Sugar & Honey (Billiam & Butterfly)

"Aleena...Aleena....ALEENA!" The cook hit that little bell four more times than should be necessary before the petite woman reacted, shaking her thoughts from her head.

"Sorry Danny." She mumbled, getting the plates of food on the counter. She still wasn't used to the whole focusing thing. She walked to the table, presenting them with a smile, trying not to think about how her auburn curls were sticking to her face cause of the sweat, or how the stupid black and pink apron made her look like some freak from Little House on the Prairie. But that's how Aleena was, She could easily stop thinking about things if she had to. Plus it couldn't look so bad, right? She was wearing a simple black tank top and a pair of jeans underneath, it wasn't like their was a strict dress code at Auntie Ma's Sweet Tea Shack and Eatery.

"If you need anything else, just let me know?" she smiled cheerfully to the family of four before walking back to lean on the counter at the back. It was getting late, the sun now making the sky outside a bleeding peach of sorts, painting the sky sherbet and cherry. The light of the window playing on her light colored coppery skin.

Aleena was the kind of beauty that came from harshness. She had large wide almond shaped eyes that had just a touch of mystery in their chocolate color despite her relatively open personality. Even though she was probably no taller that 5' 5" she had long thin arms and legs that were more muscle than flesh, and a relatively flat chest, tell tale signs of her rather active life she led. Including; walking, running, swimming and dance, since she was about ten.

Her lips were on the big and pouty side, though they were also oddly proportionate to the rest of her pixie like body and nimbleness. She wore no makeup on them, or the rest of her face, her own defiant way of moving on from the past. She smiled slightly, thinking about how in a few minutes she would be going back to her house, and fall asleep in her bed. It was those little joys that kept her on her feet even though after eight hours they were getting pretty sore. She pushed a lock of her wavy, semi-curly long hair behind her ear, glad the rest of the auburn slightly frizzled mess was contained in a large clip, even though that only made the shoulder length hair drip and drizzle over and tickle her neck slightly.

"You want some sweet tea sugar?" the elderly owner asked, walking over and touching her arm, breaking her focus on the colors outside and bringing them back in, "You've been workin' awfully hard. I'll go make ya some."

"Thanks Auntie Ma." Aleena giggled slightly, pulling at her fingers. Auntie Ma's sweet tea was apparently the local legend. a tea so good that it "musta been givin' to her by the angels themselves" as one regular put it. And considering some places Aleena had been, tea from the angels wasn't half bad of a deal.

Amy normally didn't frequent Ma's all that much. The place had never appealed to her much before. She had her usual staples and those were fine by her. She had been wandering around her tiny hometown when the hunger hit, and it was nearby, so she figured "what the hell?" and wandered in. It had been the best day of her life. Awesome sweet tea, delicious barbecue, and to top it off, a really pretty waitress in an adorable apron. She swore to herself she would need to come at least once a week, always the same table, if only to get more of that amazing food and, if she was lucky, the same waitress too...

Of course, all that being said, her confidence was only so high. Sure, the girl was probably already with someone else perfect like her, or she wasn't into girls, or Amy wasn't her type. Something was sure to wreck her little fantasies - Amy liked to call that "reality". She sighed dreamily as she wandered in for what felt like the millionth time that month and sat at her usual spot, pulling a book out of her messenger bag and cracking it open as she waited for her server to come over - not that she didn't get enough reading in on her own time working at a library!

She always considered herself a bit common, but that was the effect of growing up in a small southern town. Everyone had their little talents and quirks, but you grew so used to that knowledge that the very nature of specialty made it equivalent to normalcy. Anyone else might marvel at her capacity for reading, her gift with singing and piano playing and dance, but to her that was just life, the things that made life in a boring place bearable.

((Hope that's good))

((Completely fine. Don't worry ^^))

Ma handed her the glass of tea with a smile, and it was then that Aleena realized that a regular walked in. It wasn't as if she knew the other woman, or really said much other than basic small talk, but she always felt a smile creep up on her face when the redhead came in.

Aleena didn't consider herself gay, or queer, or really...anything on that front. She had fooled around with girls in college some (Well who didn't fool around in college?) But nothing that would make her think she was anything other than straight, and stupid under the influence of alcohol. So she thought nothing of the immediate attraction she felt for the other woman, thinking and flat out assuming it was just her wanting a gal pal than anything. That was the hardest part of leaving California, none of her friends were here.

She took a sip of her tea, before setting it on the counter and walking to Amy's table. Technically, since her shift ended in about a half hour she really shouldn't work the table since it wasn't busy or anything, but she went nonetheless, smile on her face and a bounce in her step.

"Hello there! Nice to see you again. What can I get for you?" she grinned, pulling out her pen and pad. It wasn't as though Auntie Ma's menu was particularly long or complicated. If you ordered a tea, you got fries. If you ordered a sandwich you got soup, or fries, and a tea.

Amy saw Aleen come bounding up and could hardly keep the smile from her face. Alright, she had to admit to herself, there was no denying it. If the mere act of someone approaching you was enough to put a smile on your face, you were in stupid, stupid love. So what the hell, why not ask her out on a date?? It couldn't possibly be that hard, right?? Just slip it in, nothing big, just ask her for coffee or a drink or something, yeah? No problem.

"Hey, Aleena, great to see you too! I'll just have the usual, barbecue, fries, tea. You know me, I prefer my predictable little life!" She giggled brightly, inwardly kicking herself as she failed once again to even so much as find an excuse to hang out with the other girl. It was kind of pathetic. Sure, she wasn't the most outgoing person ever, but who had this much trouble with these things - really??

Once Aleena took her order, she turned her attention back on her book, trying to ignore the way her rosy cheeks turned even redder at the knowledge that she may never get the girl's attention. At least she could retreat into the world of fiction for a few hours every day. Not much of a victory, but it was something.

Aleena took the order and thought a minute. Would it be proper to try to hang out? It's not like Ma would care much, not with Amy being the only costumer right now. "Umm..." She started, trying not to bite her lip and look pathetic.

"I'll get that started for you..." She walked back to the counter, lost in thought. You have two choices here. You can ask to hang out a little bit, get to know her, and make a friend, or you can just be her waitress and be awkward about this until you actually grow the balls to talk to someone else. Your choice Aleena. she thought to herself her brow furrowed slightly. She gave the ticket to Danny, before walking back to Amy, trying not to seem to awkward. After all, Southern people were supposed to be friendly right?

"Umm...My shift ends really soon...and as you can see, we aren't exactly busy, you wouldn't mind if I ummm...had some food with you would you?" She asked feeling painfully stupid. "I'm still new around here and everything, I just...I mean you come in all the time, I..." yep, she was digging a deeper hole. "I just thought if you weren't busy, or waiting for anyone..."

Amy had only managed to read a paragraph or two when she suddenly realized that Aleena had actually returned to her table. She looked up at her surprised, listening to her patiently as she rattled off a slightly awkward attempt at hanging out. In her mind, she couldn't help but be all the more amused at the irony. Here, Aleena probably thought she was an absolute idiot for not even being able to make a friend like a normal person. Yet Amy was most definitely the bigger coward for not even saying anything. Perhaps the information might comfort her, but she wasn't sure that was something she was ready to admit just yet.

She marked her place again and set the book back into her messenger bag with a bright smile, still rather amused by how this whole day was going now. "No, I'm uh.. I'm not waiting for anyone. If you're really hurting for something to do, then please, join me. I've only lived here for forever, so I'd be more than happy to help you get a bit more adjusted to small-town life. It can be... ironically more daunting than living in a city, from what I hear!" She laughed softly and shrugged, amazed at her sudden burst of friendly confidence. "So. Um. Yes. Food would be great. Food together, I mean. Food. With you." Aaaaaaaand there goes all that confidence!

She suddenly realized after all this time that the woman might not even know her name, despite the fact that she knew hers, if only because of her nametag. "Oh, I'm Amy, by the way" She extended a friendly hand out to her.

Aleena took her hand with a giggle. "I'm Aleena. Well. Duh, but, umm..." She trailed off, and thankfully Danny rang the bell for her food, interrupting her thoughts.

"And it smells like your fod is ready. Danny is as quick as ever." She shrugged and walked back to the counter that instantly turned to a frown.
"Danny, why are there extra fries?" she asked thoroughly confused.

"You have a tea. You get fries."

"Danny I can't eat these."

"It's on the house sweetie. No worries," He said shrugging it off.

"No. Danny. I can't eat these," She said feeling embarrassed. She didn't know how to explain how she felt eating fried food. She remembered how she went days eating just carrots, afraid to gain weight, only to pass out and break her arm.

"Sugar. Eat the damn fries. You can use some extra food." He said simply, leaving her stunned. She took the food back to the table, setting the fries in between them. and sitting opposite of her in the booth.

"Thanks. For letting me rest my feet and all. You're really sweet." She spoke honestly with a small chuckle.

Amy couldn't help but giggle a little to herself as Aleena stumbled over herself again, clearly grateful for the small break in conversation to get her bearings back. There seemed to be a minor argument going on, though she couldn't quite tell what it was about. She shrugged it off and got comfortable, assuming she'd be there for a while - or perhaps, more appropriately, hoping so.

But soon enough the other girl returned to the table and seated herself across from Amy. She blushed a little at the compliment and attempted to pass it off by changing the subject as she munched happily on a few fries, chasing them with that amazing sweet tea - seriously, it was like liquid crack! "Hey, um, not to be super familiar just five minutes to actually meeting you, but what was all that about? That cook didn't give you grief or something, did he?" She looked at the large pile of fries, assuming they couldn't possibly be on bad terms if he was giving her free food!

"Nothing," She said after a moment, not sure if she wanted to open that can of worms or not, "It was a simple misunderstanding, a silly mistake on my part." she gave one of her smiles, tilting her head to the side. "I apparently got them for my tea, but I don't really want them."

It wasn't as though she was on a diet at the moment or anything, but she didn't want to get in the habit of eating junk. In her opinion she was already too flawed and she didn't need to add to that by getting fat in the process. However...god they smelled good....

Her stomach grumbled in protest to the smell, making her blush a subtle shade of pink, and look away from Amy, "I mean, unless you want to share. I can have a couple." she said quietly, feeling odd.

It wasn't that she was feeling uncomfortable around Amy, but rather that she wasn't used to making friends. It had been years since she had any kind of actual friends--Colby quickly forcing her to stay home, or not leave the house without him--and now that she was free to actually make friends, it felt like junior high all over again. Except she didn't have any boys to talk of, and she really didn't even want to get on that topic either.

"I got them for free. Cause of the tea...which I also got for free. I just...I haven't had fried food in a long time." She admitted, not sure why. It was true, but didn't betray anything that she was worried about. It just felt weird talking and being honest.

She looked at her curiously for a moment, cocking her head to the side slightly. It was most definitely not her way, to pry into someone's private business. And yet it was also very much her way to find that people just spilled things around her. She wasn't super curious, she wasn't particularly pushy on things, but she listened well, and was incredibly open to people, though not for sake of effort, and so folks opened up. And now here was her favorite lovely waitress apparently wanting to drop something into her lap. It would happen sooner or later, so she just offered her a soft smile and a shrug, grabbing a few fries and munching on them. "Quite alright, sweetheart, just figured I'd ask for sake of being nice. We've only just met, after all..." She laughed softly, once again surprising herself with her vaguely confident nature. For all her failures to ask the girl out, this was going surprisingly well. "So, you're new in town, I've only lived here all my life - what would you like to know, Miss Aleena? I know there's not much to it, admittedly, but it's balanced out by the realization that there's always something we don't know!" Ah, good, you're ranting, that's great, just.... yes, just keep doing that. That'll impress her.

Aleena smiled, sipping her tea, "I was actually born here if you can believe it. But I moved away when I was four, so you might as well say I was born in San Francisco." She shrugged, thinking about it.

"I guess I'm just glad to be home, I don't mind country life so much. I mean, less crime, less pollution, friendly open people...It's a lot better than any city I've ever been too. So there's no need to feel ashamed about this place. So far, it's been wonderful." That was...well...half true. It wasn't that the ton itself was awful as much as her own depression and homesickness.

"I was just wondering if there were any art galleries in the area? I uhh, well I used to collect and stuff. I'm a big fan of the art world type stuff. My mother was actually a painter. She was even in the New York Museum of Modern Art."

She listened to the other curiously for a while, munching on the occasional fry or digging into her sandwich between nods. Again, there seemed to be the slightest hesitation, mostly in Aleena's face, as she spoke hyperbolically about the city. But for the most part, it seemed quite honest, and she couldn't help but smile. Sometimes, it wasn't the best place on the planet, but even Amy felt her chest swell with small-town pride from time to time. "An excellent point, you've got me there. Guess I just feel obligated to be rough on this place on occasion so it doesn't get too full of itself!" She giggled brightly, knowing full well that it was hardly an impressive joke.

The mention of art definitely sparked her interest and brought her back from the land of the amused. "Oh! Um, well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm afraid the best we've got here is whatever random bits and pieces people donate to us over at the library. We've got some really great stuff, but I'm afraid you'll have to go a fair few hours out of your way just to catch a glimpse of anything... y'know.... "professional"." She took an effort to both pronounce the quotes out loud as well as making some physically in the air with her hands. She really loved some of the pieces they had, but knew they'd earn maybe a few bucks at most in any true museum - something that clearly hit the slightest sour note with her. She felt a little bad, knowing the girl's own mother was a featured artist, but she figured that if anything, that meant Aleena could probably sympathize.

((So sorry about the wait. Been lagging a little since I've been feeling a bit under the weather. =/ ))

"OOH! Do you think the library would be accepting any new art?" She asked excitedly, not particularly concerned about the lack of a "professional" gallery. If there was art, she was interested, simple as that. Not to mention that most modern artists, well, and artists in general, were so ego filled and obscene that they lost the true meaning of what they were doing anyway. Seeing that she had spent enough time with egotistical assholes to last her a lifetime, wasn't too sad about missing the opportunity to pass up talking to another one.

"Not that I have anything big complete yet, but I finally was able to by some canvas for my easel a while ago..." Mostly, she wanted to look and start completing pieces again. She hadn't actually completed a piece in years, and just the fact that she was thinking about starting it up again, well if that wasn't recovery, what was? "And...I don't think I have my card yet...Kinda got busy with the whole working thing." She admitted with a grin. "Silly me..." She punctuated popping a small fry in her mouth.

Amy couldn't help but smile a little wider as Aleena got this excited look on her face. If Amy thought the girl was cute before, seeing the girl become passionate about something made her all the more attractive. She bit her bottom lip, biting back as much of a giggle as she could. "Oh, I imagine we could more than spare the wallspace for your work. Just bring it by some time and I'll hang it up myself!" She grinned a little wider and ate a bit more of her sandwich.

She cocked her head to the side slightly at Aleena's mini-digression. "A card?" She took a few more bites from the barbecue sandwhich, getting a little on her cheek, but clearly unaware of that fact. Instead she just continued chatting aimlessly, quickly sipping a bit more of that delicious, delicious tea. "Hey, never get down on yourself for wanting to earn money. As long as your dreams are still within reach, there's really no reason to feel guilty" She picked up a fry and pointed it at her for emphasis before eating that as well.

Aleena smiled, taking a sip of her tea, trying to understand her luck. Here was a great person, talking with her, and she was in the middle of a great town, and she just couldn't think of any one thing she needed or wanted.
"Well...a library card..." She giggled, fussing over the clip in her hair, "But you wouldn't have to hang up like that, I'm sure there are other artists in the area and things like that. You don't have to treat it unfairly or anything..."

She ate another fry, not even paying attention for once. "So you work at the library? That sounds intensive. Not sure if I can handle all that quiet. Or the occasional lack thereof. " she joked with a grin, "But I always thought something like that might be fun. being at a community hub like that."

She laughed brightly as Aleena tried to backpedal a bit and held up her hands appeasingly. "Please, we have like... four paintings and a sculpture. I'm sure the town appreciates you giving them so much credit, but I assure you - there's no secret burgeoning art crowd here, just amateurs, but in the very realest sense of the word. They do it for the love of the work."

She smiled and finished off the last of her fries. "As for the library itself, well... I guess there is a lot of silence, and I guess it can be kind of the social and cultural center of the town. But there are just as many days where it really amounts to me getting paid to swipe a few cards, stamp a few books, and read a lot. Not that I'm complaining, of course!" She giggled brightly and began drinking the last of her sweet tea when something occurred to her.

She was actually sitting and eating with the girl finally, so why was she in such a hurry to finish her food? When the meal was over, did they part ways? Or would she actually have the courage to invite her to do something else??

There were a multitude of thoughts that danced their way through Aleena's head, many consisting of silly things that she and her new found social skills could do--like keeping Amy as a friend. With this in mind she didn't want this conversation to end, but with the diminishing food between them, what should she do? Leaving didn't seem like an answer, but staying seemed awkward too.

She took a sip still smiling, listening to the comment about the amateur before looking at her watch, contemplating. "Is there anywhere you have to be?" She asked trying not to seem to worried or awkward. "I was just thinking maybe we could hang out...I mean if not tonight, maybe this weekend or something?" She asked pushing a lock of hair behind her ear.

Oh, thank God! She nearly sighed with relief at having been saved the humiliating task of getting herself to utter the few words that Aleena seemed to handle with much more grace - though perhaps she was viewing the situation through a slightly tinted lens... All this went through her head immediately as an awkward, nervous, but slightly adorable smile crept across her lips and she nodded her head in approval.

"I'm off all day Saturday... I'm sure you must still be a bit lost around some parts of town, maybe we could go on a tour, take a walk in the park, and then dinner and a movie at my place? I figure it's only fair I treat you to food for once..." She smirked and stared at her plate, honestly impressed with herself that she came out with that idea on the fly. Well, mostly on the fly, she did have her various fantasies she'd occasionally flipped through in her mind every time she eyed Aleena.