User blog:SodaCat/Style Chap 4

all is well (4 now anyway)

“Alex… Alex, no…! Alex…! Alex, what are you do—ALEX!”

Alexis snapped out of her daze at the sound of Peanut calling her name in distress. Her view focused back onto the Stallion she was currently working on. She had been unscrewing the plug to change the oil… and was now paying the price as the oil stream began spilling onto her chest and all over her uniform shirt.

“God damn it!” she cursed, snatching the bucket beside her and putting it in the stream’s course, sliding out from under the Stallion. She glared at Peanut as he began snickering at her as if it were one big joke.

“Monroe! What the fuck are you doin’?! Clean that shit up!”

Alexis looked over at Neil, who had turned his attention from helping Ricky with something under the hood of an old Regina in order to chide her.

“I’ll get it done Neil, chill out,” she shouted back, rolling her eyes. Neil didn’t give a shit about cleanliness. He was just pissed she’d been gone for two years, and he’d had to change the oil in his car himself since then. It wasn’t her fault that nobody else was willing to do it for free.

She looked over at Peanut, who was still laughing at her. “Gimme your jacket,” she demanded abruptly, reaching out to him.

Peanut examined her for a moment, unsure if she had really just asked him what she had. “What?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Gimme your jacket,” Alexis repeated, voice strong. “I can’t walk around with my shirt covered in oil, and I can’t exactly pull it off either. So unless you wanna see tit-fest up in here, quit bein’ a baby and just gimme your jacket.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">He narrowed his eyes at her as he pulled off his leather jacket and tossed it to her. She pulled it on and zipped it up tight before pulling her arms into the sleeves and unbuttoning her white blouse, all without taking the jacket off. Peanut didn’t speak until she tossed the blouse to the side on the floor and stuck her arms back through the sleeves.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“What’s got your mind?” he asked, his voice somewhat concerned, somewhat irritated. She’d been real mean lately, and he had a pretty good idea why. “You never screw up this badly.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Alexis sniffed, looking away from him and crossing her arms. “Nothin’,” she replied brusquely, “just thinkin’ about shit I can paint in art.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">But that wasn’t the truth and Peanut knew it. But what was she supposed to do? Tell him she was still hung up over the fact that Johnny wasn’t speaking to her? It’d been almost two months. She should be over it by now, moved on. But she wasn’t, and she sincerely doubted that she’d ever be. A life without Johnny Vincent was something she’d never thought she’d have to deal with. At least when she was in Manhattan she knew he was still on her side.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Her eyes wandered over to Johnny’s workspace, where he leaned over the hood of a classic Cadillac, completely concentrated on the car. She pushed the sleeves of Peanut’s leather jacket up to her elbows hastily, suddenly feeling overheated and uncomfortable, as if she didn’t have enough space to breathe. She had the slightest desire to leave the auto shop.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">She got back on the creeper and slid under the car before cleaning the oil off of the plug and replacing it. She slid over to the oil filter and began unscrewing it, careful this time to place the bucket underneath before she began unscrewing.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Hand me the filter,” she hollered to Peanut, and was greeted with nothing but silence. “Peanut!”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Alexis glared at him as he wheeled her creeper out from under the car and stood over her.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“What are you doin’ tonight?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“What?”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“You heard me.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Rolling her eyes, Alexis tried to wheel back under the car, but of course the creeper did not budge from underneath Peanut’s heavy foot.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“I hardly think now’s the time to be askin’ me out, Romano,” she sneered at him, rolling her eyes, but immediately regret it when she saw the hurt look on his face. “I’m sorry,” she sighed, sitting up and placing her forearms on her knees, “this Johnny thing’s been buggin’ me more than I let on.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“No,” Peanut replied, his voice caked in sarcasm. “Look, it’s Halloween, and you’re no fun anymore. All you do is mope around. I bet you don’t even have any Halloween plans,” he challenged, crossing his arms.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Alexis sighed, green eyes scanning around the auto shop innocently. “…That’s not true…” she lied.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Look. After the assembly, we’re gonna go to the boys’ dorm and we’re gonna put on some Halloween costumes and we’ll go prank some losers, and then we’ll get back and watch a movie with the guys.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">She let out a breath, a bit out of energy. “I don’t wanna do that, Peanut… I’d rather just get some sleep and—”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Peanut shook his head, straightening his back and looking all grown up and like he knew better. Why did he have to act like he knew everything all the time? Peanut didn’t know anything.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“It’ll do you good,” he insisted, his voice steady as if to say it was the end of the discussion.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Here’s the new filter. Get it done before class ends or else Neil’s gonna fire both of us.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“You can’t get fired from class.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“You know what I mean.”

<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">***

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Peanut and Alexis crashed through the entrance doors to the Boys’ Dorm laughing loudly and wrapping their arms around each other’s shoulders for support to keep from falling over. They’d just finished up a night of pranking, and the last prank—played on the unfortunate nerdling Thad Carlson—had been glorious.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">The pair had dressed up in a couple of old, muddy hockey masks and carried around bats, all of which had been lifted by Lefty from the Jocks’ sports clubhouse. Alexis had also carried around the slingshot that Lucky had made for her the previous month. They had then gone everywhere on campus, hiding in trees and shooting at people with the slingshot, or jumping out at them and startling them.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Thad’s prank, however, had been the cherry on top. They’d found him wandering around the auto shop—way off his turf—and Alexis had taken the opportunity and climbed up onto the roof to begin shooting at him from overhead.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Thad had quickly caught on, but Alexis had managed to corner him up to a trashcan where Peanut hid, waiting, with his bat. As soon as Thad’s back was up to the can, Peanut had jumped out, scaring him, and had then socked the kid right in the gut with the bat. The two hockey mask clad kids had then met up by the trashcan where Thad was hunched over, high-fived, and then ran off before any teacher might stroll by and catch them.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Poor little dork never saw it comin’,” Alexis laughed, wrapping her arm around Peanut’s and burying her face into the sleeve of his jacket. “I feel kinda bad,” she admitted.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Don’t,” Peanut replied, “that twerp hit me with a yardstick last year. He’s had this comin’ for a while.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Alexis snorted, picturing Peanut getting hit with a yardstick. They made their way into the common room, where she saw that the boys had already retired from the prank war outside to watch whatever movie they’d chosen. She grinned, knowing they had the place to themselves. As Peanut had explained earlier—the Jocks would be on the football field celebrating a birthday, the Preps were in their stupid frat house, the Russell’s crew had broken out of campus to hang out at Russell’s house in Old Bullworth Vale, and as for the nerds, well… they wouldn’t be an issue.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“What movie are we gonna—…” Alexis trailed off as she walked around the familiar, beaten up old sofa only to find herself looking at a familiar face. She turned to ice Peanut with a glare, ready to punch him in the face. He’d promised Johnny wouldn’t be here, he said Johnny had other plans.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Peanut looked away as soon as he caught sight of the expression on her face, pretending to be busy with the DVD player. “’S called Pet Cemetery,” he replied, “it’s based off a book by that guy you like. Steve whatever.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Sematary,” Alexis corrected, turning to gape at Johnny, who, in turn, stared straight ahead at the T.V. So that was the way it was? Now she just didn’t exist? Fine.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">She strolled over to take a seat between Hal and Ricky, only to be seized by Peanut and walked over to the couch instead. “No, you’re gonna be sittin’ right here with me,” Peanut explained, plopping her down right smack between him and Johnny.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Oh he would pay dearly for this.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Hey Johnny, I thought you was gonna be hanging out with—ow!”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Vance was smacked right upside the head by Norton, who glared at him before shaking his head ever so subtly. Alexis raised an eyebrow at them, but they didn’t notice; they were too busy looking over at Johnny, who was shifting awkwardly in his seat.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Just start the damn movie,” he ordered Peanut, sounding miserable and angry.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">What was that all about?

<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align:center;text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">***

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">It started out when Johnny made a comment about the old man in the movie that had Alexis laughing so hard, tears were streaming out of her eyes and she was burying her face in his jacket to keep from laughing too loud and disturbing the boys.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">The two had then gone back and forth, making comments and jokes and smart remarks and just generally keeping each other in stitches. And now, as the little demon kid went wild unleashing hell on everybody around him, Alexis squeezed Johnny’s hand tightly, surprised to find herself frightened.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Alright, maybe she wasn’t scared… at all. But still, feeling Johnny’s warm, large fingers intertwined with her own was still pretty damn reassuring.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Peanut, of course, had been sitting beside them and seeing what was happening the entire time, and he was smug as hell.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">He knew this plan would work—Johnny Vincent and Alexis Monroe were the only two people he knew who couldn’t keep their mouths shut during a movie to save their lives. If they didn’t start talking during this simply to make up and save their decade-long friendship, they would’ve started just to have someone to tell their jokes and witty remarks to.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">He shut the movie off once the credits started rolling, and one by one the guys stood, stretching and yawning and glaring over at Johnny and Alexis.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Next time we watch a movie, you two are wearin’ duct tape over ya mouths,” Lefty hissed, glaring at the two of them, “didn’t shut up the entire movie!”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">One by one the boys filed out, most of them irritated over having to have watched the movie with extra commentary, courtesy of the boss and Alexis.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Once they were alone, Alexis turned to Johnny.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“So are we friends now? ‘Cause if we’re not, I’m takin’ your jacket ‘cause I lost my old one soon as Lilian saw it.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Johnny chuckled, amused by her boldness and easy lopsided smile. He swore, she hadn’t changed since she was six years old and missing her two front teeth.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Yeah,” he said, shrugging, “we’re friends. But there’s no way in hell you’re takin’ my jacket.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“That’s pretty cold,” Alexis replied, “you’re the worst, man. You suck.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Johnny eyed her for a moment before wrapping his left arm around her neck and putting her into a headlock. “What’d you say about me you little shit? You think this is a joke, huh?!” he threatened, laughing.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“You got three seconds to let go, Vincent, before I bite you just like I did Larry,” Alexis threatened, trying but to no avail to get his arm off her.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“You’re bluffin’,” Johnny challenged.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Try me.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">He let go of her, rolling his eyes. Jesus, she really hadn’t changed since she was six years old. How the hell did this little freak ever make it out in the Upper East Side?

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">Alexis gazed at him for a moment, overcome with joy at having her best friend back. Johnny may have gotten a couple new muscles on his arms, and a significantly deeper voice since freshman year, but he was the same dork she’d grown up knowing.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“I really missed you,” she said automatically, eyes growing soft, “I didn’t dip out on you, Johnny. I really didn’t, it wasn’t my cho—”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“’S alright,” Johnny replied, looking away. He didn’t want to think back to Alexis and freshman year, it was too weird and confusing and distracting. Better keep it put away. “You’re here now and… and Neil’s got his free oil changes back, and that’s… that’s all that matters. We’re both here now and we’re good. We’re friends.”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">She grinned at him and pulled him into a tight hug, burying her face into his shoulder and reveling in the smell of that shitty, cheap cologne he insisted on showering himself in. It was oddly comforting.

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Don’t you get all emotional on me now, Monroe,”

<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent:.5in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:107%;font-family:"TimesNewRoman","serif"">“Don’t be fuckin’ ridiculous, Vincent.”