fuck this shit

She frowned at his retreating back. “What a cunt of a host.” Shrugging, Alyssa unscrewed the bottle’s lid and continued on her way.

Alyssa didn’t hesitate in lying, glad to see she’d won their little stand-off. “Oh, I think she’s here too. Probably bangin’ one of your friends.” She smiled in thanks, arms finally dropping back to her side as she reached for the bottle. “Thanks for that. You got any food lyin' around? I’m fuckin’ starving.”

“Hva? Who the hell are you? Why is a twelve-year-old at my party?”

“Erm, no. But I do now. Cheers.” She pushed up onto her toes, so he could hear her more clearly over the music. It was the truth she had no idea whose house or party this was, but she did know who he was. The one who’d hurt Adeline, the one she couldn’t shut up about. “So… you gonna’ move your fat nose out the way, or wha’?”

Effy raised her eyebrows, surprised by the sudden apology. Usually when she began shouting and swearing, she was met with an argument in return. It was a nice change of pace, one which allowed her to feel listened to. Being a Capitol puppet meant she’d been robbed of her voice, so she appreciated it, although never enough to say sorry in return. She was far too proud and stubborn for that. “Apology accepted. The neighbour two doors down is kind of a cunt, so throw it over there instead.”

At first, Alyssa thought the suggestion might’ve been a setup, the woman leading her into serious trouble by way of revenge. But she’d seemed so casual about it, the girl chose to believe her, the idea certainly intriguing. “Alrigh’ then.” With a shrug, Alyssa scurried two doors down before unceremoniously dumping the trash over the fence. “Fuck you and your hedges!” She shouted before quickly sprinting back to Effy, grin on her face. “That was fun. Got any other shit neighbours?”

Effy laughed, but the sound was cold and sarcastic. It was obvious through her expression that she didn’t find the situation the slightest bit amusing. “Listen, you little midget. For my entire life, I haven’t had a single fucking thing that belonged to me. Now that I do, I don’t want it tainted because some lazy shit couldn’t locate a bin. So yeah, I do give a fuck about my bush, and my path, and my gate. It matters to me.”

Alyssa might not have had any respect for adults, but she was still young, not to mention an unsupervised runaway, so being told off felt oddly nostalgic. An echo of what her mother had been like, before dumbass Tony had come into their lives and stolen her entire personality. Stung by the thought, Alyssa stood in silence for a few moments before finally nodding. “Alrigh’. Fine, whatever then.” Feeling awkward, she shrugged before going over to retrieve the rubbish. “I didn’t know you were cool. Sorry.”

Considering the rubbish was definitely hers, Alyssa found the outburst hilarious. The woman was clearly highly strung, and Alyssa wasn’t one to hold much respect for others anyway, especially adults, so it sat fine with her. But she still found the confrontation impressive. It had been unexpected, to say the least. “Holy shit,” she replied, amused. “Do you also give this much of a fuck about somethin’ that actually matters, or only your… bush?”

“The magic I’m studying doesn’t involve a stick. And I don’t have a coven. So maybe you should brush up on your facts before you think about insulting me,” Davina bit back, angrily slamming Kol’s grimoire shut. The task he’d set her would be impossible in this town. “I’m leaving. Enjoy your toast.”

"Cya!"

“I think practicing magic is more important than obnoxiously chewing a piece of burnt bread, but whatever. If it keeps you from talking — fine. I’m nearly done here anyway.”

“Well, I wasn’t thinkin’ about the fuckin’ room acoustics and your bat ears when I saw a loaf, now was I? I was thinkin’ about fuckin’ toast, and eatin’ that fuckin’ toast. Maybe you should find literally anythin’ else to care about.”