A New Way of Living

Chapter Four

After a moment, she groaned and took out her keys, ignoring Riff's self-righteous expression as he watched her unlock the door.

"What have you done now?" she asked, aggressively throwing her bag and coat down on the chair that sat by the front door. "Got a splinter?"

"Someone got him with a brick," Ice explained, letting himself fall down onto one of the kitchen chairs. He knew the routine by now.

"Why is someone throwing a brick at- you know what? Never mind, no further explanation needed."

She gestured for Action to come closer to her, which he did so somewhat reluctantly. He looked annoyed at needing help. She forced him to bend down to her level where she examined his split head.

"It's not so bad," she mumbled, checking through his matted, bloodied hair. "Maybe just a stitch or two."

"I don't want no stiches," he muttered back.

"Well then why did you come?"

Riff appeared behind her, too close for comfort. "Just let her do what she's gotta do, alright?"

Action grunted something she didn't hear, and he sat himself down on the edge of the kitchen table. Vivienne grabbed her medical kit, pulling out the needle and thread as she had done before. She was beginning to feel the routine herself now. When she began, she found herself moving quickly but carefully, feeling the confidence needed to not second guess each stitch. Plus, she wanted them gone. The sooner she could finish, the sooner they would leave her alone. Although she had a feeling that was more of a hope than a fact.

She still felt Riff behind her, and she turned around to shoot him an aggravated look. He gave her a smirk, before turning on his heel and walking away to observe her apartment once more.

A few minutes later, she was done.

"You're good to go," she said, throwing her hands up in the air to gesture towards the door. "As always, you're welcome."

When none of the Jets moved, she let her hands fall and crossed her arms over her chest. Ice and Action glanced towards each other. Riff stared at her, considering his words.

"We've been thinkin'-" he started.

"Wow, did it hurt?"

Action shot her a glare. "Why don't you just shut the hell up and listen, huh?"

"Now, now, Action," Riff mulled, moving to get himself a seat at the table next to Ice. "That's not how we strike a deal."

"We figure you could help us out," Ice jumped in.

"Is that not what I've been doing already?" Vivienne asked, barely hiding her half-confused, half-irritated tone.

Riff eyed her response. "Yeah, but we mean on a more...permanent basis. We want you to help us out when we get into situations we can't take care of ourselves. Y'know, hospitals usually means questions which usually means cops, and we wanna bypass all that."

Vivienne blinked at him. "So, let me get this straight. You want me to be your little fixer-upper whenever you feel like it?"

"Exactly that."

She brought her hand up to her forehead, rubbing it from frustration. She let out a tired, amused laugh.

"I can't even begin to find the words to tell you how much I don't wanna do that," she said.

"Well, here's the thing. We know where you live." Riff leaned forward in his seat and spoke quietly. "This is less of a permission grantin' ceremony and more of a negotiation of terms sorta' thing."