Chapter 1
Dim technicoloured lights and loud music filled the small space, along with the sweaty bodies of about eighty drunk individuals. Roxy was on her seventh martini of the night, which was impressive - even for her. Dancing directly across from the blonde, was a tall man with short brown hair and bleached blonde fringe. Eridan. His pale skin shone in the pulsing lights as he moved ever closer to Roxy - and as Roxy moved closer to him.
They'd met on the dance floor, and with Roxy being as drunk as she was, she thought "hey, what could go wrong?"
So there they were, practically flailing at each other in their drunken state when, in a single fluid motion, Roxy found herself no longer looking up at Eridan, but indead looking at the skin of his neck as the older male leant down as if to whisper something to her.
A sharp pain hit her ear as Eridan bit down harshly, yet softly. Roxy would have shrieked out, but the alcohol in her system dulled the pain. Without thinking, Roxy latched onto Eridan's neck, biting and sucking a bruise into his skin. A hand groped it's way down to her ass as the action was reciprocated - although far more violently - and then he was gone.
Standing over him was a very furious Dirk Strider, and standing next to him were Jane and Jake. Jane glanced back at Roxy with a concerned expression, and gasped when she saw the bleeding ear and the bite mark.
"What did that sleeze do to you?" she demanded, turning to Jake and snatching a hankerchief from his pocket.
The only answer she got as she wiped away the blood was a pained mumble. Meanwhile, Dirk and Jake were "escorting" Eridan to the security officers.
Jane declared that it would be a good time to leave.
~ ~ ~
Roxy Lalonde woke to a pounding headache and a foggy recollection of loud music, bright lights and... A guy. Confusion clouded her mind until- oh. Oh god. everything came rushing back to her in a semi painful flash. The night before, she'd gone out clubbing with a few friends in celebration of Jake's eighteenth. The guy, His name started with E, I know it did... Eee.. Eliot? No... Edgar? That's not it either. Fuck, think Lalonde!
After a few minutes of confused thought, the blonde decided to give it a break. She'd probably remember after a pot of coffee anyway.
Ten minutes later she stepped into the door of her favourite coffee shop. Things were quiet today, and as Roxy stepped up to the counter, she was greeted by an unfamiliar face. Roxy took a moment - which was actually more than a moment - to study the girl's face, memorizing her features.
Her face was soft, her features pleasantly rounded. She had a scattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose and the tops of her cheeks. Her hair was pure white, about ear length and stylishly messy. She wore a headband the same colour as her eyes- oh. Her eyes were the most vibrant shade of green Roxy had ever seen. Bright lime, with what looked like tiny red and darker green flecks.
Without realizing, Roxy had been staring. The employee - whose name tag read Callie - cleared her throat slightly.
"Huh, what?" Roxy asked, shaking her head. "Oh right, the coffee... Uh, I'll have the usual, dark mocha latte with an extra shot of caffiene and two shots of chocolate. And, that's to go."
"I'll have that to you in a minute, darling!" Callie replied, picking up the cup and a pen. "Oh, could I get your name?" She added, looking up.
"Oh, uh... Name's Lalonde. Roxy Lalonde." Smooth, real fuckin smooth Ro-Lal.
Callie gave a small smile and scribbled the name onto the cup, then walked over to the coffee machine and got to work while Roxy waited. Her latte was done in no time, and she was waving goodbye to the barista, the image of her freckled smile burnt into memory.
It was almost noon when she arrived back at her apartment. She'd taken the long way home, stopping at the grocery store to grab some wine and a few odds and ends.
she dropped the shopping bags as soon as she got in the door, immediately slumping down on the couch. Roxy was about to get out her laptop, when something lodged between the couch cushions caught her eye. It was a small piece of paper, with a message written in neat lettering. Upon closer examintation, it read: 555 - 8347 (Here's my number, call me sometime - Eridan).
Eridan! That's what his name was. He must have given her the number, but she'd forgotten about it. Should she call him?
"Eh, why the hell not? S'not like I'm doin anything else today." Roxy chuckled to herself, pulling out her cell and dialing the numbers into the dialpad.
Riiing. Riiing. Riiing.
"Hello?" A voice answered on the other end of the phone. It sounded familiar, but it obviously wasn't Eridan. "Hello? Caliborn I swear to god this better not be another of your idiotic 'prank calls'." She spoke again, sounding vaguely annoyed.
"Uh, hey... Sorry ma'am, wrong number..." Roxy replied after a few moments hesitation. Her voice was low, and slightly downcast.
"Oh, hello! I guess that's alright then, I'll just be on my way and- Hold on, you sound rather sad. Might I ask what the matter is?" The british voice on the other end asked.
"Oh, nothing really... It's just, uh... This guy, he gave me a fake phone number, and it turned out to be you, and yeah... Sorry for bothering you..."
"Oh darling! It's fine, really. You seem nice enough, and I haven't really got anything to do at the moment, so why don't we chat for a bit?"
"Yeah, that would be cool. I'm Roxy."
"I'm Callie! It's wonderful to meet you darling!" The name itself also seemed familiar to Roxy. The barista from this morning's coffee stop came to mind, and Roxy decided to go out on a limb.
"Callie? Are... Are you a barista at The Medium?"
"Yes! You're the one who stopped by earlier, are you not? Lalonde... Roxy Lalonde?"
"Yeah, that's me!"
"You seemed pretty cool! I've got to get back to work, but we should hang out sometime!"
"Sounds awesome, you've got my number if you need me."
"Great, I'll keep in touch."
And just like that, Callie was gone, and Roxy had the feeling that something big was about to happen.