When Mari had asked her to tag along to apartment viewings Alice thought it might be fun. Even educational since she'd be looking for a place soon as well now that she was actually applying to NYU and would definitely be handy experience. At worst she'd expected to be bored before grabbing some greasy food and hanging out. She had not counted on it being a combination of disgusting and depressing.

And by god was it depressing.

They'd decided to take a quick break to refill the ever present hunger bar and to, digest, the flats they'd seen so far but frankly Alice felt like she needed a hot shower after some of the places they'd been shown. She knew Mari was on a pretty strict budget, and that prices in the city could be pretty ridiculous, but it never truly dawned on her just how bad finding decent accommodation could be in a place like this. Sure she'd heard horror stories, especially about London growing up but her more sheltered upbringing was definitely striking her now more than ever.

Dropping back down on the bench with her friend, she handed over a warm bag of food. "They said it was the healthiest thing they had but I'll be honest that is not saying much." The food had come from a small family run burger joint and gave off the distinct impression that it didn't really do healthy. By god did it do unhealthy though and Alice had opted for something with double, extreme and cheese in the title with a frankly terrifyingly made milkshake which she was sure had an entire chocolate bar mixed into it. "But it smells good and frankly, you look like you need something bad for you right now."

Taking a few quick bites and glancing over at Mari, Alice considered the choices they'd seen. "Well, number 2 wasn't terrible. Definitely had some.......character," which was certainly one way of describing it but it had been the lesser of so many evils they'd seen so far. "How many more viewings we got today?" 

Alice was definitely hoping it wasn't too many more. No way she could cope with that much in one sitting.

It was unfortunate that New York City was where the Broadway scene lived. She loved the city sometimes, and it was nice being around some family, but gosh darn, if New York City was not expensive. Despite her role in First Position, Marisol was still a novice actress, so her pay was still modest, particularly with the show still in rehearsals. Thankfully, Marisol’s mother raised the girl to be responsible and budget conscious.

It was just upsetting what budget consciousness meant in New York when it came to apartment hunting. The apartments were very modest, in size, location, and general upkeep. It was disappointing for Marisol, but if the look she occasionally caught on Alice’s face was any indication, the Brit was horrified.

Marisol had been a recluse for the better part of a year, but Alice found ways to keep touch, even if it just came with occasional texting or a mandated lunch break. Apartment hunting was a drag, so Marisol decided to call Alice up today.

They were stopping for a bite to refuel, and while Mariol eyed both the place and the bag of food Alice returned with, she was also letting Alice pay today, so she would suck it up. ”Well, it’s the thought that counts. Thanks for trying.” The burger was much smaller than Alice’s, and instead of bacon or cheese, she had tomatoes and grilled onions. She was going to avoid sides, but her shock that they actually had sweet potato fries led to an impulse order. She got a water to wash it down with, which made her feel better. Regardless, she would need to spend time at the gym to balance this meal out.

”Two was okay; not as grimy as one,” she admitted, ”but I’m pretty sure there was a drug deal going down in the next apartment over. Not necessarily a dealbreaker, but the walls were pretty thin, so not ideal.” if Jorge or her mother visited and caught on to that, they would pry her from the building by force.

Marisol took a bite of her (admittedly delicious) burger, reflecting on the listings saved to her phone. ”One more in this area, and one place I want to go look at in The Village.” That one was slightly out of her comfortable price range, but could anyone blame her for wanting to end the day on a higher note? ”How are you holding up? I feel like I saw you turn green in the third place.”

Alice waved away the thanks, it was the least she could do after the disaster that had been the morning's searching. "I'm sure one bad meal won't kill you, and it makes it sooooo much easier for me to pig out." A super metabolism sucked, but it had the occasional useful, greasy perk.

"Oh thank god that wasn't just me, one was freaking gross! How can it even be legal to rent a place in that condition?" Alice had heard stories about mould and roaches, but never thought it would be something she'd actually experience. Twice. In one day. Even then Mari did have a point about two, having that kind of stuff happening next door could be a little bit of a problem. "But hey, at least they didn't seem too bad. One of them even said thank you, so they can't be the worst dealers out there," she added, trying to find at least one positive from the experience.

She was rapidly failing at then endeavour so she concentrated on the food, washing it down with the occasional gulp of what she assumed was mostly fat and sugar.

"Thank god," she expelled before her mouth caught the thought. "I mean, I enjoy the hanging out with you part but Jesus these places are grim Mari." Grim with a capital G for sure, but with two more to see maybe it would improve? Certainly couldn't be any worse and now that she had a full stomach her mood had certainly improved.

Wolfing down the last two bites, Alice let out a big sigh of relief. Settling down the empty bag beside her she flicked through a few of the sites she'd been considering when she started looking but everything was definitely out of even her loosely defined budget. She was sure her mum was flexible as long as the place wasn't too much and was in a decent part of town, but she sincerely doubted she could swing any of the places she'd prefer. "Can't believe we'll have to go through all this again when I get round to it. Although maybe some better places will come up by then," she added hopefully.

Alice was right, of course; one cheat meal would not kill her. With Alice’s power, she needed to fuel herself with a high calorie diet, and she likely felt awkward about that. Of course, it was hard for the dancer to not envy that kind of metabolism, but she had to acknowledge the kind of diet Alice needed was inconvenient when she had to eat like that.

When apartment hunting, Marisol did what she could to justify aspects of a bad apartment, because she knew she’d likely end up in one. With company, it was easier to vent a little. She might not be able to pick a place out today, but at least they were having fun. ”Yeah, at least I can go ask to borrow some sugar from the nice drug dealer next door,” she joked, before adding, ”except I’m not sure asking to borrow sugar is a thing outside of TV neighbor clichés.”

While Marisol was stuck apartment hunting, Alice did have a point that it would be her own turn soon enough. ”Well, when it’s your turn, maybe your budget will be a little more generous than my own.” She was not sure about the specifics and did not ask, but Marisol did notice that money never appeared to be a real concern for Alice. She thought the reason might relate to her family, but it was not her business to ask about her friend’s financial situation. Alice was comfortable and not in dire straits, and that was all Marisol cared about. ”How long until you need to find a place of your own, again?”

"I was gonna ask because that is definitely not a thing back home. No way anyone would even know their neighbours name let alone give them sugar." Definitely not with her neighbours which had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that the closet ones were a couple miles away. Or them being rich snobs. Unlike her. Definitely no snobbishness from her.

Nodding along she saved a couple of flats for future interest on the site before looking back up. "Should be a little easier I hope. Can't be too many places to look through and I could always get some help from the uni as well if I'm struggling to find anything." She didn't exactly reckon there'd be a problem but she was also leaving it a little late compared to some of the other applicants. Most already had their name on like five or six waiting lists for places. "I should hear about the offer in the next week or so. So basically anytime after that if I'm wanting to actually put down any money." Better to actually know she had a place at the uni before finding a place to live.

Stretching a little before standing up, "RIght then. One more torture tour here and another elsewhere sounds doable for one day." Waiting for Mari to finish eating before setting off she let her friend do the leading again, since she still had frankly no idea where she was going when she hung out with her friend. Not having a headache from the HUD in her face was nice but Alice relied on the mini map and quest markers far too much. Sure she knew how to use her phones map but still, that took effort.  It couldn't get any worse right?

Marisol shrugged. ”Sugar clichés or not, I’m not looking to be besties with my neighbors,” she admitted, popping a fry in her mouth and chewing it fast so she could continue politely. ”You know me; I don’t scream social butterfly. I find the people I like and stick with them, more or less.”

Technically, Skye was on the “less” side of things these days with the distance she managed to put between them. That thought and the guilty feeling in her chest were stifled down with a mouthful of her burger. Could not deal with uncomfortable and questionable personal decisions while you were busy. It was her modus operandi for the better part of two months now, as the circles under her eyes could attest.

It was best to focus on the now and the people she had not stubbornly pushed away. Marisol found her way to a smile thinking about Alice and university. ”I’m confident in the answer you’ll be receiving, Alice. I look forward to apartment-hunting for you when you’re officially a college girl in a week.”

The pair of teens finished up lunch and while Marisol’s body would revolt as it started processing that burger, she could not deny it was truly delicious in the moment. Getting to her feet, the actress grabbed her phone from her purse and led them toward their next destination. ”I swear this isn’t a , but you’re really not used to the struggle life, are you, Alice?” She was not going to give her friend grief, because the apartments so far had been terrible, but she also did not want her travel companion feeling uncomfortable and out of place.

And then a thought struck her. A very silly thought that might help them get through the day. ”Maybe we can make things more tolerable if we make a little game of the next two places?”

Mari was certainly more of a social butterfly than her but in fairness, that wasn't very difficult. Her last semi normal interaction with a person had generally involved playful flirting and a lot of swearing so maybe her standard for normal was just a little skewed. compared to her more friendly friend. Being cute did help though.

"Thanks Mari, I'm definitely looking forward to having my own space, the prospect of the being the only girl on my course less so but I'm sure it'll be fun non the less." Electrical engineering didn't tend to attract women, even with asll the recent progress on encouraging people to get into it who might not otherwise think it's right for them but it was still pretty heavily studied by guys. She did know at least a couple of the lectures were women though, so maybe she'd be able to get some good advice on how to stay in the field.

The questions shocked her a little and while she was sure Mari didn't mean anything by it she did feel her hackles rise a little. It wasn't something she liked to think about, even if it was true, and the money and her family didn't define her. "Not really," she replied carefully, making sure to keep the edge out of her voice "at least not when it came money. But I've had my share of issues too." Struggle was relative and it was true she had never had worries about where her next meal was coming from but that hadn't made her life easy.

Brightening up a bit at the prospect of a little bit of fun, "Well, you know how to peak my interest. Can't say no to a game now can I? What have you got in mind."

The struggle of making a name for oneself in a male-dominated field was no joke. Marisol respected Alice for following her goals and not letting that deter her. Maybe she was biased, but Marisol was sure her blue-haired friend could be a more badass electrical engineer than any of the guys she’d be in classes with.

As Marisol worried it might, her comments about Alice’s experiences were met with bristling. Marisol lightly touched Alice’s arm and shook her head. ”I know you do. It’s not a slight on you, I promise. It was just… an observation. We’ve had different experiences and different struggles, is all.” Marisol’s life had become comfortable thanks to her mother’s hard work, but she knew when she was still young, money was tight. Knowing where she came from did a good job humbling her.

Rather than focusing on the awkward socioeconomical divide between their lives, Marisol noticed someone waiting outside an apartment building they were approaching. She smirked, glad they were waiting outside to lead them in. ”Oh, I think you’ll catch onto this little game quick. Come on.” Marisol took Alice’s hand and led her to the man in a clean polo.

“Hello! Would you happen to be Marisol? Here to check out Apartment 212?”

”Yep!” The dancer presented a chipper, friendly disposition before gesturing to the blue-haired woman with her. ”I hope it’s okay, but I thought I’d bring my fiancée along. She’ll probably visit often, so she might as well get a feel for the place. Right, honey?” she asked, turning to meet Alice’s eyes with her own playful gaze.

She did calm down a little with Mari's reassurances. Of course she wasn't having a go but it was hard to not put her back up when people brought up the money. She'd had too many people just assume her life had been all rainbows and sunshine because her family had money. "I.....I've gotten s**t for it in the past. I know you don't mean badly by it but, well I've had issues with people making decisions about who I am because of where I've come from enough times to get sick of it." She'd be damned if she'd let anyone tell her who she was anymore.

Alice had a very bad feeling about this plan of Mari's, which gave way pretty quick when they were suddenly holding hands and heading towards a more smartly dressed gentleman. All she cared about was that it was a very nice hand to be holding and dammit there was nothing wrong with her thinking her friends were cute, even if they had just gotten out of a relationship and had been broken up about it for weeks. She just had to not read to much into it.

Which was made harder by the fact she was now being introduced as Mari's fiance. Excellent.

Not letting the shock read on her face she gave her friend a grin before looking back to the many. "Hi there, I'm Alice. It's a pleasure." She even turned up the posh a little, going with the flow of a different persona, "I know Mari didn't mention it but we'd really appreciate it if you let me look around as well."

Marisol did not want to leave Alice feeling judged. Alice was a good person, and the actress would not imply otherwise. Alice was also not the typical elitist rich girl. That did not mean there were not aspects of life she saw differently because of her background, just as most people could say. Marisol might clarify things later, just to know the air between them was clear.

For now, they had new fun to be had. It was a silly idea, but she had already awkwardly explained to the last tour-givers that she wanted a friend around for support and she was not a girlfriend moving in with her. Hell, the last guy assumed they were sisters, which was for one, heteronormative and for two, baffling considering how little a resemblance they shared. She was Mexican, for goodness sake!

So for this meaningless tour that would not likely lead to an actual lease being signed, why not lean into the façade? Alice ran with it, and… was she being more British, somehow? Cute trick if they wanted to throw the guy off.

And he was thrown, but he handled it without fumbling. He was not too old, but he likely did not jump to “lesbians” when he saw them approach. Marisol was told by some people her vibe was not “very gay,” which she found almost offensive. Alice, for her part, put off a great many gay vibes, selling the idea.

After some initial pleasantries and a brief explanation of the building, he led them inside. Marisol got into her role, walking side-by-side, keeping close to Alice as they ascended steps.

“So, are you two going to school nearby? Or working?”

”Oh, I’ll be working. Nothing too close, but it wouldn’t be New York without a subway commute, right?” She laughed at her own lame joke along with him, before continuing, ”My darling here’s the one who will be in school. She’s studying electrical engineering.”

“Oh, really?” His relative surprise irked Marisol, because she could guess where it might come from.

And of course, she had to defend her fiancée’s honor. ”Yes, really. I know, she’s brilliant and beautiful. I’m definitely lucky.”

“O-of course!” He clearly caught the mistake he made, but fortunately for him, they were at the doorway and he could concern herself with fumbling the key into the lock. Marisol simply smirked to Alice behind his back.

Of course there would be polite chit-chat, but for once Alice was enjoying it, letting Mari take the lead and playing off what she said. She was also enjoying the mild confusion the man had over a downright royal accent coming for a woman with bright blue hair and a punkish dress sense. The images certainly clashed, she knew that intimately.

One thing was to be said, Mari could certainly act, Alice was nearly convinced with the girls performance but she added in the necessary laughs and chuckles at the appropriate moments. She even managed a semi passable loving look, or at least what she imagine one was. She didn't have enough experience with them to really pull it off but chances are the gentleman wouldn't notice with Marisol blinding him with details.

It did nearly fall apart at his surprise with her study choices and the sudden icy expression on her face certainly didn't help but her friend was on good form and gave her a little idea to work with as well. "Oh don't put yourself down dear, you know how much attention you're getting these days on Broadway." Turning to the many with a smile, "She is already performing in productions and her agent has some amazing opportunities lined up. You should see her dance, my god is it transcendent."

Sure, she was laying it on a little think but it was fun.

The man was struggling with the divided attention of opening the door while paying attention and he absently replied, "I guess I'll need to see her on stage then."

So far so good, the door was open, the man looked ready to show them inside and they were still holding hands which Alice still hadn't gotten over. "Well then sir, I know I can't wait to see what you have available. I'm sure it's more than fitting for my sweetheart."

While it was expected the actress of the pair might take the lead in their little game, Alice was no slouch. Her accent was all pop and circumstance and she laid on the praise of Marisol’s abilities good and thick. And yes, it was some playful embellishment, but she did feel real support there, which gave her a warm feeling in her chest.

Of course, they were fiancées, so this was something she was used to. As such, Marisol pulled Alice in and playfully nudged her with her shoulder. ”Oh, you. Far too sweet with me.”

They were led into the apartment and it was… well, not the worst. These tours were always a little anticlimactic because the apartments were often empty and unfurnished, leaving a need to imagine what could be done with the space. Truth be told, Marisol did not own much to fill the area after living in a dormitory for years.

The man explained that the fridge would come with the apartment, but that laundry had to be handled off-site. Marisol could handle that, but in the moment, in character, she pouted. ”Oh, that’s a touch unfortunate. I suppose we’ll have to change how we do laundry, Alice. Can’t very well spend the wash time curled up in nothing but a blanket at the laundromat, right?”

Well, that certainly left their guide at a loss for words. This was fun.

"Only as sweet as you deserve dear," she responded easily.

To Alice, the place still didn't look amazing but considering how terrifyingly bad the others had been, that wasn't really saying much. Sure it had the basics, the cupboards didn't look too bad and the fridge at least looked semi clean from the outside but it didn't have any personal washing at all. Alice was used to having a dishwasher and washing machine pretty much to herself at home and the mansion facilities were pretty damn good. This, well it was just a little sad to her.

But it wasn't horrific and with a little work it would at least be a livable space in her friends budget. It also didn't have a drug deal happening right next door so that was a big bonus.

The blush on the mans face was certainly something, either from the mental image or he wasn't as accepting as he looked. It certainly helped her not focus on the idea of her friend, and her, beneath a blanket. Nude. No she wasn't blushing, it was just surprisingly warm all of a sudden. "Not without turning a few heads," she laughed, "but I'm sure we can always find an excuse for that. I'm not ready to give up the cuddling for anything."

She would not break first. At all.

"But I'm sure this gentleman doesn't need to hear all our dirty secrets," she added, giving the man a warm grin. "I'm sure we can find a use for so much, space, just imagine being able to dance in here like we did when we met."

Marisol made a point to watch Alice when she made her suggestive cuddling comment. She could have sworn she spotted some color rising to those cheeks; the challenge of being so fair-skinned. Marisol beamed proudly.

Thankfully, her “fiancée” managed not to break character, even if the comment caught her off guard. She ran with it, clinging to the value of the cuddle sessions she would not give up easily. ”We’ll make it work,” she purred, smirking as she snaked her hands around Alice’s waist, whispering, ”Like I could keep my hands off you for more than a few minutes.”

Yep, she was now successfully in character, and what a character it was.

Of course, Alice steered them out of trouble and Marisol came to her senses, releasing her lover and straightening out her top. ”Of course. Behaving.” Though Alice’s little comment… it was too good to resist. ”It’s fine, I’d say. Not overly spacious, but it doesn’t matter if we dance close enough. But. Behaving,” she reminded herself, flashing a polite smile to the man, who seemed unsure of how to reply to this beyond reiterating the square footage.

Moving toward the kitchen, it was not terrible, but it was small. Smaller than she hoped from the pictures. ”Oh, I’m just not sure, love. I know you love to cook, but this kitchen is rather small. It must feel paltry compared to the ones at the estate.” It was, of course, a light-hearted joke. Alice was turning up the poshness of her accent, and wasn’t that a cliché? Posh British people and their lavish estates?

Mari was not making it easy to be logical. She knew her friend was only playing a character and that was all they were. Friends. But it was difficult when she had a very attractive girl making some very interesting suggestions. God she even took the initiative and pulled them into a seemingly more intimate position.

It was very unfair how much fun her friend was having while she was having a small internal meltdown at the mixed signals her brain was sending.

Thankfully, she got the hint, or appeared to for the sake of the fun and made another couple of comments before disentangling herself from Alice. "I think we should, for now at least. Although you do make some good points about what we should be doing later, I am definitely in the mood for some slow......dancing." Her ability to be witty was disappearing quickly. If that made it more less convincing she couldn't exactly be sure.

What came next very nearly floored her. She knew. How the hell did she know!? Alice was sure she'd been careful, not giving any mention of her family outside of Serena and making sure to never say anything that could give away where she came from. "H.....how," she stammered a little, before trying to keep the game going for now, "how right you are dear! The head chef would certainly be disappointed in me if she knew I was preparing her recipes without much of the essentials." As long as she kept it going, she'd be able to question her friend later. "It is charming though and I would like to try out some more, rustic, approaches to the craft."

"Now my good man, I'm sure you know where the closet organic food store is. If there is one close by that would certainly be a bonus."

One thing was for certain, Alice was definitely less worried about the suggestive comments now.