Alex pulled on the sleeve of her sweater as she stared at Piper out of the car window on Monday morning. She narrowed her eyes as she noticed her crossing and uncrossing her legs, tucking her hair behind her ears and looking around herself.

"What's got Blondie in a twist?" Nicky asked, her gaze falling on Piper. She cocked an eyebrow, nudging Alex when she didn't reply. "I guess her soap business is going down the drain."

Alex rolled her eyes as Nicky chuckled at her own joke. She pressed her lips together, throwing a glance in Nicky's direction, and then sighed. "I may have inadvertently...given her a job."

Nicky switched off the radio, her attention fully on Alex. "You what?" Nicky smirked. "What, she's gonna be a cheerleader? Hmm," Nicky said, running her finger along the edge of her jaw in mock thought, "I'm not sure many things rhyme with heroin."

Alex groaned, turning to face Nicky. "I have no fucking idea what she's gonna do. I'm gonna have to make a job for her or something."

Nicky looked over Alex's shoulder for only a split second, but long enough for Alex to notice her gaze sliding off to the side.

"What?" the brunette asked, turning. She suppressed a sigh when she saw Piper's face at the window.

"Alex, hi!" Piper murmured, getting cut off as Nicky promptly closed the window with a press of her finger. Nicky grinned, unable to stop a laugh from bubbling out of her mouth.

"Nicky," Alex said sharply, undoing it again. The window opened painfully slowly as Piper's confused face showed through the slightly tinted glass.

Piper raised her eyebrows, a smile lighting up her face. Alex couldn't help but stare at her lips, the cherry pink color she'd applied to them this morning making them pop. "Oh…" Piper stopped, tilting her head at Nicky. She lowered her voice to a stage whisper. "Does she..you know, does she know?"

Nicky's eyebrows knitted together. "Do I know what?" she asked, resting her arm on the steering wheel. "Wait...all those late night phone calls, the shifty looks in the hallways, you always knowing when I'm high...you're dealing drugs!"

Piper opened and closed her mouth a few times before shaking her head. "Of course she's not!" she stammered, throwing a look of terror to Alex.

Alex rolled her eyes. "She's joking," she said. "She thinks she's funny." She pressed her lips together. "But, you know," Alex sighed, "Maybe next time, don't ask someone if they know. If they don't, they might after."

"Oh," Piper said, feeling stupid. It was something she never felt, and she hated the way it chipped away at her bravado. She bit her lip. "I didn't think."

"Why break the habit of a lifetime?" Nicky said, throwing a smile in Piper's direction. Piper glared at her.

Piper's gaze fell to Alex, the scowl still painted on her face. "Are you gonna let her talk to me like that?"

Alex pushed her glasses further up her nose. "Oh...yes," Alex said, her forehead creasing. Nicky's snicker from beside her and Piper's glare darkening told her that was the wrong answer despite her not meaning to be rude - Nicky simply wouldn't listen even if she did tell her. "I mean, no. Nicky, be nice," she said.

Nicky raised her eyebrows. "This is my car, Blondie. Paws off."

"Of the car, or of Alex?" Piper retorted. "Everyone knows you had a thing for me. But you don't have to be jealous."

Nicky rolled her eyes, totally unfazed. It bothered Piper that she couldn't get under her skin, but she didn't let it show. She glanced at Alex. "Listen. She was a seven pointer! I couldn't pass that one up."

Piper narrowed her eyes. "A seven pointer? What is that? Some kind of lesbian slang?"

Nicky laughed at the comment, chewing on her thumbnail. "If that's what you wanna call it, sure. We were having a bang off."

"A bang off?" Piper echoed, her forehead creasing. "You know what, I don't even wanna know."

Nicky cocked her eyebrow. "Bold of you to assume I was gonna tell you."

"Whatever."

Alex sighed. "Anyway," she said, interrupting their glare off. "We need to get to class."

"You didn't tell me what my job was."

Alex shifted in her seat, bunching up the material on her jeans as he thought. "Oh, don't worry about that…" she scratched her eyebrow. "Everything's under control."

Piper looked at Alex plainly, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. "If you're not gonna let me do anything, why would you hire me?"

Alex hid a smile at her term. 'Hire' wouldn't have been the word Alex would have used, but she went with it. "I will let you do things," she said, offering her a small smile. "But you wouldn't let me make soap with no training, would you? And soap doesn't come with a rap sheet."

Piper exhaled through her nose, but conceded. "I guess not," she said reluctantly. She shifted her bag to her other arm and looked at Alex expectantly. "So when does my training begin?" she asked eagerly.

Alex ignored Nicky's snicker. "Tonight, my house."

"I'll be there!" Piper said, her eyes sparkling. "What time?"

"Five," Alex said without missing a beat. It would give her enough time to get home and if she was lucky, Diane wouldn't be. She never could tell what her mom's hectic schedule would be. "But don't park your car outside." Alex cringed as she thought of Piper stepping out of her car, barely a year old and without a scratch on it, outside of her house.

"Sure," Piper said, making a mental note to park round the block. "See you at five then, Alex...Nicky, see you in hell."

Nicky rolled her eyes. "Not if I see you first."

Piper checked her phone as she pulled up just outside the cul-de-sac where Alex lived. Her car blended in here, with all the others. She slipped on her coat and opened her car door, gently slamming it shut.

Her heels crunched under the gravel as she counted down the houses to Alex's. Not that she wouldn't recognize it, with its rickety steps and broken window pane, but it gave her something to do. She ignored her phone buzzing; it would be Polly, and she didn't want to hear from her, not now. They were supposed to be making another batch of soap, but seeing as she was banned from that, this was a nifty loophole. Her parents hadn't banned her from drug dealing, she thought with a smirk.

The brand new shoes she'd bought with the one credit card her dad hadn't cancelled yet were beginning to rub at the back of her heels, and she winced as she limped up the small overgrown path to Alex's house. As soon as she rapped on the door, it swung open.

"Come on in," Alex said, pushing wet hair back against her head. She was wearing her glasses but her face was bare otherwise, all makeup washed off. A smile ghosted Piper's features. The brunette looked younger, softer, without makeup. "Sorry about my face," she said, ducking her head as if reading Piper's thoughts. "I had a shower."

What Alex didn't say is why she had a shower. She'd gotten so hot and sweaty - unfortunately not in a fun way. When she'd arrived home, the whole place had been turned upside down. It wasn't an unusual sight - Diane could be unpredictable. But with the tidying and the rushing around, she hadn't had time to blow dry her hair and apply makeup again. She felt almost naked without it, and weirdly self-conscious, but tried to style it out with a smile.

Piper nodded, seemingly unfazed. "Makeup makes me feel like my face is suffocating, anyways."

Alex raised her eyebrows. Of all the things she could have said, she wasn't expecting that.

Piper hesitated. "But then you have beautiful skin," she continued, thankful for the makeup despite hating the feel of it, for it hid the blush that grazed her cheeks. "Sorry, that was weird."

"No…" Alex said, letting a smile creep onto her lips. The only comment she'd ever had about her skin came from her stepmom - sweetie, you'd get lost in a snow storm...how about some bronzer? "No-one's said that to me before. Thank you."

Piper circled her foot in front of her, trying to lessen the ache. "That's okay. I meant it."

Alex looked down at her feet. "They look painful," she said, stepping aside. "Come in, you can sit down. Make yourself at home."

"Mi casa es su casa?" Piper teased, kicking off her shoes and leaving them in the hallway.

"Sure," Alex laughed, raising her eyebrows at the shoes kicked to the side.

"Sorry!" Piper trilled, letting a laugh escape. She rolled her eyes. "Miss Claudette is always complaining about my shoes."

Alex's eyebrows kept on rising. "Miss Claudette?"

"Our maid," Piper said easily. "Well, cleaning lady. She's great at her job...can be a little intense, though."

Alex smiled. Intense was the right word for everything about Piper. But beneath the smile, there was a yearning. There had been days where they could barely afford to eat, yet some families could pay to have their junk picked up after them. "Come on," she said, another smile playing on her lips. "I have everything set up."

Piper followed Alex without complaint. In the living room, Alex had turned the coffee table into an inventory of her stock. Little baggies were lined up, some filled with powder, some filled with pills. Piper stared in awe.

"You've got...a variety," Piper said after a moment, peeking up at Alex through her eyelashes. "Do you really have that many...um...customers?"

"Yep," Alex said, rolling her eyes. Everyone had their poison. "Even people you don't expect."

Piper's eyes shone. "Like who?"

Alex tapped her nose. "Don't worry about it. I don't reveal my customers. It's all very confidential, you know?"

"But I'm your partner."

Alex laughed. "No, you work for me."

Piper glowered. "But you hired me for a reason," she whined.

Alex smiled. Not the reason you think, she thought. "And if I fire you, you'd tell everyone who was buying from me."

"Why would you fire me?"

I wouldn't, Alex wanted to say. But instead, she shrugged. "Creative differences?" she suggested. "Whatever the reason, it doesn't matter. Maybe later on."

"Fine," Piper relented. She sat down next to the coffee table despite the cold floor - it was freezing outside but the heating was costly, and in a house as draughty as Alex's, she didn't make the decision to switch it on lightly - and shook one of the baggies like a snow globe. "It's mesmirising," Piper commented.

"Even better when you smoke it," Alex said. "But don't," she added quickly. "That shit is expensive. And getting hooked isn't smart." She thought of Nicky, who swore she wasn't addicted. She hated the habit, despite peddling it for others, but there was nothing she could do for her.
"I won't," Piper promised. And then she jumped as she heard footsteps.

Diane stood in the doorway, sizing Piper up. Piper's gaze was stuck on Alex, who made no attempt to hide the baggies of white powder in front of her. Piper's own hand was behind her back. Diane raised an eyebrow. "What are you girls up to?"

Piper opened her mouth, but Alex beat her to it. "Science project," she said, her tone nonchalant. She pushed her glasses up her nose to look at her mom. "Me and Piper are seeing how baking soda reacts with different acids." She picked up a bottle of vinegar from the floor and shook it.

Inside, she groaned. Her mom wasn't supposed to be home yet, at least she hadn't thought so.

"You're making volcanoes?" Diane asked, taking a drag from her cigarette. She eyed the powders, but didn't come any closer. "What, they think you're fucking stupid? You did that when you were seven."

Piper's eyes rounded at the language, but Alex didn't seem fazed. Her mom would rather poke pins in her eyes than speak that way in front of guests and tarnish her perfect reputation.

The brunette just smiled. "You know how Mr O'Neal is. He thinks we're still in the second grade."

"Need any help?" Diane asked, her voice rising hopefully. A smile lit up her own features, and she stubbed out the cigarette. "We had so much fun with that volcano," she said proudly. She nodded at Piper. "Alex won first prize at the science fair. I still have that ribbon around somewhere…"

Alex's smile slipped for a moment, and a little too quickly she said, "No! That's okay, mom," she said. "It's less of a volcano and more of an experiment. Pretty boring."

Diane forced a smile. "Okay, sweetie. Let me know when you're done and I'll start dinner. Is your friend staying?"

Piper stayed silent but glanced at Alex, her eyes full of questions. Was her mom really that oblivious? Piper didn't know, but she wasn't about to start questioning her now.

Alex looked at her mom, her forehead knitting together. There was no food in the fridge; there rarely was. The cupboards hadn't been filled since they moved in - and even then they were only filled with mice and shredded paper. "I don't think so," she said slowly. "We have to pick up some more supplies for our project. I'll pick up dinner on the way back."

Diane smiled, more easily this time. Her pearly teeth showed. "Thank you. Oh, and Alex?"

Alex looked up, suppressing a sigh. She glanced at the window, watching the daylight fade and hoping to be finished before the stars appeared. "Yes, mom?"

"Be careful this time, hmm?" Diane said, her gaze falling to Piper. "We don't want any more explosions, do we? You and Sylvia always.."

Alex's hand froze above the baggie she was sealing shut. "That was different, mom," Alex said tersely, cutting her off. She didn't dare look at Piper and see what she was thinking, and scowled at her mother.

Nodding, Diane tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and grabbed the door handle. "If you're sure." When Alex nodded back at her, still frowning, she continued. "Have fun with your project, okay? Oh, and Piper, nice to meet you."

"Oh, we already met…" Piper trailed off as the door closed before she could continue. She looked at her feet for a moment, trying to process. Her nose wrinkled. "Does she really think we're doing a science project?" she whispered, deliberately ignoring the other comment her mother had made.

Alex shrugged, but she knew the answer. "I don't know, maybe," she lied. She chewed the inside of her cheek for a moment, turning things over in her mind before letting out a sigh. "Anyway. Let's just finish these orders," Alex said, reaching out for her list. She scanned it quickly. "Three lots of the Oxy," Alex told Piper, whose hand hovered over everything but what she'd asked for.

"The pink ones," Alex reminded her, reaching out for them herself. Piper reached out at the same time, and their fingers brushed.

It was cliche, but Alex swore she felt electricity when their hands were suspended in their air and their eyes locked as Piper turned towards Alex. It seemed like an eternity as they stared at each other, green meeting blue in an understanding of sorts.

The blonde pulled away first. "Um, the pink ones, right," she said quickly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Alex nodded, and then pressed the little baggie into Piper's hand, her own fingers lingering a little longer than necessary. "You'll get there," Alex said. "Just takes practice."

Piper nodded, her eyes trained on Alex's black nails contrasting with her own hot pink manicure. "Yeah," Piper said, flicking her eyes up to meet Alex's again. "Practice makes perfect, right?"

Alex chuckled, trying not to look disappointed as she drew her hand away again. "Right." She let her hand fall to her lap and offered a small, shy smile. "Let's get the rest of these orders done."

Before either of them knew it, all of the orders had been placed in bags and had been marked off on Alex's list.

"So...that's it?" Piper asked, a yawn escaping. It was still early, but it had taken a lot of concentration to try and learn all the names for the drugs...or products, as Alex insisted they be called.

"That's it, for today at least," Alex said. "Apart from picking up some supplies, like I said."

"Like what?"

Alex smiled coyly. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"You want a ride?" Piper asked. It was half curiosity, half pity; she felt for Alex having to walk around in a neighborhood she wouldn't even like to drive through, and she desperately wanted in on the action. "It's getting dark."

"You get used to it."

"Is that a no?"

"No," Alex said. She stood, brushing off her jeans. She stuffed her hands into the pockets of them, and smiled bashfully. "I have to tell you something though."

Piper's stomach twisted, excited at the thought of being let in on trade secrets. "What?"

"I just need to go to the dollar store. I'm all out of plastic baggies."

Piper squinted out of the window. "I've never been here at night."

"You've been here?"

Piper rolled her eyes. "Of course I've been here. My nanny used to bring me and Cal here when we were little."

Alex nodded. "Of course she did."

"Is it safe here at night?"

"Probably not," Alex admitted. "But by the time I get here on the bus it's usually dark. And the worse thing that's happened is a tramp spitting at me."

Piper shuddered. "That's disgusting."

"I mean, yeah." Alex stepped out of the car. "You coming?" Alex wiggled her eyebrows, starting to walk towards the brightly lit, multicolored storefront. "Or you wanna stay in the car, hmm?"

Piper climbed out of the car, scampering after Alex. "Of course I'm coming."

"Hey look! A remote control car," Piper said, squatting to examine it. "Cal and Danny used to love these."

"They're cool," Alex agreed easily. "Not really practical for the business, though."

"Really?" Piper giggled. "You could put the packages in the car and deliver it to the door." She stood and ran her finger along the plastic shelf, seeing what else was there. "Oh, how cute! Look, Alex, isn't he sweet?"

Alex turned as Piper held up a small stuffed koala. The blonde made him dance, and though she feel exasperated, Alex couldn't help but snicker. "He's very sweet," Alex said. "But again, you know,"

"Not good for the business," Piper reminded herself. She ducked her head. "Right, boss!" Piper strolled along the aisle.

"You know what's even better than browsing?" Alex asked, turning back to see Piper yet again examining some junk she was never going to buy. This time, it was a pair of sunglasses. She slipped them over her eyes and turned.

"What?"

Alex rolled her eyes as she stared back at her, a pair of heart shaped glasses framing her face. SHe couldn't help herself from smiling; she looked cute, and younger than usual, as she messed around with the stock. She hated to ruin the moment, but she hated how scary it felt out there when it was really dark. "Getting home without being jumped because the store is closing and they turn their streetlights off."

"Ah." Piper nodded. "I imagine it is better than browsing."

Alex laughed. "Come on, I have the bags. Let's just check out and go."

"I'm getting the glasses."

"I thought it would have been the koala."

Piper grinned, throwing her head back in a laugh. "Him too," she said, pulling him out from her pocket. "I couldn't leave him behind. He was looking at me with koala eyes."

"Not puppy dog eyes?"

"Koalas always look like they're judging you. So he's looking at me with koala eyes. And so are you."

Alex shook her head, trying to hide her smile. "Just throw him on the conveyer belt.." she murmured.

Piper's car pulled up outside Alex's house, and Piper cut the engine. She looked at Alex.

"This is me, then," Alex said quietly. She looked out of the car window at the soft light coming from her house. It always looked inviting to her, when yellow light shone from the windows of a house. But she knew what was on the inside, and it negated that feeling instantly. Especially since tonight had been so...so nice.

With a sigh, Alex smiled sadly at Piper. "I'll see you tomorrow." She wrapped her fingers around the door handle and pulled it down.

"Do you want to kiss?"

Alex whipped round. Her heart thudded underneath her checked shirt and she hoped it wasn't obvious under the thin camisole. "What?"

"Do you think I'm a priss?" Piper repeated. She frowned at the stricken expression on Alex's face and touched her leg. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Alex said, trying not to look down at her hand. "And no…" she paused, scratching the back of her neck with shaking hands. "I don't think you're a priss, Piper. Far from it."

Piper smiled, though she wasn't sure she believed her. It was still nice to hear, even if it was a lie. "Thanks, Alex. And...I think you should have Bo."

Alex paused. "...Bo?"

"The koala," Piper persisted, pressing the small stuffed animal into Alex's hand. "He can be the business mascot. Every business needs one."

Alex smiled. Her business priorities were slightly askew, but the girl made her smile. "Bo the drug koala."

"Mhm," Piper laughed.

Alex's hand went to the door handle as she pushed the car door open and let the cold of the night flood into the warm bubble of protection the car had provided. Even with Bo curled around her fingers, it was hard not to let reality hit. Alex forced another smile, pushing the door shut and separating them both. "Goodnight, Piper."