"I got it!" John Hollis called out as he headed to answer the knocking at the front door. He was on his way out anyway, with his toolbox tucked under his arm. The knocking grew more insistent, until whoever was on the other side of the door was practically pounding their fist against it. "Alright! Alright, I'm coming!"
John yanked the door open with a frown, ready to give whoever was standing there a piece of his mind. He faltered when he found himself face to face with the new tenant from across the hall. Carmilla had been expecting Laura to answer the door, but right there and then she would take any help she could get.
"My tap exploded and my apartment is five minutes from becoming the next Atlantis!" The young woman was flushed. Her hair wet and sticking to the side of her face. Her bare feet had left sopping wet footprints on the linoleum out in the hall. A frantic cry from inside of the apartment underpinned her urgency.
Perry was standing holding what looked suspiciously like one of Carmilla's favourite shirts against the broken faucet, trying to stop the gushing water. John rushed over to the sink, dropping down in to a puddle on the floor to reach in to the cupboard underneath and shut off the water supply.
Perry let out a sigh of relief as the rushing water subsided to a trickle, before finally stopping. Getting back to his feet, John gave the two women an amused smile. "Welcome to the building." With the panic over, Carmilla could take the time to actually look at Laura's father.
They shared the same strong jaw and kind eyes. His sandy brown hair was darker though, and speckled with grey. John also had to be at least six foot. There was no way Laura got her tiny stature from him. "I'm John Hollis, the building manager. I'm guessing you knew that already." He chuckled, making little laughter lines appear at the corners of his eyes.
"You must be Carmilla. You look just like your Mom."
"Yeah. I get that a lot. Thanks for shutting the water off, Mr Hollis." Carmilla deftly changed the subject, as she often did when someone brought up her mother.
"No problem. And you can call me John, everybody does." The single father scanned what he could see of the apartment, no doubt taking in the numerous empty beer bottles and the dirty dishes piled high in the sink. "How are you settling in?"
"Just fine." Out of the corner of her eye, Carmilla spotted a bra that definitely didn't belong to her. It was hanging over the back of the couch, and she moved to hide it. She wouldn't be surprised if Laura's father took one look at the apartment and refused to let her step foot in it ever again.
"Good. Great... I, uh, I can take a look at that faucet for you later on this afternoon if you'd like? I'm booked solid all morning, I'm afraid." Said John, offering her an apologetic smile. "I could send Laura over if you're wanting it done right away?"
"Thanks, I'm not in any real hurry though, she can come over whenever she's free." Carmilla was definitely going to have to clean up first. Perry tried to protest, arguing that the dirty plates in the sink were becoming a biological hazard.
Carmilla silenced her with a well executed glare as she herded John back towards the door.
"Honestly, no hurry!" She slammed the door behind him and let out an exhausted groan. "You have to help me clean this place up..."
An hour later, Laura was knocking on her neighbour's door. Perry was the one to answer it. "Laura! Lovely to see you again!" She ushered the younger girl inside like they were old friends who hadn't seen each other in months.
Where Carmilla was sullen and sarcastic, Perry was bright and bubbly. They seemed like a rather unlikely duo. The inside of the apartment was a lot tidier than Laura had seen it on her previous two visits. The moving boxes had vanished from sight – Carmilla had piled them in to her room – giving the place a more homely, lived in, feel to it.
Her dad had already filled Laura in on what the problem was, and she'd come prepared with the right kind of tools for any plumbing emergency. Her beat up, old, leather tool belt was hung low on her hips, holding everything she would need to fix the broken tap.
By the time Carmilla came out of her bedroom – having changed in to her trademark leather pants and a form fitting, black button down shirt – Laura was already lying on her back, tinkering around under the sink. "Sweet mother of mercy..." Carmilla muttered under her breath as her eyes landed on the teenager.
The tank top Laura was wearing was riding up, showing off an impressively toned stomach. Coupled with the tool belt, a pair of combat pants and some workman's boots, Laura looked like she was playing dress up in her father's clothes. The look worked for her though. Carmilla was practically foaming at the mouth as she watched Laura work. The other girl's biceps were particularly captivating.
"That should do it. Oh… hey Carmilla." Laura noticed the other girl had joined them as she got back to her feet. She wiped her hands on a rag that was sticking out of her pants pocket. Her greeting was frostier than Carmilla had been expecting.
"Hey, Cupcake. Thanks for dropping by."
"No problem." Laura barely looked at her as she tried the faucet. The water started running in to the sink and draining away without a hitch. Her shoulders were hunched, like she was mad at something.
Carmilla tried to fathom what could possibly have happened between Laura leaving last night and her coming back this morning. She went on a charm offensive as she hopped up on to the counter, right next to where Laura was busy packing away her tools.
"I'm a little short on cash right now, but I could pay you in pie? Perry here is an excellent cook." Carmilla flashed the younger girl a grin to try and break the ice.
"That's okay, you don't need to pay me. It was nice to meet you, Perry." Laura ducked her head, brushing past the other two girls to see herself out.
Perry gave Carmilla a long hard look, questioning what she'd done to upset the teenager. Carmilla answered with a shrug. She didn't have the first clue. Sauntering across the hall, Carmilla wrapped her knuckles against Laura's front door. "Carmilla. Was there something else you needed?" The teenager was actually frowning as she answered the door.
She'd ditched the tool belt, but was still wearing her work clothes. "A smile wouldn't go amiss, Cupcake." Carmilla really wasn't helping herself any, but sarcasm was second nature to her. "Seriously. What's up? What's with the cold shoulder?"
"Look, Carmilla, I'm sure you're a really nice person and all, but I saw that girl leaving your place this morning." Laura had decided against saying anything, but Carmilla hadn't given her a choice. She was going to say her bit, whether her new neighbour wanted to hear it or not.
"And...?" It was Carmilla's turn to frown. Why would Laura care who she spent the night with? Sure, they'd flirted a little bit, but it wasn't like anything had happened; Laura hadn't seemed like the bunny boiler type.
"And I could barely look your girlfriend in the eye just now!" Laura huffed, her indignation rocketing to new highs.
"Whoa, back up, Creampuff!" Carmilla chuckled, which only served to deepen the frown Laura was wearing. She crossed her arms over her chest, scrunching up her face in a way that Carmilla really shouldn't have found cute.
"You might find adultery funny, but I don't!"
"Perry's not my girlfriend." Carmilla finally clued the other girl in, worried that she might go ahead and burst a blood vessel or something. She watched with barely concealed amusement as the younger girl deflated right in front of her.
"Oh...Crap. Carm, I am so sorry! I thought... I... I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry!" Laura's nervous rambling was pretty adorable, but Carmilla soon put her out of her misery with a soft laugh.
"Relax, Creampuff. No harm, no foul. I'm sure Perry will be ecstatic that you were defending her honour."
"Please don't tell her! Or anyone... Let's just never talk about this again, okay?" The teenager squirmed, wishing a hole would just open up beneath her.
"Agreed. On one condition."
"What's that?" Asked Laura, sounding apprehensive.
"Come to lunch with me and Perr. She's convinced I've been an ass to you and she'll be nagging me all day if I don't prove we're good." Carmilla's offer caught the teenager off guard.
Laura had just accused her of being a cheater and, instead of being offended, Carmilla was inviting her out to lunch. "Oh...Okay, sure. Just let me grab my keys and leave my Dad a note." Laura beamed, relieved that she hadn't actually offended her new friend.
She left the door open as she headed back inside to fetch her keys and a jacket, giving Carmilla a clear view of the living room. The Hollis apartment looked homely and lived in.
The furniture was a mismatch of styles, but it was all in a good condition. There was definitely a touch of a woman's influence in the décor, like Laura's father had tried his best to keep the place from turning in to a bachelor pad after his wife's death.
"Ready!" Announced Laura, walking back to the door as she tugged on a denim jacket. The movement of her arms and shoulders made her shirt rise up, revealing a strip of the tanned flesh of her stomach; and just the slightest hint of abs. Carmilla was fairly sure she'd be calling Elsie for another booty call before the day was over.
"And this, my friend, is The Daily Grind!" Carmilla announced, with an overly theatrical flourish, as they walked inside the coffee shop.
LaFontaine waved at them from behind the register, barely noticing Laura's presence as they dealt with the lunchtime rush. A 'rush' for the Grind was having more than two customers in line at once.
Perry dashed off to help with the queue, leaving Laura and Carmilla to find a table. Carmilla ignored her usual couch in favour of a booth near the back. She slipped in one side, while Laura took a seat on the other. The younger girl kept looking around, taking in the sights.
The tables and chairs were all different types and colours of wood, and the walls were painted a vibrant pink. There were bookcases lining the wall closest to the leather couches that sat by the window. The place was a far cry from the Starbucks that Laura usually frequented. The Grind was a jumbled mismatched of styles that should never have worked together, but somehow did. Laura liked it.
"This is a nice place." Laura commented, then tried not to cringe as she realised how childish that must have sounded to a philosophy major like Carmilla. She was saved from her embarrassment as Perry rejoined them, dragging LaFontaine in toe with her. Perry sat down beside Carmilla, leaving LaF to sit next to Laura.
They gave the younger girl a cursory once over, before dropping down beside her. "Hey, Newbie. I'm LaFontaine. My friends call me LaF."
"Hey. I'm Laura. My friends call me, well… Laura." She laughed nervously as she shook LaFontaine's hand. Carmilla and her friends seemed so much cooler than she was.
It was quite daunting for the teenager; who was used to spending most of her time with Kirsch and Danny. Laura wasn't exactly a pariah, she was just one of those kids that seemed to slip through the cracks in the high school social hierarchy. She wasn't a jock like Kirsch, or an athlete like Danny. She passed her classes with a comfortable A- average, without attracting any unwanted attention from bullies for being a nerd.
"Laura's my neighbour, from across the hall." Carmilla spoke like she hadn't already told her friends all about her run in with the building manager's daughter down in the laundry room. LaF wasn't so willing to play along, choosing instead to make Carmilla squirm just a little bit.
"Oh! So, you're the one who's good with her hands?"
If looks could kill, then Carmilla would have struck LaF dead with a single quirk of one of her perfectly groomed eyebrows.
"Yes, Laura was the one who fixed my shower." Carmilla's voice was tight and strained, a warning to LaFontaine that they were walking a very thin line.
"In that case, let me buy you a coffee." LaF was back on their feet in an instant, asking Laura what she wanted to drink. The teen tried to insist on paying, but LaFontaine wouldn't hear of it. "Seriously, Karnstein gets so grouchy when she can't get any. Hot water, that is." LaF was barely suppressing a toothy grin as they watched Carmilla quietly seethe.
"Screw you, LaF." She grumbled back at them, throwing a huff as she crossed her arms over her chest. LaFontaine let out a chuckle, blowing a kiss in her direction, before heading off to make everyone's drinks. Carmilla rolled her eyes at them. "Ignore LaFontaine, they're a dick."
"She seems nice. I like her." Said Laura, completely unaware of the faux-pass she'd just made.
Perry dropped her gaze to her clenched hands, which were sitting on top of one another on the table. Carmilla glanced over Laura's shoulder, checking to see whether LaFontaine was within earshot. "What? Did I say something wrong?"
"LaF is non-binary." Carmilla explained. When Laura gave her a puzzled look in return, her voice took on the soft tone of someone speaking to an ignorant child. "They don't identify as either gender. That's why we say 'they' and 'them', not she or her."
"Oh..." Laura's expression scrunched up, but it wasn't in confusion or distaste. "I'm sorry. I'll know better next time." And that was that.
The teenager didn't question what Carmilla had told her. Beside Carmilla, Perry shifted uncomfortably. She still hadn't forgiven herself for how long it had taken for her to come to terms with LaFontaine's identity; even if LaF had forgiven her a long time ago.
After the initial awkwardness wore off, Laura found herself getting along with Carmilla's friends like a house on fire, LaF in particular. The two of them were busy playing a rousing game of Go Fish, with Perry minding the counter, when Carmilla slipped away from the table.
She went in to the unisex bathroom, and stood in front of one of the sinks, splashing water on to her face. Watching Laura with her friends had stirred something familiar within her, dredging up old memories that lingered like restless spirits. Carmilla jumped as she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Jesus, Perry. You almost gave me a heart attack!" Carmilla turned off the tap and grabbed a fistful of paper towels to dry her face off. She was scowling at her old room mate, but Perry didn't take it personally. For Carmilla, that was practically a smile.
"You seemed upset." Said Perry, pointing out the obvious. "Want to talk about it?"
"Not really." Carmilla huffed. She turned back to face the mirror and started touching up her eyeliner. Perry stood her ground, refusing to take no for an answer. Eventually, Carmilla's shoulders sagged as she let out a sigh.
"I just…" She started, but couldn't go on. She didn't need to. Perry had known her long enough to know when something was bothering her. Sundays at the Grind had been a tradition back when Carmilla had been dating their other room mate, Elle. Having Laura there had to remind her of those double dates, and of everything she'd been missing for the last six months.
"Laura's a nice kid." Perry's tone was kind, but her meaning was clear. Laura was just that. A kid.
"I know." Carmilla bit the inside of her cheek, trying not to give anything away as she focused on fixing her makeup.
"Trust me, Per. I'm not so hard up for action that I'm going to start fucking teenagers."
Perry visibly winced at the other girl's crudeness. Carmilla knew full well that she hated hearing that kind of language. She knew the buttons to press in order to push people away when she needed to. "Fine. Just be careful, okay? I don't want to see you get hurt."