Chapter 2
“You had quite a night, huh?”
Lexa looks up at Bellamy who is standing behind the counter of his little coffee shop.
“What do you mean?”
He points at the pile of newspapers to his right and proceeds to make her coffee.
Lexa grabs the first paper and stares at her own face. Costia is smiling into the camera, her arm around Lexa’s waist and Lexa herself … frowns. Great.
The headline is “The actress and her moody writer”. That’s what she is now? Costia’s plus one?
She sighs which makes Bellamy look at her.
“What?”
“Nothing. It’s just that you do not look like you had a blast which is … terribly sad considering that you spent the night with one of the most beautiful women at a prestigious movie premiere.”
He hands her the coffee.
“Do you want anything else? You look like you could use something sweet.”
Before she can answer Lexa hears the door open behind her. It has a little bell on it that makes a sound like Tinkerbell just entered the room. She smiles at the thought and as she turns around she almost drops her coffee cup.
The woman who entered is about her age. She has blonde hair that is in a neat ponytail while Lexa’s hair has decided to be all over the place today. Her eyes are so blue that Lexa has to think about the sky and the ocean simultaneously which makes her head spin and she smiles again.
The woman smiles back and Lexa blushes just a little bit.
“Hey Clarke! The usual?”
“Yes, please.”
Her voice sounds astoundingly raspy and it sends a shiver down Lexa’s spine.
What is happening?
She looks at the woman, Clarke, and notices the cane in her hand. As she walks in Lexa can see that she is limping like her left leg doesn’t fully support her weight and she leans on the cane instead. It’s black and wooden and has a silver knob and Lexa thinks it looks badass.
She blushes some more and feels Bellamy’s eyes on her.
“Clarke, sit down for a sec, will ya? I need to get some espresso beans. You, too, Lexa. I’ll get your Danish the moment I get back. By the way: Clarke, this is Lexa.”
He leaves and Lexa is still standing in front of the counter with her coffee cup in her hands. Clarke walks the few steps to one of the three tables in the room and sits down. She puts the cane and her messenger bag next to her and looks up at Lexa who is still staring. She smiles.
“Care to join me?”
Lexa hesitates for a second, but Clarke still smiles at her and so she walks over and sits down across from her.
“Hi.”
“Hi.”
They are both silent after that and Lexa feels the smile crawl up her face again.
Clarke studies her like it’s the natural thing to do and for some reason it isn’t awkward.
It just is.
Lexa looks up.
“Do you come here often?”
Clarke bursts out laughing and Lexa blushes.
Okay, a writer should probably come up with a better pick-up line.
“I am sorry. That sounded kinda weird.”
Clarke grins at her.
“It’s fine. It’s pretty early and from what I see you haven’t had your coffee yet, so I guess the conversation can only improve.”
Lexa looks at the cup that is still in her hand and takes a sip of coffee. It’s still hot.
She looks back at Clarke and smiles.
“Let me try again. Hi, I am Lexa. It’s nice to meet you, Clarke. How do you know Bellamy?”
Clarke smiles back at her.
“Hi Lexa. Bellamy’s my best friend’s brother and yes, I come here often. But I haven’t seen you here before.”
“That’s because I only moved to New York a few months ago and this …” Lexa looks at her watch and nods. “… is usually not my time.”
“You’re not a morning person?”
“Not really.”
“So, how come you’re here now?”
“I couldn’t sleep.”
She looks at Clarke and wonders why it is so easy talking to her.
Normally Lexa is better with the written word.
Bellamy comes back from his storage room and fills the coffee grinder with beans. When he starts it the room is filled with noise and the smell of fresh coffee. Lexa takes a deep breath and watches Clarke do the same. A few minutes later Bellamy places a Danish in front of her and a to-go cup in front of Clarke.
The woman smiles at him and gets up.
“Can you put it on my tab?”
“Sure thing. I’ll see you tonight, right?”
“Right.”
Bellamy hugs her and gets back behind the counter.
Clarke turns to face Lexa and extends her hand.
“It was nice meeting you, Lexa. Maybe we run into each other again?”
Lexa gets up, too, and shakes her hand. It’s warm and she has a firm grip.
“I hope so.”
Did she just say that?
Clarke smiles and her eyes linger on Lexa’s for a second before she walks to the door.
At the counter she stops.
“Bell, can I take one of the papers?”
“Sure.”
“Thanks.”
She takes the paper on top, the one with Lexa’s face on it, and puts it into her bag without looking at it. Lexa freezes. It’s not only her face. It’s her and Costia.
She thinks about saying something, but she doesn’t know what the appropriate thing would be so she keeps silent. For someone who writes for a living she really is bad with words.
Before she leaves Clarke turns her head one last time and smiles. Lexa knows that the image will stay with her for the rest of her day. She looks after her until Clarke turns a corner and is out of sight.
“Do you like your Danish?”
“Huh?”
She looks up and sees that Bellamy is grinning again. She rolls her eyes at him and takes a bite of the pastry. It gives her time to think.
“So Clarke is your sister’s friend?”
“How do you know I have a sister?”
“I guessed.”
“You guessed right.”
She nods.
“What is wrong with her leg?”
Bellamy props his arms onto the counter and looks at her.
“She was in a car accident when she was 17. Her knee was smashed and her father died.”
“Oh.”
Lexa looks concerned and Bellamy studies her. He likes her. She’s silent most of the time, but she is always nice and she gives him tips.
He knows who she is of course. He reads a lot and the stuff Lexa writes is good. He likes crime novels and Lexa’s are the only ones he hasn’t figured out after a chapter or two.
Maybe he should ask her to sign them for him.
“What are you up to tonight?”
Lexa spaced out for a second so when Bellamy asks his question she doesn’t answer right away and he keeps on talking.
“I mean, you probably have things to do, movie stars to date … stuff like that, but if you don’t: Yesterday was my birthday and I’m throwing a little party.”
Lexa looks at him.
“And you’re inviting me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Why?”
He laughs at the question.
“You’ve been coming here for five weeks now and I guess, I like you. You’re always nice and I have a feeling that you do not know too many people in New York yet.”
She considers his words and knows that he is right. She doesn’t know too many people.
“Clarke will be there …”
He says it casually, but his words linger in the room and Lexa feels herself blush again.
“So?”
He smiles.
“Just saying.”
Lexa gets up and walks over to him.
“Are you sure you’re friends won’t find it weird?”
“Why would they? They are nice people. You’ll like them.”
He takes a piece of paper and writes down his address.
“It’s right around the corner. I don’t want presents, but you can bring beer if you’d like.”
She looks at the paper in his hand and hesitates, but in the end it is an easy choice and she takes is.
“Thank you, Bellamy.”
He smiles at her.
“You’re welcome.”
-----------------------------
“I thought, we could hang out.”
“I told you that I have to work.”
“You work all the time, Lex.”
“Yes, just like you will, when you’re shooting your movie.”
Lexa sighs and tries not to roll her eyes at the phone that is on speaker.
She is typing on her keyboard while she speaks and she guesses that Costia can hear the clicking sound the keys make.
“That’s exactly my point. I am leaving for Mexico in a week and I want to spend some time with you before that.”
Lexa sighs again.
“Listen, Costia, I have a deadline that I intend to keep. Also, I have been invited to a birthday party …”
“A party? Can I come?”
Costia sounds excited.
“No.”
Lexa’s answer comes too fast and she holds her breath for a moment.
“Why not?”
Costia sounds defensive now.
“Because it’s a small party and I don’t know anyone, but the host. It’s my chance to get to know some people.”
“And you think that having your actress girlfriend tag along diminishes your chances to get to know people?”
Girlfriend? Since when is Costia her girlfriend?
“Yes.”
“Okay …”
Lexa sighs for a third time.
“Listen, Cos, I really need to get this chapter done or Anya is going to kill me. If you want to we can have dinner tomorrow. Is that okay?”
There is a small pause and she tries to finish the sentence she has been typing.
“Dinner means takeout at your place, right?”
This time it’s Costia who’s sighing.
Lexa looks at the phone.
“I was under the impression you wanted to spend quality time with me so what does it matter?”
“It matters, because you need to get out of the house once in a while. Have a life.”
“Going out with you means photographers, Cos. It’s not like we’d have an intimate date night.”
She hears Costia's laughter.
“Well, Lex, if intimate is what you’re going for then takeout it is.”
-----------------------------
It’s nine o’clock when Lexa arrives at the address Bellamy has given her. She looks at the house and back at the paper in her hand. It’s a brownstone, a beautiful one. She wonders how he can afford to live here.
She puts the paper in her jeans pocket and carries her two six-packs of beer up the stairs to the door. There is only one name on the doorbell.
Blake. So Bellamy really lives alone in a huge brownstone. She’ll have to ask him for his investment adviser’s name.
Lexa rings the bell and a minute later a woman opens the door. She is a little younger than Lexa is, with brown hair and intense eyes. She looks a little like Bellamy, but scarier, and when she sees her she looks … disappointed.
Lexa smiles at her anyway.
“Hi! I’m Lexa. Bellamy invited me.”
The woman still looks at her like she is considering if she should let her in.
There are footsteps in the hall and Bellamy appears.
“Lexa! Hi! I see, you met my sister?”
He grins.
“Octavia, be nice and let Lexa come in.”
Octavia’s eyes last on her for one more second, then she smiles.
“I am sorry. Of course.”
She opens the door a little more and turns to leave.
Lexa wonders what this was all about.
Bellamy grins even more.
“I’m sorry, Lexa. O is a little weird today. She was hoping her boyfriend might make a surprise visit, but he hasn’t shone up yet. He’s in the army and he’s supposed to arrive back home today.”
He looks at the six-packs.
“You brought gifts?”
Lexa smiles at him.
“Yes. Happy belated birthday, I guess.”
He takes the beer and tells her to follow her.
The house is even more beautiful on the inside. Everything is carefully restored and the furniture is a mixture of modern and secondhand. She likes it a lot.
“Do you live here alone?”
Bellamy stops before he enters the main room.
“No, I live here with O. It’s our parents house. They left it to us when they died.”
“I am sorry.”
He smiles.
“Don’t be. It was ages ago.”
He turns around and enters the living room.
“Welcome to the party.”
There are a lot of people in the living room. Lexa counts about fifty and there seem to be even more in the kitchen. She looks around and soon realizes that she doesn’t know anyone. Bellamy leaves to put the beer into the fridge and Lexa is standing in a room full of strangers. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.
“We meet twice in one day … Is this becoming a pattern?”
Lexa almost feels Clarke’s breath on her neck and it makes her shiver and smile at the same time. She turns around to face the woman.
“You tell me.”
She grins and so does Clarke.
“So, are you and Bell buddies now?”
“I don’t know if that’s the case, but he was kind enough to invite me, so ...”
Clarke looks at her with amusement.
“So he likes you. That’s something. He may be nice to everyone, but it takes him a little to really warm up to someone.”
She looks across the room. There is a free spot on the sofa.
“Follow me!”
She grabs Lexa’s wrist and pulls her with her.
The sofa is an old Chesterfield. Lexa loves it at first sight. They sit down and Clarke introduces her to the other people who were lucky enough to find a spot to sit.
There is Octavia, whom Lexa already met, but there also are a few other people.
“Guys, this is Lexa. Lexa meet Octavia, Monty, Jasper and Raven.”
They all smile at her and nod their heads.
Monty is a kind looking asian guy and seems to be good friends with Jasper who’s tall and slim and looks a little shy.
Raven on the other hand seems to anything, but shy. She stares at Lexa and raises an eyebrow.
“You’re Lexa Woods.”
Lexa looks at her.
“That is my name, yes.”
“As in the writer Lexa Woods.”
“Yes.”
Now Octavia is staring at her, too.
“Lexa Woods? Bellamy has all of your books. He loves them.”
“Does he?”
“Hell, yes!”
Lexa looks back to where the kitchen is.
“He never mentioned that.”
“Maybe he has a crush on you and that’s why he didn’t say anything.”
Raven grins at her and Lexa shakes her head.
“I doubt that.”
“Why?”
The girl is relentless.
“Because he knows that I am gay.”
She feels that Clarke is looking at her, but she doesn’t seem to be surprised.
“Lexa, I brought you a beer.”
Bellamy holds out the bottle and raises his eyebrows when everyone starts to laugh at him.
–---
“Do you regret it yet?”
“What?”
Clarke laughs at her.
“Coming here.”
Lexa shakes her head.
“No.”
She’s on her third beer by now and starts to feel pleasantly drunk. Clarke is still sitting next to her and once the awkward interrogation was done Lexa found out that Bellamy’s friends really are a nice bunch.
Octavia is still intense, but Lexa kind of likes her. She is working at a martial arts studio and Lexa makes a mental note to hire her should she ever be in need of a bodyguard. Monty owns a small computer company and Jasper is freelancing in what seems to be everything from barista to dog walker.
Raven is the most interesting of the four though. She has a degree from the MIT and is working with NASA. She has a brace on her left leg that looks like high-tech and when she catches Lexa looking at it she just smiles.
“I was mugged and caught a bullet. This is my souvenir.”
She doesn’t look like she wants Lexa to pity her so she just nods.
“Does it hurt?”
“No. I can’t feel it at all.”
Another nod.
“At least Clarke and I bonded over physical therapy.”
Lexa makes it a point of not looking at Clarke, but she feels Clarke’s eyes on her.
They haven’t talked much, mainly because Lexa is a little afraid she might make a fool of herself. But right now, after her third beer it might just be the time.
“So, Clarke, what do you do?”
“In general or job-wise?”
Lexa smiles.
“Both.”
“I am a doctor. But when I am not treating people’s colds I paint.”
“So you’re an artist?”
Clarke laughs.
“Well, I dabble.”
“She does more than dabble. She’s a fucking genius.”
Raven leans forward and looks at Lexa.
“We all tell her to stop with the people saving already and become the next van Gogh.”
Clarke laughs at her.
“He was depressed and cut his ear off.”
“But!” Raven points her finger at Clarke. “The man could paint.”
Lexa grins at both of them. She has fun. Who would have guessed?
She leans back and looks across the room. It’s still crowded, but it’s getting late and a few people have gone home. There is some soft music playing and Lexa feels nice.
This, all of this is nice.
“So, you and Costia Ortiz …”
Well, it was nice for as long as it lasted.
She looks up and sees that Jasper is watching her.
“What about us?”
“Is she your girlfriend? I mean, I read the paper today and you were with her at her premiere, so … I guess … I am just wondering.”
Lexa realizes that Clarke is looking at her, too. Again, she doesn’t seem surprised.
“Costia and I have only known each other for a few weeks. She is nice and I like to hang out with her, but that’s about it.”
Jasper looks at her with wide eyes.
“But … she’s Costia Ortiz!”
Lexa can’t help, but smile.
“I do realize that.”
“She’s like … the up and coming movie star!”
“Another fact that I am well aware of.”
She is laughing now, because Jasper clearly is drunk. He falls back into the armchair he is sitting in.
“Damn! Costia Ortiz.”
Lexa looks at Clarke who is watching her with her eyebrows raised.
“There is a lot more to you than you let on this morning.”
Lexa smiles and nods.
“Why don’t you let me try again: Hi! I am Lexa Woods, writer of novels, financially stable, self-proclaimed nerd, mostly awkward when it comes to talking to people, and according to the press currently dating Costia Ortiz, the movie star. It is nice to meet you.”
Clarke stares at her for a second, then she starts to laugh and gets up to get another beer.
–---
The music changes and it takes Lexa exactly four notes to recognize the song. A smile crawls up her face. She hasn’t been listening to Guns N’ Roses in a long time.
Soon the fingers of her right hand move in a familiar rhythm and she realizes that they are mimicking the pattern of the notes. Her left hand is tapping the rhythm of the chord changes.
“Sweet Child O’ Mine”. She loves that song.
She looks up and sees that Monty is looking at her hands. He seems to know what she is doing, but she still feels the need to explain.
“I used to play that song a long time ago.”
“You were in a band?”
“In high school. I played the guitar” She laughs. “I don’t think we were any good.”
He grins and nods. A second later his eyes light up like he just had the most brilliant of ideas. He looks at Bellamy, who is sitting on the floor next to him.
“Should we?”
Bellamy seems to know what he means, because he smiles and gets up, extending a hand to Lexa to pull her up, too.
“Follow me.”
She’s confused.
“Follow you where?”
He grins at her.
“Just trust me, Lexa.”
She takes his hand and sees that Jasper gets up, too. He seems excited.
“Can I come?”
Clarke is standing in front of them and looks at Bellamy. He nods.
“Sure, Princess.”
Lexa has no idea what’s going on, but she follows the boys to the hall and down a staircase to the basement. Clarke is the last one on the stairs and closes the door behind her. Lexa briefly wonders if this is how a horror story might begin, but laughs it off.
Downstairs she understands. There is a drum set in one corner of the room and on the walls there is an assortment of guitars and bass guitars.
“You guys have a band?”
Bellamy laughs.
“Well, not really. We just like to jam once in a while and I like to play the drums so I had this room soundproofed.”
Monty takes a guitar off the wall and hands it to Lexa.
It’s a Les Paul, an original, not a cheap knock-off like the one she bought when she was eighteen and still owns. She takes it and puts the guitar strap over her head.
The Les Paul is heavy, but it feels nice. She walks over to one of the amps and plugs it in.
Bellamy smiles at her.
“Would you like to try it?”
Lexa grins and nods. She is just drunk enough to want to.
She hits the switch of the amp and tunes the guitar.
Bellamy sits down behind the drums. Jasper takes a guitar and Monty is on bass.
She looks at him.
“Bass? I would have picked you for a guitar player.”
He laughs and shakes his head.
“No, I’m a rhythm guy … and I sing.”
Jasper grins.
“He’s basically Sting.”
“I wish I was.”
Monty grins, too, and walks over to the microphone.
Lexa looks at Clarke who sits on one of the big amps and watches her, smiling.
“So, are you guys just going to talk or will there be actual music?”
Bellamy laughs at her and counts till four, setting the rhythm.
Lexa’s fingers know exactly what to do. She plays the lick and smiles when the others join in. It sounds good. She missed this.
When Monty starts to sing his voice is nothing like that of Axl Rose. It’s way softer, but it sounds nice. In the second chorus Lexa walks over to the mic and joins in.
The guitar solo is exactly as she remembers. It’s soft and a little sad and melodic at first and turns into a hard rock thing a little later. She grins when she realizes that she’s nodding her head to the rhythm and her ponytail loosens. She closes her eyes and just gives into the music.
When they finish she hears applause. She looks up and sees Clarke, but also most of the other party guests. She doesn’t know when they joined them, but she doesn’t care. She feels the adrenaline kicking in her veins and she realizes how much she missed feeling like this.
This alive.
“So, you’re not only a writer, but a rock star, too?”
Clarke looks at her with a smile and it makes Lexa’s stomach flutter.
“I don’t think I am. There are like five songs that I know.”
“Well, I can tell you, you definitely have this one down.”
–---
It is almost 3 a.m. when Lexa decides that is is time to leave.
Clarke is still sitting next to her on the couch, talking to Raven, and Lexa doesn’t know if she should ask her for her number. She really wants to, but she has never been good at this.
She takes a look at her watch and gets up.
“Guys, I think it’s time for me to go. It was nice meeting all of you.”
Bellamy stands up, too.
“Maybe we can all hang out again? Or maybe you’d like to jam again some time?”
He looks at her.
“Maybe if you gave me your number ...”
Raven grins.
“See?! He has a crush on you.”
“I do not!”
Bellamy blushes and looks at Lexa like he just insulted her.
“I mean … it’s not like there would be anything wrong with you ...”
Lexa laughs at him.
“It’s fine, Bellamy. You don’t have to be embarrassed. There are a million people who don’t have a crush on me. Give me your phone.”
He does and she types in her number.
Now it’s Clarke’s turn to get up.
“I’ll go, too. See you guys tomorrow.”
She picks up her cane and her bag and looks at Lexa.
“Care to walk me out?”
Lexa simply nods and Bellamy sits down again.
“Bye guys.”
“Bye.”
–---
It is cold outside and Lexa pulls up her scarf.
Clarke tries to get the strap of her bag over her head, but it gets caught.
Before she can strangle herself Lexa is there to help her, her fingers briefly touching the skin on her neck and it makes Clarke hold her breath.
She looks at her.
“I would like to see you again.”
“Me, too.”
It is as simple as that, but also as complicated.
Lexa smiles.
“Will you give me your number?”
“Should I? You’re dating a movie star.”
“I do.”
Lexa looks at her. Clarke’s eyes are the blue ocean.
“… But it’s complicated.”
All of a sudden Clarke leans in and kisses her cheek.
Her lips leave a burning mark on Lexa’s skin.
“Well, I guess you will have to sort that out then.”
Clarke grabs her cane with newfound resolve and walks down the stairs.
On the ground level she looks back at Lexa who is still standing on top.
“You know where to find me.”
She smiles at her and leaves.
Lexa stays on the top of the stairs, dumbfounded, watching Clarke until she rounds the next corner, vanishing out of Lexa's sight. It is only then that she remembers to breathe.