Three's a Crowd (Brooke and Jade)

[Kristina Novak]

The afternoon had passed by relatively quickly for Kristina. She was at work for the better part of the day, spending it folding clothes and making recommendations to customers, all with an overbearing, cheerful smile. As soon as work ended, so did the smile, and she was back to looking like her normal, serious-faced self. Kristina had driven by the grocery store, and taken in by impulse, decided that she was going to spend the rest of her evening watching movies and eating mountains of buttery popcorn. 

The stress of school was gone, and fortunately, the Czech girl had passed all of her classes. It meant she had more free time for drawing and taking photos, as well as taking on more hours at work. All in all, Kristina's summer had been relatively... boring. Not the usual hustle and bustle she was use to, coupled with partying every other weekend. 

Maybe she would go out and enjoy the nightlife sometime soon. Shrugging it off, Kristina pulled into the apartment's parking lot, settling her sedan in its usual spot. She grabbed the microwaveable popcorn and her purse, heading up to Sexy Bitch Haven.

"Hello?" She called out, opening the unlocked door. That had to be a good sign. Maybe Brooke and Jade could join her for a movie marathon, or maybe they had another idea of what to do with the night.

[Jade Parrish]

Jade had quickly found out that Kristina worked for Kai, which didn't set well with her, even after she'd seen him as sort of human after he got stung by that bee in the park. However, she'd said nothing to Kristina about the matter except for, "I took off my shirt for him once" with a devilish smirk. That's about all she'd done for him anyway. Well, that and call an ambulance for him once...

It was Jade's first day off in a long time and by that she meant she was neither at campus doing newspaper stuff or at Starbucks making drinks for ungrateful people. She was in the kitchen, sitting on the counter-top with a glass of red wine in hand, only in a black tank-top and a pair of purple boyshort panties. It was called Sexy Bitch Haven for a reason. That, and sometimes no pants was the best pants.

She heard the front door creak open and a familiar voice. It was Kristina returning from work no doubt. The front door led right into the living room space. "In the kitchen. Need a glass of wine after dealing with Kai all day?"

[Deleted]

Moving in had been easy as pie, easy peasy measy bleasy aeiou and sometimes whyyyyyy am I getting sidetracked?? Anyway! Brooke was settled in quite comfortably and compactly(yeah right) in her little niche-like corner of the universe, decorating her personal space with things that were pink and things that were awesome and things that were just silly. There may have been an anime poster or two on the wall and a shelf full of D&D miniatures. And, of course, wall-to-wall books, well maybe not wall to wall, but just as many as she could stuff into her three bookshelves. Not surprisingly, Brooke had done most of the heavy lifting herself(helps to be kick-ass) but just to make him feel useful, Brooke had given Xun(her handy-dandy helper) a couple of the light ones to bring in.

And like Mary Poppins, with a mere snap of her fingers(and a lot of physical labor), Brooke had personalized her room to maximum-comfort levels.

Anyway, it was a day that had mostly passed her by with a giant snooze and a few sleep-walking walks to the kitchen for milk and juice(not together, ew, gross!) and maybe a few cheeto snacks which she carted back to her room for the better part of the day.

When Kristina came home, Brooke was well on her way to getting her day started, having finally emerged from her bedroom to…squat on the couch(sporting a white kitty tank and red plaid boxers curled up into hot pants) and play some Earth Defense Force and murder them nasty spiders and anties. Hee hee hee.

“Die die die, ya little buggies!!” she heckled at the tv as her fingers mashed over the xbox controller. Brooke lifted her eyes briefly as Kristina came in and sent her an air-smooch. “Hiya luvly!” Then turned back to her video game. Almost done with this mission.

[Kristina Novak]

Letting out a yawn, Kristina took off her light jacket and purse, hanging it on her designated peg before kicking off her heels. It had been a long and exhausting day, and part of her wanted to curl underneath her blankets and go to sleep. But that would be lame. She cradled the box of popcorn in one arm, her eyes drawn to the television and... giant bugs. She made a face. "God, I'm glad nothing like that has happened in real life." Kristina commented with a laugh, smiling at Brooke. She continued to watch her pretty friend kill the massive bugs, shuddering. "I brought home some popcorn, you want?" She gestured with her head towards the box in her arm.

Then, the other familiar voice came from the kitchen. Crossing the living room, Kristina peeked her head into the kitchen, chuckling at what Jade had to say. She knew that she wasn't the biggest fan of Kristina's coworker, but the exact reason why remained unknown. "You know, he's not that bad." She protested, grinning at the dark haired beauty. Then again, she had seen Kai at a very vulnerable point, which was so different from the confident aura he normally projected. She brushed away the thought, walking towards Jade and the wine. "I'll still take a glass. You want some popcorn?" Cause nothing was classier than red wine and popcorn. Her eyes lingered on Jade's form before Kristina began to tear open the box, grabbing a couple of bags, depending on her roommates' answer.

And then she would change. Cause Brooke and Jade looked comfy in their attire and she felt out of place in her dress and jewelry set.

[Jade Parrish]

"Destroy those fuckers, Brooke!" Jade yelled from the kitchen towards her quirky roommate who was in the living room just as Kristina entered the kitchen. "He's got an ego if you ask me. I took off my shirt for him once," she said with a shrug, as it it wasn't a big deal. She didn't even go on to explain why she'd done it. "You probably don't remember anyway. It was the night of the Black Light party."

She turned her body so she could open the cabinet to grab another stemless wine glass and then grabbed her bottle from next to her and poured Kristina a glass. "Popcorn sounds good," she declared, finally jumping down from the counter. "Now, go dress down a little." She didn't really care what it could have implied.

[Deleted]

“Heh heh heh….” Brooke shook her head to Kristina’s offer. “Not before saving the world, you crazy!?” She never once looked away from the screen. “Will do will dooo~ my lovely Jade-stone!” Brooke would have called this over her shoulder, but she couldn’t be bothered to move even an inch as it might divert her gaze from the TV and she would lose!! What a horrible thought!!

But that didn’t mean that she wasn’t all ears to listening in on what the two sexy bitches in the kitchen were talking of. She could totally multi-task if she wanted! Yeppers!

It was a only a couple of minutes more, though, before Brooke finally cleared the mission. Brooke bounced up on the couch, standing tall on her bare feet and raising her hands high in the air, one of them pumped in victory and the other holding onto the condensed, wireless X-box controller. “HA! I AM VICTORIOUS!!” she announced to no one. Satisfied(for now), Brooke hopped off the couch and switched off the console, scampering on her toesies to the kitchen where the rest of the cool people were(or just Jade if Kristina had already left to go change clothes).

She popped open the fridge and snatched the carton of milk from it, filling a tall cup with it, then replaced it within the cold box. “Who’re we talkin’ ‘bout again?” she inquired with a tilt of the head. Brooke gulped down a good portion of her milk.

[Kristina Novak]

Chuckling, Kristina shook her head at Brooke's antics. "Apparently so. If you change your mind it's on the counter." She said with a smile, though with her roomie's concentration solely on the game, she wouldn't be surprised if Brooke didn't see it.

"Personally, I think it's a front, the ego." She said with a slight shrug. After seeing Kai sitting and sobbing in the backroom, Kristina just couldn't get the image out of her head or see him as an egotistical asshole like everyone else. She raised an eyebrow at Jade. "Girl, that's one story you didn't share and I'd like to hear it one day." The Black Light Party had been mostly a blur, save for a few distinct moments involving Brooke. The hangover the next day had been killer, that much she knew.

Speaking of, her roommate was shouting how she was victorious and Kristina laughed, clapping for her. Is that what people did when they played video games? She didn't know. "Nice!" Grabbing one of the bags, she put it in the microwave and set the timer, before turning back to face Jade and accept her glass of wine. "Thank youuuu." She set it on the table, smirking as she answered "Malachai Roen." with her best attempt at a sultry voice. Since humour was not her forte, it fell a little short.

With that, Kristina began to take off her necklace and earrings in the kitchen. She had some time to change before the popcorn would be ready anyway. "I will do that." Because when she wasn't at work, why bother at all? Kristina quickly went off to go dress more comfortably, throwing on a pair of black shorts and a green tank top. Gathering her hair, she hastily put it in a messy bun and made her way back to the kitchen.

[Jade Parrish]

"Maybe," Jade mused. Okay, probably. She had seen him get stung by a bee. That was vulnerable. I mean, he could have died. And who did he have to trust his life with in that moment? Her. She'd had to call an ambulance for him and sit with him and comfort him while sirens blared in the distance, assuring him that he'd be fine even through his reaction and his panic attack. And that moment had brought up a lot of memories Jade had repressed and she didn't like it, but she couldn't be mad at Kai for it. "He just gives me a vibe and after everything I've seen with him and Zach. I just don't know." A small part of her did feel guilty about how she'd tortured the guy, but she'd found him to repulsive and she was usually a great judge of character. Sure, Kristina worked with him, maybe she saw another side of him, but she did seem like someone who tried to see the best in everybody.

"Well, I was kind of a bitch," she admitted. "I wanted to show Zach that Kai was scum and would go after anybody so I flirted with him and got him into the bedroom only to paralyze him." That was the short version of the story. Yes, Kai probably deserved it, but paralyzing someone wasn't something that a human should be able to do and therefore, he probably didn't deserve that part. Jade didn't usually use her power and she kind of regretted it even if she acted like it was one of the most hilarious things she'd done.

When Brooke walked into the kitchen and poured herself some milk, Jade raised an eyebrow. "You're drinking that when I have a bottle of wine over here? Do you need stronger bones?" she joked as Kristina filled Brooke in on who they were talking about, only to leave the room a moment later to go change.

[Deleted]

“Mmmhmmm!” she squeaked back to Kristina. Brooke had every intention of going to the kitchen when all this was over and partaking of this coveted ‘popcorn’ the other girl spoke of. Otherwise, she was pretty much dead to whatever it was they were talking about in the kitchen.

That’s why when she skittered into the conversation, she was next to clueless as to who this “Malachai Roen” was. She knew of a “Roen” at Hammel, a girl who was a grade lower than Brooke and a darned stick-in-the-mud, but she didn’t know if the two were connected or not. “Don’t know ‘im,” she said casually, far more interested in grabbing herself that glass of milk.

Brooke blinked up at Jade and continued to stare without blinking as she took the glass to her lips and chugged down the whole serving all at once. She gasped with refreshed delight upon completion and slammed the glass down upon the table. “Jaade~!” she exclaimed with utter “shock”, placing her hand upon her cheek with feminine surprise. “I’m disappointed in you! That you would so openly promote underage drinking in this household, how shaaaamefuulllll~!” Brooke wailed and reeled around her hips, pointing a scolding finger at Jade in her “disappointment”. Brooke let the moment linger before she dropped the act. “What kind?” she asked, leaning forward curiously.

[Kristina Novak]

Shrugging, Kristina let the subject of whether Kai was good or not drop. She didn't know him on a super personal level; they were just coworkers and she happened to see him at a vulnerable point some months ago.

She watched the microwave, eager for the popcorn to be ready. The smell was enough to make her want to rip open the bag right now and devour the popcorn. Taking a sip of red wine before going off to change, Kristina's eyes widened as Jade told her what had happened between her and Kai some time ago at the Black Light party. "Really?" That sounded like something her friend would do, so Kristina wasn't exactly surprised. When Brooke came in to grab her milk, she shrugged. "You've probably seen him, but might not have talked to him."

After changing into more comfortable clothing, the Czech girl came back to see Brooke mock lecturing Jade about underage drinking, and she snorted, shaking her head with amusement. "Because I think we're all oh-so concerned about that." She joked, taking a sip of her own wine.

[Jade Parrish]

Brooke was completely and utterly ridiclous at times, but it made things interesting in Jade's opinion. There was never a dull moment around the apartment because of her whether she was screaming at her video games or just saying crazy things that made you laugh. "You know me, Brookey. Encouraging underage drinking, robbing banks, stealing kittens." She grinned over at her just before she dropped the act. "It's a red wine. Not too dark, a twinge of sweetness."

Just then Kristina came back in. "Yeah, it's not like I'm getting you guys drunk and forcing you to make out, you do that easily enough on your own," she joked.

[Deleted]

“Hmm,” she squeaked, giving her shoulder a sharp, quick shrug. Maybe she had, maybe she hadn’t seen him. “He somebody’s special someone or something?” she asked. The way they were talking about the Kai guy, he must’ve been something, maybe she should go on a search for him and get a taste herself?

Or she could just look a little closer to home. “Oh, my hunny-Jadie-baby, you can join us if you ever get the urge,” she teased, sliding up to Kristina and draping her arm over the girl’s shoulders. Brooke giggled. “Okay, you convinced me,” she declared, tiptoeing to the cupboard and plucking out a wine glass. “Fill ‘er up!” Brooke held it out to Jade as thought she expected the girl to play bartendress.

[Kristina Novak]

Kristina shrugged, not remembering if Kai had a significant other or someone close to that. She took another sip of the wine, savouring the flavour. Ahhh, nothing like a glass of wine with her lovely roommates after work. Already, she was feeling more relaxed.

By now, she was use to Jade's harmless teasing, managing a smirk as Brooke came up beside her. She wrapped an arm around the girl's waist. "You know, I think she's a little jealous that she missed out on the fun." She nonchalantly added, giving Jade a pointed, serious look. Whether that was true or not, she didn't know.

She let go of Brooke as she sauntered over for some wine, and the microwave beeped. Kristina almost skipped over, opening up the bag of popcorn, the aroma filing the room. She took a handful and popped some pieces in her mouth, even if it was a little too hot. "Feel free to eat some or else I'll devour the whole bag." Kristina joked, though it wasn't farfetched.

[Jade Parrish]

Jade laughed when Brooke asked if he was someone special, so much that she almost snorted. "No," she declared simply. "Unless you call him a special asshole." It wasn't even one of those situations when you were joking or you actually liked him, even wanted him and you were tearing him down like girls did. Jade just didn't like him. It was that simple.

The comments that were made next made Jade smirk. Brooke was offering that she join in and Kristina actually made a comment that made Jade realize the dark haired girl kept on surprising her. "Yeah, well it would have been a hell of a lot better than what I actually did that night." Which was paralyze Kai after seducing him and then seeing Rafi talking to Zach in the kitchen, which had been sort of add. She knew flirting better than anyone and that's what had been happening.

She picked up the wine bottle and poured some for Brooke into her glass, filling it up. "That a girl," she said with a grin, before topping off her own glass. "I'll take some popcorn."

[Deleted]

“You know, I think you may be right!” Brooke agreed, popping a finger in the air and giving her lovely Czech girl a dainty poke on the nose. And, no surprise here, Brooke was entirely fine with them having a “girl’s night” in that department, if it ever came to that. Brooke was very easygoing.

“What’d you do?” Brooke asked, a bit confused. “This is the dude you did the whole vulcan-death-grip thingy too, right?” Brooke had only caught the tail end of their previous conversation when she’d come in the kitchen and her own memories of that night were hazy at best. She did have quite a bit of alcohol, after all. And with her face latched onto Kristina’s half the night, she’d only gathered that something had happened, just not all the details.

Brooke smiled with excitement as Jade bestowed upon her a healthy serving of wine in her glass. “Same!” she called over her shoulder to the popcorn lady. She sampled the wine like a connoisseur. “Delicious,” she said, smacking her lips.