Disclaimers: Please see part one

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"Where the fuck am I…", Sorrow grumbled as she rolled herself over on the sand. She was alone on the beach, and looking around, she found her only companions to be empty beer bottles.

"Augh… damn it, what a headache." She looked down to her jean pockets and found a folded piece of cardboard. It seemed to have writing on it; carefully she pulled it out.

That bastard. He left me out on the sand. AGAIN. She tried to recount what had happened the night before. She remembered apologizing to Alex, looking at her and thinking how pretty she was. She remembered something about a bet… and a toaster… shaking hands… and then talking….

Afterwards they walked back to where Tony and Carl were, and where the rest of the festival raged on. They talked a bit more, with both Tony and Carl and between themselves. Alex had given Sorrow her phone number, and Sorrow, somehow, had given hers to Alex. At 1:30 in the morning they had parted ways; Alex and Tony left, (and Alex did indeed give Sorrow a quick kiss on the cheek goodbye) leaving Carl and Sorrow at the beach. That's all she could remember.

"Well I guess it's time to be going home… finally." Before she made a move to get up, she heard a ringing emanating from her jacket pocket. She quickly unzipped her pocket and pressed the talk button on her phone.

"Hullo…?" she asked wearily, wondering who would be calling her at 11:45 in the morning.

"Uh, Sorrow?"

"Barely."

"Hey it's Alex. How are you? Did I wake you up?"

"Not exactly… I'm just a little tired."

"Is that a seagull I just heard?"

"Yeah."

"You're at the beach again?"

"I never left."

"What?!?"

"Yeah, Carl couldn't drag me back to my car, so he left me here passed out." Sorrow made a mental note to kick Carl's ass the next time she saw him.

"He left you there? That was nice of him." She said, slightly angry that Carl had been so careless.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Sorrow had gotten up and started walking towards where she hoped her car was still parked.

"So, is the beach neon blue and purple?"

"What?"

"You know, the jellyfish?"

Sorrow smiled to herself. Alex had remembered the story.

"Uh… sadly, no. I guess they decided to hold off on the world domination for another time." She could hear Alex's laughter through the phone, and it was a sound that she quickly decided was a nice thing to hear first thing in the morning.

"Well, it's good that they held it off. I would hate to have found you devoured by the Lord of the Jellyfish."

"Yeah, me too."

Alex could hear Sorrow's smile. Her voice changed; the usual quick, curt responses seemed to have an added warmth to them. She was trying to remember why she had called Sorrow in the first place (well, besides wanting to hear her voice, dial her phone number, make sure she remembered that they were going to be friends).

"Oh, listen, I called because I was wondering what you were doing this afternoon?" She bit her lip, hoping that Sorrow would be free for a day.

"Well, I was planning on finding my car first, then getting home and showering. After that, it's any man's guess."

"Well, if you're not too tired, would you like to go to this art exhibit thing? Since we have to go to at least one for our painting class…" She trailed off, hoping that Sorrow would jump in and agree. She crossed her fingers, her toes, her legs and her arms, waiting for the reply.

Sorrow, for her part, had finally spotted her car and again was careful in what to say. She had mixed feelings about this budding friendship; she wasn't used to talking and seeing someone everyday, she needed her space, and she wondered quietly if Alex would be too overbearing. She thought back to Alex's critique, how well she had spoken about her painting, about her message, and about how she felt. Before she could think twice, the words were out of her mouth.

"Sure, I'll go."

"Really?" Alex squeaked out quickly, in shock that her request had been fulfilled.

"Really, really."

Alex had given Sorrow the address of the art exhibit, agreeing that they would meet there at 4 p.m. Sorrow drove home, deciding that silence would be her best companion for the time being. She thought quietly to herself, trying to evaluate what she was feeling. After half an hour, she had arrived at her apartment. She turned on a candle and incense, sitting in front of the candle and staring at it for a moment. She brushed her long bangs away from her face, and closed her eyes. She breathed silently and deeply for a few moments, trying to focus herself. She parted her lips as if to say something, but instead she lifted herself off the ground and walked to her shower. Just go with it, she told herself, and reluctantly, she did.

"ALEXANDRA!!! GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE!!"

Oh shit, now what…Alex walked quickly across her house, trying to find her yelling mother.

"What's wrong, Mom?" she asked cautiously.

"Listen, I need to talk to you about this Tony situation. I know he got kicked out of his house, but he can't stay here forever, you know."

"I know. But I'm not going to let him sleep in his car, for chrissakes."

"I know, honey, I know. But listen to me, he has to understand that it's hard enough bringing in money after your father died, and having an extra mouth to feed…"

"I'll get a job, Mom. Then me and Tony can help you out with the groceries and bills and stuff."

"Alex, listen to me. Your father's dying wish was to see you finish school in a normal amount of time. He was in college 10 years. 10 years Alex! Because he was working full time so he could be able to support his family. You don't remember these things because you were a baby, but the man got 3 hours of sleep, always studying and then off to work in the morning. He didn't want that for you. You have a scholarship, so I don't have to worry about paying for school, but things are tight, Alex. Just tell Tony that I'm going to need some contribution. Nothing outrageous, but… something. Maybe groceries once in a while."

"Okay. I think he already had that planned…"

"I'm sure he did, baby, but sometimes you college kids need someone around to help you… remember things. Where is he, anyway?"

"Oh he went by his house to get some clothes or something."

Alex's mother sighed. She wished silently that her husband had been alive to see his little grow up to be such a beautiful person, inside and out. She sat and watched Alex move around the kitchen, cleaning up some dirty dishes. There was something weird about her, she seemed to be in her own world. Her mother walked over to her and threw her arm about Alex's shoulders. They were both about the same height, with blonde hair. Alex had inherited her green eyes from her father, and looking into them, her mother would smile, feeling as if he was still with them both.

"There's something on your mind, kiddo. You want to talk?"

"Oh um… it's nothing, mom. Just uh… you know…" She trailed off.

"How's Natalie?"

Alex stopped washing the dishes and looked over at her mother. She clenched her jaw unconsciously and answered quickly, "I don't know."

"Oh? Are you two broken up?"

"Not technically, no."

"Mmm-hmmmm…"

"It's just that. I don't know mom. After she got back to Colorado… everything's been different. She only talks about herself. I can hardly get a word in on those rare occasions that we talk. The last time I spoke to her she was drunk, and some girl was in her apartment."

"Well, that's always a good combination."

"Yeah, well… I don't know. She tells me she loves me, but I don't know if she says it out of what she truly feels or if it's just a habit?"

"Why do you say it?"

Alex leaned her head onto her mother's shoulder, sighing. "I don't."

"Have you met someone that's uhh… shall I say, distracting you?"

"Kind of. I mean, have you ever met someone that you were instantly attracted to, not just in a physical way? Like, there's just something about the way they move, or speak, or anything, and you just want to know all about them and… stuff?"

"Yes. Your father."

"But I don't love this girl. She's just… not like anyone I've ever met."

There was a silence between the two women. Alex's mother stroked her daughter's hair reassuringly.

"She's not … I mean, she's certainly not like, my perfect match. She's kind of… quiet. And pessimistic. And she can be rude at times… but regardless of all that, I'm still intrigued."

"Well, love can be blind."

"I don't love her, mom. I'm not making that mistake again."

"Oh really?" Her mother asked, chuckling.

"It only hurts people. I'd rather just be intrigued forever."

"Ahh… Alex baby, you've a long way to go. Aren't you going out somewhere?"

"OH! Shit I almost forgot about the exhibit!"

"No cursing!" Her mother said, smacking Alex's arm playfully.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. I gotta run, I'll call you to fill you in on my plans as my evening develops!" she said as she closed the door behind her.

Alone in the house, Alex's mother walked over to the framed picture of her and her husband on their wedding day. She touched the glass, running her finger around the outline of her husband's smiling face.

"I hope you're not the one filling her head with this ‘love hurts people' garbage." She said to the picture, then smiling, she continued, "…because loving you was the best thing that ever happened in my life. I still love you, even after you're gone." And with that, she went to her bedroom and plopped on her bed, resolved to take a nap.

Alex arrived in the parking lot where she and Sorrow had agreed to meet. Standing outside under the shade of a nearby tree was Sorrow, smoking a cigarette. She didn't seem to notice as Alex walked up to her and jumped slightly at her voice.

"Hey you! You haven't been waiting here long, have you?"

"Oh no, just like 3 or 4 minutes."

"Okay. Well, lets go in, shall we?"

Sorrow nodded and flicked her cigarette off into the grass.

"Shouldn't you put that out?" Alex said, looking off into the grass where a steady stream of smoke was rising out.

"Nah, it won't cause a fire. Trust me, I'm perpetually throwing cigarettes in the grass."

"If you say so. . ."

Once they arrived at the door of the museum Sorrow opened the door for Alex, out of habit more than out of sweetness, but it certainly made Alex smile like a goof to herself.

They walked together to the entrance of the exhibit and stared blankly at the first piece, and abstract painting of different colored squares.

Sorrow looked over to Alex, who was scrunching her face as if to see if that would make the painting make sense.

"So, what do you think?"

Alex was on the spot. She suddenly felt nervous and knew if she began to speak she would be babbling incoherently. Don't let her know you're nervous, you can play this off… okay, just, think of something smart to say… think think think…

"Well, um… I think that the uh, the squares represent boxes, like, stereotypes that people are put into. The different colors maybe representing different races… and uhm… I get the uh… the feeling of being trapped. And um… like, contained?" She looked over to Sorrow who was still regarding the painting, an amused grin on her face.

"Hmm… interesting."

"Well, what's your take? You're the artist." Alex figured Sorrow's inherent ability to convey feeling and moods through her painting would give her the edge at interpreting others' work, and was waiting patiently to get a much deeper explanation of the ugly colored boxes.

"I think it's a bunch of crap that he threw together because he knew pretentious art critics would hail it as remarkable. I don't think it means a thing." She turned to Alex with a brilliant smile on her face, winking at her.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Alex asked, squinting her eyes and pointing her finger at Sorrow playfully.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Alex began chuckling and playfully pushed Sorrow, feigning being hurt by her mockery.

They continued their treck through the museum, this time joking about the paintings, inparticular one that was a blank canvas with a black dot in the middle.

The two finished looking through the exhibit, outright laughing at an installation piece that looked like a breathing ice bag. Just as they were exiting, Sorrow's phone rang. She excused herself quickly and picked up, while Alex felt a pang of jealousy and sadness, thinking that they would have to part ways already.

"Hello? Hey dude, how are you… Good, thanks for leaving me out on the beach last night, you asshole… Right, you better be glad I'm safe… At what time? Yeah, I'll see you there." She hung up quickly and looked over to Alex, who seemed to be fascinated by her shoes.

"Hey um, Carl just called, he and Tony are going to this kareoke bar-thing, they wanted to let us know so we could meet them there."

"Oh? At what time?" Alex asked, suddenly feeling very optimistic.

"Uh, they'll be there by 8:30, 9:00. It's 5:15 now so… um, I dunno if you want to go home or just uh… I dunno…"

"Yeah, I'd love to go. I'm gonna go home now and take a shower, have dinner with my mom, and then I'll meet you guys there?"

"Uh… yeah, sure I guess." Sorrow looked away, feeling awkward for some reason.

"All right, then, I'll see you there." Alex realized she had to make some decision since Sorrow was so unsure of what to do. To end the misery she could clearly see Sorrow was in, she leaned in and gave her a quick hug, noting Sorrow's shocked expression, and, after she smiled and waved, she quickly retreated to her car. She left as quickly as she could, trying not to look into her rear-view mirror at Sorrow, who stood stock still with the same strange shocked look on her face.

Okay, that was… that was nice. I liked that. It made me nervous as all hell but I liked that. Nothing wrong with physical contact with a friend. I give Carl hugs… sometimes. Uh… Yeah. Leave. Feet, move!! Damn it. Yeah, that was… that was nice. She thought, letting a huge smile creep slowly across her face. As Sorrow climbed into her car, she put on her radio full blast, and sang happily to all the silly 80's songs she had on c.d.

"Tony?"

"Alex, where are you babe?"

"I'm home. I just finished hanging out with Sorrow at this art museum." Alex laughed as she heard Tony gasp loudly on the other end of the phone.

"Holiest of shits!!! That's some news! Well, fess up, what was it like??"

"Well, it was fun. I mean, I was so nervous and I couldn't believe I actually called her and I couldn't believe even more that she actually agreed, but we… I don't know, she's not as grumpy as I thought."

"She was probably high…" Tony grumbled.

"What?"

"Nothing. So, continue…"

"Oh well, yeah, we joked around about all these modern paintings, and I made up these stories behind the paintings and… I don't know, I don't recall ever having so much fun at an art museum…"

Alex continued to talk Tony's ear off about the show. While he was happy that the two were getting along well, after talking to Carl about Sorrow and her habits, he started to get worried about Alex. He had silently decided that Sorrow, however uncharacteristically nice she was acting towards Alex, was too moody and too involved with things that weren't good for her. She's an alcoholic, a pot-head, she's constantly depressed, and who knows when she'll snap on Alex and disappear for days at a time. He silently recounted some stories that Carl had told him about situations where he had been fed up with Sorrow's attitude, but for reasons beyond him, he stayed around because he knew she needed him, regardless if she admitted it or not.

"Well, honey, listen, I'm on the road with Carl, we're gonna go to the kareoke bar and drink for a bit before you guys get there, okay?"

"All right, have fun. Don't confess your undying love to Carl."

Tony laughed lightly. "Right. Thanks, I'll see you in a bit."

Alex hung up the phone and put Sublime on her stereo again. She was in a good mood, and blasted the volume so she could hear it in the shower. She sang along with all her heart to every song on the c.d., dancing around in the shower happily. After she finished, she padded over quickly to check the time, noting she still had a few hours before she had to leave to the bar. She scanned through her closet, panicking for the first time in a long time over what to wear. Okay, she thought, this is just hanging out with some friends. At a bar, with Sorrow. NO! I mean, with everyone, Tony, Carl… yeah… Okay how about… these jeans and … a blue tank top? Yes, okay, good.

Her phone rang suddenly, jolting her out of her musings. She walked over to the ringing object and stared at it as if it were possessed by a demon. She was apprehensive about picking it up, wondering if it would be anyone she wanted to speak to. The ring before the machine picked up, she decided to answer it.

"Uh, Alex?"

"Yeah… Noelle?"

"Hey. You recognized my voice. That's a good sign."

"It's not any sign, Noelle. What's up?"

"Oh, I was wondering what you were doing tonight? You want to hang out or… something?"

"I'm hanging out with some friends tonight…"

"The fag?"

"HIS NAME IS TONY!!! HE'S MY BEST FRIEND SINCE KINDERGARTEN, I WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF YOU STOPPED CALLING HIM ‘THE FAG'!!!" she screamed into the phone.

"Hey, okay okay… God, man, what's your problem? I was just kidding… jeezus…"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to blow up at you." Well, I'm not too sorry.

"So um… have you thought about what I told you?"

"What's there to think about? I already told you I'm only interested in friendship."

"Okay. Fine. Well, listen, I'd really like to see you tonight, can I pass by right quick? Just to say hi?"

"I'm leaving in a bit."

Alex heard Noelle sigh, and throw something. She rolled her eyes and gave in, feeling guilty about being so mean to Noelle, regardless of their past.

"Well, look… I'm going to this kareoke bar with some friends. Why don't you meet us there?"

"For real? You want me to go?"

Alex suddenly regretted saying that. "Uh… yeah, sure. I guess…"

"Okay, at what time?"

"Uh.. 9ish?

"Okay, it's the one next to that store with costumes and stuff, right?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

"Okay I'll see you there."

Sorrow, having arrived home from a successful reunion with Alex, decided to celebrate with a beer… well, 3 beers. She was at a happy buzz thinking about Alex, trying to decipher her unusual feelings towards her. She opened her sketchbook, looking back to a particular page she had marked. She thought back to the first day she had seen Alex in her painting class. She was sitting in the corner when she noticed the cute blonde with the sparkling green eyes. She wore a green shirt with the logo of a band, and tight jeans that were ripped a bit at the bottom. She remembered letting her eyes trail along those beautiful arms, and the delicate fingers… she had started drawing her, and was frantically sketching, trying to capture her expression, her slight smile, and her worried eyes as the teacher spoke about grading the paintings that everyone produced. It was while she was working that she sensed she was being watched. When she looked up through the dark bangs that had fallen in front of her eyes, she was confronted by a set of green eyes staring back at her. Feeling suddenly nervous, she gave her a patented "look", and scowling, decided to draw something entirely different. She looked now upon her sketch of Alex, and quickly wrote "Amazing" at the bottom of the page, before closing the book and walking over to her stereo.

She took a quick look through her c.d. collection, bypassing her usual classic rock favorites, and picked up an old Veruca Salt c.d. that she would never admit to owning, despite the fact that she had it since she was 15, a good 9 years earlier. She popped it in, and spread herself on her bed, listening to the music and smiling. She looked around her apartment, feeling suddenly… lonely. Very lonely. She couldn't remember the last time she had so much fun with someone so beautiful. And most importantly, she hadn't smoked pot or drank any alcohol before being with Alex. Despite the many nervous knots that were tightening themselves in her stomach, she went to meet Alex in front of the museum completely sober. The "3 or 4" minutes that she claimed to have been waiting were really 45 minutes. She had arrived early to be able to sit and think to herself calmly.

Sorrow closed her blue eyes, deciding that it was definitely going to cause her severe stomach problems to continue thinking about Alex. She tuned herself in to the music that sifted through the apartment, trying to focus on the sound and words…

At 9:15, Alex pulled her car into what seemed to be the only empty parking space in the damn parking lot. She walked out and saw Noelle standing at the entrance, her face suddenly lighting up when she saw Alex. She stood there, a shy grin on her face, her brown eyes sparkling mischievously.

Alex walked over to her, weakly trying to maintain her smile.

"Hey beautiful…" Noelle whispered as she wrapped her arms around Alex's suddenly stone-like body.

"Don't start."

"What?" Noelle asked incredulously. "Do I look okay?" she said. Alex looked her over. Her blonde hair, a perpetual mess, was tied back loosely. She wore a white tank top and a pair of old bell-bottoms.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Alex said, raising an eyebrow over her weary green eyes.

"Just wanted you to look at me." Noelle said, smiling wickedly. She opened the door as Alex walked in sulking.

She spotted Tony, Carl and Sorrow sitting towards the back of the bar, watching as a trio of semi-dressed sorority sisters sang along to some Britney Spears song. Alex cringed as she walked closer, wondering if she grabbed the microphone chord and strangled the three girls quickly enough, if it would be considered a mercy killing…

"HEY! You made it!" Exclaimed Carl, as he stood up to give Alex a hug. She could smell the alcohol on him. As she went to give Tony a kiss on the cheek, she could tell he was drunk as well. He slurred a hello, and asked her what Noelle was doing there. Alex merely gave him a look, and he nodded and laughed. As she walked the few steps to Sorrow, she noticed for the first time the tattoos that adorned her upper arms. Sorrow was wearing a black tshirt with the sleeves cut off, and a pair of black jeans. She made a mental note to ask Sorrow about the tattoos later. Alex smiled as she whispered into Sorrow's ear "… Good to see you again…"

Sorrow's blue eyes shot open at the sensation of Alex's lips so close to her ear. She nodded quickly and grabbed her beer, taking a long swig as Alex walked over in front of the group again.

"Everyone, this is my friend Noelle. Noelle, this is Carl, Tony you already know, and that's Sorrow."

Noelle politely waved to the group. Alex had grabbed a couple of chairs and sat down with the rest of the group. Noelle looked at her and smiled, sitting close to her.

"SHUT UP YOU DAMN DRUNK BITCHES!!!!" Tony suddenly screamed, laughing hysterically to himself. Carl joined in, smacking the table, and high fived the still giddy Tony.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Tony!?" Alex asked, clearly shocked at his sudden outburst.

"What?! They sucked!" He argued indignantly.

"So when are you guys gonna go up and sing?"

The answer came in the form of Carl grabbing Tony by the wrist and hauling him forward. They both made a dash to the front, and began wading through the records. They had evil smiles as they grabbed a couple of microphones. Alex looked to Sorrow, who merely shrugged her tattooed shoulders and took a drag from her cigarette.

"I think I might go up after this…" Noelle whispered into Alex's ear.

"If we're not all embarrassed by these two singing god knows what…"

Sorrow had not missed any of the little looks that Noelle passed to Alex, who seemed to be blissfully unaware. Sorrow chugged her beer and decided to get another one, growing sick of the strange emotions the addition of this "Noelle" person caused within her. She left the table in a rush, and Alex looked after her, feeling suddenly worried.

"What's her problem?" Noelle asked, tucking a strand of loose blonde hair behind Alex's ear.

Alex jumped at the unexpected contact, and looked Noelle in the eyes sternly. Her initial shock subsided and she answered her coolly, "I don't know, I think she's just thirsty…"

"OKAY EVERYONE, LISTEN UP!!" Tony's words slurred slightly as he screamed into the microphone.

Carl grabbed the microphone from him suddenly and screamed a little bit louder "THIS SONG IS DEDICATED TO THAT TABLE OF BEAUTIFUL YOUNG WOMEN OVER THERE!!!" He declared, pointing to the table where Alex and Noelle sat, both wearing equally shocked and petrified faces. Tony grabbed the microphone again, pointing to the sorority girls.

"THIS is how you sing a Britney Spears song…" he said menacingly.

Alex let her head fall in her hands as the opening to one of Britney's more recent songs began. When she looked over, she saw Tony dancing to the beat of the song, and making his way over to their table slowly. Carl tried his best to sound like a seductive girl singing the opening lines…

The small crowd began screaming wildly, thankfully drowning out some of the raspy lyrics that Carl was belting out. Alex silently wondered why he seemed to know the lyrics to this song so well, but decided that some things were better left a mystery.

Carl sang a few more lines and then passed the microphone over to Tony, who was now only halfway to their table.

Get it get it, get it get it (WHOOOA)
Get it get it, get it get it (WHOOOOOA)(Do you like it)
Get it get it, get it get it (OOOHHHH)(This feels good)

He sang, touching himself and becoming a bit too involved with the song for Alex's taste. Her green eyes were wide, and she started laughing hysterically, watching as Carl and Tony began thrusting their bodies in all sorts of ungodly ways…

Tony pointed at Carl, who batted his eyelashes and grinned. Tony held the microphone up to Carl, who screamed the next two lines, before they both sang together:

As they belted out the chorus, Sorrow happened to be walking by with her beer. Carl suddenly wrapped his arm around her and sang the chorus as he danced behind her. Sorrow's eyes shot open, and she quickly made a face, hoping Carl would dislodge his hold on her and let her return to the table with some dignity. He didn't.

Instead, he guided Sorrow back to the table as both he and Tony sang to the three stunned ladies. Alex was blushing bright red, and Noelle just laughed as Tony did the "running man" dance in front of her. After what seemed like an eternity of being serenaded by the two drunks, they finally ended the song, while the crowd roared, clapped, laughed and whistled as they went back to hand the microphones over to the D.J., who looked at them and laughed. They returned to the table high-fiving each other, and giggling like giddy school girls.

"Some girl just offered to by me drinks!" Tony laughed.

"So did you guys like the song?" Carl said, waiting excitedly for their answer…

"It was great, Carl. Certainly not what I expected…" Alex admitted.

"Why don't we all go and sing a song together? After a few people go up? And then we'll make our grand exit!" Tony said, his obvious love of being in the spotlight was suddenly refueled.

Everyone seemed eager to sing together as a group, and then they all looked over to Sorrow, who had accumulated enough beers to make a small fortress around her. She looked up, her eyes bloodshot from the beer, the blue of her eyes blazing out at her companions. They were all looking at her, expecting her to do something. She looked over at Noelle, who was admiring Alex. Any happy thoughts she had previously been thinking concerning a certain blonde haired, green eyed girl were suddenly replaced by ravenous, jealous, psychotic images of her beating the pulp out Noelle. She ground her teeth, and answered flatly,

"I don't sing." There was certainly no room for argument. All the excited faces seemed to shift into disappointment. Alex and Tony looked away, and Carl glared at Sorrow with menace that only he could get away with.

"Coward…" he grumbled, and turning to the group, suggested they sing WITHOUT the party pooper. Everyone eagerly agreed, and they were soon up at the record pile searching for a good song.

Sorrow knew she had disappointed the group. Probably Alex, and certainly Carl. Whatever. I talked to her last night, I spent the afternoon with her, I'm not gonna fucking sing now just to go along with this "friendship," she thought acidly.

Sorrow put out her cigarette and passed the quartet as they stood ready to belt out the tune they had selected. She went outside in a hurry and stood by the door, looking up at the night sky. She was standing next to one of the small walls of the patio section of the bar, where the kareoke crowd was. She leaned against a wall, able to get a clear view as Carl, Tony, Alex and Noelle readied themselves to sing "Disco Inferno". She rolled her eyes and laughed to herself, as Noelle and Alex sang and Tony and Carl danced around them. Sorrow was looking at Noelle, trying to will her to fall. She caught herself, what she was thinking and feeling, and thought that perhaps it was already time to put a little distance between herself and Alex. Shit, if this is how I'm getting after a day of being with her… she shook her head, not wanting to finish her thoughts.

As the last strands of whistling and clapping died out, Tony, Carl, and Alex came giggling out, with a smiling, but quiet Noelle walking behind Alex.

"Shit dude, you should've been there…" Carl said, putting his arm around the very serious looking Sorrow.

"Yeah well, I wasn't. So sue me." She said, looking down at her boots.

"Well uhm, I think I should be heading home… which means you," Alex said, poking Tony in his chest, "… are coming with me."

" I know how mom is about curfews, don't worry. Well, this was certainly a wonderful time. It was wonderful seeing you again, Sorrow, and you too, Noelle." Tony turned to Carl and motioned for him to call the next day.

Alex felt incredibly awkward, having Noelle on one side, and Sorrow on the other. She decided to go to the neutral party instead…

"Goodnight Carl. Good seeing you again…" Alex wrapped Carl in a tight hug, and whispered roughly into his ear, "… and don't you ever leave her passed out on the beach, or you'll have to answer to me, got that?"

Carl looked down at the fierce green eyes, and threw up his hands in defeat, smiling at how feisty the little blonde could be.

Alex made her way over to Sorrow, and pulled her into a hug. "Thanks for coming with me to the art museum today."

"Not a problem." Sorrow whispered back into her ear. A few stray blonde hairs tickled her lips, and caused her arms to get all goose-pimply. Alex smiled up at her and released her hold.

"I'll walk you to your car." Was the simple statement that greeted her when she turned to Noelle.

Alex and Tony started walking, followed quickly by Noelle, who barely acknowledged when Carl said goodbye to her. Alex fought hard against her better instincts to turn around a get one last look at Sorrow before she left. When she finally arrived at her car, Tony climbed in and closed the door. Alex turned to Noelle, who was looking at her with a large smile on her face that only meant one thing.

"Well good seeing you, I'll talk to you soon." Alex blurted out and tried to dash into her car. Noelle intercepted her and wrapped her in a hug that lingered far longer than Alex really wanted it to.

"Goodnight…" She said, and walked over to her car, glancing one last time at the blue eyed girl who watched them, knowing that was her mortal enemy in the battle for Alex's heart.