Disclaimer: I don't own Skins or the characters, but it'd be so cool if I did. :)
A/N: This was written for a prompt over on LJ but decided to share it here too. I hope everyone had a Happy Christmas and has a Happy New Year! xx
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I.
The thing about Katie Fitch was that she was incredibly stubborn.
Incredibly stubborn and surprisingly, sneakily intelligent, in ways she simply hadn't expected.
Incredibly stubborn, surprisingly intelligent, and oh so sexy.
That, Naomi decided, was a lethal combination. It was certainly bound to kill her, she thought.
The thing about Katie Fitch was that, as a result of all of those traits, she always got her way.
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II.
She should mind, she thought, that Katie had talked her into going shopping yet again. Okay, not so much 'talked her into' as 'bribed her with sex', but still. For some reason, it wasn't the sex reward or the fact that she was in Top Shop for the third time that month that she was focussed on as Katie nattered on about how hip beltswere coming back in style or some other shite that Naomi didn't care about at all.
Instead, it was the warm glow in her eyes and the cheeky half smile that Katie shot her every time she looked up and found her still standing there, browsing with her, as if, after a year and a half together and the promise of sex, Naomi was actually going to wander off and abandon her.
It was the way that Katie's long auburn hair fell back when she tilted her head to the side, humming thoughtfully to herself as she examined some top or another, exposing the bare, porcelain skin of her gorgeously kissable neck.
It was the smug, pleased expression she wore whenever Naomi stepped out of the fitting rooms in an outfit that Katie'd picked out for her (which always looked fantastic, Naomi had to admit).
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(Later it would be the wickedly seductive look that Katie shot her as she grabbed her hands and tugged her into the fitting room with her, pushing the button to lock the door.
It would be the way Katie arched back, simultaneously pushing both her breasts into Naomi's eager hands and grinding her pelvis harder against where her legs were already wrapped around Naomi's hips.
It would be the way that Katie bit down on her shoulder to suppress her moans so that they wouldn't be found out as her entire body shuddered against Naomi's and her cunt clenched over Naomi's fingers.)
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III.
Emily'd forgiven them before either of them expected her to. She always had the biggest heart of anyone Naomi ever knew, and she simply couldn't keep hating two people that she loved so much.
When she joined them in their new flat in London for Christmas, Naomi watched as Katie's world righted itself.
It wasn't that it had been upside down. In fact, Katie had claimed that Naomi had helped her right her world, had made her see that things like having children weren't nearly as important as who you might be having them with (if you could have them at all).
Naomi wasn't naïve, though.
She knew that Katie needed Emily just as much as Emily had always needed Katie, if not more so.
She knew that the amount that she missed having Emily in her life, as a friend, as someone to talk to and share ideas with, didn't even come close to the amount that Katie missed her twin.
She knew that Emily sitting across from them, smiling brightly as she and Katie pulled the wishbone, blushing faintly as she talked about a girl she'd met at school, laughing as she filled Katie in on James's latest escapades…she knew that that was where Emily belonged, and having her there completed all three of them.
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IV.
Jenna held a grudge.
Not that Naomi had expected anything else. She'd already 'corrupted' one daughter and now she'd 'brainwashed' the second one at a time when she was 'far too vulnerable'.
Katie told her, in no uncertain terms, that she was never so vulnerable that Naomi Campbell could turn her into a lesbian, but it just so happened that she loved Naomi.
Naomi had been speechless at the time.
Now they said it daily. Hourly, sometimes. Even more frequently, on occasion.
That didn't make it any less of a novelty. It didn't make Naomi's heart flutter any less, or her breath not hitch, or any of the things that she'd once assumed familiarity and repetition would do.
Jenna didn't want to hear it. She didn't believe in love between girls their age. They were too young.
Funny how they'd been too young for two years now. And according to Katie, Jenna'd gotten engaged to Rob at twenty, but apparently it didn't matter that they were a whole year older than Jenna was when she'd known who she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.
Not that Naomi and Katie were talking anything like marriage.
They just lived together.
And loved each other.
They were wearing Jenna down, though. All of them. Rob, James, Emily, and her and Katie. Slowly, but surely, Naomi found herself getting ignored less and less at family meals.
And Katie was stubborn. Just as stubborn as Jenna. And not afraid to be outspoken about it, too.
Besides, Katie always got her way, so Naomi knew she'd win eventually and Jenna's grudge would dissolve into nothingness.
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V.
Naomi was sure that it shouldn't take a month of fighting to decide on a cat versus a dog. Naomi wanted a cat to begin with. They're independent, clean, and don't constantly demand attention.
Katie, of course, wanted a puppy.
Then she saw a group of kittens at the pet store and wanted one of them.
Then she saw a puppy and she decided she wanted both.
Naomi wasn't stupid. She knew that what with Katie being so busy with work and her being home studying all the time, she'd be the one who actually had to take care of whatever they got.
Besides, Naomi wasn't going to get any pet from the pet store. Not when there were puppy mills out there with horrid conditions selling to the pet stores. Not when the poor animals in the stores lived in teensy little cages that definitely couldn't give them enough space to exercise properly. Not when there were perfectly good pets that needed adopting from shelters.
Of course, when they went to the shelter, there was a one year old male cat and a four year old female dog that had bonded and were snuggling together, and the dog looked up so adorably at them, and licked Katie's hand as soon as she reached out to pet her, and the cat came and brushed up against Naomi's leg right away.
Naomi didn't even need to wait for Katie to turn puppy dog eyes on her. She knew they were leaving with the both of them.
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VI.
"I don't believe in marriage," Naomi said, pushing Tink (Naomi absolutely refused to call her Tinkerbell, even though Katie had said that it suited her with the blonde fur) off the sofa once again. Stupid dog didn't understand that she wasn't allowed on it. Of course, that might have been partially because Katie didn't reprimand her when she was.
"What?" Katie glared. "You're joking, right? Like, you do know I work for a fucking wedding planning business, right?"
"It's an outdated institution," Naomi argued.
"It's a way to come together before family and friends and show the whole world that you love each other and you will forever!"
"It's a piece of paper. You don't need a piece of paper to tell you who you love."
The glare that Katie shot her way then was so intense, Naomi wondered if it might actually kill her.
"Are you saying that you never want to get married?"
Katie's voice was low, quiet, almost threatening.
Oh.
Of course, Naomi logically knew that Katie was a weddings and dresses and big gestures kind of girl, but she'd never really thought about them, together, in that context.
"I- Well, I mean-" Naomi stammered. "Never say never, I suppose."
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VII.
She could see it sometimes. The hurt. The disbelief that she'd actually chosen Katie. Even now after all this time.
After declarations of love.
After night spent cradled in each other's arms just breathing together, being together.
After fights resolved and obstacles overcome together.
Naomi knew that part of Katie, buried deep down somewhere, ignored most of the time in the face of all of the evidence to the contrary, worried that Emily was really the one that Naomi wanted.
If only Naomi could get it through her stubborn little head exactly how wrong that was.
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VIII.
It was only a piece of paper.
It wasn't really much of a concession to make to prove it to her.
Naomi could do that. She could get the piece of paper. She could show her. She could show the world.
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IX.
"Do you even realise how beautiful you are?"
Simple words. Stupid words, even, because beauty was such a subjective thing, and yet Naomi felt her heart swell and her mouth go dry. Maybe it was just the way that Katie was staring up at her, stroking the hair back from her face as she hovered over her, only to have it persistently fall back again. The pure adoration and love in her gaze made Naomi melt.
"Compliments are always nicer returned, Naomi," Katie said, sounding rather impatient, when Naomi didn't reply for a while.
Naomi let out a small laugh and ducked her head to place a kiss on Katie's adorable nose. "Nowhere half as beautiful as you, Katie."
Katie wrinkled her nose, but Naomi caught the flush of her cheeks, and knew that she'd heard the truth behind her sarcastic response.
Yeah, she decided, a piece of paper and a ring really weren't so bad.
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X.
"That's wonderful, darling!"
"Really?" Naomi furrowed her brows. "You're not...against it or something? You don't think the institution of marriage goes against feminism or conforms too much to societal expectations?"
"Oh, it can do both of those things in the wrong situations. This isn't one of them, Naomi, or you wouldn't even be considering it," her mum assured her. "Marriage can be a beautiful thing."
The kettle whistled and her mum stood to tend to it. She stopped to kiss Naomi on the head on the way past. "You need to stop thinking so much with your head when you're following your heart, love."
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XI.
She hadn't taken into account the whole permission asking thing. Nobody would've had to ask her mum a thing. Emily, however, insisted that not only would Rob and Jenna probably appreciate it, but Katie would expect it because she'd gotten it into her head when they'd read some Jane Austen book as kids, and had decided that was the thing to do.
Rob wasn't really the issue, although he could be well scary when he so chose. He liked her at least. While he might have been in denial about the state of their virginity, he always seemed genuinely happy about their relationship.
To her surprise, Jenna simply pursed her lips and raised her eyebrows. "You're serious about this, then?"
"Would I honestly be here if I weren't?" Naomi pointed out.
To Naomi's relief and surprise, the corners of Jenna's mouth turned up.
"I suppose not," was Jenna's reply with a thin, but genuine smile.
"You take good care of our daughter, now, yeah?" Rob said with a large grin.
She would, she promised. Forever she would.
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XII.
It was ridiculous how nervous she was with the stupid ring burning a hole in her pocket. How could someone who didn't even believe in marriage put so much weight on a proposal?
And of course the best laid plans went tits up. The restaurant lost their reservation and it would be a fucking sixty minute wait if they wanted a table, and Katie was hungry and cranky so they ended up finding a fish and chip stand nearby instead.
The romantic stroll along the Thames got vetoed by London's typical rainy bullshit, and of course the fucking bus was late.
By the time they made it back to their flat they were soaked and tired, and the ring was still burning that hole through her pocket.
Katie pinned her to the wall in a searing kiss. "I'm sorry I was a bit shit earlier. You know what I'm like when I'm hungry, and I didn't have a chance to stop for lunch today," she apologised as she nibbled on Naomi's ear.
Best laid plans or not, Naomi was in love. She ran her fingers through Katie's dripping hair, pushing it back from where it was plastered across her cheek. She swallowed hard, the speech she'd prepared escaping her.
"Katie, I'll always want this," the words gushed out of her, an unstoppable force. "Always. I'll always want you."
Katie's kiss cut her off, but Naomi broke the kiss with a gasp as she dug into the pocket of her coat, flipping open the lid of the small box and extracting the ring. She tugged too hard as it caught on the lining of the pocket, and it fell to the ground.
"Fuck," she muttered as Katie stepped away and watched with curious eyes as she ran her hands over the carpet, unsure of exactly where the delicate metal band with the small diamond (the biggest that she could afford) had fallen.
For a nice change, she found it quickly, and she held it out to Katie before she could drop it again.
Katie's eyes went wide as realisation dawned.
"I'll always want you," Naomi repeated.
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XIII.
The thing about Katie Fitch was that when she said "Yes", it was the most beautiful word Naomi had ever heard.
