Dying is Easy, My friend

David nodded, filling the kettle up with water. He turned the kettle on and kept his back to Piper for a moment. He knew that things had been different between himself and Wren than it had been with Piper and Wren but he didn’t know why. Piper hadn’t talked but David had given up important information. Yet Wren was patient with David, he was understanding and kind and yes, David was grateful, but he didn’t understand.

“Milk and sugar?” David asked, pulling two mugs from one of the cupboards.

“Milk. Please.” She bit her lip, not sure what to say while they waited for the kettle to boil. "Is Wren... still angry with me?" She asked after a beat. David might know considering his position and she didn't know who else to ask.

“Gotcha.” Liam snapped with his fingers, before digging into his pocket, twisting on the couch to get his phone out. “We don’t want you burning this place down accidentally. Also…” Copping a feel for his phone, he went on feeling his pants until he produced the handy device. “I have an app for that.” He eagerly blurted, as if he had been waiting for this moment to come, which in truth, he had, especially since he downloaded the application, like the precious hacker child that he was. 

“So…” scrolling through the options with eyes practically glued on the screen, he began to list out their options. “American? Chinese? Thai? Indian?” Looking up to her, he hoped she was leaning into a particular cuisine. 

Piper chuckled at Liam’s eager excitement to use his app. “Of course you do.” He was so much better suited to the hacking than she was, she realised. Piper had picked it up out of necessity, trying to find something she could be good at that Wren Diamond would pay her to do. It just so happened she was good at computers and had been a fast learner. She found technology useful, and she liked it, but it was nothing compared to how much Liam loved it.

“Indian sounds good. What kind of Indian places have you got on there? Or do you have a preference?” she asked, peering over his shoulder at the screen.

Scarlett rarely regretted her decisions. Partly it was because all of her actions were always excruciatingly premeditated, and partly because even if something did happen to go wrong, she would only take it as a challenge, and have her fun. And so she waited for almost two full weeks for that feeling of thrill to come, only to find herself awake at night, a drink in her hand, her mind racing through odds and possibilities until she finally had to admit to herself she cared far more than she let on. She needed to do something.

This was why she walked into the tech room that late afternoon, glad to find it completely deserted save for the solitary figure lit by the artificial light of the computer screen - Piper. “Darling.”, she said, knowing full well there was no need for any other announcement - her accent and cadence would’ve already given her away, and she closed the door carefully behind herself, “It’s late, I was wondering if you were hungry?” Truthfully, had it been any other techie, Scarlett would’ve just barged in and made her request - but this was Piper, and over the course of her time here, Scarlett found herself particularly fond of the young girl, even protective. And so she walked up to her table, leaning her hip against it like she always did, and tapping some obscure beat with tips of her red nails as she decided to get straight to the point, “So… How do you feel about lasagna alla Bolognese? Because I want to talk to you, and I need your help, but we can’t have you starving to death.”, there was a smirk on Scar’s lips and she leaned forward to push the keyboard slightly away from Piper, “You’ve been boxed up here all day, you need to get some air. I promise they’re amazing. An Italian chef taught me. Besides, I see you eating that microwaved sorry excuse for a meal and it’s criminal.” And though Scarlett’s features remained in their usual, charming state, there were traces of genuine concern in her voice - she wanted to talk to Piper about her suspicions as to what hid beneath that carefully arranged sleeve (though she didn’t want to startle her by being too forward), as well as to ask the girl for a favour, because it felt as if she were the only person left Scar could trust with something as delicate as information about Mitchell’s daughter.

“Oh thanks.” She said, actually appreciative. She was normally too lazy to cook, but there was a sudden urge for soup–and when she had all the ingredients in the kitchen, it seemed too easy to simply make versus going out into the freezing NYC weather. Which turned out to be the better decision anyway–she forgot how much she used to love cooking with her mom. It made her a hair homesick, but a bit nostalgic, too. The question came and went and Dana thought for a moment–a low chuckle escaping her before she decided to speak. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to talk about her family–she just wasn’t used to it. “Oh, um. My mom actually. The rare occasions I was free and didn’t have practices or wasn’t working out I would help her with dinner. She actually one of the best cooks ever.” 

She stopped in the doorway, raising her eyebrows when she found Holland, the Diamond cousin in the room. Piper had heard the drawer shut and Holland was looking... flustered. “Is everything okay?” she asked, trying to work out what was going on. “If you need something, you know most of those files have been copied onto the computer system, right? It’d be far easier for me to look them up.”

At the end of their topic, he let go of his hold on her hand, relaxing into the seat. He was glad they got the chance to discuss the hard topics such as these, as it only furthered their friendship/pseudo-family. 

To her question, Liam looked to his wrist watch, taking a second before he answered back. “Almost 4pm.” He yawned, stretching out his limbs. Though he may have already eaten his soup, he was hungry yet again, this time craving for anything salty or sweet or greasy. “Do you have food? Or did you want me to order delivery?” 

“Almost 4...” Piper repeated. Yeah, that would explain why she was hungry. Dana would be admonishing her if she knew how little Piper had eaten. “I probably have some stuff if you want to cook. Otherwise, I’m happy to just get delivery. I’d probably burn something if I cook right now. Space out or something.” She sounded nonchalant, but Piper was serious.

David shrugged. “It’s okay,” he replied. It couldn’t get any worse now, in his opinion.

“Yeah, it is,” he said. David wasn’t sure if Piper had received the same treatment, but he didn’t want to ask just in case. It wasn’t his business to ask about what happened between her and Wren. David glanced from Piper to the floor and back again.

“Do you want a drink?” He asked, standing up and gesturing towards the tea kettle. “Tea? Coffee?”

Piper bit her lip but ultimately decided not to voice her annoyance. The world wasn’t fair, never had been. It didn’t seem like the dice ever really rolled in her favour, she didn’t need to complain about that to David. Some of it may have been clear in her face, but she tried not to let it be too obvious.

Movies I watched for the first time in 2016

David shrugged. “My Dad was a Diamond so my family already knows about the gangs. Everyone saw me on the broadcast so I can’t pretend it didn’t happen, and I’m used to people judging me for things that I haven’t done.,” he replied. “People do stare at me.” Maybe it came with being incredibly patient, or the fact that he’d had plenty of crap to deal with that he was just /used/ to it by now.

“He didn’t say much,” David said. “Wanted to know if I needed anything before I went back to work.”

Piper wasn’t sure she’d be able to handle that. She much preferred flying under the radar. It tended to keep you out of trouble most of the time. Being stared at constantly, or having her torture broadcasted publicly... it would be its own form of torture. “I’m sorry.”

Scoffing at her comment, Liam only wished his knack for romance was enough to get him a partner. But alas, the world was cruel that way. “Yeah, I’m more romantic, sure,” he retorted, making it sound silly, “but between the two of us, who has that special someone in their life?” Raising an eyebrow at her, there was no denying that between the two of them, she was the clear winner in the room.  “Trust me when I say that sometimes, just being yourself is more than enough.” That, and the fact that Dana chose to be with her despite everything. “Besides, Dana loves you just the way you are. Don’t ever question that.” He reminded her, giving her a look which meant business. If there was one thing Liam hated, it was when people often thought that they weren’t worthy of a certain someone or love, only accepting ones they think they deserve.

Piper tilted her head to concede his point. “Still. If I can, you can.” Piper smiled slightly at Liam’s reminded that despite everything, Dana had chosen her. It was hard to believe at times, but true. Dana loved her, rough edges and all. Glancing up at Liam’s hard look, she frowned. “What?” she asked.

She sat up with a sigh and rubbed her eyes. “I should probably eat something. What time is it, anyway?” she asked. She’d lost track of time hours ago, before Liam had even arrived. During the movie, the food he’d brought that Piper hadn’t finished had gone cold, but it would only take a zap in the microwave to fix that.

She tried not to be so overbearing, as she knew she could very well be–especially when it came to her girlfriend. Her protective streak increased tenfold when it involved someone that was more than a friend she realized. But that was okay with her–and Piper, she hoped. “Mhmm. You’re eating two bowls anyways, because it’s delicious.” She teased, momentarily letting the moment go as she stuck her tongue out briefly at her girlfriend. She turned back, stirring the soup briefly before she smiled when Piper agreed. The wheels were already turning in her head. She could easily buy a bike, or even get one from one of her buddies. Maybe even win it. She wanted to make sure it was special though–something Piper would truly appreciate. She took a spoonful of hot soup, blowing on it briefly before she took it over to Piper. “Try some?”