Six months. Who knew so much could change in that short amount of time? Just last summer she’d been working at the golf club near her old trailer park, her days interchanging between event serving and covering shifts at the golf shop. For so long, Allison had longed to leave her boring life for something exciting and worth her talents. If someone had told her a Craigslist ad seeking interns for a neighbouring town’s news station would be the answer to her existential millennial quarter-life crisis she would have asked what kind of drugs they were on (and where she could cop some).
Now, here she was, all of her belongings in a cardboard box she still hadn’t completely unpacked, living in the questionable part of town. Spending her Friday night with her coworker slash friend (she used the term lightly). Eh, things could be worse.
“Baking a blueberry pie?” Allison mused, as they both stopped to stand in front of Ashley’s apartment door. She gave the smiling blonde a funny look. “Is that what they kids are calling it nowadays?” She even stage-whispered for effect, always one for extra theatrics, as Ashley opened the door for her. “Coming on strong. I didn’t know you had it in you, Seyfried."
She was teasing her of course, Ashley was sweeter than diabetes. She was also the most gullible person she’d ever met but that was what she liked most about her. Her friendship with Ashley was odd to say the least. The two couldn’t have been more different, but somehow they’d managed to form an unlikely friendship that held strong from the day they first met. No one stuck around long enough to see past Allison’s crazy eccentric surface to see she was just a girl who needed some attention and certainly some love. Not that she’d ever be caught dead saying it out loud, but it was nice to have someone to depend on during the almost impossible times she had no one. And to be the one who was being leaned on. Sometimes. When she wasn’t lazy.
"Sure, I’ll help,” Allison agreed, flashing a cheeky smile. “If by help you mean drink all the organic juice in your fridge and catch up on Velorum Nocate,” she muttered under her breath, already beelining for Ashley’s TV. Typically while Ashley was busy cooking, Allison was in charge of picking out what show they were going to watch. Honestly, with all the plot twists and major character deaths between ODR and VN, Allison thought she had the short end of the stick.
Ashley blinked twice, unsure she caught Allison’s meaning. In fact, she was certain she didn’t. It felt like a joke, so she managed a half laugh, despite not knowing what she was laughing about, and then asked, “Wait, what?”
Ashley was so happy to have a friend in Allison, but that didn’t change the fact that half the things that Allison said to her didn’t always make sense. She didn’t realize that close to 75% of the things Allison said were either sarcastic or some kind of sexual innuendos. And anytime you tried to say anything like that to Ashley, chances were it would go completely over her head (or, as like right now, confuse her).
She was worried for a moment that it hadn’t been a joke, and that perhaps she had somehow managed to offend her in some way by asking if she’d like to help her bake a pie? What had she meant, exactly, by saying she was coming on strong? Did friends not do that sort of thing where she was from?
She was going to ask, but Allison didn’t seem upset and had ultimately agreed (sort of) and the next minute they were inside her apartment together.
Ashley’s apartment was spotless. It was as if she’d found the one place on earth where dust refused to settle. Everything was neat and orderly, but there was still a warmth to it, too. There were bouquets of flowers and scented candles and stacks of books (organized neatly by author) scattered about her place.
Allison was already on the couch with a container of OJ before Ashley could even offer her a glass. Ashley could half see the TV from where she started to gather the ingredients in the kitchen, but she wasn’t too worried about not being able to keep up. There were aspects of Velorum Nocate that she loved (mostly anything having to do with Vaane), but for the most part it was too violent and dark for her tastes. She was a more of an On the Oceanfront type girl.
“Hey, so how was work?” She asked, during the first commercial break.
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