"I can't believe you're letting me drive your baby, Raven." Clarke noted with an exuberant smile so wide she was sure she could probably catch flies given enough time. For weeks, she'd admired her friend and teammate's precious vehicle, never once dreaming the protective girl would let her even play at sitting in the driver's seat.
Yet, there she was, driving Raven's 1968 Ford Torino GT, the girl in question seated in the passenger side, watching her with more than a little amusement.
"I trust you. And honestly? I'm probably getting hammered tonight, and someone needs to drive me back home." Raven said with a giddy smile of her own. "Besides, you've earned this. You've been clutch for us lately, it's the least I can do to let you take my baby for a spin."
"Still, I appreciate it. I've been driving my dad's old Forester for so long that I forgot what driving something powerful felt like." Clarke added, enjoying the sheer force of the vehicle she guided down block after block towards their destination, cherishing the drive while it lasted.
"I'm sure. Anyway, are you really okay with rolling DD again? I mean, it's probably the fifth time in the last six parties that you had to be sober, and I know tonight's going to be pretty great." Raven asked, curious eyes boring into the side of Clarke's head.
"I'm fine not drinking...I let loose sometimes, but it's usually not a big thing for me." Clarke answered, hoping it'd be enough for Raven. Not that she couldn't give a more detailed reason for her tendency to keep alcohol at arm's length outside of a few select days of the year, but she just didn't feel like it.
Thankfully, Raven either sensed that or just decided it wasn't worth talking about. "Anyway, this will be your first time with all of O's friend group around, right?"
"Yeah, I've met them all before, but usually just two or three at a time. I fully expect the party to be a little wild." Clarke shot back, turning the corner down the street towards the karaoke bar they were hosting the party at.
Raven's gift had honestly been a little confusing, given they could have just rented a karaoke machine if they really wanted that, but Raven thought having some special room rented out would make for a better birthday experience. At the very least, the washrooms at the place were most likely large, and capable of accommodating several drunks, so there was that.
"You can say that again. But at least O's brother will be sober, too, so you won't be the only sane person as the night drags on." Raven noted with a shrug. "Honestly, I'm looking forward to him and the others raising hell against Linctavia tonight. Like, fuck, how is it that among all of our collective hotness, that THEY are the only people in relationships?"
Clarke laughed, having sensed more than a little sexual frustration from the dark-haired girl over the past weeks. Though Raven DID have a point; as understandably single as she was, it was a bit of a massive shock that Raven remained single as weeks passed. The girl was smart, funny, beautiful, and handy with just about any machine ever made.
"Raven, you could drive up to any car repair shop around town, give any mechanic your patented 'sex eyes', and say 'Service me', and they would literally do anything you wanted." Clarke asserted, allowing herself a chuckle or two through Raven's boisterous laughter, but there honestly was something a little off about the girl these past weeks. "I'm serious, there's no reason for you to be single if you didn't want to be."
Raven's laughter trailed off then as they pulled into the parking lot, the older girl eventually letting out a sigh as Clarke backed the Torino into an isolated spot. "Okay, so maybe there's this person..." Raven started, her words apparently failing her after a few seconds as she crossed her arms across her chest and huffed. "It's not a big thing."
Clarke, however, could see that it was totally a big thing, her face probably lighting up like the fourth of July as she gaped at Raven. "Oh wow, you've got a crush!"
Raven gave a half-hearted shove at her shoulder as she undid her seatbelt. "Shut up, it's not a big deal." The older girl grumbled as Clarke just kept grinning brightly at her, drawing an exasperated sigh after a few seconds. "Alright, alright, so there's this girl...woman, really. And she's...she's amazing." Raven's words jumbled around a bit, but as the girl found them, her face softened, her eyes went all unfocused and hazy, and Clarke couldn't help but feel full to the brim with excitement.
"Who is it?" The question was the most obvious of the ones bouncing around Clarke's head, but she just needed to know. She'd never seen Raven look so moonstruck over someone.
Raven's teeth found her lower lip, gnawing momentarily before she let out another sigh, this one sounding as if she'd spent months in darkness and was seeing her first sunrise in forever. "Anya Pine." Raven whispered, smiling wide like a goddamn goofball.
Clarke's next question sputtered out of her in coughs and mangled syllables, because what the freaking hell! "Anya...Anya Pine?" She asked, drawing another immensely content sigh and nod from Raven. "Wow."
"Yeah, she's a hell of a woman." Raven stated, still grinning and clearly enamored; Clarke agreed with Raven on that much, but knew that they both meant very different things by those words.
"You got that right. You realize she'll be here tonight, right?" Clarke asked cautiously, feeling a little relief that Raven had been aware. The last thing she needed was Raven to go into some sort of panic.
"I'm pretty sure she's out of my league and would crush me. Hence the probability I'll get blitzed tonight." Raven explained, and while it was nice having a bit more clarity on the matter, she couldn't help but feel a little confused at her friend.
Clarke shut the car off, undid her seatbelt, and turned to face Raven. "Okay, I know you're not putting yourself down, because the Raven Reyes I know is amazing." Clarke insisted, earning a sheepish shrug from her friend beside her. "Seriously, you're a genius, Raven. Like, certified genius. The only reason you're here at BC is because you wanted to play hockey while you chased your second major. You graduated from MIT by the time I graduated high school...and on top of your smarts, you're one of the funniest people I know, you're charming as hell when you want to be, and you're 'model attractive'. Anya would be lucky to have you in her life."
Raven nodded slowly, a bit of that doubt dissipating in favour of hope. "So you think I have a chance?"
Clarke sat back in her seat and shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know her well enough to tell. But I do know you, and that you're a catch. And if you want me to run recon on her tonight, then I'll do that for you."
Raven's smile exuded relief and excitement as she leaned over to pull Clarke into a hug. "I knew I could count on you!" She cheered, patting Clarke's shoulders as she pulled away. "My plan was to just kind of wing some low-key stuff around her, get a feel for how she might respond, right? But if you're there too, then that's even better!"
Clarke smiled at Raven and put her hand on the door-handle. "Like, I said, I'll keep an eye on her for you. And I'll pop by tomorrow after classes to give you a run-down, alright?"
The whole situation was a little bonkers, to be honest. First, there had been the pressure of getting Anya off her and Octavia's back, so Lincoln and O's budding relationship could bloom on its own. Now, Raven was crushing on the Huskies' captain? Sure, Anya was beautiful and a little intriguing to spend time around, and Clarke HAD volunteered her services to Raven, but she wondered how smart of a decision it was.
Either way, life was getting more complicated.
Clarke grabbed her bag from the backseat, opened the door, and gestured for Raven to lead her into the karaoke haven they'd be spending the next few hours in. At least Octavia's birthday celebration would be colourful, given the slightly run down venue, dated 80's neon carpeting and parquet flooring guiding their way through the halls of the building and into a surprisingly decent-sized and well furnished room. At least, given the fact that it was a karaoke bar.
Almost immediately, Clarke was aware of two things: Octavia had rushed her and was hugging her into oblivion, and her guitar case was propped up against the mini stage in the room. Clarke couldn't help but feel conflicted over the wonderful sensation from the hug and the ominous pit in her stomach. Still, it meant O had dragged it to the bar herself, and it WAS Octavia's birthday...she'd endure whatever was asked of her. And given O has been trying to get me to sing and play my guitar for her, I can only imagine she has something in mind for tonight...
"Happy birthday, O!" Clarke exclaimed, squeezing her roommate in return before taking a look at the crowd. More or less, all of Octavia's friends were there: Jasper and Monty were hanging by the karaoke monitor, while Harper, Murphy, and Nate Miller had commandeered one of the couches. And of course, Bellamy was hovering nearby, keeping an eye on the already slightly drunk partygoers. It was a pretty great turnout, given Octavia just wanted her close friends there instead of having to worry about a large crowd, even if there was enough booze to handle a much larger group.
Sure, drinking underage was illegal, but Raven's aid in securing the venue came through her uncle's ownership of it, which made it easier to sneak booze into the room early on. It being a Sunday, as well, had made it easier to basically reserve nearly the whole venue for the night, given the minimal business it'd get that night otherwise. The terms had apparently just been to avoid causing any permanent damage. Easy enough, Clarke figured.
From what she could tell, it'd be the nine of them plus two more in Lincoln and Anya; eleven people rarely caused enough trouble to warrant worry. With herself and Bellamy staying sober all night, it would be that much easier keeping anything catastrophic from happening. At worst, we'll be tortured by terrible singing, but it'll at least be in the comfort of some damn decent looking sofas. She mused to herself.
"Thanks! You know everyone, right? Let's get settled in, I want another shot in me before Lincoln gets here." Octavia declared, dragging Clarke across the room towards another couch.
And so began a good fifteen minutes of socializing, catching up, and making sure Octavia didn't surpass 'happily buzzed' before eight o'clock rolled around. Apparently, Raven's uncle wasn't a prolific purchaser of song material, a lot of the back catalogue being hits from the 80s, 90s, and early 00s where he seemed to lose interest in staying current, with only a few collections of more recent material. Clarke honestly shouldn't have been surprised, given how dated the whole operation was.
Monty had kicked off the singing festivities, testing the system out with a positively butchered yet enthusiastic version of Heart's "Alone" that she couldn't help but adore him for; Jasper had, of course, played up the dramatics and sang along from a nearby couch, if only to encourage his BFF.
They were a few cheesy songs into the night when the door opened and a happy Lincoln stepped in, followed by a more-or-less stone-faced Anya. It was the third, and unexpected, guest that had Clarke's blood icing over in her veins, her heart stopping at the sight of Lexa goddamn Pocosin entering the room.
Over the past month, she'd learned that Anya shared a dorm room with her, but Lexa had never joined in on any of the outings that Anya saw fit to supervise. That the brunette...the honestly fucking stunning brunette from the looks of her... had decided tonight was a good night to join in had Clarke in a bit of a nervous daze, unsure what to do with herself. Her eyes kept tracing the perfectly applied eyeliner and smoky shadow framing those goddamn verdant meadows of irises. Irises that slowly, confidently scanned the room, shifting closer and closer, and...
Clarke averted her gaze, forcing herself physically to shift away from the door if only to catch a damn breath, because no one should look that pretty. Sure, she'd caught sort of a decent look at Lexa a while ago before their game, but the girl had been a good twenty to thirty feet away, looking at her from under an NU Huskies cap that had shaded her face over pretty effectively. Tonight was the first time she'd actually gotten a good look at the girl without a helmet on and it was just a little too much to digest on first glance.
She took a laboured breath in, let out a slightly steadier exhale, and repeated the process two more times before returning her gaze to the party, noticing Octavia was embracing Lincoln, Anya was seemingly interrogating Bellamy over something, and Lexa...
Lexa was staring right at her, expression as blank and calm as a statue, but Clarke suspected differently; Lexa was like the eye of a hurricane, convincingly and seductively serene, a hair's width away from catching you up in her wake. At least, that was always how Clarke had seen the gorgeous girl on the ice, and the sparing moments off of it. It had her wondering if that aspect of the brunette translated to her personal life as well. If the storm of emotions in those green eyes was any indicator, Clarke was in for a hell of a night, one way or another.
"Okay, so now that everyone's here, we can get started! Raven was the first one to give me my birthday gift in renting this place out, and making sure we have an awesome night ahead of us." Octavia noted exuberantly, nodding along at the impromptu clapping from Monty and Jasper. "But now I want my second birthday gift, and that's getting to embarrass my roommate!"
Clarke gulped back any nerves, realizing that the two batches of cinnamon rolls she'd given Octavia apparently hadn't been her full gift. Which, not a problem, even if playing in front of others was absolutely a new experience for her. And even though she was aware of at least two sets of eyes watching her intently as she crossed the room and went over to O, the birthday girl's friends saluting her with joking cheers and applause all the while, she just had to stay composed.
"Have something in mind for me, O?" She asked, figuring it was best to just give her friend what she wanted, knowing some sort of amusing payback would be hers down the line sometime. At the very least she could bring a smile to her roommate's face tonight.
As Octavia whispered song choices into her ear, both more than earning the groan that slipped from her lips, the blonde caught sight of Lexa watching her closely, looking a little pleased at her predicament. Of course she'd be up for O embarrassing me...I'm pretty sure he hates me, honestly...but at least if she stays seated on the loveseat with Anya, I won't have to look at how well those jeans fit her, because...damn...okay, focus Griffin! Clarke nodded to herself, opening her guitar case up and setting herself up on the stage, taking a seat on a conveniently placed stool.
Lexa wanted to smirk at her, and be happy over O teasing the hell out of her? Clarke wouldn't give her the satisfaction. She would rock the hell out of the cheesy songs, especially given they weren't all that difficult. And she'd rise to the challenge like she always did.
Okay...let's do this...
The party was already better than Lexa had expected. Earlier that day, when she'd heard they'd be having it at a karaoke bar, she'd nearly balked, because she wasn't one for singing in front of large groups. But now that she was there, and had seen how shaken up Griffin had been at her arrival, she couldn't help feeling pretty satisfied. It was nice not to be the one on edge between the two of them.
The blonde had seemingly frozen up while Octavia had introduced her to everyone, not having even been aware that the birthday girl in question had introduced her to Clarke, showing zero signs of acknowledgement. Which, all in all, had been quite amusing, but not as amusing as the prospect of Griffin having to perform some embarassing song in front of them all. Lexa had allowed herself a smirk at the blonde's misfortune, something that earned her a light jab in her ribs by her cousin.
"Don't be so obvious." Anya muttered, keeping up the promise she'd made earlier that day of holding Lexa in check. She didn't want to stoke the fire of their rivalry, not really; instead, Lexa wanted to see Clarke outside of hockey, outside of that context, so that maybe the blonde wouldn't seem so imposing or intense on the ice. Bringing their rivalry into a party would kind of work against seeing Griffin as a full human being.
Lexa watched the girl get up on the stage, planting herself on the stool as she adjusted the step of her acoustic guitar and got the microphone in place. Showtime.
Griffin's gaze slid up from the guitar and over to meet the eyes of her smiling, positively giddy roommate. "Octavia, I wish you the happiest birthday in all the land." The blonde deadpanned, a blank, stone-cold expression on her face that had a lot of the group in stitches, Octavia included, but Griffin didn't even break out into a smirk.
With a lightly theatrical sigh, the blonde started strumming, those sky-blue eyes fixed firmly on one of the ceiling tiles, a familiar melodic tune forming even if the name of it was hovering at the edges of Lexa's mind.
"You're on the phone with your girlfriend, she's upset, she's going off about something that you said..." Griffin started, her sweet velvety singing voice nearly flattening Lexa as much as the choice of music that had her Swiftie heart fluttering in time with each strum of the guitar. It was so confusing!
Lexa just sank back into the loveseat as the music flowed over her, trying to process the situation, but it was just out of reach. Griffin sings...and she sings quite well, clearly trying to do it justice! But...but Octavia meant to embarrass Griffin, didn't she? So why is she singing Taylor Swift? There's always a reason or rhyme for singing something of hers, whether in stressful situations, or while studying or writing papers, or planning to conquer an enemy, so...maybe it was Blake expecting much worse from Griffin? She thought to herself, trying to put the puzzle pieces together as she glanced over at the birthday girl, who was practically in hysterics, laughing hard against Lincoln's shoulder. That can't be it...Does Griffin hate Taylor Swift? That could be...no, no, that's impossible. Her face IS very red, but if she hated Taylor, she wouldn't be performing quite so well. Then why...
Lexa was torn from her thoughts by a change in melody, shifting to yet another Taylor Swift song, one that had much of the whole group laughing and screaming along to the yell in 'I Knew You Were Trouble''s chorus. It was all a little confusing, so Lexa decided she'd just enjoy the song and not think quite so hard about it, even if she was a little disappointed at the lack of embarrassing material so far. Honestly, it was a little unnerving that Griffin kept managing to prove how capable she was at every turn. Surely the girl had some flaws somewhere, right? Lexa had come to the party to see the blonde as a regular human being, not someone so...intriguing as Griffin was proving to be.
Another elbow to her side jolted Lexa out of her thoughts again, a slightly amused and very suspicious Anya grabbing her attention. "Enjoy her siren song all you like, but maybe put the sex eyes away, little one." Anya whispered, a few select words sucking the air from Lexa's chest over the mere idea of giving Griffin any sort of look. Quickly, she huffed and tried to pass it off as if she hadn't; which, sure, she truly couldn't have, but Anya was usually very perceptive, so Lexa had given Griffin some sort of eyes. Not 'sex eyes', but...something.
"I wasn't. I was...just frustrated." Lexa asserted, earning a small laugh from her cousin, who pulled her into a side hug, Anya's nose tickling her ear.
"Sexually frustrated, maybe." Anya practically laughed into her ear, so it was fortunate the rest of the room seemed to be paying attention to Griffin instead, because Anya didn't have a very quiet laugh. "Seriously, I might respect her, but I will not see both of my favourite people into..."
Lexa knew where Anya was going with her train of thought and clamped a hand over her cousin's mouth, which Anya clearly wasn't impressed with. "Don't even suggest that I am..." Lexa tried to form a rebuttal, but the mere thought of Griffin and her together just disturbed her. Sure, it was also a fair bit arousing, but it was mostly disturbing. Probably. "Never. I will never. It's just you of all people know what Taylor Swift songs do to me. Don't worry so much, Anya."
And it was true. Again, she'd come to demystify Griffin, not to find reasons to take a different sort of interest in her. The blonde might hold appeal to others, certainly, for very valid reasons, but Lexa? Not a chance. Impossible. Well, perhaps terribly unlikely.
Anya's eye-roll was a clear sign that her cousin didn't buy her statement, but Lexa knew it was true. Griffin just was not at all her type. She's a pest...a nuisance...she works hard to get under my skin. Hard enough to stay fit as well...at least fairly athletic, given her stamina in the game. She trims her nails short...maybe so she can't bite them, so I can chalk that up to a potential anxiety turn-off. She's annoyingly average height, not too tall or short. Her eyes...damn it, her eyes are infuriatingly like the colour of the first day of spring, shining with that rejuvenating warmth towards her friends, but like the coldest day of winter with its harsh sun when she glares at me during hockey. That has to be a negative. Hair like the golden wheat in my aunt's old farmland I used to play hide and seek in, and I'm sure I could just run my hands through it and...and...and maybe she's hiding something in there, so that could be a negative too. Besides, I don't even like running my hands in anyone's hair. I like my hands right where they are, thank you, not buried in gentle waves of silky hair that look like they would practically caress each of my...um, but it'd probably just trap them or something...so no way. Not a good time. Lexa mused with growing confidence, feeling a little exhausted from all the things about Griffin that absolutely were not right for her. At all.
And she can play guitar, but Octavia had to MAKE Clarke play Taylor Swift, which probably means she doesn't like her music, and that's a deal breaker, probably. And if that's true, she's probably some weird guitar-playing girl who performs Wonderwall on repeat. So that'd be a negative, too. Definitely not my type. There was no way I was giving her sex eyes. She concluded, nodding to herself as she decided to ensure such a conclusion couldn't be made again, furrowing her brow while staring at the blonde on stage. No one could possibly interpret her appearing confused or annoyed as 'sex eyes'.
Lexa smiled a little to herself at her ingenuity. Mission complete.
"Lexa, fix your face, you look creepy." Anya's voice floated into her ears, flushing Lexa's face red with embarrassment that maybe her quick fix needed a little work.
No matter, she'd figure it out. Practice made perfect, her mom always said. This was no different.
It was about another minute of tantalizingly good music before Griffin's hands and voice stilled, that beet red face finally angling to gaze at Octavia, the blonde letting out a huff as she placed her guitar down on the stage. Lexa almost expected Griffin to throw some sarcastic barb, but her gut had her thinking otherwise, proven right when the blonde's face smoothed out into a sincere smile.
"You enjoy that final birthday gift of mine, O?" Griffin asked, sounding perhaps a little exasperated, but mostly good-natured and playful. It really did make sense; Griffin didn't seem the type to be particularly mean to her own people, and the birthday girl was definitely in that exclusive group.
Octavia's laugh rang out, certainly above the others chuckling along. "Sure did, C. Swift!"
Lexa couldn't help but feel a little amused, if slightly offended as a Swiftie, at the nickname, especially how red Griffin's face got again. And especially at how perturbed the blonde seemed over it, even if the girl shifted her focus over to Octavia's brother.
"Just because I'm blonde and play a guitar, doesn't mean I'm Taylor Swift. There's Gillian Welch, Joni Mitchell, Orianthi, Melissa Etheridge..." Griffin started ranting, and while Lexa could appreciate that the blonde wasn't insulted by the comparison to Swift, she was a little curious at the mention of a certain lady loving singer-songwriter. So she likes Melissa Etheridge...it doesn't mean Griffin is into women. Not that it'd matter at all. And not that I'd care, anyway. Besides, Uncle Gus likes Melissa Etheridge...
"Why the hell are you complaining to me?" The Blake boy interrupted, clearly as confused as the rest of them, barring Octavia, who looked quite pleased with herself.
"It's Octavia's birthday, I can't get annoyed at her. So just for tonight, I get to take it out on you." Griffin noted as she stepped down off the stage and pulled Octavia into a hug. "Besides, I know you were thinking the same thing, so you're just as worthy of it, Bellamy."
The older boy lifted his hands in mock surrender just as Lexa spotted Monty raising a glass in Griffin's direction. "You've made your point and defended your honour well, Clarke. So we can probably move on now, I guess."
"Drinking games!" Octavia cheered with a lifted bottle, the rest of the room largely erupting in accompanying cheers that had Lexa realizing that her liver might have a long night ahead of it.
She sat there as the partygoers rummaged around for booze and an assortment of items, pulling all sorts of potential ideas out for a vote. It was a bit of a rushed mess, but when the voting came around to her, she cast hers for Kings, knowing she was at least vaguely familiar with that game.
The voting seemed to be heading in that direction, and Lexa was feeling a little anticipation for seeing how Griffin was when she was drunk. It was then that she cast a glance in the blonde's direction and spotted not a bottle of beer in her hand, but a carton.
Peach...nectar? Lord... Lexa thought dazedly as she watched the blonde sip away at her drink, eyes fluttering closed in apparent satisfaction. This is unfair, this is all...wait, she's not drinking? She...it's a party. I planned around her drinking. She can't...no. No, nonononono...
Lexa was shaken from her thoughts by something cold and hard and slightly wet being pushed against her clenched fist. "Stop whining, and take it. I don't care if she's not, you're drinking tonight, you deserve to relax a little." Anya's voice brought her attention completely around to her cousin, who was giving her a vodka cooler and one of those patented mama-bear looks that was a little reassuring, even if she really didn't NEED Anya to take care of her. "I'm serious. She won't mess with you tonight, so kick back and relax."
Well. Lexa was hardly much of a drinker, but she did enjoy a nice glass of wine here and there. And she'd tried some vodka that past summer, so maybe she'd take Anya up on her offer. After all, Griffin would never dare push her buttons with Anya there, right? It didn't seem likely at all. And it wasn't as if she had much to lose in getting tipsy. They even had their own loveseat so that she couldn't do something really unlike herself or ridiculous like run her hands through that golden hair. Or inquire why Griffin insisted on drinking goddamn peach nectar of all possible non-alcoholic drinks, as if she were trying to give Lexa a heart-attack.
Yes, perhaps she COULD kick back a little and indulge in some alcohol. She'd had to be so controlled across the semester so far, and it'd be nice to pass a shred of control over to her cousin for a little while.
Surely, Anya would keep her safe, and from making a fool of herself.
A/N: Okay, so the party is going to have to take 2 chapters, given how long it started to get. And besides, I was wanting to get something new out to you all, anyway. I hope you liked this chapter...as I wrote it, I kept thinking up potential hijinks for all the main characters, and while I held back a little from going full-bore wacky, I couldn't help but indulge myself a little. Ever since I first came across those tumblr gifs of Lexa singing Taylor Swift to an annoyed Clarke, I couldn't help but headcanon her as a fan. And I kind of wanted her to panic a bit over her attraction to Clarke, given how immediate it was, and with their rivalry and all. And I know it's predictable in modern AUs, but I like the idea of Raven being a bit of a gearhead. :P
Anywho, I hope you're all faring wonderfully these days! Thanks for reading!
