This conversation had taken unexpected turns, filling Marisol’s thoughts with films of moments that had not yet happened and moments that could. Leading Alice as they danced. Trading romantic gestures. Planning a wedding together. Private shows.

Engaged Marisol sounded like a lucky girl. Her flirty escapades were also something she had no clue how to process. ”Oh, I think I’d manage. Can’t tell you how though; mostly since I’m not sure what it was yet.” Except that was a lie. She could see fairy lights setting a cozy ambiance. She saw a tender serenade and a ring.

And it all hit her closer than she expected.

Thankfully, Alice latched onto the idea of a night of cuddling and movies. Thank heavens, because Marisol’s mental train was heading off the rails. Not that she was going to be in better shape snuggling close to Alice, but she’d figure it out. ”You go ahead and get cozy and I’ll be right here waiting for you,” she assured the gorgeous blue-haired girl, retreating to find the remote to look through Binge’s new releases.

---

The apartment felt empty. That was weird, because Marisol spent time alone in the apartment often. She liked peace and solitude.

The problem was how unexpected it was this time. After a hell week rehearsal, with her premier weekend coming up in a little over a week, Mari was looking forward to a night in with Alice. When she got the text letting her know Alice was hitting a club, it made her feel… off.

Which was stupid; Alice was welcome to enjoy herself! They lived their own lives and had nothing planned for the night. That all sounded reasonable, but it did leave Marisol feeling aimless in the apartment. She cast some ViewTube videos on the television and scrolled through articles on her phone. The night ended up becoming an exceptionally lazy one by Marisol’s standards. This became more true when she found a half-full bottle of wine in the fridge. Alice had snagged it (and Marisol did not question how or why) but now it felt like a good way to reward herself and unwind.

She would let herself relax in her cotton shorts and sleep shirt, occasionally glancing at the apartment door.

So it was pretty awesome having a club pretty much round the corner. In the village. Because Alice could chill with some wine for pre-drinks, have something nice to eat before even needing to consider getting changed and she could still get there before it was packed. It was so convenient  and made her recreational time way less stressful. No worryng about bus times, sneaking in to avoid being caught by a guard or even having to worry about someone noticing she was gone and calling in the hounds to get her.

It was great.

Except when it wasn't. Because despite her best efforts and some frankly stunning flirting from herself she had still not gotten very far with a girl there. It might have had something to do with her being generally bad with people and maybe the lines had been pretty bad but part of it had to be her look. Skinny jeans, a loose black tank-top and depending on the night a denim or leather jacket and she more looked like she was trying to sell certain things to the party goers than just being out for a good time. Alice knew she was good looking enough and she certainly got enough attention that her chances shouldn't be terrible but somehow she could never quite 'seal the deal'. Even the supposed love for English accents she kept getting everywhere damn else didn't translate to so much as a makeout.

So after another night of drinking and getting increasingly frustrated with her lack of ability to get herself laid she walked/stumbled her way back to her flat in the hopes of finishing off some drinks and maybe consoling herself with some of the ice cream she'd recently gotten.

Humming one of the songs that had been playing to herself and managing to get her key in and turned on only the second try she swung the door open with as much grace and quiet a girl in her condition could. Which was to say it made a f**king racket. Both ways, even if she was trying harder as it closed in an attempt not to make Mari.

Who was staring at her. From the sofa. In not not much. Again.

"Oh shit sorry Mari," she began, only slightly slurring her words, "didn't think I'd wake you. Or that you'd be up." Blinking a little slowly she spotted the wine and gave her friend a grin, "Although it looks like you also wanted to enjoy the morning hangover this time."

Despite not being the total novice she once was before her house party misadventure with Skye, Marisol was not an experienced drinker. She was also not a good drinker, with alcohol hitting her hard and fast in past encounters. She kept a close eye on how much she was consuming, because she did not want to be found smashed in the apartment.

At the very least, Marisol had let herself get buzzed. It was a warm feeling, but it also reminded her that something was different. Between a cast party and some roommate drinking with Alice and, yes, some nights drinking with Skye, Marisol never actually drank alone. In fact, it reminded her that she was alone and she did not like it. The apartment felt too quiet and the couch was too empty. She realized she was having a rare moment where she missed the creature comforts of having a girlfriend.

She was barely paying attention to the vlog on the TV when the noise of the door jolted her up in her seat. Fortunately, all Marisol found was a guilty-looking Alice. Evidently, she expected Marisol to be in bed. Was it really that late already? She giggled at the accusation that followed. ”Nah, I’m just being my lame self and drinking alone while my roommate has a grand old New York adventure, flirting with girls at bars. How’d that go, by the way?” Alice could have been up to something else, but coming home so late, that was doubtful.

Drinking alone? Did Marisol do that? Well, apparently yes but did she normally do that, that was the question.

Wait did that mean she had more booze to drink? Score.

Giving her friend a sour look, "About as good as normal. Either I'm hitting up the wrong places or I give off the wrong vibe," she complained, crawling over the back of the sofa and popping herself down with as much grace as a drunk person can. Which was to say she landed about as well as a pig on a frozen lake. "I just, I am being too desperate or something? Because I know I'm not bad looking but I haven't had so much as a snog. Let alone.....other things."

Kicking off her shoes and striping off her jacket she curled up facing her friend before nodding to the wine bottle. "Any of that left dear? Definitely feeling a consolation drink is needed." Well, she more needed a consolation f**k but that wasn't really how their friendship worked. Because that would be weird right? And totally not possible because Mari was her best friend and you don't sleep with best friends.

She was very pretty. In their flat. Alone. Together. What was she doing again?

While it was never really her life, Marisol envied girls who went out and partied. She was not going to act like they were unburdened by the struggles of her life, because she recognized everyone had struggles. They just found a way to unwind where they could go out, meet people, and connect, three things Marisol was not great at. Skye helped Marisol push her boundaries, but she was at her core an introvert.

She was fine with being an introvert, honestly. It was a peaceful, quiet life that balanced out her busy lifestyle. Now that she was going on months of being single though, she did realize how intimidating it was to think about dating again one day. How was she supposed to meet new girls? How did she even meet the last ones, in retrospect?

Alice was struggling with girls in her own way, though based on experience, Marisol doubted the gamer girl’s concerns were so long-term. ”I don’t think you can give off the wrong vibe. You have one vibe and it’s awesome, cute as hell lesbian.” It was a compliment but it was also the truth; Alice’s look did scream gay. In some ways, Marisol envied that, too.

Marisol handed the bottle over to Alice when she joined the couch. She was drinking from a glass, but there was at least a quarter of the bottle left for Alice. ”I don’t think you’re desperate.” She took a sip of her drink and grinned. ”You just clearly lack game. I’m so sorry to be the one to tell you.” Because Marisol was clearly an expert on “game.”

See, when Mari was complimenting her like that, it just made it harder not to consider doing certain things that you didn't do with friends. Who weren't into you. And also didn't work the same way when it came to sex and stuff. "Well," she began, trailing off a little while she considered the comment, "I mean you know that and I know that but apparently no one else does."

Gasping she couldn't believe her friend said that. Alice Rivers lacking game!? Absolutely ludicrous suggestion. She was just having an off couple of....years. Which had absolutely nothing to do with her abilities or suggested lack of them. "I represent......resent that accusation. I have game for days. Game coming out my a**e. Gaming cred with......." OK so she had kind of forgotten where she was going, or why so she finished with, "all the ladies not in the general vicinity of the city."

Yeah, that set Marisol right. About something. The point had maybe got a little lost but she felt she'd made a good one, whatever it was.

It took her more than a second to remember the convenient bottle in her hand but she got there in the end and took a decent swig from it, pausing as she put it down. Looking from it to Marisol she realised a glass might have been a better idea, "S**t where you wanting a top off at some point because...well....."

For so long, Marisol felt out of place like there was something wrong with her. Those insecurities did not nag at her after going through a relationship and learning to accept her own demisexuality. All that said, she still envied how easily attraction came to some people. Alice clearly had no issues being attracted to half the female population of New York.

For all the good that attraction apparently did her. Marisol tried not to smirk smugly, realizing that despite her own handicap, they were both basically in the same boat. Well, same boat, different goals.

Which meant she had to take that little shot at her friend’s ability to seduce women. Alice, fueled by alcohol, defended herself. Well, attempted. ”My poor sweet friend; so charming overseas and can’t charm an American girl to save her life.”

Marisol raised an eyebrow at the bottle when Alice realized what she was doing. ”Guess you’re thirsty tonight,” she teased. ”I’m good, though. I had my share while you were out on the town. Just think, you could have saved yourself all that frustration by staying in and drinking with your lame fiancee.”

Well, she did do the lame title justice. Admittedly, her own night was unspectacular. ”Okay, so maybe we would have just drank together bored. But I’d like to believe we could have found a fun way to spend the night together.”

"I thought the accent was meant to help," she replied sourly. All these stupid shows and stories of how attractive Americans find English accents and it would probably hindering her more than anything else. Sounding like she belonged at court while dressed like some punk pop band reject probably sent the wrong message. "Media lied to me Mari. The voice was meant to do like 70% of the work itself but somehow it's all a lie."

Thirsty? How right her friend was, in more ways than one. Alice wanted some action, real bad, and she was just not doing the right thing. Or saying the right thing. Or being the right thing for the girls she was hitting on. "Definitely would have had more fun if I had." And her 'fiance' wasn't lame, she was freaking awesome.

Wait. That sounded like she was being flirted with.

By Mari.

"I mean, I could think of several ways we could stay busy but most of them you don't really do with your best friend." It would definitely not be boring though. It would be just the opposite. Which was........some word couldn't actually find now that the wine was hitting her too. Incrediculous? Sounded, nearly right. Almost like a real word.

Which didn't matter as much as other ideas in her head and how she really wasn't allowed to do anything about them. In any way. Even while drunk. Especially while drunk actually. "And you can keep innocently hitting on me dear, but one day I may just act on it," she replied lightly with a, hopefully, smoldering look. "Because I am thirsty as you put it."

”Honestly, you must be meeting the wrong girls, because your accent is hot,” Marisol admitted, the wine loosening her lips enough to let a comment like that slip out. It was true though; Marisol was pretty sure she could listen to Alice read one of her engineering magazines and be engaged by her accent.

Marisol was always prone to speaking before she thought ahead, and alcohol did not help that. She had missed the implication of some of what she said until Alice’s tone shifted. The suggestion sent a warm tingling through Marisol’s body.

Was she hitting on Alice? That was not something Marisol did. But she was comfortable around Alice and she was coming to terms with a budding attraction she felt for the girl. This was new and bizarre, because she so rarely got to this point. They were just friends though, right? So what was she doing here?

”Would you though?” she asked in a soft voice. ”Act on it? Have I done something to make it hard for you to come home so thirsty?” She leaned toward Alice, smirking in the absence of any better judgment. ”Maybe I’m thirsty, too. Misery loves company, right?”

Marisol Emiia Cervantes, what are you doing?

Raising an eyebrow at the comment she couldn't help but grin at the irony. All the girls she was hitting and it's her demi friend is the first person to call her hot. In a way. By proxy, because it was her accent damnit so if it was hot, so was she. "Well, I'm glad at least one person has that opinion."

Shame it was just her friend Marisol. Who was her friend. Friend.

"In a f**king heartbeat," she responded without thinking. Which was weird because that totally wasn't something she wanted to do, in the slightest. Not at all, she just spent most of her time with Mari, constantly checked her out and was weirdly comfortable discussing deep dark secrets with. Totally normal, platonic friendship.

A thought that was very hard to agree with when she had Mari so close to her, flirting and smiling and stuff. Which absolutely didn't make her heart skip or anything, she was just drunk and tired and horny and totally not thinking straight. Or straight.

Suddenly bursting into laughter, half out of how internally freak she felt and partly because she now thought Mari was just messing with her, "Oh please, if you were that thirsty we'd have jumped each other long before now." Leaning in conspiratorially, "I don't know if you've noticed dear but you are an absolute bombshell. If I thought I had a chance we wouldn't be talking about it."

Grinning as she leaned back and slugged what was left of the wine, she vaguely considered searching for something more. Which was a terrible idea. Because the hangover was already going to be apocalyptic.

As was probably justified, Alice was surprised to hear those words out of Marisol’s mouth. She likely never heard of Marisol calling someone hot, let alone hearing the compliment directed at Alice herself. It was an honest assessment of the accent, though, and there was no reason for Alice to read further into it. If Alice did that, Marisol might have to do the same, which sounded like dangerous territory.

And dangerous territory was becoming the name of the game tonight, because when Alice said she would act on those thirsty attractions, Marisol felt her heart in her throat. She kept her eyes trained on Alice, and for a genuine moment, she closed them, wondering if the blue-haired Brit might actually deliver on her threat. The moment was there.

And then it passed in a fit of laughter from Alice. Marisol opened her eyes and caught up to her, giggling a little herself. Of course; she was reading too far into this. It was Alice; the girl loved flirting, and clearly did not get her fill at the clubs.

Mari was a bombshell and if Alice thought she had a chance, she would have acted on it, but she must have thought the idea was silly or their “moment” passed long ago. Finding her smile, Marisol shrugged it off. ”Maybe you’re right. Then again, you know us demi girls; takes us a while to feel the thirst.” Like sexual camels. But she kept that thought to herself because it was extremely unsexy.

And why did she care? She definitely did not. She was just tipsy and having a weird night. Maybe some of these errant, weird thoughts were just the product of talking civilly with Skye again. It might have just been time to call it a night, find a way to sleep with the “thirst” Alice was downplaying, and wake up in the morning with a clear head.

Yawning, Marisol slowly got to her feet. ”Anyway, now that I know you’re home safe, I think I can head to bed. I want to hit the gym in the morning, which I can’t do if I’m a total zombie.”

Before she went to bed, she thought it would be wise to grab water. Her friends told her that was important after drinking to stay hydrated and ward off hangovers. Walking over to the kitchen, Marisol filled a glass of water from the tap, well outside of six feet from Alice.

When she walked back into the living room, she walked around the back of the couch and, for whatever reason, leaned down and kissed the top of her roommate’s head. That was a thing friends did, right? Like a cheek kiss. Totally platonic. ”Try not to stay up to late?”

Alice didn't really know how to take that comment but she wasn't exactly firing at one hundred percent. Then again she probably wouldn't get much more from it if she wasn't plastered but she had an excuse and she was sticking to it. Surely demi girls at least knew when they fell for people right? That's how it all worked, bright flashing lights, obvious messages and maybe even a flashy slogan saying what they wanted. Definitely.

Or was that billboards she was thinking of?

Glancing up at her friend and grinning, she didn't envy Mari trying to work out with a mild hangover. Didn't envy drunk Alice either because she felt good. Sober Alice would have to deal with the consequences in the morning and that girl was just not as much fun to hang out with. "Awwww, nice to know you care sweetie. I'm sure if I had any issues I'd have gotten home eventually. It's not my first drunk wander." It was her first in a city, sneaking into a small flat with only two occupants. Somehow getting back into a country estate had been easier. And less people to meet somehow.

Watching her friend head to the kitchen she spotted something pop up in the middle of her vision. Struggling to focus on the two sets of words and needing to squint to trick her brain she slowly read the words.

New Quest Received: Kiss the Girl

Well, that was a new one. Never had a quest about her love life before but for the life of her Alice didn't have a clue who it meant. Didn't even get a chance to see where the marker was pointing before it vanished again with everything else as Mari wander back over.

"Mhmm, will do," she replied sleepily, getting up herself she padded her way to her room, barely even registering the fact her friend had just kissed her head. as she passed over the moving threshold and slipped into bed another pop up briefly flashed into her sight.

Quest Resumed: Kiss the Girl