A year and a half had passed since Ava and Carter had came out to each other. It had been quite an eventful year; They'd started hanging out more and more, and it didn't take long before you couldn't tell their apartments apart by the items in them. It was getting rather frustrating to have to walk a mile to get a missing shirt or phone charger, so Ava proposed what they'd both been thinking about: Becoming roommates.

As one of Ava's friends had called it, "they were power roommates." All their rules were unspoken but agreed upon: Ava cooked dinner on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Carter cooked on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. They always went out on Saturday. If you wanted laundry done, you did your laundry. And except for the first Saturday each month, if you wanted things cleaned, you cleaned them. The first Saturday of each month was cleaning day. Saturday was the only day they both had off, so that was the day when everything happened. Birthdays were postponed until Saturday; day trips were on Saturday; shopping was on Saturday.

The same friend who had called the power roommates had been nagging Ava and Carter about something for months: clubbing. As asexuals, a room filled with people grinding and making out wasn't really their idea of a fun time. Especially since Mercury, the club her friend, Skye, wanted to go to, was known to be more on the relaxed side with respecting personal space.

But it seemed like fun. Skye said it was fun. So finally, Ava and Carter agreed to spend a Friday night at Mercury.

Ava already had Friday off, and Carter got someone to cover his shift, so they could spend the entire day being extra. If they were going to go to Mercury, they at least wanted to look nice. And dressing up was fun.

"What screams, "I'm asexual?"" Ava sighed, thumbing through a rack of shirts.

"People don't know asexuality exists. You can't give off ace vibes and expect them to take the hint," Carter said. "Do you like the shirt?" He held up a short-sleeved purple button down shirt and raised an eyebrow.

"If we both wear purple, we won't get in."

"Sounds like a you problem."

"Well fuck you too." Ava eyed Carter, making sure he didn't make a joke about them bring ace, and went back to searching.

Eventually, Ava went for black skinny jeans and a green crop top, and Carter bought his shirt and white jeans. Neither one was in the mood to pass up an opportunity like this, so they also shoveled drugstore makeup, temporary hairspray, and cheap jewelry into their cart.

On a whim, Ava and Carter had gotten their ears pierced a bit over six months ago, and while matching outfits was too coordinated, matching silver and purple studs seemed casual enough to pass. After three hours of getting ready, they were good to go when Skye picked them up.

"'Sup virgins!" I forgot to mention that Skye was a bit eccentric. "Ready to have your eyes opened to the going-ons beneath our streets?" And then, in the true spirit of Skye, she winked.

"You do know we've both been clubbing before, right?" Carter said.

"Ooh! I forgot you were British. You don't look-"

"Jesus, Skye. Let's go. How much have you drunk?"

Skye hadn't drunk so much that she thought she was sober and permitted Ava to drive with Carter in shotgun. "You guys would be so cute tog-"

"That's nice, Skye. Reckon it's past your bed-time? Nighty-night," Carter interrupted.

The club seemed nice at first. Ava happened to know the bouncer from the coffee shop, and they got in without any struggle. For an introvert, Ava was on good terms with quite a lot of people. The night was just getting started as the two friends dragged Skye and a glass of water over to a booth.

"Drink up, dumbass," Ava murmured, holding the glass to Skye's lips. That action really sums up their entire relationship.

"You're trying to get me wasted so no one will notice you sneak off with your bo-bof-barf..." Skye slurred. Ava tipped the glass up and covered her friend's top in ice water. As more and more people came in, personal space became less and less. Ava and Carter tried dancing for a little, but neither had a penchant for it, and they returned to their booth. Once Skye could walk straight again, she was off into the crowd, leaving Ava and Carter to talking and drinking. But after a good deal of alcohol and conversation, the sound became throbbing, and the energy became sweltering. The real turning point happened around 1 am when a guy slid into the booth very close to Ava.

"You've been sitting here all night. Don't you want to have some fun?"

"Nope," Ava shrugged.

He placed a hand on her thigh and winked. Though it's well known that winks can be very versatile, this one was easy to decipher.

"Hey babe," Ava looked over to Carter. "It's getting kind of late, want to get going?" Babe had a sort of special meaning between them. They were in complete agreement that it was an awful, if not the worst possible, pet name. So when Ava said babe, there was no confusion that they were now dating and would be until they got out of this man's eyesight.

They both got up, and Carter whispered a quick sorry before wrapping his arm around his now girlfriend's waste. Ava texted Skye that they'd left, and they took the train home.

Back in the apartment, Ava collapsed on a couch, slightly uncomfortable and tired. It wasn't so much the pretending to date part that made her skin crawl as the mystery guy. Ava and Carter platonically laid on top of each other so often that she didn't really realize when they came into contact.

"Alright?" Carter asked.

"Yeah," Ava slurred. "I have a song stuck in my head, can you play it? It's called All Of Me. I don't remember who it's by. You know it," Ava paused, "I think. Did the Brits have music? You still listen to The Beatles probably. They're not really that good."

"Do you want me to play your song or not?"

"Right, sorry."

What would I do without your smart mouth?

Drawing me in and you kicking me out.

You got my head spinning, no kidding,

I can't pin you down.

Ava stood up and started stumbling towards the kitchen. Carter still had half a brain left and held onto her so she wouldn't fall. Ava's foot caught on a floorboard, and she collapsed into Carter's arms.

My head's under water, but I'm breathing fine.

You're crazy and I'm out of my mind.

Carter's arms were wrapped around Ava's waist, and she grabbed his shoulders to pull herself up. But when she got to standing, her head felt heavy, and Carter felt comfy, what if she just didn't move? Ava rested her head on Carter's shoulder and stayed.

'Cause all of me loves all of you

Loves your curves and all your edges

All your perfect imperfections

They started a sort of tipsy-drunken dance; slowly swaying to each side and shuffling around their living room. Carter had flipped the wrong switch earlier so only the lights in the kitchen were on. In other words, there was ~mood lighting~

Give your all to me,

I'll give my all to you.

Your my end and my beginning

Even when I lose, I'm winning.

Ava looked up into Carter's round chocolatey eyes that gazed back into hers. She licked her lips and opened them slightly. The breath caught in her throat. This next moment could change everything. If luck was with her, she would end the night satisfied, happy. But who was to say that luck was feeling charitable tonight? If Ava had misread how he was feeling this evening, he might not talk to her for who knows how long. She wouldn't be able to bear that happening.

Ava had looked forward to hazy mind and clear impulsiveness that the alcohol would give her, but still she struggled with this choice. But maybe the beers and martinis did have an effect because Ava's resolved hardened. She would do this. Again, Ava met Carter's eyes and ran her tongue through her mouth. There was now going back. She leaned and slightly and parted her lips.

"I lost the game."