Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, they belong to ABC family and whoever else holds the rights to them.
Summary: An away meet provides Emily and Paige with the opportunity to bond. A friendship and an eventual romantic relationship ensues.
Timeline: A non-specific point in the second season. I'm not following cannon very strictly, though I will be drawing on it on occasion. There's no A in my story though.
Rating: M for future chapters
Author's Note: I'm writing this story for this month's NaNoWriMo challenge. For anyone who doesn't know what that is, it's this totally insane endeavor that writers embark on where they attempt to write a 50 000 word novel in one month. If the story pans out the way I hope that it does, it will probably progress past the month's end, however, while I'm writing the story for myself, I'm posting it for others. So I ask that, if you're reading it, to take the time and leave me a review. Doesn't have to be much, just a quick note to say hi, I'm still here, still interested, will do. Otherwise, I'll just add this story to my already vast collection of personal ones.
Chapter One
"All right, Sharks, listen up." Coach Fulton's voice rang out over the din of conversation in the hotel lobby. A hush fell slowly over the group assembled off side of the bank of elevators as the girls turned to face their coach. "I have your room keys right here," she continued, holding up a manila envelope. "Now, thanks to the generous support from some of our boosters and the fundraising efforts you girls have put in over the last few weeks, I managed to get us all a bit of an upgrade. We won't be cramming five or six of you into a room this year."
There was a chorus of cheers from some of the assembled girls, but it died down quickly as Coach cleared her throat.
"You will still have to double, and in some cases, triple up," she continued.
Emily bit her lip and glanced around at her teammates, uncertain as to whether it would be better or worse to be bunking one on one.
"Okay, girls, your room assignments are as follows, Abrams, Casey. Daniels, Brant…"
Emily shifted in place as she listened to the names of the girls who were being paired up. She watched them manoeuver through the crowd to get their key cards from the coach, her heart rate increasing as she awaited her own name being called.
"…Fields, McCullers…"
Emily's breath hitched in her throat as her gaze darted first to her coach and then over to Paige, wondering if she should say something. Maybe suggest a switch with one of the other girls? From the way Paige was glancing sidelong over at her, Emily could guess that the other girl was thinking the exact same thing. Inexplicably, it stung.
She started in place as she realized that eyes were on her, the other girls were waiting for her and Paige to move forward and claim their room keys. Averting her gaze from the curious, probing stares and ignoring the flurry of whispers that rippled out among the team she kept her eyes firmly on her converse clad feet as she made her way to the front of the crowd.
"Thanks, coach," she murmured as she reached the older woman first and took the two plastic cards from her hand. She received barely a nod in response before Coach was on to the next set of names on her list.
She didn't hear the rest of the pairings as she slipped off to the side. A moment later, Paige came to a stop beside her. Silently Emily handed her one of the cards. She got no response as it was plucked neatly from her fingers.
"Coach Wyatt and I have rooms at either end of the hall. We will be checking in on you periodically throughout the evening. I don't need to remind you that there are other people staying at this hotel and you're here as representatives of your school. You will conduct yourselves accordingly. Right?"
There were nods all around as she shot them all a stern glance. For most of them, this was not their first away competition. There was only one freshman on the team who had qualified for this meet, the rest of them were old hat at this by now. And the rules had been drilled into them time and time again in the weeks leading up to this weekend. No smoking. No drinking. No parties. No noise. Curfew was eleven and bed checks would be performed. Not that any of these rules would actually stop anyone who was intent on doing any of those things, but these girls were athletes and this weekend was an important qualifying meet. None of them were willing to jeopardize their team standing, or in the case of some of the seniors, scholarship opportunities. As with most meets, there were scouts here and all of them wanted to show themselves off in the best possible light.
"All right girls, dinner is at seven at the restaurant upstairs. Let's get settled in and meet back down here then."
There was a flurry of activity as the girls gathered up their bags and gravitated towards the elevators. Emily found herself at the front of the second group to go up. She allowed herself to be jostled to the back of the small car and dropped her duffle bag to the floor by her feet as she leaned against the wall and waited for her team mates to shuffle in. The others all seemed eager to get upstairs and check out their accommodations, but she wasn't in any rush. The thought of spending the next three days in a hotel room with Paige McCullers was the last thing she'd ever look forward to. She'd been nervous enough about this away meet, the first once since she'd come out a few weeks earlier, uncertain about how her teammates would react to having to share a room with her. None of them had said anything to her outright, but she'd noticed a lot more modesty in the locker room than she was used to seeing. There had been a number of sidelong glances as they were changing, as if trying to catch her peeking. It had been bad enough thinking that she would be spending the next couple of days in such close quarters with a couple of her teammates, sharing a bathroom, possibly even sharing a bed but to learn that she'd be spending those couple of days alone, in a room with anyone was difficult enough to process but to have it be Paige, out of everyone on the team, was ten times worse.
The two of them had never been friends, but they'd maintained a friendly rivalry. They'd joined the team at the same time, as freshmen, and their times had always been close. They'd been paired together for training often, both in the pool and out. They spent a lot of time, just the two of them, running the track and lifting weights and doing laps in the pool, their competitive natures driving both themselves and each other on. If one of them set a record, the other wasn't far behind to break it.
There had been a marked shift in Paige's behaviour towards her around the time those photos of her and Maya kissing had started circulating and rumours of Emily's sexuality had abounded. Gone was the friendly banter, the playful trash talking, replaced instead by an aggressive intensity on the instances that they actually trained together, because suddenly, Paige was swimming in the evenings instead of in the mornings and showing up in the weight room just as Emily was leaving and taking runs around town instead of on the track. They hadn't exchanged a pleasant word in months.
The elevator jolted to a stop, pulling Emily from her thoughts as she gripped the hand railing to prevent herself from pitching forward. She shook herself out of her stupor as the other girls filed out, dispersing quickly down the hallway towards their rooms. With a sigh she grabbed up her duffel, slinging it over her shoulder as she trailed them out of the elevator. She glanced down at the key card in her hand, then craned her head first right, then left, trying to figure out the order of the room numbers. A moment later she determined that her room was down the hall to the left and around the corner so she turned and headed that way.
She was in no particular hurry to reach the room, but there were only so many slow, shuffling steps she could take before she reached it anyway. At the door she paused, one hand on the knob as she took a deep, fortifying breath and swiped the card. There was a click, a beep and the green light flashed, granting her entrance. Slowly she pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The room was cast in shadows, the only light on was the one between the beds. And Emily took a moment to be grateful for small favors, because at least there were two. As far as hotel rooms went, it was pretty standard. Two beds about a foot apart along one wall, a long, low chest of drawers with a TV angled at the near end. There was a small table and an armchair tucked in the corner beside the window, which took up most of the adjacent wall.
She was so busy taking in the room that she almost didn't notice Paige standing in the shadows by the window, trying to work the drapes. She just barely managed to prevent herself from jumping, startled, as they suddenly slid open with a whoosh, filling the room with the soft, muted glow of twilight.
"Ooh, look, a room with a view," Paige muttered, causing Emily to glance up just in time to see Paige looking back at her, a smirk on her face as she jerked her thumb over her shoulder behind her. Emily followed the motion and couldn't help the small laugh that escaped as she realized that opposite their window was a brick wall.
"Well, at least it's colorful," she said, her eyes roaming over the lurid graffiti that covered the wall's surface.
Paige snorted softly. But when she didn't reply or make any further comments the lighthearted moment faded quickly. Emily shifted in place and then slung her duffel bag onto the bed closest to her. She followed it a moment later, collapsing gracelessly onto the surprisingly comfortable mattress. Using the toes of the opposite foot she kicked off her shoes, letting them fall to the ground between the bed and the wall with a thump and shifted up the bed until she was resting against the pillows. She felt Paige's eyes on her but didn't bother to turn her head to look. Instead she let her eyes drift shut.
There was some rustling as Paige, presumably unpacked a few things and settled in.
"We've still got awhile until we're supposed to meet the others for dinner," Paige said into the uneasy silence that had settled between them. "I think I'm just going to freshen up."
Emily's head lolled to the side and she pried one eye open to take in Paige standing at the foot of her bed, a towel draped over her shoulder as she made a vague gesture behind her to the bathroom, which Emily had failed to notice in her initial sweep of the room. She made a non-committal noise and let her eyes fall shut again. Paige's shuffling steps crossed the room and the door slid shut with a click, and then quiet ensued.
She must have drifted off into a nap, because the next thing she became aware of was a whoosh of warm air rolling over her and a bright light that stung against her closed lids. She blinked rapidly against the harshness and slid up into a sitting position, her vision clearing just in time to see Paige reach behind her and shut off the bathroom light as she stepped out into the room.
"Sorry," she muttered as the room was cast once again in shadows.
"It's all right," Emily murmured sleepily, rubbing her eyes and automatically turning her gaze to address the other girl as she spoke to her.
Her heart stuttered in her chest and she had to remind herself to breathe as she caught sight of a towel clad Paige standing by the table under the window, rooting around in duffel bag. The towel was wearing was short and precariously positioned. It wrapped snugly around her torso, just above the curve of her breasts and barely reached the tops of her thighs. When she moved, the slit along the side where one corner was curled into the edge holding the towel in place, fluttered open, revealing a silvery flash of skin. Her hair was slicked back and still dripping down her shoulders. Her body was long and lean, her muscles flexing and shifting even with the simple action of rifling through her bag.
For a moment Emily was simply stunned, dumbfounded. It's not that she had never noticed Paige was attractive. Of course she noticed. Anyone with eyes would notice. They'd been on the same team for two and a half years now and it was impossible not to be aware of the other girls long, lean body. Of her broad shoulders and sculpted muscles, her taut, flat abs and legs that went on for days. Not to mention her wide, expressive eyes and the faint twitch of her lips before she offered up that broad, easy grin.
She had definitely noticed Paige, but in a way that almost offhand, a peripheral awareness, without actually being aware. She had, for a long time, deliberately not examined why she noticed things like the slight swagger in Paige's steps, or the way her swimsuit hugged the curves of her body when she levered herself out of the pool, the same way she had deliberately not examined the way her eyes had been drawn to Alison's abs every time she wore a mid-riff baring t-shirt or a bikini, or the way her heart had fluttered every time her friend had smiled her way or brushed a hand against her wrist to catch her attention.
It had taken a long time before she'd allowed herself to admit that the attention and interest she paid in other girl's bodies was not within the realm of the everyday comparison that her peers engaged in. And it had only been recently that she had finally allowed herself to act on it. Things Maya had been rocky at the start but being with her had been a revelation and incredibly freeing. Though they had ended their romantic relationship, Emily would always care for the other girl, and would always credit her with being the one who had helped her finally be herself.
Of everyone, it had been Paige who had given her the widest berth since the rumours of her sexuality had started circling. And it had only gotten worse when Emily had officially come out. So it was a little surprising to see her moving around the hotel room so casually, so easily, wearing so little.
She forced her gaze away, not wanting to be that girl, the one that all her team mates feared that she was, the one who checked out other girls while they changed, unaware. She stared up at the ceiling instead, seeking out patterns in the stucco in an attempt to rid the image from her brain.
She tried to tune out the rustle of Paige's movements as she got dressed, tried not to picture each motion because she really, really, did not need those mental images in her head for the duration of this weekend.
Yet, try as she might, Emily couldn't quite seem to keep her head from turning, her eyes from seeking out the other girl. She glanced over once again to find Paige silhouetted against the window in a pair of low slung skinny jeans and a bra, her back to Emily as she pulled a shirt down over her head and tugged her hair free of its collar. She actually had to bite her lip to hold back the moan that rose in her throat as the smooth skin and sculpted muscles of her back disappeared beneath the silky looking fabric.
Paige braided her hair quickly and wrapped an elastic around the end and turned, giving Emily just enough time to turn her head and slam her eyes closed, feigning that she was still napping. She only hoped that the room was dim enough to cover the blush that she could feel burning her cheeks.
"Shower's all yours," Paige said softly, her voice startling Emily into opening her eyes. "The water pressure kind of sucks, but it heats up nice."
"Mmhmm," Emily hummed, struck suddenly with an image of Paige beneath the shower head. She shook her head slightly to clear it and sat up. "I think I'll grab a quick shower," she said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and pushing herself up onto her feet.
Emily made her escape into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. She leaned heavily against it and closed her eyes, trying to gather her wits. After a moment her heart rate slowed and her thoughts stopped trying to take off in directions she didn't want them to go. She let out a sigh, opened her eyes and pushed herself off the door.
The bathroom was small and cramped, with just enough space for the sink, tub and toilette. It would only take a couple of steps to get from one side of the room to another. There were no windows and no fan, so the air was still heavy and wet. Tendrils of steam swirled around the light fixture in the ceiling, and Emily tried really hard not to think about what had caused the state of the room. She crossed the distance of the room in two easy strides and turned on faucet, letting the water heat up before stepping in.
Paige was right, the water pressure sucked. She had to stand about an inch away from the shower head to be under the stream, but it was consistently hot. She washed her hair in the antiseptic smelling hotel shampoo, silently cursing herself for not listening to her mother and picking up some travel sized bottles and then lathered up with the equally unpleasant smelling body wash. Once she was finished she lingered under the spray, luxuriating in the way it pounded gently against muscles that were tight and tense from being stuck on a bus for the past two hours. It was only when the heat of the room and the steam started making her feel lightheaded and dizzy that she shut off the water and stepped out into the room. She wrung her hair out as best she could and dried off before wrapping herself in the large, rough-hewn towel. The material scratched her skin and no matter how tight she pulled it closed across her chest, it wouldn't stay in up. She ended up having to hold it in place with one hand.
It was a relief to step out of the stuffy bathroom and she let out a soft sigh of contentment as the relative cool air of the hotel room met her heated skin. Her eyes immediately sought out Paige, who was propped up against the pillows of her bed, thumbs tapping away at the cell phone cradled in her hands. Her gaze flicked up as Emily stepped into the room, seemingly giving her body a sweeping once over and then instantly dropped, only to dark back up a moment later and hold Emily's eye for a minute before darting away. She cleared her throat softly and dipped her head slightly, her hair falling forward to form a curtain around her face. But not before Emily thought she detected a hint of a blush on her cheeks.
A blush, really?
Emily shook her head, chiding herself for being ridiculous and turned her attention back to getting ready. She hadn't brought much for this weekend away, aside from her bathing suits and warmups, she'd packed some jeans, a few t-shirts and a couple of nicer shirts, in case the team decided to go out somewhere nice after the meet. Somehow, she didn't think the restaurant of this not quite a dive hotel counted as such, so she pulled out the first pair of jeans and t-shirt she laid her hands on. As she slipped into the matching bra and panty set that she had bought, at Hanna's insistence, a smile crossed her face recalled the conversation surrounding it.
"Ooh, that's cute," Hanna cooed, veering across the aisle and into the lingerie section, pulling Emily with her via their linked arms. "Don't you think this is cute, Em?" She stopped in front of a rack of floral printed bra and panty sets and picked up one in light yellow with white daisies on it.
"Sure, Han."
"You didn't even look at it."
"I did so look at it."
"Then how can you not find it absolutely adorable?"
Emily shrugged one shoulder, which made Hannah huff in annoyance.
"Are you going to get it?"
"Maybe the pink one, with the roses. But, I think this one would look awesome on you."
Emily eyed the garments once more. "I don't think so Han. It's not really my style."
"I would think that you, out of all people, would have a little more interest in pretty underwear."
"Just what is that supposed to mean?"
"Oh, come on Em, isn't part of loving the ladies loving the lacy, frilly, girly wear?"
Emily just rolled her eyes.
"You should totally by it," Hannah insisted. "You need to expand your wardrobe beyond sports bras and boyshorts."
"What's the point?" She attempted logic, though it was something that rarely worked on her friend. "It's not like anybody's going to see it anyway."
"You never know." She held the set out to Emily, who crossed her arms and attempted to stare her down.
Hannah wasn't deterred. "I can do this all day," she said breezily. And Emily knew that she wasn't kidding. With a sigh she snatched it out of Hanna's hands.
You never know is right, she thought, biting back a smile as she pulled her jeans up her legs, hopping a couple times in place to get them to settle just right at her hips. She didn't know for sure that Paige was eyeing her as she dressed. Chances were she wasn't, and the prickling feeling that Emily felt along the back of her neck was just hyperawareness that someone else was in the room with her, and not an indication that eyes were on her. But apparently Hanna was right, you just never know.
She couldn't help but wonder, if Paige was watching her, was she enjoying the show? And, did she like the underwear set? Emily shook her head before the thoughts could settle, attempting to dismiss the whole notion before she made this weekend's living situation more awkward than it already was. She pulled on her t-shirt and ran a brush through her hair and left it to dry in loose waves over her shoulders. She fingered her make-up bag for a minute then cast it aside. It was just dinner with the team, there was no need to get all done up. Ready in what was probably record time, Emily now found herself at a loss for what to do. She glanced over her shoulder at Paige, who appeared absorbed in her phone and then around the room.
Her own phone had been noticeably silent all day. Hanna and Caleb were in Philly for the day, Spencer was tied up at the club with her parents and Aria was holed up with Ezra in his apartment for the weekend while her dad was away in Scranton for some kind of teacher's conference and Emily found herself feeling somewhat adrift without the constant stream of text messages and phone calls. The year apart had been jarring, but they'd come back together closer than ever and it was strange to realize how quickly she had become re-accustomed to having the other girls always at her fingertips.
"Megan just texted." Paige's voice startled Emily, causing her to jump. She spun around and saw the other girl smirking amusedly at her. "Most of the girls are getting hungry, so they're heading down to dinner early," she continued. "Are you ready to go?"
Emily shrugged. "Yeah, sure I guess."
Paige nodded and quickly typed out a response, then tucked her phone into her pocket. Emily watched out of the corner of her eye as she slid to her feet and reached for her jacket, shrugging it easily over her shoulders. She spun away before Paige could turn to face her, cheeks burning as she chided herself to stop it, to nip whatever this was in the bud right now, before things got awkward. She slid on her own jacket, tucked her room key into her back pocket and headed for the door. Paige was a few steps behind her as she made her way down the hallway to the bank of elevators.
They stood silently as they waited for the doors to open, and once they had they stepped inside for a silent ride down to the restaurant. It appeared that Emily and Paige were the last to arrive. The rest of their team mates had settled around a couple of tables pushed together in the center of the room, menus spread out around. The two of them slipped into the only two available seats, side by side, just left of the middle of the table. Conversations swirled around them, and soon they were both pulled into separate ones. They didn't speak at all during dinner, save for the occasional request to pass a condiment.
When dinner was over, a couple of the seniors on the team convinced Coach Fulton to take them to a movie, since it was still fairly early. One of the girls had google mapped the area and apparently there was a theatre a few blocks away. Emily opted not to go. She was tired, from travelling and things had gone pretty smoothly today, she decided not to push her luck. She'd never been particularly close to any of the girls on the team and the distance had only grown more pronounced since she'd come out. None of them had ever said anything to her directly about it, they all still exchanged polite small talk with her if they ran into her in the lunch line or in the hall between classes but the conversations had felt stilted, uneasy.
When she declined the invitation, nobody asked her if she was sure, if she really wouldn't consider coming, which only reinforced that her decision to end the night on a high note was a good one. She bid her goodnight to the girls and headed for the elevator, which would take her back upstairs where she could get comfy in her pj's and watch some cheesy made-for-TV movie in bed.
It wasn't until she'd pressed the call button and stepped back to lean against the wall that she realized she wasn't the only one who had opted not to go. She almost jumped, startled by the presence at her back and spun around to face Paige, who was biting her lip, trying not to laugh.
"Sorry," she said, holding her hands up in the universal sign for surrender. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's okay." Emily averted her gaze, hoping that Paige wouldn't notice the faint blush heating her cheeks. "Why aren't you going with the others?"
Paige tucked her hands into the back pockets of her jeans and shrugged. "I was going to. But then, Lys mentioned a Nicholas Sparks movie and I was like whoa, I'm out of here."
"Can't blame you there," Emily said, laughing lightly. Hanna was a sucker for romantic movies, meaning that Emily had been subject to all of them. Despite the years of exposure, she had never quite developed a fondness for them the way she had with Aria's beloved black and white's or Spencer's foreign films. To be fair, however, Hanna still complained every time it was Emily's turn to pick on movie night because she wasn't a big fan of action or horror.
"Like you're not escaping upstairs to watch The Notebook on-demand for the millionth time," Paige faux- scoffed, offering Emily a teasing smile. "Or, maybe Pride and Prejudice is more your style," she said as the elevator doors slid open and they stepped inside.
"More like Pride, Prejudice and Zombies," Emily said with a shake of her head.
"Seriously?" Paige turned to face Emily, her whole face lit up with excitement and her body practically vibrating with excess energy. "Or are you just messing with me?"
Emily shook her head. "One thing I would never joke about is zombies." She held a hand up. "Scout's honor."
Paige let out a peel of laughter. "That's from Star-trek," she said as she reached out to fold Emily's thumb and pinkie finger down and push the other three together. "That's scouts honor."
Emily glanced over at her hand, the skin of which was still tingling from where Paige's fingers had touched, and then back at Paige, who was grinning amusedly at her. "Oops," she said, shrugging her shoulder and letting her hand fall back to her side.
Paige shook her head. "You know there's a classics movie marathon on the Fantasy Network tonight," she said. "A creature feature movie marathon."
Emily was nodding before Paige had even finished speaking. "I'm in."
"Awesome," Paige drawled as the elevator jolted to a stop and the doors slid open with a whoosh. She stepped out and led the way down the hallway, leaving Emily to follow behind her and marvel, somewhat dazedly, about this unexpected turn of events.