AN: I'm back! Again. I apologize. Life is still chaotic, and I have had little time and motivation to sit in front of my laptop after 9+ hours of sitting in front of one at work. Still, I love each and everyone of you. You guys are still interested, and I am grateful for the support. Here we go...
"Well, we lament your decision, but we accept your reasons." Mr. Wallace's voice dripped with feigned understanding.
Lexa had caught on rather quickly that they were all but surprised with her choice. It was almost hilarious, the pretense of the conference call, because every single person present knew that the decision had been made long before the writer dialed their number.
She didn't want to bend to their will, and they knew she was more strong-willed than most.
Still, deep down, all parties had benefited from their arrangement with Chloe, and before Lexa ended the call, she sincerely thanked them for their support and the opportunity to get her name out there.
"Please keep in touch, Ms. Silva, one never knows what the universe has planned for us." Ms. Spencer sounded off.
While that was true, the brunette hoped she would never have to resort to making deals with them ever again. "Thank you, again."
Watching their name fade from her screen brought a sense of relief she didn't know she had been craving. Or in desperate need of.
She exhaled with finality and leaned back in her seat. "Seems like it went well." Clarke's voice sounded off from behind her as she walked out of the washroom dressed and ready for work.
Her green eyes locked on to the blonde's blue ones. "It went really well…sugar momma." Her lips turned up in a small teasing smile.
It caught her off guard when a fluffy decorative pillow flew her way. "Hurry up, we're going to be late for work."
Lexa was surprised to see Anya already sitting on a stool, but when Raven walked down the steps, she figured it out.
She stuffed her keys in her pocket before Clarke kissed her cheek. "Be nice. Hey, girls."
"Aren't I always?" She knitted her brows as she saw her girl walk away towards the back. "So," She began as she walked behind her bar.
"Save it, Lex." Anya rolled her eyes.
"I'm not going to tell you how to live your life, but I do hope you know what you're doing." The bartender raised an eyebrow at her sister as she began her routine.
"Don't worry, Lex." Raven smiled wide as she sat on the stool beside the taller girl. "She knows what she's doing."
A loud and uninhibited gag and dramatic eye roll escaped the brunette. "Please, this is not the time for sarcasm or innuendos."
"I didn't mean it like that, sicko." Raven shook her head. "I just meant, we both decided we were going to try this out, but we're going to do it right, and we're going to take our time."
"Whatever." Lexa waved her hand. "You guys don't have to explain yourselves to me." She mumbled despite the gnawing feeling inside that almost made her want to say otherwise.
Anya laughed lightly. "Alexandria." She put her hands on the counter to get her sister's attention. When Lexa finally moved towards them and looked at her seriously, she continued. "You're my sister, and I want to share this with you. Will you please listen?" Lexa shrugged and nodded. "This isn't a fling. I think you know that, and we" she gestured between her and Raven, "have been tip-toeing around this for some time." The younger Silva sighed with understanding. "After dinner, and a long conversation, we decided to give it a try."
"Have you two thought about the distance thing?" She pointed out sadly.
Raven nodded. "It's going to be tough, but we're tough bit..."
"Rae…" Lexa glared at her.
"We've thought about it, and we've discussed it." Anya smiled. "I can't believe you're the little sister. You're way too mature for your age."
Lexa smiled and sighed dramatically. "Someone has to be the rational one."
"That would be your girlfriend, Clarke." Anya pointed out bluntly.
"Jerk." Lexa looked at the women before her and nodded. "I love you idiots."
Anya spent her night alternating between sitting at the bar drinking beer and heading backstage to offer Raven water bottles to cool off.
It was utterly disgusting to Lexa.
"Was I like that?" She whispered in Clarke's ear as she came around to deposit used glasses and empty beer bottles.
The blonde grinned in disbelief. "Was?"
"Oh please." Lexa rolled her eyes as she backed away insulted.
Clarke nodded. "You offered me your home to take care of me. Did you forget?"
With her mouth agape, Lexa shook her head. "That was different."
"How so?" Clarke placed her hands on her hips as she waited for a response.
A few patrons raised their eyebrows at each other as they listened on with amusement. The rest sat, deciding whether to be curious or frustrated because they would likely be ignored for the next few minutes while the two girls figured it out.
"You had just been mugged. You weren't safe. So, I offered you security." Lexa replied with wide eyes as she tried to state her case. As if Clarke would ever believe anything besides the fact that the Silvas were sweet gentle-hearted women.
Clarke shook her head, which didn't surprise the brunette. "Try again."
Lexa refused to give up, but quickly realized that nothing she said would suffice. She shook her head and shrugged. "I've got nothing."
Flashing her a victorious smile, Clarke winked at her. "That's why I love you."
Sometime later, when only the workers were left inside, Lexa looked up to find someone still sitting at the bar.
"We're closed, Elona." Lexa smiled at her as she finished wiping down the counter. The streak-free surface glimmered with reflections from the rope lights that hung behind the brunette.
Elona laughed lightly. "I know. I've been trying to talk to you, but you've been busy tonight. I figured the best time to catch you would be after the lights dimmed and the crowd had gone to sleep." She smiled. "I just wanted to give you a heads up."
"About?" Curiosity got the best of Lexa as she wrinkled her brows in question and stopped working on cleaning her space.
The girl smiled. "A lot of people at school are reading your book, and it's getting a lot of attention."
"I'm not going back." Lexa laughed.
"No." Elona shook her head adamantly. "I think you might be past that now."
The bartender-turned-writer looked pensively at her friend. "What are you talking about, E?"
"Hi Elona." Clarke and Raven walked down the steps and made their way towards the girls. "We're going out for some diner food. Care to join us?" The blonde asked.
The girl turned down the offer politely before smiling at everyone and walking out of the establishment.
Neither of the girls got the chance to ask Lexa what she had been talking about with her friend because she rounded the counter quickly, and swooped Clarke up into a kiss.
"Yuck." Raven gagged teasingly as she looked away in search of her own Silva.
"Shut up." Lexa mouthed against her girlfriend's lips.
A few nights later, Tassels was buzzing with customers and it seemed no one was going to have a chance to breathe.
Indra hurried from one end of the stage to the other, and for the first time in a long time, she cursed her sense of style. High-heel boots were not made for walking, apparently.
"Honey, Octavia, I need you to swap out the outfit with this one." She almost tossed the ensemble at the girl. "Please."
Titus looked on with a grin as he helped Echo zip up her own piece.
"How are you not tired of running this business, yet?" The bald man questioned and patted Echo, instructing her silently to move on so he could help the next girl.
The older woman rolled her eyes. "I'm always tired." She smirked. "But I've got a few years left in me." She peeked out through the side of the curtain and made eye contact with Lincoln, who nodded.
The music began as usual and the customers cheered as the show commenced.
On the other side of the stage, Clarke bustled from table to table taking orders and making friendly talk to help boost sales. She was a natural by now and she used her charisma to her advantage.
Other waiters moved along in the darkened room and kept the tables clean and free for Clarke's incoming orders. It was a well-oiled machine, and the blonde smiled every time she made her way towards her girlfriend.
Lexa worked efficiently as she kept pace with the orders and demands that were brought to her from the floor, but she was glad she had insisted on an extra pair of hands to help with her regulars at the bar. She spun bottles, poured the liquids, topped off the glass rims, and sent her creations away with sighs of satisfaction. It was a good night.
Subconsciously she wiped her hands on a clean towel and studied the floor. She smiled when she caught sight of her blonde moving around distributing the orders with flawless precision.
"Excuse me, can I get a beer, please." Lexa tore her eyes from the girl to look at the person that stood behind one of her regulars. The guy looked familiar, and she suddenly remembered his face as she nodded in response.
"Same as always?" The brunette pulled up a clean chilled glass and waited for his answer.
He seemed surprised by her question. "You know my order?"
"Clarke knows your order, I just memorize what she tells me." Lexa replied with a grin and raised her brows in question.
The man nodded. "Same as always." He handed his card over to keep a tab open. Lexa poured him his beer and handed it off with a cocktail napkin. "Thanks."
"Bill." Lexa called him to get his attention. He turned after taking a sip of his beer. "I can't have you stand there, Bill. The waiters need a clear path." She shrugged with a hint of annoyance.
He apologized and nodded with understanding as he perused the room in search of an open table. "You've got nowhere to sit." He turned around to face her with an amazed expression.
Lexa nodded. "You can stand, you just can't stand there." She pointed at the spot he currently occupied. "Sorry." She grinned.
Bill smiled in return, but sensed her annoyance and quickly shuffled over to an unoccupied spot where he was out of the way.
When Clarke made her way back around, her tray flopped on the counter and she bent forward slightly to sigh tiredly. "I'm going to need a foot rub later." She smiled up at Lexa who rolled her eyes.
"I don't think that was in the contract when you first signed up for this." She teased.
"I never should have walked in here that day."
"Think of all the fun you would have missed." Lexa retorted.
Clarke stood upright before mouthing off her next order. She took a minute to breathe again as she looked around. Her eyes scanned the tables, her coworkers, the show, and finally landed on the man that stood awkwardly off to the side of the bar counter. "Bill." She smiled.
"Hi Clarke." He waved casually at her before she made her way over to him.
"It's been a few days. I was beginning to worry." Clarke continued.
Bill shrugged. "I've been busy. There's a lot going on and not enough time to unwind."
The blonde nodded. "Tell me about it. Is it a full moon out?" She joked. He laughed and shifted his attention back to the stage. "Let me know when you're ready for the next one, alright."
He nodded, and mock saluted her with his glass.
Lexa looked from behind the bar as she placed the last drink on the tray and waited for Clarke to return. "What is it with that guy?" The brunette asked her as she stood beside her and prepped to lift the tray.
She shrugged. "Really likes the show."
The bartender hummed, not fully convinced that was the man's reason for his frequent visits and high tabs.
A few minutes later, Bill jumped at the opportunity to sit down when he spotted an empty bar stool. His third empty glass found it's way onto a clean coaster before he smiled up at the bartender that was helping Lexa.
"Another one?" He asked the man.
Bill only nodded.
"Want to try something harder?" Lexa challenged from the other end of the counter.
He contemplated it for a moment before he shrugged. "Sure."
They proceeded to serve him a double shot of whiskey, and a few shots later he tapped out. Never really striking up conversation as he listened to the show.
"Closing the tab?" The bartender asked with a smile.
"Yes, please." Bill replied with a hazy nod.
Lexa and Clarke talked and organized more drinks onto her tray while the man was handed his credit card and the receipt. He signed away, leaving a generous tip, but when he pushed the paper away the bartender eyed him. "Can't let you leave, yet." He paused while Bill looked at him puzzled. "You've had a lot to drink. Are you driving?"
"Don't worry, I have a ride." Bill nodded. "Now, can you do me a favor and make sure your friend Lexa gets this?" He wrote Lexa's name and a short message on the back of a business card. "Please."
The younger man nodded as he accepted the card and watched him walk unsteadily towards the exit.
A movie played in the background while Lexa tuned it out to listen to the thoughts that ran rampant in her mind.
Clarke sat beside her, her legs subtly but suggestively rubbing against hers as they rested on the center table.
Lexa looked down at the card again, finally taking a break from waving it back and forth like a hand fan. She recognized the name, Clarke had too, but she had no idea why or what it meant that the unobtrusive rectangular paper had been left for her.
She knew what she hoped it meant, and her mind ran wild with the possibilities, but a large part of her, the cautious side of her, kept her grounded and wary about it all.
The wheels in her head churned when she felt Clarke's toes dip under the cuff of her jeans. It was a welcomed distraction, but she was surprised nonetheless.
Her eyes searched Clarke's with a curious smile, and she found them looking back at her with an equally mischievous grin. "You have two choices…" she paused to ensure she had her girlfriend's undivided attention. "Call Bill now and find out what he meant by the message." Clarke paused again before rubbing her leg along Lexa's once again. "Or call Bill later and find out what he meant by the message…after you've used up your free day successfully by spending it in bed with me." Her smile widened, and Lexa couldn't believe how powerless she was just then.
After an exaggerated eye roll, Lexa sighed. "I have no choice. It's a no brainer." She smiled before lunging for the remote to shut the TV off.
They made it to the bed in record time.
Lexa did not call Bill, instead, she walked in to Tassels with Clarke and hoped he showed up, so she could talk to him in person.
If that didn't pan out, her other option involved Elona.
Ever since she witnessed her friend and classmate wave at Bill as they left one night, she knew Elona might know more about him.
So, when Lexa finished pouring the finishing touches on a Long Island, and she spotted the girl walking in, she waved her over.
Realizing that Bill was not likely to come in so late into the show, she decided Elona would be her link to figuring out what was going on.
The girl smiled widely as she sat down in front of the bartender. "Hey girl. Hit me with my favorite, yeah?"
"You got it." Lexa nodded before casting a scrutinizing glance at her friend. "Hey, E, how do you know Bill?"
Taking the shot glass from the cocktail napkin, and briefly admiring the color of the liquid, she took it down. She allowed a shiver to surge down her spine before looking up at Lexa. "Oh, he's one of the consultants at school. Cool guy." She pointed at the bar top with her index finger, signaling she was ready for the next shot. "He works with some pretty big names in Hollywood."
Lexa listened on with interest and a hint of nervous excitement. "What does he do for those big names in Hollywood?" She had a feeling she knew, after all, he was a consultant at a writing school.
She pushed another glass towards her.
"He's a screenwriter." The girl replied before taking the second shot, this time more slowly to savor the spicy flavor. She paused to let the burn fade before continuing. "He's lead screenwriter to be exact. He's worked on several big shot movies."
The brunette succeeded in keeping her excitement from bubbling up to the surface, but her eyes did widen in surprise. "Wow." She smiled. "I kind of wished we would have given him something more expensive than what he's been ordering."
The girls shared a laugh. "So, why do you ask?" Elona continued after a short quiet moment. "Did he finally get to talk to you?"
"You knew?"
"Yeah, he's been asking a lot of questions about you. I told him to talk to you. Straight from the horse's mouth kind of thing, ya know?"
Lexa moved to help another patron, but kept her attention and discussion trained on her friend. "He left me his business card. Doesn't say much aside from his name."
She pulled the card out of her pant pocket and slid it to her friend.
"Lexa, we could use your talents." Elona read the message that was haphazardly scribbled on the back. "Damn, Lex, you have to give him a call. This is huge. It's what you've been working towards your whole life."
Eyeing her she nodded. "I know." She paused and smiled at the man that thanked her for his beer before making her way back to the girl. "What if it's too good to be true?" She asked, the fear in her words not missed by Elona. "Can it be that I just pulled of Chloe and now someone else wants me to work for them? So soon? It's too good to be true."
"It's not." She shook her head. "Bill's a good guy. Call him up. This could set you up for life, girl."
Indra sat in her chair, taking reflective inventory of her children and their tasks.
Each one of them had qualities, personalities, and mannerisms uniquely fit for them- she could tell who was who based simply on those assets, even in the dark.
She was also gifted in identifying a sulking Bellamy, a bouncing Octavia, and a lethargic Raven.
Indra especially had an knack for spotting those that carried a load far too heavy for any one person to have to struggle with alone.
Which is exactly why and how she could tell Lexa harbored some unusual levels of stress and anxiety lately. Her brows would furrow periodically, and her smiles, though she did smile through her hardships, they never quite shone like those she sporadically graced her family and friends with.
At first, she suspected trouble was brewing at home with her blonde girlfriend, but when she caught the girls sharing deep glances and gentle touches followed by grins, she knew it had to be something else.
So, she finally decided to approach the brunette with hopes that she could lighten the girl's load, or at least help her carry it.
"Did I ever tell you the story about my daughter, Gaia?" Indra sat in a stool as Lexa contemplated how the woman managed to do so in such graceful and sophisticated manner every time.
Lexa shook her head. "I don't believe so." She eyed the older woman curiously.
"She wanted to join the military when she got out of high school." Indra laced her fingers together and rested her joined hands in front of her on the bar top. "I didn't want her to. In fact, I begged her not to."
The bartender listened on.
"She did so anyway." Indra recalled the occasion. "I was so angry because I felt she was not only going against my wishes, but ignoring my fears and concerns for her safety as well. I didn't want to lose her, by distance or at the hands of someone else's gun." The pair became surrounded by silence, left alone in the space while the others retreated to the back to change for the night.
"Gaia's a good woman." Lexa added at the pause.
Indra nodded proudly. "She is, and I'm glad I didn't keep her from her dreams. If I had, she never would have become Surgeon General for the Army."
The brunette smiled and waited for the woman to tie her story to something pertaining to her. Indra was gifted at that, and every story inevitably tied into a life lesson for them. "What are you trying to tell me, Indra?"
A small laugh escaped the woman. "When I dropped her off at the airport she looked at me with this pleading stare and cried." She smiled sadly. "She asked me to forgive her. She wasn't leaving me, she was testing herself. To see what kind of woman she could become to make me proud."
Lexa swallowed a suddenly large and dry rock.
"I'm scared too, mom. I'm so scared. So much, sometimes, that I want to go back to the recruiter and cancel all my plans. But I can't. I won't. You didn't raise me to play life safe, and I will go out there, live the hard life, sure maybe see things I will regret, but I will learn so much from this. You'll see. I'm going to take this and I'm going to own it. Like you have done so all your life." Gaia smiled as she wiped at her tears and hugged Indra, never letting the woman doubt her love for her, and the strength she had instilled in her since she was a young girl.
"This is where I tell you what's bothering me." Lexa wiped inconspicuously at her own tears as the woman nodded hopefully. After sighing and walking around the bar to sit beside her confidant, she spilled her guts-metaphorically.
The girl's trepidations stemmed mostly from the lack of support she received from her father. Sometimes even her accomplishments were received with tinges of sarcasm and negativity. It's why she could never allow herself to fully revel in the wins…in the victories of her life.
Somewhere in the back of her mind, not far behind the happiness and excitement over having moved one step closer to her dreams, stood her father smirking at her. Silently asking if she was finally done chasing foolish aspirations.
Lexa was a strong woman and had survived the most challenging of times a person could ever experience, but even the strongest of people crave approval- acknowledgment even, from those that mean the most to them.
"You have me." Indra nodded matter-of-factly. "You have your sister, and you have that furious and determined blonde." She placed a supportive hand on the younger woman's knee. "Your father is a foolish man, but I doubt he genuinely thinks that of your life."
Lexa shook her head with inflamed eyes. "You'd be surprised. He can be a real letdown. It's why he lost both of his daughters." The girl sighed. "As soon as we could we ran the opposite direction. We weren't lucky enough to have someone like you to entrust us with our own lives."
Indra shook her head sympathetically. "My sweet girl." She moved to take her chin in her palm. "You don't need anyone but you…to trust yourself. I don't care what any of us say, good or bad, number one is you. And if you believe you can do something, and you want it bad enough, you will do it."
More silent tears escaped the brunette's already stinging eyes as she smiled with low laugh. "You missed your calling, Indra." She sniffled and moved to hug the woman. "You should have been a motivational speaker."
"I already am." She embraced the girl tightly. "A mother has many jobs, and one of them is to push her young so they can survive without her."
"Are you kicking me out?" Lexa pulled back to flash her a watery grin.
With a firm head shake Indra smiled. "Never. But I know Tassels is my dream, not yours. Be scared, be ambivalent, be passionate, but go get yours baby. Prove to yourself and prove to your father that you are strong enough to beat the odds." With a gracefulness and finality that only Indra could pull off, she leaned in to kiss the girl's cheek and disappeared to her humble abode- backstage.
TBC…
Wow. That was a heavy one for Lexa. She found out Anya and Raven are happening, she called off her business deal with MPC, and once again she's battling her doubts. What do you guys think she's in for next? We finally know some more about Bill and what he's been hanging around for…sort of. What about Clarke? Is she happy where she's at? Prepare for the final chapters of Tassels, beautiful people. See you soon. Muah.
