Aster and The Leopards

A writer, maybe

Hey! I hope you're enjoying the story! Comments and votes keep authors motivated, so if you like K&TL I'd love the feedback. <3

***

New York was just as stunning as always that afternoon, but Aster had to wear a fluffy scarf to leave the office. The day was almost ending, and most people were returning home from their very busy jobs, to take care of their very busy family lives. Her day hadn't been busy. She spent the eight office hours staring at the city she loved through the window, thinking about how much it would hurt to leave it. At that point, she had accepted that leaving the job was a possibility, but leaving a job sounds easy, she could get another. Try leaving Wendy Wolbert. She would become a journalism pariah the next second, and a NYC financial job in a gray fucking building would certainly suck out of her chest the will to stay alive. No, if she quit she'd leave the town.

As soon as Wendy left the office, Aster grabbed her purse and scarf and left for Central Park. Of course, she wasn't going there for the calm, for the sunset – she had already accepted New York for what it was, and it was a vibrant mess. Walking around the lake, making a beeline to avoid stumbling on children, it was all so nostalgic... Almost like a goodbye. And that was the thought made her stop in her tracks.

Coming to this big lonely city she dreamt about during her entire childhood was the single most brave thing she'd ever done in her life, and the one thing she could not let go of. The one thing she loved so much it felt like an extension of herself. If not for the great office with glass walls, or the nice apartment in a nice neighborhood, she had to find a way through – or over – her damaged morality for New York.

It was almost impossible to find the line that would keep her from irreparably hurting a friend she just found by invading her life and sharing her secrets with a million readers, but Aster needed to find it. She took out a pen and started taking notes on her hand. The plan she came up with after only twenty minutes was simple enough:

Maxine could not knowknow about the article before November ends; she'd cut Aster off immediately; Aster would have to, inevitably, get closer to her if she wanted to write anything decent;The one thing that Aster thought could save her soul from Hell, after all, was that the last step on this plan was letting Maxine read and review the article a couple of days before giving it to Wendy. If Maxine refused to do so, well... Aster at least tried, so she could walk away with her ethical pride bruised, but not dead.

Some girl with her boyfriend laughed behind Aster, taking her out of her introspection, and the sound of her laughter was eerily like... Maxine's. It took a crazy amount of self-control to not let herself hesitate.

***

"Hi, I wasn't expecting... you... here. Today."

Aster had exchanged a few texts with Maxine during the afternoon and found out the girl was home early that night. All the planning and practice took a toll on the band and Jesse decided that they needed a week off before the tour started if they wanted to survive the tour bus life for months. So Aster searched her conversation with Jesse for Maxine's Tribeca address and decided to surprise the girl with some takeaway. It did not turn out as great as she thought it would.

"Oh! Oh, I- I assumed..." Aster stuttered, refusing to let the feeling of rejection sink in her heart. "I just thought I could do something nice for you since you cheered me up yesterday, but... I'm overstepping. I get it."

"No, don't say that. Look," Maxine started, stepping onto the corridor and closing the apartment door behind her. "It's nice of you to come here, and I did the same yesterday, so this is really hypocritical of me... but I..."

"It's okay, Maxine. I get it. But, like, can you keep these? It's Italian. I'm not that hungry," Aster answered with a slightly pained smile, lifting the takeaway bags in front of her. Looking from the bags to those transparent eyes, Maxine sighed and rubbed her face, defeated. She opened the door and pushed it open with her back, making space for the girl to get in. Before she could protest, Maxine pulled her by the arm and closed the door again.