Piper sat silently in the passenger side of the van, looking out the window. The removal was an easy one. A man who'd fallen over and passed away on his kitchen floor. The removal itself should've only taken about half an hour but the man's daughter had arrived at the house at the same time Piper and Lorna had. She was distraught and Piper and Lorna couldn't do anything to help besides allow her to sob uncontrollably over her father's body as he lay on the cot. By the time they'd managed to separate the woman from her father, hug her, apologize for her loss, and load the man into the van, it was nearly time for them to clock out. Lorna unhappily complained about it on the drive back.
"I mean, I get that he's your father, right? But, he was seventy eight! What'd she expect? Now I'm gonna miss my Zumba."
"Lorna…" Piper sighed.
"I'm not trying to be a bitch, Piper." Lorna held up her hand defensively. "I'm just sayin' when my grandpa kicked the bucket, I understood you know why? Because people have things to do!"
"Why did you start this job?" Piper asked.
Lorna looked over at her, her black hair blowing off her face in the breeze of the AC. She sighed and shrugged her shoulders.
"Nicky came over one night and told me all about how something happened at the funeral home she worked at, that the staff had left, and that they needed a makeup lady. I told her I wasn't half bad at makeup and hair and next thing I know, I'm talkin' to Vause and seein' dead bodies everyday."
"How long were you in beauty school?" Piper continued.
"Beauty school?" Lorna laughed. "Oh that was just somethin' we told Taystee to keep her at bay."
Piper smiled and shook her head.
"Seems like a lot of things go on that Taystee doesn't know about."
"What do you mean?" Lorna asked.
"Oh uh...nothing. I just...forget it." Piper shook her head. "So, you and Nicky knew each other before this job?"
"Yeah, we knew each other for sure." Lorna giggled. "I met her at the bar. She's quite the comedian, I'll have you know."
"And how'd Nicky meet Alex?" Piper pressed.
"High school. They dated for a while...crazy right?" Lorna turned the van into the parking lot of the funeral home.
"So you said Nicky had told you about the staff leaving?" Piper asked curiously. "Why did everyone leave?"
"Wouldn't we both like to know." Lorna backed the van into the garage. "I only know a little bit about it but, as far as I know, Nicky and Alex suffer from the same disease."
"What's that?" Piper pushed, listening to the screech of the garage door closing.
"Being a selfish junkie." Lorna said casually, parking, and jumping out of the van.
The two women unloaded the cot before rolling it into the hallway.
"Hey, uh, Piper." Lorna stopped. "You think you'd be able to handle this? If I leave now I think I could catch the last twenty minutes of Zumba." She asked sheepishly. Piper nodded.
"Yeah, I got it."
Lorna screeched with joy and wrapped her arms around Piper.
"Thank you! You're an absolute doll!"
Lorna gave an excited clap of her hands before skipping off towards the lobby of the funeral home. Piper rolled the cot into the prep room, surprised to see Alex still at work at the prep table, this time on a different body. A young woman, no older than thirty. Alex was sewing up her chest, quickly and carefully pushing the large needle through her flesh like it was a hot knife through a block of butter.
"What took you guys so long?" Alex asked, not looking up from the body.
"The daughter was very uh...upset." Piper opened the cooler door and placed the man inside, making sure not to follow behind him.
"Hate when that happens." Alex sighed and snapped off her blue latex gloves. She grabbed a white sheet off the steel countertop and draped it over the woman, covering her face.
"What're you doing here so late?" Piper asked, looking over Alex in her blood stained apron.
"Coroner called and asked me to take care of this one before the day ended. I told Nicky to head out." Alex sighed and took her hair down. Piper caught herself staring at the way her waves fell over her shoulders. Alex stripped off her apron and hung it on a hook on the wall. She tussled her hands through her thick hair, and took a deep breath in, looking to Piper.
"So, you like margaritas huh?"
Alex managed to convince Piper to join her at a local pub. It was a place Piper had never been to before but she was enjoying the scene. There were minimal people, the inside was brightly lit with neon signs hanging from every wall. Every inch of the brick walls were decorated with band posters and stickers. Alex was noticeably a regular as the bartender greeted her by name as the two entered.
The two women took a seat at the bar, Alex ordering two margaritas, and covered the tab. All these things to look at, yet Piper found herself watching the way Alex winked when she thanked the bartender.
"So, how're you liking the job?" Alex asked, sipping her margarita.
"I could do without the rotting, decomposing, fluid leaking bodies. Otherwise, it's fantastic." Piper smiled and stirred her margarita with her straw.
"Yeah. The decomps are...something." Alex laughed. "Are they keeping you up at night yet?"
"Yes!" Piper exclaimed. "Is that normal? I thought I was being a baby about it!"
"It's one hundred percent normal." Alex nodded. "I've still got a few that haunt me."
"Sounds like me with exes." Piper joked.
"Oh yeah? Like who?" Alex pushed.
"A uh...a girlfriend. A girlfriend from college."
"Girlfriend?!" Alex nudged Piper's arm playfully.
"What? Is it that surprising?" Piper asked. Alex shrugged her shoulders and cocked her eyebrow the way she always did.
"I just...never took you for a woman who liked other women."
"There's a lot more to me than what a lot of people take me as." Piper flirted. She couldn't tell if it was the red lights behind the bar counter or if it was Alex blushing that caused the pink hue to spread across her porcelain face.
Piper's phone began to vibrate, making her nearly gone margarita ripple in its glass. She picked it up, checking the screen. It was Larry.
"Oh no-"
"Answer it. I'm sure he's wondering where you are." Alex said, finishing off her margarita.
"No." Piper allowed it to ring. "I don't really wanna talk to him right now."
"Two more. Add a couple shots of tequila too." Alex signalled to the bartender.
"You don't play around, do you?" Piper laughed.
"Only when it comes to the pleasurable things in life." Alex slid a shot to Piper before picking up her own. "Ready?"
"What should we toast to?" Piper asked, picking up the shot glass and holding it in front of her face, admiring the liquid inside of it.
"Well," Alex said. "Let's see. You've started a new job. You've found some new friends. You've begun ignoring your fiance."
"To new beginnings then." Piper smiled.
"To new beginnings then, Piper." Alex smiled back.
The women clinked their glasses together before throwing their shots back respectively. Piper grimaced at the sting in her throat. Alex smacked her hand against the bar before taking a large gulp of her margarita. The girls exchanged conversation over two more margaritas and shots.
"So." Alex leaned on the bar. "This fiance."
"Larry." Piper confirmed, smiling lazily and resting her chin on her hand.
"What's his issue?" Alex asked.
"Just one of them or?" Piper snickered.
"What's...his main issue?"
"He wants kids. I don't know if I want kids. He wants me to stay home and take care of said kids. I don't want to stay home and take care of these nonexistent kids. He says if I absolutely have to work, he wants me to work for his father's law office where he knows where I am all the time. I would rather jump off of a bridge than spend my day with his condescending, sexist, judgemental father. He's probably going to lose his mind when I tell him I took on full time working for you." Piper sighed.
"You don't have to do that, Piper. I know you and Larry are fighting or whatever but you don't have to be a full time employee if you don't want to. I get it." Alex suggested.
"No." Piper declined. "I've already decided. I mean, what else am I gonna do with all that extra time, anyways? Sit at home and watch HGTV all day? Cause, that's all I do other than live to please Larry." Piper remarked with more aggression in her voice than she'd intended.
"Yeah." Alex smirked. She set her hand in Piper's lap. Piper was sure she'd meant it in a way of comfort, but it sure didn't feel that way. "That's no life to live."
Piper looked in Alex's eyes. Her eyes looked different than they did when Piper had watched her embalm or joke with Nicky. Her eyelids were heavy and the light in her green orbs seemed to be piercing through Piper's blue ones. Her thin eyebrows scrunched while her plump pink lips parted, showing clenched teeth. Her black rimmed glasses sat near the tip of her nose, her eyes looking over the brim of them.
"No…" Piper found herself at a loss for words. "No, I suppose not."
"You think you'd wanna live that way forever?" Alex's voice took on a huskier tone.
"Maybe not." Piper found herself snaking her hand to her lap where Alex's rested. She brushed her fingertips over the back of Alex's hand, feeling her cold flesh. "At least, not if I found something that offered me a better way of life."
Alex's index finger lifted, feeling Piper's two fingers curl around it. The two held eye contact, Piper holding her bottom lip between her teeth and tilting her head to the side, watching as Alex's tilted with her, following her gaze slowly. Piper's phone began to vibrate again, making both women flinch.
Piper picked it up. Larry had called four times now and texted her six. She sighed and set it back down on the bar.
"Is he gonna be mad?" Alex asked innocently, taking her hand away.
"Do you like to dance?" Piper asked, changing the subject. Alex was visibly caught off guard by the question but she shrugged her shoulders in a relatively cute way, Piper thought.
"I like to if I'm at a club." She nodded.
"What about if you're in a pub with no dance floor and a few people watching?" Piper rose from her barstool, grabbing Alex's hand and pulling her to the area of the bar next to the jukebox. Alex was smiling widely and looking around at the faces of the people sitting in booths around them.
"How do you…" Alex started. She placed her hands in Piper's. "How do you wanna dance?"
"Just follow me." Piper set Alex's hands on her hips, setting her own on Alex's shoulders. Alex ducked her head low and whispered in Piper's ear.
"I hate being watched." She said.
"That's where you and I differ." Piper replied, swaying her hips slowly to the mellow music radiating from the speakers of the jukebox. She felt Alex tighten her hold on her waist, pulling the blonde into her. Alex smelled like Chanel perfume. It was so much different than blueberry coffee.
Piper slid her hands from Alex's shoulders to the sides of her neck, feeling the warmth from her thick head of hair on the backs of her fingers. Alex was keeping up well enough with Piper as they swayed. She smiled down at her. Piper gently dug her nails into the back of Alex's neck, looking between her eyes and her mouth. She couldn't decide what she wanted to focus on. Piper could feel Alex's thigh making its way between her own as they tightened their hold on each other.
Alex managed to find a position between Piper's legs in such a careful manner that anyone watching them wouldn't have noticed. Piper involuntarily pushed her hips forward, feeling Alex's warmth. The smaller of the two women took a sharp breath in. She couldn't tell if it was her or Alex doing it, but they'd managed to pick up the tempo. Alex's breathing had gotten deeper.
If you take this like the good girl I know you can be.
Piper thought back to her fantasy, taking in the predatory look in Alex's eyes. The taller woman turned her head to see if anyone was looking at the two women as they danced. No one except an older man in the corner, sipping his beer and giving a grimy wink as he caught Alex's eyes.
Piper rested her hand on the side of Alex's face and turned her head back to look in her eyes, bringing her attention back. She brushed her nails over the side of Alex's cheek, setting her fingertips against her jawline.
"You are so stunning." Alex said quietly, her face inching closer to Piper's. Piper was trying to keep a poker face, trying to hide the way that Alex's movements were sending electric jolts through her lower body.
"I could say the same about you." Piper smiled, looking over the other woman's flawless face. Her full, pink lips. The lines at the side of her mouth from her glowing smile. The way her eyelids were beginning to shut as she closed the space between them. Alex pressed her lips against Piper's softly. Piper kissed her back, keeping her hand against her face. The kiss was sweet and sensual. Alex tasted like peach chapstick and lime flavored tequila. It escalated to a deeper, more passionate kiss that included Alex running her tongue over the blonde's bottom lip before tangling it with hers. It felt like an eternity, but the kiss had only lasted mere moments.
Piper broke away, stumbling back and into an empty table behind them. She held her hand to her lips, looking away from Alex.
"I've gotta…" She stammered. "Larry is wondering where I am." Piper said quickly before grabbing her phone and purse off the bar and hurrying outside.
The cool night breeze hit her in the face, sobering her a bit.
Piper managed to walk home in a timely manner, only tripping in her heels once or twice. She found her way into her apartment, struggling with the keys. Once inside, Piper was met with the sight of Larry, who was waiting for her at the kitchen table. There were two plates set with pasta that Piper recognized from her favorite Italian place. An unopened bottle of wine sat between the plates, Fiona Apple streaming through a small speaker on the countertop. This was Larry's apology.
"Larry…" She started.
"Don't bother with it, Piper. The food's cold now anyways." Larry said with a sad look on his face, his brown eyes staring off in the distance, not bothering to make eye contact with his drunken fiancé.
"Al-" Piper caught herself. "Nicky had a bad day at work and she asked me to come along and-"
"I don't wanna hear it Piper." Larry stood, making his way to the bedroom. Piper followed close behind him, catching the door he'd meant to close to keep her out.
"Pipes I said-"
Piper caught his lips with hers mid sentence. She kissed him roughly as she walked forward, pushing him back onto the bed as she'd intended to. She only stopped to catch her breath, meeting eyes with him as she did. Larry met her gaze for only a moment before stripping off his shirt and hastily working at his belt buckle.
"Hurry up." Piper demanded. "I want it now."
She'd only managed to remove her shirt before she decided to remove her panties from beneath her skirt and mount the man beneath her. Larry had tried to switch positions to the point he was on top to no avail. Piper had such a tight hold on him that he was at her mercy. The blonde moved in a fast rhythm, raising herself up and down on Larry. He held on tight to her waist, trying his best to kiss her lips as she worked. Her nails scratched at the back of his neck and her fingers caught in his thick hair.
You are so stunning.
Alex's voice rang through her ears. The feeling of her lips against hers. Her thigh grinding between her legs as they swayed. Piper whined, aggravated at the rising orgasm not coming fast enough. She could feel the muscles in Larry's shoulders tightening as he braced for his own. Piper kissed him deeply, sinking her teeth into his bottom lip.
That's no life to live.
Piper's body shook as she finished, Larry letting out an excited cry as he did and jerking his hips upward into Piper.
She climbed off of him and lay back on the bed, her muscles sore from the work she'd put in. Larry had lay speechless, still recovering from his orgasm. It was the first time in their relationship they'd ever climaxed at the same time. Larry wrapped his arm around her, breathing heavily. He kissed the back of her neck, brushing her hair away from her face. Piper turned to face him.
"I'm sorry about everything." She said softly.
"I am too." He replied. She set her hand against his face, looking deeply into his eyes.
"What's that?" Larry asked, placing his thumb on her bottom lip. "Is that a new lipstick?"
Piper looked away, wiping the pink lipstick that belonged to Alex away from her mouth.
"Yeah." She answered. "Lorna wanted to try a new shade on somebody before she put it on a body." She lied.
"Lorna. That's the lesbian one, right?" He chuckled.
"Yeah, that one." Piper smirked, burying her face into his chest.
"What'd you have to drink? I haven't seen you that excited in a long time." Larry joked, kissing the top of her head.
"Just uh...a margarita and a shot." She lied again. "You know I love you, don't you?" Piper asked, her voice muffled by Larry's body. The feeling in the air suddenly felt very serious.
"Yeah, of course Piper." Larry wrapped his arms around her tighter.
Piper curled herself into him, feeling guilty about the way she'd spoken about him to Alex. She wondered if Alex was still at the bar
"I love you too." Larry said sincerely. "That's why I proposed to you, remember?" He smiled. Piper smiled back at him, looking over his face. He had smile lines, but for some reason she didn't enjoy them as much as Alex's. Within ten minutes, Larry fell into a deep slumber, snoring away. Piper followed suit soon after.
"Vause you fuckin' dog." Nichols laughed, cracking open a beer. Alex had stumbled onto her doorstep nearly half an hour after Piper's retreat from the pub. Alex was sprawled on the couch, her long legs hanging off the armrest. Nichols sat on the coffee table, looking over her friend.
"I mean, I could tell you two had the hots for each other or whatever but, I thought you'd wait a month at least." Nichols scoffed, handing Alex a beer of her own.
"It wasn't like that Nicky." Alex sighed, receiving her beer eagerly. "We were just having a drink and things got...outta hand."
"So who kissed who then?" Nichols asked. Alex shrugged her shoulders, hesitating.
"It was...mutual." She said, avoiding eye contact.
"Vause." Nichols said sternly.
"Okay, I kissed her." Alex admitted. "But, I think she wanted me to."
"Oh my god man, this is the perfect fuckin' situation to get accused of sexual harrassment. Do you fuckin' hear yourself right now? The older boss took the twenty five year old new hire out, got her shitfaced drunk, and made a move on her. Only to say that she wanted it!" Nicky threw her hands in the air. Alex sat up quickly.
"This is bad." Alex set her beer on the coffee table, placing one of her pale hands over her mouth and beginning to tap her foot quickly.
"Yeah, it's really bad, Alex." Nicky lit a cigarette.
"Give me one of those." Alex snatched it from Nicky's hand. Nicky gave her a disapproving look before shaking her head and lighting another cigarette to replace the one Alex had taken.
"Okay so, here's what we'll do." Alex nodded taking a long drag off of the cigarette. "I'll go up to her tomorrow and I'll apologize. I'll tell her it was just a drunken mistake. I'll uh...I'll raise her pay."
"Man if all we had to do to get a raise around here is makeout with you after you've had a few too many I'd be one rich mother fucker." Nicky laughed.
"Shut up Nicky, this is serious." Alex's voice sounded deeper as the smoke rolled from between her lips into the dimly lit living room of Nicky's small apartment. The sound of the nearby street gave a constant noise that was both soothing yet annoying. City buses passing by with squealing brakes, homeless people below shouting at one another. Alex took a moment to listen to the ruckus as she continued to think over her options. Nicky sat next to her, sinking into the old couch. She wrapped her arm around the taller woman's shoulders.
"Look man," She said. "relax. She's probably as freaked as you are. Just go to work tomorrow, act cool. Don't even say anything about it. If she asks, say you were too drunk to remember."
"I don't know Nicky…"
"Do you wanna avoid a fuckin' lawsuit? If so, this is probably the best way to do it. Or else you're gonna be Brooklyn's lesbian Harvey Weinstein." Nichols said chuckling.
"That's not funny." Alex stood up, heading to the restroom.
"I never said it was!" Nichols shouted after her.
Alex closed the door behind her and looked into the bathroom mirror, running her hands down her face.
At least, not if I found something that offered me a better way of life.
Piper's words rang through her mind. The way she looked in the lights of the pub flashed through her head. The way the younger woman's fingernails felt in the back of her neck. She ran her fingertips over the same place Piper had touched. There were no marks yet she could still feel the ghosts of little crescent moon shaped indents in her flesh. The way Piper had tasted of tequila and sugar lip scrub. She thought of the way Piper's body had felt against her own and the warmth she'd felt against her thigh as she pressed between the blonde's legs. Oh god, she thought. This could mean so much trouble.
Looking at her reflection, Alex could see the dark bags under her eyes that she usually hid so well with concealer. Her eyes looked empty.
"Vause." Nicky tapped at the door, opening it before Alex could respond. "You know what would make you feel better?" She asked. Alex cocked an eyebrow up, waiting on Nicky to answer her own question. "A line."
Nicky was right. That would make Alex feel better. She followed her big-haired friend to the bedroom where Nicky opened her nightstand drawer. Alex noticed three large cartons of cigarettes inside the drawer.
"Jesus christ." She laughed, picking one of them up. "What the fuck is this?"
"Don't fuckin' judge me." Nicky took it out of her hands. "They were on sale." She swapped the carton of cigarettes for a cigar box sitting next to it. She opened it, pulling out a small glass vial filled with the cocaine they would be doing. She pulled a glass pane out of the box. It had once belonged to a picture frame which held a photo of Nicky and her childhood nanny. This, Nicky thought, was a more beneficial use for it. Nicky began cutting lines, using an old credit card that also resided inside the cigar box. Alex could feel anxiety building in her chest. She always felt this way before participating in any sort of drug use with Nicky. She trusted Nicky, very much, but with the work they did and how often they picked up dead twenty-something's who'd overdosed, she could never escape the fear of being the next one to fall victim to a laced line. Nicky, however, was fearless with her drugs. She'd do just about anything from anyone. Of course, she'd test it when she had at home test kits on hand. Tonight, they were going in blind.
"You want the honors?" Nicky asked, offering Alex the first line.
"Uh…" Alex took a deep breath. "Yeah."
"You scared?" She asked, meeting Alex's eyes. "It's okay, I promise. I'd never give you anything I hadn't tried first. You know that, right?"
"Yeah, Nick, I know." Alex nodded, carefully taking the glass pane from Nicky's hands. Nicky retrieved a short straw from inside the cigar box and handed it to Alex gingerly.
"I've got Addies in here too if you'd rather do that." She offered.
"It's okay." Alex nodded. She placed the straw at the edge of her nostril, sweeping her hair away from her face as not to disturb the other perfectly organized lines on the pane. In one swift motion, Alex threw away her fears and snorted the line clean off the glass. Within mere moments her throat was beginning to numb. Suddenly the fears and worries she'd had about overdosing were fading. The anxiety she felt about kissing Piper faded away too. Alex watched as Nicky did two lines of her own before the two were looking at each other, smiling.
"See?" Nicky asked, licking her lips. "What'd I tell ya?"
Alex already knew how the night would go. They'd start with one or two lines, discuss not doing anymore, then disregard everything they'd just said and pull an all-nighter doing blow and shooting the shit. They'd blare old punk rock records from their high school days and dance wildly in Nicky's tiny living room. They'd sit on the fire escape and smoke cigarettes, looking over the city lights and waiting for the sun to rise the way they always did. They'd do one more line and part ways to get ready for work, running on no sleep. By the time Alex was emerging from Nicky's apartment building, the vial of coke was all used up. She was saddened that they only had enough for one more line and Alex, being the good friend that she was, let Nicky have it.
She pulled her sunglasses down over her eyes, hiding from the morning light. She hailed a cab back to her own apartment. She tipped the cabbie extra due to the fact that she smelled strongly of alcohol, cigarettes, and sweat.
Alex's apartment was much larger than Nicky's. She had nicer furniture and a much more sophisticated look to her living space. She enjoyed their benders more when they were happening at Nicky's. Nicky's apartment gave her the feeling of nostalgia with the band posters and tapestries all over the walls. The various smoking pieces, the stacks of records, and old CD's lying about made her feel as if she were back in her early twenties. This was no way for an established adult to live, she was aware of that. But, she didn't care. Nicky didn't either.
Alex's walls were painted white with various expensive paintings hanging about them. Photos of her and her mother were the only family photos she owned. On the fridge were photobooth strips of she, Lorna, and Nicky making goofy faces. That was about it for decor when it came to Alex's home. Everything else was organized accordingly. Large anatomy books took up one bookshelf while dozens of journals took up another. Her desk in the corner included her laptop, organized pens and pencils, and sticky notes about work. Her home had never felt like home, moreso an office. That's why she avoided it as much as possible.
Alex stripped off her clothing, the same ones she'd worn to work the previous day, and headed to her closet. She chose her outfit for the day before climbing into the shower. She could feel her crash coming. If she hurried she could grab a coffee before she was meant to be at work and try to fight it away a little. Her nose began to run and her stomach was growling. Here it was.
She hurried through her shower, not bothering to shave her legs because her hands were too shaky anyways. Alex pulled on her black dress, coupling it with a pair of black tights and heels. She didn't bother to do anything special with her hair but she did slap on some eyeliner and a bit of concealer, for the under eye circles. With that, she was off.
She arrived at the funeral home right on time, coffee in hand. Once she entered her office she was met by Tasha, holding a folder in her hands.
"Hey man, morning." She smiled.
"Don't hey man me." Tasha crossed her arms, Poussey who seemingly appeared out of nowhere, stood behind her.
"Okay…" Alex looked around, hoping to find Nicky or Lorna to see if they were witnessing the scene in front of her as well. "What's up?"
"I was hoping you could tell me that." Tasha held the folder out to Alex. "I went over the inventory for the past six months and I noticed our finances were way off."
"Nicky is in charge of inventory." Alex tossed the folder onto her desk, not bothering to look it over. She sunk into her desk chair. "Whatever issue you have, take it up with her." She could feel herself becoming irritable. Poussey watching from behind Tasha's shoulder like a child wasn't helping either.
"No, I will not take it up with Nicky. You know why? Because YOU are the General Manager here, Alex!" Tasha shouted, pointing her finger at the woman. "You need to explain to me how the hell we lost four thousand dollars in the last three months!"
Alex straightened up, flipping open the folder. She looked over the charts. It was indeed apparent that a chunk of money was not accounted for.
"Nicky probably just-"
"She's a fuckin' junkie, man." Poussey piped up.
"Shut up!" Alex snapped. "Do not call her that." Alex rose from her desk.
"How do we know that's not where the money went, Alex?" Tasha said, looking at her intently. "Four grand. Gone. All because you let your druggie friend take care of our inventory. How could you give her that responsibility Alex? I thought you were smarter than that. Do you know how much money that is?"
"Taystee." Alex sighed. "I will take care of it."
"You better. I want her gone and if she's not fired by the end of this week, I'm going to the authorities and turning her in. Do you hear me?" She threatened.
"Do not-" Alex slammed her fist onto her desk before taking a deep breath in. "Don't, Taystee. Please." She said calmly. "Let me talk to her. Let me see if it wasn't just a mistake."
"Yeah," Poussey scoffed. "Cause heroin addicts just lose four grand."
"P, go clean the garage." Tasha said.
"What?" Poussey asked in disbelief.
"Go, man. Lemme talk to her in private."
"T, come on we were-"
"Go! Please." Tasha sighed. Poussey scoffed and shook her head.
"Feelin' bad for a fuckin' junkie." She said before exiting the office, slamming the door behind her in the process. Tasha sat in the chair across from Alex and looked at her closely.
"Alex." She started. "I know this girl is your friend."
"She's my family, Taystee." Alex interrupted.
"She's a thief. She's putting this entire place at risk. The amount of money that's missing could send us over the edge. You know how bad we're struggling just to keep the lights on in this place. I don't know how we're going to pay anybody this month." She scoffed.
"I know that." Alex said, agitated.
"I know you wanna protect her but, I'm serious about what I said. She's outta here by the end of the week, or she's gonna be leavin' here in handcuffs." Tasha said quietly.
"Alright." Was all Alex could say.
A soft knock came from the office door.
"Come in." Alex said in annoyance.
Piper opened the door. She looked over the two women, feeling the tension in the air. She looked at Tasha first, who was rising from her chair to leave.
"Sorry to interrupt-"
"Don't worry, I was just leaving." Tasha smiled, passing by Piper before disappearing down the stairs. Piper was left alone with her boss. She looked at the woman, the rush of every bit of excitement she'd felt the previous night came back. Alex's fist was clenched as she rested her head in her hand, looking down at her desk. Piper couldn't see her face through the mass of black waves draping down into her eyes.
"What's up, Piper?" Alex asked, her voice sounding angry.
"Is everything...is everything okay?" She asked nervously.
"Yeah. It's fine. What do you need?" Alex sighed and looked up, meeting eyes with Piper. They didn't look how they had last night when they were dancing. They looked tired and slightly bloodshot. Piper didn't like it.
"The uh, Henderson funeral is starting soon. I didn't know what to do. Nicky told me to get you." Piper said, looking down at the floor.
"Nicky's here then? Great." Alex rose from her chair and walked out the office door and towards the stairs, brushing past Piper. Piper couldn't help but feel sad. She had feared coming to work this morning and interacting with her boss. She hadn't told anyone about their kiss and had woken up a few times in the night, thinking about it. She feared Alex would shut her out, just as she was doing now.
Piper followed behind her boss, down the stairs, to the lobby where a large crowd of mourners stood. They were noticeably quieter than the last group Piper had helped. Alex rushed through the crowd, hoping to get to the prep room door without being noticed. She was stopped by an elderly woman.
"Oh, Alex!" The woman said happily. Alex stopped in her tracks, plastering on a fake smile and turning to face the woman. She was in a wheelchair with a young woman pushing her. Alex greeted the woman, holding her hand.
"You're so grown now!" The woman exclaimed. "Do you remember me? Your mother buried my husband and you buried my daughter!"
"Of course I remember you, ." Alex said sincerely. "I'm so sorry for your loss."
"Yeah well," She sighed. "I love my grandson but, that's what happens when you mess with drugs I suppose." Alex only nodded.
"Well, we have a beautiful service prepared for him. He's at peace now."
"Aunt Joan, let's go find a seat, okay?" The younger woman pushing the wheelchair said.
"Oh! Okay." She said, letting go of Alex's hand.
"I'm so sorry, she's mentally declining." The woman quietly apologized.
"It's really okay." Alex chuckled.
"I can hear you Anne-Marie!" The elderly woman shouted.
"I'll see you in there." Alex said kindly as the two headed towards the chapel. Alex followed behind, deciding to wait until after the service to find Nicky.
Piper was already waiting inside the chapel as Alex flowed in with the crowd. This service was for the tattoo'd man she'd seen inside the body bag. He was going to be flown to California shortly after the service to be buried alongside his mother, at least that's what one of the funeral goers had told Piper.
The service began relatively smoothly as everyone took their seats. It was noticeable how many empty seats remained inside the chapel. Most of the funeral goers were other young, tattoo'd men. None of them were crying but she could tell they were suffering. When the time came for visitors to say a few words about the decedent, the young woman wheeled the elderly lady to the podium. She lowered the microphone to her mouth and began her speech.
"My grandson, Jacob, was a good boy. When his mother sent him to live with me he fixed everything around the house. He helped me cook, he always did the chores. I loved him like he was my own son. I watched him grow into such a handsome young-" She was interrupted by the chapel doors loudly swinging open. A young woman in a prom dress and fur coat strolled in, stomping in a pair of cheap heels. Everyone at the service turned to face her, watching her cause a scene.
"You think you could keep me from seeing him you old bitch?!" She yelled at the woman at the mic, taking off one of her heels and throwing it at the elderly woman, only to miss and hit the casket with a loud THUNK.
"Get her out of here!" The elderly woman yelled. Some of the men in the front row began to approach the woman, blocking her path. A few of them yelling profanities at her. Piper locked eyes with Alex who stood across the room, watching in disbelief. Piper headed towards the group, watching as the woman shoved and pushed against the men trying to escort her out.
"You're not gonna send my daughter's father to California without letting me say goodbye!" She shouted angrily.
"He's not her father and you know it!" The elderly woman yelled back, nearly falling out of her wheelchair.
"Ma'am can you please-" Piper began only to be hit with the woman's other heel. Piper yelped and fell back, stumbling. She put a hand over her sore nose, feeling the warmth of blood beginning to drip. She was stunned but decided between fight or flight. She chose flight, running to the restroom.
"Piper!" Alex yelled. She ran to the group of people who were now in a shoving and screaming match. The tall woman caught the intruder off guard and wrapped her long arms around the woman's waist before lifting her off the ground.
"One of you get the door! Now!" Alex demanded. The men looked at her in disbelief before one of them sprinted to the chapel door, holding it open for Alex as she kept a tight hold on the woman who was squirming and fighting violently to escape her grasp.
"Call the police, Anne-Marie!" The elderly woman cried.
Alex managed to get the woman out the front door with minimal scratches from her long acrylic nails.
"I think it's about time we wrap this up, what do you say folks?" The pastor said, taking the microphone. A woman went into playing the piano, trying desperately to reel everyone back into the service.
Piper was finally getting the bleeding to stop when Alex found her in the employee restroom upstairs near her office.
"Hey." Alex said gingerly. "I brought this for you." She held out a ziplock bag filled with ice cubes.
"Thanks." Piper took it and pressed it against her sore face. The heel had caught her right on the bridge of her nose, causing a nasty gash.
"Think I'll need stitches?" She asked.
"Nah." Alex said, looking closely at the wound. "And if you do, I've got extra ligature in the prep room." She joked. Piper shoved her shoulder.
"You alright, kid?" Alex asked seriously.
"Yeah, just embarrassed."
"Don't be." Alex waved it away. "The first time somebody decided to crash a funeral I jumped in to help and lost a chunk of my hair. I looked like one of those stray dogs with mange for like, a month." Piper laughed, wincing at the pain in her nose. She pressed the ice to it, looking over Alex. She looked good in a dress. Hell, she looked good in anything.
"Well, I uh, I've got some stuff I have to take care of so…" Alex opened the restroom door and went to leave before turning to face Piper again.
"Look, about last night, I'm sorry if I did anything that made you uncomfortable. I drank too much and took stuff to a weird place and-"
"I didn't think it was weird." Piper interjected. Alex didn't say anything in reply. "Really. I didn't." Piper continued.
"I just don't want you to think I'm like...Harvey Weinstein or something." Alex said shyly. Piper chuckled.
"What? Why would I ever think that?"
"Cause...I don't know. It was stupid." Alex shrugged. Piper wrapped her hand around Alex's wrist. They held eye contact, Piper lowering the bag of ice. Alex closed the door and took a step closer to the shorter woman. Piper slowly slid her hand from her wrist to her hand. Alex's fingers melted between Piper's. Her hands were freezing.
"Did you think it was weird?" Piper asked.
"No." Alex looked down at their embraced hands. "I wouldn't have done it had I thought it'd be weird."
"Did you like it?" The blonde pressed.
"I couldn't…stop thinking about it, if that's what you mean." Alex smiled. Piper smiled back, adoring the little lines at the side of Alex's mouth. She took her free hand and set it on the side of Alex's face. Alex felt a chill run down her spine. Piper's touch was ice cold, but she was sure that wasn't why.
"Yeah." Piper was looking between the taller woman's eyes and mouth again, the way she'd done less than 24 hours ago. "Me neither."
Alex found herself closing the distance again, she set her free hand on the sinktop at Piper's side, kissing her deeply. Piper's cold nose brushed against Alex's. Piper broke her hold on Alex's hand and set it against the other side of Alex's face. Alex had both hands at Piper's sides now, towering over her in her heels. She grabbed a hold of Piper's waist and lifted her, setting her atop the sink's edge. It felt as if they were doing a continuation of the previous night, if only they'd gotten to go farther. Piper buried a hand in Alex's hair, pulling her as close as she could. Piper wrapped her legs around Alex's waist, trying desperately to feel her. Alex sunk her teeth into Piper's bottom lip before kissing her again, feeling Piper moan into her mouth quietly. Alex's hand began to snake between Piper's legs just as the restroom door swung open. The two broke away from each other quickly, Piper nearly injuring herself as she hopped off the sink and hastily pulled her skirt back down.
Nicky was smiling wildly.
"Woah, really, you two-" She was interrupted as Alex pounced on her like a wildcat. She grabbed Nicky by the throat and pinned her to the wall outside the restroom, Nicky's body hit the wall with a sickening THUD.
"Where the fuck is the money Nicky?!" Alex said loudly. Luckily, the lobby had cleared out of funeral goers. Piper stood in the doorway of the restroom, shocked at the way Alex had flipped seemingly at the drop of a hat.
"What the fuck are you talkin' about?!" Nicky choked out, her face beginning to redden.
"Alex, stop!' Piper shouted.
"The four thousand dollars Nicky! What the fuck did you do with it?!" Alex tightened her grip, ignoring Piper.
"I can't tell you when you're choking me you fuckin' idiot!" Nicky wrapped her hands around Alex's wrist, trying desperately to get away. Alex could see tears brimming in her friend's eyes. She let go, Nicky took a deep breath in as she coughed and held a hand to her throat.
"Are you fucking crazy?!" Nicky shouted, looking up at Alex. Alex stood with her arms crossed as she watched her friend collect herself.
"Taystee is going to the cops, Nicky. You're fucking done. You need to tell me what the fuck you did with it. Are you back on H? Is that what this is?"
"No! God, no!" Nicky swallowed hard, the color returning to her face. "Why the fuck are you worrying about what the hell I'M doing when YOU'RE fucking the new hire in the bathroom?!"
Piper stood in silence as Nicky shot her a look.
"Because I didn't steal four thousand dollars, Nicky." Alex sneered.
"I didn't steal it, you moron. Even if I did, why the fuck are you choking me? You're out of your goddamn mind, Vause."
"If you didn't steal it, where the fuck is it?" Alex asked angrily. Piper cleared her throat and straightened out her skirt.
"Do you two want me to uh, leave?" She asked.
"Yes."
"No." They answered in unison.
"Leave, Piper." Alex said.
"No, I want a fuckin' witness incase you try to kill me again." Nicky crossed her arms across her chest.
"My office." Alex demanded.
The three of them filed into Alex's office, Nicky sitting in Alex's desk chair.
"I wasn't going to kill you. You know that." Alex shut and locked the door. "But I'm so fucking mad at you right now that I could."
Piper sat uncomfortably, watching the two women stare at each other in silence for a few moments. Nicky broke the quiet tension.
"I didn't steal the money, Vause." She said quietly, running a hand through her mess of curls.
"You need to be honest with me." Alex said sternly.
"I swear, on Diane's grave, Alex." Nicky was shaking. Piper could see tears welling in the woman's eyes.
"Then who did?"
"Poussey." Nicky shrugged. "She's always had it out for me, you know that. Her and Taystee both."
"How am I supposed to prove that Nicky? You're the only one, besides me, and Taystee, who knows the account numbers. You're the only one who has access to my desk where I keep everything."
"Wait." Piper interjected. "You keep all the account info in your desk?" She asked.
"Yeah." Alex said, turning back to Nicky.
"I saw Poussey." Piper continued. "She was in here the other day when I came up to grab my jacket. She was going through your desk."
"What? What do you mean?" Alex asked, stepping closer to Piper.
"I came up here to grab my jacket and she was going through your desk drawers. She said Taystee sent her in here to grab a document or something. She told me not to tell you cause it would look bad, but looking back now I guess it was bad."
"Taystee wouldn't have given Poussey permission to go through my office. How would she have gotten into my desk? Only Nicky and I have the keys to it." Alex looked at Nicky.
"You sent her to make copies of the building keys two weeks ago didn't you? Did you give her the whole key ring?" Nicky asked, sitting up in her chair.
"Yeah...yeah, I did. Fuck." Alex sighed.
"So Poussey took the money." Piper nodded.
"We still don't have proof it was her." Alex said. "The cops are gonna believe the ex-junkie in charge of inventory with complete access to the accounts stole it before they'll believe a girl with no criminal background and zero access to the accounts stole it."
"But she is the one who stole it." Nicky shrugged. "I mean, I don't know what to do here."
"Me either, Nicky." Alex shook her head. "Taystee said you've gotta be outta here by the end of the week or she's going to the cops."
"Alex, it's your funeral home. You can choose whether to press charges or not." Piper said with urgency.
"Taystee owns a stake in it. It's 75/25. She owns a fourth of this place. Why do you think I put up with her shit?" Alex sat in the chair next to Piper. She removed her glasses and began to rub the bridge of her nose. That reminded Piper of the wound on her own nose. Explaining that to Larry would be a real trip. She'd almost completely forgotten the assault she'd endured in the current storm of drama she had managed to find herself in.
"So, all we need is proof that Poussey took the files?" Piper asked.
"Yeah." Nicky agreed.
"I have an idea." The blonde said, looking between the two women.
"Well." Nicky sighed. "Lay it on us."