I'm at home when I'm with you, no matter where I am
So, I wrote this a while ago, and then I started this as a sort of companion piece. Part three is almost finished (LOL, famous last words), but I still feel like I haven't established this universe as thoroughly as I'd wanted to. There's a lot that's in my own personal canon that I didn't actually address in the fic, and I wanted to amend that since you can't actually read my mind. So, here:
I want to live and die in a small apartment
a "Borrowed 'Verse" Primer
In 1980s Santa Monica, there's a house a stone's throw from the beach. It's old and yellow, it has a porch and an overgrown garden that explodes with color in the summer. In that house, there are three kids who scrimp and struggle to make the payments every month. Zac rented the place with his girlfriend Van, his high school sweetheart. They've been in love for what seems like forever, and they've been friends with this one chick for almost as long. Their best friend is Ash. Ash crashed on their couch one night and never left. Ash can't seem to keep a job and she has this bad habit of hooking up with guys that don't treat her right. She left home before Zac and Van did, and has been trying so hard to be independent, but can't seem to shake off her need for company.
This is Zac. Zac likes fixing up his car, cheap beer, good movies, and his girlfriend, Van. After graduation, Zac and Van left home to get out together on their own. He's doing his best to support himself and his woman, so he took this shit job in this warehouse on the pier. He works everyday 7am-2pm moving boxes with a forklift. It's not all bad, he gets to wear a hard hat that's totally killer and his girl comes by everyday to eat with him on his lunch break.
This is Van. Van likes going to the beach, sleeping late, hanging out in her underwear, and her boyfriend Zac. She also likes her best friend Ash. That's why, when Ash's loser-of-the-week boyfriend kicked Ash out, Van convinced Zac to let Ash crash at their place. Now she and Ash get to chill and talk about girl stuff while Zac plays with his car. During the day, Van works at a liquor store. Her boss, Manny, is kind of sweet on her and never asks her to do much, so she mostly runs the register. He even lets her take off for an hour at lunch so she can eat with Zac. Usually, Van drags Ash along, too.
This is Ash. She likes staying up late, bad television, jeans, and her best friend Van. Ash has had some pretty bad luck, especially when it comes to guys, and she always seems to be getting herself into trouble. She's been staying with Van and her boyfriend Zac for a while now, but she can't find a good enough job that'll let her get her own place. Mostly, she does stand-in modeling work. She's the girl you see in the background of pharmacy mailers and bus ads in ridiculous dresses with over-styled hair. The jobs are easy, but few and far-between, so she has time enough to go down with Van almost everyday to eat their lunch with Zac.
This is Zac's car. A 1979 Chrysler Cordoba. It cost him nearly every penny he ever made and the body's prone to rust (he's painted it red to try and hide it), but it's his pride and joy. Van and Ash aren't allowed to eat in it because the last time they did, they spilled Coca-Cola all over the worn leather.
This is pretty much what their house looks like. Just picture a more unkempt garden and peeling paint. Their lawn is dry and riddled with patches of brown. The only thing on their porch besides the doormat are Zac's work boots. He has to leave them outside because Van insists they smell. At night, the three of them sit on the crumbling front steps with cheap, domestic beer and watch the cars go by.
Sometimes Ash watches Zac and Van together and feels this deep, intense envy, but she's never sure who she's jealous of. Zac sees the way Ash looks at Van when Ash thinks no one notices. It makes his heart race and his palms sweat because, sometimes, he sees Van look at Ash that same way. Van has always had her best friend and her boyfriend. Somewhere--deep down, in a place she doesn't quite understand--Van almost wishes they were the same person. She wants there to be some way she can have both of them at the same time.
I want to live and die in a small apartment
a "Borrowed 'Verse" Primer
In 1980s Santa Monica, there's a house a stone's throw from the beach. It's old and yellow, it has a porch and an overgrown garden that explodes with color in the summer. In that house, there are three kids who scrimp and struggle to make the payments every month. Zac rented the place with his girlfriend Van, his high school sweetheart. They've been in love for what seems like forever, and they've been friends with this one chick for almost as long. Their best friend is Ash. Ash crashed on their couch one night and never left. Ash can't seem to keep a job and she has this bad habit of hooking up with guys that don't treat her right. She left home before Zac and Van did, and has been trying so hard to be independent, but can't seem to shake off her need for company.
This is Zac. Zac likes fixing up his car, cheap beer, good movies, and his girlfriend, Van. After graduation, Zac and Van left home to get out together on their own. He's doing his best to support himself and his woman, so he took this shit job in this warehouse on the pier. He works everyday 7am-2pm moving boxes with a forklift. It's not all bad, he gets to wear a hard hat that's totally killer and his girl comes by everyday to eat with him on his lunch break.
This is Van. Van likes going to the beach, sleeping late, hanging out in her underwear, and her boyfriend Zac. She also likes her best friend Ash. That's why, when Ash's loser-of-the-week boyfriend kicked Ash out, Van convinced Zac to let Ash crash at their place. Now she and Ash get to chill and talk about girl stuff while Zac plays with his car. During the day, Van works at a liquor store. Her boss, Manny, is kind of sweet on her and never asks her to do much, so she mostly runs the register. He even lets her take off for an hour at lunch so she can eat with Zac. Usually, Van drags Ash along, too.
This is Ash. She likes staying up late, bad television, jeans, and her best friend Van. Ash has had some pretty bad luck, especially when it comes to guys, and she always seems to be getting herself into trouble. She's been staying with Van and her boyfriend Zac for a while now, but she can't find a good enough job that'll let her get her own place. Mostly, she does stand-in modeling work. She's the girl you see in the background of pharmacy mailers and bus ads in ridiculous dresses with over-styled hair. The jobs are easy, but few and far-between, so she has time enough to go down with Van almost everyday to eat their lunch with Zac.
This is Zac's car. A 1979 Chrysler Cordoba. It cost him nearly every penny he ever made and the body's prone to rust (he's painted it red to try and hide it), but it's his pride and joy. Van and Ash aren't allowed to eat in it because the last time they did, they spilled Coca-Cola all over the worn leather.
This is pretty much what their house looks like. Just picture a more unkempt garden and peeling paint. Their lawn is dry and riddled with patches of brown. The only thing on their porch besides the doormat are Zac's work boots. He has to leave them outside because Van insists they smell. At night, the three of them sit on the crumbling front steps with cheap, domestic beer and watch the cars go by.
Sometimes Ash watches Zac and Van together and feels this deep, intense envy, but she's never sure who she's jealous of. Zac sees the way Ash looks at Van when Ash thinks no one notices. It makes his heart race and his palms sweat because, sometimes, he sees Van look at Ash that same way. Van has always had her best friend and her boyfriend. Somewhere--deep down, in a place she doesn't quite understand--Van almost wishes they were the same person. She wants there to be some way she can have both of them at the same time.