If God Smokes Cheap Cigars (Billy)

[SYDNEY HARRISON]

Cause we might as well be blind

If seeing is believing

If God Smokes Cheap Cigars;;; Envy on the Coast

-----------------------------------------------------

It had taken a bit of time, but things were finally starting to look like they were going to work out for Sydney.  It had been a very rough start when she moved, hotel hopping and relying on her savings to get her through the time until she found a job (which in and of itself had proved to be a bit of a pain), which obviously would then lead to a permanent residence.

The job part was still a bit sketchy, as finding a bar that wanted someone full time was harder than she thought.  She had found a few that she could pick up a few shifts at, but the lack of consistency was getting to her.  She had even resorted to applying at a few muggle bars just hoping that it would make things just a tad bit easier.

The worst of it all though, without a doubt was the hotel hopping.  Trying to find one that was affordable, had a comfortable bed, and good water pressure was basically impossible.  Two out of three could potentially happen, but the odds of that were slim.  She had been going the affordable route, which meant sacrificing the other two.

Then, everything changed thanks to her Guardian Angel known as Paz.

Paz was a childhood penpal that  Sydney had reached out to in hopes that MAYBE she still lived in the area.  Turns out she did, and it also turned out that Paz had her own place with a spare room.  Syd had tried to fight it at first, not wanting to seem like she was needy or trying to use the friendship but Paz was QUITE stubborn and persuasive, and before she knew it she had an actually place to stay.  A quiet little place, with a comfortable bed.

And amazing water pressure.

It was the first day waking up in the apartment, and Paz had left a note that she was going to be out for most of the day so Syd could just have some time to get adjusted.  The first thing she did after dragging herself out of bed was to hop in a hot shower, and she could feel all of her worries just melt away.  She didn't know how long she was in there, but she was sure it was far longer than actually needed.

Seeing as how she was supposed to have the place to herself a bit, Syd found herself singing some old school Muggle pop music, dancing around in her towel.  It was some pure, unbridled joy that she hadn't had the chance to experience in quite some time, and let's be real who DOESN'T sing Britney Spears when they are in a good mood.  

The only downside to it?  Hard to hear a door open, which was exactly what happened.

Tag: BILLY MALCOLM

[BILLY MALCOLM]

---

Billy was bored. He had been playing fetch with the dog all morning and the dog didn’t want to do anything else. He was finding as the days went on, he very much disliked being out of Hogwarts - even if he disliked Hogwarts. Okay, he didn’t dislike Hogwarts, he disliked all the homework. He’d been an average student at best and that was something he was glad was behind him. But, an average student didn’t have a lot of job opportunities just being thrown at him like some of his other friends - and he was very certain that he wasn’t going to be the next big quidditch star - no matter how much his Dad was one. He didn’t get that gene.

The “living with Dad” situation wasn’t exactly what Billy pictured it as. Taj had always been the fun parent just by pure necessity. He was in and out more because of the quidditch career and all the travel. Mom was home, Mom had rules, Dad had ice cream. There was still ice cream, but there was this strange adult relationship they hadn’t quite figured out yet and that was something that made him feel isolated. What Billy really missed about school was the constant surrounding of people. Waking up with your friends, eating with your friends, spending time after classes with your friends… Maybe Billy was just missing people.

Well, he knew exactly how to fix that. If there was one person in the world who would be free in the middle of a weekday it was his cousin Paz. She never seemed to work and that was definitely to Billy’s benefit. So was having a key to the apartment and two dogs that needed a walk because fetch was doing nothing to make one of them tired. So, they’d walk for a while until they got closer to the city then he planned to pop them all into the alleyway near his cousin’s basically penthouse apartment.

He remembered the first time he came into the place his jaw had hit the ground. If you thought luxury, Paz had that. He had come over to her house the day she moved in expecting to find boxes everywhere and the whole place was put together - like she had lived there for years. And it was deceiving. Just when you thought you were all out of rooms to see, there was another one through a side door. Billy knew that his cousin was wealthier than him, but he had never felt that she was wealthier than him until this moment.

Paz herself though didn’t give too much air of money. And Billy wasn’t poor in comparison. His mother had a good job in the wizarding Congress and his Dad had been a freaking quidditch star. He didn’t have a monthly allowance and eventually would have to get a job. That was a problem for future Billy though and not the Billy right now who was going to make Paz entertain him, maybe have her take him out to some fancy lunch he couldn’t ever afford without her. Was it a little user like? Sure, but would Paz say something if she didn’t want to? Oh definitely.

Every time he entered the house it was just like a shock all over again. But this time, there was even more of a shock because one, the music was wildly out of character for Paz, and two, that was not Paz, and third, this person was in a towel. Billy was definitely staring and then he laughed a little bit when he realized she was singing a Brittney Spears song. Paz would have been so annoyed.

---

TAG: SYDNEY HARRISON
NOTES: nudge for changes love!