CHAPTER TWO:
crime scenes & girl gossip.

Aster steps out of her car taking in the sunset before her. The sunset at the pier never fails to take her breath away. The sky was as pretty as a painting, a perfect mixture of blue, purple, and pink. Sunsets and sunrises have always been Aster's favorite thing to watch. A small smile places itself on her face as she recalls a few memories of her ex. When he couldn't be with her, he used to call her at dawn just to have her go outside so they could watch the sunrise together. There were a couple times he even asked her boss if she could get off early and they had picnics on the back of his truck watching the sunset, it became a tradition for them.

We are not going to think about him.

The red head continues on her way. She waves at her two best friends leaning against a game booth, taking note of how they seem to be in an argument of sorts.

The red-head's eyes curiously shift between the two. "What are you two arguing about?" She asks with an awkward smile. Emily didn't work at the pier, she actually worked at a puppy day care facility, but it was a common occurrence for the butch brunette to visit her fiance and best friend at work.

"You look like shit," Nala bluntly states after giving Aster a once over. She stands leaning against the booth, her arms crossed against her chest.

"Ahh, thanks Nala! Always so lovely to see you too," Aster tells her sarcastically. Nala only giving her a shrug in reply.

"She looks fine," Emily defends giving her fiance a glare. Nala rarely had a filter it was both something Emily loved and hated about her.

Aster lets out a sigh, rubbing a hand across her face. "It was a rough morning," she says, exhaustion seeping through her voice

Emily and Nala stand up from their slouched positions, their faces suddenly alert taking note of the weariness radiating off their friend. They share a glance with each other. "What happened?" They both ask at the same time.

Aster looks at them weirdly before dismissing it by the raising of her eyebrow and confessing why she looks not her best. "My grandma locked herself in the bathroom which was really nerve wracking."

Emily meets her friend's eyes, her brown eyes filled to the brim with concern. "Oh my god, is she okay?"

Aster waves her off. "Yeah shes fine, its just something I gotta get used to."

"I dont think that something you just get used to," Nala says softly.

Aster shrugs. "Well I'm gonna have to learn to."

The two fiance's share a doubtful look which doesn't go unnoticed by Aster.

"Is it me or does it seem deader than usual?" The red-head asks as an attempt to change the subject.

Nala snorts. "Did you just happen miss all the crime scene tape when you walked in?"

Aster's eyes widen before she flips her head to look behind her. "Huh, I guess I did," she says as she now notices all the yellow police tape up. "What happened?" She asks turning back around.

"Two people fell out of the rollercoaster last night, they both died."

"What?"

"One person fell out, the other guy let go," Nala corrects.

"Oh my gosh, are you serious?" Aster asks in disbelief.

"Yeah," Nala deadpans. "How did you not hear about this?"

Aster shakes her head. "I don't know," she admits with a sigh. "My minds been else where I guess, between my grandma and school. I guess I've just been... out of the loop?" She shrugs.

Emily nods. "That's understandable."

Aster smiles at her. "Think they're gonna sue?" She asks, changing the subject again.

"They're idiots if they dont," Nala says.

Emily and Aster share a look both shaking their heads at Nala's lack of tact. A thought crosses Aster's mind. "Hey, do you think we're gonna get shut down?"

Nala shrugs. "Maybe for a few days so they can do maintenance checks on all the rides but permanently? That's highly doubtful."

"Yeah, I mean, plenty of people have died at Disneyland and they're still labeled as 'the happiest place on earth'," Emily chimes in.

Aster lets out a sigh of relief. "Okay good, I cannot add finding a new job to my big shit pile of things I have to do."

Nala snorts. "No, but you should probably add clocking in, you have three minutes until you're late," she tells her friend, showing Aster the time on her watch.

The red-head's eyes widen. "Fuck!" She shouts before running off, her two best friends laughing behind her.

"Are the doggiest dogs of them all."

Is the first thing Aster hears as she comes home from her shift at the pier.

"Who's dogs?" She asks popping her head into the room.

"Firemen," Carla informs her.

Aster lets out a chuckle. "Heard that," she agrees walking to the fridge to pick up a wine cooler.

"Ohh," Carla says taking note of the edge in the young girls voice. "You sound like you're speaking from experience."

Aster rolls her eyes and shrugs. "Well technically he was going into the navy when we dated and when he realized he didnt want to do that I guess he also realized he didnt want to date me. Last I heard he became a firefighter," she informs them taking a seat in the chair next to the couch. "What are we talking about though?"

Abby smiles shyly as Carla takes over for her. "Your aunt here has her eyes on a baby blue eye firefighter."

"Ooh," Aster flinches before giving her aunt a glance from the corner of her eyes. "Don't fall for the baby blues, they're dangerous," she warns, taking a sip from her cooler.

Abby laughs and shakes her head. "Its not like that at all. I've been thinking I might want to call him," She explains to them. "Just to see how he is," she quickly adds on when she notices the look Carla and Aster shared.

Carla smiles smugly. "Or to see how he is about dating you?" She says taking a sip from her wine glass.

Aster breaks out in a smile, "Awh, Aunt Abby's got a crush," she teases.

Abby rolls her eyes.

"Mhm," Carla mumbles knowingly. "He's a dog, you're a cougar," she smirks, making Aster gasp.

"Uh no it is not like that!" Abby denies. "Look, you know what, I save people's lives every day and he is the first person in years that actually has said 'thank you Abby! Great job, you're a hero too'," The older redhead confesses. "And he needs help, you know? I mean, he's got so much pain in his face. Everybody's treating him like a hero. He doesnt feel like a hero. As far as he's concerned the guy he was trying to save fell."

"Alright well go ahead on. I'm not leaving until I hear how this turns out," Carla states.

Aster nods. "Yeah this is some good content right here, soap operas could never." Aster adds on her face completely serious.

"Oh I dont know," Abby sighs, starting to second guess herself.

Aster rolls her blue eyes leaning foward in her seat. "Aunty, there is a supposedly really cute guy who you might have a conncetion with, why not go for it? You deserve to be happy." She tells her encouragingly.

Carla nods in agreement. "Call him," she urges. "You know you want too."

Abby puts down her wine glass. "You just dont want to go home to your husband," she tells Carla while getting up.

"Not until he fixes his attitude."

Aster lets out a squeal of excitement as she watches her aunt walk towards her bedroom door.

"I'm closing this door."

Aster shares an excited look with Carla. "Should we listen in?"

Carla puts her wine down. "You get the glasses," she tells Aster.

The young red-head excitedly jumps up from her seats and runs into the kitchen. She opens the cabinets pulling out two glass cups, keeping one to herself and handing the other to Carla. They both quietly place the cups on the door and put their ears against them to listen in.

"Well this is nice, we don't get to go out very often, do we?" Abby comments as the four woman sit at a table in the middle of a quaint cafe.

"Mm and this dessert? To die for," Aster says as she takes a bite of her chocolate mousse.

Patricia chuckles at her granddaughter, making Aster smile widely. "Carla got me all dolled up," Patricia says.

"Yes, yes I did," Carla agrees taking full credit.

"And you look beautiful grandma," Aster hypes.

"It's good to get different kinds of stimulation," Carla informs them. "Releases that seratonin, that happy hormone."

"Well, we could all use a little happy hormone," Abby mentions before taking a bite of her dessert.

"Abby you're in the prime of your life girl. You need to get out and have some fun," Carla encourages.

Aster lifts up her spoon into the air. "I second that, you need let loose. Have some fun, you never know what tomorrow brings."

"What she needs to do is ask out that fireman," Carla proclaims, giving Abby a knowing look.

Aster gasps excitedly. "Yes! Absolutely!"

Abby rolls her eyes at the two, regretting introducing them. "I am not asking out the firemen," she shakes her head.

Aster pouts. "Why not?" She challenges.

"He's way to young for me!"

Aster rolls her eyes. "That's a crap excuse, he's a consenting adult and you are a consenting adult. I see zero problems other than you being a whimp."

Abby throws her napkin at her niece. "I am not whimp!"

Carla and Aster share a look. "Sure, Aunt Abby."

"Girl you are a hot spice pumpkin latte," Carla says, changing tactics. "You're sitting around getting cool and there's a big old hunk of man that would love to burn his tongue on you," she persuades.

"Ooh," Patricia chimes in making the other three woman at the table laugh.

"Call him call him call him," Aster starts to chant quietly, Patricia and Carla joining in. Carla pushes the phone towarda Abby and the older red-head reluctantly gives in taking it with a sigh.

"Yay!" Aster cheers a little bit too loudly, catching the attention of the people sitting in the table next to her. "Sorry!" she whisper shouts apologetically.

"You guys are so pushy!"

"Mhm," Carla says taking a bite of the cake in front of her. "But you like it."

"Alright," Abby doesn't deny. "I'll be back"

"But wait we wanna hear!" Aster protests, knowing there's no way her and Carla can eavesdrop this time.

"No!" Abby firmly denies before walking off.

Aster pouts making Carla chuckle. "So what about you?" Carla asks nudging the girl with her elbow.

Aster looks up from her bowl her eyebrow raised. "What about me?"

"Anyone you're dating?"

Aster quickly shakes her head. "Haven't dated much.. or more like at all," she says uncomfortably.

"A pretty girl like you?" Carla asks in disbelief.

Aster smiles. "Just haven't found anyone yet I guess," she shrugs.

Aster has accepted awhile ago that she's most likely going to be alone for awhile. She was never really the type to date just to date, she was always dating to marry. What the future holds has always excited Aster and one thing she has always wanted was someone to share that same excitement with. At one point she thought she found him but sometimes things just dont go as you plan.

"And it doesnt have anything to do with the ex-boyfriend? The firefighter?"

"Definitely not," she answers unconvincingly.

Carla smirks. "Mhm," she hums sarcastically.

Aster narrows her eyes at the nurse in front of her. "You're a lot more perceptive than you look."

"I percieve you're trying to change the subject."

"I wasn't," the freckled girl defends herself. "You might.. slightly be right," Aster confesses spinning her spoon around her bowl. "He was.. my first love," she elaborates. "I thought he was the one, you know? We talked so much about our future together I... I never even questioned that it might not happen. The next thing I know, he was breaking it off because he said he didnt know what he wanted in life anymore. Some how he knew he didnt want me though," Aster finishes off sadly.

Carla puts her hand on the girls wrist, meeting the red heads sad gaze. "Sometimes its not the person but the timing."

Aster smiles gratefully. "Yeah," she says before turning her attention towards her aunt who walks towards the table with a dopey smile on her face. The three woman at the table lean foward waiting to hear the gossip.

"He said no," Abby causally says before taking a bite of her ice cream.

Aster's eyes full anticipation drop in dissapointment. "Oh, I'm sorry."

Carla looks confusedly at Abby. "Wait, then why are you smiling?"

"Because I had the nerve to call the guy!" Abby commends herself. "And sometimes the right kind of no is better than the wrong kind of yes."

"Huh," Aster says, taking the words of wisdom and saving them for later.

"I like that," Carla says.

NOTES.
i'm not the biggest fan of this chapter?? i feel like it had too much dialogue and not enough substance idk tell me what y'all think though