Downfalls Of The Job(Braxton Grace)

[mimi]

Lola was far from the typical girl. Especially in this corner of town. She knew for a fact that at least three out of four of the residents in her appartment were using drugs and chances were that the clean occupants were plastered out of their minds on a nightly basis. Not Lola though. She would drink at parties and the like, but never alone by herself to wallow in self pity. With the way her family was it kept her from using drugs as well. She never even did as much as smoking a cigarette.

Despite this...her career still wasn't the most moral in the city. And it came with perks, like tips from drunken idiots who occasionally cannot decern hundred dollar bills from ones, but then there were always the drunken idiots who tried to follow her home. Luckily, she had evaded them all this night. It was almost five in the morning and Lola wasn't sure if she'd be able to make it home without curling into a ball on the ground to sleep.

It was a good thing New York was the city that never slept. She almost stumbled into a coffee shop and ordered a latte which almost half cream. She leaned against the counter and started blankly ahead of her, trying to not nodd off as she waited for her coffee.

[braxtongrace]

Braxton wasn't as far from the normal as Lola was. She was... definitely far from typical. When people first meet Braxton, of course they immediately go straight to thinking, Well, he's cute, so that means he's probably full of it. Because apparently, just because a guy is good-looking it means they are jerks that are full of themselves. Either that, or they have some other problem. But Braxton had nothing weirdly wrong with him. Lola, on the other hand, was probably the coolest person he'd met in a very long time, and definitely the most interesting.

The only reason he was even awake at five in the morning was because he'd slept in until almost two in the afternoon the day before. That was because he'd been out partying and woke up almost naked in an empty apartment. The memories were slowly coming back to him, although he was so slobbering drunk that the hangover was just now beginning to ware off, so he'd probably doze off to sleep uncontrollably in a few hours. Coffee wasn't helping his hangover, his tiredness, or his memories, but it was worth a shot. Even if the coffee was cheap and not that good, it was enough to make his eyes stay open for the moment.

He was sitting at a table in the little coffee shop, sipping his not-so-good coffee as he thought about the pier where he first met the interesting girl. And then, as if reply to his thoughts with perfect timing, Lola came stumbling in. She was leaning against the counter as if she needed it, as if she couldn't stand up on her own or something. Braxton, more out of instinct than anything else, immediately got out of his seat, leaving his coffee on the table and approached her. Leaning against the counter beside her, he looked her over for a moment.

Smiling a small smile, he said, "Do you always look like this at 5 in the morning...?"

[mimi]

'Out of it' didn't even start to discribe Lola's mind set. She, unlike Braxton, had been working for the past twelve hours. Had it not been for a five hour energy shot she would have collapsed at work right in front of everyone. It wasn't too far from what would happen. Lola could sleep almost anywhere.

Her eyelids drooped as she stared at a painting of dogs playing poker. She wrinkled her nose at it, her mind moving so slowly at she had begun to wonder how the animals were holding thier cards without thumbs.

She didn't even noticed Braxton walk up she was so focused on the painting and trying to keep her eyes open. But when he spoke, she jumped as if someone had just randomly unleased the cry of a fog horn in her ear. She quickly composed herself, shook her head, and turned to look at him. It took her a while to remember his name. She knew his face though, but not his name. "Braxton, right?" She looked down at herself and sighed. Her clothes didn't look at their best, which was humilating to her enough, but she probably looked wasted. "Only when I've been working for twelve hours straight."

The latte boy put her purchase on the table in front of her and she slowly seized it and began to drink it, taking a big long swallow before turning to look at him again. "What the hell are you doing on this side of the city?"

[braxtongrace]

Braxton nodded when she asked about his name. "Lola, right?" he cocked one eyebrow at her with a smirk.

Braxton only chuckled when she said she'd been working for the past twelve hours. He wished he could say the same. But, sadly, he could even tell her where he was twelve hours ago. As horrible as that sounds, he really didn't mind it. Nowadays it was rare if he was back in his apartment before midnight. And the only job he had started around ten, so he could get a few good hours of sleep before he had to go in to that stupid shop and try to sell food to people who really don't want it. No one likes Chinese food anymore, and there's so many places to get Chinese... it was rare if he got more than three costumers a day.

What was he doing on this side of the city? He thought a moment, tapping his chin, "That is a very good question. And also a very difficult one, which I rather not answer. I know your job... is definitely one to run late, but is it normal to get off at five in the morning? Even my lousy excuse for a job lets me off around eight, nine on the busy days..." Not that there are ever 'busy days,' he added grimly in his head. But, it was a good paying job, and even though he couldn't actually talk to any of the Chinese idiots working there, they always paid him well.

[mimi]

She nodded when he asked about her name in return. She put her hand over her mouth to hide the massive yawn that was escaping shaking her head lightly afterwards.

"Let me guess. Hangover." she arched a brow at him and smirked before swallowing some more of her coffee. Her father was an alcoholic since before she could remember so she was very well aquainted with what it looked like. He wasn't high, at least. Her brother had been a wake-and-bake stoner before his other drugs had eventually...she stopped herself from thinking about it any further, knowing if she did that wouldn't be good.

"You ever heard of a place called Diamond Legz?" she asked before taking another drink of her latte. It would have been disgusting without all the cream and the hazelnut flavoring, but it was helping to perk her up a little bit. "If you haven't, we're one of the most popular night places around this side of the city. Most of our customers are fat men who find their fat wives hideous because they're hypocrites, creepers who will never in their life get close enough to a girl to actuall do something with her, and....bachlor parties. Which always happen to pay the best." The entire strip club had actually been filled wall to wall with a bachlor party. A lot of them were actually very well off financially, which was lucky for her. She had actually ended up making more than four-hundred dollars. "It's not exactly something I brag about."

[braxtongrace]

"Yeah, hangover," he nodded with a chuckle. "That was almost twenty hours ago now, so it's starting to wear off."

When she explained about her job, Braxton only sighed. He was finally going into a more serious mode. He'd heard of it, alright. He'd been there quite a few times, although surprisingly he'd never run into Lola there. That might be a good thing. He was pretty sure she didn't enjoy meeting her costumers at other places. That would just be awkward, probably.

"Yeah, I've heard of it. I'm sorry you have to work there." He knew the only reason she probably worked there was because of the money. Those drunkards couldn't tell a girl from a boy in there after the night was over, which also meant they couldn't tell ones from tens, and fives from fifties. He thought a moment then and sat down beside her, "Is it really worth it?" He didn't know if she'd figure out what he was referring to, but didn't mind. Braxton wasn't a girl, and he didn't know how girls think, but it sounded to him like stripping would have to have really good pay for him to do it. He rather work at the stupid sushi joint.

[mimi]

She smirked at this and shook her head. "Wanna trade? I never get hung over so it wouldn't be too much of a problem." it wasn't that Lola couldn't drink because she most definately could. It was damn near impossible to out-drink her while she was in party mode. If she was stupid enough she would eventually end up over the toilet, like when she had pounded sixteen shots of rum in less than twenty minutes, but if she paced herself, like she normally did, she could normally take at least twenty two shots and still not wake up with a hang over.

She shrugged at his apology. "It could be worse." then he asked if it was worth it. He clearly knew very little about her background. She arched a brow at this. Were she not so tired she probably would have answered with a straight face, but she burst out laughing. "Trust me, it's not even close to as bad as it could be."

Her sister was a whore (Lola didn't sugar coat it), her mother was a dealer mostly in cocaine and marijuana, her father was a security gaurd that gambled and drank most of his income away, and her brother had been a heavy drug user before he died of AIDS. Being a stripper was an upgrade.

[braxtongrace]

Braxton thought a moment then. So, it was worth it. And he could tell by her laugh and her tone that she should probably be a lot worse off then a stripper. But what did Braxton know? He knew nothing about anything. He was raised with loaded parents who treated him like a little prince. But if they'd known he was a mutant, they would have shoved him right out onto the street without so much as a second thought.

That's why he was so protective over his sister. When she was younger, her abilities caused her to pass out because they overwhelmed her so much. She was so young at the time that doctors couldn't pinpoint the cause of the exhaustion or unconsciousness. But Braxton knew. He knew from the very first time she fainted that it was because she was a mutant. And as soon as she was old enough, Anya and her honest self told them, and out onto the street she goes. Being the big brother he was, Braxton was out on the street with her. But he was too young to care for her at the time, so he took her to the x-men, where he knew she'd be safe. He, on the other hand, had been living on his own all this time.

"You're right," he nodded, "It could be worse." He could come up with plenty of scenarios that were worse than stripping. He sighed after a moment and looked at her closely, "Well, what would you like to do? Quite frankly, I'm getting bored sitting around in this coffee shop." He smirked slightly at her then, "I get bored easily."

[mimi]

She nodded back, somewhat spitefully, but not towards him. Towards her stupid family. She couldn't even talk to them anymore without wanting to beat some sense into them. The less she saw of them the better. The only one in her family she had ever been close to was her junkie brother before he had gone and gotten AIDS and died. She missed him more than she could say, but at the same time she knew if she ever saw him again even for a second she would probably scold him for being so stupid and careless with his life, despite the fact that he was five years older than her.

Braxton asked what they were doing. She arched a brow at this. "I came to get coffee so I didn't pass out on the last few blocks on my way to my appartment. If you don't have anything to do and you're bored then you're more than welcome to walk me there. It's not exactly...safe, but that's what I have pepper spray for." 'That and it's unlikely anyone would be able to catch me if I ran away.' Lola's power gave her the advantage of being able to jump to heights no regular human would even dream of. She was a very...feline being. It was odd at times. "Where do you live anyway? If it's far you can crash at my place until you're hang over is totally gone." she chuckled slightly. "You look like a little bit like my father did before he slipped into a coma."

[braxtongrace]

Braxton sighed. He was really not looking forward to sleeping. He'd slept just a little while ago, although when she said "crash at my place," he could've sworn he felt his eyelids get heavier. He nodded then and leaned against the tabletop. He wasn't worried about the place being safe. If anyone came up to them he could just disintegrate their weapons. He loved doing that just to see the looks on their faces. Of course, that would give away his mutant abilities to Lola, but he wasn't all that sure that she was all human herself.

"Yeah, I think I will crash at your place. My apartment's on the really crowded but safer side of the city," he nodded with a smirk. "It's very boring there. Safety is another word for boredom."

He hesitated a moment then, realizing the rest of what she said. "Coma?" he groaned slightly and thought, so that's what he meant when she said 'it could be worse.' "You're father's in a coma? Oh, I feel awful now."

He pressed his forehead against the table grumpily and closed his eyes. He opened them again though just to make sure he wouldn't fall to sleep right there in front of her. Maybe he was kind of tired after all. But it would only make him feel even more awful if she had to carry him, unconscious, back to her apartment. Although he smirked against the table at the idea of her attempting to carry him.

[mimi]

She smirked at this and shook her head. "It's really not that dangerous if you're not stupid." Lola could tell he was tired. Maybe about as tired as she was, who could say, but it was an entirely different form of tired.

Lola arched a brow at his apology before she realized that she had been ambiguous in her story telling. "No, he was in a coma for about two days. He's fine now. An absolute irresponsible moron like the rest of my family, but fine. Even if he was you shouldn't feel bad. I never see or speak to them or them to me. They're not exactly high society."

She got up and looked back at him before grabbing his hand and yanking on his arm.

"Come along ducky. I can't tote you around like a little poodle tonight unless you want us to both end up on the pavement." Lola was stronger than she looked. Quicker too. She was no match for a fire controller or a telepath, but up against a human, any human, she could be quite a force to reckon with. She didn't try to get into fights with humans, but sometimes things just happened.

[braxtongrace]

Braxton smirked at her from his face against the counter top when she told him not to feel bad. He was too lazy to pick up his head from the table, and too tired to walk to her apartment, even if it was two doors down from the coffee shop they were in now. But he felt a little better about it when she said her dad was fine now and they never even spoke to each other. So him going into a coma must not have bothered her that much, so it wouldn't bother him then, either.

He lifted his head up and rubbed his eyes, as if that would help them stay open any longer. He chuckled once when she referred to him as ducky and stood up limply. He hadn't been this tired ten minutes ago, so why was he unable to hold himself up anymore? He looked at her but his eyes were off focus because they were so droopy. He might as well been drunk, his vision was so blurry. "Why am I suddenly so tired? I was fine before I came over here..." he looked at her suspiciously then and yawned, "I guess you look so worn out you're making me tired." He let her drag her out of the coffee shop.

[mimi]

She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"I look tired and haggard...that's exactly what a girl wants to hear from a hot guy. Come on, Sparky, let's get you in bed before you pass out on the pavement."

Lola's house really wasn't far from the coffee shop. She looked up the fire escape once they reached her building and fought the urge to bound up it. It most certainly would have been a faster way to get to her room, but when she wasn't alone that mode of transportation was far from welcome.

She drug him up the stairs to the top building, opening her door and opening it for him to stumble inside. Her eyes were used to the dark so she normally wouldn't have turned on the light, but for a sense of normacy, she did.

A loud yowl filled the air followed by a menacing hiss. Appearently Puss, her pure black kitten, had found his way under Braxton's shoes. He dashed from under Braxton's shoes and climbed up Lola's leg and onto her shoulder where he hissed and Braxton again. She glared at the kitten.

"Be nice to him."

As if he understood her, which he did, he shrunk back into her shoulder, but continued to glare at Braxton.

"I changed my sheets last night so you can have my bed. I don't wanna spend any time bickering over this. It's my place, you're the guest, you get the bed. Now if you don't mind, I'd like to go to sleep."

The one good thing about her apartment was that it had a walk in closet. She disappeared for a moment, but when she returned she had a blanket over her shoulder and her outfit had been exchanged for a tank top and grayish blue yoga pants.

[braxtongrace]

Braxton looked up at Lola with a shy, apologetic sort of smirk. But he didn't actually speak his apology though. He made up for it in his own way. "Don't worry. You're very sexy when you're tired and haggard." He let her basically carry him back to her apartment, although he probably could have walked most of the way without passing out. He just wanted to see how strong she really was. And he had to admit, she beat his expectations. Most of the other girls he passed out on dragged him down the street by his feet, letting his head hit every rock they passed.

His eyes snapped open, though, when he heard the cat's screech from around his feet. He was surprised to see the cat respond to Lola so well. When he tried to tell his dog what to do, he'd just sniff his crotch, wag his tail a little bit and then search for buried food in the sofa. Focusing back on her when she spoke again, he was going to argue but Lola vanished into the closet.

He took the time to look around the room and check the place out. Much bigger than his apartment, and probably cleaner too. He didn't remember the last time he vacuumed his place. Once she returned, he thought a moment. "Are you sure you're alright with me stealing your bed? I'm sure the sofa is about as comfortable as my regular bed is..." he admitted truthfully, yawning a big yawn.

[mimi]

Lola rolled her eyes and shook her head. "No, not really. You haven't seen me all sexy-fied. Maybe I can surprise you one day." She tried to wink, but she was too near to sleeping to do so and ended up blinking in a perplexed fashion instead.

She scrached the space on Puss's head between his ears before placing the now purring kitten back onto the ground. When she came back to him worrying about him taking her bed, she rolled her eyes. "I'm going to tell you something I've never told anyone else before. The only reason why my bed is always made is because I never get any and I almost always sleep on the floor. So, take off your pants and get into my bed or things will get more exhausting than they need to be."

She paused after she spoke, not even believing what it was she had said, her face turning bright red. "I think you know what I meant."

Braxton was close enough to her bed that he should have been able to find it. "Lights, Puss." The cat mewed proudly before sauntering to switch and pulling it down, turning the lights off. The curtains made the room pitch black.. That wasn't a problem for Lola, but it may have been for him.