('I'm hella sick but not old enough to purchase cough medicine and that sounds really pitiful coming from a college student but would you please go buy me some NyQuil?' au)
but somewhere more between I'm not old enough and I've forgotten my license and this clerk won't sell without a valid ID
She was in between parties when it happened.
She stopped at the local drugstore to pick up a Red Bull and some aspirin. It had been a rough few weeks of nonstop parties and she was beginning to feel it. Picking her poisons, Alex sauntered idly towards the checkout counter, mind on other things.
"Listen. I know you're just doing your job but PLEASE, I need this medicine. I mean, can't you SEE how sick I am? I'm not gonna snort it or sell it or whatever the fuck you think people my age do with COUGH SYRUP. I just want to be not sick."
Alex's gaze fell to the blonde girl before her, helplessly bargaining with an unimpressed cashier.
"Listen, kid, I'd love to help you out, but I could lose my job. I can't sell yah the cough syrup without an ID."
Her shoulders fell with a heavy sigh of resignation. "I understand."
The bell above the door jingled as Alex's eyes followed the despondent blonde from the store.
"Kids." The clerk muttered to her as she stepped up to pay.
"Yeah..." Her gaze flicked from the now closed door to the woman behind the counter, thoughts still lingering on the dejected blonde. She took her items with a mumbled thanks, pulling a cigarette from her pocket and sliding it between her lips. She was lingering outside the door, fingers fumbling with her lighter, when she heard a racking cough to her left. The blonde stood just down the sidewalk, leaning heavily against the building as a series of explosive coughs burst from her lungs. Pulling the forgotten cigarette from her lips, Alex approached her. She was holding a cellphone to her ear as she muttered a vague stream of curses between coughs.
"You okay, kid?" Alex murmured gently. She didn't want to startle her.
"No." The blonde muttered, throwing a quick glance back at her. Her eyes were blue, Alex noted idly, shockingly so. "I'm fucking... sick, and I knew I shouldn't have left the apartment, but I just needed some fucking medicine because I feel so shitty and I can't sleep and my FUCKING friend won't answer her fucking phone..." She trailed off with a sigh. "And now I'm unloading all my troubles onto a stranger who probably regrets trying to be a nice person."
Her blue eyes trailed slowly up to Alex's face and Alex knew they were met with a look of soft amusement. Her teeth trailed across her bottom lip as the blonde relaxed under her gaze. "I'm starting to think it was the best decision I've made tonight, actually..." She smirked.
A gracious blush lit across the blonde's already flushed face as they smiled at each other.
"Ugh." She muttered, with a groan. "This is the worst thing that's ever happened to me."
Alex's eyebrows rose in silent confusion.
"You're really hot and so of course you have to see me sick in my pajamas outside the local drugstore at twelve in the morning."
Her eyebrows jumped again in gleeful surprise, grin blooming across her face as the blonde seemed to realize what she'd just said.
"Oh god." She buried her face in her hands as Alex laughed.
"Wow. You must really be sick."
Another short groan escaped her lips as her hands fell away from her face. She fixed Alex with the most adorably pathetic look she'd ever seen. Biting her lip in sympathetic amusement once more, Alex glanced back over her shoulder before turning back to the blonde and murmuring, "Stay here." handing her her drink and aspirin. She ducked back into the store and grabbed a box of colorful cough syrup, ignoring the judgmental look from the clerk as she handed her her ID. She thanked her with a grin before swinging back out onto the street. The girl's blue eyes were on her once more as she made her way back to her, wiggling the bottle of syrup at her triumphantly.
"Oh my god!" The blonde nearly cried as Alex stepped close enough to hand her the bottle. "Oh my god." She murmured again, softly. "Thank you. Are you an angel?"
Alex laughed softly at her imploring gaze. "Just a stranger who couldn't stand the sight of a cute blonde standing outside the local drug store in her pajamas looking like a kicked puppy at twelve in the morning."
She studied her gently for a moment, fondly even, before seeming to come to her senses. "I should- I need- Let me pay you for this." She fumbled through her pockets for a moment before Alex stopped her.
"Don't worry about it. Seriously. It's on me."
"I can't..." She trailed off helplessly and Alex vaguely noted that she was one of the cutest things she'd ever seen. "You've been so nice to me already, I can't just let you go without... giving you... something..." She trailed off awkwardly, noticing her choice of words.
Alex again smiled in gentle amusement. "Well. You can give me your name."
"Oh my god! I didn't even- it's Piper! Sorry. Piper." She stilled, gaze landing on Alex once more. "And you are...? Besides a good Samaritan with an obvious heart of gold."
"Alex." She laughed.
"Well, Alex... I still feel like I should pay you."
"Trust me, kid. It's not a problem."
Piper eyed her thoughtfully for a moment. "Okay..." She whispered. "Which way are you...?"
"This way." Alex nodded up the street.
"Oh. Me too."
They shared another smile, shoulders brushing as they turned to begin their journey.
Alex walked her the whole way to her apartment, whatever party she was supposed to be heading to now long forgotten. They'd fallen into easy conversation, talking about anything and everything under the sun. She'd even gone so far as to climb the stairs to the blonde's door with her, making sure the wispy thing made it safely as close to her bed as possible. They lingered in the doorway for a moment, Piper leaning to rest her forehead against the frame as she studied Alex with a tired smile. Alex found herself smiling back with a startling ease.
"Thank you." She murmured softly, a delicate shine of fondness dancing in her eyes.
"Don't mention it, kid." Alex was sure there was a similar shine her own gaze.
They watched each other quietly for another moment, as if hesitant to part. Finally Piper blinked, pushing herself slowly from the frame of her doorway. "Goodnight... Alex."
"Wait." She pushed herself forward before she could stop herself, reaching out for the blonde's wrist.
Her other hand dug through her pocket for her sharpie as Piper eyed her in soft confusion. Pulling the marker free, she yanked the cap off with her teeth, shooting a quick glance at the blonde as she pulled her forearm towards her. She trailed her fingertips over her warm skin as she pushed the sleeve of Piper's over-sized Smith hoodie up her arm. Piper watched in quiet fascination and Alex took it as a sign to continue. Several delicate, deliberate strokes later and her number was painted across the blonde's exposed forearm, rounded off with a small AV and little black heart. Piper's gaze trailed over the numbers, a tired smile playing across her face. She met Alex's eyes as she stepped back, capping her pen and sliding it back into her pocket.
"Call me, sometime." She murmured, smirking, self satisfied, at the blonde. Piper's hand closed over her forearm as she drew it into her chest, as if cradling the numbers themselves. Alex was walking slowly backwards, still grinning as they continued to hold each other's gazes. "'Night, kid."
They watched each other until she disappeared from sight, Piper finally slipping through her open door and down the hall to her bedroom. She held her arm above her face, eyes tracing the strong black numbers as she entered them into her phone before burrowing into her blankets with a sigh. Maybe tomorrow things would start looking up. Maybe tomorrow she'd finally start feeling better. And maybe tomorrow she'd ask Alex Vause out for a drink.
A short one. I've had this mostly finished for awhile, finally decided to get it typed up in here and ended up finding an ending for it. Hopefully some longer chapters forthcoming. For either this or Freckle. Perhaps both. Who knows. Currently in a decently creative place, so, fingers crossed :)