đ” đ đž đ« đ·đ¶ đ» (jukejoint) wrote in doorslogs, @ 2012-07-16 01:02:00 |
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Entry tags: | christine daae, snow white |
Who: Sam and Tess
What: Sister reuniontimes!
Where: Avenue 8
When: Recently. Duh.
Warnings/Rating: Language.
Yeah, Sam wasn't expecting Tess. She wasn't expecting anyone from back home, and it was kind of like getting caught with her hand in the fucking candy jar. She'd given Tess her number on a whim before leaving Elizabeth, in case someone died or some shit like that, but she hadn't counted on hearing from her sister again. Sam loved her siblings, and she loved her parents, but she knew they were all fucked up thieves and gang rats, and she didn't expect anyone to live out the year ever. It was a childhood built on the knowledge that any of them could go to jail or end up in a drive-by, and so expectations were low and she was prepared for bad news at any time. But, and she might not admit this aloud, she was actually really glad to hear from her older sister. Las Vegas was shit, and Sam had always looked up to the only other girl in a large family filled with testosterone.
As for the address Tess had given her, Sam hadn't been away from Avenue 8 long enough to forget the place. She considered mentioning the fires that had caused her to move to the Aria in the first place, but she decided against it. That was months ago, and there hadn't been one flame since and, yeah, things like that were kind of expected in shitholes like Avenue 8. But Sam had always felt at home in the shitty apartments. Well, not at home - comfortable. Being in ritzy places was still new, and she still didn't feel like she fit into that life.
Sam paid the cabbie, and she waited for her sister on the sidewalk, cargo pants, a white, v-neck man's Hanes undershirt, and her blonde hair piled atop her head messily. Her fingernails were painted green, and there was a clove cigarette between her fingers, despite the unforgiving Las Vegas heat. Her iPod buds were tucked in her ears, Norma audible as a faint halo of sound around her as she waited, backpack and bad attitude hoisted firmly on her shoulder.
The time after Tess hung up the phone was a blur. She hailed a cab from the airport to her new home. She signed papers and checked to make sure there werenât garbage, squatters or dead animals in her newly rented apartment. She ordered pizza and set down the few belongings she had with her, the furniture to be carried in by big, muscled and more importantly cheap labor in a few hours. She went through the motions easily enough as her mind turned over the little bombshell her sister dropped over the phone for her.
It was that same sister that interrupted Tess' thoughts, spied through the unadorned windows of Tessâ apartment. Blinds, she needed better blinds, or maybe drapes. Shit, her list of things she needed for the apartment was already growing to expensive proportions.
Shaking her head Tess bounded out and down the stairs, slowing to a cool walk once she hit the sidewalk. Tess was dressed just casually from her flight, mussy blonde ponytail, pale blue tank and khakis, ready for the desert swelter but not for the cloudy skies. Her loud shuffle of flipflops on concrete announced her arrival long before she was in arms length of Sam.
âI thought it was all hot sunshine. Not hot rainstorms. I feel like Iâm learning all these new things. Not sure if I like âem.â
"Hot rainstorms that don't cool anything off," Sam corrected, throwing the clove aside and stomping it out with her boot.
Sam looked her sister over, the process very much like looking over a car one might buy, making sure it wasn't a fucking lemon, and then she grinned and slung an arm across Tess' shoulders, leading her toward the shitty apartment building. It wasn't a hug, because they didn't fucking hug in their family. "You better get used to not liking shit out here, sis," she said, because there was no point bullshitting anyone from their clan; there wasn't anything Las Vegas could dish out that they wouldn't survive. "You look good," she added, because Tess did, and it was really fucking good to have someone older and sounder around. She didn't realize just how good until Tess was there.
But that was a lot of fucking emotion for Sam to show in one sitting, and she shoved Tess away with a rough ruffling of her sister's blonde hair, rough and tumble and more like one of their brothers. "So, what fucking story do you want first? Lost siblings? Or little books from hell?"
âLittle books?â Tess blinked, her mind immediately going to the package that was waiting for her when she signed the paperwork for her apartment. She had done a lot of her mail forwarding in preparation, the security deposit and the last bit of signing mostly to seal the deal she had already done through email and phone calls. She hadnât expected mail yet, and the package bearing a little journal had been odd but she hadnât opened it yet. Of all the weird packages someone could receive out of the blue, notebooks were low on the list of dangers. At least she thought so.
âWhat about the books?â She figured that was an easier story to tell than long lost brothers and sisters. Their new family tree sounded like a tale that would need lots of time and beer to tell.
There was something in that blink that told Sam all she needed to know, and she groaned as she walked down the exterior hallway of the apartment building. "You got one? A bunch of people here have them, and we all write in them like it's fucking high school and we want to be pen pals. Whatever, at the end of the day, the books belong to some bitch in your head. I have an operatic diva and, for the record, I haven't touched the fucking weed yet," she assured Tess, motioning to her backpack, where said beer and weed was just waiting to be useful.
"Which one is yours?" Sam asked, motioning to the apartments. "I'll show you my book once we're inside, so you don't think I've gone completely fucking nuts."
âWhat?â Tess rested her hands on Samâs shoulders, guiding her younger sister towards the building and leading her in the direction of the apartment. She struggled to make sense of the litany of sheer insanity that her sister spilled, grasping one strange concept after another. âI donât even know what youâre talk about. I just...â She threw her hands up slightly in exasperation before leading the other girl up to her unit.
âI just got it. Havenât really checked it out. I mean, weird, but whatever. Big deal. A notebook and old key.â She pushed her still unlocked door open with her hip and gestured inside before she reached into her sisterâs backpack for everything she was promised. âWhat do you mean you have a diva?â
Sam walked into the apartment and looked around. "I think I actually missed this shithole," she said truthfully. Life had been much less complicated when she lived at Avenue 8 with Clarissa. Now life was just a fuckton of mess; at least then she'd known to expect shit, 24/7. "My ex-girlfriend lives down the hall," she explained, dropping down onto the living room floor and crossing her legs as she watched Tess rifle through the bag. She held her hand out for one of the joints that were neatly wrapped in a baggie, and she pulled the lighter out of her pocket.
"My journal is in there. Check it out," she offered, because a picture was worth a thousand words - or, in this case, a journal. "So, everyone has these fictional fuckers in their heads," she explained, and she imagined that sounded like total fucking bullshit, but it was such old news to Sam that she didn't know how the hell else to explain it. "There's a hotel, Passages, with these doors. Walk through the door, and you turn into the bitch in your head. Bam. And it comes with all sorts of fucking complications, because whoever you are through your door might be an ass, or might be involved with someone you hate over here. Baby, it's like the biggest acid trip ever."
Tess slipped a joint into Samâs palm before sitting on the floor, knees up and back to the wall as she flipped through the journal her sister handed her. Without looking up she listened with one ear open and snapped open the can of beer as she flipped through page after page. Still a lot of nonsense but having something solid helped take some of the the wary edge off. âChrist these people talk a lot,â she whined before taking a big gulp of her beer, closing the book and sliding it across the carpet. It was a lot to take in and she wanted to protest that there was no one in her head. Clearly she wasnât crazy.
And yet there was that heavy presence at the back of her mind, one that made her think of someone eyerolling at her, that curbed her tongue. Fine, sheâd play along just a little longer and she tossed Sam a little smirk as she complained about the bitch she carried around. âThe diva and her little friends piss you off that much?â
Sam followed suit and popped a beer, and she watched Tess page through the journal as she puffed on the joint that was held expertly between her fingers. "Nah, not lately. No one's tried to kill anyone lately, which is a fucking blessing. My diva has these two men who absolutely want to fucking kill each other, and are just using her a tug of war toy." Which wasn't a kind way to discuss Erik and Raoul, but fuck it. This was Tess; she would get it. "Except they've both just gotten kind of whiny lately, so things have been quiet. Who knows how fucking long it will last, though," she added.
But Tess wasn't mentioning anyone in her own head, and Sam was willing to let it go for now. She took a long swig from the beer, and she set it on the floor, between her knees. "So, Louis and Iris. Mom and dad's little egg and sperm sale. They have people in their heads too, but that's the easy part. Iris has fucking issues, and Louis has even more issues. But they're both cute, so we continue to have good fucking genetics, and they're both loaded. Mom and dad would have a field day. I can set up a meet and greet, if you want."
Tess did get it, making a little shrug and lift her eyebrows that quietly screamed pfft men. She still wasnât sure all that Sam was talking about, figuring it was something to be experienced rather than spoken of, and still not sure she ever wanted to find out.
And they were moving on to the original heart stopper: more family. Everyone knew about the missing siblings but there had been little point in giving them more than a passing thought. They were never going to meet them so why bother? And now they were there, with Sam, with Tess, and apparently a bunch of head cases too. And loaded.
âGreat.â Tess didnât even bother to hide her eyeroll, not from Sam. They grew up poor while this Louis and Iris had been fine. Better than fine. It made her knock back a healthy gulp of her beer. âYeah, I guess so. As long as youâre there and I can leave you with them if they turn out to be fucking annoying.â She flashed her sister a toothy grin before asking, âWho do they have. Do you know?â She gestured her free hand up to her temple to explain.
"Louis has some megalomaniac, and Iris has an old butler from a comic," Sam explained, and she rolled her eyes in return at the thought of being left with their two siblings. "I'm alone with them all the fucking time. You can deal for a change," she said, but there was fondness there, even if her siblings exasperated her to death half of the fucking time. "Louis has this brother, Neil, he's the rich fucker I stay with sometimes, and he's from my door. We should go find your door together in a week, maybe you'll be some big, brawny bitch with grenades or something." She smiled, very much her age in that moment, all gapped teeth that never had the luxury of braces.
Sam took another swig of the beer, and then her expression went a little more serious as she looked at her sister. "So, what have I missed with you? Why are you out here alone, and not somewhere doing something with that college degree you have?" She sounded a little jealous, but not dangerously so.
âA megalomaniac, a butler, and a diva walk into a bar,â Tess muttered under her breath. Still so weird to wrap her head around. She made a face at the thought of handling these new and strange siblings on her own but it quickly took a back seat to the revelation of her new brotherâs brother (oh this was going to get so confusing, so fast). âSo rich roomieâs headcase likes your girl? Okay I can see why you wanted my couch.â Though really, it was easy to see that Tess was pleased that her sister was there. She could have the couch any time she wanted. She just wasnât going to tell her that.
As for her new shiny slip of scholarly paper, Tess made a rude little noise. She knew her sister was a little jealous of that bit but it was the good kind, she hoped. One that Sam might take to heart and follow, though she wasnât going to hold her breath. âCanât be responsible and all for very long. Had to do something stupid and impulsive after waiting tables and bartending and studying for a million fucking years. Figured packing my shit and moving out here fit the bill.â She took a quick sip of her beer before she cast a dramatic and mournful look at Sam. âI mean, I came for youuuuuu. I missed you like uh, like something misses something else a lot.â She tossed her a cheeky grin for extra effect.
"Hey. I can be useful on your couch. I just need to find a new contract," Sam protested. She wasn't at Neil's long enough to pay rent these days, and she didn't even know what the fuck that meant. But whatever; Tess was older, more responsible, and she could afford to have Sam on the couch. "And yeah, rich roomie's headcase is all into the virgin diva. Which makes it kind of fucking hard to figure out how much of things is him, and how much is the guy in his head. Not that I care." Nope, not at all.
Sam pretended she heard something in the room, one hand cupping her ear, then the her other hand doing the same thing with her other ear. She looked around, behind herself, around the room, and then she found her feet and checked the fridge, the sink, the toilet, before coming back to the living room and flopping down on the dingy carpet. "I could swear I heard a fucking bullshit alert," she teased.
A sigh later, and Sam rolled onto her side and watched Tess take that quick sip of her beer. "I've been playing fuck up a lot lately. It'll be good to have someone here to call me on my shit," she admitted, and then she grinned. "And I will so return the fucking favor, mademoiselle college graduate." Despite the jealousy, she sounded proud. Making it through high school was a big thing in their family, and a feat Sam hadn't managed; Sam was proud of Tess for making it out.
Tess watched Sam peek around her apartment, her amused smirk growing wider by the second, dissolving into a full fledged laugh at the conclusion. Not complete bullshit; she had missed Sam something fierce but this was the closest sheâd ever admit to it. Instead she let her sister tease and let her sleep on her couch. That was just their way in their family.
âYeah yeah, you can stay. Iâll call you on all your shit, starting right now. Tell me about this guy youâve been living with. And that guy in his head, or whatever.â Oh Sam wasnât going to get away with hiding these little details from Tess. Not when she was asking for favors and hinting there was more going on that she let on. âHeâs your... friend? Or whatever. His alter ego likes yours? Howâs that working out for you?â
Sam groaned, because Neil was complicated. "He's an old rich guy," she said, even though Neil only had a decade on her or so. "Fucking loaded, and so calm that I want to strangle him most days. I don't know what the fuck he wants, though. Not sex, because we would have fucked by now, right? It's not like I wouldn't put out for him, but aside from some mutual masturbation and a kiss when we thought we were about to die, nothing." She didn't say she had feelings for Neil, because whatever, those were so not being discussed; she wasn't high enough or drunk enough for that. "And he's not asking me out for expensive dinners, either, before you start getting romantic." She paused, turning the tables with an unhidden smirk. "You? You're out here, alone, which means you're single, what the fuck happened?"
Tess noted the careful lack of feelings talk and tried to file it away for later before Sam poked at her own romantic life. She shrugged, hand flailing upward to show a distinct lack for wedding ring. âHe wanted to act like an idiot so I cut him loose. We were getting too old for that kind of shit.â It was more and less complicated than that but it still wasnât wrong. âWas a pain getting my shit together without him but it wouldnât have happened if he was around spending all our money and getting into to trouble. Everythingâs better without him.â And now that her admission was out of the way, she could go back to more interesting things.
âSo this guy Neil. You sure thatâs it? So itâs not romantic yet. Do you want it to be?â Hm, definitely time for more beer if she was going to get anything out of Sam.
Sam whistled, impressed. "So you went straight and fucking narrow and dropped the baggage. I'm impressed, Tess. Are mom and dad hitting you up left and right for- what do you call that divorce money?" She paused, and she tried to decide whether or not to push about everything being better without 'The Ball and Chain,' and she decided to nudge just slightly. See? Being family meant Tess only got fucked with some. "Everything is better without him. That includes you?"
No more beer. Fuck no. "Of course it's not romantic. I don't do romantic. You know that, Tess." There was enough of a don't you dare insist I do romantic warning in her voice that even a deaf person could hear it. "We're going out to a club. Maybe we'll fuck and get it over with." Jesus, she needed another fucking joint. "You're going to have to make me a key." Change of fucking subject.
Tess pressed a finger to her lips, a quick âShhhhh!â at the mention of their parents. âThey donât know it. At least I havenât told them.â She gave Sam a quick but pointed glare, a half-hearted warning not to tell, and a bit annoyed that she had to admit that bit of information altogether. âAnd yeah it includes me. Everythingâs better. Fucking fantastic.â Regardless of how true, or not, it was, it came out as in an exasperated torrent and a lot more incriminating than she liked.
Back to the topic at hand!
âIâll get you a key. No problem. And just because you never used to do romantic doesnât mean you canât now.â Another beer and another sigh as she pressed her back against the wall, reaching her free hand over to grab and lift a joint to her lips. âIâm just saying he sounds like heâs sticking around and thatâs pretty cool. Who wouldnât want that? And loaded too? Talk about a jackpot.â
Sam wasn't going to tell their parents jack fucking shit; she knew better. "You don't tell them I'm here, and I won't tell them about you, seeing as I'm hiding from them," she agreed easily. She gave her a look that said she knew that fucking shit about being better and fantastic was bullshit, but she didn't call her on it. Anyone else would have gotten an earful right then, but not Tess.
As for Neil? Sam took another long toke on her joint. "He's great. I just don't know what the fuck is going on," she admitted, pointing the joint at Tess a second later. "But we're done talking about it. I'll report back after the fucking clubbing incident. In the meantime? Crack open the journal you have lying around here somewhere, the one you looked all dear in fucking headlights about, and I'll intro you to Louis and Iris on there. Fuck it. I'll even add Neil. Deal?"
Tess stared at her sister for a long moment, a feeling like everything was changing faster than she could keep up. That nagging feeling at the back of her mind seemed to agree. âDeal,â she said and popped open another beer, thoroughly intent on keeping the rest of the evening light and free of any other confusing talk.