more than sugar in my lemonade.

guidelines >> muses >> starters

Aaron loved to tease Lenny. In turn, it seemed that Lenny loved to tease her just as much. Which Aaron wasn’t opposed to, the back and forth was entertaining and kept her on her toes. It was almost as alluring as her looks – Aaron was unashamed in how utterly attracted she was to Lenny, physically. She was stunning. “For sure. I’m offended that you don’t think so either!” she said with a laugh while her nose scrunched. As for knowing everything embarrassing about Aaron, that was true. But it was beyond that, Lenny pretty much knew everything about her, and that was by design. She trusted her more than anyone, despite their playfulness with each other. “To be fair though, you’re a catch too. I mean, you’re funny, cute. Sort of a brat buuuuuut, i sort of find that to be hot,” she said with another laugh. She could have probably spent the entire night complimenting Lenny, but she didn’t want to furl her already large go. She reached out, placing her hands on Lenny’s hips, pulling her in closer. “Yeah? Almost sounds like I’m selling you on this idea. I can be pretty persuasive, huh?” Aaron asked. Her voice got progressively more quiet, leading to a whisper. Her face was only inches from hers, studying those facial features that she loved so much. 

she wasn’t used to the way aaron was looking at her; she was used to people looking at her with nothing but hunger. but that was her own fault, wasn’t it? of course aaron was the only person who liked her for who she was--she was the only person who knew a side of lenny that wasn’t a cold-hearted bitch. not that aaron hadn’t seen her bitchy side, too. being around her best friend had always made lenny feel more human, more like a real person than the character she played around other people. that was just one of the reasons it was so easy to slip into this new territory.

these thoughts flooded her head, but stayed on the back burner as she continued to hang on aaron’s every word. “a brat, huh? careful, or you’ll see just how much of a nightmare i can be.” it would turn out to be an empty threat, because as the other woman pulled them even closer together, all intentions of acting up dissipated. aaron’s eyes searched her face, and lenny searched hers back, meeting her gaze every so often. “you could say that,” she murmured, then let the small smile that had been lingering widen. “i can think of a thing or two you could talk me into doing, if you try really hard.” then the playful smirk dropped from her mouth, her expression giving way to contentment as she leaned in for another kiss. “you don’t have to do any selling. i was sold a decade ago.”

“YOU HIT ME WITH a dart?! Who does that?! Do I look like a target to you or somethin?!” Stella was clearly amused by their confession, she found herself wishing that she would have been able to remember what sounded like a really fun night. She needed that fun night, more than they realized. Despite her inability to remember anything, she was glad that she seemed like she had a really great time. 

“Almost always, huh?” She extended her hand to reach for the water bottle, opening it up almost instantly. She didn’t realize how thirsty she was until she tasted that first sip of water.

“One way to battle hangover is to drink some more, huh? I’d usually say yes, but I’ve got a long day ahead of me so some food would do. But since you said you were hangover as shit, yourself, I should lend you a hand. I’m not a great cook myself, but, with our skills combined I feel like we would be able to come up with something edible.” 

“alright, to be fair, everything looked like the target at that point. my vision was not at its best,” they defended, though they laughed through their words. one thing they could remember vividly from the night before was just how much of a blur everything around them had been. they nodded at her next question. “yeah, i take tuesday evenings for me time. yoga, hot bath, the works. but otherwise i constantly have friends over--i like talking, so when there’s no one around i end up talking to myself and feeling crazy.”

Holly’s friend chuckled when Alexa told her she hoped she wasn’t intruding. “Not at all! We love meeting new people. Everyone is welcome here, the more the merrier. And besides…a friend of Holly’s is a friend of ours.” She gave Alexa an encouraging smile, before finally introducing herself. “Oh, everyone here calls me Lulu. We all sort of go by nicknames…but we haven’t found one for Holly yet.” She chuckled, and for a moment it was unclear what exactly she was laughing at. Holly interjected: “Did you guys start playing yet? We’re not too late, are we?” Lulu immediately shook her head. “Oh, no, not at all! You guys are fine, we were just hanging out. Having some snacks. Alexa, do you like marshmallows?” While she waited for an answer, Lulu lead the both of them closer to the campfire. Holly took Alexa’s hand, knowing that she was always a bit nervous about meeting new people. She didn’t want her to feel anxious or alone. She planned to stay by her side as much as possible tonight. 

“Come, let’s sit”, Holly urged her best friend to take a seat with her on one of the tree trunks by the fire. The rest of the group immediately stopped what they were doing to greet the two of them and one by one, they introduced themselves. “Glad you could join us, Alexa”, one of them commented, while Lulu came skipping over with a bag of marshmallows and some sticks. “Oh great, I was starving”, Holly chuckled, already reaching into the bag to grab one of the sweet, gooey treats. “So, Alexa, tell us a little bit about yourself. Do you like adventure? What kind of music inspires you?”, asked the guy with the guitar in his lap. Holly stayed quiet, giving Alexa a chance to speak up this time. After all, it was important for her to feel safe in the group.

lulu’s smile was infectious, and alexa found herself returning it more easily now, even as holly’s mention of playing reminded her that she didn’t know exactly what she was in for with this event. “i, uh--i haven’t had a marshmallow since i was really little, actually,” she admitted, “but i’m not very picky, so probably?” she chuckled nervously, grateful when holly took her hand. she tightened her grip as her friend led her to sit down in front of the bonfire. the others flocked to them once they were seated, and alexa had to admit she felt a little bit bombarded, but they all seemed kind and welcoming. she was glad she had a good memory--she hadn’t had to remember this many names at once in years. she reached in after holly to grab a marshmallow, thanking lulu, and once she’d set it up over the fire she was glad to have something to divert her thoughts a little bit. 

her gaze came to rest on the man who had spoken to her. “adventure?” she repeated, if only to buy herself a couple precious seconds to decide what she wanted to say. she didn’t want to lie, but she certainly didn’t want to make herself sound like a loser. “well, it’s not that i don’t like adventure. i’m just... not very well-versed in it, i guess. i’m really more of a stick-to-the-routine kind of girl, usually.” she moved on to the next question quickly, hoping she hadn’t just made a fool of herself. “i don’t think there’s a particular kind of music that inspires me, just anything visceral. i like when songs sound like they were written as poetry and then put to music, instead of written to fit a melody or a rhyming--” her words cut off abruptly as she saw her marshmallow catch on fire in her peripherals. a gasp left her mouth, and her whole body tensed. it was a quick fix, just a puff of air and it was over, but she could feel her cheeks already heating up in response to her own over-the-top reaction. “well, i hope i like burnt marshmallows,” she joked weakly.

a soft laugh escapes her, “yeah…i think bad fashion choices is a junior year right of passage or something.” she cringes as she thinks of some of her own overly-bold outfits during that time. “i’m sure it wouldn’t be a disaster…” she tries, but even she doesn’t believe it. “i guess….i mean, the most we did was the occasional stuffy party – though they did serve good cider.”

he feigns shock. “this, coming from fiona coyne, the fashion icon? you know our school plays were never more stylish than they were with you in charge.” at least, he thinks. eli’s never been the best judge of what’s fashionable. “i appreciate the sentiment, but it’s in my best interest if you do believe it would be a disaster.” not that he really thinks fiona would put him in charge of much--they don’t exactly have the same tastes. “now, what i can do is tell you if your party is too stuffy. and taste-test cider with you.”

“it would be even weirder if my name was actually single and available. like, who names their kid that?” then again, who names their kid cassiopeia when the easier to spell cassandra is a perfectly viable option? “isaac. i like that name. i promise i’m really single and available.” tragically and perpetually single, actually, but cass keeps that to herself, deciding that it would cross the line between cute and quirky and entirely desperate.

she gives him a sweet smile when he holds the door open, making her way outside and silently deciding the chivalry may not be entirely dead. she wasn’t quite used to the treatment, equally surprised when he pulls out the chair, but gracefully taking her seat nonetheless. “i’m pretty good at getting attention when i need to,” she concedes, shrugging. her finger taps against her lip for just a moment as she considers what she wants to share with him – cass isn’t one to take anything off of the table, after all. “let’s see. well. i lost my family in a car crash when i was a teenager, still hear my dad’s ghost judging my entire life, and i have my therapist on speed dial.” being such an open person, she really had to dig deep to find something she wouldn’t say on a first date. it’s all spoken in a casual tone, smile never leaving her face. “don’t worry. i give good head, so like…it makes up for all the extra baggage.”

“well, i would hope that if you were in a relationship bad enough to make you wanna announce your availability to a room full of strangers, you’d end it.” not that he hadn’t stayed in his fair share of bad relationships over the years. he didn’t like to admit that was one of his weak spots. “but i know the mind works in mysterious ways.” and that much was true--in the past seven years of schooling he’d learned that there was much more he couldn’t learn.

‘i do not think that this place will be good to hunt for dates. most people there are weird and yeah, i am fine to include myself on that list.’ jade replied as they left. she did do the traditonal use of a taxi since she assumed both of them likely would drink just a little bit. accidents on the road were not on the list for today’s events. ‘at least, i’d appreciate if syou do not go for the managing stuff. it would be highly awkward if you end up flirting with them and i have to work with them. but if i am thinking of it, those guys usually look their jobs so i am not too worried there is any risk of you finding them appealing.’ she got on the seat of the taxi and handing the address to the driver. ‘well then, let’s see where all of this carries us. let’s have fun in case the rest of this is a disaster.’

It wasn’t exactly graceful, and Aaron hadn’t been particularly articulate, but she was happy that her feelings were finally being communicated. Her reward was finally being able to share an intimate embrace and kiss with Lenny – it no longer had to exist only in her fantasies. “Sure about it? I mean, I know I like you. Whatever happens, happens. I know it would really suck if it doesn’t work out. But you know how stubborn I am. Not going to let that happen, “she said with a smirk. Aaron understood what Lenny meant though. Their friendship was at risk if everything fell in on itself. Of course Aaron had thought about that long before this, but she’d come to the realization that it was worth it. “I’d pretty much do whatever it took for it to workout. Just like, take our friendship with works. Then add making out, showering together and giving each other cute names as our phone contact names and thats’ pretty much all their is to it,” she said with a small shrug of her shoulders. Obviously that was an oversimplification, but Aaron really thought it wouldn’t be that much of a jump of what they already had. “But, I mean, if you’re not interested in this catch right here – I get it, “she teased. It was in Aaron’s nature to add humor to an otherwise tense situation. 

Aaron’s words were enough to assuage Lenny’s fears, at least for now. After all, she was right--surely this would just be like a friendship on steroids. And she knew that she was willing to put in the work, so hearing that Aaron was, too, was comforting. She broke into a grin at Aaron’s last words. “Oh, you think you’re such a catch, huh?” she joked. “Don’t forget that I already know everything embarrassing there is to know about you.” She was sure her face was still glowing enough to show that she was just kidding, even in the dark, but she felt the need to express that nonetheless. “And I still like you. So I guess I’ve gotta admit you’re a catch anyway.” She looked down for a moment, eyes resting on the dark expanse of bedding surrounding them. It wasn’t often that Lenny showed any sort of nervousness or hesitance, but then again, it wasn’t often that she was this vulnerable with someone. She hadn’t had the opportunity; she hadn’t truly liked anyone for anything but sex--besides Aaron, of course--in so long. “You’re right, though,” she said, meeting Aaron’s gaze again, “We’ve been so close, anyway, it’s... not that much of a leap. What is a leap, though, is me giving anyone a cutesy nickname in my phone. You just might be the first ever. But it’s about time I make out and shower with someone I actually care about. That’s gonna take some getting used to."

“Oh my God, Al…” Holly rolled her eyes when Alexa admitted to owning the dress for six years and never once wearing it. No wonder it still looked so new! At least she’d kept it. She simply smiled when she noticed her friend’s confusion, not bothering to explain her statement any further. The games they played weren’t like board games or video games, and she didn’t want to scare her off. They needed to be in the right setting first, for her to understand. While Alexa touched up her make up, Holly stood beside her and closely inspected her freshly applied eyeliner. Then she nodded approvingly. Alexa never needed much make up, she was naturally pretty, but a little eyeliner definitely looked amazing on her. “Perfect”, she agreed, turning around to put on her shoes and her jacket. “Alright, let’s go then! We’ll take my car, it’s only twenty minutes from here. We’re having a bonfire in the woods.” She took her friend’s hand, excitedly pulling her along towards the door.

Just as she claimed, the drive to the woods took no more than twenty minutes. When they got there, Holly parked her car near a couple of others and took out her phone. Since it was already getting pretty dark outside, she turned on the flashlight function on her phone and used it to lead Alexa down a dirt path. A few minutes later, they reached a small clearing where a group of about fifteen people were all hanging out around a big bonfire. Some of them were roasting marshmallows, one guy was playing the guitar and one girl was singing, while another girl was  cheerfully dancing around the fire. As soon as they saw the two girls though, they all became quiet for a moment. “Hi guys”, Holly greeted them with a small wave and immediately, the dancing girl came running over to hug her. “Holly! Hi! Welcome back! And who is this?” The girl asked, visibly enthusiastic to meet Alexa. She greeted her with a hug too, while Holly introduced her: “This is my friend Alexa, I forced her to come along with me”, she joked.

alexa could feel worry growing in the pit of her stomach as they drove, the fear of being out in the woods at night mixing with the fear of meeting new people. she took out her phone just once, to tell her brother what she was doing and turn on their location sharing--just in case. there was no such thing as too safe. the sun was setting quickly, and she focused her attention only on the lit road ahead of them. looking too closely at the obscured woods would do nothing but make her more paranoid.

the dark dirt path felt ominous, but once they reached the clearing, alexa was able to calm down. the crackling fire, the music and dancing, it all seemed laid-back and even kind of soothing. it helped that there were a lot less people than she’d been expecting, at least for now. when one of the girls came over to them, she quickly felt herself becoming overwhelmed again, but she put on a big smile. these were holly’s friends, so she wanted to make a good impression. she returned the hug, though she was a bit taken aback by the sudden display of affection from a stranger. she chuckled at holly’s introduction. “i’m happy to be here,” she said as warmly as possible, and she found it to actually be true. this was starting to seem like the kind of party she could handle. “i hope i’m not intruding. this is such a nice little spot, the perfect place for something like this.” she glanced around the clearing, further taking everything in, then realized she was being rude. “what’s your name?” she asked quickly. that little slip-up, forgetting to ask her name right away, something she probably hadn’t even noticed--that was enough to get alexa’s anxiety levels up once again.

She hoped that Lenny didn’t think this was just some dream. Aaron had put herself out there, she might as well be taken seriously. She doubted she could muster up the courage to do this all over again, even if she tried some liquid courage to get it to come out. She wasn’t sure how Lenny was going to respond, their entire friendship could have came crashing down as a result, but she was going to at least attempt to let her feelings be known to her. But as Lenny responded, a lot of that anxiety fled. Aaron smiled brighter when Lenny rolled over, she normally gave a grin when she got to see Len’s face! Hardly anything got her in a better mood than that. Instead of responding though, Aaron cupped Lenny’s cheeks and leaned in, pressing their lips together softly. He didn’t apply a lot of pressure, letting Lenny pull away if she so chose to. Aaron had fantasized about this moment – that first kiss. And it was even better than what she thought it would be like. Finally, she pulled back after a few moments, smiling at her roommate. “Oooof… that’s been on my mind for year,” she said with a sly smile. Aaron tried not to look so goofy with such an exaggerated smile, she was just too damn happy to tempter her emotions in that moment.

as cliche as it may be, the second aaron’s lips touched hers, lenny felt like she was on fire. the kiss was soft, sweet, and lenny wanted more. she leaned into it, pressing forcefully, and when aaron pulled away it took everything in her not to immediately pull her face back towards her. aaron was smiling now, that beautiful smile she adored so much, and she couldn’t help but return it. her mouth stayed stretched into a grin as she spoke. “yeah,” she breathed, “mine, too. and yet somehow it’s even better than i imagined it.” she brought their lips together again, once, twice, then pulled back. “aaron...” but she wasn’t yet sure what she wanted to follow the name with. there was so much to be said, and she didn’t want to say any of it. there were too many things she wanted to do instead. “are you sure about this?” they were still so close, the proximity making lenny’s head spin nearly as much as the kiss had. “you’re my best friend, and i would die if i lost that. i just--i just need to know that you’re sure.” but she didn’t wait for an answer before kissing her again, this time more tenderly. lips moving gently against the other’s, hand tangling into aaron’s hair, body gravitating closer and closer to her best friend’s.