A/N: Thanks again for the great reviews! What a cliffhanger hey?! Here is the next installment, I hope you enjoy it. Please continue to let me know your thoughts - it's great to hear from you guys.
Polly noticed Piper had been gone a long time before she spotted her sitting at the bar. She walked over towards her and shouted her as she got closer. Piper shoved the note in her pocket and looked up at Polly.
"Hey, sorry. I wanted to cover the bill tonight and I knew you'd argue with me about it so I was trying to do it on the down low. I'm sorry for being a pain in the ass about the advert and you covered me last weekend. So this is me paying back one of the many favours you've done for me." She hugged her quickly to stop any more possible lines of questioning about why she was sitting at the bar and started walking back to the table with her.
"Well guys, I've had a really great night tonight. It was really nice to meet you Pete, you can have my stamp of best friend approval to poke my best friend now. Full steam ahead, so to speak. And thanks for being my guest of honour Nicky. You've been fantastic fun tonight, although I'm not sure I can ever eat pork chops ever again after that story you told earlier! I have to get going now. Beauty sleep awaits. Goodnight all."
She turned and speed walked out of the door and down the road until she could find a cab before anyone could stop her. She sat back in the cab and closed her eyes. Fuck. What the actual fuck was happening? It has been 4 years since she saw Alex and it was Piper who turned her back and walked away. 4 years without a single word spoken between them and she was here in the same city, right under her nose now. What the fuck was she supposed to do with that? Nothing, that is what she was supposed to do. Alex was a drug dealer and the reasons she left her 4 years ago were as good then as they are now. Alex was the reason she ended up in prison. If it weren't for her asking Piper to transport that money she wouldn't have lost a year of her life.
The cab pulled up outside her apartment and she paid the fare before standing on the porch and looking around at the street. Was she being watched? Was Alex watching her, stalking her? Jesus Piper, you're getting paranoid now. She unlocked the front door and went inside, leaning on the door as she closed it and slid the bolt across. Just as her life was changing for the better, fucking Alex had to come back and ruin things.
As they were on the run up to Christmas and were about to advertise in the local magazine, both of them decided to work on Saturday. Piper was grouchy because she hadn't slept well since she got that note last night and she hadn't gone for a run this morning either to work off any of the frustration. She resolved not to say anything to Polly about the note or her suspicions that Alex was somewhere close by. Polly and Alex did not have a good relationship when the brunette was dating Piper and her best friend was absolutely incandescent when she found out Piper was going to prison because of something Alex had a hand in. Nope, telling Polly would not help one bit right now. She had to deal with this on her own.
Polly brought a skinny latte and a double chocolate muffin in for Piper, which did lighten her mood a little. Not that Polly noticed that she was a little off to be honest. Her best friend was so busy waxing lyrical about how funny and charming Nicky was that Piper was barely needed to contribute anything to the conversation. The three of them had stayed on at the bar until last orders last night, so at least she hadn't dampened the mood by leaving early. Thankfully, Nicky hadn't felt abandoned either, having only met her co-drinkers hours before for the first time. Piper thought she should text Nicky to apologise for leaving her and try and smooth things over properly. It probably looked quite bad leaving so abruptly like that after she practically begged her to go out with Piper in the first place.
She tapped out a quick text to Nicky:
'Hi Nicky, had a great time last night. Thanks for carrying out your friend duties so admirably - though I think I did most of the laughing at your crazy stories! Sorry I had to rush away early, but sounds like you guys had a great night. P'
She decided against adding a X . It was too early in their friendship for a X . Or was it normal to add an X in texts between friends? Well, it's too late now, it's gone.
"Pol, I'm going to nip out to pick up the leaflets from the printers. Are you OK on your own for a bit and I'll pick us up some lunch on my way back?"
"Yeah, get me a salad will you? I feel like I should eat something good to make up for that giant burger last night."
Piper took her time walking the 7 blocks to the printing company office. Her head was a mess after seeing that message last night. She hadn't recognised the messages on the napkins the first time she met Nicky because they were written in a marker pen with capital letters. But there was no mistaking the beautiful loops of Alex's hand last night. She must have been there both times Piper was out with Nicky, but how did she know where to find them? Was she watching Piper's apartment? Was she paying someone else to watch her? To follow her? God that would be fucked up.
There were 1000 leaflets printed on glossy paper to collect. They looked really good and the photos had printed well to show the gift boxes. They just needed to sort out how to get them all delivered and which streets to target. She picked up something for lunch and headed back to the store with the leaflets.
When they sat down to look at a street map, it looked like 1000 leaflets wouldn't go very far at all. Considering how many blocks had more than 100 apartments in them, they had underestimated the job. They decided to target those that were walking distance from the store first and see how far they got. There were plenty of customers coming into the store today to keep them both busy though, so that would have to wait.
As they locked up at 6pm, Piper was looking forward to a long soak in the bath when she got home. A night in front of the TV with a bottle of wine and some peace and quiet was sounding like a perfect escape from the stress of the week. She checked her phone on her way to the subway station and there was a message from Nicky:
'You're welcome Piper Chapman. You weren't supposed to pay the bill though, so the next ones are on me. The big shipment went well on Friday, so the boss is taking us out for drinks tomorrow night if you want to tag along? Or do I have to send you an invite with a box of chocolates? ;-)'
Piper really liked Nicky, she was easy to get along with and always made her smile. A Sunday night out with her crew sounded like a fun time.
'Sure, sounds good. What time and where? If you send me another box of delicious chocolate at this point in our relationship, it either makes you my dealer or a love interest. Your move Nicholls ;-)'
The battery ran out shortly after, so she couldn't work out if Nicky took her time replying or not. Damn! She got through the door of her apartment and plugged it in straight away, taking her coat off and turning the heating up. It was only 4 weeks to Christmas now and it was really starting to turn cold when the sun went down.
She rustled up some spicy tacos to go with the bottle of red wine she planned to finish before she went to bed, before running a hot bath. As she was waiting for the water to fill up the tub, she checked her phone and saw a reply from Nicky:
'6pm at Sandy's bar. It doesn't matter which I choose, you'll want me to be both. You're already addicted Chapman.'
Piper laughed out loud at the reply. Typical Nicky and she had no come back to beat that. 'In that case I guess I'll see you tomorrow for another fix then. Or should I say 'it's a date' ? ;-)'
Piper got up early on Sunday morning to go for a run along the riverside. The air was freezing and it made her lungs scream for warmth, but her muscles felt good from the stretch. They opened up a little later on Sunday's, so she had plenty of time for an oatmeal breakfast and coffee at home before heading to the store. She set off a little earlier to post a few of the leaflets on her way there. She might as well get some posted as she was walking that way already.
Already there seemed to be more people coming into the shop and the gift sets were selling well. The day was going by quickly and Piper didn't have time to think tonight until she was locking up. She hadn't even thought about what she was going to wear yet and her feet were aching from standing up all day behind the counter. She was still looking forward to a night out with Nicky though as there was never a dull moment with her crazy stories.
She enjoyed a long, hot shower with some of their Christmas range of soaps. The 'cinnamon and honey' body wash was one of her favourites and she felt more festive just by bathing with it. Drying off quickly, she put on some skinny black jeans and a silk halter neck top in red that left her back bare from her hips to her hairline. She dried her hair off and left it down, putting some loose curls in it. Checking her watch, she needed to get going soon, so applied some mascara, eyeliner and a lush red lipstick as the finishing touches before picking up her leather jacket and strappy heels.
It didn't take long to find a cab and she was paying the driver outside of Sandy's in no time. At least she knew what Nicky looked like this time around and wasn't relying on anyone behind the bar. She pushed through the doors and walked over towards the bar, looking around to see if Nicky was already here.
"Yo Chapman, over here!" She turned to see Nicky waving wildly from a booth over by the pool table. Piper waved back and made the international signal for 'do you want a drink?' from her place at the bar? Nicky shook her head and waved her over. She walked towards the booth to find three other girls sat around the table.
"Piper, this is Lorna, Taystee and Poussey and they will be helping us to finish every round of whatever drinks get put on this table here. Starting with these...bottoms up ladies!" Before Piper could utter a 'pleased to meet you' everyone had picked up the tequila shots and lime slices and were ready to go. She quickly caught up and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand as she slammed her glass back on the table with the rest of them.
"Whew! Pleased to meet you all. Do you guys all work together then?" Piper couldn't help falling into old WASPy pleasantries when she met new people and Nicky laughed immediately at the innocent conversation starter.
"We do, but tonight is about drinking and forgetting about work. The only thing work related here is them covering the bar tab, so enjoy yourselves ! Beers next girls?" Nicky asked as she stood to go to the bar. "Wanna give me a hand with this round Chapman?"
Piper followed Nicky to the bar. " Is your manager going to pay for ALL the drinks tonight? I feel like I should be paying for my own, since I'm not an employee and all."
"Yeah, but your our best customer with your million dollar contract that we cherish so dearly. It's like a customer service activity having you here. I might even be getting paid to entertain you." She winked before waving for the barman's attention and ordering a round of beers.
"Oh I see. Get me drunk and I might be too hungover to notice any slip ups you make in the morning eh?"
"Geez Blondie, you're a bit forward. We haven't even got to kissing yet and you're talking about what we will be doing in the morning already..."
Nicky picked up her share of the beers and walked away, leaving Piper with her mouth open, her words of protest lost in the bodies between them now.
Piper rushed to catch up at the booth and narrowed her eyes in warning to Nicky, who just laughed. "Cheers!" Nicky regaled them with stories of the kinds of situations she had walked into when working as a pizza delivery girl a few years back and Taystee told them about a bakery she worked in when she was at College where the baker used to make holes in the donuts with parts of his anatomy. The drinks flowed and Piper was feeling buzzed when Poussey stood and challenged them to a game of pool. As they were deciding on teams, Nicky shouted to someone over Piper's shoulder. "Hey, Sasquatch, we're over here!"
"Piper, this is Alex. Alex, this is Piper."
Alex slid into the booth directly opposite Piper and looked straight at her as she said "Nice to meet you Piper." without missing a beat.
Piper sat staring right back at Alex, her heart thumping furiously. She could hear her blood rushing around her body, her mouth suddenly dry. Trying to appear calm to everyone around them and conscious of the long pause between Alex speaking and her reply, Piper smiled and said "Likewise Alex."
Alex turned to greet Lorna and Taystee and took a long swig of her beer before looking back at Piper. Piper's eyes had been fixed on Alex from the moment she sat down, caught between a death stare and shock at what just happened.
"So Nicky, did you say you are on a date tonight?" Alex looked at Piper while she spoke, assessing her reactions.
"Yep. Me and Piper over there."
"Really..."
Piper looked at Nicky with wide eyes "It is NOT a date Nicky! Tell her- everyone, tell everyone that this is not a date right now!"
Nicky laughed. "Pretty sure you confirmed it was in the last text you sent me when you were in the bath last night...I have it here somewhere..." She pretended to scroll through her messages as Alex looked over her shoulder at the phone screen.
Piper remembered the joke she sent and blushed dramatically. Alex laughed and said "Well, I do hope we aren't intruding. If this is a first date and all."
Nicky waved her hand "Nah, this is like our third date already. I think she'll be pushing for U-Haul next week. She seems pretty keen."
"I'm hurt. You didn't even tell your best buddy you moved past first base." Alex watched Piper as she spoke, seeing the realisation dawn on her that Nicky had probably been telling her all the details already.
"We didn't. I can't decide if she's playing hard to get or frigid. I want to know if it's worth the effort you know." Nicky smiled wickedly, knowing she was teasing Piper to get exactly the reaction that she wanted.
Piper stood up and turned her back to the table, letting her leather jacket slip slowly down her arms to her ass. Revealing her toned back inch by inch to a drooling Nicky and Alex, she hung up her jacket and glanced over her bare shoulder as she said "Oh, it's worth it."