Aspen recalls the parties she attended in middle-school: parent chaperoned, awkward boys, and stolen kisses. But, what she remembers the most vividly was having the most horrifyingly humiliating experience at one of these parties.
It was her first party and it was a Mike Malkovich party which were notorious for being “wild” –which really meant that his parents would be locked in their rooms and not watching the kids like hawks.
For Aspen, the party started out just fine. No one talked to her and she stayed huddled up close to the wall for a good majority of the party. It wasn’t until she felt something hot and slimy slither down her leg that she caused a scene.
She screamed that she was dying; that something had to be seriously wrong with her because blood was coming out of her private area. Everyone pretty much stared at her; the boys were panicking, but the girls were all looking at her with knowing and slightly amused grins. It wasn’t until Mike’s mom came downstairs and explained what was happening that she stopped screaming.
They called her fire crotch for the rest of the year. Not very original, but did the job.
Aspen had always considered the first time she got her monthly visitor to be the most embarrassing moment of her life, but she now knew that her thirteen year old self had a big storm coming. This moment beat that one by a long shot.
“I-I… I uh… Not-not what this looks like… I was…” Aspen fumbles for any kind of excuse to offer up to the handsome stranger, but she knows how this looks. She looks like a panty sniffer.
Aspen takes two large steps away from the stranger’s laundry, her cheeks blazing and her eyes dancing around wildly. All the while, the man keeps his steady chestnut eyes trained on her, a slight smirk tugging up his plump lips. Aspen gulps wildly at the sight and stuffs her hands into her hoodie’s pockets, suddenly very aware that she looks like the homeless people she just gave her money to.
“If you wanted to get in my pants, all you had to do was ask.” He was clearly joking, but the annoyance laced in his voice was barely veiled. Aspen’s jaw dropped at his cocky statement and she bumped into one of the dryers in an attempt to increase their distance as the man sauntered up to the folding table.
How dare he say such a crude remark to a stranger! Aspen though indignantly before shaking her head, you’re one to talk Aspen Marie. He just caught you knee-deep in his underwear.
“Should I just take off the boxers I’m wearing right now or do you want to wait for my next laundry day to steal them, pervy girl?” A devilish grin takes up his face and he places his hand under his chin as if actually contemplating her answer.
Aspen rarely gets the urge to choke the life out of another person. Hell, she hasn’t had that urge in years, but she suddenly finds herself imagining what it would be like to wrap her manicured hands around his neck. Aspen had never encountered someone so crass in her lifetime and she finds herself wanting to break all of her rules on good karma just to tell him off.
But, she pushes Rebel Aspen back into her cage and locks the door –choosing to be the bigger person here.
“I was not trying to steal your underpants. I thought your basket was mine because I was distracted. Don’t flatter yourself. What kind of self-respecting man wears boxers with cartoon smooched lips all over them, anyway?” Dammit Rebel Aspen –she must have jiggled the cage slightly loose.
The man raises his brow at her words, clearly surprised and obviously unembarrassed at her dig. If anything he looks extremely amused at her quick wit and even whistles slightly once she finishes.
“Could you just be jealous that those aren’t your lipstick stains?” There’s that devilish grin and teasing tone again. Aspen’s rage only heightens and she scoffs at his words, her hot cheeks betraying her.
Aspen quickly turns to gather her laundry basket –double checking to make sure it is hers- before she sends the man a bone-chilling glare and moving to storm past him. How can he be so direct and offensive to a woman he just met?! It’s sexual harassment! Arrogant, pompous, cocky little-
“Bye pervy girl!” The man shouts as she pushes open the laundry room door with her hip. She turns around one last time to see him waving his hand excitedly, a wolfish grin overtaking his features.
She huffs indignantly at him before all but sprinting out the door, hoping to never see the laundry boy again.
***
“Shut the front and back door! I’m calling shenanigans! There is no way he called you, you of all people pervy girl?!” Carmen screeches loudly and Aspen winces at her friend’s shrill voice so early in the morning.
Aspen hangs her head in shame as she continues to water the hydrangeas and peonies arranged on the floor of the windows. She knew telling Carmen would mean that she would never hear the end of it, but she needed to tell someone about the laundry room debacle. It felt like a horrible, horrible dream.
“I felt bad about it at first, of course! But, he kept making all those crude remarks! It was unbelievable! The nerve of-“
“O to the M to the F to the G. Is that a bitch-pitch I hear? The Aspen Carter is actually bitching about someone,” You could practically hear the astonishment dripping from Carmen’s voice, “This guy did a real number on you.”
Hearing it being said out loud, Aspen could feel the guilt beginning to creep up into her mind. She really shouldn’t have said those things back there, it wasn’t very nice. She should have bit her tongue and just calmly explained. She should have been the bigger person.
Aspen continues to make her way around the cramped living room, tending to each flower pot, ivy branch, spider plant, fichus, and all the other green shrubbery that take up 75% of the space in their apartment. Any guest that came in would think they stepped into the amazon and not a loft in NYC. But, Aspen loved being surrounded by so much vitality and Carmen didn’t personally mind until the bugs started to crawl around them.
When Aspen first moved in with Carmen after meeting her at the dance studio, she relented to having her plants fill the place as long as Carmen got to decorate. Which actually turned out pretty well. Their apartment had been turned into a chic vintage loft. The walls had been painted white, their furniture was mostly bought from thrift stores and remained miss-matched. The country kitchen was also connected to the very small dining room that was only slightly bigger than the bathroom. The bathroom was also white and covered in plants that survive in damp climates. The bathtub took up the most space in the edge of the room and was again, placed in front of a large window. Their rooms were surrounded by brick walls, more plants, and more floor-to-ceiling windows.
The place was small and compact, but it was the closest thing Aspen has called home in years.
“Dimples, are you even listening to me?” Carmen sighs, clearly exasperated and Aspen snaps out of her reverie. She sets down the watering plant onto the small coffee table to join her friend on the tattered tweed couch.
“Sorry, what’d you say?”
“I asked if he was a total babe,” She rolls her honey eyes teasingly, “But, clearly if you’re this jacked-up then he must be.”
“Carmen!” Aspen scolds, slapping her friend on the arm and blushing furiously because she was right. He was a total babe. That, bastard.
Before Aspen can even make up a lie, a knock sounds from the door. And not just any knock, but ‘Shave and a Haircut.’ Aspen rolls her eyes before getting up from the couch, pretending not to notice the deep blush that crawls up her friend’s cheeks. As soon as she swings open the chipping door, her brother barges in carrying a large paper bag and a wide grin.
“Hello ladies!” Mitchell coos as he walks across the hardwood and sets the bag down on the table. Aspen eyes him suspiciously, she knows that tone. He is up to no good.
“Mitch, you just missed Rebel Aspen!” Carmen squeals excitedly and Aspen’s jade eyes shoot daggers at her.
The one thing she did not want was her brother knowing how rude she had been to the man in the laundry room. He would tease her relentlessly. Anytime Rebel Aspen made an appearance, which is rare, Mitch would have a field day. He constantly made it seem like she was a character on Mean Girls and not her usual caring and friendly self. Which always made Aspen feel worse. She wasn’t that girl anymore and hasn’t been for a long time.
“Oh, really,” Mitch’s eyes widen dramatically as an excited grin tugs on his full lips, “Do tell.” He brings his hands together in front of him as he takes a seat next to Carmen, who blushes once again at the proximity.
“Nothing happened. Just a misunderstanding.” Aspen rushes to explain before taking a set in the paisley arm chair adjacent to the couch.
Carmen only brushes off Aspen’s clear attempt to change the subject and retells the entire story of the laundry mishap, making it seem much more dramatic than it was. Aspen remains flushed the whole time just thinking about the exchange, but refusing to say a word in her defense. It’s rude to interrupt.
The story takes a longer time to tell though, because Carmen keeps having to stop due to Mitchell’s constant interruptions with his laughter. By the end of the story he is keeled over, clutching his chest, and trying to wipe away the tears that fall form his eyes due to excessive laughter.
Aspen bites her tongue.
“You insulted his underwear choice right after you were caught sniffing it?!” Mitchell asks incredulously, still recovering from his fit. Aspen’s eyes widen at the claim and she practically jumps from her seat to explain herself.
“I was not sniffing them! I thought it was my basket! I wasn’t paying attention! It was an honest mistake!” She whines desperately, just wanting the whole thing to be forgotten. As if she wasn’t humiliated enough.
“Suuuure, pervy girl,” Mitch taunts and barely dodges the throw pillow that Aspen chucks his way, “You just threw a pillow at me! Rebel Aspen might just be here to stay! Laundry boy really ruffled your feathers huh?”
Aspen huffs at her brother before slumping back into her seat and crossing her arms. He continues to make jokes about how she should make him cookies as an apology or just go buy him better underwear. Aspen ignores it all, quite used to his taunting, but Carmen laughs at every single joke of his without missing a beat.
Traitor.
After he makes a joke about how Aspen should just let him fondle her underwear to even the playing field, she decides to interrupt. If she has to hear about “Laundry Boy” one more time she was going to implode.
“What’s in the bag, Mitch?”
He stops laughing immediately and glances to the stuffed grocery bag on the table, all of a sudden sheepish. He clears his throat and clasps his hands together, turning to face Aspen head on. Carmen sobers up also and watches as Mitch gestures to the bag and tells his sister to take a look.
Although the ominous feeling in her stomach grows, Aspen reaches for the bag nonetheless. When she does search through the contents, the bad feeling in the pit of her stomach grows.
Not only is there a Japanese Bonsai tree, there is sage, incense, and a dozen packages of skittles. Aspen’s mouth waters at the sight, but she pushes down Fat Aspen and leans back into the arm chair, arms folded, and brows furrowed skeptically.
“What are you up to?”
“What makes you think I’m up to anything?”
“You don’t even buy me gifts on my birthday. Only when you want me to do something. This is obviously a bribe.” Aspen raises an eyebrow at her brother and Carmen shifts uncomfortably.
“Alright, alright,” Mitch relents under his sister’s unwavering gaze, hands raised in surrender, “I may have a teeny tiny favor to ask.”
Aspen already takes note of the pleading tone in her brother’s voice and sighs, “Let’s hear it,” She doesn’t really even need to know what it is, she knows she will do whatever her brother asks of her.
“I have this friend that works at the shop with me, the same one that I told you moved into this building,” Aspen doesn’t remember him telling her that, but nods anyway, “He’s pretty new in town and I think you guys would get a long great, so I was just wondering…”
Mitch trails off uneasily, knowing that he is asking a lot of his sister. Aspen groans and rubs her eyes in frustration at the request. She suddenly wants to decline, but Mitch seems eager for her to do this. He even bought her a bonsai tree…
Aspen’s brother had been trying to set her up on dates every month for years now. And every time, Aspen would go to make her brother happy. And every time, Aspen would never see them again. Her heart just wasn’t in it. Even if the guys were nice and funny enough, she could never bring herself to go on a second date with any of them.
It’s not for lack of trying; Aspen always tried so hard to laugh at their jokes and get to know them and just have fun. But, it felt wrong. Her heart would scream at her every time one of those guys reached for her hand or tried to kiss her at the end of the night. Because those weren’t the same hands, the same lips that she has craved for years.
Aspen just couldn’t get over the one person she should hate.
“Fine. I’ll do it.” She suddenly declares, halting her brother’s rambling about the mystery man’s attributes. He raises his eyebrows in shock, but he really knew she would say yes.
“You’ll love him, I promise. He is a really nice guy –super courteous too. He gives his money to bums just like you and he makes really lame jokes that can be funny sometimes. And man, is he hot. Like, I have never-“
“Why don’t you just date him them?” Carmen grumbles, stopping one of Mitch’s infamous ramblings. She plays with the ends of her hair dejectedly, but Mitch –like always- doesn’t notice her displeasure.
“Trust me, honey. If he bat for my team, I would be on him like butter on toast.” He grins, eyes glazed at the thought. Carmen winces as if his words stung her and Aspen attempts to change the subject.
“So, what’s his name?” Mitch snaps out of his thoughts and turns to Aspen with a fond smile.
“Everett Fox.”
__________
Whoop second chapter and introduction of Everett! I really want to know what you think of Aspen's character and what you think happened to her that made her so paranoid?
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