capsize me and douse me in your bay

chapter six

Stirring the next morning, Toni stretched as she slowly woke up, nearly screaming when her hand bumped into someone beside her. Waking up next to another person wasn't something that Toni was used to. Even in her wild high school days, she never spent the night or allowed anyone to sleep over. It would just lead to conversations and feelings that she had no interest in.

Blinking one eye open in the bright sunlight, she was met with a long, messy braid of red hair, slung over the shoulder of the girl who had come to her rescue last night. She wasn't too proud to admit she was scared. A lot of people were afraid of thunderstorms. But in Toni's case, she wasn't willing to share the reason with anyone who didn't know her back in Riverdale. Everyone in the small town already knew. But she came to New York for a fresh start. A big city where no one knew her name seemed like an unreachable dream until it actually happened.

She slipped her legs out from under the covers with a quiet yawn, not wanting to wake Cheryl up. It was still early, so she figured she could squeeze in a shower before anything else.

After grabbing a towel and some clothes for the day, Toni tied her pink hair up and padded across the hall to the bathroom, starting up the shower. The hot water felt amazing against her skin, soothing her sore muscles and already easing her stress for the upcoming day. On top of Veronica being mad at her and Cheryl having to be left alone again, she had a lot to do before her next deadline for work. But for the next ten minutes, she allowed the steam and the sweet, fruity smell of her body wash to ease her tension. Though, her mind wandered to Cheryl more than she wanted it to.

The girl was such a mystery. And as much as Toni enjoyed her company and wanted to keep her around, she was a stranger. One that could have shown up on her doorstep with dangerous baggage, even if she was harmless herself. But why did she come to her? How did she know Toni but not know her own name? She seemed to only know words that she heard people say, whether in person or on TV or on the radio, like she couldn't form her own coherent thoughts or words.

Sighing, Toni turned off the water and stepped out of the glass doors of the shower, drying herself off quickly before getting dressed for the day. In a simple white blouse and high-rise blue jeans, she threw her hair into a lazy but stylish ponytail and put on a bit of makeup, not going for a full face today. Once she was satisfied with her appearance, she tiptoed back across the hall to her room, her shoulders slumping at the sight of her empty, unmade bed.

"Cheryl?" she asked, looking in her closet, wondering if the redhead had decided to go through her clothes again. But quiet, peaceful humming from the other room caught her attention as she made her way back into the hall, shoes in hand. "Cher?"

Making her way into the main living space, Toni couldn't help but chuckle at the taller girl, who was walking around absentmindedly, running a fork through her long red hair.

"What are you doing?" Toni laughed, stepping closer as she slipped on her shoes.

"Hey, Toni," was all the redhead said in response, still combing through her hair with the utensil. But she didn't hesitate to squeeze the older girl into a hug.

Toni hugged her back with a smile, still giggling. "Why are you combing your hair with a fork?"

"Ariel does it," Cheryl smiled, continuing to comb through her formerly braided hair.

"Ariel was misinformed by a deranged seagull," she snorted a light laugh.

"You like Ariel. Ariel was your first crush," the redhead explained, ignoring the comment about Scuttle.

"Yeah, but that doesn't explain why you're combing your hair with a fork," Toni smiled, watching as Cheryl simply shrugged her shoulders and continued to pace around the room, running the fork through the ends of her hair. "Okay, well...you want some pancakes?"