Rose Tinted Reality - A Succession Story

Happiness Looks Good on You

Sweat from a hard day's work drips down Piper's back, strands of wet hair sticking to her slick forehead. Her muscles ache, and her head pounds, but the sense of relief that comes with her day being over is still more powerful. With one fluid motion, she takes off her apron and tosses it into the black milk grate sitting on the floor of the employee's break room. She wants to leave, and she wants to leave now, as the smell of sweat and perfume overpowering.

"Got any plans?"

The voice belongs to one of Piper's coworkers, Analise, a tall blonde girl with her mane of hair pulled into a high ponytail, and beaming blue eyes. They crinkle as she smiles, a detail that makes Piper smile too.

"After that? No," Piper says with a laugh, snagging her keys from her locker. "I had quite a night last night, anyways. I better take it easy tonight," she explains.

"What do you mean by that?" Analise asks, placing a hand on the curve of her hip. Her smile shifts from easygoing to mischievous as she closes the distance between them, jabbing at Piper's ribs.

"I mean, I went out and celebrated some good news," Piper starts, making her way around Analise and toward the door. "And then maybe I decided to celebrate by sleeping with someone."

"Really? Like four days ago you said you were having a break from your whore era," Analise says, giggling despite her words.

"Well, I said that, but then I met someone at that dive bar down the street," Piper starts, hesitating as she realizes Analise might not believe her if she says who she met. No matter, those details are not important since she likely won't be seeing him ever again.

"And? Do I know them? Pictures? Instagram?" Analise asks. Piper's moving quickly down the stairs, suddenly wanting to escape the conversation.

"No, you don't know them, and it doesn't matter because him and I-"

"It's a him?"

"Yes, it's a him, and he and I agreed to never talk to each other again," Piper finishes, finally reaching the restaurant's back exit. She leans on the door, unable to hide the momentary disappointment that flashes across her countenance. Analise's expression withers.

"That bad?" she asks, placing a comforting hand on Piper's back. Piper swats at the touch, shaking her head and forcing a smile.

"No, it was good. Really good. We just realized we had different lifestyles," Piper says with a shrug, attempting to sound casual. With a weak shove, she opens the door and heads outside. The air is cool and crips, a reminder of the winter that will be soon to come.

"Does this mean your whore era isn't over then?" Analise asks. Piper pauses to consider and then shakes her head.

"No, I don't think it is over," she says with a smirk. "One more!"

"I'll see you tomorrow," Analise says with a rolling of her eyes. "Stay safe out there!"

"You know I won't," Piper replies. With that, the two girls turn away from each other and walk in opposite directions down the street.

It doesn't take long for Piper to leave the restaurants and bars behind, the establishments replaced by cream-colored apartment buildings, the occasional brick front standing out. In the distance, just beyond the apartment buildings, there are tall office buildings wrapped in panes of glass. She wonders which one is the Roy's, and considers looking it up. No, she decides. There's no point in letting him weasel his way into her mind, not when they both had made it clear that they wouldn't be talking to each other.

But he had taken her number.

And then he hadn't called, she reminds herself. There's no need to know where he works, or anything else about him.