Driving Me Crazy [1x1 with emilou]

~ Aria

I tried to decide just what it was about Flora that I liked so much. Maybe it was the fact that she was so straight forward. I had known her for less than a day, but she seemed so genuine and up front about her intentions. I would love to spend some more time getting to know her. Making friends wasn't my strong suit, so it was cool to have a friendship form so naturally with Flora. It would be a shame to throw that away. So, of course, I agreed to hanging out with her some time.

"Yeah that sounds like fun." I pulled my phone from my back pocket and opened the app for my contacts before handing it over to her. "Give me your number and I'll text you, that way we can set something up." I was still sitting cross legged on the hood of my car when the nights first fire flies came out. They danced around in the grass, around the legs of the few people that were still hanging out.

"I should probably get going - I have an early shift in the morning. But I'll text you?" I hopped off of the car, wiping my hands on my shorts and retrieving my phone.
 
//Flora//

I could tell we had a simple connection, she seemed so sweet and friendly, and as she handed me her phone, I typed in my number and name, smiling up to her as I handed back her phone. "I understand. I have some work to do tomorrow, but yeah, send me a text and we can make some plans." I was happy to talk to her, and as I said goodbye and walked towards my car, I felt genuinely happy to have made a new friend.

I got in my car and drove back to my apartment. My gang had a warehouse where some of the group stayed if they didn't have an actual home or apartment, but I had rented one so I didn't have to always go back to the warehouse. I had some dinner before passing out.

~~~

I woke up the next day at the crack of dawn, having fallen asleep in my unmade bed, a bit worn from the day before. I got up to get ready, taking a shower and brushing out my hair. It was long, but I preferred to keep it up, either in a ponytail or tight bun, or even braids every once in a while. I threw on a pair of jeans and my metal toed boots, a grey t-shirt and a black jacket. Although it was summer, it was a bit chillier outside. I left my apartment to travel to the warehouse. First thing I planned to do was try and see if Teeto would let me buy the car I'd been using, considering he fixed it up quite a bit, but he fixed up cars often anyway.
 
~ Aria
After the race, the rest of my day was pretty uneventful. I went home, I argued with my roommate for locking my cat in my room, and I had some dinner. After dinner I took a shower and made my way back to my bedroom where I fell asleep with a worn copy of The Bell Jar.

I awoke in the morning to a crashing sound and my roommate screaming - probably at my cat. Pissed off, I threw on some clothes and ran out to defend my furry baby. My roommate hated cats, but the apartment was technically mine so i told her that she would have to get over it or leave. She chose the former. So here we were in an endless cycle of her yelling at Graham and me yelling at her.

A couple of hours later, I was at work taking my break. I worked in a family owned restaurant so for our breaks we got one free meal. I swirled my coffee around in my mug, looking at the new contact in my phone. Flora. After a second of deliberation, I sent her a text.

Hey it's Aria. Lunch tmrw?
 
//Flora//

"Flora, my gal! Whatcha lookin' for, how's Oceana?" He named almost every car he ever worked on, and it made me chuckle. "She's good, man. Do you think I could buy her? Since you offered it, y'know." I noticed him already working on something new in the garage; A peach mustang with a large spoiler in the back and what seemed to be a drying white decal. "Oh yeah, sure. She'll be about.. seven or so?" Cheap, I thought, and nodded. "Ya getting a discount cuz' ya my friend." He swung his arm around me and ruffled the few loose hair that had slipped from my bun. "Oh, and Sev wants to talk to you, he's in the yard. Some kind of small job."

I walked to the yard, and was not expecting what I was told. "Remember Don? He's causing a bit of a stir again." That's all I needed to know, leaving the yard and to my new car. I headed downtown.
~
"Flora, I didn't say nothin'! I swear!" I stood above the quivering man, his lip split. He did give up a fight, giving me a shiner and a few bruises on my ribs. They might be cracked. The thought crossed my mind but went away quickly as my boot stomped down onto Don's stomach again. "We know you were talkin'." I squatted down above him, my hand gripping his throat just under his jaw, squeezing. I saw scabby blood around my knuckles from him dodging a few punches, and making me slam them into the brick wall of his garage.

"It was once and it slipped, I promise it won't happen again."
"One of these days, you're really gonna lose it all, Donny boy. We hear ya' talkin' to the pigs or Rick's lil' crew and you won't be talkin' about anything anymore." My metal tipped boots collided with his ribs once more before I left, climbing into Oceana's seats and pulling out my phone as I pulled out onto the road. I went to a stop light nearby, seeing the text.

Sure, where you wanna meet? :emoji_metal:
 
~Aria

Embarrassingly enough, I found myself watching my phone as I shoveled bites of my omelette into my mouth. There was something about Flora that kept me interested. I wanted to know more about this mysterious woman who randomly showed up at my car meet. I wanted to know what she did for a living and where she lived and if she had any pets. I felt a little bubble of excitement when my phone lit up with a new message, her name spreading across the screen of my iPhone. I shoved another forkful of egg and cheese into my mouth, chewing it quickly as I read her message.

Red Robin on Shields? I texted back quickly. I quickly second-guessed myself and sent another message. Unless you're vegan or something

"Hey, waitress, over here!" Someone called from a booth a few feet away. I looked up, my eyebrows furrowed. I stared at him for a moment and he stared back at me, obviously expecting for me to get up and go over to tend to him. I ignored him, turning back to my plate. It wasn't like there weren't other waitresses around. The man began griping about how rude the people were and how he would never eat here again, but I ignored him, finishing up my food instead.
 
//Flora//

I sat there, my car pulled over on the backroad to the grungy garage, waiting for a reply. Seeing she read it, I smiled wide, and then seeing the two next texts, I chuckled aloud to myself. I looked up, noticing that I should get back to my apartment or the warehouse. I set my phone down before replying, knowing I would in a few minutes, forgetting it showed I had read it. I drove out of the backroad and back to the warehouse.

When I finally got back to the large parking lot of the brick building, I texted her back.

Nah, not vegan. Lol. Red Robin sounds good if you wanna go there. We can go wherever honestly, I ain't the pickiest.

I got out of my car, and found Sev again, looking up at him. "He won't be talkin', for a while at least." I was given payment, a couple hundred from Sev, which I pocketed. I didn't think there was anymore jobs for me, but of course, Sev directed me to go find Laurence, and I did so, finding the blond going through his papers and looking for something. I was hoping this was just drugs or something, and not an errand. Surprisingly enough, he was asking me to meet a buyer for shipments of "medicine". Probably pills or some other narcotic. I didn't mind having the extra cash, so I walked to the nearby docks; I didn't want any buyer knowing what my car looked like.
 
~ Aria

The morning before having lunch with Flora, I had a particularly rough shift at work. Customers were being rude and tipping worse than normal, and I'd slept awful the night before. I was so tired by the time my shift ended that I was starting to get pretty grumpy. I stomped out of the restaurant just in time to run home and change before meeting with Flora. I threw on a sleeveless tank top that was cut down my sides, exposing the tattoos on my ribs and my black bralette, and a pair of jeans.

The trip to Red Robin from my house was a short one, but I was afraid that I was running late. I ran in about five minutes after we were supposed to meet, looking around for Flora. "Hey!" I exclaimed when I saw her, pretty out of breath. "I'm so sorry I'm late. I had to work," I explained, shoving my phone into my pocket. The hostess led us to a table and offered us some menus before leaving us to look it over.
 
//Flora//

I woke that morning and was surprised as I walked past the mirror; My black eye only swelled more, and the puffiness accentuating the dark bruise. I sighed, also noticing my torn and scabbed over knuckles. "Fuck, man." I'm going to lunch with Aria, what would she say if she saw me like this? My eye is too puffy to cover with makeup. Maybe I could make up how it happened? I don't know, dude..

Before I left, wearing tight blue jeans, a white t-shirt, my leather gloves, and sunglasses. Maybe I can say the sun's bright, or I'm hungover? I left quickly, realizing I was almost late. Surprisingly enough, I got to the restaurant before Flora. Waiting for her near the front, and I smiled seeing her. "No problem, I hope work was alright?" I questioned as we were led to a booth table, and handed the laminated and black-bordered menus. I glanced over the meals and drinks.
 
~ Aria

I was all over the place, stressed out from work and because I was late for my meeting with Flora. What a great start to a friendship - running late the first time we ever had plans to hang out. I studied the menu, longing for some sort of alcohol. I wanted that possibly more than I wanted food. Something to take the edge off.

I looked up at Flora. who was sat across the table from me. "Work was awful," I said with a breathy, exasperated laugh. "How was your day?" I asked, trying to make friendly conversation while I searched the menu. I settled on a burger with steak sauce and onions on it, the same thing that I always got, and a fruity alcoholic drink - some sort of lemonade. Just as the waitress approached. I realized that Flora was still wearing sunglasses and gloves. "Hey - are you okay? You're wearing sunglasses."
 
//Flora//

I had forgotten all about my unnecessary accessories, glancing over the menu. I decided to get an Irish Shake, which was some sweet beer milkshake, and glanced at the food, deciding on one of the mac n' cheese burgers they had. I glanced up at Aria and smiled at her, before hearing what she thought about work. "I'm sorry, it can be rough. A lot of jobs have bad days, but I hope it's not always bad. What happened?" I leaned forward now, arms resting on the table as I listened to hear about her day.

I then heard her question, seeing that the waitress was coming by. "Oh, yeah, just a bit sensitive to the lights right now." I waved it off and smiled at her, and I saw the waitress, hearing her ask about our orders. "Can I get an Irish Shake and mac n' cheese burger?" After she asked if that would be all for me, I nodded and waited for the waitress to walk away after taking Aria's order.
 
~ Aria

I gave the waitress my order before continuing the conversation. As a waitress, I hated when people chose to continue speaking to each other rather than allowing me two minutes to take their orders. Once the waitress walked away, I returned my attention to Flora. I briefly told her about the annoying day-in-the-life of a waitress. But my curiosity about her strange attire had not shrunk. I wondered for a moment if she was maybe hungover. I wasn't big on drinking and partying, but Flora could be for all I knew.

"Rough night?" I teased when she told me about her light sensitivity. "What about the fingerless gloves. You auditioning for Evanescence later?" I teased. I played with the fringe around the rips in my jeans, just for something to do. Restaurant settings were good because they forced you to talk, but also, they force you to talk. Which made having nothing to say more awkward than normal.
 
//Flora//

As I awaited her reply, I noticed her tease me about my attire, I felt my cheeks heat up. "Haha, not really. Sometimes I just have... light sensitivity.." Goddamnit Flora, did that pause really have to happen? Just keep going, maybe she'll believe you. Then she noticed the gloves, and forgetting they were fingerless, I quickly replied. "Oh, my hands are cold!" Flora, it's currently over ninety degrees, and they are fingerless. I thought to myself, hoping to whatever god may be in the sky that she does not notice that I was hardcore lying through my teeth.

I glanced and saw some more people walk in, and I instantly recognized them. Lynn and Oliver Alevi. The non-identical twins took a seat at a booth diagonal from us, behind me. I was glad they didn't have a view of my face, but I feared them recognizing me. Lynn and Oliver were apart of the gang that messed with mine a year back; They constantly try to set up traps for us, and us them. It's a mess.
 
~ Aria

I furrowed my eyebrows, causing the space between them to crinkle. Her explanations weren't really making any sense. I didn't want to pry though. We weren't close enough yet that I felt entitled to ask her more questions. So I just laughed and shook my head in disbelief as if she was being oh-so funny. I was good at faking my way through awkward social situations because, well, my entire twenty something years on earth had just been one giant, ongoing awkward social situation.

The waitress came with our drinks and the appetizer that I had ordered, placing them carefully on the table. "Mozzarella stick?" I offered, taking one and dunking it into the marinara sauce in front of us. I watched as two people who looked extremely similar and familiar walked in. Maybe I'd seen them around the races? I shrugged, biting into my mozzarella stick and then taking a drink of my hard lemonade.
 
//Flora//

When she stopped asking questions, I internally felt relieved, though the two men still had me on edge. Of course, my eye felt itchy just as everything had calmed, though I tried to ignore it. Seeing her offer the appetizer, I grinned. "Dude, cheese is the love of my life." I honestly spoke, taking one and not even dipping it in sauce as I took a bit of it. I knew this place had amazing appetizers, but I hadn't had food here in a while. After, I took a sip of the irish shake that came. "Wow, this is a lot better than I thought it would be." I laughed, noting that I could tell it had beer, but it was still very sweet.

My eye being itchy just annoyed me now, and I moved my hand up to push under the sunglasses and rub my eye, trying not to allow them to push upwards too much. Did I know if Aria could see the puffy bruise? No, considering I could not see myself, but I knew in my heart, that I looked ridiculous. "So, other than work, how was your day?" I broke the silence, fixing my glasses and putting my hand back down.
 
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