001 // dani & austin
Pennsylvania was a totally underestimated state, in Austin’s opinion. As was true with many of the states that weren’t widely included in pop culture media, so far as he could tell. Everyone raved about California. Everyone put New York at the top of their list of states they want to visit. Texas, Florida, Louisiana... Of course there was a lot to see in those places. Different people, new cultures, crazy foods. But Austin liked these less-recognized states just as much. He’d been in Pennsylvania for about a week now, and he definitely didn’t mind it. Through total luck -- as was the case with most of his travels -- Austin came across a laid back guy who was happy to let the vagabond crash on his couch for the time being. Typically, Austin didn’t stay in any one city for too long. A couple weeks, maybe. If that. He was enjoying his time here, though, and Billy was a kindred spirit. It was an easy, relaxed life, even if others would find the constant moving and lack of steady income sources for worry. But Austin loved it. He lived for it.
This night found Austin with Billy and a handful of his buddies at a frat party. It wasn’t the sort of scene Billy would normally explore, he’d said, but it was a Thursday night and the guys had decided it was high time to get their asses off Billy’s outrageously comfortable couch and do something stupid. Even though getting into frat parties was a little harder if you didn’t have a nice set of breasts to help you get through the door, they’d come prepared with two 32-racks of cheap beer and were welcomed with open arms. Austin was well on his way to a decent buzz, having played several games of beer pong with Stumbaugh and dominating a couple rounds of flip cup with a large crowd. Despite the fact that Austin was the last thing from a frat boy, he fit in easily and most everyone loved his company.
He was at the keg refilling his cup when he noticed a rather shady boy from the frat standing at the vat of jungle juice. Austin hated the stuff, and while that was heavily in part to the awful taste, this was the primary reason for his dislike. A small white pill fell from the kid’s palm and into one of the two cups of juice on steroids, and it was all Austin could do not to beat the guy to a pulp right then and there. Instead of making a scene, though, he simply followed Frat Douche through the party until he witnessed him trying to pass the cup off on a girl. A small girl. A meek girl who looked like she had no idea what she was doing here at a frat party. Austin stepped in immediately, physically knocking the drink out of the guy’s hand so it spilled across the hardwood floors beneath their feet.
“Dude, do you even know Karen at all?” he piped up, passing off his beer to the shorter girl who looked even more bewildered than she had before. “She’s a beer girl. Take your fruity shit and get outta here.” The boy looked ready to protest, but Austin shot him a menacing stare, and it certainly helped that he towered over the guy by at least a good six inches. Frat Douche scrammed, just like he was told, and Austin finally turned his attention to the short girl beside him. “Sorry... I saw him drop a pill into that drink,” he explained, his voice a little quieter now. He held out his hand and offered the girl a friendly smile. “I’m Austin, and I’m assuming your name probably isn’t Karen.”
