User blog:SodaCat/Style - Chapter 11: Bells

sorry this took forever lol but here it is finally

The inside of Burger was about as appealing as its exterior, yet Alexis found herself drawn to it; undoubtedly because it was the only place open on ChristmasEve this late at night.

She sat alone in one of the booths, a double-patty burger cooling on the ketchup-stained table in front of her. She would've given anything to have Peanut with her at that moment.

The sound of the bells above the door to the locale called her attention, and she turned to look, quickly noting the uninterested cashier flicking through a magazine that looked suspiciously like BlaBla. At the door stood none other than Alexis' roommate, Piper Harrington.

"Piper?" Alexis asked automatically, earning the Prep's attention. Piper quickly made her way over to Alexis' booth, pulling off her red coat and slumping down in the seat facing Alexis.

"I've had a bloody terrible night, love," she admitted, placing both elbows on the table and burying her face in her hands, "and I just don't know how to fix any of it."

"Join the club," Alexis replied glumly, sinking back in her side of the booth.

Piper looked up at her, a puzzled expression on her face. Alexis shrugged it off, however, instead choosing to glance out the window, where she saw yet another familiar face.

The jock kid came in as abruptly as Piper had, and the cashier didn't look up once. He looked around for a moment, his messy brown hair momentarily obstructing his eyes that Alexis remembered were gray, before settling on the girls' table. Without any form of invitation, he came over and sat right down beside Alexis.

"Um?" she said, irritated.

"'Scuse me ladies, I've just had a real bad night and I'm just lookin' for some company that ain't superficial," he replied.

Alexis narrowed her eyes, her irritation growing more, but Piper's eyes had soften. "That's alright, Jesse, I believe all three of us have had unpleasant nights."

Jesse let out a laugh, leaning back and absently setting his arm around Alexis' shoulders. She glared at him, ready to hit him, but he didn't seem to even realize he was doing it. Instead he continued grinning at Piper.

"I'm guessin' yours mighta had somethin' to do with a boy? 'Cause my situation sure had somethin' to do with a lady, and it didn't turn out none too well."

Piper sighed and nodded, and Alexis rolled her eyes before nodding. "Well, mine did," she admitted, looking away.

"Miss Monroe, is it?" Jesse asked, allowing Alexis time to confirm his memory. "Well, if you don't mind my askin', just what is it that happened to make you upset?"

She considered, for a moment, the act of confiding in someone she didn't know at all and someone she'd only known for a few months, before deciding there was no harm in it. Knowing Johnny, he'd probably be denying everything the moment that Lola came back to him, and Alexis didn't want it like that.

"One of my best friends, Johnny Vincent? He broke up with his dame, and decided to try and tell me it's me he loves, but I know that isn't true. He's just lonely; he's done it before."

She looked up nervously, expecting judgemental stares or simply ones of disbelief, but both Piper and Jesse's eyes were warm. Taking a deep breath, she continued.

"His old girl, Patti? He was real into her, too. Then when they broke up, same thing happened, not as much, though. He wasn't as broken up about it as he was 'bout this one. I don't know, I didn't wanna fall for it no more."

"Sounds like a real rat," Jesse stated, his voice filled with anger, "you just say the word and I'll get the entire football team and we'll teach that greaseball a lesson."

She found herself smiling a little, comforted by the sureness in Jesse's voice, and she didn't pull away when he pulled her in for a light hug. "Naw, it's alright."

Jesse nodded, before looking at Piper, who'd been smiling at the two of them vaguely the way a mother would at her children. "What about you, lil' miss Harrington? Who hurt you on this fine night?"

Her smile wiped off her face, instead replaced by a look of embarrassment. "We-Well... he didn't quite hurt me to say the truth..."

"Now if you don't mind my language, that's some real bullshit, miss. I can see right in your eyes, you're hurtin' bad," Jesse replied, furrowing his eyebrows.

Piper let out a sigh, her shoulders sinking. "Well, you see, it's Bif. You know, Bif Taylor, the boxer? He's been quite apprehensive on how he feels for me, lately, and just today he's decided that he loves me. I suspect he simply isn't quite ready to lose me to Parker, however..."

"He's a dick," Alexis shot out before she could stop herself, "he's an absolute jerk."

Granted, she did dislike the way he'd acted towards Piper, but Alexis realized that the majority of her hatred towards Bif Taylor came from the hatred that Johnny harbored towards him.

"That sure don't sound too nice," Jesse agreed, reaching out for Piper's hand. She hesitated for a moment, but placed her hand in his, holding on tightly.

"What about you, Tyler?" Alexis asked, sounding a little more angry than she'd intended. She tried to soften her voice before continuing. "Who's tugging on your heartstrings?"

Jesse gave Alexis a quick smile, and she noted him squeezing Piper's hand gently. "Why, I'll have to swear both you ladies to secrecy. This kinda thing will tear the football team right to shreds, yeah?"

Alexis and Piper both agreed, unconsciously edging slightly closer to Jesse in anticipation for just what he would say.

"You see," he admitted, staring down at a smudge on the table, "I think I made the mistake of fallin' in love with the head cheerleader, Mandy Wiles."

Alexis found her lip curling up in disgust, though she quickly stopped before Jesse would be able to see. She'd never be able to fathom just why the boys at school were so damn into the Wiles girl--she was annoying as hell, and prior to the current year always had a tendency of showing up and trying to be the "damsel in distress" whenever Johnny was around.

"That... that certainly is a predicament..." Piper agreed after a pause.

Jesse nodded, pulling Alexis a little closer, squeezing Piper's hand just a tad bit more. "She says she don't know what she wants, though. I reckon she just wants to stir up drama, and it's workin'. I ain't ever felt this mixed up about a lady yet... here I am, wanderin' the streets and pilin' my problems on top of two already stressed out ladies."

"It's fine, man," Alexis replied, letting out a sigh. "Guess we're all fucked on Christmas. Dandy."

They hung like that for a couple minutes, Alexis resorting to resting her head on Jesse's shoulder, Jesse and Piper staring at the table. None of them able to find any words, yet still enjoying each other's company. Some sort of silent agreement lead them to exchanging phone numbers. Before long, Piper's phone buzzed with a text message, breaking the stillness.

She pulled it out, glancing at the small screen. Her blue eyes scanned the message before widening, and she hastily stood from the table, ripping her hand away from Jesse, startling both him and Alexis.

"Oh lord, I'm so sorry, I need to go r-right away...!" she explained, eyes still trained on the screen as she grabbed her coat and pulled it on.

"I'm sorry, we'll talk again soon!" she called as she ran off towards the door, the entrance bells jingling in her absence.

"Well that was odd..." Jesse mumbled, shifting his gaze from the door back to Alexis. She shrugged, but her attention was once again dragged to the entrance as the bells once again jingled, signifying new presence.

"Alexis Monroe?"

Standing in front of the table was a tall boy, with a bunch of piercings in his face. He wore a red and black striped sweatshirt, and his ripped up jeans were covered in dirt stains. She'd seen this guy a couple times, and Alexis was pretty sure one of his arms was covered in tattoos.

"Who the hell are you?"

The kid chuckled, crossing his arms but not taking a seat. "Jason Griffith. I know you're having a problem right now, and I can help. Let's go."

All the reason and logic she held screamed at her to remain seated with the dumb-yet-trustworthy Southern jock who currently had his arm around her, yet something about Jason Griffith's eyes calmed her, and convinced her that she should come with.

"Sorry Jess," Alexis mumbled, giving him an apologetic look, "I gotta go."

"All good," Jesse replied, his voice a bit monotone, "just gimme a ring if you need me."

He allowed Alexis to exit the booth, and she followed after Jason into the night.