Wherein she rants about money and how she totally isn't afraid of Castiel.

Lia sighed. It was the first Sunday she had all to herself. Winter break fortunately arrived, and she was definitely looking forward to lying around like the lazy person she was and always will be. The good thing about it was how it was keeping school a great distance away from her.

Winter break only gave her a two-day vacation for Christmas Eve and Christmas. Still, it's worth it. Work sucked, but school was worse.

When Lia was fifteen, she began to apply for a handful of jobs. Her mother was living with her at that time, of course, and so was her father, but Lia had this little feeling that something bad was going to occur soon. So, gathering all her confidence and senses, she went off, writing complete bullshit all over her resumes. Since she had no experience at all, they didn't come out very good. By the end of that month, she received feedback. Literally half of them were negative, but at least two or three were okay. Lia, as stupid as she is, chose one. She knew she couldn't handle three jobs at once, so she thought it would be appropriate if she picked one.

Yeah, it wasn't her smartest choice. Mainly because her life began to transform into a dry tomato faster than she expected it to.

A soft groan escaping her lips, Lia smacked a hand on to her face. Doesn't it seem so realistic to see a seventeen year old in straitened circumstances? Possibly not.

In Sweet Amoris, the majority of the population were filthy rich. Not like dirty rich, as in they were fucking nasty little shits, but super, super money-hungry rich – there's a difference, right? Anyway, even teenagers flashed their cash in a flaunting manner while they walked to the nearest club to throw money at strippers and spent thousands of dollars in a week eating food straight out of Chipotle.

Okay, maybe she was exaggerating a little, but Lia wasn't lying when she said half of this town were wealthy assholes with poles up their asses. She had a small experience with those kind of people, and she would be judging if she said everyone here were like that. There were certainly some people who were actually pretty nice, though.

Even the students in her school that had a job were a part of the high class community. Castiel mentioned once that the only reason he was working at the discount store was to buy a new guitar for his band. He said that his parents were gone somewhere and he didn't want to ask them, so he would just buy it himself with the money he earns from the job and then quit.

What a bastard.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Lia sat down, realizing how messed up her relationship with Castiel was. At first, she thinks he's cool and nice, and then a second later she's raging and crying to Armin about how he was such a fucking bully. And when he does something kind to her, he just acts like a douchebag so his benevolence doesn't mean shit.

Sighing, she laid back down. Fuck this confusing crap, she was going to sleep.


"Why did we have to come here?" Armin whined, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at Lia accusingly. "The park is gross itself. Now it has disgusting slushy snow."

Lia shrugged, chuckling. "Because I wanted to and you agreed. You should've listened to what I was saying." She fell on her knees, gathering a bunch of sticky snow into a pile. The girl turned to the brown-haired male behind her that was looking more confused than bothered. "And Kentin also said yes."

"I came too!" Alexy beamed, dropping to his knees as well. "But I hope I don't get my pants dirty. These are expensive and stylish," he added knowingly.

Kentin, who was looking beyond uncomfortable, cleared his throat as he peered elsewhere. "Can we go to another park? This one isn't very…" he trailed off, again looking behind Lia's head. He let out a small wail before turning back to her, eyes wide. "Let's go now, please! I beg you, come on!" He tugged on her hoodie, backing her up as he attempted to trudge away.

"Kentin!" Lia shouted, steadying herself as she slapped his hand off her hood. "Why'd you want to leave so bad?" Leaning in, she whispered, "Did you forget your cookies? Have no fear; I have some in my pocket…"

Armin laughed loudly and Alexy snickered, causing Kentin to blush a dark red hue across his cheeks. Once again, he gazed behind Lia, looking frantic. "I just think it would be better if we leave here. I mean, it's not as pretty as the park on Main Street."

"What are you looking at, Army Boy?" Armin said, squinting to look at what the other was staring at. Then, he broke into a hysterical laughing fit, close to wheezing. "It doesn't make any sense how you survived military school but don't think you can survive staying in the same park as Castiel. That's just sad, Kenny."

Lia grumbled softly, watching Kentin splutter dismissively. She spun around, narrowing her eyes at Castiel who had his back turned to them, his dog in tow behind him probably taking a wee. Seriously? Was this guy trashing her break too? Lia smacked herself inwardly, hating how in a minute or so she'd be all friendly to him. Her personality was fucking weird.

"Isn't it a coincidence that Kentin and Lia have the same afraid expression on their faces?" Alexy teased, nudging the two victims. "Houston, I think we have a problem," he added, falling into the snow again with a chirpy laugh. Lia frowned and threw a disgusted look at the twins, embarrassment flooding her cheeks.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she stuck her nose in the air, making herself look a little less scared. "I am sick of you two. Alexy, don't ask me to be your shopping gal anymore." As she said this, Alexy watched her with a regretful glint in his eyes. "And Armin," she began, a smirk tugging at her lips, "Don't expect me to polish your game console or play with you to have you obviously beat me for your own amusement!" Lia high-fived Kentin, feeling more proud of her wording.

"But Lia," Alexy whined, a deep pout settling on his face. "It's almost Christmas! And you're not going to receive a present from me if you keep up with this attitude!" Although Armin's shaking his head while chuckling, he managed to add in a little thumbs up toward his brother, showing him that he agreed. Lia frowned. Fuck him and his multitasking skills.

Kentin wavered next to her, not knowing what to do. Lia elbowed his shoulder. "Please back me up," she whispered. The brown-haired teenager stammered a bit before speaking.

"Um, y-you—Lia doesn't care," he said finally, giving a dignified tilt of his head. Kentin continued, clearing feeling comfortable with the current confidence he suddenly gained. "She doesn't care because she won't get you a present either. I guess Lia wins."

Feeling like she had been awarded a Grammy, Lia slapped a hand on to her chest, nodding mutely as she felt the greatness wash over her. It felt way better to be told that you've won instead of being told that you lost something. And yes, Lia is pointing her last sentence toward Armin.

"Well," Armin started, huffing as he, very slowly and with a dramatically disgusted expression pressed on to his face, gathered up some snow. "I'm not in the mood to argue or make fun of you two. I actually wanna do something, so help me out, guys." Lia joined him on the snow-grabbing, followed by a confused looking Kentin. Alexy had already created a pile and was peering at it with concentration.

"Snowman." Was the only word spoken from the blue-haired boy as he flashed a smile to the others, who were on to the plan and were attempting to make some snowballs. Lia hummed, wondering how she even ended up coming outside to build a fucking snowman as if she was a character from Frozen.

Lia's morning started off as normal. She took a shower, brushed her teeth, stuffed an apple in her mouth (what was the point of eating an apple when her teeth were clean?), and then received an immediate call from Armin. Apparently, he was also bored and he wanted some entertainment because his parents took all of his video games away for something he did. Whatever it was, it must've been vile because his mother and father were pretty casual and weren't bothered at all no matter the situation.

And now, she's adding the finishing touch – her scarf – on to the snowman, a soft smile on her lips. This was probably the only time she had smiled without something horrible or barely funny behind it, and it felt kind of good to let herself feel at ease. "It looks great, doesn't it?" Lia breathed, throwing some hair away from her face. Armin looked fairly unamused, but he also had a small glisten in his blue eyes that agreed.

Alexy nodded. The violet-eyed boy's beam widened as he tugged off his earmuffs, putting them on the snowman's head. "I like it," he answered, giving a salute. "I hope nothing happens to it, though!"

Coincidentally on cue, Castiel's dog ran right through it, barking like a madman and running in circles. Lia froze, feeling rage coil inside of her. But what could she do to an innocent dog? Nothing, actually, unless she wanted to get attacked by around half of the population of Sweet Amoris' animal lovers. Lia bended down, picking up the stray earmuffs and scarf. She tried to ignore Castiel's roars of laughter, but it was getting on her nerves quicker than she expected it to.

As she trudged up to the redhead, feeling a little thundercloud above her head, Lia bit back the urge to slap him across the face. He probably set his beast dog up for this to ruin whatever she was going to do. "Castiel," she growled a bit, hating how he continued to laugh. "What in the name of hell is wrong with you? Letting your dog out loose on a snowman?" Lia tsk'ed. "What kind of person are you?"

"What kind of seventeen year old makes a snowman?" Castiel retorted, chuckling a little louder. "You're such an immature asshole." He ignored the visible anger that was flashing through the female's green eyes, the dark rage that flickered wildly as she glared at him. She was trying to figure out how she could jump him and pretend it was an accident, but this stupid town was so peaceful that if she did, Lia would maybe get a life sentence in jail. Fuck.

Lia pressed her lips together. "And you're not going to apologize for making your beasty dog run through our art?" Suddenly, Castiel's dog laid across her feet in a fond manner, quietly moaning. She sucked in her cheeks, feeling fear crawl up her spine. Shit. "Castiel…Take your dog off me, please," she pleaded.

"Hey, don't push it, Greeny," Castiel growled a bit, possibly upset over her insulting his pet. "You're not consider a friend if you insult Demon, bitch." He then flashed a smirk. "And I think he likes you."

About to reply, Lia froze. Friend? When did they become friends? Swallowing the sudden bile in her throat, she stiffened before answering. "Funny," she grumbled wearily. "And may I ask, how are we 'friends'?" Her question was hallow but it was more of the fact she was stunned beyond belief. A stupid thing to go crazy about, but really? Castiel and Lia sat on different sides of the popularity radar at school, and it just sounded weird on her tongue to say that she and the redhead were friends.

"That's the stupidest question ever, but I expected it from you. Anyway, if I actually take my time to insult you at least a few times a week, you're lucky enough to join my ship." Castiel bended over, picking up the end of the leash that was on the floor next to his dog, which Lia knew now as Demon. "You sound like you've never had someone say that before. I guess I take that back, then!" He spun around, already making his way toward the exit of the park.

Lia spluttered, realizing how desperate she was/sounded like. "Don't take it back," she whispered loud enough. Shit, look at how stupid she was being. Lia, this is not the saddest thing ever, she thought saucily to herself. Stop being a bitch. "Cause we're friends." She made jazz-hands, a delicate smile on her lips. But inwardly, she was going mad, wondering how the boys behind her were keeping quiet. This was, by far, the most idiotic thing she has ever done, hands-fucking-down.

And then, since she was so motherfucking hilarious, Castiel roared laughter. Taken aback, she turned around to the others as if to say, "What the hell is wrong with this guy?" but they were also giggling their stupid heads off. Lia groaned. She needed new 'friends'.


Actually, if she thinks about it enough, Aunt Meredith had never seen Lia's apartment. Yes, she did buy it for her, but Auntie hadn't taken the time to really look at how the inside was so messed up. The exterior was quite decorative, to say the least; the whole building was colored a light, warm blue and each door was painted white. Maybe Aunt Meredith forgot about those kind of details. She was those kind of people that overlooked situations.

Aunt Meredith was Lia's mother's sister. On her free time, she went around like a lunatic, dressed in fairy wings and her hair colored a deep magenta that matched her pink contacts. For the most part of her adulthood, she was a birthday entertainer for children until she suddenly became a business manager of some toy company. It was so unexpected, but Auntie usually got her ways. She could talk around anything, really, to get whatever she wants.

Too bad she doesn't know how to use that skill properly.

Auntie was maybe-kind of-really stupid sometimes. Lia knew she couldn't describe her favourite aunt – aunt nonetheless - that way, but it was true. Lia wondered if Aunt Meredith was finally getting the results after the hair color change, which made her a bit of an idiot. Seriously, though; Auntie enjoyed long walks down aisles in the fucking grocery store (without buying anything. She wouldn't look at anything either. Instead, she would follow people around in hopes of creating a new friend) and eating cereal every night at three a.m. while watching replays of Garfield's Christmas. Her personality was likable, though, but Lia couldn't help but feel awkward around her sometimes. Still, she was a great aunt.

Lia doesn't remember the last time she's seen Auntie either. Probably the first day she arrived in Sweet Amoris? And then she lived with her for about four months, then got her own apartment, courtesy of Aunt Meredith. That was almost two years ago now. Auntie hadn't visited either, only calling occasionally to ask her if she was okay. Nothing more, nothing less.

Really, Lia has always thought of Auntie as a sibling. Maybe it was because of how childish her aunt was. Being an only child, Lia was always alone. Her mother and father were at work all the time, and the poor kid had to be watched over by the most immature person that could be named, obviously Auntie. Still, Lia was thankful for that.

"Of course you can come over for Christmas! It'll be great since dad's coming over too." Lia said, a grin spread across her face. She held her cellphone pressed her ear as she stuffed a slice of pizza into her mouth. Greasy, but cheesy. "I'd love to have you here."

A fluttery chuckle floated from across the line and into Lia's ear. "I can't wait! And I'll bring cookies, too," Auntie gushed. Lia could even imagine the big-ass smile that was probably on her face. "I know you love my cookies, Lianne!"

Lia smacked a hand on to her face. It was a shame Auntie still called her that. And it was also a shame Auntie constantly writes 'Lia' as 'Leah'. That could've been her name spelling, yes, but Lia's mother was in too much pain when she was figuring out a name and her dad was too annoyed to even notice the mistake. "Can't wait to see you, too. Anyway, I have to go. See you," Lia spoke, lying through her teeth. No, she didn't really have to go. But this conversation was about to take an awkward turn, and Lia knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

Quickly hanging up the phone as soon as Auntie melodically answered, Lia took another bite of her pizza, grimacing when she felt oil dribble down her chin. The disadvantages of eating pizza at six in the evening. A sigh forced itself out of her now empty mouth as she wiped away remains of her food off her face.

Lia wasn't really a fan of buying pizza. One, because half of the ones she bought tasted like cardboard; and two, because they were so goddamn expensive. But she wasn't keen on making food herself, either. And she actually found a place that sold these darn Italian pies for a cheap price right beside her home.

On to another subject: Christmas was in two days. So, Lianne McDonald had to get off her small, lazy ass and make herself – and her apartment – presentable for her upcoming guests, her father and her very own aunt. The thing that sucked about these people coming was because of how much they hated each other. Well, her dad hated Aunt Meredith. The reason was unknown, but Lia could guess that it was due to how far Auntie could get up someone's rear end in a minute or less with her chirpy voice and weird humor and crazy antics and the way she put maple syrup on everything and how she enjoyed talking about topics that shouldn't even be spoken at the dinner table and—

Anyway, Lia literally had work in thirty minutes and instead she was sitting on a carpet and eating. On other days, she would be up and running and the first one there at her shift, without obviously Castiel and the rest of her employees. Oh, something else: Lia befriended this tiny, purple-haired girl who drew pictures at her break times and barely spoke. All Lia had to do was say 'hello' and they were friends. Or at least she thought they were. The other girl, who said her name was Violette, nodded back a greeting and introduced herself. Lia wasn't good at this friendship crap, but Violette didn't seem like she was either.

(Lia was reading a novel called 'How to Make Friends in an Hour or Less'. That pretty much explained how she knew all this stuff.)

Shoving the pizza box away from her, she stood up, dusting herself off. Limping toward the coat hanger, she threw on her parka and toed on her boots before she realized she probably looked like shit. So, she ran all the way to the bathroom, managed to take a quick shower after staring at herself for five minutes, put on some clean clothes and finally, she waddled back to her entrance door. Her hair was still a bit wet, but it didn't matter. It was just the after effects of taking showers.

Locking the door behind her, she stumbled out of her apartment, walked all the way down the stairs without thinking violently and forcing herself to step away from the fire alarm, and rushed out the front doors. A blast of cold air hit her damp skin and ears and she took a harsh breath. Well, this sucked.


Lia was practically heaving by the time she swung the discount store's door open. But she forced herself to keep it in when she was met with a purple head and frightened grey eyes. Violette. A soft smile was slapped immediately on to Lia's face as she gave a small wave.

Raising her wrist to check her watch, she gasped. It was six forty five! She was fifteen minutes late. Scanning the area, she sucked in her cheek. The manager, a hyper white-haired girl named Rosayla, wasn't here. If Lia kept a low profile, nobody would notice she came late. But really, as if anyone noticed when she was here.

Violette wavered a little, standing in front of her with a tight-lipped grin. Lia gave a long stare toward her as she slowly stripped off her winter wear, slightly confused and partially scared. "Is there anything wrong?" Lia asked softly as she harshly stuffed her clothes in her locker.

"No," the small girl replied. She looked around aimlessly. "I just wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas. Or Hanukah. Or Kwanza. I-I mean," she stopped, expression bursting with embarrassment. "Happy Holidays, Lia." Violette didn't let the green-eyed girl answer back; she quickly ran out of the area in a snap.

Lia sighed, tucking the brown curl that was flopping uselessly in front of her eyes behind her ear. Gathering all the equipment she needed to complete her stupid jobs, she cursed under her breath. "I hate this job," she whispered, stabbing the box cutter down the center of the cardboard.

Almost immediately, Rosayla popped out of nowhere, her hands on her waist and a knowing grin on her lips. "Is that so, Lia McDonald?" she said, tapping her high-heeled boots on the floor in a scolding manner. "Then I guess I have to take matters into my own hands." Rosayla laughed manically, rubbing her palms together like she was the devil.

"No, I didn't mean it!" Lia insisted, quickly getting up and spluttering fumbled up pleas. Rosayla looked quite shocked before she chuckled, and Lia frowned. "Sorry," Lia apologized sheepishly.

Rosayla shook her head. "You're funny when you're scared," the peroxide-blonde female giggled. Suddenly, she peered at Lia with a distasteful expression, a hand poking her own lip as if she was concentrating. "You're outfit…" Rosayla trailed off, staring at Lia's periwinkle (and hella comfy) sweater and her jeans that were rolled up at the cuffs. "I think you could do way better than that, Lia. You're too cute for this stuff. And you're face looks so soft, like a baby's, but why do you looks so tired? You have dark circles under your eyes, and they don't match the green—"

"Thanks, Rosayla," Lia said quickly, slightly insulted. "But I'm at work, and I don't think I need to worry about my clothes right now." Really, Lia's far too busy to worry about how she looks. Anyway, nobody ever noticed her on her bad days, or even her good days, so it didn't matter if she looks like a seal or if she looked like a motherfucking unicorn.

Rosayla pouted. "Okay. Remember that if you need some help buying clothes, I'm here," she promised, patting Lia's curls. "And finish your work."

Lia nodded, already trying to unbox more items as Rosalya's stare intensified. Then, the manager smiled, spinning around and walking away toward someone that was smearing jam blindly on their clothes.

As Lia stood up, after she successfully ripped the shit out of each and every one of those boxes, she skipped toward the storage closet. It was those kind of closets, the kind that were spacious and mysterious and dark and scary and made her question how she was fucking alive every time she tip-toed out of it. And it smelled like expired milk. Lia's just laying basic facts down.

Also, to add some more disadvantages into the wagon, the closet was right next to the back exit. The back exit as in the entrance to Hell, as somebody (she didn't know who; she was eavesdropping) once called it, although instead of being fiery hot it was extremely cold, since it lead into the parking lot. Lia hasn't really seen anyone go out of that door, but if they did, they were either a fucking maniac or just wanted privacy with the peacefulness of the outside world.

And for some reason, Lia didn't want to rush out mopping the floor and sweeping dust and dirt from other's filthy shoes. She felt adventurous, and even if that sounds so fucking tacky, she wanted to go right through that door and watch snowflakes fall onto her sightline as she freezes up. This whole idea sounded so disgusting and annoying, but Lia was willing to be a dickhead.

Quietly prancing toward the exit, Lia snuck a quick glance behind her. No one was there. Violette certainly wasn't either, but Lia half expected her to be because that girl popped out of nowhere sometimes.

A grin touched her lips. As she wrapped her pale fingers around the doorknob, she closed her eyes, swinging the door ajar and hoping there would be some devils crawling up her pant leg. Then she opened her eyes, waiting to be blown away by the forestry of this deathly Narnia Lia could enter and become a queen.

Lia expected this.

A smoldering groan immediately flew out of her mouth as she glared back at the dark grey eyes that were staring at her like she was stupid. Castiel, with a cigarette and a lighter, growled back a few curses.

"Shit, Clumsy," Castiel said, shaking his head. "Quit stalking, yeah? You're a creep." Of course. He was probably taking advantage of his fifteen minute break by extending it like the freaking rebel he was.

Lia pursed her lips, squinting her eyes. "'m not trying to stalk," she uttered, her words partially muffled because of how she was biting the inside of her cheek until she could taste blood. "I just wanted to see what this place was for."

"Eh," Castiel grunted, sticking the cigar into his mouth and lighting it, throwing in some more curses as he almost burnt the tip of his nail off. "They just toss the trash out this way. You're not supposed to listen to whatever you hear, dumbass." He frowned suddenly, taking the fag out of his lips and staring at it intently. "Fucking hell, what is this shit?" The redhead pushed it back into his mouth again, even if he was complaining like an asshole.

Lia shivered, wavering in her spot by the opening of the exit with a closeted stare. He was quite interesting at night, or at least intoxicated with horrid drugs. "Here," she said with a roll of her eyes, tugging it straight out of his lips and narrowing her eyes to see the name on the paper wrapped around the cigar. "They're Marlboro's. I'll be surprised if you don't get a fully blackened lung by the end of tonight from these."

She didn't know shit about smoking, and she hasn't tried it before due to her stupid asthma, but her father had a few breathers every now and then when he used to live with her and Lia's mother wasn't far behind. Sometimes she'd have to go run an errand for both of them to buy some cigarettes, and her parents strictly told her to back away from the worst ones, ones in which they named until she had it plastered to her skull. Marlboro's were a no.

"How d'ya know?" Castiel slurred, who probably chugged down a few before realizing they sucked. "You a smoker?"

Lia spluttered, frowning when he delicately stole the cigar out of her fingertips. "No," she answered , a small grin lightening her face when he began coughing. Apparently, this was some funny shit to her. "I just know this stuff. I'm naturally smart." She rubbed her palms against the fabric of the arms on her sweatshirt, her fingers slowly beginning to freeze up.

"Cocky bitch." Castiel leaned back against the wall of the building, blowing a cloud of smoke. He seemed so interested in the grey that he was puffing out his mouth, like a child and a rainbow. "You're practically Nathaniel with boobs." He froze, as if he was contemplated his words. "Actually, you're exactly like Nathaniel."

"Yeah?" she almost agreed as if it was a compliment. Castiel eyed her with a narrowed gaze before nodding. "Well, I guess that makes you a tomato with legs," Lia continued, laughing giddily as if she said something humorous (although, it was an awfully horrid joke). Castiel stared back, registering her words before a confused expression crossed his features.

He threw his cigar on the ground and stomped on it for a while. "You're not very funny," he replied after a moment. "I think you should stop trying be a comedian 'cos you're never gonna be one. Dreams don't always come true, after all, Clumsy; it'll be better to just fuckin' drop the act because it's not worth it."

It felt like Castiel was talking to himself, not to her, like he was giving himself a prep talk. And he immediately turned towards the green garbage cans as if they were so goddamn interesting all of a sudden when he spoke. There was a stretched, layered silence that hung in the frozen midnight air and Lia momentarily forgot about the cold that was seeping into her skin.

And then Lia remembered she was supposed to be cleaning, and that they were closing early so she had to quickly finish this shit before she got fired. "Anyway, I'm leaving. If you happen to be buzzing all night, remember that you're a fucking idiot and drink some water, 'kay? Because it'll most likely lower your 'highness'." Her last sentence made no sense, whatsoever, but she spun around anyway, not bothering to correct herself.


Agh, I hate myself. Sorry for posting this super late. I suck. I really, really do.

But anyway, I'll post the next chapter as soon as I can. :-)