."

"I don't think that about you." Renee shook her head, "I see Dean happier because of how happy Phil is and ultimately that's down to you." She said, "It's just nice to be surrounded by good people and not dickheads."

"Amen to that." AJ laughed as Renee smiled.