"What're you listening to this time?" a familiar voice asked Alysia. With a loud thud, a woman sat down in the chair across the table. Without even looking, Alysia knew exactly who it was. Nobody else had the gall for so dramatic an arrival. Alysia smirked, taking her headphones off and setting them on the table. She didn't bother pausing the music.

"Say Anything. Nice to see you too, Sarah," Alysia almost whispered, referring to her friend by her "human" name, of sorts. Her real name was Ciaris, but it was generally agreed that they don't use their real names while wearing their façades. Leading two separate lives like Shades did made things complicated like that. "What're you up to today? Not causing too much trouble, I hope," Alysia grinned, tossing her cigarette butt aside. She shifted in her chair slightly as she lit a new one.

Sarah grimaced at the cigarette. "I thought I told you to kick that habit. It's gross and people don't like that," Sarah scoffed. Alysia simply shrugged in response. "Your call. I'm not actually doing anything [i]too[/i] important. I was just passing by and thought I'd say hello."

Alysia tilted her head accusingly. "You knew I'd be here?"

"Alissa, honey, at this time of the day, you're either here or you're at home. And I already checked your apartment," Sarah laughed. "I was actually on my way to meet somebody."

Alysia rolled her eyes. Ciaris was always on her way to meet somebody. "Really now. Name?" Alysia grinned. The interrogation begins. The only question was how long it would take Ciaris to turn the interrogation back on Alysia.

"His name is Jason."

"Age?"

"Irrelevant."

"When'd you meet him?"

"Four days ago. When are you going to meet someone?"

Alysia sighed. There it was. Exactly on cue. "You know I'm picky when it comes to these things, Sarah. Why are you always trying to rush me into things with people?" Alysia had a brief flashback to the last two dates Ciaris had tried to set up for her. The first was a college student, male, who was so full of himself he actually tried to kiss Alysia on first sight, and the second was a woman in her thirties who still acted like a fifteen year old. Alysia shuddered.

"Alissa. When was the last time you actually dated somebody?" Sarah leaned forward, resting her arms on the table. Alysia leaned back, as if trying to run away from the question.

"Probably about a year ago," Alysia sighed. "I'm just not interested in anybody, right now."

Sarah chuckled. "If I know you, and I do, I think it's safe to say that you haven't even been looking, dear. Did you call back that guy that gave you his number last time I met you here?"

Alysia didn't answer her question. To tell the truth, she had tried to call him, but hung up the phone as soon as he answered.

Now it was Ciaris' turn to sigh. She stood up from the table, moving to give Alysia a hug. "Well, I need to get going. Please meet somebody, okay? You're a lot more fun when you have someone in your life." At that, Ciaris walked off, leaving Alysia alone at the table again.

Alysia closed her laptop, letting Ciaris' words sink in as she took another breath of the cigarette.

--

Markus unlocked the door to his apartment, dropping his things next to the doorway as he stepped inside. His apartment was messy and unorganized, but it wasn't like he had a roommate to worry about. He maneuvered his way through the apartment to his refrigerator, taking a can of soda from within. It was too early in the day for alcohol, but Markus needed the refreshment.

Markus popped open the soda, maneuvering his way to the patio overlooking the streets below. His apartment was only on the third floor of a five story building, but the patio had a nice enough view. It gave Markus a nice place to get a breath of fresh air without having to leave his apartment. He took off his shirt, setting it on the railing of the patio, leaving Markus in his jeans and a white tank. He'd be absolutely embarrassed to be spotted wearing a tank, but in the privacy of his apartment, Markus didn't really care. He sat down on the lone chair on the patio, taking a sip of his soda.