#has courtney done some fucked up shit? yup

[highbythebeach666]

when a man who listens to the smashing pumpkins and nirvana but doesn’t listen to hole tries to tell you that billy corgan/kurt cobain wrote all of hole’s music, even though all three of those bands had different styles and they don’t know the history and courtney’s writing could have NEVER been done by a man.

[ma-gic-gay]

Death had always been a finite concept. For both of them, presumably, but especially for Carly. Death was something she had to deal with far too regularly for her tastes (comes with the territory when you have a habit of marrying mobsters), despite her hatred of it.

Shootings, she could handle. And did, shockingly well. Despite the fact she couldn't handle being in a stable situation for more than a day, she was great in a crisis.

Of course, the fact she had Jason there was helpful. She felt unsafe, she called him and it was like she had her own personal body guard. It was, in a very strange way, nice to know he wouldn't hesitate to kill for her and has done it repeatedly in the past.

The deaths of the people who tried to kill her (or him, especially him- she prayed those bastards got the worst treatment they could) were the only ones she could handle.

It's a bit ironic she got killed from a shooting, three hours and twenty three minutes after Jason died, in a weird way. She always said she'd kill for him (realistically she knew he'd lose his shit if she ever did that because he's overprotective and hasn't taught her how to use a gun), and that's exactly what she did. He got shot right in front of her, she grabbed his gun while he was yelling at her not to and shot the person.

Slight problem though, she too got shot. Whoopsie daisies.

Getting shot fucking hurt. She was in and out of consciousness when she was at the hospital and no one would tell her about Jason's condition. They were married, for fuck's sakes, why the fuck wasn't anyone telling her how her husband was doing?!

Eventually, someone (probably Monica, she can't remember) told her he was dead. They got to him too late, they said, he'd been doa and their best efforts hadn't revived him.

After hearing that, she couldn't live with herself. He got shot because Vince was trying to shoot her and off he went to be her hero and make everything okay and he got killed. One phone call and he was at the Metro Court, hanging out with her and keeping watch when he noticed Vince in the parking lot and went out there to confront him. Vince pointed a gun at Carly and, of course, since Jason's a self sacrificing person, he died.

Which meant she was directly responsible for his death and that rocked her to her very core. She'd failed him. After twenty five years, she failed him. Even he'd have to admit this one. There was no spin on this (and she'd heard some strange ones over the years) for how she'd be able to live with herself after she failed him. It wasn't like she'd done something stupid, no, she got him killed. Carly knew he'd do something, especially since Vince was a dick, and she told him. Did he deserve to know? Yes. But only after she'd reassured his overprotective streak she'd be fine and he didn't have to kill anyone else for her.

According to something she'd heard from the doctors, in whatever fucking limbo this was, Carly had died of a heart attack. Likely brought on by stress. Bullets were fine but hearing of Jason's death killed her.

Yup, makes sense. Well, she'll be able to apologize for all of eternity once she gets to wherever she's going. Even after he forgives her (which, she's being honest, will happen as soon as they see each other), she's going to apologize and apologize.

Ooh, she gets to see Sonny and Morgan too! Her son and husband and best friend for all of eternity. What could be better?

There's something that vaguely looks like an angel and she notices it drags her up. Huh, guess she's going to heaven. Makes sense, Carly's a fairly good person. She's not a terrible one.

Except when she gets there she only finds Morgan and Courtney (Courtney, oh how she missed her), no Jason anywhere. Where the hell was he? Avoiding a party, probably. She has got to get him to go out more, especially now that nothing can probably happen. What are the rules of death?

"Where's Jason?" Carly asks after greeting the pair. They stare blankly until she asks again, "Where is he? He's here, right? I was told he's dead!"

Courtney's the first one to be stunned out of her shock. "Carly, he, um, didn't make the cut."

"For what? Give me that list, I'm adding his name at the very top. Where the fuck is he?" She exclaims. He's here, he's got to be here.

"You're aware of his job, right?" Is she aware of his job, of course she is!

"Yes, Courtney, it's why we got married. Where the hell is he? Or Sonny, or Mike!"

"Mike's taking a nap and Sonny's not dead." What?! "Or, if he is, he didn't make the cut either." Didn't make the cut for what? Carly will scheme, steal, seduce, lie and cheat go get those two up here with her, where the fuck are they?

"Because of Jason's job and the amount of people he killed, he didn't make the cut to heaven. He's in hell." Is it possible to die twice? She might just do that. He's in hell, which is a place for bad people! Her hero is in hell.

She's gonna kill someone. "I'm not perfect! None of us are perfect, I killed someone! Why the hell aren't we down there? He died defending me!"

"Shocking," Morgan says dryly. "Jason killed people for a living. He was a mobster."

"And I'm an accessory to all of that! I lead the mob for a week or two!" Carly exclaims. "He's a good person, we know that."

"We're not in charge of the decisions, Carly," Courtney attempts to comfort her best friend. It's a nice attempt. "That's for people with a lot more clout than us. If it was up to either of us, I promise he'd be here but you'll never see him again."

Never see him again? Oh hell no. "Is there any way to get sent down to hell with him?" This is impulsive and reckless and Jason wouldn't encourage it but she's got less care. She needs to see her best friend again, goddammit."Some paperwork I can file, some people's husband's I can seduce?"

"Someone can submit you for reevaluation."

"Great! Is Emily here?" Emily hates her, she'll surely want to help!

"Somewhere, yeah. Why?"

"Emily hates me. Can't blame her. Anyways, look, I want to help her write my reevaluation. I've ruined a lot of lives."

"Which Jason has always helped you feel better about."

"That's because he's my best friend, Morgan."

The next few weeks are spent making sure every single one of her transgressions is on the list and resubmitting her,,, whatever the hell it's called, Emily never gave details.

So it's really not a surprise when she's dragged down to hell by some gross creature, waving goodbye to her son and Courtney and sister in law (that's a weird thing to think about).

And when she gets there, it's just like a darker version of heaven. It's the same fucking place (away from the fire), just more her color palette. Weird.

"Excuse me, where's Jason Morgan?" She asks the creature who dragged her down here. "I was informed he'd be down here."

A shrug is all she gets in response. Well then, she's able to roll with the punches and searches up and down for him, eventually finding him in a room without decorations or anything but basic necessities.

She's got some decorating on her hands.

Carly walks right through the half opened door (he really didn't lock it? Weirdo) and gets the response of, "Get out."

"Don't expect me to start knocking just because we're dead," she quips, a smile on her face. Knocking is overrated. He looks normal and as he registers what's going on, he gets all squinty.

Once he actually realizes it's her, she's already half attacked him in a hug that he reciprocates. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Little bit of bargaining, Emily's assistance and voila! You'd be amazed at how many bad things I've done. Everyone sends their love, of course. Are there any stores down here? This room is so boring," she changes the subject.

"No, I mean why are you dead? You're supposed to be alive."

"I died three hours and twenty three minutes after you. Heart attack. Monica told me about you dying. No one else would." That was a very bad time when he was dead and she wasn't.

"Does this mean-"

"No, you are not responsible for my death. If anything, I'm responsible for yours. I'm sorry, more than you'll ever know," Carly tells him, eyes welling up with tears.

"You're not responsible. I got shot. It happens." Way too nonchalant for death.

"Because you were defending me, like always. Seriously, take a nice vacation off of that and start using your survival instincts. I don't have Emily to help me this time if I need to transfer afterlives."

"I was defending the business."

"Bullshit. I told you Vince threatened me and you already planned to kill him. You saw your opportunity and instead of shooting him, you got shot and died. This is my fault, 100%, and I will not let you make me feel better about this. You could've patched things up with Britt, hung out with a bunch of people but no, you had to die protecting me. Take a week off of being my hero, please."

"I'm not going to do that. The last time I thought about it, you took over the business."

"Well I can't just ask you to forgive me, so take a day off."

"You'll get kidnapped. And I don't hold you responsible because it was my choice to defend you and my choice to want to kill Vince."

"You're overprotective and it's nice but not when it kills you."

"You spent twenty five years running off every woman in my life because you were convinced they'd hurt me, you hated a ton of people because they did something to me and you almost committed several felonies. And I'm overprotective," he rolls his eyes.

"Not the point, first off and second, you've killed and kidnapped for me. In a very fucked up way, it's sweet. And you totally ran off the men in my life!"

"How did I do that?"

"By being the only person I can depend on. I don't know, look, they've all- except for Sonny, most of the time- hated you because you intimidated them. So you did the same thing, just not on purpose."

"Then it's not the same thing."

"How did we get so off topic? I'm sorry for being the reason you're dead. Do you forgive me?" Strange sentences.

"You're not why I'm dead, I made that choice-"

"You chose to die?"

"I meant the choice to jump in front of you."

"Which was instinctual, you've always protected me."

"Might have to do that even more down here. There's some real creeps."

"I really don't think they'll care that much. But okay."

"Vince is here."

"No revenge."

"He killed you and I'm just supposed to sit here and ignore that he did that?!"

"Maybe we can talk this all out."

"Carly, what part of this aren't you understanding? He killed you. I hurt him, that's how this works, so he knows better than to mess with you."

"Or we could go shop for decor. I'll pick out nice stuff, come on let's go!"

"I'm not going shopping. I'm planning revenge."

"It'll be safer if you're there with me."

"I hate it when you're right."

"Love you too."

"Love you."

The end fuckers :)

oh it's beautiful. thank you for this

[fictional-affliction]

The “oops I hired a porn star” au, part 2

Okay so this part is a lot more filthy...

-The next day is her cousin’s bachelorette party that starts off with a spa day for all the bridesmaids to get pampered and done up which Courtney doesn’t mind because all she ever does is work and she could use a massage. It’s the night portion of the bachelorette party she isn’t thrilled about.

-They’re going to to a nightclub and Courtney’s cousin insists that Courtney borrow an outfit because her clothes are “too frumpy” for a club. She spends forever changing in the en suite of the room she and Duncan are staying in.

-Courtney threatens that if Duncan says anything that she’s deducting $100 from his paycheck for every word. She comes out in a short black dress that has a low neckline, showing off far more cleavage than she feels comfortable with.

-Duncan goes wide eyed when he sees her, she looks so amazing and he knew she had curves but now he’s seeing them accentuated. He’s seen a lot fake boobs and he doesn’t discriminate but damn her double d’s had to be 100% natural.

“I know you want to say something so just say it.”

“You look fucking hot.” Courtney turns to leave so he cant see that she’s smiling at the compliment.

“You just lost $400.”

“Worth it.”

-The bachelorette party goes as expected, rounds of shots, dancing, more shots, more dancing, and lots of penis shaped party favors. Her cousin is plastered by the time they are taking the limo back and Courtney is pretty drunk herself but actually having fun.

-Then one of her cousin’s friends pulls her arm and wildly exclaims that she just realized why Duncan looks so familiar and Courtney’s yanking her arm away and thinking that maybe Duncan’s done some commercial she saw on tv or something.

-Then this girl is pulling something up on her phone and now all the girls are curiously leaning in. It takes Courtney a full ten seconds to register what she’s looking at but when she does...

-Her cousin is exclaiming “Omg I knew it! You’re dating Duncan XL(I couldn’t think of a better porn name lol) I knew he looked familiar, holy shit Courtney I didn’t think you had it in you!”

-But Courtney isn’t even hearing her because her eyes are glued to the phone screen. Yup, that was Duncan all right, same tattoos, same dark hair and teal eyes, completely naked, and in the middle of fucking some girl from behind.

-Courtney’s face is on fire and she’s trying to come up with something to say.

-Cate immediately bursts into a fit of giggles while the other bridesmaids are commenting on what they’re seeing.

“Damn he knows what he’s doing doesn’t he?”

“Look at that ass.”

“His ass? What about his dick?”

“Courtney what’s it like in real life? You have to give us details.”

And Courtney is feeling so many things at once and she knows if she shows her surprise that she will look like an idiot so she goes along with it and winks saying “Let’s just say I’m a lucky girl.” To which everyone hoots and hollers.

-When they get back to the house Courtney is relieved to find that Duncan is still out with at some bar with the guys. She can’t believe she accidentally hired a porn star. She’s pissed at herself for being so careless and yet... dying to see more. She tries to fight it, feeling like it’s wrong but...

-She find herself looking him up and finding a slew of videos to choose from, he obviously got a lot of work. She feels weird at first but after watching the first video she’s fallen down a hole.

-She’s getting extremely horny watching him fuck all sorts of girls and even a few guys in different positions, sometimes more than one at a time. He’s clearly well endowed which makes sense considering his cocky attitude. She watches as he gets blowjobs and goes down on girls and finds that she’s actually getting jealous. She hasn’t had sex, let alone good sex for so long and she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t extremely attracted to Duncan before seeing him naked. Now she didn’t know how she was going to look at him without thinking of all the ways he could do her with that great dick of his.

-She realizes that she’s been rubbing her legs together and is about to give into touching herself when she hears footsteps coming up the stairs. She quickly gets rid of the evidence and makes herself look like she’s just scrolling through her phone when Duncan comes in.

-She doesn’t sleep much that night, and despite the wall of pillows, every time she closes her eyes his naked body is the only she can see.

-The next morning Courtney can barely drag herself out of bed from lack of sleep. She needs a shower and coffee ASAP and doesn’t think when she heads to the bathroom without knocking, only to catch Duncan coming out of the shower without a towel.

-“Morning Princess.” He says with a smug grin and now Courtney is COMPLETELY awake and dumbly staring at his penis, which makes Duncan even more smug. He he grabs a towel on the way out and doesn’t bother covering himself when he says over his shoulder “You might want to make that shower a cold one.”

[enterthesmosh]

I’ve Planted You a Garden (Where Your Flowers Can Grow): Damien Haas

Word Count: 1037 Summary: Emotional jumper cables. A/N (Warning): This includes a mentions of an eating disorder (past tense) so please be thoughtful and careful going forward. I’m going through some stuff so this is a way for me to cope. Know your triggers and limits.

There it was. The all too familiar and entirely unpleasant drop in your stomach. The hot rush of color spreading across your cheeks and creeping up your neck. The jumpstart of your heart pounding an unsteady rhythm on your sternum. The jittery and sweaty hands that suddenly couldn’t hold onto anything any longer. The dizzy, swimming feeling inside your head.

The room felt too small. Too hot. 

“Y/N?”

Courtney’s voice momentarily pulled your back in. She was standing in front of you with a true look of confusion spread across her face. A quick glance around the room and you realized mostly everyone else was looking at you with the exact same expression. You swallowed harshly around the thick lump that had formed in your throat and blinked rapidly a few times in an attempt to readjust your focus.

“Sorry, Courtney.” You mumbled, folding your arms over your chest. “What was it you said?”

Courtney’s eyebrows furrowed for a brief second but they smoothed and a smile slowly spread across her face. “I was asking you to be on the next episode of Eat it or Yeet it. We need another person, and you’ve never done it before. We’re supposed to film soon, so if you want to go ahead and get read-”

“No.” You said quickly, cutting her off. “Sorry. No, Courtney.”

She looked more than a little hurt. “Aw, c’mon, Y/N. It’ll be fun.”

“I… No.” You said again as you shook your head.

“It’s not that bad, Y/N! Olivia’s done it twice! Damien ate toothpaste! Shayne at-”

“Courtney.” You said firmly. She stopped abruptly and looked back at you, more confused than ever. Your heart began pumping harder and you could hear it in your ears now. Your stomach gave an aggressive swirl and for a moment there was an unexpected water sensation in the back of your mouth that lead you to be slightly worried you may vomit right there.

You took a deep, shuddering breath and mentally cursed yourself when you felt the telltale prick of tears at the corners of your eyes. “I really… really cannot do that show.” You spoke slowly and thoughtfully. You were trying desperately to rein in your thoughts and feelings in order to not fully explode in the middle of the office but it was getting harder the more that she pushed the idea.

“Y/N, it’s not that big of a deal.” She started but upon seeing your face she stopped again.

“Courtney. As someone who has had an eating disorder for most of her life and has been in recovery for a year and a half, the idea of being in a video where your two choices are force this food down your throat, or puke it all up is literally the worst fucking thing I can think of and I’d appreciate it if you’d just shut the fuck up and leave me alone.”

You hadn’t realized that your voice was raising or that your body was shaking but by the time you were done speaking your chest was heaving heavily and a tear had slipped past your eye. You’d never told anyone about your past issues but here you were in the middle of the office screaming about it. Your head swam and your heart beat so hard your ribs felt like they were aching. You needed an out.

Without so much as a glance or a word to Courtney, or anyone else who had been a bystander to your anger, you scurried out of the room with your head down. You let your feet carry you away and soon found yourself in the Smosh Games studio, curled up on the couch. You pulled your knees up to your chest and wrapped your arms tightly around your shins, trying to keep yourself contained in as tight a bubble as possible.

It’s wasn’t clear how long you were there but after some time the door opened.

“Hey.” A familiar voice spoke softly.

You sighed softly and spoke into the valley of your knees, “I don’t want to hear or say anything, Damien.”

The couch beside you dipped under his weight but he didn’t say anything else. The room was still, and quiet. Although the situation could have felt awkward, you were comforted slightly just knowing that he was there beside you. You took a few steadying breaths and slowly lifted your head to blink back at him. You were sure that you looked a mess. Your eyes stung and you were sure your nose was red but he only smiled at you.

“You don’t have to say anything or tell me anything you don’t want to.” He said softly as he reached out to push some hair from your face. “But I do want you to know that Courtney is incredibly sorry. She feels like shit. Other than that, you know we’re all here for you, right?”

You nodded and swallowed harshly. “I know.” you croaked. “I’m just… I’m sad, and angry, and embarrassed.”

Damien was quiet for a moment but his hand found your back and gave a comforting pat. “Good thing I’ve got emotional jumper cables.”

You cocked an eyebrow as he stood up in front of you and motioned with his hands for you to get up as well. With an unhappy sigh, you got to your feet and stood beside Damien, looking at him with a less than amused expression.

He grabbed your right hand and pulled it to place on his side. “Just attach here,” he murmured before doing the same with your left. “And here.”

Then, he wrapped his own arms around your shoulders and pulled you close to his body. Your head rested on his chest and your hands slipped back so that your arms looped around his middle and held onto him tightly.

“This is a hug,” you said simply.

Damien hummed, “Yup, is it working?”

You were silent for a moment as you held each other. You no longer felt the burn of anger in your throat or the pit of despair in your stomach. Your shoulders relaxed and you all but sagged against Damien, holding him just that much tighter.

“Yes.”

[artificialqueens]

Undone, Chapter 1 (Bitney) - Stephanie/Veronica

A/N: Welcome to Chapter 1 of UNDONE, a slow-burn Bitney lesbian AU. (This is a reposting of a story that was previously on RGF, because we intend to post future chapters here instead.)

Summary: Courtney and Bianca have instant chemistry when they meet on the set of their new job - a TV show set in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Only one problem: Bianca is married.

TW: This story deals with themes of emotional abuse, and since that can be subtle, we’re going to keep a general TW on all of the chapters, even when it seems like it doesn’t apply.

***

Bianca examines the actor in front of her critically, making sure that the pleats are straight and there are no wrinkles, that all the edges are clean and sharp. She knows she’s taking too long, being too compulsive, but she’s determined for everything to be absolutely perfect.

It’s the first day of production for “Silver Screens, Broken Dreams,” her latest gig - an HBO drama all about 1950s Hollywood intrigue. She’s been trapped in the wardrobe trailer since 6 am, powering through the background talent with the help of her PA and about 5 gallons of coffee. Right now, she's trying to get through the day players and stand-ins before she has to help her department head with the lead actors - who are turning out to be a real handful.

“Alright...stand here.” She directs him to a spot on the wall, taking a Polaroid for the binder. “Thanks, Louis, you’re done.” The actor leaves, and she calls out for her PA. “Jamie!”

The frazzled-looking young woman comes racing in from the adjacent trailer, where she was steaming and tagging the next day’s wardrobe. Seeing her anxiety-riddled face, Bianca almost feels bad. She knows that she’s been taking her own frayed nerves out on the girl, snapping at her so many times, she’s surprised Jamie doesn’t have bite marks. She’s just such a damn newbie and Bianca is not a babysitter. This job is too important.

“Send in the next victim,” Bianca says brusquely.

Jamie nods and opens her mouth to ask a question, then thinks better of it and scampers off again.

Bianca turns to clear some scraps off her work table, checking her binder, crossing Louis off her list. When she hears the trailer door open again, she turns around to greet the next actor, and the air is knocked out of her lungs. Standing in front of the open door, backlit by the bright California sunshine, is the most dazzlingly gorgeous blonde she’s ever seen in her life. Heart-shaped face like an angel, hooded green eyes, a delicate jaw, and a perfect, petite body with legs for days. Bianca swallows, picking up her measuring tape, trying to cover her shaking hands.

Courtney steps forward, letting the door swing closed behind her, looking at the wardrobe assistant standing in front of her, who is biting her plush, ruby lips in the cutest way. Courtney tries to breathe evenly, taking in her wide blue eyes, chocolate brown hair, the way her clothes hug that body, which is too curvy for her own good. Holy shit. Courtney knows what she likes, and this girl? Checks every box.

When Bianca hears the girl’s lilting Australian accent, suddenly her looks aren’t the most alluring thing about her.

“I thought I was gonna be the one getting naked, but this works too.” Courtney gestures to a button on Bianca's shirt that had popped open, eyes glittering with mischief.

“Sorry.” Bianca quickly pulls her shirt closed, making Courtney laugh. “I usually know the name of the person that I'm getting naked with.” Bianca chuckles weakly, knowing she’s making a fool of herself.

“I used to care about that, but the name tags kept falling off during the orgies, so now I’m more chill.” Courtney flashes a coy smile, toying with one of her long pigtails.

Bianca looks at her for a moment before grinning back, revealing deep dimples.

“You’re trouble.”

“No, actually I'm Courtney.” Courtney shakes Bianca's perfectly manicured hand.

“Bianca.” Courtney’s heart deflates just a little when she catches sight of the huge diamond glittering on Bianca’s finger.

“Great,” Courtney breathes. “Now we can get naked.”

“Right. Speaking of which, I need you to...uh...disrobe. Please,” Bianca says, knowing that this is the weirdest part of her job.

Courtney doesn’t appear to be fazed, whipping off her top and kicking off her shorts, posing seductively in her bra and panties.

Bianca clears her throat, wondering if she was ever that free-spirited, even when she was young and single, and deciding...probably not. She consults her chart, trying not to ogle the tan, lithe body in front of her.

“Courtney...you’re standing in for Eliza, right?”

“Yup, that’s what they tell me.”

“Alright, so let’s double check your measurements and then do I have a dress for you.” Bianca begins to measure her, jotting down the numbers in her binder.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, you’re gonna love it. Sexiest you’ll ever look. I can tell it’s gonna be right up your alley. Don’t steal it. I know you’ll be tempted.”

Courtney giggles. “Well, now I can’t wait to see it.”

Bianca finishes, then walks over and pulls a dress off the rack. Baby blue, buttons up to the neck, ankle length. She swings it from the hangar, ambling back over to Courtney with a smirk.

“Miss Eliza is fresh off the train in this scene. Nice little midwestern girl, uncorrupted by Hollywood's evil ways. We’ve got a matching bonnet, too.”

“Oh my god…” Courtney laughs, looking at the dress, hands over her cheeks. “Well, that’s almost as modest as what I wore to church yesterday.”

Bianca throws back her head and laughs.

“Oh really? You were in church yesterday?”

“Well. I was at The Abbey yesterday.” She holds up her arms so that Bianca can help slip it over her head. “It used to be a church. Now it’s...gay church. AKA Sunday Funday.”

“Same thing, eh?” Bianca laughs.

“Exactly.”

“Let me just make sure the hem hits you properly and then we can deal with the hat.” Bianca finishes fastening the buttons and kneels down to adjust the hem. “It’s really something else. Beth wants me to-”

“What are those things?!” Courtney suddenly shrieks happily, eyes wide with delight.

“Oh, those are my dogs. Samson and Delilah.”

“They are fucking tiny, holy shit!” Courtney squeals, looking at the tiny little chihuahuas sleeping in what appears to be a purse with a mesh side. Sammy yawns, and Bianca gives a small chuckle.

“Yeah, they’re pocket-sized.”

“Pocket-sized bougie little purse dogs. I fucking love it.” Courtney laughs. “They don't even look like dogs.”

“Nah, they're basically rats who bark. Alright, dress is good. Time for the real magic.” Bianca holds up a demure blue hat with long dangling ribbons.

“Dear god,” Courtney mutters.

Bianca laughs, placing the bonnet on her head and tying the ribbons into a neat bow.

“Precious,” she says, with an amused nod. “Can you stand over by that wall?”

“Sure.” Courtney poses for the Polaroid camera, eyes smoldering.

“Okay, you’re good to go. Here are your shoes. Come back at the end of the day so we can check you out...I’m sure you know the drill.”

“Yeah. I’ll see you later.” Courtney slips on the shoes, then gathers her clothes, stuffing everything into her bag. She points at the dogs. “I am gonna cuddle the shit out of you real soon, and that’s a promise.”

“They can’t wait, I’m sure,” Bianca replies, biting back a grin.

“Thanks!”

As Bianca watches her leave, she realizes that there’s an unfamiliar warmth spreading in her chest - she’s already anticipating the blonde’s return. She takes a deep breath.

“Jamie!”

The PA runs in, breathless, grimacing in pain, standing in the doorway with an expectant, worried look.

“Are you in the mood for some Starbucks?” Bianca asks.

“I...what?” Jamie blinks at her.

Bianca smiles kindly, handing over her credit card.

“You’ve been working so hard. Why don’t you take a break and go grab something? I could use a real coffee, too, instead of this crafty stuff.”

“I...okay. Thanks!” Jamie accepts the card tentatively. She seems slightly suspicious, but doesn’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Send in the next actor before you leave, okay?” Bianca grins again, flashing her dimples at the girl, and then goes back to her clipboard, a faint smile still on her face.

***

At lunchtime, Bianca sits with her boss, Beth, and the art department girls they’ve worked with on three shows. She listens in on all the latest gossip: the shake-ups in the writer’s room, who’s getting fired, and potential new scenes they’ll have to prepare for in the coming weeks. She sees Courtney walking towards their table with her tray and waves.

“Hey,” the blonde says. “Room for one more?”

“Sure, but...you don’t want to sit with the other talent?” Bianca asks her with a soft smile.

“Talent?” Courtney chuckles, sliding into a seat. “I’m a stand-in. I’m not talent; I’m a human prop.”

“Well, that’s a refreshing level of self-awareness,” Bianca laughs. “And hey, props are important too. That’s Katie, she takes props very seriously.” Bianca gestures to a brunette at the end of the table.

“Hi!” Courtney waves, shrugging good-naturedly, then says, “I’m not saying I don’t have talent. I’m just not being paid for it on this particular production. I have many talents, actually.” She licks her fork, fingers toying with the buttons on her dress.

“Good to know.” Bianca swallows, heart racing. She can feel her cheeks heating up as she watches, thighs pressed together under the table. She’s unable to tear her eyes from Courtney’s, trying to figure out if the naughty expression that flashed across her face was real or imaginary.

Beth exchanges pointed look with Sarah, the production designer, and then they both go back to eating.

Suddenly, there’s a flurry of activity as the set PAs come rushing around with new call sheets.

“What the fuck, this is a whole ‘nother set!” Sarah exclaims. “We’ve been dressing the library all day, why are we suddenly shooting in Mr. Harris’ office?!”

“Miranda needs a root canal, Jay had to switch it.”

“Motherfucker!”

The art girls jump up, screaming frantically into their walkies, and Beth huffs, exasperated, choking down a few mouthfuls of her lunch.

“I guess I better go get the new wardrobe ready. It looks like the boys are back in their Day 4 looks.”

Bianca rises to follow her.

“No, you stay and eat. You’ve been here since 6. I’ll get Jamie and Chris to help me. Seriously, eat,” she repeats, when Bianca protests.

And suddenly Bianca and Courtney are left alone at the table. Bianca smiles awkwardly, flashing her dimples.

“Never a dull moment, eh?” Courtney asks.

“Nope,” Bianca agrees.

“So...how long have you been married?” Courtney gestures to the impressive rock on Bianca’s finger.

“Oh, uh…” Bianca looks down, playing with her ring. “A little over six months. But I’ve been with my husband since we were like 18, so...sometimes it feels like forever.” She bites her lip, trying not to get distracted by Courtney’s green eyes, how bright and attentive they are.

“Aww, that’s so sweet. And a little gross,” Courtney jokes, then says, “I'm sure he’s lovely.”

Courtney lays her hand on top of Bianca's, rubbing her thumb along the ring, gazing into her eyes.

“Um. Yeah,” Bianca replies hoarsely. “What...what about you? Any...uh…” Bianca’s mind is mush.

“Nah. I’ve been single for almost two years. But it’s been pretty fun, because I’m kind of going through a slutty phase.” Courtney wraps her tongue around the straw of her drink, holding Bianca’s gaze, eyelashes fluttering.

Bianca clears her throat. What the fuck is wrong with her? She deals with stunning actors every single day. Beautiful, naked young actors, who she has to measure and dress and it’s never caused her to bat an eye. Like Farrah, the girl who is actually playing the part of Eliza, the one Courtney is a stand-in for. She’s got the same build, same blonde hair, a beautiful face by any objective measure. But despite having met her 4 times for fittings over the last week, Bianca isn’t positive she could pick her out of a line-up of other young Hollywood blondes. And now here’s this girl with a dress buttoned up to her chin, and Bianca’s palms are sweating just looking into her mischievous, flashing green eyes.

“What the fuck are you doing here, cunt?!” someone asks, and Courtney finally breaks her gaze with Bianca to look in the direction of the voice. A tall, pouty-lipped girl with messy blue ombre hair, wearing a flannel shirt, a trucker hat that reads ‘I ❤ TITTIES & BEER’ and a tool belt full of mic packs.

“Adore? You’re on this show?” Courtney squeals delightedly.

“Apparently, chola! Hey!” Adore grins and slides onto the bench beside her, giving her a hug. She and Courtney had been friends (and occasional fuck buddies) for about three years. The type of friendship where, when they’re together, they’re joined-at-the-hip, ride-or-die besties, but can also go weeks at a time without talking. Which explains why neither of them knew about their current jobs – Courtney as stand-in and Adore in the sound department.

“Hiya, love,” Courtney laughs. “Nice hat.”

“I see you already found yourself a hot girlfriend, first day. Nice work, whore,” Adore nods appreciatively in Bianca’s direction, pinching Courtney’s thigh.

“Adore, this is Bianca. She’s in wardrobe and she’s a respectable married heterosexual woman.”

“Ew, why?” Adore wrinkles her nose.

“Why what?” Bianca asks, sitting up straight, bracing for trouble. She immediately dislikes this blue-haired, foul-mouthed young woman.

“Nevermind,” Adore says dismissively, then turns back to Courtney. “Bitch, you’re coming to Roosterfish on Thursday, right?”

“Of course.”

“Rad. Wear something pretty and maybe you’ll get lucky.” Adore gives her a brief kiss on the corner of her mouth and then gets up, sauntering away, cables dangling from her hip like a rope.

Bianca follows the girl’s swinging hips and round ass, wondering what the deal is between her and Courtney, and why she suddenly feels possessive over someone she just met that morning.

“She’s cute,” Bianca manages to force out.

“Oh yeah. She’s so much fun, too. We met on this god-awful indie film, years ago. I swear I’ve worked on student films that were less of a tragic mess than that disaster. Having someone around with a sense of humor saved me from a nervous breakdown. We’ve been friends ever since.”

“That’s cool.”

“And the sex isn’t bad either.”

Bianca coughs, spitting out some of her diet coke. Courtney sips her own drink, batting her eyes innocently as Bianca attempts to recover some dignity.

***

After a long, exhausting first day of shooting, Bianca finally arrives home to her Brentwood condo - a modern, pristine two-bedroom, tastefully decorated in shades gray.  She walks over to the sofa and collapses, arm over her eyes, muscles aching. She’s not sure how long she’s been laying there - maybe 3 minutes, maybe 5, when she hears the front door open.

“Hey…” she calls weakly.

Jared chuckles, striding over to her and jumping onto the couch to lay beside her.

“Rough day?”

“Mmmmm…” She snuggles against him.

“So I guess this means there’s no dinner?”

Bianca opens one eye and scowls at him.

“Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously, I’m hungry.” Jared kisses her cheek. “And Willam and Matt are coming over at 8 to work on the presentation for Joe, so, you know...we need to feed them.”

“Babe, I’ve been up since 4 am. Can’t we just order in?” Bianca runs her fingers through Jared’s light brown hair, pouting.

“Awww, you’re tired? After one day of playing dress up?” Jared mocks her in a teasing tone, snickering. “You just had a month off, you lazy bitch.”

Bianca narrows her eyes at him, tongue pressed into her cheek. There’s a long heated moment. His eyes dance with laughter, challenging her to fight back. But she won’t give him the satisfaction.

“I think there’s salmon and pesto in the fridge,” she finally says.

He grins, sliding his hands around her waist, kissing her neck.

“Good girl,” he growls against her skin, pulling her close.

She sighs against him, arching forward, then meets his lips for a deep kiss, grasping his hair, thrusting her hips forward.

“Oh, fuck…” he breathes, digging his fingers into her ass.

She bites softly at his bottom lip, grinding down against him, earning another groan, and then, without any warning, she jumps off the couch with a saucy wink.

“Later, babe. I need to cook, remember?”

He leans back, panting, chuckling slightly.

“You’re gonna be the death of me,” he calls after her, eyes glued to her ass as she ambles into the kitchen, laughing gaily.

***

Courtney’s been staring down at her phone for the last 5 minutes, texting someone, while Bianca works on Linda, one of the day players. She’s giggling softly to herself, a sly smile on her face, Dede curled in her lap. Bianca tries not to obsess about who could possibly be captivating her attention so completely, but it’s proving to be quite a challenge. Finally, she finishes with Linda and turns to Courtney, clearing her throat.

“Alright, blondie. You’re up,” Bianca says, lifting the dog out of her lap and placing her back into the carrier.

Courtney stands, tilting her phone towards Bianca to reveal a picture taken earlier in the dressing room.

“Is this picture sexy or desperate?” she asks sweetly.

“Um...I guess it depends where you crop it,” Bianca says, swallowing.

“Good point.” Courtney laughs.

“Who ya texting?” Bianca asks, playfully batting her eyes.

“My friend, Violet. I guess she’s sort of an ex, too.” She looks at Bianca for a moment, trying to read the expression on her face. Is she jealous? Courtney decides that she might like that.

“Violet...huh.”

“What?”

“Well, I’ve just found that girls with color names typically have a high rate of STDs,” Bianca says casually, shrugging.

“Oh really?” Courtney raises one eyebrow.

“Mmm…” Bianca goes back to pinning her dress.

“Doesn’t Bianca mean ‘white’?” Courtney asks sweetly.

“Go fuck yourself!” Bianca barks quickly, causing Courtney to burst out laughing.

“I think I actually might when I get home."

“Ughhhh, too much,” Bianca groans, shaking her head, trying to stop the dimples from appearing on her cheeks.

Courtney giggles and goes back to her phone.

“Seriously, what’s up? You look like the cat who swallowed the canary.”

“Nothing,” Courtney smirks.

“Really?”

“We’ve just barely seen each other since I lived in Australia, since she’s always on tour when I go back.”

“On tour? For what?”

Courtney looks up, straight into Bianca’s bright blue eyes, as she says, “She’s a burlesque dancer.”

“You seriously fucked a burlesque dancer?” Bianca tries not to gape, openmouthed.

“I didn’t say I fucked her….but I did.” Courtney twirls her hair, a coy smile on her lips.

“Congratulations.”

“Thanks. Actually, she’s was my first, back in the day.” Courtney sighs dreamily, one eye carefully watching Bianca’s reaction.

“Your first time having sex was with a burlesque dancer?”

“I mean, she wasn’t a burlesque dancer then.”

“Sure, but Jesus. What is your life? My first time was with a person who’s still living in my hometown, married with three kids, working as like, a hospital administrator.”

“Well, I’m sure he’s lovely too,” Courtney assures her, laughing. “Anyway, she’s coming to town this weekend so I want to think of something fun to...”

Bianca sticks her tongue into her cheek as Courtney continues. She supposes it’s her fault. She did use gender-ambiguous language. Intentionally? she wonders. And she is married to a man, so Courtney is only making the same assumption about her sexuality that everyone else always makes. But she can’t help but be the slightest, tiniest bit disappointed that this opportunity to reveal a deeper truth about herself passed by without her doing anything about it, the moment fizzling now like flat champagne.

“...what’s a good synonym for ‘thrust’?”

“Uh…” Bianca wrinkles her nose.

Thankfully, she’s saved from the awkwardness of helping Courtney with her sexting by one of the Production Office PAs coming in to get their orders for a Starbucks run. Bianca asks for a venti dark roast with a splash of cream. He turns to Courtney.

“Would you like anything, Ms. Hamilton?”

“Ummm, sure,” Courtney says, looking up from her phone. “Can I get a bottle of coconut water? But, only if they have the kind that’s fair trade, like Harmless Harvest - with the green cap.” She flashes a cute smile.

“Sure thing.” He ducks out of the trailer.

“Good god,” Bianca mutters, pinning the waist of her dress.

“What?”

“You’re just a lot.”

Courtney holds up her phone, pursing her lips to take a selfie.

“I know,” she says replies brightly, lashes fluttering.

***

“Okay, so, since we’re dealing with all the outerwear tomorrow, and it’s gonna be like 85 degrees, Neil said we can bring on another PA to help,” Beth says, scanning the legal pad in her lap as Bianca listens attentively. “I’m putting you in charge of her, so just give her the rundown in the morning and make sure she’s on set all day to take care of the talent and keep the coats tagged, etc.”

“Got it,” Bianca says.

“Alright, so we’ve got the boys in their power suits, Eliza in the little salmon sweetheart number, Margie’s pencil-”

“Hi, sorry to interrupt…”

Bianca and Beth turn towards Courtney, leaning against the screen door, an apologetic look on her face.

“Um, they want me to hold a glass in the next scene and Joey asked me to get rid of the red nails. Do you guys have any polish remover?” Courtney wiggles her fingers, showing her short, bright red nails.

“Sorry, no,” Bianca replies. “Maybe try makeup?”

“Oh, right. Cheers! Sorry again!” Courtney skips down the steps, skirt flouncing. Bianca watches her, how the big swirling skirt accentuates her tiny waist, blonde hair shining in the sunlight.

“Marjorie’s in the pencil skirt. I’m not thrilled with how the top is looking. Maybe if we add a wrap, or something to...B? You listening?”

“Hmmm? Yeah.” Bianca looks back at Beth, who has a bemused expression on her face. “What?”

Beth presses her lips together, shaking her head.

“Nothing.”

Bianca narrows her eyes.

“So we’re adding a wrap to Marjorie’s ensemble? Should it be green to stay within her color story for the episode, or you wanna add some contrast?”

“Let’s stick to the color story,” Beth replies, biting her lip to keep from laughing.

***

“Is that just an entire plate of cheesy mashed potatoes?” Courtney asks Adore, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

“Yeah, I’m carbing up.” Adore shovels a huge bite into her mouth.

“Gross,” Courtney says, taking a delicate bite of her broccoli.

“Whatever, judgey.”

“Bianca! Hi!” Courtney waves Bianca over enthusiastically.

“Hey.”

“Um, wanna sit?”

Bianca shifts, glancing over to her usual table, where Beth and her other wardrobe department co-workers sit, along with the art girls. She takes a breath and slides in beside Adore, unable to say no to Courtney’s bright smile, setting the dog carrier on the bench.

“Sure. Hey, Adore.”

“Yo.”

“I’m glad I caught you. It totally slipped my mind earlier but I’ve actually got something for you.” Courtney picks up a large handbag and while she’s rifling through it, Adore looks over at Bianca and mouths “her pussy.”

Bianca makes a face at Adore, who throws back her head and laughs.

Without even looking up, Courtney says, “Adore, would you stop?”

“Sorry, boo,” Adore giggles, not looking the slightest bit sorry.

“Okay, so, I don’t know what your stance is on putting dogs in clothes, but I saw these and I couldn’t resist,” Courtney says, putting two tiny outfits on the table. “And you know...it’s not like they’re real dogs anyway.”

“Oh my god,” Bianca opens her mouth in amazement, laughing. She turns to the dogs, who are scratching at the mesh on the side of the bag. “What do you guys think? Yeah, I think she’s crazy too.”

There’s a little dress covered in daisies, and overalls with a turquoise plaid shirt.

“I got one that’s high femme, and one that’s sort of soft butch. You can choose who wears what. I’m not trying to push gender labels on them simply because of biological sex.”

“That’s nice. Very open-minded.”

“Yeah.” Courtney flutters her lashes.

“Can’t wait to see Jared’s face when Sammy’s wearing a dress,” she snickers.

“But they’re cute, huh?”

“Super cute. That’s...I mean. Thanks.” Bianca grins, dimples deep in her cheeks.

“You’re very welcome. Hopefully your spoiled, bougie purse rats wear them in good health.”

“Shut up, they’re perfect.” Bianca laughs, tucking her hair behind her ear.

“Perfectly hideous. That’s right! You are!” She reaches over to scratch Sammy behind the ears through the small opening in the bag.

“Asshole!”

Courtney giggles and kicks her under the table.

“Jesus, get a room,” Adore laughs.

Bianca turns to scowl at her.

“Sorry.” Adore shoves another bite of potatoes in her mouth. “Damn, why is everyone so touchy today?”

***

“So then Alexis texted me and told me she had a huge crush on Shea, who is Sasha's girlfriend,” Courtney explains while Bianca pins up her hem.

“The lesbian community is shook!” Bianca deadpans, when she looks down at her phone, seeing a text from Roxy, Jared's assistant.

ROXY: Hey girl. I just got a job with WME so I told Jared I’m leaving. He seems pretty pissed. I’m sorry, I really like you but you know how it is. If you ever need anything just text me ok💕

Bianca pauses for a moment, a little puzzled, before typing out a reply. She really liked Roxy, but she’s a little confused about why the girl thinks she would need something. She supposes she’s just trying to be polite.

BIANCA: All good, hon. Best of luck.

“Bianca Del Rio!” Courtney exclaims dramatically, hands on her hips, annoyed that her attention was diverted from her thrilling story of Westside lesbian drama.

“Sorry Court.” Bianca sighs.

“What just happened?” Courtney asks, expression softening.

“Jared just lost another assistant.”

“Another?”

“Yeah, his company has a hell of a time hanging onto people. This girl was great though, I really thought she’d stay. But she got a better offer, and so...hang on, let me check on him.”

BIANCA: I just heard about Roxy. You alright?

JARED: Whatever. That cunt didn’t even give two weeks notice. Fuck her.

“Well, seems like his pride is a little wounded,” Bianca says, chuckling softly. “I’m gonna have a very sad boy when I get home.”

“Aww.”

“Yeah. Poor baby.”

“Masculinity is so fragile,” Courtney comments, examining her nails.

“Oh my god, tell me about it. I just pray this doesn’t turn into a week-long sulk fest.”

“I’ll try to manifest some positive energy for you,” Courtney says sweetly.

“Yeah, thanks.” Bianca goes back to the hem. “I’m sure that’ll change everything.”

“Oh! Oh my god, so listen. Apparently, Sasha found out about what Alexis said, but didn’t tell Shea, but then started acting all weird around her, and so Shea is totally confused, and then…”

***

“Sasha, why don’t you just tell Shea? I don’t really get what you’re trying to accomplish here?”

“Because I’m not trying to start drama?” Sasha rolls her eyes. “Shea and Alexis are friends. Maybe Alexis didn’t mean anything deep by it.”

“But you’re being weird!” Courtney exclaims, laughing.

“I am not! You’re just perceiving my actions as weird because you’re expecting me to be weird, making it somewhat of a self-fulfilling prophecy. I, however, am acting entirely within the scope of normal rational behavior. You need to chill.” Sasha sips her drink delicately.

Courtney’s known Sasha for years - nearly since she moved to LA, when Sasha was in high demand in the fashion world for her androgynous aesthetic, steely blue eyes, and killer cheekbones. Now, she’s traded in the shaved head for a burgundy China doll cut, and works as a sculpture artist and Associate Professor of Russian Literature at Loyola Marymount. She can usually intellectualize her way out of anything, but Courtney isn’t buying it tonight.

“I am chill, Sash. I’m just trying to give you some advice, before everything turns into a shit show, and you-”

“Heyyyyy,” Adore interrupts, a sleepy, drunken smile on her face, slurring, “Courtney, maybe you shouldn’t be giving anyone advice right now? Like, seriously?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Courtney asks, cutting her eyes at Adore.

“Courtney’s in love with a straight girl,” Adore explains. Sasha looks at Courtney with a mixture of horror and delight.

“Fuck off, am not!” Courtney turns away, flipping her hair in Adore’s face.

“Okay, sorry. Courtney’s trying to bang a straight girl,” Adore corrects herself, attempting to spit out the mouthful of blonde tresses.

“I am not,” Courtney laughs.

“Are too! You’ve been flirting your sweet ass off all week, you little slut.” Adore smacks her on the ass.

“Not even! We’re just friends, cause she’s she’s cool, and funny-”

“And hot.”

“So what? Like I’m not supposed to be friends with someone because they’re hot? That would be...discriminatory,” Courtney says.

“Like racism, practically.” Adore nods mockingly.

“Yeah. Practically racism,” Courtney agrees, giggling.

Shea and Pearl approach the group with a fresh round of drinks.

“What’s practically racism? Are you fucking white girls doing that false equivalency bullshit again? You know I hate that.”

“I know you do, and I would never,” says Sasha, kissing her. Courtney smiles.

“I’m not white,” says Adore.

“You’re white enough to piss me off in this context. Take your shot,” Shea orders.

“It was a joke; Adore was mocking me,” Courtney explains.

“Oh, well in that case…” Shea holds up her shot glass. “To mocking those who ask for it.” She winks at Courtney as they all down their shots.

“You’re such a bitch,” Courtney laughs, wiping her mouth.

“I know, but that’s why you love me, right?” Shea replies, leaning over to kiss her on the cheek.

“Let’s dance, you boring cunts!” Adore yells, grabbing Courtney’s hand, causing her to let out a gleeful shriek.

***

“Should I be embarrassed that you have to take in every one of these dresses because of how small my tits are?”

Bianca laughs, pressing down the pedal of the sewing machine.

“Are you embarrassed? Because you seem pretty confident to me…”

Courtney is currently twirling on a stool, topless, in her underwear, waiting for Bianca to be finished with the alterations. She holds both of the dogs in her arms, so thankfully Bianca isn’t so distracted that she sews through her hand, which she’d almost done earlier. Courtney thinks for a moment.

“Well...I mean I guess it’s good that I’m basically flat chested. It does allow me to get jobs, like this one, as the body double for a 16 year old.”

“Wait a second. Farrah is sixteen?”

“Yeah.”

Bianca stares at Courtney, flabbergasted, making her laugh.

“Why did you think they need a full-time double?”

“I dunno, I just figured she was expensive and they wanted to save cash. She was on that Disney show, and doesn’t she have a movie coming out with-”

“She’s not expensive. She’s just underage.”

“Jesus. They need to stop putting so much makeup on her. The first time I met her, I wasn’t sure if her or her mother was the younger one,” Bianca says, finishing the stitching and standing up with the dress.

Courtney puts down the dogs and walks towards Bianca.

“Oh my god, her mother. Miss Trinity Taylor. I think she’s only 30-something, so that makes sense. But you’re right, they do pile a lot of makeup on Farrah’s little face.”

“Although the more I talked to Trinity, the older she seemed. I think she must have gotten a bad batch of botox between the first time I met her and now, too.

“You mean that droopy lid? Yeah, hopefully that goes away.” Courtney giggles, lifting her arms so that Bianca can slip the dress over her head.

“Bless her heart…” Bianca murmurs, straightening the dress.

“Bless her heart. You know, say what you will about the American south. But you guys do have the nicest way of saying ‘fuck that bitch.’”

Bianca bursts out laughing.

“We do!” she agrees. “We really do.”

***

Bianca and Jamie check in the wardrobe at the end of the day, carefully tagging everything and making sure that they have polaroids and that the binders are complete.

Bianca nods appreciatively at the PA’s notes in the binder for the background talent. “Good work,” she tells her.

Jamie smiles, wheeling a rack into the other trailer, a blush rising to her cheeks. Bianca realizes that it may be the first compliment she’s given her all week. She sighs, hanging up a garment bag, trying not to listen in on the conversation that Courtney’s having behind the curtain as she changes.

“...No, I told you, the key was in the flower pot...the African violets, get it?!...Anyway, glad you found it...Yeah, I’m almost done here, so we’ll meet you at the theatre…With bells on, love...Adore wants a lap dance, so please make that happen...I’ll send you her picture...Yes, she’s hot...I’m hanging up now...You’re terrible, Muriel.”

Courtney emerges from the changing room and hands Bianca her dress, backpack on her shoulder.

Bianca tries to keep her voice light as she asks, “Your burlesque dancer?”

“Yeah. She and some of the other girls are staying with me this weekend. Hopefully my house is still standing when I get there tonight. They’ve been in my hot tub, drinking my wine all afternoon.”

“Mhmm.” Bianca says. “Sounds like you’ve got a fun weekend in store.” Bianca isn’t sure why, but the thought of not seeing her for two days is making her feel strange, like a weight bearing down on her chest.

“Let’s hope so!” Courtney replies cheerfully.

“Court! Hurry up!” Adore barks from outside the trailer. “I’m hungry and that means I’m cranky…”

Courtney heads for the door, turning around to say goodbye.

“See you on Monday, B.” She flashes a sunny smile, then suddenly looks a little embarrassed. “Shit, is that okay? Do people call you that?”

Dimples appear in Bianca's cheeks as she smiles back.

“Yeah. B’s fine. See you Monday.”

Courtney pulls open the door, hesitating for one more second, glancing over her shoulder at Bianca.

“Courtney! Come on!”

“Bye…” She skips down the trailer steps.

“Goodnight.” As the screen door swings shut, Bianca collapses into her chair, face buried in her arms.

[willreadforbooze]

Hello fellow boozie readers!

If you haven’t heard about #Booziebookathon, it’s our week long readathon we host every year! AND ITS RIGHT MEOW!! Check out all the details here! Shout out to Linz and Melinda for doing ALL of the planning for it. You’re the best. Be sure to follow our readathon twitter for sprints!

Sam’s Update:

I got a lot of reading done this week, which is surprising, considering how busy it was. But Booziebookathon started on Saturday, and got a bunch done. I’ve decided that I’ve failed at Medieval-a-thon…. cause I definitely didn’t read what I said I would. The NEWTs start on Thursday (our TBRs scheduled to drop on Thursday), so I gotta finish up these books so I can start my Metal Charmer career!

What Sam finished this week:

Recursion by Blake Crouch: I adored Dark Matter and Ginny and Parker both adored this one so I picked it up on audio. About half way through and loving it, I need to know how it ends.

Descendant of the Crane by Joan He: WOWOWOWOWOW. I couldn’t put this down. I flew through it, only to be SO SAD that this isn’t a series. I seriously need to know more. RUDE.

What Sam’s reading now:

Booziebookathon Gin: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid: Oh holy shit, whyyyy did I think this book was over-hyped? It is perfectly hyped. I’m listening on audio and LOVING IT.

Booziebookathon White Wine and Smirnoff Ice: Demon in the Whitelands by Nikki Z. Richard: This had a slow start, but basically this is a post-apocalyptic story where all technology is banned. The bastard son of a cleric, Samuel, is basically thrust into the role of being a caretaker to what the mayor calls a “demon”. A child, albiet violent child, with one arm and doesn’t speak. His job is to befriend it/her. I’m enjoying it now… that I’m 2/3 the way through, but I don’t feel the urge to pick it back up each time…

The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad: Buddy reading with Ginny and Liz and also for book club. It’s taken an interesting turn but I don’t want to say too much here, because we still have to discuss as a group.

Ginny’s Update:

Currently Reading:

The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad: This is still for a book club, I’m still reading it slowly. There was a pretty big twist and I’m enjoying seeing it ripple out.

Leap Days: Chronicles of a Midlife Move by Katherin Lanpher: this is one of my books for Boozie Bookathon and it fulfills my Gin challenge (book on tbr forever). So far Katherine has moved to New York and is talking about how weird it is… yup. It’s gonna be that kind of book.

The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman: IT’S THAT TIME! I’m reading the fifth book in this series that I adore. Irene is being called in to act as mediator in a conversation between the Dragons and Fae. Her boss for the job is a major dick (and I’m pretty sure it’s going to turn out he’s even more sinister). Ugh, Loving this! (If you’d like to start at the beginning, my first review is here.

Finished

Born a Crime by Trevor Noah: Welp, Trevor Noah had a very interesting childhood. It’s interesting to read this book to see a completely different perspective of growing up. I’m used to hearing mostly Americanized, or at least overtly Western points of view, so to hear this story that was completely outside of what I consider the norm was endlessly interesting. I wasn’t super fond of the jumping around in time. I found it a little confusing at times, talking about his stepdad and then, chapters later, talking about how his stepdad came into his life. Overall, I still thought this was a strong narrative and would definitely suggest this to someone who likes biographies. 4.5/5

A Kiss for Midwinter by Courtney Milan: This is a novella that goes in the Brothers Sinister series. Gonna be honest, I don’t even remember who’s parents these are supposed to be and just read it as a standalone. It’s still charming. Dr. Grantham was there when as a teenager, Lydia was told she would never be in society becuase of a teenage pregnancy. He was also there years later as she wanted nothing to do with him. He’s quirky and she’s been hiding from things she hasn’t wanted to think about and it’s pretty damn fucking cute. I really enjoy the way Courtney writes her characters, there’s always depths. 4/5

Rafe: A Buff Male Nanny by Rebekah Weatherspoon: Yup, definitely back on my romance novel kick. This book was delightful as, as the author says, it’s pretty much just pure fluff. the kids are cute, and speak the way children do. Rafe was ridiculously attractive and a family man throughout. Sloan is ridiculously competent, dealing with a shitty ex-husband and just wants someone to make her life easy… Fortunately Rafe makes it very hard… that was terrible… I don’t apologize.4/5

An Unconditional Freedom by Alyssa Cole: Welp, Alyssa Cole is one of those always gonna read authors. I accidentally skipped book 2 (don’t worry, I’ll get back to it). This follows Elle’s friend from the first book Daniel, who is dealing with some emotional and psychological scars. Janeta Sanchez is trying to become a double spy in order to save her Southern beau and her family. Except, unsurprisingly, that beau is a jackass. But they’re in the Loyal League and trying to get some information. It’s interesting to read Daniel’s perspective and I liked getting both the internal and external perspective on him. Alyssa Cole is a phenomenal writer and ugh, so many good words. 4.5/5

The Soldier’s Scoundrel by Cat Sebastian: Well, Cat Sebastian is apparently another author where I’ll read everything. This is a delightful romance between Jack, who handles scandals behind the scenes, and Oliver, an ex-soldier who is worried that her sister has been scammed by Jack. They’re immediately attracted to each other but have to solve a mystery together for… reasons? REgardless, I really enjoy the way that Cat brings characters who might be outside of what is currently considered the norm, and shows the ways they could have lived in the past. She shows their struggles but makes sure they have a happy ending, and I just really enjoy that. Both of these characters are kind of dicks in their own way, but I enjoy their moments of earnestness. 4/5

What I Talk About When I Talk About Running by Haruki Murakami: I’m not a runner. I don’t ever think I’m a runner. But I think it’s fascinating to read running books and learn about what drives other people. It seems that so often running helps them quiet their minds. This book was interesting and I enjoyed a peek into an authors/runners mind. 3.5/5

Captain Marvel: Volume One by Kelly Sue Deconnick (there’s a bunch of people on this but my read list is already 7 books long and there’s just a limit to what I have the patience and energy to do): This was delightful. I’m not super familiar with Captain Marvel but I met Kelly Sue at Bookcon and really enjoyed meeting her (I’ve also read Bitch Planet, which if anyone wants to read a dystopian comic I highly suggest this one). I loved the mystery of what was causing the illness, and the way she could read between the lines. Ugh. This is what I wish more comics were. 5/5

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes: Probs gonna write a review on this one. Wait and see.

Temporary Break for BoozieBookaThon

Iron Gold by Pierce Brown: Gonna be honest, I don’t remember much from the original series but I used a random number general and this is what came up. I’m like two pages in so I’m mostly just confused.

Minda’s Update:

What Minda is reading now for Booziebookathon (and soon NEWTs):

The Liar’s Daughter by Megan Cooley Peterson – An ARC from ALA, out 9/10, for the Beer challenge. About a girl who was brainwashed by her father and his cult.

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick – As the winner of the 1963 Hugo Award, meets the Whiskey & Champagne challenges.

All Systems Red by Martha Wells – Following the longest, I thought I’d read the shortest for the Shot & White Wine challenges.

The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon – I’ve borrowed/returned/renewed this title eight times, which I think means it’s been on my list for awhile. This fulfills the trifecta: Vodka, Gin, and Red Wine challenges.

What Minda finished before Booziebookathon: 

Tiger Queen by Annie Sullivan – I actually finished this at the start of my trip. This was good—the world building was especially inventive since it came out of a short story with an open ending. Review to come.

All the Water in the World by Karen Raney – This book was super sad and really tugged at the heartstrings—at least for the first half. Drops in early August! Stay tuned for review.

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert – Listened to this one on audio during my flights… so many flights. But this book was super captivating! I would highly recommend reading the audiobook because of the writing style—it really feels like an old woman is telling her story to you. Also will review.

Clear My Name by Paula Daly – Crime fiction focused on a UK version of the innocence project. Edge-of-seat type stuff with an end twist I didn’t see coming. Also also will review!

Linz’s Update:

I was on family vacation–which we all know isn’t actually vacation–and still managed to get some reading done.

What Linz read:

No Judgments by Meg Cabot: One of the many Bookcon ARCs, this romcom-y book was…not great. The protagonist was pretty dumb and kind of shallow, the romance felt a little forced, and the resolution was really telegraphed.

Sophia, Princess Among Beasts by James Patterson: Woof. Basic. DNF.

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia: Girls are raised to be sisterwives in this dystopic, Latin-inspired first of a series. The concept is actually pretty good and I loved the love story twist, but the worldbuilding left me wanting.

The Way You Make Me Feel by Maureen Goo: I liked this more than I thought I would. The protagonist is a monster, but I just spent the week with teenage relatives so it’s not inaccurate. Goo’s take on diversity is interesting and thoughtful. There is also a foodtruck and I was starving while reading.

Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay: My first finished book for booziebookathon AND MY HEART COULD NOT TAKE IT. Authentic, on point, emotional rollercoaster.

What Linz is currently reading:

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern: WHICH I AM BACKBURNER-ING BECAUSE OF BOOZIEBOOKATHON BUT I AM GOING TO CLAW MY FACE OFF UNTIL I CAN PICK IT BACK UP IT IS SO GOOD

– *About* to start Slay by Brittney Morris, but imma need a minute after finishing Patron Saints of Nothing

Until next time, we remain forever drunkenly yours,

Sam, Melinda, Linz, and Ginny

Weekly Wrap-Up: July 22-28, 2019 Hello fellow boozie readers! If you haven't heard about #Booziebookathon, it's our week long readathon we host every year!

[theartificialdane]

Galactica, part 233

In this April has her work cut out, Alaska comes home, Bianca takes a meeting and Violet struggles with a simple request.

Thank you @veronicasanders @toriibelledarling and @samrull ❤️

“And remember-”

“Perfection in the job puts pleasure in the work. I know Miss.”

“That’s all.”

April was pretty sure she had seen Fame smile to her as her boss left the design floor, but she honestly couldn’t be sure, her brain one giant black hole, the mountain of work in front of her suddenly seeming larger than Everest. April had jumped on the opportunity the moment Trixie had mentioned her. She wasn’t really a clothing designer, not like Violet or Betty or even Alexis. She did jewerly, which was her strength, but unlike her coworkers, she knew how to not overdesign and to keep her lines clean, something Marie Claire apparently wanted from Galactica now, even though it wasn’t their brand at all.

April looked at the collection she had in front of her. Ivy had helped her earlier, the two picking out earlier scrapped Galactica creations and some of Aprils rejected sketches. If April was honest, she couldn’t really believe why Ivy hadn’t been promoted yet, the redhead always around, picking up pieces and fixing everything, the woman acting like Raja’s right hand that you weren’t afraid of getting slapped by, but Ivy had told her several times that she was perfectly happy where she was.

April took a deep breath, carefully collecting her flying thoughts. It was late at night, the floor mostly empty except for the light in Trixie’s office that was still on, the quiet sounds of a piano sailing out of there, Ivan most likely sleeping in his high chair while Trixie did all the paperwork for design that he was so far behind on. It comforted April to know that her boss was close, that she could always go ask him, and even the fact that there was an infant at her work place as well. Design had been so deprived of joy when Bendela was their boss, April afraid to smile and laugh and even dance with Yara and Alexis as she often did on her breaks, but all of that was gone now, Trixie’s good mood, Ivan’s babbling and even the pure panic that could explode on the other side of the room if Violet’s dog had eaten something from the floor of the cafeteria, which made the little dog more hazardous than a bio bomb.

April sat down, a miniskirt in front of her in the colors Violet had been working on, her friend’s sketches and fabric samples laid out in front of her. April grabbed her sewing machine and got to work, Trixie keeping her company even though they might as well have been in two different worlds.

***

ALASKA: Just landed…

JINKX: OMG YAY! Just got home from the matinee…

ADORE: I MADE DINNER!

ALASKA: ????

JINKX: She’s such a liar

ADORE: JK but I ordered pizza. Or…I mean I’m gonna order pizza. Like right now. Since I just thought of it. <3 <3 <3

ALASKA: LOL. I bet the two of you haven’t eaten salad since I left either.

JINKX: I had a smoothie for breakfast?

ALASKA: Naughty babies

ADORE: WE NEED YOU

*

Alaska opened the door, thanking the doorman, who followed her with her suitcase, down the hall to Jinkx’ enormous bedroom. Jinkx burst from the bathroom, wrapping her in a hug, burying her face in Alaska’s tangled blonde hair. “Oh my god, I missed you so fucking much.”

“Me too…” Alaska tilted her chin up and caught her lips in a kiss.

“How was the shoot?”

“It was awesome, actually. Where’s Lil Bear?”

“I think she’s napping in her bedroom.”

“/Her/ bedroom?” Alaska raised an eyebrow. “She’s still living here?”

Jinkx shrugged. “Yeah?”

“Hasn’t it been almost 3 weeks? Is she planning to stay here permanently?”

Jinkx considered this. “We haven’t talked about it, but–”

Just then, Adore flew into the room, tackling them both, so they all fell into a heap onto the bed. “LASKY!!” She covered Alaska’s face with kisses.

“Hi, sweetie. How’s it going?”

“So good, now that you’re back!” Adore crawled on top of her, burrowing into the space between her girlfriends on the bed.

Jinkx giggled, nuzzling Adore’s shoulder. “Hey, so, we were just talking, and I know you’ve been here for a few weeks. I’m guessing that your pipes are fixed by now…right?”

Adore looked up at Jinkx with a slightly guilty expression, like a kid who had their hand in the cookie jar. “Um…yeah…I’m sorry, I just–”

“Well, I don’t think you should go back to that apartment. Shit’s always breaking and anyway, I’m getting used to having you here. I’d miss you if you left now. So…if you want to move in for real, the room is yours.”

Adore’s beautiful eyes widened with joy. “Really?!”

“Yeah. Definitely.”

“Oh my god, Jinkxy, you’re the fucking BEST!” Adore threw her arms around Jinkx’s waist and wrapped a leg around her hips, thrilled.

Alaska bit her lip. “I’m gonna go start dinner,” she announced, sliding off the bed.

“Okay…” Adore replied, voice muffled against Jinkx’s shoulder, as the two of them giggled.

*

Alaska stood at the counter, chopping vegetables, water for pasta heating on the stove. Jinkx came up behind her, sliding her arms around her waist, kissing her shoulder. Alaska shrugged her off. Jinkx snatched a carrot from the cutting board and moved to look the taller girl in the eyes, leaning on the counter. “Okay, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Alaska…”

“You just like, decided to ask her to move in with you? Just like that? You didn’t think that was worth a discussion? With BOTH of us?”

“I…I don’t know. I guess not?”

Alaska scoffed and turned back to the cutting board, hacking away at a zucchini.

“I mean…she needs to live somewhere. And…her apartment is a shit hole. Your apartment is nice.”

“Right.”

“Would you…I mean, would you want to move in too?”

“Not out of pity!”

“What if wasn’t out of pity? What if it was because you’re so fucking cute, I can’t stand you not being here all the time?”

Alaska looked up, eyes narrowed. Jinkx pouted her lower lip. “And when did you come to this startling realization?” Alaska challenged.

Jinkx ran a finger lightly up Alaska’s arm. “The day I met you.” She gazed deep into Alaska’s eyes, hypnotizing her. “I really need you…/we/ need you…”

Finally, Alaska broke, unable to keep a straight face any longer. “Well. I mean, if you /really/ need me.”

Jinkx pulled her in for a soft, deep kiss. “So, so much.”

Alaska giggled, as Adore padded into the room, barefoot, holding the pizza box. “You’re not gonna make us wait for the grown-up food to be done before we have pizza, right?”

“No, boo, go ahead. We’ll call it an appetizer.”

Adore grinned and opened the box. “Party.”

“Hey, guess what? Lasky’s gonna move in, too.”

Adore’s mouth dropped open in delight. “Really?!” Adore ran to the other girls and flung herself at them, jumping into Alaska’s arms. “Omigod, this is gonna be awesome! Like Three’s Company meets the Golden Girls, but like, gayer. And sexier…”

Alaska giggled. “I mean, let’s hope so. Yikes.”

“Wait are you gonna give up your apartment? ‘Cause I know like 20 people who would want it. It’s rent-controlled, right?” Adore asked excitedly.

“I haven’t–”

“No! You know what you should do, keep it and sublet, you’ll make a /killing!/” she exclaimed.

“Can we like, not make this about real estate?” Alaska requested.

Adore nodded. “Oh, okay, right.” She went back to hugging both girls, peppering them with kisses, still holding the slice of pizza in her hand.

Jinkx snuck a bite of Adore’s pizza, murmuring. “You’re totally right about that apartment, by the way.”

“Guys!” Alaska whined.

“Sorry…”

***

Bianca knocked on the door to Nina’s office. “Hey Garcia, got a minute?”

Nina cringed slightly but gestured to her guest chair. “Of course…boss.”

Bianca entered, sipping a steaming mug of coffee. “Did you get those sketches I sent over from April?”

“Yes. I think she’s on the right track. It’ll make the shoot more fun and lively, that’s for sure.”

“Yup, I agree. We should see some actual samples tomorrow.”

“Alright.”

“So…I wanted to run another idea by you.” Bianca smiled, flashing her dimples, attempting to charm her prickly employee.

“Go ahead.” Nina folded her hands.

“So, okay, I was looking around at the last Klan rally–I mean board meeting, and I started to think you might have a point.” She grinned again.

“Nice to see you’re taking this seriously, Bianca.” Nina rolled her eyes and opened a folder on her desk.

“I am! Sorry, I am. Okay, so listen…what do you think of a diversity fellowship program…like, we can work with HR to provide mentoring for current and future hires if they are part of minority groups, and like, you know, actively recruit? I can’t promise we won’t have any political hires, but we can combat that by taking steps to bring in a more diverse group when it’s possible.”

Nina stared at her. “You’re really serious?”

“Yeah! I mean, I was sort of hoping you’d help me run the program. What do you think?”

“I think it sounds great. Frankly, I’m shocked that you came up with it.”

Bianca laughed. “Actually, it was Courtney’s idea. You know…the one who’s making me soft?”

Nina smiled sheepishly. “Well…apparently I wasn’t wrong. Two years ago, you’d never have even considered something like this.”

“Times are changing, Garcia! Keep up!” Bianca rose from her chair. “I have Linda in HR working on a proposal for us. Let’s meet later this week to discuss it some more, okay?”

“Yes ma’am…”

***

“Violet, are you coming to bed?”

Sutan looked into his office that had somehow been turned into an explosion of fabric in true Violet style, Frida happily napping in her little blue basket with a piece of silk that she had most likely stolen from the bags upon bags upon bags Violet had dragged to his place. Sutan fastened his bathrobe, his body warm and relaxed after his shower.

“Violet?”

Sutan smiled. Violet couldn’t hear him at all, his girlfriend so focused on the bottom of the dress she was working on. She was technically ignoring him but Sutan couldn’t get himself to be mad, his apartment so filled with life after he had started dating Violet. Sutan had originally made the office space when Raja moved out, her and Raven’s clothes easily filling the entire room, and as he had no idea what to do with it he had turned it into an office/workout room that he never used.

Sutan walked over to Violet, the girl bent over and Sutan remembered how he had come over when she was working on her first piece for Galactica, how she had disappeared from earth for over a week and he had been worried she had broken up with him and had forgotten to tell him, but in reality she was just working. Sutan bent down, gently giving Violet’s cheek a kiss, the woman finally looking at him.

“Oh, Sutan, hi, what are yo-”

“Are you coming to bed?”

Violet looked at him, her big brown eyes a little confused. “Already? What’s the time?”

“It’s almost midnight.” Sutan smiled. He could practically feel how Violet’s fingers were itching to continue working, but he also knew that she had a shoot the very next day, and that the majority of everything was done.

“I just nee-”

“Come on mata indah, no arguing. You have a big day tomorrow, and you have to do your best. Don’t you want to make me proud?”

Violet nodded, and Sutan turned the lamp off, completely missing the grimace Violet made when he mentioned the big day, his girlfriend following him to the bedroom while Frida still snoozed underneath the table. As Sutan took Violet in his arms, the two snuggled together in bed, he fell asleep quickly, but Violet stayed awake, a slow anger simmering in her belly.

Violet knew Sutan properly hadn’t meant anything by it, but wasn’t it enough that he didn’t trust her abilities as a designer and had asked a friend of his to do her a favor? That was humiliating enough in itself, but the fact that he asked about it? Made sure she went to bed on time? Told her to make him proud? Violet scoffed a little and moved, Sutan’s arm falling down so it laid on the bed, Violet turning her back. She was cold, but it didn’t matter as she fell asleep, thankfully free from her boyfriends strangeling arms.

***

“Pick up pick up pick up.”

Patrick paced around the hotel room, phone to his ear, as Shannel stepped out of the shower.

“Who are you calling?” she asked, seeing how agitated he was.

Patrick looked at her, a small smile on his face as he saw Shannel’s towel covered wet body, the mischief in his eyes making Shannel adjust her towel slightly. “My ex wife; she hasn’t been answering any of my messages or calls since we last spoke.”

“She’s not your ex wife,” Shannel corrected.

“Might as well be. She’s been an utter nutcase, or, even more of a nutcase than she usually is. I don’t know what’s going through her head. The divorce was her idea.” Patrick sighed and hung up, the man gently pinching his own nose, like a headache was threatening to come through.

“Are you sure of that?”

“Why wouldn’t I be sure of it? She was the one who asked me to move, she’s the one who told me I couldn’t see my dog, and now she won’t even let me pick up a stupid pair of cufflinks.” Patrick threw himself on the bed. “I really like those cufflinks, I wore them the day I closed the the biggest property deal of my career. They’re good luck links.” Patrick covered his eyes. “If I know her right she probably threw them down the garbage disposal.” If Patrick had been a small child, or generally anyone but the man he was, Shannel was sure he would have thrown a tantrum, instead he picked his phone up, ready to call again. If she was honest, it was one of the things that she liked best about him.

Shannel laid down beside him, gently taking the phone from him. “Or…maybe you’re totally misreading the situation…”

Patrick sighed, turning towards her, playing with a lock of her still-damp hair. “How so?” Shannel could feel he wasn’t convinced, but she was still going to make her case.

“I mean…look, it’s not like I speak for all womankind here, but she hasn’t talked to you since you mentioned divorce. So maybe, just maybe…she doesn’t want one?” Shannel thought it was ridiculous, but from what she knew about Fame through her godmother Chad and what Patrick himself had told her it didn’t seem that unlikely.

“Well…then she should SAY that.” Patrick sighed and rolled his eyes. “I just want the cufflinks. I have a meeting tomorrow and I need them.” Patrick sat up, ready to get dressed and go to his old address, but Shannel gently held him back.

“What if she did?”

“What do you mean?”

“Putting aside your wife’s enormous ego for a second, and assuming she had the ability to admit she was wrong and wanted you back…I mean you’ve mentioned about 70 times that all of this was her idea. So…if she did want to get back together…what would you want?” Shannel’s fingers were resting lightly on his chest, face trying to remain impassive, trying to keep a neutral expression.

“I…don’t know. Honestly, I don’t know.”

Shannel smiled sadly. “That’s not true, Patrick. You do know. You’d want her back.” She rolled away and began to brush out her long hair.

“I’m not as predictable as you think.” Patrick smiled, and Shannel laughed a little, both of them knowing he was lying.

“Oh no?”

“No. I mean, yes, I love her, of course, but…things can’t go back to how they were.” Patrick crossed his arms. “I’m not some spineless creature that always bends to her will.”

Shannel leaned over and kissed him on the forehead. “Yeah, well. Some people are better than others at getting what they want.”

***

“Julia, come on, we’ll be late for school.”

“No…”

“No?”

Detox looked at his daughter, Julia, sitting at the table, a pile of chicken nuggets and ketchup in front of her. Detox knew that Juju would most likely be furious with him since he had given in and not forced the kids to eat breakfast, but with a fussy Grace, a moody Kelly and a wife that was in Los Angeles, Detox had given up before he even tried. Owen had slept at a friend’s the day before, and Detox had just praised himself that he hadn’t had to pick his son up in the middle of the night, Kelly had gone to school, not even talking to him as she took a single apple, Grace getting walked by the babysitter they had found.

“Well, I don’t care.”

Detox picked up her up, Julia dropping the chicken nuggets, and then hell broke loose. The little girl kicking and screaming

“No no no no no no no no no!!”

Detox got taken aback, totally surprised that his daughter was fighting him, Julia usually the easy child compared to everyone else.

“Julia, what’s-”

“No no no no no no no no!”

Detox sat Julia down, dropping to his knee so he could look at her, her eyes filled with tears, her hair in weird pigtails. Now that Detox sitting in front of her he could see that the pigtails were uneven. He had assumed that the babysitter had done them since Detox had been busy with Grace, but now that he looked, really looked, he could see that Julia’s clothes didn’t really match either, something neither Juju or the sitter would ever allow.

“Julia, who did your hair?”

“I did…”

Detox looked at the little girl, surprised by her answer. “So Becca didn’t help you at all?”

Julia shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes again and Detox did the only thing he could think of, which was to pull her into a hug. “I miss mommy.” Detox almost didn’t hear it, Julia’s voice so low, but that was when everything fell into place. Oh course Julia missed Juju, the twins both their mama’s little babies.

“I miss her too.” Detox kissed Julia’s hair, the little girl clinging to him and Detox picked her up, his phone already in his hand, ready to call Robbie and tell him that he would come in late.

***

“Roxy, do me a favor, and put these in the safe for me?” Fame said, handing over a small box.

“Sure…should I ask what it is? We usually input all the contents of the safe in the spreadsheet.”

“Ummmm…just put ‘PB personal’ in the spreadsheet. They’re a pair of cufflinks that Patrick is obsessed with at the moment and I don’t want them in the apartment, if he stops by when I’m not home.” Fame smirked. “He’s being such a child about them. Lucky cufflinks. I mean, did you ever hear of anything so ridiculous?”

Roxy smiled, thinking to herself that the only thing more ridiculous than lucky cufflinks was WITHHOLDING lucky cufflinks. “No, miss,” she said sweetly.

“Thanks, dear. Is this my coffee?” Fame asked.

“Yes, miss.”

She made a horrible face. “This tastes like 1% milk, Roxy. You know I only drink skim.” She dropped the cup in the trash, then called over her shoulder as she sailed into her office. “Fix it, immediately.”

“Yes, miss!”

[artificialqueens]

Undone, Chapter 7 (Bitney) - Stephanie/Veronica

A/N: Welcome to Chapter 7 of UNDONE, our Bitney lesbian AU. (For those of you that have read it before, YES we changed the title. The last one didn’t actually make sense out of context and was potentially triggering.) Anyway, here’s a link the previous chapters. This is a repost from AO3/RGF - once we’re caught up, new chapters will go up.

Summary: Bianca checks in with an old friend, Courtney gets a visit from her sister, and they both start to form a deeper connection.

TW: This story deals with themes of emotional abuse, and since that can be subtle, we’re going to keep a general TW on all of the chapters, even when it seems like it doesn’t apply.

***

Courtney holds Sammy right up to her face, babbling to him in baby talk while Bianca works on Marissa, one of the recurring day players. “Who’s a little monster? Who’s a little gremlin? Hideous little beast? Yes you are! Waaaagh!” She nuzzles his nose.

Bianca glances over, straightening out Marissa’s skirt. “You alright there, blondie?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Thought you might be having a stroke. Carry on.”

Courtney laughs, saying, “Your dogs are so ugly.”

“Courtney,” Marissa scolds. “That’s rude.”

“No, like, ugly-cute. She knows what I mean.”

“I do,” Bianca says. “Plus I plan to stick a bunch of pins in her ass later, so it all comes out in the wash.”

“Here’s a question,” Courtney announces. “How do you know when your friends, who are in a relationship with each other, are trying to invite you into a threesome, and when they are just kidding around?”

Bianca looks at Marissa. “Regretfully, you are done.”

“Regretfully?” Marissa asks.

“Yeah, now I have to be alone with her and her orgy discussion.” Bianca shakes her head.

“Ha! Good luck with that.” Marissa blows a kiss and leaves.

“I’m serious!” Courtney says. “Like, I sort of think that there needs to be an explicit invitation or else major misunderstandings can happen. Right? We shouldn’t be relying on unspoken signals here.”

“Is this a hypothetical situation, or a real situation?” Bianca asks.

Courtney smiles coyly, starting to slip out of her clothes. “Come on.”

“So...was it an explicit invite?” Bianca raises her eyebrows.

“No, but...I think it was an invite. At least, I’m pretty sure.”

“I take it that means you didn’t do it?” Bianca can’t help but feel slightly relieved.

“No,” Courtney says wistfully. “Because I had already planned on hooking up with this really sexy gogo dancer I met a few months ago. So, you know. My energy was pretty focused.”

“What is it with you and dancers?”

“Well,” Courtney thinks for a moment, then says, “They’re usually hot, limber, and eager to take direction.”

“Is that so?”

“Yup.” Courtney winks. “Although, actually, there was this moment on Saturday…This is kind of funny. So we’re in the dressing room, trying to make the most of her fifteen-minute break...”

“Classy.”

“Yeah, right? And like, I know we don’t have much time so - by the way, I got her off first, because I’m very generous like that.”

“The Mother Teresa of Lesbianism,” Bianca adds.

“Exactly,” Courtney laughs. “So I’ve got her by the hair and I’m giving her very explicit instructions. Because seconds are ticking down and it’s a real race to the finish line. Tell me if this is TMI-”

“It’s TMI-”

“Ha, anyway, she suddenly starts like, I dunno, kind of sassing me. Like, doing the opposite of what I’m telling her to do. Can you believe that?”

“The nerve.”

“I know! But the thing is, I kind of liked it. The whole sassy, oppositional...thing. Is that sick or what?” Courtney bites her lip, eyes glittering.

“Yeah, that’s pretty messed up. You should probably see a psychiatrist.”

Courtney smirks at her.

“In fact, I think...” Bianca holds her phone to her ear. “Hello, officer, I need to report a 51/50. Yes, my friend is definitely a danger to herself and others. She...brace yourself...enjoys being teased sexually. We obviously can’t have her roaming the streets like this-”

“Very funny. Are you done?” Courtney asks, giggling.

“Are you done?”

“No...”

“What else?” Bianca asks, throwing her hands up.

“Well...I’m still naked. You haven’t given me my wardrobe for the day,” Courtney says, fluttering her lashes.

“Oh. Right.” Bianca pulls her dress off the rack and hands it over sheepishly. “Sorry.”

“Thank you!” Courtney coos, prancing over to the changing room.

***

Bianca emerges from the bathroom, hands twisted together, eyes hopeful and worried.

“I can’t look.”

Jared stands up from the bed and walks towards her.

“Do you want me to look?” he asks, touching her cheek.

“Please.” Her voice is a hoarse whisper.

She steps aside to let him into the bathroom, chewing on her lip and tugging on a lock of hair as he picks up the stick, brow furrowed, expression unreadable.

“Well?” She’s dying.

He doesn’t say anything. Simply chucks the test, box and all, into the trash, and strides back over to her, wrapping his arms around her as a sob catches in her throat. She wilts in his embrace, hands gripping his shirt.

“It’s gonna be okay,” he soothes, lifting her onto the bed as easily as a rag doll, holding her in his lap. As if sensing that something is wrong, the dogs race over to nip at his ankles. He shoos them away gently. “We can keep trying, babe,” he says, stroking her hair. “It hasn’t been that long-”

“Almost a year!” she cries, pulling her head away, tears streaking down her face. “It’s been almost a year. I don’t understand...it’s not supposed to be this hard.” She closes her eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“Right,” she whispers, breath catching in her throat.

He leans in and kisses her gently, brushing the tears away.

“It’s really not, babe.”

Bianca pulls back, opening her eyes and clearing her throat.

“Maybe we should see that specialist,” she says, “The one your mom recommended.”

“I thought you said-”

“I know what I said, but now it’s been almost a year, so. Maybe we should see her.”

“Sure. Whatever you want. I’ll ask my mom to get us in ASAP.”

“Okay. Thanks.”

Jared wraps his arms around her again, pulling her close.

“Our kids are going to be so beautiful,” he whispers into her hair.

She buries her face in his chest, nodding.

***

“...so I’m trying to get the band back together, but I dunno, man,” Adore says, shaking her head.

“Remember the time that you guys got into a fight on stage and Raven literally stormed off mid-set?” Courtney begins to laugh.

“Oh god, what a fuckin’ shit show that was,” Adore agrees, burying her face in her hands as Courtney wraps an arm around her shoulders.

“Awwww, it wasn’t that bad! Remember the end when you crowd surfed?” Courtney says, still laughing, tickling her in the side.

Bianca observes them giggling together, fork twirling in her pasta, a strange uneasiness in her gut. It’s like a twinge of jealousy - or, if she’s honest, more than a twinge - because they have something she knows she can’t. But at the same time, she knows that what she’s feeling is something she’s not entitled to. Why should she begrudge them their friendship, or whatever they have?

Why does the sight of Adore resting her head on Courtney’s shoulder make her want to throw up? She stabs a tomato violently, and Courtney’s head snaps up.

“B, are you okay?”

“Fine, thanks!” Bianca forces a smile, shoving the angel hair into her mouth.

***

JARED: My mom said that Dr. Silverman will see us for tests on Sat. Is that okay?

Bianca swallows, chest tightening. Is she really ready to do this? Shell out thousands of dollars to have some specialist either tell her the exact same thing that her doctors already have, or worse, find out that something is actually really wrong?

BIANCA: Yeah, that’s fine.

JARED: Everything’s gonna be great. I love you.

BIANCA: Love you too.

“Bianca?”

She whirls around at the light tap on her shoulder to find Courtney, messenger bag around her shoulder, today’s wardrobe in her hands.

“Holy shit, you scared the fuck out of me.”

“Sorry. I just, um, needed to give this back to you.”

“Jamie is doing the checkouts today, Court. Someone should have told you-”

“Yeah, I know,” Courtney says, “But I just...um, you seemed a little off earlier, so I wanted to make sure everything was okay.”

“I told you I was fine. You can give your dress to Jamie.”

Bianca starts walking over to her sewing table.

“Okay. I just want you to know that you can tell me if anything is-”

“I said I’m fine! Jesus fucking Christ!” Bianca explodes.

Courtney looks startled for a second, then nods.

“Sorry.” She starts to back away.

Bianca is immediately overcome with guilt. She can feel her cheeks burn and her eyes sting with tears.

“Wait.”

Courtney stops, head tilted as Bianca’s eyes fall closed with exhaustion and shame.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped at you. You were just being a friend, and I-”

“No, it’s okay,” Courtney says. “I didn’t mean to push.”

Bianca swallows, taking a deep breath.

“I’m kind of going through a thing. It’s...I don’t really know how to talk about it. Especially here.”

“You’re not dying, are you?” Courtney eyes are full of fear.

“No,” Bianca laughs. “I’m not dying.”

Courtney smiles, relieved.

“Alright. Good. ‘Cause I’m pretty used to your face.”

“Well, that’s your loss,” Bianca replies.

Courtney giggles.

“Anyway, I’m sorry for being a cunt.”

“I’m not that fragile, B. I just...wanted you to know that you can talk to me. If you want. No pressure.” Courtney bites her lip, hugging the dress to her chest.

“Thanks.” Bianca sighs slightly. “Want me to take that for you?”

“Oh, um...sure. But I can take it to Jamie if you-”

“No, that’s fine.” Bianca walks forward and takes the dress out of her hands.

Up close, Courtney can see how tired her eyes look. She throws caution to the wind and lightly clasps both of her hands around one of Bianca’s, gazing up at her. She resists the urge to say something trite and Zen.

“Goodnight, B.”

“Goodnight.” Bianca releases her hand, regret filling her chest as she watches her leave, waiting until the door of the trailer closes gently behind her to let out the breath she’d been holding in. She’s glad the blonde hadn’t tried to hug her - who knows if she’d have been able to hold it together. She brushes away the single annoying tear that had just begun to trickle down her cheek and blinks rapidly, looking down to assess the status of her work for the rest of the evening.

***

Bianca juggles the dry cleaning in one arm, groceries in the other, trying to unlock her car, as her phone begins to buzz in her pocket. “Fuck,” she mutters, quickly popping the trunk, the annoyed expression melting off her face when she sees the name on the caller ID. “Heyyyyy!” she answers happily.

“Hey girl! How’s it going in sunny California?” Latrice asks.

“Pretty good. God, I miss you…” Bianca closes her trunk.

“Aww, don’t get all sappy on me, bitch.” Latrice lets out a joyful laugh.

“Sorry, sorry. How are you? How’s Chris? Did he propose yet or do I have to come kick his ass?”

“Well, since you mentioned it…”

“Wait, really?!” Bianca squeals.

Latrice laughs. “I mean, not exactly, but he’s planning this big romantic weekend and he’s very stressed about it, and if it doesn’t include a ring, I’m prepared to tell him exactly what he can go fuck.”

Bianca throws her head back and laughs. “I’m sure he’ll rise to the occasion.”

“He better. And what about your man? Has he managed to knock you up yet?”

“No,” Bianca says simply, clearing her throat. She doesn’t have the energy to explain that they’re about to spend half their savings on a fertility specialist.

“Don’t stress out, B, it’ll happen.”

“I know.” Bianca closes her eyes.

“Really.”

“I know.”

“Hey...I have an idea. Let’s meet in Vegas for the weekend, before you get all pregnant and boring. Take a Monday or a Friday off or something.”

Bianca swallows. “I can’t. This new job is killing me. My boss is a work beast, she never stops. But she’s been so good to me; she’s even letting me design a few costumes myself.”

“That’s great! Sorry it’s so stressful though.”

“It’s not all bad. There are some...interesting people.” She gazes out the window, watching a young couple walk by, fingers laced together.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah.” It doesn’t make sense to elaborate. Her feelings are already confusing enough. How can she possibly explain?

“Well, alright then, Ms. Workaholic. I’ll just have to figure out some other way to lift your spirits.”

“That’s not your job,” Bianca says, smiling.

“I know, baby, but I love you. I wanna make sure those dimples never fade.”

“Now who’s being sappy?”

Latrice bursts out laughing, and the sound fills Bianca’s chest with warmth. She closes her eyes again, leaning her head against the back of the seat and sighing.

***

Bianca sits at her sewing machine while Courtney changes behind the curtain, then looks up when she emerges, tugging at the waist. “I think it’s a little loose.”

“Yeah, it’s a rental. Come here, I’ll take it in.”

Courtney nods and steps over to her, assuming a familiar position while Bianca pins the seams down.

“Well, it's Monday, and you haven't yet tortured me with details about your random sexual encounters. Slow weekend?" Bianca teases.

“My sister's visiting," Courtney says with a chuckle.

"Aww, sorry.”

“Yeah, it was awful; she made me take her to straight bars on Sunset, full of aggressive, scene-y douchebags." Courtney shudders. "I downloaded a bunch of pictures of this random LA Laker and started telling guys he was my boyfriend."

Bianca looks at her curiously.

“Why didn’t you just say you’re gay?”

“Men usually just see that as a challenge.”

Bianca laughs.

“Boys are so dumb.”

***

“Okay, so obviously you know Adore, and her whole department is very lesbian mafia,” Courtney tells Kim on their way to set Wednesday. “I think you’ll love the hair and makeup girls. Especially Delta. She’s a real cunt. She reminds me of Vanity.”

“She sounds divine!” Kim laughs.

“Totally. And the cast is great. I’ll make sure you get an intro to all the eligible bachelors. Actually, one of our ADs is pretty attractive too, although I’m not sure if he’s single.”

“Let’s not get too hung up on technicalities,” Kim says.

“Classy,” Courtney laughs. “So, I spend most of my down time hanging out in wardrobe, with Bianca. Omigod, she is so funny, I can’t wait for you to meet her. She’s like that perfect combination of sarcastic and playful where she pretends to be nasty but actually she’s got this heart of gold, like I bet she’d give you her last nickel if you needed it. Plus she’s really type A and bossy and needs every little thing to be perfect and of course, it never is, and so it’s super easy to fluster her, which is adorable. And she has these hideous little chihuahuas that she carries around in a purse. They are like, so ugly they’re cute, you know?” Courtney turns her head to look at Kim, eyes glittering.

“Yeah…” Kim says slowly, an amused smile dancing on her lips.

“What?”

“Nothing!” Kim says. “I didn’t say anything. Those dogs sound great. Who else should I know about?”

“Um...Oh! There’s Pete in craft service. He’s everyone’s best friend…”

***

“Kimmyyyyyyy, I’m so glad you’re here!” Adore exclaims, kissing her cheek wetly before sliding onto the bench. “It’s great to finally spend some time with the pretty sister.”

“Hey!” Courtney pipes up indignantly. “Although wait, does that mean I’m the smart one?”

“I’m also the smart one,” Kim laughs.

“What am I then?”

“Lucky.”

“Ha!” Adore laughs, reaching over to give Kim a fist bump as Courtney crosses her arms and pretends to pout.

Bianca approaches the table, lunch in hand, and sits down in her usual spot across from Courtney, who suddenly perks right up.

“Kimmy, this is my friend Bianca.”

“Hi, Bianca,” Kim says, extending her hand and fluttering her lashes. “It’s lovely to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”

Courtney feels the color rise to her cheeks, suppressing the urge to kick her sister under the table.

“Likewise!” Bianca replies. “I hear you’re a giant cockblocker.”

Courtney bursts out laughing, tossing Bianca a grateful wink and then turning to Kim with a triumphant “I told you so” smirk. Kim rolls her eyes.

“Are you still whining about Saturday? You could totally have found someone if you really wanted to. There were other lesbians there.”

“No one my type,” Courtney says wistfully.

“You don’t have a type.”

“I do so!”

“Please. I’ve known you your whole life. You have two qualifications. Attractive, and breathing.”

Adore snickers into her plate.

“What about funny?” Courtney asks. “And smart!”

Kim laughs. “Sorry love, I’ve seen you let those slide too many times to make the list.”

“Wow, she is calling your shit right out!” Adore cackles.

“I think that last comment was a dig at you,” Bianca informs her.

“What do you mean?” Adore asks, adjusting her ‘¿COMO?’ hat. “I’m hilarious.”

Bianca rolls her eyes as Kim takes a pointed sip of her lemonade.

“You’re a cunt, Kimmy,” Courtney says.

“Maybe so, but I’m also correct.”

Bianca laughs, receiving a glare from Courtney, which quickly dissolves into a giggle.

“Maybe she’s trying to help you raise your standards,” Bianca offers.

“Exactly!” Kim says. “Thank you.”

“My standards are just fine.”

“Oh really? What about your little stalker friend?” Bianca challenges, causing a gaffaw of laughter from Adore.

“Excuse me! What happened to all your feminist ‘don’t blame the victim’ stuff, you hypocrite!” Courtney kicks Bianca gently under the table.

Bianca spreads her arms wide. “Hey, I’m just trying to help you on your journey of self-reflection.”

Courtney sticks her tongue out.

“Very mature.”

“Isn’t it?” Courtney asks, grinning.

“Eat your vegetables.”

Courtney picks up a carrot from her plate and takes a slow-motion, seductive bite, while Bianca shakes her head and pretends not to be amused.

***

“...and honestly, I don’t know what’s worse. The fact that Trump is an immoral, narcissistic, racist, sexist, dishonest, stupid asshole who has fucked over countless people and lied and swindled his way through life, or the fact that at least a third of the country openly acknowledges all of these things but then follows up with ‘but...I just don’t really like Hillary. So...I dunno.’ Like what the fucking fuck is wrong with people?” Courtney rants.

“Yeah, it’s a mess alright. Or, seems that way,” Kim agrees, standing up to help her clear the table.

“Yeah,” Courtney says, then sighs, rubbing her face. “Sorry for going off. I’m just starting to worry a bit.”

“It’s quite alright, I get it.”

After a few moments, Kim picks up her wine glass and begins to swirl it around.

“So…”

“Yeah?” Courtney can tell right away that her sister has a less-than-noble agenda. Mostly because she’s speaking, unprompted, but also because she’s got that look in her eye. That Kim look, where she’s up to No Good.

“I’m just wondering when you’re gonna admit how much you wanna bang your friend?”

“I already have, what do you mean? Although I think she’s dating this like, cute DJ, so we haven’t had sex in like a month or-”

“I’m not talking about Adore, you brainless cunt.”

Courtney stares at her for a second before rolling her eyes and continuing to clean up.

“Come on, Court, don’t act like you haven’t thought about it! It’s painfully obvious. She’s into you, too.”

“Kimmy, please stop. She’s not gay-”

“I thought ‘all sexuality is fluid-’”

“-And it wouldn’t matter if she was, because she’s married.”

“Pfffft,” Kim scoffs. “Minor complication.”

“Kim!”

“What?” Kim laughs. “I mean, seriously. Grow up. You clearly want each other. You were flirting up a storm. So who cares about some dumb husband? Just seduce her.”

Courtney takes a deep breath, determined not to let frustration with her sister’s capricious morals get the better of her.

“Flirting is one thing. That doesn’t hurt anyone. But that’s just...that’s all it is. It doesn’t mean anything-”

“Ha! That’s bullshit and you fucking know it.”

“Fine, a crush. But so what? It’ll pass. Okay? So stop it.” Courtney begins to load the dishes into the dishwasher.

“Alright, fine. But...hypothetically. What if she made the first move?”

“That’s not gonna happen.”

“But what if it did?” Kim asks, her tone a playful sing-song.

Courtney turns back around, eyes narrowed.

“Well in that case, hypothetically, it would be different. I guess. But, that’s not going to happen. So...shut up.”

Kim laughs gleefully.

“Well then there’s your answer, love! You just gotta make her think it’s her idea. If anyone can do it, you can.”

Courtney heaves an enormous sigh, closing her eyes briefly.

“I don’t know why I even indulged you in this conversation.”

“What do you mean?”

“Because unlike you, I don’t get off on manipulating people!”

Kim bursts out laughing.

“Since when?”

Courtney rubs her temples, taking a deep breath.

“I’m not making a value judgment, Kimmy, I’m just-”

“You know what, you may fleece everyone else with that phony Zen crap, but not me. I see you, I know you better than you know yourself, and you, my love, are one of the most cunning, manipulative people I’ve ever-”

“Go fuck yourself, Kim!” Courtney screeches, flouncing out of the kitchen.

“Namaste, Court!” Kim calls after her, still chuckling.

***

Courtney’s eyes flutter open to the feeling of fingertips trailing up and down her arms. She shivers and bolts upright, clutching her covers, face to face with Bianca, who smiles at her.

“What in the fuck…” Courtney begins, and Bianca laughs, brushing some hair off her face.

“You said it would be okay if I made the first move,” she replies with a wink.

Courtney blinks slowly, taking in the scene. Bianca kneels on the bed, wearing some corseted Frederick’s of Hollywood monstrosity, covered in ruffles and complete with garters and stockings and bows. This is obviously not reality.

“You need to go,” Courtney says firmly to this mirage. This figment of her imagination.

“Aw, why?” Bianca pouts, batting her lashes.

“Because you’re not real. This is not real.” Courtney waves her hand around.

Bianca crawls closer.

“You’re being a real spoilsport, Courtney,” she says with a naughty grin, sliding a hand up her stomach. “Come on...let’s just have a good time. Who’s it gonna hurt?” She presses her lips to Courtney’s throat, sucking gently. Courtney can feel the tug at her core, feel her resolve melting. Her hands move to Bianca’s waist. “That’s a good girl,” Bianca breathes into her skin.

Courtney shivers as Bianca’s hands inch higher, ignoring that nagging voice in the back of her mind, telling her that this is all a lie, just pretty pictures in her sleep. Soft, plush lips make their way up to her mouth, gently brushing against Courtney own lips until they part eagerly with a sigh. Soon their tongues are tangled together and Courtney is gone, the last of her will utterly evaporated as she arches up against Bianca’s warm, soft body, fingers gripping her back, coming up against the hard bones of her corset.

Bianca pulls away, sitting up to straddle Courtney teasingly, licking her lips.

“So...we’re on the same page, yes?” Bianca asks with a seductive tilt of her head.

“Yeah, we’re-” Courtney reaches up, trying to catch her breath. “But can we lose all this? It’s really way too much.” Courtney gestures to Bianca’s attire.

“Jared loves it,” Bianca says, toying with the ribbons hanging from her lingerie.

“I’m sure he does,” Courtney says, “But I really don’t need you wearing constricting undergarments. Or any undergarments.”

“I was trying to make it special,” Bianca says, thrusting out her lower lip.

Courtney rolls her eyes and tosses the brunette onto her back, pulling apart the hooks of her corset.

“I’m sure you were. You’re all about the romance tonight,” Courtney responds. “Now, come on. Naked time.” She unhooks the garters, ripping off the belt.

Bianca giggles, playing with a lock of Courtney’s hair.

“Wow, you’re so bossy. I better behave myself, huh?”

Courtney narrows her eyes, shaking her head as Bianca’s blue eyes dance with laughter. She quickly peels off her stockings and garters, tossing them aside, followed by her panties. Her eyes sweep hungrily up Bianca’s lush curves, finally free.

“Well, this isn’t quite fair,” Bianca whispers. “I mean, you’re still wearing-”

Courtney whips off her top in half a second, then bends down for a slow, deliberate kiss, cupping Bianca’s face and tangling her hands into her hair. She trails kisses down Bianca’s jaw, then back up to her ear.

Feeling the hands wandering down her back, Courtney murmurs, “Go ahead...take them off…”

Bianca pushes her panties down over her narrow hips, sliding them down her thighs, as far as she can reach. Courtney smiles, kicking them the rest of the way off and bearing down against her, eliciting a breathy moan as nails dig into her ass.

“Watch the nails!” Courtney laughs.

Bianca moans again, wrapping a leg around Courtney’s hips.

“Ohhh, god!” she pants, rolling her hips, head lolling backwards on the pillow.

Irritated, Courtney pulls her head up, suspicious, as Bianca’s performance continues unabated, clawing at her ass, writhing and moaning. Courtney sighs and rolls away, rubbing her eyes.

“Baby, where’d you go?” Bianca asks finally, reaching for her, breathless and wild-eyed.

“I don’t think I can do this,” Courtney states simply, staring at the ceiling.

Arms circle her waist as Bianca nuzzles her, rubbing a thigh against her tauntingly.

“Why not?”

“This isn’t you. You’re...this is all wrong.”

Bianca lets out a girlish giggle, licking her plump red lips.

“It’s your dream, honey.”

“Yeah, I know, but it’s wrong. I want you, not a sex doll who looks like you.”

Bianca’s mouth twists into a smirk, blue eyes dancing with laughter.

“Oh really? Then what were you doing with Valentina?” she challenges, tongue poking into the side of her cheek.

“Shut up!” Courtney groans, pushing her away. She sits up, holding her head in her hands.

Bianca is silent for a while, then she speaks softly.

“You said that if I made the first move-”

“I said that I knew you wouldn’t make the first move! So none of this makes any sense, does it?!” Courtney turns to look at her.

“You also said that it was just a crush. That would pass. But...that was a lie, wasn’t it?” Bianca’s eyes hold hers in an unwavering gaze.

Courtney swallows. For a second she wishes that the coy porn star would come back. At least that girl didn’t turn her stomach inside out.

“Because…” Bianca continues softly, “it hasn’t gone away…”

“Right,” Courtney whispers.

“It’s not just a crush, is it?” Bianca asks.

Courtney shakes her head, not trusting her voice.

“And it’s not just about sex, either. Because if so...we’d probably have fucked already. Jared or not.”

“Probably,” Courtney agrees with a small chuckle.

“Come here,” Bianca says, and Courtney complies, allowing the other girl to pull her into a slow, tender kiss, sweet and soft and desperate. A kiss that makes Courtney lose her sense of time and space, until the next words out of Bianca’s mouth.

“But you can’t have me like that.”

“I know,” Courtney replies, her voice breaking as she pulls her head away.

Bianca takes her chin and cups it gently, looking into her eyes for a few moments, forcing her not to look away as her vision begins to blur.

“I’m sorry.”

Courtney wakes up with a sob, throat raw and horse, panting and covered in a cold sweat. It takes her a few moments to adjust to her surroundings. Same room, same bed, just a little bit colder, morning light a little harsher and less comforting than the golden lamplight than shone moments ago. And of course, she’s alone.

She sinks back into the pillows, a feeling of defeat washing over her body as her eyes fall closed again. Fuck.

[artificialqueens]

Teacher, Teacher (Biadore) Chapter 3 - Duhlano

A/n - Enjoy this fic I rewrote 4 times. I feel like no one liked my fics but I’ll continue for those out there that like it :)

Adore knew she was staring at Miss Del Rio. And she couldn’t help it at all. She was beautiful in Adore’s eyes. What age do you think she is? Do you think she has a husband? Ooh maybe kids! Ugh, kids are annoying but cute at the same time.

This went on for 10 solid minutes for Adore, thinking to herself and coming up with different scenarios in her head. During that time, Adore was unaware of the classmates quickly sketching and getting on with their work in the breezy, spring classroom.

Adore snapped out of her thoughts as she caught Naomi coughing, and motioning towards Adore’s empty paper staring back at her. Naomi put her head back down again as she added colour to her some-what 90’s jumpsuit look.

Adore looked across the room, stealing sneak-peaks of other peoples work. Her eyes wandered over to Fame’s work, admiring it slightly as she pushed her ombre’d hair out of the way of the view. Adore’s eyes then skimmed over to Violet’s work she was adding more tone to.

Oh my fucking God. IT looks like a fucking blow-up doll.

Adore snorted as she tried to contain laughter but just could not hold it in as she stared deeper at the sex-doll realness.

Adore burst out giggling in the moderately quiet classroom. Her fellow classmates glanced for a second but continued to work. Naomi, Violet and Fame smiled at a red but giggly Adore, quickly retracting their expressions to a neutral demeanour and facing towards their full paper.

Adore’s expression turned a frown as she folded her arms. Why did they all of a sudden ignore her? What the shit?

“What is it?” Adore sighed as she grumpily crossed her arms.

“Something funny, Adore?” Adore jumped quickly at the voice as she turned around fast. Adores eyes met with a pair of tits.

She probably shouldn’t be staring there.

Adore’s eyes tore from the navy-clothed chest to meet with none other than Miss Del Rio’s warm bronze eyes. Miss Del Rio didn’t look annoyed, she seemed quite amused that she called the kid out, and she was genuinely wondering what was funny.

“Oh! U-h nothing, M-Miss Del Rio.” Adore composed herself as she leaned back on the desk, covering her blank piece of paper hoping Miss Del Rio wouldn’t clock it. With that, Miss Del Rio’s mouth raised up to a smile, showing her deep dimples on her face. She turned around on her heels and looked over the desks, talking to a few classmates.

Adore turned around, a scared and red expression on her face. Fame held her giggle as Violet raised an eyebrow.

Adore was partly red because of public humiliation, but red at the fact Miss Del Rio spoke to her! And her dimples are the cutest thing ever!

Adore thought deeper to herself as she started sketching a beach inspired dress. She started to realise how scandalous and dangerous a crush on a teacher would be. Adore wouldn’t have work done, she’d be red as soon as Miss Del Rio talked to her and every chance Adore could misbehave to be held back would be more than often.

Fuck man.

Adore looked behind her shoulder to see Miss Del Rio sitting down, her eyes trailing up to Adore’s. Adore turned around quickly looking at her paper.

Adore could not tell anyone about this. Not a soul.

-

“I think I have a crush on Miss Del Rio” Adore whispered into Fame’s ear, hearing Fame gasped and smile widely. Adore couldn’t keep it in, and her new found friend seemed nice and trustworthy.

“OooOh! That’s why you were all tomato red!” Fame giggled, jumping up and down. It was 5 minutes before class finished so Fame and Adore whispered in a crowd of classmates talking loudly.

Adore groaned as she grabbed Fame’s shoulders. “Shut the fuck up or I’ll snap your fucking neck Fame.” Adore rolled her eyes as Fame calmed down but still had an excited look on her face.

“That is so cool! I could see you two happening!” Fame looked between the crook of Adore’s neck where she could see Miss Del Rio and looking back to Adores face.

“Nu uh Fame, No way.” Adore shook her head quickly, bringing her tattooed hand to brush her hair back, softening her outfit a little. Fame sighed but gasped again as she seen Adore’s tattoos

“Ooh! Tattoos! I have em!” Fame out her top down to show her ridiculous tattoos she had got. Adore mentally groaned as the bell went, signalling lunch.

-

Adore walked towards a table where she seen Fame, Courtney and 2 other strangers sat. Adore sat on the plastic chair as she looked at Courtney, trying to telepathically communicate with her to ask who the fuck the other girls were. Courtney gasped as she smiled, ready to speak.

“Adore! This is Alaska!” Courtney pointed at the girl with messy platinum blonde hair and nice glittery nails. Alaska smiled.

“Hiiiii Adooore!” Alaska waved, Adore nodded and smiled politely, trying to figure out the girl. She seemed nice and her voice sounds sarcastic, which can be a good thing. She seems stoned. Finally, a stoner sister she’s been waiting for.

“Shut the fuck up Laska, your voice is actually like that.” The unknown girl spoke up, causing Adore to snap her head to the girl and then look at  Courtney.

“And that is Willam.” Courtney smiled, gazing at her. Adore wouldn’t call it sudden instinct but she knew when her best friend was eyeing her new prey, and this would be one of those times.

“Nice to meet ya Adore, heard a lot about ya.” William nodded, flipping her mixed colour blonde hair to behind her back. William seemed like a good time. Adore smiled and picked her bag up, getting lunch out.

“So Adore,” Alaska started, eating a strawberry. “Are you going to Raja and Raven’s party?”

No, Adore thought, I’d rather fucking kill myself.

“Um, nah Alaska, I’d rather sit in my dorm, smoke a joint and wait for a drunk Courtney to come home and take care of.” Adore shook her head like she was shaking off the idea of socialising. Adore wasn’t asocial, she just preferred chilling out and listening to good music and since Courtney wouldn’t be there,  she could to another activity which is stalking and to do some investigating on Miss Del Rio.

Alaska gasped and Willam stood up, putting her hands on her hips which were exposed because of the nice belly top and shorts combo she was wearing.

“Adore Whatever-your-Last-Name-is, You are going! You seem badass and cool and it seems you like to get drunk or high, either or, you’re fuckin’ comin’.” Willam finished her rant with a bow, causing the girls sitting at the table to giggle.

“I prefer getting high but being drunk isn’t so bad. But Willam, it’s fine I wanna chill. You go all have fun kiddos!” Adore laughed, putting her chin in her hand, smiling profoundly at the cool friends she had just made.

“Besides,” Adore started again. “Isn’t the party in College Campus? We’d all get caught and thrown out.”

Alaska shrugged her shoulders.

“I don’t think so. Just as we don’t disturb others I think it’s all good.”

Adore was not getting out this one.

“If you don’t, I’ll drag you there.” Willam stated with that Courtney looked up and replied back.

“Bitch, you can’t even lift me!”

Willam smirked.

“Can I not now?” Willam chuckled as she grabbed Courtney under her armpits and flung her over her shoulders.

Courtney was screaming but giggling at the same time, unable to get out a sentence of request of letting her down. Willam wasn’t for having it so she kept spinning Courtney about on her shoulders as everyone giggled.

Suddenly, Adore felt a hand tapping at her arm. It was Fame.

“Please come Adore, I need someone to give me courage to talk to Violet. Pleaaase. You might meet someone there!” Adore groaned as Fame pleaded to her.

“Fine, I’ll go. But you owe me!” Fame’s eyes lit up as she jumped up hugging Adore.

“Thank you! Thank you!” Fame laughed.

“Guys, Adore is going!” Alaska shouted to Courtney and Willam who were jumping about.

They all cheered as Adore chuckled, silently preparing for the night ahead.

Fuck me.

-

Fame, Willam, Courtney, Alaska, Violet and Adore were all in Courtney and Adore’s dorm, getting ready and having pre-drinks before the party. Fame had invited Violet along, who was already friends with Willam so everyone knew each other. Adore put on a playlist in the background, she didn’t drink much during pre-drinks and wasn’t planning on getting piss drunk.

Violet was wearing a knee length, off-the-shoulder PVC dress that was tinted bright red, with her black slick hair up in a pony. She looked amazing.

Courtney was wearing a short, spaghetti strap, lace light blue dress that her blonde her curled perfectly down her back. Adore’s best friend was gorgeous.

Willam was wearing a glitter dress that shown her cleavage, it was short nonetheless and she probably wore it because she wants everyone to look at her, which is cool.

Alaska wore a bright yellow belly top with a dark blue skirt that hugged her waist. Her hair remained the same messiness it always seemed to be in.

Fame was wearing a pale purple stretch dress that reached her ankles, it looked angelic,and along with her make-up she looked drop dead gorgeous.

Adore felt stunning, but tired. She kept her long hair straight, and wore a long Thrasher t-shirt that basically resembled a dress, it stopped just above mid thigh. She decided to bring out her red thigh high boots. Adore felt extra sexy tonight.

“Everyone ready?” Violet asked, applying more of her lipstick. Fame smiled and grabbed her bag, along with Courtney, Willam, Alaska and Adore.

“Yup! Let’s fuckin’ do this!” Willam shouted, grabbing Alaska’s arm, proceeding to skip out.

Yeah Willam let’s do this.

-

The crew walked in and expected everyone to not care but they all turned to look at the new college kids. Willam loved and craved the attention so she started dancing, going straight to the kitchen for booze.

The house seemed nice and large, she had’t met Raja or Raven but Violet said it was all okay for them to go.

“Here, loosen up a bit.” Willam handed Adore a beer and Courtney a cider, giving a flashy smile.

“I’ll loosen up if you refrain from dancing on the table drunk.” Adore giggled, linking her arm with Courtney as they walked into the living room where everyone was.

“Can’t make a promise.” Willam winked and jumped up on the coffee table in the centre of the room and started to sing and dance to the music.

That was Willam done for the night.

“I better keep an eye on her.” Courtney mumbled into Adore’s ear, quickly winking at her. What the fuck is it with the winking today?

“Just use protection or something us lesbians use.” Adore slapped Courtney’s ass as Courtney giggled.

“I’ll try, I really like her y’know.” Courtney blushed as Willam moved through the crowds and grabbed Courtney’s hand, pulling her up on the table to dance.

“I know!” Adore shouted from the loud crowds, sighing.

After 30 minutes of awkward shift dancing, Adore decided to look for Fame. She had figured Fame went to a bedroom to touch up her makeup but ended up finding Alaska instead.

Adore opened the door and was about to shout for Fame but quickly retracted as she seen Alaska and this other girl with peach have and pale skin kiss her on top of the bed.

“Sorry guys, I’ll let you get to it.” Adore closed the door, turning back to head downstairs. She heard a ‘Thank you’ from Alaska and giggled at her new friend being so open.

Adore had now came to the conclusion she needed a drink. She discarded the empty beer bottle and headed to the kitchen again, grabbing a red cup with unknown liquor in it. She downed it quickly, earning a ew stars from others in the kitchen but her eyes finally found Fame and Violet, who were leaning against the work top.

They seemed really deep in conversation so Adore kept out of it. Adore proceeded to drink the weird liquid that would run her throat every time she took a drink. It was Vodka, and it was her new best friend.

-

An hour passed and Adore was fucked. She wanted to process her thoughts on why she got that piss drunk, but she couldn’t hold her body weight. She texted Courtney a drunk ‘Gwet homed safely XxxxX’ as she walked outside, swaying in the front garden where a couple were passed out there.

She walked across the park that connected the campus, holding her bag close to her and looking down. She was freezing cold and it was well past midnight.

How did you get yourself into this damn mess.

She reached the pathway where the yellow street lights beamed on Adores arms. After a minute of walking, Adore kept tripping up, hiccuping and her tummy was no feeling too good.

Adore fell. She caught her foot at the back of her heel and fell to the hard concrete ground. She groaned as she rolled over to her back and lay down. The bright street light glared at her as she lay on the ground. It was peaceful at 2.04 AM, until she heard a car pulled up next to her.

“Adore?”

Uh oh.