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Chapter 3: Eating Out


Daria got up later than she wanted after hitting her clock several times. She was trying to get up early so she would be use to it when school started. She walked out of her room with her sleep shirt on. "Oh, that's Mark Twain right? Or Samuel Clemons, that was his real name right?" Skaz was in the dorm room.

"Eep!" Daria pulled the shirt down even though it already covered everything important running back to her room.

"Daria don't be like that I ran into Skaz and invited him back here." Lindsey knocked on Daria's door before entering.

"Did I say you could come in? You could have warned me there was a guy here!" Daria put on a pair of jeans then her glasses so she could see where Lindsey was before she started yelling at a wall or something else that would look stupid.

"Well how would I have done that? I'm not psychic or telepath, whatever that is called. Sorry." Lindsey looked down at her feet looking like a puppy after it just got yelled at for chewing on something.

"Sorry Lindsey I'm just not use to strange guys seeing me this early in the morning, or in my sleep shirt."

"Morning? It's nearly Noon Daria I thought you were up and just avoiding talking to Skaz." Lindsey did have a point, it was almost noon and not being a Lane should have been up earlier. Now that Daria thought about it Trent had seen her in her dress shirt that one time and he didn't say anything rude. Of course Trent may not have been awake enough to have noticed what she was wearing. Daria kept her sleep shirt on for now not wanting to put anything clean on before getting a shower. Following Lindsey out Daria saw Skaz sitting on the floor in between the two chairs.

"You could sit in a chair if you wanted to."

"Naw, there are two chairs and the two of you so I sit on the floor." He turned back to the TV which had the news on. "Well would you look at that, poor black guy arrested, poor black guy arrested, white guy let go because he's white and rich, go figure."

"You're watching the news? It's so depressing." Lindsey sat in a chair picking up the remote.

"Well sometimes they have video of riots or car chases, one time had a tank going down the highway out in California, now that was a sight to see." Daria's ears perked up when she heard the word 'tank' but knew he meant a real one, not Trent's Tank.

"But they have nice things on like Orca or Pasturama, that show is funny." Lindsey flipped the channels until she got to Orca. The large Hispanic woman was having her 'Book of the Week' segment going.

"Ever watch Sick Sad World?"

"Ew." Lindsey stuck her tongue out. "That show is so disgusting; they had a show on rats and drugs, so ew." Skaz on the other hand had a different view on the show.

"They have some good episodes, like Improper Love Boat or the one with the guy who was blind and deaf yet nailed a bunch of royalty members. Of course one would have to be blind to even think about doing the bed sheet tango with any of those people. I don't get it, Marie Antoinette was supposed to be a real beauty yet nowadays the royal families all look like what they are, blue blooded inbred spoiled brats."

"Gee Skaz tell us how you really feel." Daria sat down in her lawn chair after moving it away from Skaz. Skaz started to poke his arm with a finger.

"I feel pretty smooth actually." He laughed getting Lindsey to laugh with him. "Sorry if I scared you earlier Daria, I know I wouldn't want to see me when I first wake up in the afternoon." He smiled at Daria trying to get a laugh out of her.

"It's ok just maybe next time Lindsey could warn me there was a guy here before I go out in my sleep shirt."

"Yeah Lindsey, why didn't you use your third sense to warn Daria I was here?" He made a funny face at Lindsey who did laugh.

"Well what now Lindsey? Since Daria's up maybe we can go out to eat?" Skaz looked over at Daria.

"Maybe, let me get a shower and stuff." Daria yawned and walked away. Skaz stood up then shook Lindsey's hand.

"I'll be back in like five minutes alright, going to get my wallet and stuff." Lindsey let Skaz out locking the door behind him.

"Why do you do that? He said he would be back in a few minutes." Daria was just getting out of her room with clean clothes in her arms.

"Well my mom and I always locked the door where we lived, kind of had to..." Lindsey stopped talking again. Daria went into the bathroom and took her shower. When she was done she put the clean clothes on and got out of the bathroom to see Skaz and Lindsey in the living room watching TV. "And he's the beer drinking dinosaur, he is friends with the guy from the future when he isn't stealing his wallet." Lindsey was explaining the characters on the show they were watching, Pasturama.

"Well are you two ready?" Daria made sure she had money in her wallet putting it back in her pocket.

"Why you have your wallet? You're coming with us right? I'm a man, I pay. Also get to show off my modified truck."

"I can pay for myself thank you very much." Daria gave a stern look at Skaz putting her keys away. She might not let him pay for her but hey, if he wanted to waste his gas then she was going to let him.

"Well then ladies follow me." Except Skaz opened the door and let them leave first. When Skaz closed the door Lindsey turned around quickly and locked the door with her set of keys. Now leading them the three went out into the parking lot finding a large bright neon orange truck with something strange in the bed of the truck.

"What's that?" Lindsey pointed it out.

"The battery, I modified my truck so I get over forty miles to the gallon. Has saved me hundreds in gas, of course it cost over a thousand dollars to do what I did to it but was well worth it."

"How? You must really know cars to do that." Skaz opened the passenger door letting the two girls in.

"It was simple if you know what to do, or have an instruction manual telling you how to do it. The guy who started this gets over eighty miles to a gallon, he drives one of those Japanese plastic cars though. But hey if you get bored and have a couple hours on your hands I could give you the manual." Skaz closed the door behind them walking around to his door.

"Are you sure we can trust him? He might be a serial killer who kills women for their skins. Put the lotion on or you don't get the water."

"Ew Daria, I'm sure we can trust him, you get an instinct for this when you grow up where I did." Skaz opened his door and got in.

"Put your seat belts on or we don't go anywhere." Daria pulled on hers to show it was on while Lindsey quickly got hers on. "Ok I don't know Boston very well but being a city is probably expensive as all get out. We're going to Reno, about five miles that way." He pointed towards the windshield.

Daria sat in the back seat looking around the truck nervously. She went to make sure Lindsey would be ok but Skaz was a lot bigger and stronger then the both of them. Her boots could do some damage if she needed to do it but so far Skaz seemed like a nice guy. A few minutes later they were on a street that reminded Daria of Dega Street. "So what do you all want?"

"Whatever you want Skaz, you're paying." Lindsey looked out the window at the different stores and restaurants.

"How about pizza?" Daria pointed out a Pizza King from the back seat.

"Ok fine with me." He pulled into the parking lot letting the girls get out before locking the doors and getting out himself. Skaz opened the door for the girls and let them pick where to sit. "You two allergic to anything because I usually go with everything on my pizza, except sardines, those are evil."

"Uh I'll just get a slice." Lindsey wringed her hands together looking around nervously as though expecting something to pop up or something.

"Same here." Daria looked around herself comparing this Pizza King to the one at Lawndale.

"If you say so, I need a good breakfast though. What do you want on your slice?"

"Just cheese." Lindsey slumped down in her seat.

"Pepperoni on mine." Skaz got up and went to the counter to order the food. "What's the matter Lindsey? You are acting a little strange, I think. Do you always act like this when you go outside?"

"I just feel awkward having Skaz pay for my food. I shouldn't have asked him to, I could have paid for it." Lindsey sat up a little bit looking over at Skaz who was standing waiting for the food.

"Hey if he wants to pay for you let him, it's his money to spend." Daria was starting to get hungry now that she could smell the food.

"But it's embarrassing having him paying for me. I don't need him to, I could afford it, I swear I could." Lindsey started playing with a salt shaker trying to distract her mind from her surroundings.

"Then pay for it, I'm paying for mine." Daria was getting annoyed by Lindsey and her muttering. "She needs to grow a backbone." Daria thought to herself. A few minutes later Skaz came back with their slices then went back to the counter to get his. Sitting down with his loaded slices he looked for the salt shaker.

"Oh here, sorry." Lindsey handed Skaz the salt shaker.

"No problem." He covered his slices in salt then in pepper. "Well eat up I guess, this is the breakfast of colleges all over the country." Skaz took a big bite of a slice. Lindsey played with her slice before taking a bite, Daria just sighed and started to eat her pizza. A few minutes later Daria finished her slice and waited for Lindsey who was still playing with her pizza only haven eaten about half of it while Skaz started in on his second slice.

"Well that was good." Daria got up and went to the counter to get a drink. Getting her drink she went back to a Skaz and Lindsey who were talking to each other forgetting the food in front of them. "Sorry to interrupt but wondered if you wanted something to drink." Skaz waved her off taking the break in conversation to get another bite of food. Lindsey shook her head took another bite of her pizza before talking to Skaz about what subjects she was taking.

"I was going to major in biology but that class was so much harder to get into and Cosmetology could get me more money if I get into the right salon so I went with that. I wanted to try out history too but there really isn't a job you can get that makes money with a degree in history." She stopped to take another bite letting Skaz take over.

"Well I was going to major in history but figured out the same thing you did. I went with economics instead since there are so many jobs out there for that. You know, doesn't matter what degree you have if there are no job openings for it although my other field of study would get me a job at a museum when I got old enough to wear diapers without looking out of place." Lindsey started to laugh nearly choking on her pizza. "What are you taking Daria?"

"Creative writing." Daria went back to her drink ignoring the other two.

"Wow I like to read, could I read any of your work? Or do you have any?" Skaz finished his pizza waiting for Daria to reply.

"No." Daria finished the rest of her drink quickly while Lindsey finished off the crust of her pizza. "How much do I owe you Skaz?"

"Nothing, I said I would pay for you."

"No you are not Skaz I am paying for myself; I don't need you to pay for me."

"Who cares about need? It's the man's job to pay for ladies when he takes them out to eat."

Daria got her wallet out and handed Skaz five dollars. "What makes you think I'm a lady?"

"It'd be rude to assume you weren't." Skaz tried to hand the money back but Daria wouldn't take it back. "Fine I'll keep it but it was only $2.19."

"Doesn't matter use the rest to pay for the gas." Daria stood up letting Lindsey out going to the door before Skaz could get there and open it for them. "By the way, what's your real name Skaz?"

"It's a stupid name." He walked over to his truck unlocking the passenger door and letting the two in.

"Come on Skaz what's your real name? I'll take the five bucks back if you tell me." Daria stood outside the door waiting for the answer.

"Alright fine, my name is Alexandrian, happy now?" Skaz handed Daria the money back before going to the driver side door and getting in.

"What's wrong with Alexandrian? It's a nice sounding name, Alexandrian." Lindsey got her seat belt on saying 'Alexandrian'.

"It's to long, five syllables is three to many. Also gets annoying when people keep asking you if it's ok to call you Alex. I'm not an Alex; Alex is a male and female name, like Dana or Quinn." Daria nearly choked on her tongue when she heard the word 'Quinn'. "So I made up Skaz to keep people from calling me Alex."

"Alright Skaz, thanks for the food again, is it ok if I listen to the radio?" Skaz nodded so Lindsey turned the radio on and looked through the stations until she got to a station playing some techno music. "Alright they do have a station out here for me!" Lindsey started to bob her head to the music annoying Daria. This was the music she heard when she woke up yesterday, that didn't sound so bad when she could only hear the beat.

"I have a headache Lindsey could you turn that off?" Lindsey turned the radio off quickly apologizing to Daria. "It's ok you didn't know." Daria was starting to regret coming out that day and wished her alarm never went off.

"Well it was nice hanging out and all but when we get back I need to get to my room to make sure my roommate is still alive." Skaz pulled into the parking lot of Raft. "He sleeps so much a sloth could beat him in a race." Turning the truck off Skaz lead them to the entrance to Raft waving good bye to go off to his dorm.

"He's really nice isn't he Daria? He's cute too. Lindsey nearly ran into another student not paying attention to where she was going.

"Sure, kind of an ass though, and snobbish, and I thought you didn't want him paying for you." Daria made sure Lindsey didn't run into anyone else grabbing her by the arm.

"Well I didn't but he offered so I let him. He's not an ass though Daria he is just sweet, he opened the door for us, how many guys do you know who still do that?"

"Plenty still do, they're called doormen." Daria got her key out since Lindsey was busy trying to defend Skaz to Daria. "Hey if you like him so much ask him out alright? I don't deal with all that girly stuff."

"But you're a girl, and I'm sure you had friends, heard you talking to one on the phone, so you must deal with this, being so waif like, must have had plenty of boyfriends." Lindsey kept going on about how great Daria must have been back home which started to annoy Daria.

"Look Lawndale sucks, I hate that place, I had one friend the whole time, one boyfriend who I broke up with before coming here, and I am not going to be someone who cares about that here. I got my scholarship so I could come here and learn not to go out with friends or find a boyfriend. I'm sorry you expect me to be like a sister but I couldn't stand my sister let alone a new one who is so wishy washy and has no backbone." Daria went to her room slamming the door shut angrier at herself then at Lindsey. She was supposed to at least make nice with her roommate and now she had just called her roommate weak. She could already hear Lindsey crying and turned her radio on to try and drown out the noise. Daria listened to her radio until she heard Lindsey knocking on her bedroom door. "Come in Lindsey." Daria turned her radio off when Lindsey came in.

"I'm sorry Daria I shouldn't have yelled at you." Daria was confused, wasn't she the one doing all the yelling? "I guess I am kind of wishy washy, but please don't be mad at me I didn't mean to make you mad." Daria got up and went over to Lindsey.

"Look you didn't yell at me and yet you are apologizing, I did all the yelling, I should be apologizing. Grow a back bone before school starts or you will let everyone walk all over you making your life hell." Daria walked past Lindsey and went out into the living room to get a drink. "I'm the one who's sorry alright? I shouldn't have yelled at you Lindsey even if I think you deserved it. So far you have been mostly nice to me if not completely open; you just annoy me with how you act. You didn't want Skaz to pay for you but you let him, you didn't want me to spend too much money on a TV yet when I do you just roll over after I tell you to. A worm has more back bone then you Lindsey, learn to stand up for yourself." Daria walked back into her room past Lindsey who looked ready to cry again. "Don't cry, that is really annoying, you'd cry over spilt milk if we had any to spill." Daria kept ranting for what seemed like hours to her, she just couldn't shut her mouth. After less then three days she was already more annoyed with Lindsey then after the three years of dealing with Kevin and Brittany combined. "Damn it this is what I need Jane for." Lindsey's eyes got big as she put a hand over her mouth.

"You're a bad person, bad people do drugs and you do Marijuana, which makes you bad." Daria had no idea what Lindsey was talking about.

"What? When did I say I did that?"

"You just said you need Jane for this, to relax, Jane is another word for Marijuana, which makes you a bad person. No wonder you don't like me I'm a good person." Daria finally realized what Lindsey was going on about.

"No that's Mary Jane; Jane is my friend from back home. I would never do drugs they are illegal and mess your brain up. I need Jane so I can rant to her about all the idiots around me so I don't go off on them." Daria bit her tongue too late, she didn't mean to imply, or out right call Lindsey an idiot.

"I'm not an idiot! I got into this school because I was smart! Unlike some people I can't wave a wand and get in because my entire family went here or because my family has money so old the mold on it is older than me!" She pushed Daria onto her bed, showing Daria that Lindsey did have a backbone.

"Like I can? My ex-boyfriend got into Bromwell because his uncle built them a damn building! I had better grades then Tom and his parents wrote a letter of recommendation and I still couldn't get in. My Mom worked very hard for 18 years at her law firm to make sure I would have money to go to college which she then gave to me when I got my scholarship." Daria got back up ready to push Lindsey out of her room.

"A lawyer!? She probably makes more money in a month then my mom does in a year! Her fancy suits, fancy cars, fancy house, trying to act like you had to earn a scholarship when your mommy could have just threatened to sue the school to let you in!" Lindsey was about to push Daria again when the phone rang. "Go get it it's probably one of you hundreds of rich snobby friends!" Lindsey turned on her heel and walked out slamming her door shut when she got to her room.

Daria got the phone and answered it on the fourth ring. "Hello?"

"Hey Daria I figured I would give you a call to see how you are doing." It was Tom Sloan.

"How did you get this number?"

"Jane told me it; she got it off her caller ID. So how you doing?"

"I could be doing better since right now my roommate is in her room yelling 'I hate you', how are you doing?"

"Alright I suppose, my roommate isn't yelling at me anyways. How are your dorm rooms? The ones here are pretty big, bigger then one would expect anyways."

"They are big enough for two people. So is Bromwell as uptight and snobbish as I expected?"

"Come on Daria no one could be that uptight or snobbish. How's Raft and Boston?"

"A larger version of Lawndale so far except I don't have Jane to talk to."

"Well you could always call her, they don't charge you if you call."

"I see didn't want to waste your money on me calling you so you figured you would call me? Have to start saving up for the Tom Sloan building."

"My uncle only paid for a wing not a building. Besides I figure if I just pay for a new parking lot it should be enough to get my kids in here." Daria smiled for the first time in days talking to Tom.

"Well glad you are enjoying Bromwell so far." Daria was interrupted by a loud boom followed by several others as Lindsey turned her radio up full blast listening to more techno. "Oh man that stuff is annoying when you hear the lyrics."

"What's that Daria?"

"Never mind, can I let you go Tom? I need to ironh things out with Lindsey, but first need to buy an iron, a tire iron."

"Now Daria they only pass you automatically if your roommate commits suicide not if you kill them."

"Fine I'll make it look like an accident." Daria hung up the phone without saying bye and went to Lindsey's door. She knocked hard but Lindsey didn't answer, the music was probably too loud so Daria just opened the door letting herself in.

"Get out!" Lindsey threw a half empty soda can at Daria missing completely.

"Look I'm sorry I said those things alright!" Daria tried yelling over the music. Lindsey leaned over and turned the volume down. "Look I'm sorry alright? I'm not use to having to deal with a roommate I never met before. I don't know you and yet I have to share the same bathroom with you, do you know how weird that is? At least I got to choose to be Jane's friend and wasn't forced to have her as a friend."

"Like I am? I didn't have any good friends back at home and now I am forced to live with you! So far you treat me like trash then yell at me because I let you! I didn't let you though I just kept it inside so maybe you would like me." Lindsey rested her head on an open hand. "I want to start over in Boston, in Raft. I hated Knoxville, I hated the people there, I am glad I am here. But you make it so difficult, I try to be nice and you call me spineless, I stand up to you and you yell at me even more, what the hell do you want Daria?" Daria was taken back by Lindsey and what she was saying.

"Look Lindsey you let Skaz walk all over you, did you even ask to be taken out for food or did he just say he was going to take us and you went along with it? You let me push you around on the important things but then stand up to me on stupid things. I'm sorry I kept yelling at you and I didn't mean to call you an idiot it's just I have gotten use to being able to go over to Jane's and talk to her when I wanted to, or Tom when he wasn't up at the Cove. Now I don't have them at my beck and call and have to keep my thoughts inside my head. I didn't have a headache earlier it was just the music was annoying me. Normally I would put up with it until I got home and went over to Jane's but now I can't do that and it is getting to me. This is a stressful situation for both of us and if we don't kill each other by the time school starts we will be on the right track."

"What is so wrong with me that you would want to kill me?" Lindsey was getting angry again and Daria had to save it or end up with Lindsey even angrier then before.

"Nothing it's just that I don't know you! I don't like meeting new people that much and when I do I like it to be on my terms. But now I have to get to know you because you are my roommate and I don't like that. If we had met in class and got along sure but in this situation I am forced to be your friend. Give me a few weeks to get use to you alright? If I still yell at you for stupid things then you can yell at me."

"Well ok, I guess, sorry I called you a bad person and said I hated you."

"Alright, and I'm sorry I yelled at you and called you spineless. Can we just try to end today without anymore yelling?" Lindsey nodded reaching over for something that was furry and black.

"Say hello to Hannah the Second." It was a stuffed animal of a cat. Lindsey then grabbed another furry animal that was gray. "And say hello to Keogh the Second." Daria thought it was a bit childish but didn't want to get into an argument so she said hi to both stuffed animals before going back to her room avoiding the spilled cola on the carpet. "Oh no can't let it stain!" Lindsey got up and went to the kitchen to get a rag to clean up the mess.

A few hours later Daria was in her room listening to a CD when Lindsey came in without knocking. "I'm going to bed Daria and was wondering if it's ok to play my music, it helps me sleep but it might bother you and I don't want to do that."

"No go ahead, goodnight." Lindsey left closing Daria's door behind her. Daria turned to see it was already past eleven o'clock and decided it was time for bed to. Turning her music off she could hear the beat coming from Lindsey's room. It was kind of soothing Daria admitted changing into her sleep shirt. Taking off her glasses Daria lay back and relaxed listening to the beat.