Rocks n’ Socks || Nicole and Vic
Who: @nicsalazar and @natusvincere When: Current Timing Where: The Outskirts, the current location of White Crest’s Toll Bridge What: Nicole comes across a strange bridge and a vampire who doesn’t like being told what to do. It’s not the best combination. Warnings: N/A
“What the...” Nicole blinked twice, trying to comprehend the scene before her. She was forced to pull up to the side of the road, drumming her fingers against the wheel as she pondered her options.
She had to be imagining things. Had she somehow taken the wrong turn on the way home? Not likely; she knew her route by heart. Though…her attention may have wandered earlier, she was exhausted after work. Just to make sure, she got out of the vehicle to investigate. Did logical explanations matter anyway? The point was, Nicole should’ve been home by now, but instead she found herself in front of a strange-looking bridge. One that seemingly had no business being there. “Beware of the trolls” she laughed at the sign, but slowly stepped back to her truck. No, she had seen enough. She wasn’t going to risk it. Whatever ‘trolls’ meant, it couldn’t be good. If her truck was too big for the bridge, she’d have to find another road.
Too caught up in her inspection, she almost didn’t catch the small figure approaching. “Oh, I wouldn’t go that way,” she warned as the woman walked past her. It certainly wasn’t safe to be wandering about so late at night. Or early in the morning, depending on how she looked at it. Maybe Nicole could do more than just warn her. “Uh, you need a ride?”
Vic wasn’t sure how long she’d been walking, but she was sure that it wasn’t long enough. She was going nowhere in particular, like she had been most nights lately, but it was the first time in weeks that her mind had a chance to relax.
She was sure she hadn’t seen the bridge here before, but White Crest had a bad habit of building stupid things where they didn’t belong, anyway. She looked back at the woman, stopping in her tracks now. “Why not?”, she asked, filled with a curious intrigue. She looked back at the bridge and noticed the sign, rolling her eyes at it. “It’s probably some teenaged ne'er-do-well… you know how the teens like to prank at this time of year.” She put one foot on the bridge, as if to tell the woman it was no big deal. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of a little sign.”
Her eyes fell to the woman’s car, and she shook her head, stuffing her hands into her pockets. “I’m fine.” She wasn’t sure she trusted someone behind the wheel who was afraid of a sign, anyway.
Nicole frowned, immediately put off by the careless attitude coming from the woman. It was like a kick to the gut. “Uh, yes?” she scoffed when her apprehension for the sign was questioned. Wasn’t it the most obvious thing in the world? “Look, I know the road. This bridge? Came out of fucking nowhere. Pretty…what’s the wo– creepy and shit if you ask me” she explained, glancing back at the sign. There was no desire in her to learn what “trolls” were in White Crest culture. And she definitely didn’t want to deal with giant-sized baby dolls with colorful spiked hair, which was what her mind kept turning to whenever she read the word. She let out a huff and shook her head frustrated, waving her hand to dismiss the woman. “Fine, suit yourself” she grumbled. She was not going to beg a stranger to hop on her truck. Nicole had tried niceness, and clearly this woman was too stubborn or dumb –or both– to accept it. “Go on then, I’ll be on my way” she nodded towards the truck, taking one last disgruntled look at the woman before turning around.
“Sure it’s ‘creepy’, but so is everything else in this goddamn town.” Vic shook her head, taking another step on to the bridge to prove that it would be fine. “If I avoided everything that people thought was creepy, I’d never get anything accomplished.” She turned to the woman, shrugging and suppressing an eye roll, deciding instead to give her a wave to send her on her way. She wasn’t some damsel in need of saving. She didn’t need anyone’s help. “Bye now”, she said, pressing her lips together tightly. Suddenly, she felt a tug on the sleeve of her shirt, and turned around to see a rather disgusting, rock-like, muscly creature, no taller than a pre-teen. “I’m Ted”, it said, holding out it’s hand expectantly. “Payment please.” She flared her nostrils at the creature, her eyes traveling down to its feet. Crocs. Practical, sure, but choosing practicality over socially acceptable footwear felt lazy, in some way. “No thank you”, she said, forcing a tight smile. She started to continue to walk on, intending on ignoring it, when she felt a strong, hard hand on her shoulder, holding your back. “You must pay the toll to cross Ted’s bridge.”
Was that woman really about to go through a bridge that wasn’t there the day before? Was she not scared at all? Everything else being creepy in town, as she put it, didn’t make it any better. Nicole wasn’t telling the woman to avoid it all, she was just looking out for her, in this one particular occasion, and –it bore repeating– because that bridge had come out of fucking nowhere. But fine, whatever, if that was so unreasonable then it was pointless to argue. Fuming on the way to her vehicle, it was a third voice that stopped her in her tracks. Brow furrowed tightly as she turned around, it took her a moment to notice the small, odd looking thing that had appeared before the stranger. Was that the troll? She supposed it wasn’t so bad then. The woman looked annoyed by the company, though she had looked annoyed since she stumbled upon her, so that wasn’t new. Nicole saw it first, and– how the fuck? she wasn’t sure. As the stranger had shrugged off the little troll and continued on her walk, a sturdier creature appeared. And yeah, that looked like a troll, Nicole agreed. “Hey, hey!” she called, rushing back to the bridge, coming between the creature and the woman. She removed the rocky hand from her shoulder, glancing up at the troll. Shit, it looked bigger upfront. “Don’t– uh, what’s uh…what would be the problem here?”
The words You Must rang in Vic’s ear’s like a bell, stopping her in her tracks. There were no pleasantries, no request implied at the creature’s words. It made her blood boil. She spent her whole life adhering to other people’s demands and musts and have-tos. But if this little rock-turd thought she’d bend so easily, it had another thing coming. She turned back around, her nostrils flaring in annoyance. She was ready to tell the thing off, and maybe give it a nice kick to the groin, when she noticed in the time she looked away, the creature had somehow grown at least three feet. Wait- what? Somehow it’s face had changed, too? She glared at Nicole, using her head to gesture to Ted. Or Ted’s business partner… she wasn’t sure. “This...Ted here seems to think he can charge for walking on public property.” She looked over to the new Ted who nodded in confirmation, holding out his hand. He seemed to be particularly interested in their feet, for some reason.
Why did she always feel compelled to put herself in dangerous situations, despite knowing damn well she should be smarter than that? It was too late to reflect on it now, as Nicole was stuck between the woman and the troll.“Ted…?” she repeated dumbly, looking up at the troll. She wasn’t sure the name fit. And when both rocky figures smiled in acknowledgement, her confusion only grew. She opened her mouth a few times, trying to remember how words worked. In the meantime, she pushed the woman behind, putting some distance between them and the creatures. Just in case they had to make a quick exit. “Alright, uh, how…how much is that then?” there was no need to antagonize the creatures, if they had to pay, they would. She had some money in her truck. It’d be fine. The little troll seemed delighted to get the conversation back on track. “Payment, please” this time, its little hand pointed at their feet. “Yeah… but how much?” Nicole insisted, looking down at the cobblestones. “I’m not following…” She expected a bag to throw her money in, but all she saw were her boots. “Socks, please. Need to pay the toll to cross” it said, in a more demanding tone.
Vic huffed, angry and annoyed, as the creatures continued to look at her and the other woman expectantly. Like they owed them something. “We’re not paying them”, she said firmly, speaking low enough that the woman could hear them but not the rock creatures. There was no doubt she could afford whatever fee they were demanding. She could probably cover both of their fees, but it was such a preposterous notion that she refused to partake in it. As their feet were pointed to, Vic looked down at her shoes. They were classy and practical, albeit a bit uncomfortable, not that she’d ever say that out loud. She glanced at the woman, holding her eyes for a second before looking back at the rock creatures. For a moment, she let the silence linger, waiting for the other shoe to drop, so to speak. But when it was clear that the personified rocks weren’t joking, and a strange man yelling with a camera wasn’t going to come out to reveal they were being pranked, her face twisted into one of disgust.
“Oh, disgusting, no! We are not participating in whatever freaky stuff you’re into”, she spat, practically curling into herself. “We’re leaving. You may not sniff our socks, not under any circumstances”
She misheard, for sure. Between the woman complaining next to her and the troll getting increasingly adamant in his request, her ears got confused. Nicole chose to believe a mix-up occurred, somehow, before accepting that the real payment to cross the bridge wasn’t money, but socks. “Ah…hmm” she joined the other woman in her silence, awaiting clarification or better yet, a punchline to this very strange joke. She studied the tall Ted’s face, expecting the crack that served as a mouth to reveal a playful smile. But nothing. The woman beside her was faster to accept their fate. And unfortunately for Nicole, she was ready to voice her revolt. “Wait…let’s not— let’s not upset the…the” she looked up, unsure whether to call it a monster would be a good idea, “let’s not anger Ted”. She held her hands up, letting out a nervous breath. “We’ll go then, I’m sorry for the— we can take another road, shouldn’t... uh, shouldn’t be a problem”.
But Nicole only took a few steps back before something hit her shin. She winced, her head whipped just in time to see the smaller Ted now aim a sharp rock at the other woman's ankles. They were leaving their bridge, wasn’t that enough? A third figure just as imposing as the other Ted appeared on the other end of the bridge, blocking their exit. Eyes widening in alarm, she turned to the other woman. “Hey, uh… it’s just a sock, really” she never imagined she’d have to make a case for it, but Nicole wanted to leave the bridge in one piece.
Vic shot a look toward the other woman, questioning and confused. She shook her head. “No… we’re not… we’re not coddling these assholes because they’ve decided they own public property. That’s not how this works.” She turned her head to the creatures, just to make sure they were listening. For a moment, she thought about turning this around and charming the shit out of them. It wouldn’t have been too hard, probably. She had centuries of experience making people think she was more likable than she really was, just to betray them in the end.
But then something sharp and deliberate hit her ankles.
She turned like a whip toward the ‘Ted’ creature, seething. “Are you out of your mind?!” Now they were using violence to get what they wanted? “No.. are you… what?” she looked toward the other woman again, not realizing how much she had backed up into her. “This is about more than just a sock. Where’s your dignity?” She huffed looking at the other creature again. Despite it’s rock like exterior, it was rather small. “I think we could take them”, she whispered. “Just a good kick, and then we run, with our socks and our pride. How many kickboxing classes have you taken?”
“They’re rock assholes…” Nicole hissed, letting frustration get the best of her. None of this would’ve happened if the stranger had accepted to get in her truck. “Rock assholes… have you noticed?” The creature on the other side of the bridge continued to approach, forcing her to back into the other woman. Another rock hit her shin and she huffed. Fuck it. She lowered her hand, ready to kneel and untie her boot, when the woman’s voice cut through the air. “My…” Her dignity? She would have blushed. She would’ve, if they weren’t dealing with two giant rock monsters and the little pest throwing rocks at them. “Too late for that, I think. Don’t wanna risk it, not when I’m sure they can bench press us”. Another rock was thrown at them so she kicked it away, landing on the small Ted’s head. “Socks!” his growl prompted the other two to corner them even further.
At least they were patient enough for them to come up with an exit plan, Nicole had to give them that.
“Are you… you wanna break ur leg?” brow furrowed deeply, she turned to the woman. Out of her mind. But fuck, Nicole was nothing if not a team player. She would run if she was told to. “What? kickboxing classes? Zero. None… I could— I can— I have some… strength. I could shove it” she examined the troll closest to them, searching for the best place to hit. In turn, he extended a formless hand at them. Right, socks. “Look. We’ll be faster than them. Kick one… I’ll uh, I’ll shove the other. At least it’ll distract them. And… and— run to the truck. I’ll get us out of here, okay?” she whispered, though she doubted the trolls could follow her fast speech. “On three. One,two…”
“They’re men. We can’t let them win”, Vic spat back. They were cornered now, their backs pressed against each other’s with nowhere else to turn. Rocks continued to pelt at her legs, and the rock men were getting more and more bold with the height of their throws. “Oh please, it’s not going to get to that point”, she assured. In another situation, she might have been quietly amused at the thought of such odd creatures bench pressing two grown women. But not when she was one of the women in question.
She turned her head at the question, looking at the other woman with slight annoyance. “I appreciate your concern, but my leg will be fine, sweetheart.” She nodded, her eyes squinting at the creatures in front of her. “A shove”, she whispered. “Obvious choice, but it should do just fine.” Kick and run, jump into the truck, and then buy the poor girl dinner or something- it sounded like a good plan.
She reared back to kick, ready to mash that fucker in the face. Her focus was already on the path ahead of her, ready to run, so she hadn’t anticipated the stone hand that reached out to stop her foot, seamlessly grabbing her ankle. She looked down at it, shocked as it pulled off her shoe without a second thought.
Was it wrong for her not to care whether men won or not? Maybe Nicole should’ve felt guilty, not supporting the cause and all but fuck— why was this woman assigning gender to rocks? The more they were cornered, the more she wanted to yell at her to stop focusing on the wrong things. To see what was in front of her. The pet name rubbed Nicole all the wrong ways and left her wondering if she should root against this woman as she was about to face these creatures. Just so she could be humbled. Instead of arguing back, she nodded, satisfied the woman at least approved of her plan. She watched her as she prepared, eyes meeting briefly before she started counting.
Three. They both charged towards their enemies, both suffering similarly terrible outcomes. When the creature countered her shove, she stumbled and fell to the ground. Winded by the action, she kept her gaze fixed on the black sky before she managed to breathe enough air into her lungs to roll to the side. It looked like her ally was having her shoe ripped off. Nicole didn’t resist as a rocky hand gripped her ankle, in fact she helped it by kicking the heel of her boot with her other leg. Again, she had no interest in dignity. One shoe down, she scrambled to her feet. Now it was the time to run, when the trolls thought they had the upper hand. She seized the woman's wrist and yanked her to her truck. If the trolls followed, she did not know. She just ran to safety.
This was absolutely not working out how Vic had intended it to. She thought about how pathetic she must have looked- foot in the air and surrendered to a man made of rock who shared a name with more men made out of rock. And after this particular Ted stole her shoe, he waved in the air at her in a taunting manner. Without warning, the other woman’s hand was on her wrist, pulling her toward safety and away from the bridge and it’s rock bitches. “I was just going to…” As she protested, she noticed, with great disdain, that her other shoe slipped off as she was running. She heard a gruff laugh over the sloshing of mud beneath her socked feet and she turned back to give the creatures one last hateful glare. “Ted always gets their payment”, the one who stole her shoe called after her. The smallest one was picking up the one she discarded, and the third was holding both of the other woman’s as well. Great. So now they were both leaving with no dignity and muddy socks. She looked down at her feet when they reached the woman’s truck, a humiliating sight staring back at her. Without much warning, she looked over at the other woman sheepishly. “Now… I don’t want any I-told-you-so’s. We’d feel much worse if we went down without a fight.”
Any other time Nicole would have admired the sheer audacity of this woman. Instead, she was frustrated by her unwillingness to admit her mistake. No, she definitely would’ve preferred no fight. “Just get in the fucking truck” she pleaded as they reached the vehicle. Once they were both inside, Nicole put the truck in reverse with the intention of finding another way home. It did briefly cross her mind to just slam the pedal and ram her truck into the trolls, though. Just a fleeting, anger induced thought. Her judgment was still clouded by her heart pounding loudly in her ears. By her side however, the woman appeared completely composed. She couldn’t even pick up a heartbeat. Jesus, how was this woman so fucking calm after dealing with the trolls?
Nicole drove in silence for a few minutes. In part, because she was in search of a better road. In part, because she wasn't sure she wanted to start a conversation. She clenched her jaw, swallowing her frustration and anger towards this woman. The only thing that mattered was that they were safe from the trolls. The blaming game was pointless. Maybe that had been lesson enough for the woman. She exhaled deeply, letting herself cool down. She knew she had made the right decision when, after another moment of silence, she was able to speak without a hint of bitterness. “Where do I drop you off?”
Vic raised her eyebrows at the woman’s forwardness, and she followed her instructions with an amused smirk. The woman beside her seemed tense still, but Vic was just glad the whole ordeal was over. She tried to avoid glancing down at her feet, lest the humiliation of wearing wet, dirty socks in a stranger’s car take over her body for good. A stranger- … she realized that despite going through… whatever it was they just went through together, they had yet to be properly introduced. “You may call me Vic”, she said out of nowhere as they drove. She wasn’t sure she expected a response from the other woman, because she still seemed incredibly on edge about the ordeal. She looked over to her, and then down at the woman’s own wet socks. Was it uncomfortable to drive in wet socks? She’d never tried before.
She felt bad, in a way, because it had been partially her decision that led to both of them losing their shoes. It must have been more comfortable to drive in shoes with no socks than with no shoes and wet socks. “Umm… to the drive through, please”. She turned back to watch the road before the woman reacted, but part of her hoped she was excited at the prospect of eating something. They drove in relative silence, because truthfully, what was there to say? Maybe she was already plotting her revenge for the rock men in lieu of making conversation. As they pulled up to the drive through, she reached into her wallet and pulled out a hundred dollar bill. “I’m not hungry, you should order something”, she said, stuffing the bill into her hand. “And… use the rest for some new shoes, I suppose. Or maybe to get your dog a new toy.” She thought she had smelled a slight scent of dog when they were on the bridge, but it was much more evident in the woman’s car. “I mean… cause I can see the hairs, of course. Do you need to borrow my vacuum?”
“Vic” Nicole nodded when this woman introduced herself, but was reluctant as always to give out her own name. She kept her eyes on the road, silent for a minute. “Nicole” she mumbled, wishing she had turned on the radio to avoid the awkward silence. As Vic told her where she was headed, she frowned. How did that work, did she live by a drive-through? Or was she really considering a meal after everything? Actually— “The drive through…” she repeated slowly, and it almost got a laugh out of her. She wasn’t sure if food was the best consolation, but Nicole was hungry. It had been hours since she had left work. She shot a glance at the passenger seat, contemplating. Maybe this was Vic’s attempt at making amends. And in that case, it was only right to let her, no? “Just… any drive through” she shrugged, not waiting for clarification before turning left. She would stop by the first drive-through she came across.
A short time later, they were in line for one of those fast food chains Nicole had barely visited before. She tapped her thigh while they waited, taken aback when Vic shoved a bill in her hand, claiming she was actually not hungry. “Uh…” She glanced down then back to Vic, who was looking out the window. She didn’t need this woman’s money. She would’ve fought her on it, except she remembered the trolls, and the fact that she was now shoeless because of them. Because Vic tried to fight them. Fine. “Hmm? No, no— it’s alright. I have my own” she would’ve liked to touch on the implication that Vic appeared to own a dog as well, but she was still surprised by the money in her hands to change the subject. The car in front of them moved, which meant they were next.
Nicole wasn't good at blurting out an order under pressure. Not if she didn’t know the menu. Not without rehearsing first. As a result, she ended up ordering all five burgers displayed on the banner, regardless of the ingredients. Plus, the extra fries. And the giant soda. “Alright, you happy?” she turned to Vic —half embarrassed, half exasperated— while they waited for the food to be ready. “I really do want to drop you off at your place after this. I don’t— I’m not sure you’ll resist scrapping with other monsters on your own” she let out a weary sigh. “So please… where to?”
Although Nicole seemed unsure at first, Vic was glad she didn’t put up a fight about the money. She was too tired after their encounter to argue, although that didn’t mean she wouldn’t if the situation called for it. She wondered if she might have enjoyed something like a drive through if she was ever given the opportunity, before chiding herself for thinking about something so fruitless. She didn’t have much time to think about it, though, because before long Nicole was ordering practically the whole menu. She looked at the woman with a mix of confusion and pride, her eyebrows raising with amusement. “Those bridge rocks must have taken a lot out of you”, she commented, wondering if she should have given Nicole more money.
After the drive through, Vic gave Nicole vague directions to where she lived. She gave a drop off point close enough that it wouldn’t take her hours to walk home but far enough that an almost stranger would have access to her front door. It wouldn’t have mattered, really, because she was pretty sure she and Nicole were now friends, anyway. Or close to it. At least the drive wouldn’t take Nicole too far out of her way. Their drive was filled with relative silence, besides Nicole’s random sips of her comically large drink, or the off huff from Vic when she glanced down at her feet. And even though she lost her shoes, Vic had kept her dignity and gained an almost friend, and the small smile on her face when she opened her front door than night was much more telling than the muddy tracks her feet left.