Ahh! I so didn't mean to wait this long! I'm so sorry! And btw, I'm getting Payback up in the next week or so hopefully. I had it written...and I LOST it! I cried. Seriously. It was great, and I lost it all. grr...Now I'm just pissed off...
So anyway, for making ya'll wait so long, I wanted to give you an early Hanukah present (yeah boi, the Jew is in the hiz-house! lol)...Er, two really:
TWO CHAPTERS IN ONE!
haha it's a Buy One, Get One Free deal...It's a Payless BOGO!
:-D
Enjoy!
Chapter Eight - Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.
That's her favorite ice cream. I mean, absolute favorite. She'll buy a container of it and go through it and take out all the cookie dough pieces, all in one sitting. Then she'll roll them up into a big ball and eat the dough. Then she eats the ice cream. That's usually what she does, but sometimes she just eats it until she's full. She loves it.
She came by my house when I was headed out the door to get to the grocery store, since my fridge was empty (thanks to Piper).
"Where you goin'?"
"Grocery store." I closed the front door.
"Can I go?"
I looked at her car, in my driveway. She'd only just started driving over here. Usually she got a ride from her sister, claiming her car was "out of gas" or "in the shop". I always thought it was because she wanted me to take her home.
"Why?" I asked, glancing to see if her car was blocking mine. It wasn't.
"I'm bored."
"Bored," I echoed. I opened my car door. "You're always bored." I got in, closed the door, and rolled the window down. She was looking at me pitifully. I sighed. "Fine, get in." She giggled and ran around to the other side of the car and jumped in. I was reminded of when she first came over to my house after work.
At the grocery store she acted like a little kid. She would run off out of sight and come back with a box of cookies. She would hold them up for me to see and stick out her lower lip. "Please?" she would ask. I didn't always give in.
I asked her to go find some frozen pizza, a quick dinner. She ran off in the direction of the frozen foods. I realized we probably looked like a couple shopping together. Correction, we probably looked more like an adult bossing around a little hyper girl. Actually, a lot of things we did made us seem like a couple. We weren't, I was clear of that. Was she? Of course she was. She never referred to me as her boyfriend, but as a good friend. That was perfectly fine with me.
She returned with two frozen pizzas, a bag of frozen raspberries, and a container of ice cream. "What's this?" I asked.
"My favorites."
"Ice cream and raspberries."
"Separate, of course. First of all, frozen raspberries are absolutely the bomb," she said as she put the stuff in the cart. She held up the ice cream. "Second of all, this is not just any 'ole ice cream, this is Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough."
I nodded a little. "Okay..."
"Don't tell me you haven't heard of it."
"I've heard of it. Never had it."
I thought she was going to die. "Oh—My—God. You've never had it before?"
I shook my head, not seeing the horror in it.
"You have got to try it. Just wait 'til we get home."
Home? As in her home or mine? She was calling my house home?
I tried not to think about it too much.
As it turned out, "home" was my house. She took to calling it "home" from then on. Her house became "the apartment". She hardly ever stayed overnight, except once when she was stranded here, which was the day when we went to the grocery store.
She'd been saving the ice cream, but the raspberries were gone. It was dark out and the movie we were watching was over. Earlier, Phoebe had called asking if she could use Piper's car for a weekend trip to Los Angeles. Piper had agreed to let Phoebe get a ride from Prue (Piper's twin) over to my house so that she could get Piper's car. Once Phoebe left with Piper's car, Ashley called saying that Michael had her car and she needed to get to the doctor for a check-up. I told Ashley that she could borrow my car, but only if she brought it back so I could bring her home. She agreed.
Then she forgot.
It was raining by then, a bad storm too. It'd looked like rain all week, but now it was really coming down hard. I was about to call Ashley to tell her I wanted my car back when a bolt of lightning flashed, the thunder booming directly after it. The lights flickered but stayed on. I waited a moment then picked up the phone. The lines were dead.
"Wonderful," I muttered.
"My cell has no reception..." Piper said, walking past me. She was already in pajamas, as if she just knew she was going to stay. Or at least she planned on it.
"Mine either..."
So Piper and I were stranded at my house. I told her she could have my room and I'd sleep on the couch.
"No," she said, "I can sleep on the couch. It's a pull-out, right?"
"Uh, yeah..."
"Okay, then I just need a pillow and a blanket."
"Okay. You sure?"
She nodded.
"...Okay..."
When she was settled in on the mattress of the pull-out couch, with a blanket wrapped around her and a thick pillow behind her, she decided it was time to break out the ice cream. She ran into the kitchen, grabbed the container from the freezer and a spoon, and came running back. She jumped onto the bed and almost landed on me. (I was sitting on the other side of the bed.)
She sat back against the pillows propped up behind her and pulled the blanket up again. "Okay, this is the magical Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream. See the little chocolate chips?" she said, showing me and pointing to the chocolate chips. "And the cookie dough." She pointed.
"I see."
She ate a spoonful. "Now you try," she said, handing me the spoon.
I took it with some hesitation, but then did as she said.
"Well...?"
"Good."
"That's all? Oh my God, you are impossible!" She settled back into the pillows and ate her ice cream.
How strange, was all I could think. It was official; I didn't understand that woman.
I talked to Ashley a couple days later, right after she told our parents she was pregnant. They were ecstatic—overjoyed. Ashley had come over to my house saying she just wanted to hang out, but I knew she wanted to talk about Piper.
She did seem to be the main subject.
"She likes you, you know."
"Well, she follows me around."
"No, Leo, I mean...as more than a friend."
"Huh?"
"Hello? You in there? She's obviously got a thing for you..."
I shook my head. "No...She's just a friend."
"Whatever...You like her, too."
"Sure, I like her...She's a friend."
"You know what I mean, Leo."
"No, actually, I don't."
"Yes you do, you just won't admit it."
"What? I don't have a thing for her, if that's what you're saying."
Ashley suddenly seemed angry. "Leo, you stubborn-ass! Why can't you just admit that you like her?" she burst.
"I don't! She's just a friend! She just...follows me around!"
"For a reason! You need her!"
"No I don't! She's everything I'm not!"
"No, Leo! No she's not! She's everything you used to be."
Suddenly I was silent.
Ashley sighed. "She's everything you used to be...before Monica."
I wasn't ready for that. I knew it was true, but I had never admitted it to myself or even consciously thought it.
But she was right.
Chapter Nine - When She's Alone
I let Ashley's words sink in for another week. I didn't talk to Piper much, even when she came over. I knew she sensed something was wrong.
She was stranded at my house again a few days after Ashley struck some sense into me. She said she wanted to take a shower. I told her that was fine, so she went upstairs and headed down the hall toward the bathroom.
I changed in my room and listened to the water running down the hall. When I was dressed again, I went down the hall and stood in front of the bathroom door.
...Maybe Ashley was right...Maybe...
I heard soft humming coming from the other side of the door. I lifted my hand and rested it on the doorknob, ready to turn it. I hesitated, and decided to knock.
"Yeah?"
I opened the door and stepped inside. Steam was filling up in the room. "I, uh...You okay in there?" I asked dumbly.
"Um...Yeah...What do you want?" She was getting suspicious.
"Uh, brush." That was my excuse? A brush? Why was I even in there? Nevertheless, I grabbed a brush from the cabinet. "Got it, thanks."
"Uh, sure. I'll be out in a little bit."
"Okay." I left quickly.
Why did I go in there?
When she got out, she came into the kitchen to let me know. I looked up and caught my breath. She was standing in the doorway of the kitchen in just a towel, still wet, hair wet but combed out. A quick flash went through my mind of the towel falling.
I closed my eyes for a second and took a deep breath. She didn't seem to notice. "What do you need?"
"Um...clothes? Still got that jersey?" She grinned.
I nodded and walked out of the kitchen, for some reason getting a buzz when my jeans brushed up against her towel. She followed me up to my room and waited patiently as I got her the jersey she so liked. She had a pair of shorts, but claimed she didn't want to re-wear her tank top, at least not for bed. I knew she just wanted to wear the jersey.
I handed her the shirt and left the room to let her change. She came out a moment later and did a little twirl. I smiled.
"What?" she asked. "I love this shirt."
"I hardly wear it, you should keep it."
"I do. I keep it here." I smiled again. She did, too. "You know...Remember when I told you to smile more? Well you do...And I like it."
I decided not to comment.
I took her home the next day.
"Thanks for the ride."
"Anytime."
"I'll, uh...change...so you can have your shirt back. I think I'd rather have it at your house, just in case," she said.
I nodded.
"I'll be right back," she almost whispered, turning to go into her bedroom. I noticed that she didn't close her door all the way. On impulse, I moved to look into her doorway. She'd given me the grand tour and I knew that there was a mirror across from her door. Now I could see her reflection in it. I should have looked away, but I didn't. Instead, I watched, against my better judgment.
She pulled the shirt off slowly, almost as if she knew I was watching and she wanted to tease me. She tossed the shirt onto her bed. I saw that she was wearing a black bra, and another buzz went through me, much like the one the night before in the kitchen, only stronger this time. She slipped the shorts off, revealing black panties to match the bra. I took in a slow breath and tried to calm myself. I walked away from her doorway as quietly as I could, and waited for her to come out of her bedroom.
What was wrong with me? Ever since Ashley talked to me I'd been acting different around Piper. Was Ashley right, I mean, really right? Did Piper have a thing for me? Or more importantly, did I have a thing for her?
"Leo?" Piper's voice snapped me back into reality. "Thanks for the ride," she repeated.
"Huh? Oh, sure."
There was an uncomfortable silence between us, not the first, but the first in a while. This one was different, though. This silence had more tension in it.
"Um...Here's your shirt," she said suddenly, handing me the jersey.
"Thanks."
As I walked out of the apartment building, I was ready to slap myself. What was going on? Something was definitely different now, but what? Something changed.
I went home and tried, really tried, not to think about it, but it was no use. My mind was on Piper the entire car ride home and through dinner. Toby barked and tried to play with me, he wanted to go outside and run and play, but I wasn't up to it.
When he started running back and forth from the front door to me, I let him out to go to the bathroom. He ran outside, did his business, then came hopping back. I called him in, but he just ran up to me, nipped at my foot, and ran off into the front yard.
"Come on in," I called.
He didn't.
A sudden thought struck me. For some reason I needed to see Piper. Now.
"Wanna go for a ride?"
Toby had settled for sniffing the grass, and as soon as he heard me his head popped up and his ears stood up. He looked at me with his big eyes.
"Let's go for a ride," I said. I went in, grabbed shoes a coat and car keys, and came back outside. "Hop in," I said, opening the driver's door of my car for Toby. He loped up to the car and hopped in. He settled himself into the passenger seat and waited for me to roll down his window.
He loved cars.
I believe my dog had a special appreciation for cars, especially old ones. Once I had taken him with me when I went to see the original "Dukes of Hazzard" car. When Toby saw it, he sniffed it, pawed at the air, and sat in front of it obediently, as if he were protecting it.
But that's beside the point.
Now, back to the point...
I was halfway to Piper's apartment when I remembered there were no animals allowed in. Oh well, I thought. Toby can wait in the car. Hold on. Wait for what? Why was I going to Piper's again?
I didn't know.
I just needed to see her. For some reason I just needed to see her.
I pulled into her driveway and parked. It was dark by then. Toby didn't know where we were, and he was excited. I stepped out, told Toby to stay, and closed the driver's door. He stuck his big head out the window and stared at me. I started to walk up to the door of the building, but then I stopped. Something in one of the upstairs windows caught my eye. It was only two stories up, but I could see into Piper's window because the light was on.
She was upstairs, in the living room of her apartment. She was wearing a camisole and short shorts, sitting on her couch. She was staring out the window. I could barely see her face but I could tell she was thinking. She turned on a radio. I could hear the music a little bit through her opened window.
When she's alone
He doesn't know how much she cares
When she's alone
On those days that he's not there
Her thoughts run wild
Her heart beats strong
The things he misses that're goin' on
In her heart
In her mind
When she's alone
Oh...
I could barely hear the words of the music, but I could soon see Piper's face changing. She started to cry. Why was she crying? I'd only seen her cry once, but I knew the reason then. Why was she crying now? What was wrong? She was just so happy earlier.
When he's alone
He thinks of her all day through
When he's alone
And everything that they went through
She haunts his mind
Holds his heart
He wants her to be a bigger part
In his home
In his life
He wants her to be his wife
This is what he feels
When he's alone
I went home.
And they don't wanna be apart
They don't wanna be alone
And as she holds his hand close to her heart
He feels like he's comin' home
And they're not alone
When she's alone, oh
He doesn't know how much she cares
When she's alone
On those days that he's not there
She haunts his mind
Holds his heart
He wants her to be a bigger part
In his home
In his life
So now here they are
Husband and wife
And they're not alone
Well here's a first for me: I have no disclaimer for the song...Because I wrote it. It's really an unfinished song that starts around the chorus and ends...Well, with the chorus...lol...But yeah, um...I wrote it. It's called "When She's Alone" (duh)and I wrote it a long time ago and decided it would be okay to use here. BTW, if anyone has a curiousity to know, when Leo spilled his guts about what happened with Monica (when he told Piper everything at the park) andPiper told him to burn her photos & memories, I considered adding Jo Dee Messina's song "Burn", but decided not to. It's a pretty good song, so check it out if you like Jo Dee Messina.
- hannahlt09
