[IC] You are my perfect distraction. [kittyfantastic

[krystalsays]

One door closes, another one opens or at least that's what they say. Who were these people that were called "they" and why did "they" say these things? It was simple mindless thinking that Charlie Montgomry found herself in on a daily basis. She was able to look at a situation, person, or even a word and begin to wonder why it was named a certain way or why it came to be. It was a bit distracting at times and she even considered to put herself through a psychology test to see if she was secretly crazy.

On the morning of May 26, Charlie woke up because of the shining brightness of the sun coming through her window. She clenched her eyes shut at first but then gradually opened them up. She looked around in her small room that she had be renting out from an old couple who had a spare room in their basement. The walls were plain and white and only gave her one window and barely a closet to keep her belongings. It had been a rough patch in her life and she had no where else to go. Her family found her to be a disappointment when her dreams of medical school were shot to hell because of a unfortunate circumstance that she had no control over. She had learn to crash at friends houses but she knew it wasn't "home".

As she sat up and stretched, she looked out her window and took a deep breath. She knew she needed to find herself a better home. Living with the Lannister couple was fine but it wasn't home and she felt uncomfortable. Today was her day off from her waitressing job she aquired shortly after being thrown out of med school and decided it was the best time to go searching for the place that she may be able to call home for real. She got up quickly and ransacked her closet looking for something appropriate to wear. After a few minutes, she decided on a pair of fitted jeans and a v-neck band tshirt. As she stood in front of the mirror and examined her blonde hair falling over her shoulders and the noticably dark circles under her eyes from stress and lack of sleep, she sighed and shook her head.

"As good as it's going to get." she said to herself in a low tone.

Grabbing her bag, she set off on a long day of apartment hunting. She used the newspaper that was left on the steps at the house. Charlie looked through her newspaper and went through many tours to many different apartments. Compared to others, Charlie was running out of options. Some were too expensive for her price range and some that were cheaper than she could afford were disgusting and worse than the situation she was in now. She sat in her car with her head on the steering wheel and banged her head gently a few times. "This is hopeless." she said to herself again and again. It was enough to set her up for a bad rest of the day. Feeling defeated, she decided to call it a day and give up.

On her way home, her mind began to wander again and her subconcious was a little out of sorts. She missed a turn going to her house and when she finally realized that she did, she ended up passing a "House for Rent" sign outside of a beautiful Ranch style house. Knowing that she probably wouldn't be able to afford it, she debated whether or not to attempt to see it. She decided last minute that it wouldn't hurt to try and pulled into the driveway and walked up to the open house and began to look around. It was perfect and had everything she could ever want. It had two bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room and dining room. It came equipped with a washer and dryer and even a fixed basement. Charlie was amazed and even mesmerized as she continued to walk around looking. So much so that as she took a sharp corner, she accidently bumped into another woman nearly knocking them both down.

"Oh my God. I am so sorry." she said putting her hand on the woman's arm gently. "I'm such a clutz and didn't see you..wait a minute..Don't I know you?" she asked curiously.

[kittyfantastic]

Mira Lambert walked frantically down the street, her black locks falling in her face, backpack half off her shoulder. What a day! she thought to herself. She found herself in a very peculiar situation, this morning. First, her girlfriend left her, just a note on the bed. Well, at least she gave her closure of some sort. Next, her landlord was selling the house she was living in, giving her a twenty four hour notice to leave the premises. Finally, because of all the commotion in the morning, she was late to work and got written up for the third time this week. "One more time and you're fired, Lambert!" were her boss's words before she left for the day.

Her mother had added further insult to the day by asking her for grandbabies. "I'm not getting any younger, dear and to be quite honest, neither are you." All she could do was roll her eyes and hold the phone as far from her ear as possible. The grueling conversation only lasted a few minutes, but with her mother, it always seemed like days had passed before they finally hung up. "Ma, I gotta go. Yea, yea. I need to find a new place. Yea, uh-huh. Okay...Ooookay, yep. Gotta go. Yes, kiss kiss," she blew kisses into the phone and ended the call. She perused the newspaper for a bit and found a few places for rent.

After several awful apartments she found the one. It was a ranch house and it was perfect. The price tag on it however, was not. She had always lived alone but in this case she would be forced to get a roommate as quick as possible. The real estate agent that was preparing for the open house told her it wouldn't last. "I know, I'm sorry, but I can't afford it on my own," she replied. For some odd reason, she felt embarrassed and decided to speed walk the hell out of there. As she turned the hall towards the main entrance she was slammed by someone else. "Jeez - - Ouch! What the hell?!" She looked at her attacker. "Uh, no I don't think so. And it's okay, I was hightailing it out of here I should have paid attention," she apologized as well and extended her hand. "I'm Mira, Mira Lambert."

[krystalsays]

Charlie smiled at the young woman as she extended her hand to her. She took her hand into hers and shook it firmly. "Charlotte Montgomry but everyone calls me Charlie. I'm sorry, I thought you looked like someone I've met before. My mistake. So..uh.. looking at the house too I guess?" she asked even though she internally rolled her eyes at herself for the stupid question. Obviously she was here for the open house, why else would she be there? She sighed as her cheeks flushed a bright red and she cleared her throat, hoping it would diffuse the awkward silence. As they stood there for a moment, the realitor walked by and smiled at the two women.

"Oh ladies, I'm glad you two haven't left yet. I went over both of your questionaires and profiles and by chance, I think you two ladies would be wonderful as roommates if you two are up for it. It seems like you two ladies would be very compatible and it would be within both of your price ranges." The older woman said with a bright smile on her face.

Charlie looked over at Mira and back at the realitor. As much as she didnt want to have to deal with a roommate, she knew that she needed to get out of that small room and couldn't be able to afford this house on her own. She thought about it for a moment and then looked at Mira. "I know we don't know each other but I'm not loud and I don't have many friends so I won't be crazy around the house. I'm good at cleaning and cooking and taking care of a house won't be a problem. I know it's not ideal but I really need this. What do you say?" she asked her in hopes that she would agree to this.

"Also ladies, this house also has a pool out back which is included in the rent." The older woman chimed in.

"A pool? C'mon Mira, how can you say no to that?" Charlie said to Lira in a playful manner hoping it would make her at least smile.

[kittyfantastic]

After introductions, Mira listened to the realtor's proposition to the girls about being roommates. It wasn't the worst idea in the world, but Mira had grown accustomed to living on her own. However, at this point in time, she really couldn't afford to be picky. I was now t minus 8 hours before she had to get her things and move the hell out of the dump she was in now. Charlie seemed to be into it as she explained some of the things she would definitely ask someone she would potentially be sharing a house with. Mira could see a drop of desperation in Charlie's eyes and it made her cave. Her decision was further reinforced by the idea of having a pool. She looked over to her new roommate, who seemed to be beaming at the prospect of having a place with a pool. Charlie's excitement made her smile, it was adorable.

Mira wasn't so sure, but as the clock ticked by every second, the idea of finding somewhere else to live by tonight was looking pretty slim. "Oh, alright, sure," she said finally. "I'm really not that hard to live with and I think it will be fun." She looked at the blonde beside her one more time. You could tell a lot by a person's outer appearance, Mira always said. She was dressed casual and comfortable but she didn't look unkempt. She was stylish and seemed very sweet. The fact that she could cook just sweetened the pot. Mira was lousy in the kitchen, even making toast in the mornings ended with disaster. "Well since this is a really fast paced situation, I might as well share something about being your roommate," she said looking at Charlie. "I'm not a slob, I don't mind cleaning. I'm a terrible cook, so the best thing is to keep me as far from the kitchen as possible. All my friends live back in Pittsburgh, so there will practically be no one here." That sounded just about right, she guessed. They could get to know each other better later, or not at all, since the house was big enough for them not to see each other much. The view was spectacular and everything in it was new. The location was perfect and Mira believed that things were starting to look up. After a day like today, she couldn't possibly think it could get any worse, right?

She looked back at the realtor, "Do you take checks?"

[krystalsays]

Louis the Realtor smiled from ear to ear as the two girls decided to take the house together. Charlie smiled as well as Mira decided to take a leap of faith and trust that a complete stranger off the street could be a good roommate. As Louis got the papers together, Charlie took out her checkbook as well and started to fill it out. As she wrote out her check, she glanced up at Mira and couldn't help but feel a little giddy on the inside. Not only was she about to leave that pathetic excuse of a living situation but the woman she was going to live with was extremely good looking. Charlie had always been attracted to females but never actually had a girlfriend before. As Mira looked back up at her, she quickly looked down at her checkbook and blushed a little red in her cheeks and ears. She then cleared her throat and handed Louis the check from her and smiled as she took the pen from her. She quickly looked over the agreement forms and signed the places that needed to be signed.

"Looks like you're stuck with me for at least a year, Mira." she teased as she signed the last bit of paper.

"Very good, ladies. You are free to move in anytime. Congratulations and welcome home." Louis said as she handed both girls a key to the house. After a few more minutes of chit chatting between the three ladies, Louis gathered her belongings and was out of the door. Charlie folded her arms together and awkwardly looked at Mira. She cleared her throat again and looked around at the now empty house. She knew that eventually it wouldn't be empty and awkward. She started to envision the living room with furniture and pictures all over. She was determined to make it look home like. She looked at Mira. "Do you have a lot of things to move in? It'll take me a few trips to get all of my belongings. I never really had a lot of room before so I am used to travelling light."

[kittyfantastic]

Mira rummaged through her already full purse for her checkbook and a pen, while the realtor gathered the paperwork. It’s gonna be fine, it’s gonna be fine, she repeated this mantra internally over and over. She had heard stories from her friends back in Pittsburgh about the woes of having a roommate. Piled dirty dishes, rooms strewn with old take out containers, girly things tossed haphazardly in the bathroom…clumps of hair in the drain. She shuddered a bit, but shook it off. This was going to be fine, everything was going to be perfect. It could be temporary, right? She looked at her new roommate, her blonde head bent over her checkbook. Is she blushing? Mira noticed a flush of red making its way to her face. Mira suppressed a giggle as she handed Louis her check, and waited for Charlie to finish signing the paperwork.

“I wouldn’t necessarily call it stuck,” she replied, her tone was unintentionally flirtatious and now it was her turn to become a tomato. Flirting with a roommate was probably mistake number one leading to a disastrous experience. With a few knick-knacks, a paint job, and some furniture, this place would look spectacular. She turned her focus back to Charlie, who had been asking her some questions. “I have a bunch of junk, I’d have to sift through it when I bring it in,” she replied. “I think two trips would be sufficient, but I’d need to rent a moving van.” That was an expense she wasn’t anticipating and it was grating on her nerves. This was not how she had planned to find a new place, or move all her belongings, but it would have to do.

“Do you need some help moving your things?” Mira meant to use the opportunity to get to know her roommate, not a chance to get some help moving her things. She walked slowly around the house, looking at every nook and cranny, envisioning what everything would look like with some trendy decorations. Looking on the bright side, Mira saw this as a chance to make a new friend if nothing else. Living in a new place and not knowing anyone had become boring and a bit lonely. She still had daily conversations with her mother, who was constantly moaning about Mira finding a girlfriend. Danica Lambert was your typical nagging mother, with the same questions every conversation as if something was going to spring up in twelve hours. “Are you dating? When are you getting married? Sweetie, I know you bat for the team, but when are you going to make me a grandmother? I’m not getting any younger, you know.” Once that bit made its way into conversation, Mira said hurried goodbyes and threw her phone under her pillow. Maybe making a new friend might alleviate at least one of those questions. She smiled, this was going to be great.

[krystalsays]

Charlie smirked a little as her new roommate began to explain what she had to move in. She could tell that Mira had other things on her mind and that she was a bit distracted. Charlie followed her around the house but tried to be careful as to not become too close in fear that she would make her feel uncomfortable. As she followed her, she perked up when she asked if she needed help with her things. A small twist of her head implied 'no'. "I'm okay, thank you though. I'm sure you will need some help though. I'm stronger than I look, I can carry almost anything." she said as she finally made it to what would be their rooms. It was two decent sized rooms, complete with walk in closets and a bathroom that joined the two rooms together. She walked into her room and looked around. For once, she felt like she was at home and she took a deep breath. "How's your room Mira?" she called out as she walked across the room and into the bathroom that she would be sharing with her.

As she made it to Mira's room, she stood at the door frame and leaned against it gently. While involuntarily watching every movement that she was making, she couldn't help but wonder about this girl. There was something about her that made her so attractive. Charlie didn't even know if she was into women that way. She felt it was best if she kept that to herself so that way Mira wouldn't freak out if she was into men instead. After a few moments of awkward silence, Charlie took a deep breath. "Well, I don't know about you but I am starving. So how about we go grab our things and I'll cook us a big dinner." she asked smiling.

[kittyfantastic]

Mira smiled at the size of her bedroom and more importantly, the closet. She could fit a whole other bed in there. "Did you see the size of these closets, Charlie?" she asked. She had instantly taking a liking to her. She reminded Mira of a summer day. She shook her head. Remember your new rule, Mira, she thought. She continued decorating her room in her mind, searching for the perfect place to put all her posters and her computer desk.

She turned to find Charlie staring at her, and couldn't help but smile. There was a small awkward silence, which, thank goodness, Charlie alleviated with an invitation to get their things and have dinner. "I am so hungry, I could eat a whole pizza," she said laughing. She led the way outside. "Uh, do you have a car? I came on foot." Her car had broken down ages ago, and due to her financial circumstances she couldn't afford to buy a new one. "I think we should rent a van, unless you think we can just stuff everything into your car and make a few trips?" This wasn't at all how she planned the day to go. It was getting better by the minute. A pretty roommate, an awesome house (with a pool, of course) and a proposition to dinner.

"I think this is gonna be awesome," she said, hoping Charlie felt the same. Mira wondered if Charlie was into girls, but decided she'd find a way to work it into conversation sometime that evening.

[krystalsays]

"We can save money. My care doesn't hold much but I think it'll be fine to make a few trips." Charlie said honestly as she walked out of the rooms and into the kitchen. She needed to know what she was dealing with. She checked out the cabinets to make sure that there was plenty of space to put cookware and food in them. She smiled at the size and went over to the fridge and opened it to see if there was a big space and sure enough it was. She smiled and sighed in relief. "Mira, the kitchen is huge. I know you don't cook but you have no idea how happy I am about this. My whole life is basically food. I'm surprised I'm not over five hundred pounds." she said laughing to herself.

"We should get going to get our things. We don't want to be out too late. There's celebrating to be done!" she said as her crazy attitude started to come out more and more. She raced down the steps and outside towards her car. She got into the drivers seat and started the engine. She beeped the horn gently. "Get in Mira!" she yelled out of the window. Once she was in the car and ready to go, she turned on some fun music and began to drive, singing and dancing as she was driving. She looked over at Mira and blushed. "Sorry, I can be a bit of a dork sometimes."

[kittyfantastic]

Mira loved the idea of saving money, "A few trips is fine, it'll give us some time to get to know each other before we shack up," she nudged Charlie playfully. She blushed again, feeling silly for behaving like a schoolgirl with a crush. The size of the kitchen actually astounded Mira, since the kitchen at her place was the size of a thimble. She couldn't help but smile at Charlie's excitement, it was cute. Her new roommate's upbeat attitude was refreshing, and it put Mira in a better mood almost instantly. She followed her to her car and got in, buckling her seatbelt. She watched Charlie put some music on and dance to the beat, so Mira joined in. What did she have to lose?

She smiled at Charlie's statement about being a dork. "Psh, don't worry about it," she said with a smile. "We're bound to do some really dorky and embarrassing things as roommates, might as well start now." She joined in with Charlie's dancing and singing, thinking this is the most fun she'd had in a really long while. Mira thought she would suggest going to her place first, since she had a bit more stuff. "We can head to my place first. I don't have like, tons of stuff, but I think it would be better to get the hard stuff out of the way so we can eat. I live just a bit over a mile down this road here," she pointed at the street in front of her. She propped one leg up against the center console and put her hair up into a messy bun, the sun beating down was making it stick to the back of her neck. She eyed Charlie with her peripherals. She couldn't deny that she was really pretty. Her green eyes glistening with the reflection of the road in front of them, the way she flipped her golden hair around as she bopped to the music. "You're cute," she said aloud. Her eyes opened wide and her mouth hung open a bit in surprise. She turned to look out of the window, mumbling a soft apology. Shit, she thought. Way to go, she's probably going to drive off when we get back to my place.

[krystalsays]

As Charlie continued driving down the road and listening to Mira's directions, she was lost in the music. If anything, music was the only thing that made sense in the world. The words and melodies together just fit. It was the one thing that Charlie could just listen too and not over think or analyze. Her mind came to screeching halt as she heard Mira blurt out that she thought she was cute. Her cheeks turned a crimson red as she turned onto Mira's street. She cleared her throat for a moment as her brain tried to process the thought. So, she was into girls. Unless she was just saying it to be polite. God, why did women have to be so complicated? It was times like these where she sometimes wished she was straight, men weren't that hard to read.

Instead, she smiled and looked over at her for a moment and back on the road. "Thank you. I think you're pretty, too." she said admitted. If they were going to be roommates, it was probably best if they got the awkwardness out now. It was bound to come out sometime that Charlie was into women but she wasn't too sure if this was the proper way to do it. Oh well, she thought. It was already said. She pulled up to Mira's house and shut the car off.

"C'mon, let's go get your things." She said as she got out of the car, hoping that Mira would see this as a way to let her know that she wasn't offended, she was actually flattered. "I'm going to enjoy having a good looking roommate. I don't get out much and it'll be nice to have some eye candy." she teased with a grin on her face. "But don't worry, I won't be a perv and spy on you in the shower or anything. I'm not like that at all."

[kittyfantastic]

There was always an issue with finding out the orientation of a woman. If you ask directly, she'd either get offended or try to hump your leg. It was a lose lose situation. Then there were the ones that were straight but comfortable enough in their sexuality to admit when a woman was attractive. Mira assumed Charlie was the last one, unless her 'gaydar' was off.

Mira decided to let the matter go for now, since they now had plenty of time to get to know each other and their choices in life partners. She unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of the car, keys in hand. "My landlord shouldn't be here, but just ignore him if he is. He's kind of an asshole," she said with a smile. "He sold the house, so I had twenty four hours to gee tee eff oh," she spelled out the popular texting acronym. It was a sort of dorky habit of hers, spelling out acronyms but she didn't care. She walked to the side of the house, looking behind her to make sure Charlie was following her. "I'm pretty sure most of everything is trash," she explained, "I got most of everything second hand from the previous tenant. I don't think I'm taking anything except my clothes, blankets, and stuff like that. Our new place deserves new stuff," she said with a smile.

As they walked through the door, Mira could smell the familiar scent of her ex-girlfriend's perfume. "Shit…" she muttered. She walked inside the apartment with apprehension, this wouldn't end well at all.

"Oh, Mira you're home - -" Daniella stopped midsentence. She was about the same height as Mira, with dark auburn hair and light honey eyes. She was pretty on the surface, but pretty ugly underneath it all.

"Who is that?"

[krystalsays]

Charlie smiled as she walked into the house with Mira. It seemed cozy enough but it was old and smelled as if people had lived in it before. She also caught wiff of a perfume and looked over at Mira who seemed a bit frazzled. She turned the corner and stopped when she saw a girl standing at around Mira's height. She raised a brow and looked from the girl to Mira back to the girl and cleared her throat. She walked over and held out her hand, being the polite person that she normally was.

"I'm Charlie, Mira's new roommate..and you are?" she asked with a sarcastic smile.

Daniella looked at her hand and rolled her eyes. "Mira, what are you doing with this.." she said as she sized up Charlie, eyeing her up and down and back at Mira. "trash." she finished.

Charlie could feel her skin turn red with heat. Her blood started to boil and her temper was soon about to arise. Instead of making herself look like a fool and embarrassing Mira or herself, she let the comment slide. She cleared her throat again. "I'm guessing this is something you two need to talk about in private. I'll be in my car, Mira, whenever you're ready to go back to our home." she said putting the emphasis on the word our. Charlie never usually backed down from a threat or fight, however, she didn't want Mira to think she was a violent person, otherwise, Daniella would be on the ground and crying. She glared at her once more before turning on her heels and walking out of the front door and into her car, extremely fuming.