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marysuevirusTitle: Friendship Set to Music Chapter One: Hello, I Love You
Fandom: Marvel (60s Counter-culture AU)
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: ~3000
Warnings: Drug use, sex (M/F, F/F, M/M, and every other combination)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything recognizable. Marvel does. The sues are the property of their originators;![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ladydeathfaerie, ginevrasm, nanaeanaven, sessys_fangirl and dazzledfirestar. I don't make any money from this.
Author's Notes: Oh god, guys... I couldn't stop it! LOL It just started coming together and there was no getting away from it... I mostly blame this variant cover. Also the songs in the fic are Blowin' in the Wind (this is the Joan Baez version) and California Dreamin' by the Mamas and the Papas. Anyway, we're set in the late 60s (1968ish) in New York City... enjoy the trip, man!
“Hey, you okay?”
The guy’s voice pulled her out of her head and she glanced up, taking in the shaggy blond hair and blue eyes that looked too concerned about a complete stranger. She kept staring wondering why he was talking to her. It took a moment to realize that he wasn’t dressed like the rest of the people in the diner. His t-shirt was a swirl of color and the jeans he had on had obviously been favorites for a long time. The leather jacket and its tassels were the last tell. This guy was a kindred spirit.
She smiled up. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just…” She sighed and started twirling her scarf between her fingers, watching the colors shift in the fading light as it they’d have the answers. “Just a little down on my luck, I guess.”
He slid into the booth across form her and frowned. “What happened?”
Oh the answers she could have given him to that one… Dare smiled again, a sad thing that barely covered the depth of what she felt. “The world happened, man.” She sighed. “What always happens to people like us?”
He nodded slowly as if thinking something over. “So what’s your deal? Saving the world?” He smiled. “Or something else?”
“Something else is a hell of a lot more fun.” She smiled back. She couldn’t help it. The guy had a way about him. “Why, you got something in mind?”
“I got a place. It’s big… there’s room if you need it.”
She felt her jaw drop. “Why?”
“Because.” The guy shrugged. “I got the room. Nothing wrong with helping out another person. Especially if she’s…”
Dare smiled again. He was feeling her up, making sure she wasn’t faking it. Making sure she wasn’t a narc most likely. She couldn’t blame him. “How did Hendrix put it?” She smiled into her mug. “I am experienced.”
“You like Hendrix?” His grin got nearly giddy. The next half hour was a blur of songs, melodies, bands and singers. Hendrix, Morrison, Joplin, the Beatles, the Stones, Van Morrison, the Kinks. Every time she thought he’d balk, he got more enthused and vis versa. “Now you’ve gotta move in. You’ll love it. The band hangs out most of the time. There’s always music.”
“You’re in a band?” Her eyebrow went up. After the conversation they’d been having, she shouldn’t have been surprised. The way he’d picked at every note on every guitar lick made her nearly sure he played the instrument himself.
“Yeah. I mean, we’re not famous or anything… but we get gigs around here.” He shrugged again. “I think we’re pretty good actually. At least when Rem isn’t half way into a bottle of Jack.” He smirked. “He likes to think he’s a poet trapped in a rock star’s body.”
Dare laughed. “If he can fill out a pair of leather pants, I wouldn’t mind so much.” They both laughed harder. “Do you even have a name? I can’t move into your place if you don’t have a name. It’s a personal rule.”
“Johnny.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple beat up bills. He tossed them down and reached across the table. “So, you wanna go home?”
“Aren’t you going to ask me my name?” She grinned and started putting her stuff in the overstuffed bag beside her.
“What is it?”
She stood and slung her bag over her shoulder. “Call me Dare.”
He hadn’t been lying. The place was huge. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the lack of light, though the huge windows that faced out onto the street made up for the lack of lamps. It took a second for Dare to realize that the music she was hearing was coming from the makeshift living room. Really, it was the same room as nearly everything else, but it had a grouping of mismatched couches and chairs so living room seemed an apt name for it.
On one of the couches was a girl. She couldn’t really make out any details aside from the long legs stretched out in front of her and long straight hair that, even in the dim light was obviously red. The soft sounds from the acoustic guitar in her lap filled the space. Then her voice joined the strains of the guitar.
“How many time can a man look up
Before he sees the sky?
How many ears must one person have
Before he can hear people cry?
How many deaths will it take til he knows
That too many people have died?
The answer my friend is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind…
“Isn’t she beautiful?” Johnny’s arm slipped away from her waist and Dare nodded quietly. The girl’s presence surprised her. She’d figured Johnny would be like every other guy—part of the movement or not—and he’d expect well, something for letting her crash. This threw her a bit of a curveball.
She decided to leave that conversation for later though. “How can you guys afford this place?”
Johnny shrugged, hanging his jacket on a hook near the door. “My dad… he died awhile ago and left me some money. Only good thing the old man ever did.” The bitterness in his voice left her wondering where this guy had come from. “So, I got this place as a rehearsal space… it’s kind of the hang-out for the guys and anyone else that needs a spot on the floor for a while.”
Both of them turned to the girl again as she started picking out the beginning of another song. Dare smiled for a second. It was a favorite. The man beside her stepped further into the loft and started singing along.
Dare listening to them for longer than she thought she would. They sounded really good together. Hell they looked really good together too. Dare’s eyes had adjusted enough to realize that the nearly sheer peasant blouse on the other woman was the only scrap of clothing on her that could be seen. She was willing to bet there wasn’t anything under it either. She was totally unselfconscious about it too, like she did this all the time. Of course, it was her living room by the look of things so, maybe she did. Dare wasn’t about to say otherwise.
She watched them on the couch as he sat down next to her and she smiled. Dare found herself joining in on the song before she even realized it.
All the leaves are brown
And the sky is grey
I’ve been for a walk
On a winters day
If I didn't tell her
I could leave today
California dreamin’
On such a winters day
California dreaming
On such a winters day
California dreaming
On such a winters day
The room was silent for a moment as the redhead looked up at her. There was no concern that she was being replaced—Dare didn’t think she could manage that anyway with the way Johnny was looking at her—or threatened that there was another woman in her home. She just smiled and patted the chair beside the couch.
Johnny’s voice cut through the silence. “Haley Stone, Dare…” He paused, his brow furrowing as he realized he didn’t know her last name.
“Scott. Dare Scott.” She reached out a hand.
Haley took it and shook it slowly. That’s when Dare saw the signs. Nothing major really. She should have picked up the smell in the room before hand. Now that she knew, it was still barely noticeable. The redhead’s grin widened. “There’s some left, if you want.” She reached forward, handing the guitar to Johnny and pulling half a joint out of the ashtray.
“Thanks.” Dare took the offered joint a moment later once it was burning again.
“Mi casa es tu casa.” She smiled again and turned to lay her head in Johnny’s lap with a sigh. “We need more music…”
“Should I plug in, baby?” His fingers toyed with her hair lazily.
She shook her head. “It’s an acoustic night.” She smiled at Dare again. “Don’t you think?”
“Yeah. Sounds good.” Dare smiled back, feeling the soft, relaxing sensation from the pot starting to kick in.
“Dare needs a roof.” Johnny said as he started strumming the guitar Haley had handed him.
“Well then… mi roof es tu roof.” She smiled again. “There is only one question that you need to answer before the deal is sealed.”
Dare tensed a little. She knew there had to be something. “… okay.”
Haley sat up and shuffled closer. “Have you heard Pink Floyd’s new album yet?”
Dare almost laughed. “Not yet.”
“Good,” She rested her chin on the arm of the couch. “We’ll listen to it together later!”
They lounged around for awhile, singing along to whatever songs Johnny decided to play on the guitar. They were half way through the second bottle of cheap wine when the conversation kicked back in. “Where’s Pete?”
Haley laughed. “Where he always is. Upstairs.”
“Who’s Pete?” Dare passed the joint between her fingers to Haley.
“Roommate number three.” Haley shrugged and picked up the blankets that were draped over the back of the couch. “Come on, you should meet him.”
The climb to the roof was a short one and the bright colors of the blankets laid out over the asphalt were hard to miss. In the middle of the blankets was a young man, about the same age as the rest of them. He was staring up at the stars like he could make out the secrets to the universe if he just stared long enough. Dare wondered for a second what he was on. “I was wondering why you guys would come up here.”
“Senses tingling, Pete?” Johnny chuckled and sat down on the mountain of blankets.
“Just a little.” He shrugged but didn’t take his eyes off the sky. “Roxxy was by earlier. She said she had something for Haley.”
“Did she say what?” Haley stepped out into the night air and sat down on the other side of the young man.
“No, but it seemed important. She said she’d be back tomorrow.” He sighed heavily. Not a sad or put out sound, but one that was completely content. “I love it up here…”
“Pete, you’re being rude.” Haley poked him gently with a laugh. “We’ve got a new friend.”
He raised his hand. “Hi, new friend.”
“Hi.” Dare took a couple tentative steps out across the roof. “I’m Dare.”
“Pete.” He smiled and tipped his head far enough back to see her. “Come. Sit.” She did and she looked up. “I want to see a shooting star…”
“We’re in the middle of New York, Pete. Chances aren’t that good.” Johnny slung a friendly arm over the other man’s shoulder.
“Doesn’t mean it can’t happen.”
“Of course it doesn’t.” Haley laid down beside him. “If we all watch, maybe one of us will catch one!”
Dare smiled. It was a gorgeous night out. She suddenly wished they’d brought up the bottle of wine. She reminded herself to--at some point--get some kind of meal or something together for a night like this. It was a lovely place for a picnic. “That sounds like a plan.” She curled up on the other side of Haley.
Haley chuckled lightly as Johnny sighed and curled up too. Dare could already almost see his eyes rolling. Something about this place felt good, even after a couple hours. She decided that turning off thoughts about how this could all be false was a good idea and she stared up at the stars. The constellations were dim, but they were there. Always constant. She smiled. That had been one of her favorite things to do as a kid. Stare at the stars. She even dug up every book she could find on astronomy. And when that run out, she turned to astrology. Signs in the sky of who you were to be. It was a lovely thought that still floated through her life from time to time.
“When’s your birthday?” She turned to Haley.
The redhead’s brow crinkled at the randomness of the question. “December 8th. Why?”
“Sagittarius.” Dare grinned. “So, leader type? The world is your oyster?” She laughed again as Haley sat up and smiled.
“Maybe…”
Dare laughed again and leaned over Haley and Pete. “I can probably guess a few other things… if you two aren’t shy.” She winked at Johnny and he rolled over, propping his head up on her hand.
“They’re never shy.” Pete said quietly. “I’m surprised they aren’t going at it yet.”
Haley shrugged. “So do tell!”
“First…” Dare looked at Johnny and he smirked.
“Leo.”
“Figures.” She laughed. “So… hmmm…” she thought for a moment, remembering the things she’d picked up for mystics and other mysterious types in her travels. Some of them had some very interesting and intimate things to say about the signs. “The two of you drag it all out; go for as long as humanly possible, right? In front of anyone who happens to be in the room? And you—“ she pointed at Johnny. “Go for days, right?” She watched him blush.
Pete laughed softly. “A week of living here will tell you you’re right.”
“That’s amazing.” Haley laughed and rolled to look at the woman beside her. “How did you do that?”
Dare shrugged. “I picked up some stuff in some places.”
“That’s wild.” Haley smiled again. “So what about you?”
“What about me?”
“Oh come on. You can’t just analyze our sex life and not give us something.” Haley’s fingers traced gently along the crook of Dare’s arm sending really pleasant shivers up her spine. “So…” Something dark passed through the woman’s gaze that made the shivers slightly more pronounced. “What would it be like?”
“With who?”
“Oh count me out.” Pete went back to staring at the stars. Probably the safest bet as Haley considered the options.
Her eyes fell on Johnny and Dare could see the blush that painted his cheeks even from where she was laying. “Tell me about Johnny. Tell me what it’d be like if you two…” She paused and smiled. “Theoretically, of course.”
Dare nearly gulped. There was nothing theoretical about the tone in Haley’s voice. It wasn’t that she wasn’t attracted to the redhead… she was. Haley was beautiful and she was willing to admit that even if she hadn’t actually been with any girls, she wasn’t opposed to the idea. If anything she was pretty intrigued by it. But she wondered if this was part of the rent agreement. She took a deep breath and started talking, pushing the worry back for a little longer. “I think the word for it is…” She smiled over at the blond, “Insatiable.”
He smirked at her for a minute. “Sounds like fun.”
Dare felt herself smile back. Again, it wasn’t that she didn’t find him attractive. He was gorgeous with all that shaggy blonde hair and blue eyes that she felt she could just fall in to. He was deep with a wildness to him that told her he'd never slow down; never give in to what the world would want him to be. That wildness was almost more appealing than his body and she'd already spent more time than she should have picturing him naked and between her thighs. But again, that voice in the back of her head came back to warn her off. If that was a part of the agreement, she wasn’t sure she could do that even for a nice loft and groovy roommates.
Haley’s fingers brushed against the side of her breast and she’d been so caught up in her thoughts that she couldn’t be sure if it was an accident or not. Haley leaned in, her breath warm against Dare’s neck before she spoke. “What about you and me?”
Dare’s mouth went dry and her eyes went wide. Her tongue darted out to try and get some moisture on suddenly very dry lips. “You and me?”
“Yeah,” Haley’s smile faltered and she pulled back. “I mean… if that’s not your bag, that’s cool.”
Dare shook her head a little too vigorously. “No, no… it’s not… I mean, I…”
“Dare?” Johnny’s voice made her turn. “It’s okay. Nobody’s gonna make you do anything around here. It’s not like that.” He reached over Pete—who was still watching stars—and stroked Haley’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry… I thought you—" the redhead blushed and pulled further back. “Well, I thought it would be okay. I’m sorry.”
Dare saw a flicker of fear in the other woman. She understood that. After all, what she was suggesting could get them arrested; not that half of the things they’d done that night couldn’t do the same but she understood the fear of crossing that line and she wanted to make it better. “You and me… we could learn a lot from each other, I think.” She smiled.
Haley visibly relaxed. “Yeah?” Dare nodded. Her breath caught as Haley leaned back in, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. It lingered, grew, deepened slowly until they pulled back.
“Maybe we should head back down.” Dare nearly jumped when Johnny spoke but she nodded and let Haley help her to her feet. “You gonna be okay, Pete?”
“Can I keep these blankets up here?”
“Of course.”
“Then I’m good.” He smiled up at the sky. “Hey, guys? Is that a plane or a shooting star?”
“Where?” Haley tried to follow his pointed finger.
“It was right there.” Pete frowned.
Dare smiled. “Well if it was a plane it’d still be close, right? So it must have been a star.”
Pete just smiled and hunkered down deeper into his blankets.
As the door closed behind the three of them, Dare felt her heart jump a little. She wasn’t a blushing virgin by any estimation but something about this all felt… intense.
Haley’s fingers traced her spine. “If you’re having second thoughts…”
Dare pulled her closer and kissed her again. “No, no second thoughts. There’s just a vibe here…”
Johnny’s arms slipped around both of them. “You feel it too?” He smiled and kissed Haley’s neck. “It means something, then… right? Like, you should be here.” He leaned in and she closed the distance between their lips.
She was beginning to think he might just be right.
Fandom: Marvel (60s Counter-culture AU)
Rating: NC-17
Word Count: ~3000
Warnings: Drug use, sex (M/F, F/F, M/M, and every other combination)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything recognizable. Marvel does. The sues are the property of their originators;
ladydeathfaerie, ginevrasm, nanaeanaven, sessys_fangirl and dazzledfirestar. I don't make any money from this.Author's Notes: Oh god, guys... I couldn't stop it! LOL It just started coming together and there was no getting away from it... I mostly blame this variant cover. Also the songs in the fic are Blowin' in the Wind (this is the Joan Baez version) and California Dreamin' by the Mamas and the Papas. Anyway, we're set in the late 60s (1968ish) in New York City... enjoy the trip, man!
“Hey, you okay?”
The guy’s voice pulled her out of her head and she glanced up, taking in the shaggy blond hair and blue eyes that looked too concerned about a complete stranger. She kept staring wondering why he was talking to her. It took a moment to realize that he wasn’t dressed like the rest of the people in the diner. His t-shirt was a swirl of color and the jeans he had on had obviously been favorites for a long time. The leather jacket and its tassels were the last tell. This guy was a kindred spirit.
She smiled up. “Yeah, I’m okay. Just…” She sighed and started twirling her scarf between her fingers, watching the colors shift in the fading light as it they’d have the answers. “Just a little down on my luck, I guess.”
He slid into the booth across form her and frowned. “What happened?”
Oh the answers she could have given him to that one… Dare smiled again, a sad thing that barely covered the depth of what she felt. “The world happened, man.” She sighed. “What always happens to people like us?”
He nodded slowly as if thinking something over. “So what’s your deal? Saving the world?” He smiled. “Or something else?”
“Something else is a hell of a lot more fun.” She smiled back. She couldn’t help it. The guy had a way about him. “Why, you got something in mind?”
“I got a place. It’s big… there’s room if you need it.”
She felt her jaw drop. “Why?”
“Because.” The guy shrugged. “I got the room. Nothing wrong with helping out another person. Especially if she’s…”
Dare smiled again. He was feeling her up, making sure she wasn’t faking it. Making sure she wasn’t a narc most likely. She couldn’t blame him. “How did Hendrix put it?” She smiled into her mug. “I am experienced.”
“You like Hendrix?” His grin got nearly giddy. The next half hour was a blur of songs, melodies, bands and singers. Hendrix, Morrison, Joplin, the Beatles, the Stones, Van Morrison, the Kinks. Every time she thought he’d balk, he got more enthused and vis versa. “Now you’ve gotta move in. You’ll love it. The band hangs out most of the time. There’s always music.”
“You’re in a band?” Her eyebrow went up. After the conversation they’d been having, she shouldn’t have been surprised. The way he’d picked at every note on every guitar lick made her nearly sure he played the instrument himself.
“Yeah. I mean, we’re not famous or anything… but we get gigs around here.” He shrugged again. “I think we’re pretty good actually. At least when Rem isn’t half way into a bottle of Jack.” He smirked. “He likes to think he’s a poet trapped in a rock star’s body.”
Dare laughed. “If he can fill out a pair of leather pants, I wouldn’t mind so much.” They both laughed harder. “Do you even have a name? I can’t move into your place if you don’t have a name. It’s a personal rule.”
“Johnny.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a couple beat up bills. He tossed them down and reached across the table. “So, you wanna go home?”
“Aren’t you going to ask me my name?” She grinned and started putting her stuff in the overstuffed bag beside her.
“What is it?”
She stood and slung her bag over her shoulder. “Call me Dare.”
He hadn’t been lying. The place was huge. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the lack of light, though the huge windows that faced out onto the street made up for the lack of lamps. It took a second for Dare to realize that the music she was hearing was coming from the makeshift living room. Really, it was the same room as nearly everything else, but it had a grouping of mismatched couches and chairs so living room seemed an apt name for it.
On one of the couches was a girl. She couldn’t really make out any details aside from the long legs stretched out in front of her and long straight hair that, even in the dim light was obviously red. The soft sounds from the acoustic guitar in her lap filled the space. Then her voice joined the strains of the guitar.
“How many time can a man look up
Before he sees the sky?
How many ears must one person have
Before he can hear people cry?
How many deaths will it take til he knows
That too many people have died?
The answer my friend is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind…
“Isn’t she beautiful?” Johnny’s arm slipped away from her waist and Dare nodded quietly. The girl’s presence surprised her. She’d figured Johnny would be like every other guy—part of the movement or not—and he’d expect well, something for letting her crash. This threw her a bit of a curveball.
She decided to leave that conversation for later though. “How can you guys afford this place?”
Johnny shrugged, hanging his jacket on a hook near the door. “My dad… he died awhile ago and left me some money. Only good thing the old man ever did.” The bitterness in his voice left her wondering where this guy had come from. “So, I got this place as a rehearsal space… it’s kind of the hang-out for the guys and anyone else that needs a spot on the floor for a while.”
Both of them turned to the girl again as she started picking out the beginning of another song. Dare smiled for a second. It was a favorite. The man beside her stepped further into the loft and started singing along.
Dare listening to them for longer than she thought she would. They sounded really good together. Hell they looked really good together too. Dare’s eyes had adjusted enough to realize that the nearly sheer peasant blouse on the other woman was the only scrap of clothing on her that could be seen. She was willing to bet there wasn’t anything under it either. She was totally unselfconscious about it too, like she did this all the time. Of course, it was her living room by the look of things so, maybe she did. Dare wasn’t about to say otherwise.
She watched them on the couch as he sat down next to her and she smiled. Dare found herself joining in on the song before she even realized it.
All the leaves are brown
And the sky is grey
I’ve been for a walk
On a winters day
If I didn't tell her
I could leave today
California dreamin’
On such a winters day
California dreaming
On such a winters day
California dreaming
On such a winters day
The room was silent for a moment as the redhead looked up at her. There was no concern that she was being replaced—Dare didn’t think she could manage that anyway with the way Johnny was looking at her—or threatened that there was another woman in her home. She just smiled and patted the chair beside the couch.
Johnny’s voice cut through the silence. “Haley Stone, Dare…” He paused, his brow furrowing as he realized he didn’t know her last name.
“Scott. Dare Scott.” She reached out a hand.
Haley took it and shook it slowly. That’s when Dare saw the signs. Nothing major really. She should have picked up the smell in the room before hand. Now that she knew, it was still barely noticeable. The redhead’s grin widened. “There’s some left, if you want.” She reached forward, handing the guitar to Johnny and pulling half a joint out of the ashtray.
“Thanks.” Dare took the offered joint a moment later once it was burning again.
“Mi casa es tu casa.” She smiled again and turned to lay her head in Johnny’s lap with a sigh. “We need more music…”
“Should I plug in, baby?” His fingers toyed with her hair lazily.
She shook her head. “It’s an acoustic night.” She smiled at Dare again. “Don’t you think?”
“Yeah. Sounds good.” Dare smiled back, feeling the soft, relaxing sensation from the pot starting to kick in.
“Dare needs a roof.” Johnny said as he started strumming the guitar Haley had handed him.
“Well then… mi roof es tu roof.” She smiled again. “There is only one question that you need to answer before the deal is sealed.”
Dare tensed a little. She knew there had to be something. “… okay.”
Haley sat up and shuffled closer. “Have you heard Pink Floyd’s new album yet?”
Dare almost laughed. “Not yet.”
“Good,” She rested her chin on the arm of the couch. “We’ll listen to it together later!”
They lounged around for awhile, singing along to whatever songs Johnny decided to play on the guitar. They were half way through the second bottle of cheap wine when the conversation kicked back in. “Where’s Pete?”
Haley laughed. “Where he always is. Upstairs.”
“Who’s Pete?” Dare passed the joint between her fingers to Haley.
“Roommate number three.” Haley shrugged and picked up the blankets that were draped over the back of the couch. “Come on, you should meet him.”
The climb to the roof was a short one and the bright colors of the blankets laid out over the asphalt were hard to miss. In the middle of the blankets was a young man, about the same age as the rest of them. He was staring up at the stars like he could make out the secrets to the universe if he just stared long enough. Dare wondered for a second what he was on. “I was wondering why you guys would come up here.”
“Senses tingling, Pete?” Johnny chuckled and sat down on the mountain of blankets.
“Just a little.” He shrugged but didn’t take his eyes off the sky. “Roxxy was by earlier. She said she had something for Haley.”
“Did she say what?” Haley stepped out into the night air and sat down on the other side of the young man.
“No, but it seemed important. She said she’d be back tomorrow.” He sighed heavily. Not a sad or put out sound, but one that was completely content. “I love it up here…”
“Pete, you’re being rude.” Haley poked him gently with a laugh. “We’ve got a new friend.”
He raised his hand. “Hi, new friend.”
“Hi.” Dare took a couple tentative steps out across the roof. “I’m Dare.”
“Pete.” He smiled and tipped his head far enough back to see her. “Come. Sit.” She did and she looked up. “I want to see a shooting star…”
“We’re in the middle of New York, Pete. Chances aren’t that good.” Johnny slung a friendly arm over the other man’s shoulder.
“Doesn’t mean it can’t happen.”
“Of course it doesn’t.” Haley laid down beside him. “If we all watch, maybe one of us will catch one!”
Dare smiled. It was a gorgeous night out. She suddenly wished they’d brought up the bottle of wine. She reminded herself to--at some point--get some kind of meal or something together for a night like this. It was a lovely place for a picnic. “That sounds like a plan.” She curled up on the other side of Haley.
Haley chuckled lightly as Johnny sighed and curled up too. Dare could already almost see his eyes rolling. Something about this place felt good, even after a couple hours. She decided that turning off thoughts about how this could all be false was a good idea and she stared up at the stars. The constellations were dim, but they were there. Always constant. She smiled. That had been one of her favorite things to do as a kid. Stare at the stars. She even dug up every book she could find on astronomy. And when that run out, she turned to astrology. Signs in the sky of who you were to be. It was a lovely thought that still floated through her life from time to time.
“When’s your birthday?” She turned to Haley.
The redhead’s brow crinkled at the randomness of the question. “December 8th. Why?”
“Sagittarius.” Dare grinned. “So, leader type? The world is your oyster?” She laughed again as Haley sat up and smiled.
“Maybe…”
Dare laughed again and leaned over Haley and Pete. “I can probably guess a few other things… if you two aren’t shy.” She winked at Johnny and he rolled over, propping his head up on her hand.
“They’re never shy.” Pete said quietly. “I’m surprised they aren’t going at it yet.”
Haley shrugged. “So do tell!”
“First…” Dare looked at Johnny and he smirked.
“Leo.”
“Figures.” She laughed. “So… hmmm…” she thought for a moment, remembering the things she’d picked up for mystics and other mysterious types in her travels. Some of them had some very interesting and intimate things to say about the signs. “The two of you drag it all out; go for as long as humanly possible, right? In front of anyone who happens to be in the room? And you—“ she pointed at Johnny. “Go for days, right?” She watched him blush.
Pete laughed softly. “A week of living here will tell you you’re right.”
“That’s amazing.” Haley laughed and rolled to look at the woman beside her. “How did you do that?”
Dare shrugged. “I picked up some stuff in some places.”
“That’s wild.” Haley smiled again. “So what about you?”
“What about me?”
“Oh come on. You can’t just analyze our sex life and not give us something.” Haley’s fingers traced gently along the crook of Dare’s arm sending really pleasant shivers up her spine. “So…” Something dark passed through the woman’s gaze that made the shivers slightly more pronounced. “What would it be like?”
“With who?”
“Oh count me out.” Pete went back to staring at the stars. Probably the safest bet as Haley considered the options.
Her eyes fell on Johnny and Dare could see the blush that painted his cheeks even from where she was laying. “Tell me about Johnny. Tell me what it’d be like if you two…” She paused and smiled. “Theoretically, of course.”
Dare nearly gulped. There was nothing theoretical about the tone in Haley’s voice. It wasn’t that she wasn’t attracted to the redhead… she was. Haley was beautiful and she was willing to admit that even if she hadn’t actually been with any girls, she wasn’t opposed to the idea. If anything she was pretty intrigued by it. But she wondered if this was part of the rent agreement. She took a deep breath and started talking, pushing the worry back for a little longer. “I think the word for it is…” She smiled over at the blond, “Insatiable.”
He smirked at her for a minute. “Sounds like fun.”
Dare felt herself smile back. Again, it wasn’t that she didn’t find him attractive. He was gorgeous with all that shaggy blonde hair and blue eyes that she felt she could just fall in to. He was deep with a wildness to him that told her he'd never slow down; never give in to what the world would want him to be. That wildness was almost more appealing than his body and she'd already spent more time than she should have picturing him naked and between her thighs. But again, that voice in the back of her head came back to warn her off. If that was a part of the agreement, she wasn’t sure she could do that even for a nice loft and groovy roommates.
Haley’s fingers brushed against the side of her breast and she’d been so caught up in her thoughts that she couldn’t be sure if it was an accident or not. Haley leaned in, her breath warm against Dare’s neck before she spoke. “What about you and me?”
Dare’s mouth went dry and her eyes went wide. Her tongue darted out to try and get some moisture on suddenly very dry lips. “You and me?”
“Yeah,” Haley’s smile faltered and she pulled back. “I mean… if that’s not your bag, that’s cool.”
Dare shook her head a little too vigorously. “No, no… it’s not… I mean, I…”
“Dare?” Johnny’s voice made her turn. “It’s okay. Nobody’s gonna make you do anything around here. It’s not like that.” He reached over Pete—who was still watching stars—and stroked Haley’s shoulder.
“I’m sorry… I thought you—" the redhead blushed and pulled further back. “Well, I thought it would be okay. I’m sorry.”
Dare saw a flicker of fear in the other woman. She understood that. After all, what she was suggesting could get them arrested; not that half of the things they’d done that night couldn’t do the same but she understood the fear of crossing that line and she wanted to make it better. “You and me… we could learn a lot from each other, I think.” She smiled.
Haley visibly relaxed. “Yeah?” Dare nodded. Her breath caught as Haley leaned back in, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. It lingered, grew, deepened slowly until they pulled back.
“Maybe we should head back down.” Dare nearly jumped when Johnny spoke but she nodded and let Haley help her to her feet. “You gonna be okay, Pete?”
“Can I keep these blankets up here?”
“Of course.”
“Then I’m good.” He smiled up at the sky. “Hey, guys? Is that a plane or a shooting star?”
“Where?” Haley tried to follow his pointed finger.
“It was right there.” Pete frowned.
Dare smiled. “Well if it was a plane it’d still be close, right? So it must have been a star.”
Pete just smiled and hunkered down deeper into his blankets.
As the door closed behind the three of them, Dare felt her heart jump a little. She wasn’t a blushing virgin by any estimation but something about this all felt… intense.
Haley’s fingers traced her spine. “If you’re having second thoughts…”
Dare pulled her closer and kissed her again. “No, no second thoughts. There’s just a vibe here…”
Johnny’s arms slipped around both of them. “You feel it too?” He smiled and kissed Haley’s neck. “It means something, then… right? Like, you should be here.” He leaned in and she closed the distance between their lips.
She was beginning to think he might just be right.
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