"So tell me something," Marissa said the following afternoon as she approached Kendall. The curly-haired woman for her part simply blinked over at the short redhead,
"Pine Valley is without a doubt the craziest town I've ever ran across." She offered. Marissa rolled her eyes, sitting across from the older Kane,
"I meant something specific." Marissa continued. Kendall smiled brightly,
"Greenlee is the best scapegoat if you get in trouble." She said. Marissa blinked at her before narrowing her eyes,
"You think you're funny?" she asked. Kendall shrugged innocently,
"Hilarious."
"Bianca?" Bianca whipped around at the sound of the voice. She smiled a little, seeing Steven standing in front of her again,
"Steven! Hey!" she exclaimed, happy to see a familiar face. He smiled brightly as well, happy to see the beautiful woman,
"Hey, what are you doing here? Again?" he asked with a chuckle. She offered her own feminine chuckle, causing his heartbeat to spike in his chest,
"Well, I'm meeting a few more contractors, trying to get everything ironed out with the building before I start meeting with potential employees." She said happily. "We're about there, just a few more tweaks and we'll be a-okay." She said brightly. He grinned, he couldn't help it; her obvious excitement was contagious.
"What kind of building is it again?" he asked. She motioned for him to walk with her, on her way back to the transit station.
"It's a shelter for abused women and children. I already have three total, one back home and two in Paris, and I figured I might as well do something productive while living here," she waved a hand in the general area. He nodded, taking in what she'd just said,
"Why a shelter? What made you want to build the first one?" he asked curiously. Her eyes darkened but she smiled brightly,
"Everyone needs somewhere to turn in their darkest times." Was all she said as they continued their journey to their neighborhood.
"You should feel special; she hasn't even extended an invite to me yet." Kendall grumbled at Marissa. The older woman chuckled, resting her hand on Kendall's arm,
"Ken-"
"Yeah yeah, Red, I know. 'She just wants to be settled.' And all that." She used air quotations. Marissa stopped, eying the woman in front of her,
"I miss having her here." She admitted softly. Kendall smiled a little, nodding her agreement,
"So do I but I guess she needs to grow up or whatever she calls herself doing." She waved a dismissive hand.
"Yunno," Marissa started, "No matter how far away she moves, she's still going to be your baby sister." She said casually.
"I know." Kendall said suspiciously.
"And I heard something about it being a big sister's job to not only keep the younger sister in trouble, but to randomly drop in and embarrass and or mortify the younger." She finished, walking off. Kendall's smile rivaled that of Jim Carrey in The Grinch movie.
"So what all kinds of employees do you need?" Steven asked as he and Bianca walked through the local Publix store. The children were staying after school for a play and they figured they'd pick up snacks for their respective miniature counterparts.
"Well, importantly we need counselors and medical personnel." She said grabbing a small bag of pizza bites. He nodded,
"Why the medics?" he asked, honestly interested.
"Well, a lot of the women that come to me are battered and bruised and need medical attention but are too afraid to go to a hospital," she began, weighing her options and grabbing herself a box of pop-tarts; the breakfast of champions in her opinion. "And our goal is always to make them comfortable so we offer them onsite medical care." She finished. He nodded, absorbing it,
"Well do you need any volunteers?" he asked hopefully. Bianca thought it over,
"Actually," she smiled brightly, "I may have an opening for a teacher. They may not be high school students but some of them want more education all the same." She finished. He grinned back,
"Well, when you're ready, I'll give you my credentials and we'll go from there?" he offered. She smiled and nodded, that would be perfect.
Steven watched as Bianca got the last of her bags into her home,
"I'll see you around?" he called after her. She nodded, smiling up at him,
"Yeah," she said then stopped, "Hey, tomorrow I'll be in the downtown area again. It'd be nice to grab coffee with a friend." She offered. He smiled, blushing a little,
"Same time?" he offered. She nodded, tossing up a thumb up and a goofy smile. He chuckled as her door closed,
"New romance?" the cab driver asked him. He looked at the woman and smiled to himself,
"No," he said, "Not yet." He added looking back at Bianca's door as the cab drove away.
"Well, there's Steven and Sam, both very nice guys. And Sam's wife, Jennie." Bianca said later that night as she bustled around the kitchen. The voice on the other end scoffed,
"They sound just darling." JR said smartly. Bianca chuckled,
"JR, don't worry. You're still my best guy friend. Always will be." She vowed. He huffed on his end,
"I'm not worried." He sniffed. Bianca nodded even though he couldn't see her,
"Of course not, sweetie." She said soothingly. "But it's good to have a few people to know when you're out and about." She said. JR grumbled his agreement, "And look on the brightside, you'll be here soon enough so you can check them out yourself." She offered.
"And they better be on the up and up too!" he exclaimed. "I gotta go get AJ in bed, but I'll talk to you later?" he asked. Bianca smiled a little,
"Of course. Give him a hug and a kiss from me and the girls." She said.
"Only if you do the same. Later." He said disconnecting the call. Bianca smiled, looking at her phone and biting her lip, maybe she could give Marissa a phone call.
Two streets over, Steven lie in his bed thinking over his day and looking forward to the upcoming day. He and Bianca had a connection, he could feel it and he was confident she felt it too. She asked him for coffee, as friends, but he couldn't deny that he wished it were as more. Maybe he should work on that, maybe ask her to dinner. Yes, that's what he would do. He'd ask her to dinner, wine and dine her and show her that he felt their connection too. Who knew, maybe they could be something good. With those thoughts in his mind, he smiled as he fell into a peaceful sleep.