Holly had done a damn good job of avoiding this moment for weeks now. If she had to grade herself on avoidance recently, she'd easily give herself an A. A for A Damn Good Job. She'd been the queen of dodging. Holly Stewart : Master in the Art of Evasion. When the call came in for Forensics in 15's territory, though, this time there was no one else to go. It was up to her. All her. There was no one available but good ol' Dr. Stewart. It would be just Holly and a bunch of cops that probably really hated her guts.
Oh, and a dead guy. Let's not forget the dead guy.
A wave of relief crinkles through her when Traci greets her near the entrance of the building. Not so much a wave, but a thousand pound weight was actively lifting off her shoulders. She didn't even know why, but Nash is comforting. It must be Traci's easy smile and quick wave. Or maybe it was that the lead detective wasn't Steve Peck, because that would have sucked a big one.
It's Nash, though. Nash is friendly, despite the circumstances. Nash is always friendly. She is also all business. No need to get personal up in this crime scene.
"Doctor," Traci says. She launches right in, "Male, approximately 30 years old. No identification on the body yet. Collins found him hanging from a rafter while investigating a missing persons report."
Traci leads her through the entrance, up a few steps and Holly follows down a corridor.
"So, Dead Guy isn't Missing Guy?" Holly gathers.
"No," Nash shakes her head. "We haven't found a connection yet, but it's suspicious enough that we wanted to dot all the i's, here."
"Gotcha."
Holly knows where they're going due to the yellow tape and small group of uniforms that are staked out in the hallway, but she stays behind Nash anyway. Maybe Holly needs a buffer, or maybe a shield of the human variety…just in case.
Once Holly passes the gathered officers, she sighs. Traci looks knowingly over her shoulder. Her mouth opens like she might say something, but Holly's attention is drawn away by the body that's still hanging from the ceiling.
"Whoa," Holly says upon sight. She quickly opens her kit and pulls out a couple of gloves.
"Whoa?"
"I need a ladder," she says to one of the forensics crew she recognizes. He must have anticipated that request, because he's back with it in a flash. It only takes Holly a few seconds before she states to Nash unequivocally. "Dead Guy isn't Suicidal Guy, either."
"How do we know?"
"He was dead long before he was ever tied up here," Holly explains. "The ligature marks aren't consistent with hanging and there's bruising around his mouth and nose. Looks like somebody tried a couple different ways to suffocate him." She climbs down a couple steps and studies his hands. "Fought back, too. Looks like he…"
As hard as it is to believe, Holly swears she feels her between she sees her. There is just a tiny prickle along her spine and she knows. A small shift of her eyes to the right and she confirms it.
All the air rushes out of her lungs. Completely inappropriately, too, especially since she's next to victim of asphyxiation.
Gail never cares a bit about being inappropriate, though.
Holly wants to say something. Actually, Holly wants to scream something, but instead she just balances there on a fucking ladder, staring down at Gail.
No, not anymore. It's Officer Peck, now.
No. Fuck that. It's Gail.
Holly has seen her naked. Holly's head has been between her thighs. Gail is Gail, dammit.
And Gail is doing everything in her power not to look at Holly.
Really. Everything.
Gail's eyes scan the room twice just in the time Holly has been looking at her. Each time they're in Holly's general vicinity, she looks at the ceiling to avoid eye contact. Maybe she's afraid Holly would enforce the whole "tase myself in the eye" thing.
"Dr. Stewart?" Traci snaps her fingers. "Looks like what?"
"What?" Holly visibly shakes herself out of it. She rests the victim's hand back down at his side. "Oh, looks like he got a few punches in before he was killed."
Traci nods at the information and looks between the two women, both of which are so obviously extremely uncomfortable. "Got a fighter on our hands, huh?"
"Yeah," Holly answers, eyes seeking Gail. "A real fighter."
Soon enough, Gail has disappeared yet again. Holly knows she's close. She wouldn't have gone far. It's a good thing, though. Now, Holly can think straight again. She efficiently collects a few samples here and there. She takes out her digital camera and snaps several photos for further analysis as well. She's trying to zone out of everything that isn't strictly work-related, but a certain name pricks her ears.
"Gail is pretty intent on getting me signed up on CopMatch dot com," Nick chuckles. "She's been taking pictures for days now."
"Is that so?" McNally asks him curiously.
Really, Holly doesn't know why she keeps tuning into the conversation going on around her. It's probably because pertinent information is also interlaced with ridiculous cop gossip. When did Collins become so gossipy? Around the same time he started trying to convince Andy he was moving on was Holly's best guess.
"I reminded her that she was single now, too," Collins continues. "So, I can always post all her embarrassing shit, too. But, hey, we both kinda figure who better to ward off others than each other, right?"
Okay, well, that is like a quick jab to the gut. No, no. That is more like a double fisted combination knock out punch. That's one way to describe it. Yeah. It is a sucker punch with all the awesome things that come with it.
The clamoring for oxygen.
The sharp, piercing pain.
That lightheaded feeling that resides somewhere between puking and just passing out.
That's what it feels like.
Gail is moving on, too, it seems. And not only moving on, but moving on at the lighting quick speed of DSL.
"Good to see ya, Doc," Oliver pulls her out of her head and back into the moment. "Not a great circumstance, but-"
Holly nods and gives him a small smile. "Hi Oliver."
"Haven't seen you around in a while."
"I…uh…" she stalls, catching Gail in her periphery. "Have been…other places."
"Well, glad you're back," Oliver says and then turns away, effectively ending their interaction. "Collins," he points at Nick. "I need you to make sure we interview everybody in the building. Do another pass if you have to."
"No problem," Nick says and starts to head toward the door.
"McNally," Oliver hooks his thumb over his shoulder toward where Nick just exited.
"Yes, sir," McNally understands and follows suit.
"Peck."
"On it," Gail was waiting to be told to do anything besides be in this room, so she was already halfway out the door.
"You're with the doc."
Gail froze.
Holly froze.
Oliver froze.
Adele Dazim, the coroner and an all-around in-the-know lady, froze.
"Wait," Gail held up her hand. "Are you sure? Don't you need me to help Collins?"
"You're asking to help Collins?" Oliver asked quietly. "All the more reason you should stay."
"I…" Holly yells it and then forces herself to quiet down, "Ol- uh, Sergeant Shaw, I'm almost done here then I'll be heading back to the morgue. I don't nee-"
"Then take Peck to the morgue."
"Oliver," Gail blew through her teeth. "She doesn't nee-"
"It's an order, Peck."
XXXXX
Gail is pouting. Holly can see her bottom lip jutting out in the reflection of one of the morgue windows. She had glanced up into it to see Gail a little under a million times since she'd arrived an hour ago. Gail is incredibly stoic, though. She's still yet to say a word.
It's not that Holly had said much, herself. She did greet Gail when she arrived. Holly very nicely offered her a bag of pretzels that Gail silently turned down. Holly had eventually set a bottle of water on her desk and awkwardly pointed at it, knowing that Gail would get the hint.
A few minutes later, she hears Gail's boots against the floor. Then, seconds later, a faint gulp as Gail drinks down the water.
Holly takes it as a good sign.
"You know," Holly says, not looking up from her magnifier. "I could call you if I find anything. You don't have to stay."
"I was ordered to stay," Gail replies, sounding every bit as pissed off as Holly knows she is.
"I know, but-"
"Not that I don't find it annoying and manipulative," Gail says. "Definitely manipulative, but it's still an order."
"I won't tell."
Gail refuses to leave. "You're not getting rid of me."
"I never said I wanted to," Holly says, looking at Gail in the eye. "I never asked you to leave. I said you could."
"The implication was there."
"You're reading into it then."
Gail huffs and moves just to stop Holly's scrutiny for a second. She sits on the edge of the desk that once held the water. "This is stupid."
"Yeah," Holly agrees. "It is pretty stupid. But, here we are. Together. Might as well make the best of it."
"Make the best of it?" Gail sneers. "What? You got some lemons in your pockets, Holly? You wanna make some lemonade?"
"Gail."
"I don't want to be here," Gail states.
"I know that."
"There's no reason for me to be here."
"I said you could go."
"I can't!" Gail says loudly. "You heard Oliver."
"How's the view from Bitch Mountain, Gail?" Holly asks. "Can you see me flipping you off from way up there?"
That surprises her. Holly can see the shock on Gail's face for just a moment before she laughs. It is a real honest-to-goodness laugh, too.
"Well, you've gotten quippier," Gail finally gets out.
"I doubt that's a word," Holly says, but shoots Gail an amused grin anyway.
"Whatever, Hol," Gail scoffs. "Not all of us use words like 'trypanosomiasis' in every day conversations."
"Causes approximately 21,000 deaths a year."
"Yeah, I know," Gail replies.
"Surprised you remember."
"When you get rewarded like that for pronouncing it correctly…," Gail's mind wanders to that particular night. "…you remember."
Holly can't help but let her eyes trail down Gail's body a moment. She misses her. She misses her friend, sure. There's also the longing that twists in her gut for the woman who had become her…she doesn't even know…girlfriend? It was undefined, but she knows they were headed there. She misses her girlfriend.
Somewhere along the line, she catches Gail's eyes and they continue looking at each other for a few seconds.
Nick's words from the crime scene come back to Holly and she returns to the body on her table.
"So…" Holly starts. "I heard that you're into internet dating these days?"
"You did?" Gail asks her without much emotion. "Word gets around."
Holly's looks her way for a split second, just a little surprised that Gail admits to it so readily. She recovers quickly, "How's that going?"
"The dates just keep coming," Gail says. "Calendar's full."
"Hm," Holly mumbles and she grabs her clipboard and writes her latest observation. "That's great. Congratulations."
Gail can't fight the smile at how fiercely her pen is dashing across the paper. Holly's eyebrow creases in what might seem like concentration, but Gail knows it's really frustration. It really shouldn't make her feel better, but it does.
"Hol."
"What?" Holly snaps.
"Are you upset?"
"No."
"Holly," Gail breathes, which makes Holly glance up. "You shouldn't be."
"I'm not."
"I was kidding," Gail announces finally. "I'm not dating anybody…or…I am, but it's you…"
Holly chuckles at that. Really. It actually makes her laugh because it was so unexpected. She tries to figure out just how Gail's math equals them dating. "Me?"
"You," Gail nods.
"What's that mean?" Holly asks again. "We…still…huh? You can barely look at me."
Gail just shrugs. "We didn't exactly break-up…I don't think."
"You said you didn't want to see me and left me at a bar," Holly recaps. "Usually when someone threatens bodily harm so they don't have to look at you, it's a done deal."
"I was pissed."
"Yeah," Holly nods. "Got that much. And I understand why you were mad that night. But, Gail, the not speaking for three weeks was the tip-off that we broke up."
"That's what you were thinking?" Gail narrows her eyes like she's working it out for herself. "Not necessarily what I was thinking."
"I called and you didn't answer," Holly says after a stretch of silence.
"I know."
"I texted."
"I got them."
"So what?" Holly's eyes widen. Her face is questioning. "What was I supposed to think? We were on a Gail-appointed hiatus? Don't worry, we'll be back in three episodes? You didn't contact me at all."
"I didn't want to talk to you," Gail tells her frankly. "Then I didn't know what to say. Then…I was scared that you were calling to end it, so I didn't want to..walk right into it."
"I wasn't…calling for that."
Gail's lips purse with that information, "Oh."
"You know, I thought I understood at first," Holly says. "You heard something, you drew your own conclusions. They were wrong, but that's okay. I could have explained. I could have told you differently. I would have told you that I liked you. So much. That I thought we were going somewhere…that we had something."
"Me, too."
"No," Holly shakes her head. "No, apparently not, because you ditched me at a bar and ran off, Gail. Because that's what you do when you're not into it anymore or whatever."
"Not into it?" Gail practically yells. "Me? I was into it. I was into you. You said you were having fun."
"I was!"
"So was I!"
"It was more than just fun, though," Holly says. "How did you not know that? What did I do that made you think I wasn't serious about you?"
"You didn't do anything," Gail says honestly. "I…shit…I…got scared."
"Uh huh." Holly already knows that. "Cat in tree. You warned me."
"Fuck," Gail rolls her eyes. "When I said that, I didn't know that…well, you'd be my next relationship."
"Obviously."
"Holly, I wanted us…"
"Wanted us to be what?" Holly knows she sounds pathetically hopeful, but she can't stop herself.
Gail just shrugs, "I don't know. I just wanted us."
Holly stares across the room trying to decipher just how they let it go so wrong when they were both on the same page.
Holly's inability to figure it out leads Gail to say, "I went to your house, you know. I went there a couple of times. I parked on your street, but couldn't get up enough nerve to go to your door."
Holly bites her lip, "You should have."
The harsh static of Gail's radio stops Gail from saying whatever was on her lips. She swallows, has a brief conversation with Nick and then points toward the door. "Found the missing person. Gotta go."
"I heard," Holly says, already back to work.
Gail pauses for just a moment on her way out. "I'll…uh…bring your key back, okay?"
The door shuts before Holly can respond.
XXXXX
"How was the morgue?" Epstein asks as he falls in line beside Gail. They're both currently navigating the halls of the police station, but Gail senses that he went out of his way for this.
"The lack of professionalism in this building never fails to astound me," Gail replies.
"You tied Chloe's shoestrings to a chair two days ago, Gail," Dov says. "So, I repeat, how was the morgue?"
"She deserved it," Gail tells him. "She smiled at me in a way I can only describe as a toothy grin. You know that kind of stuff sparks the dark in me."
"Speaking of dark," Dov chuckles at his segue. "How was the morgue?"
"I'm assuming you mean, how was Holly?"
"Did you talk?"
"Yeah."
Dov makes a motion for her to continue.
"No," Gail denies the request. "You're the one who got me into this mess in the first place."
"How?" Dov stops abruptly.
"You spooked me!" Gail says. "You made me nervous about her friends and then I went all Gail about it."
"Though I approve of using 'Gail' as a descriptor for wack," Dov picks up their previous pace. "I was preparing you for meeting her friends. That's a big step. Fairly significant."
"You think?"
"Make it or break it type event."
Gail quickly swings her arm out to catch him right in the gut and never breaks her stride. She rounds a corner and sees the woman she was just talking about.
"Hey!" Holly says quickly.
"Anti-stalking laws," Gail says sarcastically as Holly bolts off the wall she's leaning on and make her way over. "Look 'em up."
"I'm not stalking you," Holly reassures her. When Gail looks unconvinced, Holly holds up a folder in her hand. "Working. Not stalking." Holly gestures over to Traci, who was exiting the elevator. "Waiting on Nash."
"Oh," Gail clears her throat.
"What did we find?" Traci asks without any preamble at all.
"Missing Guy definitely killed Dead Guy," Holly tells her. "His DNA is all over the body."
"Finally, something I can use," Traci accepts the folder in Holly's hand. "I appreciate it."
"Also," Holly says before she leaves, "Dead Guy was Chinese Delivery Guy."
"What?"
"Why would he kill a Chinese delivery guy?"
"No idea," Holly says.
"I get pretty mad when they don't get my order right," Gail offers.
"You get mad when someone smiles at you, Peck," Nash says as she walks away. "Thanks again, Doctor."
Holly looks at her, shifts nervously and then takes a step backward, "Bye."
"Sorry!" Gail says quickly. "About the stalking thing."
"Well," Holly stops. "I could have had it sent over, so you weren't completely off base. I was hoping maybe I'd accidentally run into you."
Gail nods, "You did."
"And since the lines of communication are reopened, I did want to, well…communicate."
"Right now?" Gail looks around. "Probably not the best time, Holly."
"I know, I know…"
Gail takes her in. Holly's in one of those flustered places Holly gets when there's too much on her mind and running through her head.
"Fine," Gail says and points toward a nearby interrogation room. "Let's communicate."
"Here?" Holly sort of laughs at the place they end up.
Gail smiles briefly, "It holds a special place in my heart."
"You're full of shit."
"What?" Gail's slightly affronted. "I can be cheesy."
"You're not, though," Holly says, catching Gail's eyes. "Not even a little."
"No."
"So…" Holly looks around the room nervously. "I don't want my key back."
"Change the locks already?"
"Gail," Holly rolls her eyes. "You know that I didn't. You said you got my messages, so you know I wanted to see you."
"They stopped."
"You weren't replying," Holly points out.
"I thought you were done trying."
Holly crosses her arms over her chest, "So what, Gail? Was it all a test to see how long I'd hold out for you?"
"Of course not."
"Then?" Holly holds her arms up, begging for some answers.
Gail's lips twist up as she tucks her thumbs in her utility belt. "I don't really know what to say."
"Tell me what you're feeling."
Gail's brows immediately furrow and she gives Holly a weird look. "You act like you've never met me."
"No," Holly refuses to let her get away with that. "That's how you are with other people. We tell each other stuff. We can talk to each other. I know what happened happened and it was a stupid miscommunication, but it shouldn't have gone this far….so tell me what's going on in your head."
Gail sighs, but takes a step forward. "Okay…"
"Okay," Holly waits. "What is it?"
"I don't think I know how to be in a relationship," Gail answers. "No, I know I don't know how to be in a relationship. I'm really, really bad at it. And I thought, we were doing okay-"
"We were!"
"I was happy, smiley happy," Gail continues. "I was telling Dov that you made me better. I was saying things like that. It was weird. I was weird. I was happier than I've been in so long…too long…maybe, possibly forever…because of you."
"You told Dov that?"
"Yes!" Gail is still surprised by her admission. "And something about a sexy librarian. So…if he ever mentions that to you, please punch him."
"Gail, you're losing me here."
"Oh yeah, okay, so I was happy, you were happy. You had met some of my people and you wanted to introduce me to yours," Gail says. "Your people. Important people. And I thought that was pretty great-"
"Yeah…"
"Then I realized we're so different," Gail blurts. "You're…you. And I'm…me."
"We already knew that."
"But you're the genius doctor and I'm a little fucked up."
"Why…?" Holly frowns. "Where did you get that? I don't think that, Gail."
"It's true, though," Gail sighs. "Then you said you were having fun and I might have been…thinking it was more long-term than you were looking for-"
Holly can't take it anymore. She grabs Gail's face and kisses her.
As soon as Holly's lips touched Gail's again, she feels it. It's that zip of electricity that shoots through her body just like every time before.
Head to toe.
Toe-curling, brain-frying, tongue-twisting Gail.
Boom.
Holly settles into the kiss when she feels Gail's lips moving against hers. Holly's fingers grip Gail's neck pulling her in deeper. She feels Gail's hands land on her hips and pulls her tighter against her body. And when Gail's tongue slide into her mouth, she releases a moan involuntarily. This is what she needs. What she's needed for the past three weeks.
Gail.
Just Gail.
When Gail breaks the kiss to take a breath, Holly still clings to her for a moment. She's been craving the contact for so long, that she's reluctant to let go just yet.
"Don't make me wait so long between those again," Holly says into Gail's ear. "It's rude."
"I'm known for my rudeness," Gail answers smugly.
Holly traces Gail's bottom lip with her finger, "Uh huh, but still…don't, okay."
Gail leans in for another brief, but still charged kiss. "Okay."
In all the rush and excitement, Holly feels at peace suddenly. It was like she just made it home, like something askew had just been righted. She marvels at how Gail can elicit so many different feelings in her in such a short time. It was kind of amazing how Gail could set her on fire while also being the source of her calm.
"You weren't wrong," Holly says suddenly.
"I wasn't?" Gail asks, but looks slightly confused.
"About the long-term thing," Holly explains. "I was thinking along the same lines."
"You were?"
"Of course, I was, Gail," Holly says. "I know this is new, that we're new. That dating women is new for you, but…I haven't felt like this about somebody for…well…." Holly laughs, "maybe ever. I want this…us, too…"
"Really?" Gail asks as she looks up at Holly through her eyelashes. "Because I've been sort of an assface."
"You've totally been an assface," Holly says. "But I understand why."
"Just because I haven't talked to you, doesn't mean I wasn't thinking about you," Gail tells her truthfully. "I bought you a pair of running shoes, a quesadilla maker, and seven books about dead bodies."
"Thank you," Holly grins, not even having a clue what Gail's talking about, but kind of loving it anyway. She kisses Gail's forehead, "I'm sure that it's all awesome."
"You don't have a quesadilla maker," Gail informs her needlessly.
"No, no, I don't."
"I wanted you to have one."
"I appreciate that."
"I had with me on two of those trips to your house," Gail says. "Your curtains are really too sheer, too. We should change them."
"We?" Holly catches.
Gail shrugs in response. "Hopefully, but I still don't know how to do this…the right way."
"Gail, nobody knows how to be in a relationship until they're in the right one," Holly says. "And even then, it's work sometimes. You have to stay and listen. Sometimes, you have to fight for it. But, you can't take a flying leap out of the tree every time you have a doubt."
"The cat metaphor needs to die."
"Well, then quit being so damn cat-like."
"I can't promise anything," Gail says shyly. "But I'm going to try…really hard."
"That's all I ask," Holly smiles. She looks down at Gail's lips and licks her own, "Come over tonight."
Gail starts to nod, but then groans. "I can't."
"You can't?"
"I made plans," Gail says. At Holly's look of disappointment, she adds, "with Nick."
"Oh."
"Not those kinds of plans," Gail makes sure Holly knows. "We're meeting at the Penny to talk about his potential online dates."
"That's…" Holly grimaces. "Weird."
"I know!"
"Then come later?"
"Uh…" Gail swallows at all the possibilities, but chokes out, "Maybe."
XXXXX
Holly lifts her head when she hears a rustling outside her front door, her finger automatically marking the place she left off in the book that's resting on her lap. She knows who is at the door, so it's not like she's particularly worried. She just didn't expect her.
That's kind of the beauty of Gail Peck, though.
Always unexpected.
"Hey," Gail calls into the house once she unlocks and pushes the door open. "It's me."
"I see you," Holly answers, also alerting her to the fact that she's in the living room. "Come in."
"Oh," Gail finds her and smiles. She holds up the keychain in her hand. "I used my key. Hope that's alright."
"That's why you still have it."
Gail then holds up a bag, "And your quesadilla maker."
"I've always wanted one of those," Holly says deadpan.
"Yeah, yeah," Gail nods and places her keys and the bag on Holly's island. "You're not busy or anything, are you?"
"Nope," Holly gestures to her open book. "Doing a little reading."
"Nerdy," Gail assesses.
"Says the girl who spent her night at a bar with her ex-boyfriend going over internet dating profiles," Holly returns. "Did he find his match? Is he harmonizing as we speak?"
"I have no idea," Gail says. Then, she really commits to the whole truth thing and admits, "I just gave him the password and left. Then I went home and agonized over whether I was coming over or not for half an hour."
"That's nerdy," Holly says in response. "And unnecessary. You should have come earlier."
"I know."
"But, you're here now…so..."
"Yeah, uh, I really wanted to see you," Gail tells her as she walks further into the house. "Again."
"Good," Holly smiles. "I'm glad. Honestly, I assumed 'maybe' was code for 'don't get your hopes up.'"
"Nah, it meant I was too much of a chicken to just say 'yes,'" Gail says, leaning over the back of the couch and over Holly's shoulder. She crosses her arms and rests her head there. "I wanted to…I knew that in the interrogation room. I just…don't know why I said 'maybe' earlier."
"It's okay," Holly assures her with a gentle tap to her arm. "No big deal.
"I…" Gail's eyes tick up to meet Holly's. "I'm glad…I'm glad today happened."
Holly holds her eye contact, trying to best convey that she feels the same way. "Me, too."
"I mean," Gail averts her gaze for only a second. "Not about the dead guy, that's terrible-"
"I know what you mean."
"-but me and…" Gail breathes in and out, "you."
Holly studies her, trying to make out whether Gail's pained or just struggling. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Gail replies quickly. "I'm okay." Gail lifts one arm to nervously scratch just behind her ear. "I…uh…I'm better, actually."
"Better?"
"Better than okay," Gail said. "I'm…geezus, Hol…"
"What?"
Gail's entire body seems to weigh heavily on the back of the couch. "I felt like when I saw you, I could finally breathe again. Is that stupid?"
"No," Holly says. She sets her book on the side table and positions herself so she can see Gail more fully. "No, it's not stupid. Although, I think I had to opposite reaction."
"What do you mean?"
"I felt like I couldn't breathe when I saw you," Holly admits. "Like every feeling I've ever had for you settled into my lungs and there wasn't room for oxygen. Like I had just been pummeled by a heavy weight boxer."
"That's intense," Gail says with a small smile.
"Yeah," Holly nods. "And my heart wanted to jump out of chest and get to you…close to you. Just be near you again."
"Well, here I am."
"Here you are," Holly says. Her fingers slide slowly over Gail's forearm just to make a connection.
Gail kisses her knuckles without really thinking about it.
"So what do you want to do?"
Holly grins as she sits up on knees and pivots to face Gail. Her hands reach for the other woman and draw her closer. "Nothing much," Holly whispers before the closes the gap between them for a kiss. Once she feels Gail respond, she twists her fist into Gail's shirt and falls backward, pulling Gail over the couch.
"Damn," Gail says after she lands on top of Holly. "Miss me?"
"So, so, so much," Holly declares.
"I missed you, too," Gail smiles before she takes Holly's bottom lip between her own. "A lot."
"Good," Holly sighs, letting Gail roll off of her.
Gail fits into the space between the back of the couch and Holly, and her body dips ever so slightly into the crease where the cushions meet. One arm is pretty much trapped under her, but she still has enough mobility to let her fingertips gently brush where Holly's shirt meets her jeans.
"Are you hungry?" Gail asks Holly.
Holly adjusts herself to face Gail again, "Depends on what we're talking about."
"Food," Gail looks completely serious, like there wasn't the possibility of a double meaning. "I didn't get to eat lunch today and I'm starving."
"I could eat," Holly shrugs with one shoulder. "Anything in mind?"
"So many options," Gail says. "I've wanted Chinese ever since this afternoon…oh, and you've got that brand new quesadilla maker."
"Uh huh," Holly nods, kissing Gail's chin lightly.
"Or we could go somewhere. You want to go out or stay in?" Gail let her fingers dip into Holly's waistband and tugs. "I vote in."
"Fine," Holly says agreeably and moves her head to catch Gail's lips as her hands play with the short hairs behind Gail's ears. "You're fucking rocking the haircut, by the way," Holly says after Gail pulls away. Holly lifts up to examine it, "It's grown out a bit."
"I might need you to trim it up a little."
"Is that why you're really here?" Holly teases. "My excellent hair-cutting skills?"
"Yes," Gail says. "That and I'm pretty sure I'm in love with you."
Holly stills for a second. She finds Gail's eyes and smiles. "Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Me, too," Holly says. "Kinda completely."
"Cool," Gail nods. "We should order Chinese and give the neighbors one last show before we change those curtains."