Two
The clock read 4:58pm. Lexa sat on her bed desperately wishing that she could leave the room and escape to her sweet, sweet freedom. Four hours had passed since her lovely, kind older sibling cornered her in the kitchen of their temporarily shared home. Lexa had walked through the front door, then placing her keys on the nearby counter when she felt a sudden force take her by surprise. Soon after, the then, unknown force, strongly steered her in direction of her bedroom barricading her in, and thus here Lexa was suffering unjustly at the hands of Anya.
“Please explain why I am doing this again?” Lexa groaned. Her head was pounding, aching beyond the possible bounds of an ache. She couldn’t comprehend how one could seamlessly pass time by solving the greatest puzzle in life called, “Mix and Match” aka “The Clothes Game.” Literally. For the past four hours, Anya has held her captive as she rummaged through Lexa’s closet piecing together outfit after outfit only to reject them and start over. Tonight was supposed to be a relaxed night. It was sister night, not party night.
“Because the devil-kitty sunk its claws into me. Tell me why you refused unbearable cuteness of a dog?” Anya rummaged through Lexa’s drawers tossing aside dweebish tees such as Marvel and DC. She was one of the rare few who knew The Lexa Woods: a giant nerd, the queen of geekdom, nerd world. “Lex, you haven’t left the office once this week. Chill out, lay back, let your spirit run freely! Tonight is the perfect opportunity to do just that!”
Lexa’s annoyed look deepened to a scowl. Anya seemed to glean each and every semblance of joy that she could from moments like this; her swift rise in demeanor, the light shade that colored her face. She relished the seldom opportunities to exercise her sisterly power by showing Lexa she knew something was up, making Lexa constantly try to de-puzzle the mystery of what exactly she knew. “I still don’t understand. By the way wasn’t tonight supposed to be a night with only the two of us?” Lexa bore her eyes into the other woman’s. “You, yourself, said this and swore on our mother’s grave.”
“See Lex,” Anya drawled, “that’s where your wrong. I did not swear on mother’s grave. Besides, this isn’t going to be just any relaxed night out. I promise you won’t regret this.” She catapulted a leather black jacket, stormy-grey tee, black legging combo at her idiot sister. “Get changed.”
Lexa dramatically rolled her eyes as she shifted onto her stomach near the foot of the bed. Anya and her theatrics. She tended to over exaggerate everything. Deadset. However, Lexa knew something was up. Anya knew something. She always did. Lexa was the forever clueless, frustratingly unaware of the knowledge Anya acquired. She quietly sighed as she crossed her arms below her chin.
“Hey don’t look so gloomy! Hot girls are going to be there,” Anya playfully prodded. She winked mischievously. A reliable source recently reported back to her about a particular blonde’s attendance status. “So wear what I tell you to wear and you’ll be fine!” She had to make her baby sister’s outfit scream sexy, but not in a fuck-girl way.
Lexa glanced up to the sky, she silently prayed to the karma gods to grant her the fruits of good will, and beam her far from the torturous game of dress up. She couldn’t understand the game of mix and match. What was the point of dressing then undressing a billion times? Anya was definitely diabolically planning something. “Do I really have to wear this?”
Anya glared at her idiot sister. “Of FUCKING course.”
“You know… I can get girls in my Captain America tee anytime I wanted. I got the looks, the charm, and the moves. So whyyyyy are you making me do this,” whined Lexa. She only had to stall and play the game before Anya would stumble and unintentionally drop subtle hints of her knowledge. “Tonight we would’ve curled up in our big fuzzy blankets sipping tea from our favorite mugs on the couch while watching Orange is the New Black. That’s the plan not this.”
Anya let out an exasperated groan. She gestured to the outfit she picked out. “Please go get your eyes checked Lex. I’m the hot badass, you’re the nerdy dork, so fucking change already. Next time, I guarantee you get to choose what we’re doing. Okay?”
Lexa scoffed. As far as she knew, and as obvious as it was, everyone knew she was the hotter one of the two. “Fine.”
“All I’m trying to do is help you and this is what I get in return.” Anya threw her hands up in the air in defeat. “One last time Lex. P to the fucking goddamn lease put your clothes on idot.”
Over the many years of sisterhood, Lexa has learned to love the sisterly banter. She had learned it was how Anya displayed her rare signs of affection. When they were younglings, no one could stop it. For many, they mistook it as fighting; though those did happen on occasion. She also learned that it was in these moments of banter and friendly torment that her sister found amusement and complete contentment. “Even a fool knows when to surrender.”
Anya decided to give her idiot younger sister a pass. “So who’s Blondie Lex?” She quirked a brow finally deciding to reveal her newfound information. “A little birdie flew by and chirped to me about a particular blonde you’ve been finding every excuse to go stalk at Dropship Brews. Apparently every morning you purchase your coffee, then another coffee for her and sit with her in silence patiently waiting for her to take your gift.”
Lexa shifted to a standstill, whatever stark retort squashed, hushed silence enveloping them unburdening the padlocked tension. The air became thick, suffocating. Her throat slightly constricted. It sung a quiet hum, but at the same time vociferously screamed Spill! And through all of this, she subconsciously formulated a single lone thought. Blondie. That was all her mind thought about these days. She thought she had at last purged that particular blonde from her otherwise busy brain. She didn’t understand.
Her inner self knew that Blondie had captured her wandering gaze on that fateful day that she had spilled coffee on the blonde. Her inner self had her instinctive hoe-ish tendencies on lockdown prohibiting them from breaking free of their cells. Lexa had the entire pool of New York City to shuffle through, an entire pool to handpick who she wanted, and each and every one those in the pool would say yes to her in a heartbeat. Yet, here she was she yearning for the attention of a woman who didn’t want anything to do with her.
See that is Lexa’s problem, her stupid predicament. She wasn’t accustomed to the feeling, not since Costia, her ex-girlfriend who left her because she couldn’t trust Lexa anymore. She claimed Lexa was cheating on her behind her back, resuming her old habits because she grew tired and bored of Costia. But that’s the thing, her womanizer fuckgirl tendencies were ingrained habit. Once ingrained, they are difficult to break.
Lexa admitted, she did sleep around once… twice… five times, but only because her feelings weren’t clicking in sync, they no longer reflected Costia’s. So yes, Lexa grew tired and bored. She hadn’t handled the situation properly, she should’ve confronted Costia about the latest development, discuss their future together, hope Costia would understand, and end it. But… Costia caught her in the act.
Isn’t communication and trust key to a working relationship?
A smile tugged at her lips shrugging away her time con suming thoughts. Blondie. She couldn’t quite place her.
Blondie. A smile tugged at her mouth’s edges. Blondie, the biggest mystery of her life.
What was happening to her?
Anya stared open-mouthed at her suddenly wide-eyed, toothy grinning sister. “Spill Lex! I haven’t seen you this joyful and leashed in years since Costia!” She launched a shirt at Lexa. Nothing slipped past her sharp, perceptive radar. “Is it finally happening?!”
Lexa deflected the oncoming barrage of shirt missiles defending her precious shreds of pride residing in her fort. “I… have… no…” she deflected several shirts before being pelted by two, “idea… what… you are… alluding to.”
“Is the big, bad, powerful CEO of Trikru Industries, Lexa Woods, becoming a smol-whipped bean of gushiness?” Anya mock gasped, throwing another round of shirts at the brunette. “I mean,” she did crazy hand motions at Lexa, “look at you!”
But blondie…
The drop dead gorgeous, ultrafine beaut. Her passion, her anger, her fiery persona, her love of books (hey she could potentially be a nerd). Up close at arms-length minus the rush of their prior meeting, the blonde proved herself to be even more dazzling. Her legs seemed to go on for eternity. There were no words to describe it. It was…… It was what? Lo---
---Smack! Lexa flinched, her body jerking on the borderline verge of toppling over. “What the fuck Ahn! Is there a fucking goddamn good reason why you are catapulting a fucking hailstorm of shirts at me aggressively pelting my face?”
Anya emphatically raised her hands high to the sky in prayer crying out, “Dear god, save me! My sister is finally putting an end to her shenanigans!”
Lexa groaned.
You want everyone to think your above it all but I see right through you.
Captain America Lexa. Captain America. Be Captain America!
But guess what! The world doesn’t revolve around you! It doesn’t work like that!
Only blondie possessed the guts to say that directly to her face, in a fit of rage to be exact. It was kind of hot, but more importantly, the blonde held validation. BUT IT WAS REALLY HOT. SMOKING. HOT. SEXINESS.
“Alexandria Augustus Anastasia Woods. I hereby declare you insanely whipped.” Anya analyzed at her sister’s strawberry red blush threatening to break surface.
Lexa vigorously shook her head. She pulled a pillow onto her lap, grip tightening as seconds passed. “No I—” Her futile attempt at denial failed.
A childish teenage girl crush? A meek crush? A serious infatuation?
Deadset all Lexa knew, blondie chained her to a wall in her dungeon unable to break free of her grasp. A few days and she already felt herself crashing from the skies to the ground hard following the laws of gravity to blondie. She was sex starved, wrung dry. But did she really care?
“Lex, Lex, Lex. In record time, the blonde has you halfway to whipped. Completely unheard of.” Anya flung another Doctor Who shirt at Lexa. “Three days and counting I am blessed with peace.”
“I-I-“ Lexa gave up on using the pillow as a stress ball. She tossed it to the side, then hastily tearing off her red graphic tee to conceal the blush rising to her cheeks by-product of accepting the stone cold truth: in the span of three days, blondie had her unequivocally crushing as a hormonal teenage girl would. Why else would she be wrung dry for three days? Blondie.
She desperately wanted to sink below the sheets into hiding.
“Seriously, three days of no sex Lexa. She must’ve really done a number on you.”
Blondie was going to be the death of her.
♨♨♨
Lexa slammed the slick, black, carbon fiber exterior door of Anya’s Trigeda 500, a company car perfect for tonight seating two in red pads attached to the carbon fiber tub, shut. This model was one of Trikru Industries’ best: the black roof fragment adorned by two aperture conduits and two parallel lines consisting of five holes organized by cylinder sets, hints of red shadowing. The car even had a voice activated engine and radio system.
She gazed off into space the entire twenty-five-minute car ride to SoHo, deep in dreamland.
“I said shut up.” Lexa studied the brownstone building before her. She was ashamed of her inner conscience, concocting sinful imagining of what she craved from blondie, what she desired, to enact. Blondie screaming her name in release as her thighs wrapped around her head in worship as her expert tongue flicked in and out, and her extremely long fingers achieved the G-spot time and time again. She relished Blondie’s thighs squeezing her head harder and harder, muffling surrounding ambience, but not enough to mute blondie’s sexy moans as she came. She imagined the blonde clenching around her fingers, marveling at how tight the woman was. She wanted Blondie screaming her name in an endless chant as her fingers pumped furiously in and out knuckle deep in a rut at last languidly lifting a coated finger to her lips to at last—-
“I wasn’t saying anything.” Anya smirked anew as she held her hands up in mock surrender. She wasn’t stupid. Lexa was an open book. One could basically consider Anya a mega expert on her younger sister--- obviously. Her little sister was most definitely off in lala land conjuring interactions with Clarke. If only the blonde knew what effect she had on Lexa. Anya chuckled quietly to herself. She never thought she’d live to see this day.
For each day that passed, Lexa felt a piece of her own self-resolve of keeping her emotions at bay disappear. She wanted to please Blondie in any way imaginable. She simply wanted to compensate for the horrid day she spilled her searing hot coffee onto the blonde, and of course the exchanges that took place afterwards. Lexa wanted her in a way she has never wanted anyone before. Her attempts to formulate words failed when it came to trying to talk to the blonde. The words she wished to say lodged themselves in the back of her throat too afraid to leave her mouth, so instead the instinctive public playgirl jerk persona came out. Maybe she shouldn’t speak, and communicate instead strictly through acts of kindness because she seemed to screw every encounter with Blondie up.
“So who’s hosting” Lexa tried to steer her sister to a new topic. She couldn’t shake herself free of blondie’s powerful thrall no matter how much effort she gave. She stopped fighting a long time ago. A heart wants what it wants, and right now, Lexa wanted Blondie.
Anya stared incredulously at her sister. “A close friend. You’ll meet her sooner or later.” She locked her car embarking on the journey of stairs. Understatement, Raven Reyes was her second best friend after her forever and always younger sister, Lexa. The two immediately clicked when Anya had walked into Dropship Brews for the first time. “Now or never loser,” she called behind her.
What was the blonde to Lexa now? It was a now common question she found materializing haphazardly in her mind. She knew the blonde definitely wasn’t a one-night stand type of girl. Lexa found herself yearning for more. She desired more; a relat--- no she couldn’t complete the thought. The truth: she couldn’t do it. Why? She didn’t know.
Lexa groaned. Blondie was all that she could think about forty-eight one hundred.
She followed Anya into the complex.
This party better be good.
Lexa watched Anya bang on the dainty white door, purposefully obstructing the keyhole, an evil grin spreading across her friend’s features. She thought it odd how the dirty blonde could gain joy from small malicious actions. “Who the fuck you think you are?” a familiar voice shouted from inside trying to identify the visitor in vain from the covered eye hole. She sounded slightly drunk, the borderline of tipsy. Lexa couldn’t pinpoint who the voice belonged to.
She watched her sister bubble into explosive laughter. “Reyes! It’s Anya and Lexa Woods!” Lexa slapped herself in her face. “Reyes” was Anya’s closest friend.
“Fucker!” A brunette pulled the door open, shooting Anya a chilling death stare. Her arms were angrily crossed together resting on her chest. She dressed in jeans and a red-orange baseball tee. Her eyes roamed Lexa’s figure sharply examining every minute detail as if inspecting her as if she had a test to pass. “Lexa Woods. Raven Reyes, Raven, Ray, that bitch, whatever suits you.” Raven glared at Anya again. What the hell! Your plus one is Lexa? Clarke’s Lexa?
For the past three days, Raven had suffered tremendously listening to Clarke’s raging endless rants. She had sacrificed precious seconds of her life to help her best friend. Don’t get her wrong, she loved Clarke to death and would walk to the moon and back for her, but think… all Lexa had to do was apologize and not be a dick. A single heartfelt apology and Raven’s unwarranted term of punishment would be over.
Anya, acting nonchalant, shrugged. Oops. Sorry not sorry. Who was I supposed to bring? Besides you have to witness what your dear friend, Clarkey, has reduced my sister to.
Raven narrowed her eyes in utter disbelief. Anyone but her. She moved her eyes in Lexa’s direction to emphasize her point. Clarke isn’t in the best state for this.
Anya smirked at the girl before her. Sucks.
Lexa’s eyes shifted between Raven and her best friend sensing a private conversation firing back and forth in rapid succession. Obviously it was about her. “Guys… I’m standing right here,” she spoke through the silence interrupting whatever silent conversation the two were having. “Where can I grab a beer?”
Raven glanced at the brunette, oblivious to being discovered. “The colored coolers.”
“Your friend is most definitely halfway to whipped,” mused Raven. “She bought Clarkey a Nightblood, her favorite drink at my shop courtesy of muah. Almost every day dude, she sits with my dear friend and waits for her to accept the coffee aka the peace offering: an apology of sorts.”
“So I’ve heard. You know? I do not think she has ever been like this. Ever. Not even with Costia.
Raven’s mouth gaped open in mock horror. “Seriously?”
Anya scrunched her face in a grimace. “Jeez, calm your tits, but yes, seriously. Shocking I know right?”
“Anya this is a MOTHERFUCKINGDEVELOPMENT!” Raven threw her hands up in excitement. “Our dear sexy Lexie is finally at last choosing to pursee love! Ah young love, ain’t it beautiful? We are witnessing the birthing of a legendary story of epic proportions!”
“Well then… ignore me and my simple request.” Anya started to walk away.
“We should set them up! Lexy has so painstakingly obviously found love at first sight.”
“Trust me Reyes, I think Lexa’s already trying to. What do you think I return home to every night?” Anya imitated choking. “Blondie this, blondie that, oh my fucking god BLONDIE! Hell… she dreams Griffin in her sleep. The moans, the groans, the sporadic humps underneath the covers. Dear god please save me.”
Raven snorted. “Good for Lexie!” She reached behind her for a Coors, offering the bottle to her blonde friend. “Clarke, however, refuses to interact with new people and show them the loving, caring, selfless Griffin. Niylah stole her heart, never returning it. She’s a shell Anya. A complete empty shell. But!” She held up a finger. “There’s still a chance! We cannot let this golden chance pass!”
Anya laughed, rolling her eyes. Raven Reyes was eternally the optimist. “It’s all a little too fast don’t ya think?”
“So what?! If your words are true we should encourage Lex to pursue Clarke! IT’S A WIN-WIN! It has been too many long painful months for miss stuck in her ass swirling in self-pity and sorrow. I need to get my friend back and Lexa is the key to Clarke’s heart, but my idiot best friend just doesn’t know it yet. Help a bro out?” Raven gave puppy dog eyes to Anya.
“Fine,” Anya conceded. The brunette’s plan was simply stupid and a long shot. Clarke would not be willing to open up easily, but they both knew that didn’t they?
♨♨♨
Lexa walked into the living room searching for the cooler. Her eyes scanned the room searching for familiar faces. The room was packed, the twin sliding doors to the balcony open allowing the chilled breeze to ventilate the already filled room. She shifted her eyes spotting one of the colored coolers Raven had described to her, and she nearly took off in sprint to where the booze resided.
“Lex! How ya doing?” Lincoln waved to the fast walking brunette weaving through the crowd in his direction. He stood up as she approached him. “I haven’t seen you in ages. You need to leave the bird’s nest sometimes, breathe in the fresh New York air! Loosen your uptight CEO ass.” He grinned wrapping his arms around the brunette in a solid bear hug crunching her like an older brother would. Two months have passed since he last seen his little cousin which was very unusual.
Lexa felt as if the bigger muscular man were crushing her expelling her breath from her body. She looked down discovering the red cooler next to Lincoln. She extended an arm into red cooler fishing for the proper fix. “Linc… you’re… crushing… me,” Lexa croaked out in between hard earned breaths. “Business has just… been… busy. More… than us…ual.”
Lincoln chuckled, and jokingly jested, “You could at least say: nice to see you too Linc, or Lincoln it’s so great to see you oh how I’ve missed you! But instead you greet your cousin with: you’re crushing me, and business has been busy.” He loosened his hug locking eyes with his cousin. “Lex, you’re looking good. Are you caught up on Orange is the New Black? Season four releases soon!”
“Now that you’ve released me from your constricting chamber of death, life is alright,” replied Lexa trying to wiggle her way out of the man’s hug. Lincoln was basically an adopted brother. “The office has been busier than usual because we have this big gala in a few months. It’s like a super big deal, so the company has to get this right for public reception and all that sorts,” she paused, “Oh, and Piper and Stella for the win,” she added, sole intent to rile her friend up. “They are meant to be soulmates. How about you Linc?”
“Wha— no— you — Alex and Piper are soulmates,” the muscular man stuttered, clearly too caught off guard at Lexa’s ambush opinion to respond to her question. “Alex and Piper for the win, Stella and Piper can suck my balls. Vauseman is meant to rule the galaxies of infinity and beyond! I mean… Can’t you see the way they look at each other lovingly gazing into each other’s eyes?”
“Sure. Whatever floats your boat loser.” Lexa finally wormed her way out of Lincoln’s hug. She bent down to grab a beer from the neighboring cooler. “I don’t understand Linc…”
“Understand what?”
“How can you be such as romantic and yet here your dear girlfriend, Octavia, is oblivious to this all?”
“Errrrr---”
“Cause you see…” Lexa guided her hand as if displaying a masterpiece. “I believe that you secretly watch these shows out of the house where you can indulge your hopeless romantic heart. You are romantic to Octavia and all, but why aren’t you like how you are with her like how you are when you talk and argue about ships and OTPs?”
“Lex, trust me she knows.” He chuckled. “She basks in glory collecting her loot every time she can mention my feelings towards fictional pairs to our friends and colleagues. She definitely will not let go of the time I was secretly watching Orange is the New Black at the dinner table with her parents while we were eating, and Piper and Alex were pouring their true emotions into their drama class impromptu about Piper giving Alex a bad fruit at the grocery store.” He grinned proudly. “I started to tear up because it was just so beautiful, and there Octavia was containing her explosive laughter, and asked like it was a normal question: How are Piper and Alex, Lincoln?”
“Oh god, what was your response?”
“I really started to cry then and her parents asked me: Are you at the scene were Piper and Alex make up in drama class? Lex… I was in utter shock to formulate a response.”
“I have no words for you,” Lexa laughed.
“And that is the story of Octavia Blake exposing me to her parents.”
“Exposing you how?” Anya strutted towards the two struggling to carry three shots of straight vodka.
“Tell your sister Stella and Piper aren’t possible.” Lincoln gave the dirty blonde his most pitiful, pathetic, sympathy gaining expression possible.
“Piper and Alex for the win.” Anya smirked. “Sorry Lex, soulmates over hotness. Real people over fuckgirls like how you need to get your head out of your ass.” She distributed a shot in Lexa and Lincoln’s hand. “Cheers to Piper and Alex, and connecting tv to the real world! Drink up hoes!” She raised her glass up to the ceiling.
“I cannot understand you. Stella’s super-hot,” Lexa frustratingly groaned, shaking her head. She stared her shot down.
“Asshat, suck it up and drink! Don’t be a party pooper!” Anya raised her shot to her mouth. “To Lexa and being insanely whipped!”
Lexa groaned once again, and raised her glass to her lips. “To my irritating family.”
“That’s cute, but you love us.” Anya slammed her glass onto the table, and smooched her lips together imitating kissing. “Let Lex’s sex-a-thon with Raven’s blonde friend begin.”
Lexa punched her sister, then eyed Lincoln daring him to add any snarky remarks.
“Lincoln, what’s the hold up?” a female voice barked from the studio apartment living room.
Lincoln’s face formed worry lines, tremors of fear breaking surface. “And that’s my exit cue,” said Lincoln looked in the direction of his girlfriend. “See you guys around. It was a great chat sexy Lexy,” he drawled, deciding to make a break for it before his dear cousin murdered him.
Lexa glared at her sister. “Does everyone know that nickname now?”
“Lex, you’re cheating on Dropship girl,” Anya teased, sipping her beer. “How would she feel if she heard Stella’s super-hot?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she weakly deflected. Lexa’s cheeks reddened, a maddening blush. Blondie claimed the “super-hot” title. A goddess. Not Stella, sorry Ruby Rose. No one
“Lies!” Anya smirked, retreating to the living room where Raven occupied the couch. “On a leash. Like I said.”
Lexa poured herself another shot from a wayward vodka bottle on the couch. “Shut up.”