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VALENTINA WAS GOING TO BE SO PISSED if Steve was late.
Earlier that morning, Alicia Varner claimed she needed the car because she had some important meeting down in the city. Valentina would have paid more attention to what it was about if she weren't focused on the fact that she had a double shift that day and suddenly no mode of transportation.
Technically, she didn't have a double shift. She worked 8:00-4:00 at Hawkins Pool and 4:00-10:00 at Starcourt Cafe. It didn't matter to her though, it was still an entire, long, dreadful day of working.
Usually, Valentina was able to sneak out of her shift at the pool a couple minutes early by having her coworker, Heather, clock out for her at the correct time. At the cafe, she could get away with being late every once in a while if she asked Tina to stall their manager. However, it was Sunday, which meant the cafe would be pretty busy with old people eating their dinner at the time she punched in. So she didn't have long to waste.
After receiving the news that she didn't have her car that day, Valentina frantically called Steve at 7 o'clock in the morning. He was barely awake.
"Hlrhmm, hello?-"
"STEVE, YOU HAVE TO HELP ME!"
Steve sat up immediately. His comforters fell from his bare chest and he scrambled to hold onto the phone as he quickly jumped out of bed, alarmed at the sound of Valentina in danger.
"What? Huh? Are you okay?" he sputtered, spinning in circles to look for his clothes. The phone chord twisted around his body, his fallen blankets intertwined with his feet.
Valentina was standing in her bedroom, looking through her window with her phone to her ear. She watched as Steve tripped over himself, and she didn't understand why he was so scared. She was the one in a rush!
"I need you to drive me to work!" Valentina cried.
Steve paused. He looked down at his body, only covered by his boxers and the bed sheet that was twisted and tangled around him, and could only blink in response.
His palm met his forehead. "Valentina, I thought you were dying."
"I AM DYING!" she yelled back. She saw through the windows as Steve recoiled. "I need you to drive me to work."
Steve waltzed over to his nightstand and picked up his watch. While he read the time, Valentina became acutely aware that Steve was only in his underwear. She nervously looked away and hoped he hadn't noticed she was watching him.
"It's only seven, Vee. Why are you waking me up..." Valentina watched him count on his fingers. "...Nine hours before your shift?"
"I picked up a shift at the pool, and I need to leave in thirty minutes!"
Steve sighed. His fingers raised to pinch the skin between his eyes, as if that could smooth over the headache forming behind his sockets. "Okay, let me get dressed."
