Girls' Night [Sweet Princess Iris]

[kennedyk]

Kennedy's laid out several blankets and pillows on the distressed hard-wood floors of her top-floor apartment. It was a long day at work, but thankfully a productive one. Several customers came by to commission her after visiting her booth at the art festival, something she'll call a win. Now that there's a nice open space on the floor free of her canvases, paints, and as clean as it's been since she's moved in, Kennedy pops a big tub of Neopolitan ice cream into the freezer and sets a bottle of wine in a bucket of ice to chill. She picked up everything from the market on the way home.

"I hope Iris doesn't mind eating on the floor..." she worries, but furniture such as a dinning room table really seemed like a waste of money when she needed the space for her art. She shrugs, figuring her new friend will be so excited, she'll love absolutely everything. Laying a box full of jewelry-making supplies on the floor along with their stash of beads from the festival, she pulls out her notebook, quietly working up a quick sketch of the man Owen she met at her booth as she waits for Iris.

Comments

[littleredsiren]

She takes the brush, fiddling it between her fingers. "Maybe that's why he was in the wheelchair... Your legs can kind of stop working well after you've been stationary for so long, right?"

[kennedyk]

"Mmhmm, that's what I'm thinking." She bites her lip. "Who was the woman...she seemed kind, warm. Someone who meant the world to her. But she also felt distant like she's not...around anymore..." Realization hits her and she frowns.

"Oh God, I think he was in the paper! A story about a resident waking up. That must have been him. I can't remember how long it had been, but he was in a car wreck of some kind."

[littleredsiren]

Iris hops to her feet with a gasp. "Hold on. Stay here."

She scurries out of the room, down to her apartment, and comes back up with a bunch of papers in her hands. "I save papers," she admits. "Wanna see if we can find anything more about it?"

[kennedyk]

Kennedy too kept papers....and covered them in paint. These are much better taken care of. "Yeah, not to be nosey, I just...want to know what not to say, you know?" She grabs a stack and starts thumbing through.

[littleredsiren]

"I know what you mean... I don't want to cause him any distress because I brought up bad memories, you know?" She hums a song softly as she flips through the papers, searching for his name anywhere she can find it.

[kennedyk]

"Right? I'd hate to stick my foot in my mouth first thing." She flips through about half the stack before shrieking. "Found it! I found it!" Spreading the paper on the floor between them, she starts to read the article. "A car wreck that took the life of his partner, Abi...oh God, that's sad."

[littleredsiren]

Iris sucks in a tiny gasp of air, biting down on her lip, hard. "He was in a car wreck too?" she murmurs, leaning over Kennedy's shoulder to read. "When did it happen?"

[kennedyk]

Too? Kennedy glances back at Iris with a questioning look but doesn't ask what she's thinking. Instead she holds the paper for Iris to see. "A year ago. He's been in a coma."

[littleredsiren]

Iris catches the look and ducks her head sheepishly, realizing she'd never told her about the accident. "I was in a car accident when I was six. Both my parents died and I had a brain bleed that took some of my memories," she explains. "I guess that explains the wheelchair. You stay in a coma that long and your muscles go super weak, right?"

[kennedyk]

Kennedy frowns, giving Iris an apologetic look. "Oh sweetie, I'm sorry to hear that," she says, wrapping an arm around Iris' shoulders. "It does. Which hopefully means he'll be able to get back to his old physical condition at least."

[littleredsiren]

She shrugs but leans into her friend's hug anyway, reveling in the warmth. "It's okay. It's been a long time since it happened. It only hurts a little to think about now," she says, giving her a comforting smile. "Maybe I'll be some use to him. I could probably share some coping mechanisms, though I was six when it happened so my mind was a little more malleable to loss, I think."

[kennedyk]

"Mm, yeah that's true." She nods. "Even if you were young, he might respond well to someone else in a similar situation, you know? Just knowing he's not alone."

[littleredsiren]

Iris nods, following her line of thought. "I just have to find a way to bring it up with out like... triggering PTSD or anything."

[kennedyk]

"I'm sure you'll find a way to weave it in. You're sensitive to that kind of stuff. I'd just blurt it out."

[littleredsiren]

A tiny giggle slips out and she smiles. "Sometimes blurting things out is better than dancing around it," she points out. "Like, every time I get a crush, I dance around it and get really awkward and try to flirt, but it's so hard to say anything about it, so I've never even been on a date. I bet you've been on tons."

She pauses, thinking about that. "Not that I mean you sleep around or anything, not that that's bad, I guess? I... um. I'm shutting up now?"

[kennedyk]

Kennedy laughs. "That's cute though! I'm just like "Hey sailor WINK" and then no one takes me seriously."

She shakes her head, almost laughing at herself and Iris. "I know what you mean, no worries. I've been on a few dates. Never a successful one though. They always tend to end with the guy running for the hills and me standing on a sidewalk yelling at him."

[littleredsiren]

"Oh no! Are they all pigs?" she giggles, leaning over to hug her. "We'll find you a nice guy out here, okay? Someone who won't run away just because you're a little forward."

[kennedyk]

"More I may be a tad overbearing and they can't handle this jelly?" She laughs and waves a hand. "You're going to have to find a very patient or a very egotistical man."

[littleredsiren]

Iris pulls a face. "A patient one, I think. You deserve a good guy, not one obsessed with himself."

[kennedyk]

She smiles fondly at Iris because a good guy would be a nice change in her life. "Can I be obsessed with his bod?" she teases.

[littleredsiren]

"Is it really a relationship if you aren't?" she teases back, slightly red.

[kennedyk]

"It really isn't. One of my requirements-I need a buff bod. I'll send you snapchats of what I'm looking for," she grins. "And now worries, I'll find you someone hot too."

[littleredsiren]

"Snap...chats?"

Iris grins back, blushing. "Promise? He's got to be sweet too, okay?"

[kennedyk]

"GIRL. You got a smartphone? It's an app where I can take a picture anywhere, send it to you, and you can see it for like ten seconds before it's deleted."

"Sweet, hot, any other requirements?"

[littleredsiren]

"That sounds... odd," she says, handing her the smart phone she'd bought and never put any apps on.

"Umm... I like them with muscles," Iris blushes. "I don't think I have any other requirements..."