Bring The Heat

19. VS Sweet Perfumes

In the morning, Wren groggily tried to hunt down Cece. As it turned out, she was sick, but told Wren all she had to do was get some money off of BM and walk into town. Wren was somewhat disappointed to be missing out on time with Cece, but felt a new determination to take on this challenge alone!

On the way to speak to BM, Wren thought about Cece. She didn't get those same butterflies around her anymore... what did this mean? Still, Wren enjoyed thinking about the two of them together sometimes... but as time went on, this ideal relationship became more and more of a friendship. It wasn't like she had been replaced by some other girl either... well, maybe Lewis? There was a lot to unpack there though...

Feeling troubled, Wren decided to talk to BM about it sometime. But for now? She grabbed the cash, and her phone and jacket at the advice of BM, and hit the town!

-(30 MINUTES LATER)-

At last, Wren had located the town. It was, like, half a kilometre from the compound, but Wren didn't exactly start off knowing where she was going. Whatever... this seemed like town, similar enough to what she had seen in movies; it wasn't super bustling with people, but still there was a lot of life happening. Wren drew a breath of the sharp morning air and observed this. She decided that she liked it! With a newfound confidence, she began to wander the streets.

The first shop she entered was a pet care one, which Wren knew nothing about, but she thought the squeaky toys were funny, so she bought one.

Next, she entered a corner store to buy a can of soda, but remembering her traumatic past with buying soda, decided to go somewhere else. Spotting a group of people holding hot drinks, she headed the direction they were coming from, deducing that they must have obtained the drinks recently, as wispy steam snaked through the lids!

And then she saw her. In the coffee shop, behind the counter. The most beautiful girl she'd ever seen. (Wren had only really seen about 2 other girls since she'd awoken, to be fair).

The girl behind the counter wore a black polo and apron, with brown hair intricate tied up into a kind of large bow. She had a piercing on the side of her nose and her eyebrow, and a flame-like tattoo crept up her neck. Wren collected herself, and entered.

There was a line, and she remembered that she had to wait in these. Whilst she did, she overheard an old man at a table making fun of someone's order, saying;

"Nobody ever gets black coffee anymore... it's all cream and marshmallows. Be a man!"

Wren decided that this must be her order, so that she could seem strong and cool for the girl behind the counter (she was, at this time, not aware that black coffee didn't come with any of the cool whipped cream and candy she had seen on the other, drinks, and really wanted).

When she reached the counter, she began to hit on the girl, in a very unique yet effective way. See, this is where I'd write her dialogue, but I'm not good at hitting on people, so I won't.

Either way, they were both so into it that the line behind Wren seemed to get pissed.

"Order something!" someone yelled.

Wren was more glad than anything that she could prove to coffee girl how manly she was now.

"Black coffee, please and thank you kindly." Wren said in a somewhat seductive tone, leaning on the counter and 100% thinking about one of the spaghetti westerns Tenson had showed her.

She was somehow disappointed by how quick it took to prepare, and slightly confused that there was no cool cream or anything. Nervously, and still at the counter holding up the queue, she eyed it up and down before grabbing it (like a man!) and taking a swig.

It was bitter. Just bitter. No cool cream, no soft flavour. Drinking it felt like throwing up backwards. Disgusted, Wren dribbled it back into the cup, coughing. She looked up at the girl behind the counter. Wren was disgusted, the girl behind the counter MORE disgusted, but most disgusting of all is the fact that there's some old guy out there who prefers that stuff to a cool whipped cream drink.

Cutting her losses, Wren speed-walked out of the coffee shop, tail between her legs and coffee still on the counter. Y'know, if the coffee had worked out, she coulda had a hot girlfriend right now. Damn old man...

Then came to her an idea, which instantly replaced the sting of shame with a glimmer of pride simply for conjuring it up. She should get a DVD! Something to watch with Tenson. She was gonna be the best friend anyone had ever seen!

After searching a couple stores and coming up nada, Wren found one with a DVD section. And... horror movies! Her and Tenson's favourite! Ok... what would he like? Uhhhh... ooh! Halloween 2! That's his favourite horror movie! Oblivious to the fact that this was a useless gift, considering that Tenson already had one, which was literally how they had watched it together, she picked it up from the shelf, and huffed with pride.

But as she breathed in... she smelt something amazing. It was a feminine scent, some kind of berry maybe? No... the sensory embodiment of kissing a really pretty girl, of being buried consciously after dying an early death, and crying on you bed with blood on your face. Wren froze up, and felt warm arms embrace her from behind. She didn't even turn, she just let them hold her, love her, take the money from her pockets... then the hands crept back and away from Wren.

She spun around, and slammed her hand into the wall behind her, blocking a girl who seemed go be somewhere around her age from passing. The girl jumped, and looked at her with fear. 'Sweet Perfumes had never failed me before... is this broad some kinda asexual?' the girl thought to herself. But no, Wren was still confused about Cece, and thinking about Lewis, and sulking about the girl from the coffee shop... she needed this, or to never fall for someone again.

"You can't leave. I'm in love with you!"