Evie's life changed forever on the first day of her freshman year of high school, though she'd had no idea at the time. Until that day, things in her life had been relatively consistent. She'd lived in the same New York City apartment, she'd had the same friends, shed attended the same school, and she'd had the same classmates for most of her school career - until one day, she didn't. At the start of her freshman year, there was a new girl in her class - whom she met when she'd arrived to the same lunch table she'd been sitting at since the first grade to find said blonde sitting in her spot. She'd been immediately thrown off. Unsure of what to do, she asked the girl what her name was. Mal. It was entirely too common for Evie's taste. Curling up her nose, she informed the girl that she was sitting in her spot and she needed to move. This action - and the argument that followed - sparked a mutual hatred that, unbeknownst to either girl at the time, would last all of high school.
Mal's life changed forever on the first day of her freshman year of college, though she'd had no idea at the time. After four years of loneliness thanks to that fateful day in the cafeteria, she was excited to start over in Los Angeles. However, when she walked into her first college class, she was immediately met with a familiar brunette sitting next to the only available seat in the lecture hall (she immediately became even more upset with herself for oversleeping than she was before). Letting out a disheartened sigh, she sat down next to her least favorite person - Evie. When Evie looked up, she had a smile on her face, obviously ready to make a new friend, only to gasp when she saw Mal. Despite her annoyance of being stuck with the blonde for at least another semester, however, she was relieved to see a familiar face. At the end of class, she asked the girl to be her study partner for the class, to which the blonde reluctantly agreed to. This action - and the late-night study sessions that followed - sparked an acquaintanceship that, unbeknownst to either girl at the time, would blossom into a real friendship.
Both Mal and Evie's lives changed forever at the beginning of their sophomore year of college and they both knew it the moment it happened. After a five months of begrudgingly studying together, four months of real friendship, and three months of casually sleeping together, the pair gave into their feelings and chose to take a leap of faith with each other. This action - and the declarations of love that followed - sparked a relationship that, from the moment those sacred three words were exchanged, both girls immensely hoped would last a lifetime.
The only thing that could possibly derail them would be the people that spent the first eighteen years of Evie's life controlling her, the people who'd molded Evie into the type of person that would hate Mal on first sight simply because she didn't come from the same side of town as she did - her family. When they first heard who their precious Evie had chosen to date, they wrote it off as a phase - somewhat of a rebellious phase that Evie had not indulged in as a teenager. They assumed she was giving into the "bad girl" infatuation. When the relationship got serious, however, they knew it was time to step in.
"That is enough, Mom." Evie said, slamming her fork down angrily. She'd been listening to her mother insult her girlfriend for the last five minutes of their dinner - what was supposed to be an innocent "meet the family/girlfriend" meal - and she'd had enough.
"Evelyn-"
"No!" Evie yelled. Evangeline raised an eyebrow. "I love Mal and nothing you say is going to change that." the younger Grimhilde woman declared.
"Evie, I will not allow this girl to drag you down to her level." Evangeline said.
"Drag me down to her level? Mom, she graduated from the same prep school that I did - she was the valedictorian. We're attending the same university. She gets even better grades than I do and mine are pretty high." Evie snapped. Mal reached out and grabbed her girlfriend's hand.
"Evie, maybe I should go." she whispered. Evie looked over and nodded.
"We're both leaving." she announced, standing up and helping her girlfriend out of her chair. Sighing, she led her girlfriend out of the private room that her family had reserved and through the restaurant to the front door. "You know what? I need to stay and have a conversation with my family. I'll see you at home." she decided. Mal nodded.
"I'll call a cab and wait outside." Mal said. Evie shook her head, pulling the valet ticket out of her purse and handing it to the attendant.
"Take the Porsche, I'll take a cab." she said. Mal grinned. "Please don't make me regret letting you drive my car."
"I'm not the one who totaled my car two weeks ago." Mal pointed out, taking the keys. Evie rolled her eyes, leaning in and kissing her girlfriend.
"Get yourself something to eat, I noticed you didn't touch much of your dinner. There's cash in the glove compartment." she offered.
"Princess, I can pay for my own takeout." Mal said.
"I know you can, M, but I want to do this." Evie replied. Sighing, Mal nodded. "I'll see you at home, sweets."
"Okay." Mal said, leaning up and kissing her girlfriend's cheek as Evie's car appeared. Moving to the driver's seat, she handed the driver a five dollar bill before slipping into the car and driving off. Letting out a sigh, Evie sent the attendant a polite smile before walking back inside.
It was time for Round Two.
Four hours later, Evie was stepping out of the elevator of the apartment building that she and Mal lived in. Letting out a sigh, she approached the apartment that she'd been living in for almost four years - three of those by herself and one with her girlfriend. Unlocking the door, she entered the apartment only to trip over something that was left in front of the door, causing her to drop her purse and keys. Glancing to the side, she realized that it was her backpack.
In the living room Mal woke up, jumping slightly at the sound of the crash. "Shit." Hearing the soft whisper, she sat up.
"Hey, E." she said, smiling tiredly. Evie turned, sighing as she walked over to the couch.
"Damn it. I'm so sorry I woke you up, M." she said.
"Evie, it's been four hours. Have you been with your family this whole time?" Mal asked. Evie nodded with another sigh, collapsing next to her girlfriend and taking her heels off.
"I love you, sweets." she whispered, laying down and resting her head in Mal's lap.
"I love you, too. How'd it go, though?" the blonde asked. Evie sighed once more. "That bad?"
"They wouldn't listen. No matter what I said, they wouldn't listen." the brunette said, closing her eyes as Mal ran her fingers through her hair. Mal sighed. "They think anyone who doesn't have as much money as they do is beneath them."
"Evie... If our relationship is going to cause trouble for you-"
"Don't finish that sentence." Evie whispered, sitting up and kissing her girlfriend. Mal bit her lip as they broke apart. "You're not going anywhere, my family is not running you off."
"I don't want your family to scare you away either." Mal replied. Evie smiled softly, cupping her girlfriend's cheek.
"Sweets, there is nothing that could scare me off." she promised. Mal nodded with a grin. "So, how's my car?"
"A hell of a lot better than mine." Mal teased. Evie rolled her eyes.
"We'll go look for a new one tomorrow." she said.
"Evie-"
"I talked to my father before I left, he's going to approve the purchase. Grimhildes may be assholes, but when we cause a problem, we fix it." Evie said. Mal nodded slowly. "Let me do this, M."
"Fine." Mal said, giving in with a sigh. Evie nodded, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend. "You're probably exhausted."
"I am." Evie agreed.
"Go change into your pajamas. I'll get you something small to eat." Mal offered. Evie sent her a tired smile.
"You're a dream." she said, leaning in and kissing her girlfriend. Mal smiled as they broke apart. "Have I told you that you're my favorite?"
"Not today." Mal answered. Evie chuckled as she stood up.
"You're my favorite." she said, winking at her girlfriend before turning around and walking to their bedroom. Staring after the brunette for a moment, Mal stood up and made her way into the kitchen. After quickly making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich - Evie's favorite late night snack - she quickly went to the bedroom to find Evie taking her makeup off at her vanity. When the sandwich was set in front of her, the brunette tilted her head up and smiled when Mal kissed her. "Thank you, sweets. Go back to sleep, I'll be there soon." she said. Mal shook her head.
"I'll wait." she said, attempting to hide a yawn. Rolling her eyes affectionately, Evie stood up and gently pushed the blonde to the bed.
"Sleep, M." she replied. Giving in, the shorter girl allowed herself to be pushed onto the bed. When she felt a kiss being pressed to her forehead, she sent her girlfriend a tired smile. "I love, Mal."
"I love you, too, Evie." Mal whispered, rolling over and almost immediately falling asleep. Evie watched for a moment with a smile on her face before returning to the vanity.
"Mal, who turns down a free car?" Evie asked frustratedly the next day. It had been three hours of arguing at several car lots and she was very close to losing her patience.
"Apparently, I do." Mal retorted.
"Sweets, we've looked at four different cars. You're telling me you don't like any of them?" Evie asked. Mal bit her lip. "You do. Which one?"
"Evie..." the blonde trailed off.
"Mal, I know you don't like when I buy you expensive gifts, but this isn't a gift. This is me replacing what I destroyed." Evie said.
"You didn't destroy a Jaguar." Mal pointed out. Evie grinned.
"So it's the Jaguar?" Mal closed her eyes. "Mal, let me do this. I won't buy you anything for Christmas or your birthday for the rest of our lives." Evie offered. Mal rolled her eyes with a slight laugh.
"You and I both know that's a lie. You love giving gifts." Evie chuckled. "I just... I feel like it comes off as I'm using you. First the apartment and now the car? You've given me a lot." Mal admitted.
"You're not coming off like that. M... I love you. I want to do these things for you. And the apartment wasn't a gift, I already lived there. I asked you to move in with me because I love you. If it's too much, we can find another place to live." Evie offered. Mal sighed. "Maybe a smaller place or a less extravagant one. I know we don't exactly have the same tastes, we can find one thats more to your liking."
"Stop, we're not moving. You know I love the apartment." Mal said. Evie nodded. "I'm just... I'm not used to letting someone love me and spoil me."
"Sweets, you are going to have to get used to me loving and spoiling you because I'm going to be doing it for a very long time.." Evie whispered, kissing her girlfriend softly. Mal nodded slowly. "And let me buy you a car to replace the one I totaled. It's something that I need to do."
"Okay." Mal gave in. Evie smiled. "It's the Jaguar. I fell in love with it the moment I saw it."
"Okay." Evie whispered, leaning in and kissing her girlfriend again.
"E, you've tried on every single dress in this store. Can we please move onto the next?" Mal asked, leaning into her girlfriend a month later. Evie chuckled.
"You were the one who wanted to come with me. I was perfectly fine with going on my own and sending you pictures of dresses I thought you'd like to wear to Doug and Jane's wedding." she said, pressing a kiss to her head. Mal shrugged. "Go get a smoothie or something to reenergize."
"Are you sure you can resist buying everything you try on? I've had to stop you from buying fifteen different pairs of shoes today." Mal said. Evie laughed.
"I think I'll be okay, but I'll call you if I need you to talk me out of buying something." she said. Mal nodded, heading to the food court. Spotting the smoothie place, she immediately headed toward it and stepped up to the counter.
"Hi, can I get one small strawberry smoothie and one small blueberry smoothie?" she asked.
"Nine dollars and fifty cents." the employee said.
"Mal?" Glancing up from her wallet, Mal smiled when she saw a familiar face approaching her.
"Audrey, hey." she said, taking a ten dollar bill from her wallet and handing it to the cashier. "Keep the change." she said, turning to the girl next to her.
"How have you been?" Audrey asked.
"I've been good. Yourself?" Mal replied. Before Audrey could answer an employee appeared with a smoothie in each hand.
"Small strawberry and small blueberry." Turning, Mal grabbed the smoothies with a soft 'thank you' before turning back to Audrey.
"Blueberry?" the other girl asked. Mal nodded. "You're dating Evie?"
"Yeah, I'm dating Evie. You knew that, though." the blonde said.
"Yeah." Audrey mumbled, glancing behind Mal. Before the blonde could ask what she was looking at, she felt a kiss being pressed to her hair.
"Hey, sweets." Mal grinned as she felt Evie press several kisses to her cheek. Glancing up, Evie raised an eyebrow as she saw the girl in front of Mal. "Audrey." she said, her arm quickly wrapping around her girlfriend's waist from behind and pulling her close.
"Evie." Glancing up, Mal raised the blueberry smoothie up so the straw was to Evie's lips.
"Thank you." Evie whispered, taking a sip. Just then, a guy that Mal and Evie were all too familiar with appeared next to Audrey. "Oh, hi Chad." Evie greeted, glancing at Mal to find the blonde glaring at the boy. "Mal." she whispered.
"Hello, Chad. Are you here to hit on my girlfriend again?" the blonde asked. The boy shook his head.
"Chad and I are dating now." Audrey explained. Mal nodded and neither she nor Evie missed the way Audrey was watching the blonde as she wrapped her arms around Chad.
"Congrats." Mal said. Looking up at her girlfriend, she sent her a smile. "E, are you ready to go to the next store?"
"Yeah, sweets, let's go." the taller girl said, removing her arm from Mal's waist and wrapping it around her girlfriend's shoulders as they walked away. "You got jealous." she teased.
"You're one to talk." Mal replied. Evie rolled her eyes. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Of course."
"I get why Audrey hates you. I mean, she was trying to get me to commit to her for almost a year and you were actually able to do it. But why do you hate her?" Mal asked.
"I've hated her since you told me that you were sleeping with her. I know I acted like I was confident that you would choose me, but... Deep down, I was afraid that you wouldn't." Evie admitted. Mal looked up at her girlfriend.
"There was never a choice, E, it was always you. I just didn't want to admit it to myself, so I kept seeing her. She and I never went on dates like we did, though." she said. Evie stared in awe for a moment before pulling her girlfriend into a kiss. When they broke apart, Mal had a surprised smile on her face. "You can't possibly be surprised by my feelings for you. We've been together for almost two years."
"I know, but I didn't know that all you had with Audrey was a physical thing." Mal chuckled.
"Let me put it this way - if Audrey's parents had treated me the way yours did, there's no way I would have stayed. You're worth it." she said. Evie smiled softly.
"I love you." she whispered.
"I love you, too." Mal replied.
"By the way, I think I found a dress for the wedding." Evie said as they walked through the mall.
"Let's go get it." Mal replied.
"We will, but we need to find one for you, too." the brunette said. Mal let out a groan, causing Evie to laugh. "I've got a few in mind that I think you'll like and I know you'll look amazing in."
"E, you know I hate clothes shopping." Mal said.
"Which is why I picked a few out. All you have to do is try them on." Evie replied. Mal nodded. "You're going to look great in all of them, it's just a matter of which one you like."
"I trust you, princess. Let's go look at the dresses." Mal said, smiling up at her girlfriend.
"You've changed." Jay commented two weeks later as he and Mal had lunch together on campus. Mal rolled her eyes.
"No, I haven't." she said.
"You're wearing a dress." Jay pointed out.
"I have a presentation that requires business-casual attire." Mal retorted.
"You showed up in a Jaguar that your rich girlfriend bought you." the boy said.
"She wouldn't let me say no." Mal snapped. Jay scoffed, causing Mal to raise an eyebrow.
"Look, I know you don't like Evie, but I love her. You need to be nicer to her, Jay, she's going to be around for a long time. She's not going anywhere." she said. Jay sighed. "I'm not kidding, Jay."
"Fine." he mumbled, stuffing a fry in his mouth. Mal nodded. "What are you up to this weekend?"
"Evie and I going to a wedding together tomorrow. Evie's friend is getting married." Mal said. Jay raised an eyebrow.
"I thought her friends hated you." he said.
"No, that's her family. I'm not looking forward to this wedding, though. It's going to be a huge event and you know how I feel about those." Mal mumbled. Jay shrugged.
"Cut out early. We'll go riding. You, me, and Carlos, it'll be like old times." Mal grinned.
"Sounds great. I'm in." she said.
"E, I'm going to cut out a little early." Mal said the next night. Evie turned her head quickly.
"What do you mean you're leaving?" she hissed. Mal sighed.
"Jay, Carlos, and I are going night riding." she explained. Evie raised an eyebrow.
"You're ditching me for your dirt bike?" she asked. Mal nodded. "What am I supposed to tell my friends at our table? What am I supposed to tell Jane and Doug? We came to their wedding together and we're leaving separately, it's not exactly normal."
"Evie, I'm sorry. You knew I didn't want to come to this thing anyway." Mal pointed out. Evie sighed.
"Fine, whatever. I knew I should have brought Ben as my date when you originally said you didn't want to come."
"Sure, of course you should have brought the perfect boy instead of the girl you're dating." Mal snapped. Evie rolled her eyes.
"Just go. Enjoy your stupid ride." she said. Mal sighed.
"E, don't be like that." she said, reaching for her hand. Evie shook her head, pulling her hand out of it's grasp. "I love you."
"Okay." Evie mumbled, turning around and walking away. Mal let out another sigh before leaving.
"Where's Mal?" Lonnie asked. Evie smiled awkwardly.
"She had to leave early, she has somewhere to be in the morning." she lied. Just then, her phone rang. "One second." she said, reaching over and grabbing her phone. "Hello?"
"Evie, it's Carlos!" Evie frowned at the frantic tone in her friend's voice.
"Carlos, what's wrong?" she asked. When Carlos began talking, she struggled to hear him due to the volume of the music. "Hold on, give me a second to go outside." Standing up, she made her way outside. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine, but... It's Mal." Evie rolled her eyes.
"Let me guess - Mal decided to have you call to try and trick me into talking to her?" she asked.
"No, it's about Mal, Evie. She fell off her bike during a jump, we're taking her to the hospital." The brunette froze.
"What?" she whispered.
"Jay is in the ambulance with her, I'm following in my car. Do you want me to stop by the wedding and pick you up?"
"No, I'll meet you there. I have my car. Just text me the name of the hospital." Evie said, hanging up the phone and rushing back to her table. She grabbed her purse, clumsily tripping over her chair. The only thing that kept her from falling was Ben catching her.
"What's wrong?" Lonnie asked.
"It's Mal, she's been in an accident. She's in... She's on her way to the hospital. I need to go, I have to get to her. I need to be with her."
"I'll drive you." Ben offered.
"How will you get back?" Evie asked.
"I'll follow in my car." Lonnie said, standing up. Evie nodded and took a deep breath, handing her car keys to Ben as he led her out of the room with Lonnie at their heels.
"Carlos!" Hearing the familiar voice, the boy turned to find the group approaching him. "How is she?" Evie asked.
"They won't let me back there." he said. Ben closed his eyes, knowing it wouldn't end well for whoever tried to keep Evie from Mal. "I don't know what we're going to do."
"I'll take care of this." she said, walking over to the desk.
"Can I help you?" the nurse asked.
"I need to get back there to see my girlfriend, Mal." Evie said.
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but you can't go back there." Evie raised an eyebrow.
"My name is Evelyn Grimhilde. My grandfather, Everton Grimhilde, is the president of the board of this hospital and my family has donated a lot of money. His portrait is one of the first things you see when you enter the lobby. My girlfriend is back there and if I'm not allowed back there to see her in two minutes, I will be on the phone with my grandfather." After a moment, the woman nodded.
"I can only let you back there, though. If she gets admitted, then your friends can visit her." Evie nodded.
"Thank you." she said. Turning her head, she sighed when she remembered Carlos. "Carlos... Do you want to go instead? I can't imagine what it was like watching it happen."
"Evie, you're her girlfriend. She needs you more than she needs me." Carlos said. Nodding, Evie took a deep breath before walking through the doors. Seeing Jay sitting on the floor, she walked over.
"Jay, hi." she whispered. The boy looked up from his spot on the ground. "Are you okay?"
"I'm not the one who had a dirt bike land on them." he snapped, causing her to flinch. When she glanced at Mal's door with tears in her eyes, Jay sighed and stood up. "She's okay, Evie. It's just a broken arm, a concussion, and a lot of cuts and bruises but it could have been a lot worse. The doctors said she's really lucky. She did lose consciousness for a few minutes, but that's not very surprising considering how high of a jump it was." he said, his tone more gentle. Taking in the information, Evie broke down in tears. Rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, Jay considered walking away, but remembered Mal's request and reached out and pulled Evie into a hug. "She's okay." he repeated.
"Carlos didn't tell me anything other than the fact that she fell. I was picturing the worst. I was imagining... I don't even want to say what I was imagining." she said. Jay looked at the girl as she pulled away. "Jay, I know you don't like me and I know you don't like my relationship with Mal, but I love her so much. I can't bear the thought of losing her. She's... She's my world. All I could think about was the fact that she could be dying and I didn't even tell her that I love her before she left the wedding." she whirred.
"She knows you love her." Jay promised.
"Jay?" The pair looked up to find a doctor stepping out of Mal's room. "You can go in and see your sister now." the man said. Brows furrowed, Evie looked up at the boy.
"This is Evie, she's Mal's girlfriend. Is it okay if she goes in first?" Jay asked. The man nodded, walking away. Tilting her head, Evie turned to Jay.
"Your sister?" she echoed.
"They only give information to family members and I figured one of us should know what's going on." he explained. Evie nodded. "Go inside. I'll go tell Carlos what's going on." Taking a deep breath, Evie opened the door and stepped inside to find her girlfriend staring at the TV.
"M." she whispered. Looking up, Mal sighed.
"I'm so sorry, E." she said. Evie walked over and sat down on the bed, grabbing Mal's good hand.
"Are you okay?" she asked, raising Mal's hand and pressing a kiss to her knuckle.
"Overall, yes." she said. Evie nodded. "Please don't say 'I told you so,' Evie." Evie let out a sigh.
"You are so damn lucky." she pointed out. Mal nodded slowly. "You're not going to be riding your bike anytime soon."
"I'm not going to be doing a lot of things anytime soon." Mal added, glaring at the cast on her arm. Evie smiled. "I can't draw, E."
"I know, sweets, and I'm sorry about that. It's only for a few weeks, though." the brunette said. Mal nodded. "M?" Mal hummed in response. "You scared the hell out of me." Evie whispered. Mal turned her head, reaching out and grabbing Evie's hand.
"I know, E, and I'm so sorry for doing that." she said. Closing her eyes, Evie turned her head so Mal couldn't see the tears falling. "Princess..."
"I'm okay." Evie whispered, wiping her tears. Mal bit her lip. "I don't want to lose you."
"I'll be more careful." Mal promised. Evie nodded. "I love you, Evie."
"I love you, too, M." Evie said, leaning in and kissing her girlfriend softly, being careful of her cuts and bruises. When they broke apart, Mal had a small smile.
"Your favorite movie is on." she said.
"You hate that movie." Evie pointed out.
"I know, I just wanted part of you to be here, but now that all of you is here, I want to watch your favorite movie with you." Mal replied. Evie chuckled.
"If that's what you want to do." she said.
"E, look." Mal exclaimed six weeks later. Glancing up from her notes, Evie grinned when she saw Mal's healed right arm.
"You got it off!" she exclaimed. Mal nodded excitedly. "My girl looks good without a cast." Evie said, leaning in and kissing her girlfriend. Mal grinned as they broke apart. "You're kind of perfect, you know that?"
"You weren't saying that when we were fourteen." Mal pointed out, wrapping her arms around the brunette. Evie raised an eyebrow. "Remember how you hated me in high school?" Evie shook her head with a chuckle. "You did. You thought I was weird."
"That's because you are weird." Evie replied. Mal laughed.
"Yeah, well, you're in love with this weirdo." she said. Evie smiled softly.
"I really am." she whispered. Mal grinned, wrapping her arms around the brunette's waist only to frown when her girlfriend's smile was replaced with a grimace. "Oh, god." Evie said, causing Mal to turn her head. Seeing Audrey and Chad making out in the middle of the hallway, she grimaced.
"Is that what Audrey and I looked like the first time she and I were hooking up?" she asked.
"Yep." Reaching out, Evie cupped Mal's cheek and gently turned her head. "Are you free this weekend?" she asked.
"Yeah."
"Good, I'm taking you on a surprise trip. I have something that I want to talk to you about." Evie said. Mal tilted her head curiously.
"Care to share?"
"Good things come to those who wait." Evie whispered, kissing her girlfriend.
"Evie, why are we here?" Mal whispered as they walked into the cafeteria of their high school. Smiling, Evie led the blonde to the spot where they'd first met, pulling out the chair for her girlfriend to sit down. "You brought me to New York to visit our high school at night?"
"I figured it would be fun to take a walk down memory lane." Evie explained, watching as Mal looked around. "M." she whispered. Mal turned her head, frowning at the nervous look on Evie's face. "Are you happy? With me, I mean."
"I didn't know it was possible to be this happy." Mal said, a soft smile on her face. Evie nodded slowly. "Princess, what's going on?"
"I want to be with you for the rest of my life." Evie said. Mal raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as she watched Evie reach into her purse. When she saw the brunette pull out a black box, she let out a gasp.
"Evie..." she whispered. Evie smiled nervously.
"You've been in my life since we were fourteen. You came into this very cafeteria and disrupted everything that I knew, turned everything upside down. At the time, I thought it was the worst possible thing that could have ever happened to me, but it turns out that it was the best thing because I met my soulmate that day. I love you, Mal, and I can't imagine my life without you. I don't ever want to experience my life without you and, if you'll let me, I'll spend the rest of my life showing you just how much you mean to me." she said. Mal smiled softly, already feeling her tears begin to form. "Mal Bertha... Sweets..." Mal chuckled through her tears. "Will you marry me?"
"Of course!" Mal said, pulling the brunette into a kiss. Evie grinned as they broke apart. "I love you."
"I love you, too." Evie whispered, wrapping her arms around the blonde before pulling back to slip the ring on her finger. "Perfect fit."
"Just like us." Mal whispered. Evie smiled softly. "It's beautiful, E."
"So are you." Mal blushed.
"How did you even get permission to be in here?" she asked. Evie chuckled, pressing a kiss to the diamond.
"I can't give away all my secrets just yet." she said, kissing her fiancée. Mal laughed. "It's actually kind of weird being in here now that the moment is over. Do you want to go somewhere else?"
"Yeah, I do." Evie raised a curious eyebrow. "To the hotel room. I want to show my fiancée just how much I love her." Mal whispered, pulling the girl into a kiss. Evie pulled back, a grin on her face as she nodded.
Two weeks later, Mal was sitting at an outdoor picnic table studying when she noticed someone approaching her table. Thinking it was Evie, she looked up with a smile only to have it immediately drop when she saw that it was Audrey. "Hi, Mal." the other girl said. The blonde nodded in acknowledgement. "I haven't seen you and Evie together in a couple of weeks."
"We've both been busy working on projects. That hasn't allowed much time to hang out around campus, but we see each other at home. Why?" Audrey shrugged, sitting down next to Mal.
"Chad and I broke up." she said.
"I'm sorry to hear that." Mal said. Audrey reached out and grabbed Mal's right hand. "Audrey..."
"Mal, I love you." Audrey whispered. Mal sighed. "You can't honestly tell me that you don't feel something for me."
"Audrey, I'm with Evie. I'm in love with her, she's my everything. She and I are-" Mal was cut off by a pair of lips on her own - one that she hadn't felt against hers in over two years.
"What the fuck?" Immediately pull away, Mal stared in horror at her fiancée.
"Evie..." she whispered, shaking her head. The taller brunette sent her fiancée a warning glare before turning to Audrey as she moved behind Mal and placed her hands on the blonde's shoulders possessively.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Audrey?" she demanded. Audrey shrugged. "Who do you think you are? Who just goes around kissing people in relationships?" Mal looked up at her fiancée.
"Evie-"
"Not the time, Mal." Evie snapped. The blonde sighed, but nodded. "Audrey, I've put up with you throughout my entire relationship with Mal, but I'm done. We need to talk about your obsession with Mal." Evie said.
"It's not an obsession." Audrey replied.
"Yes, it is, and don't deny it. It's insulting to everyone involved." Evie snapped. Audrey sighed.
"Mal is supposed to be with me." she said. Evie raised a menacing eyebrow.
"Then why is she marrying me?" she asked. Mal barely held back a chuckle as she saw the expression on Audrey's face as her eyes flicked to her left hand and saw the ring for the first time. "Stop kissing my fiancée." Blinking, Audrey sent Mal one last look before standing up and walking away. Watching her until she was gone, Evie moved to sit by the blonde.
"Evie, I am so sorry." Mal said.
"You kissed her back." Evie whispered. Mal bit her lip. "I know how you kiss back, Mal, I'm very familiar with it. Not only have I experienced it thousands of times, but I was forced to watch you kiss her several times freshman year."
"Evie, I'm sorry. She caught me off-guard, I was in shock." Mal said. Evie sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Do you still want to marry me?"
"Of course I do." Mal let out a sigh of relief. "But no kissing anyone but me ever again." Evie said. Mal nodded. "And you're paying for dinner tonight."
"Sounds good." Evie glanced at her fiancée.
"I'm not kissing you until you use mouthwash." she announced. Mal chuckled.
"Okay." she said, resting her head on Evie's shoulder.
"This is ridiculous." Mal muttered after the fifth text from Audrey that night.
"This is getting scarily close to stalking." Evie said. Mal sighed.
"I'm blocking her number. I should have done this years ago." she said. Evie nodded. "Oh! I got you something."
"A present for me?" Mal nodded as she sat up. "Do you love me or something, sweets?"
"Or something, fiancée." Mal said, sending Evie a smile as she moved to her purse and pulled something out. Hiding it behind her back, she walked back to her fiancée before sitting on the coffee table.
"What is it?" Evie asked. Mal held out a small box, opening it to reveal a diamond ring. "You got me an engagement ring?" Evie whispered. Mal nodded. "M..." the brunette said, pulling the blonde into a kiss.
"Do you like it?" Mal asked. Evie nodded eagerly. "I know it's not as big as the one you bought me, but-"
"You know I don't care about that. I love this ring, it's perfect." Evie said. Mal smiled, slipping the ring on Evie's finger. "I love you so much."
"Not as much as I love you." Mal replied, moving to lay next to Evie. Evie smiled, wrapping an arm loosely around Mal's shoulders and pressing a kiss to her head as she lazily ran her fingers up and down Mal's side. "Stop, you're tickling me." the blonde said, giggling. Evie laughed, kissing her head again.
"Sorry." she whispered, burying her nose in Mal's hair for a moment.
"Have you told your mom about the engagement?" Mal asked, placing a kiss to Evie's wrist before lacing their fingers together.
"I have. She didn't take it well." Mal nodded slowly.
"She still thinks I'm after the Grimhilde fortune, doesn't she?" Evie closed her eyes, pressing a kiss to Mal's temple.
"It doesn't matter what she thinks. I know you're not after my trust fund and my inheritance."
"Exactly. When I leave you, I plan on taking the money you earn yourself. It'll be much more satisfying." Mal joked, earning a loud laugh from Evie. "You know I don't want your money. If your family's money was something of interest for me, I would have tried to be your friend in high school."
"I know, sweets." Evie said. Mal looked up at her fiancée.
"Are you okay?" she asked. Evie closed her eyes. "E..."
"She mentioned a prenup." Evie whispered. Mal bit her lip. "I call my mother to tell her that her only daughter is getting married and the first thing she asks is if I'm going to make you sign a prenup." Mal looked up.
"Do you want a prenup?" she asked. Evie shook her head. "Princess, maybe you should think about it."
"I don't need to think about it. There's no need for a prenup, Mal, we won't be getting divorced." Mal nodded as Evie pressed a kiss to her head. Pulling back, the brunette smiled softly, holding her fiancée close. "I have a job interview in New York next week."
"That's amazing, sweets! Do you want me to come with you?" Evie asked. Mal nodded. "I'll book the tickets later. I'm so proud of you, Mal."
"I haven't gotten the job yet." Mal pointed out.
"But you impressed them enough to get the interview. Don't sell yourself short, M." Mal smiled softly. "We'll celebrate tomorrow."
"Can we at least hold off on celebrating until I actually get a job?" the blonde requested. Evie let out a small sigh, but nodded in agreement. "Thank you."
"I love you."
"I love you, too." Mal whispered.
"Princess?" Evie looked up. "I got the job that I interviewed for last week." Mal said, biting her lip.
"Sweets, that's amazing! You loved the New York office when you interviewed." Mal closed her eyes. "What's wrong?"
"They want me to work at the L.A. office." the blonde explained. Evie frowned in confusion.
"But you applied for the position in New York. We're supposed to move back there in two months." she said.
"I know, but they think I'll be a better fit here." Mal replied. Evie nodded slowly, lost in thought. After a few moments, she looked back at her fiancée.
"You're staying in L.A." she announced. Mal shook her head. "Mal-"
"Evie, no."
"Mal, you were so excited about this job." Evie pointed out.
"Yeah, when it was in New York. Your internship is in New York, which means you'll be in New York." the blonde said.
"We'll figure it out." Mal shook her head.
"Evie, I turned the job down."
"M, no. You were so excited about this job." Evie said. Mal looked up at her fiancée.
"I refuse to live on opposite coasts. Not only are you and I going to live on the same coast, we're going to live in the same state. Hell, I might even be tempted to live in the same city." she teased. Evie chuckled. "E, you and I are going to be living at the same address."
"Mal... Would you be passing on this job if we weren't engaged?" Evie whispered. Mal frowned in confusion. "Maybe I proposed too early. I mean, I had no idea where we would be at the end of the year."
"Evie, stop. The answer is yes. I was going to be following you wherever you ended up." Evie bit her lip as Mal sat on her lap. "It's you and me, E. We can't take over the world together from opposite coasts."
"You and me?" Evie whispered. Mal nodded, leaning in and kissing her fiancée.
"You and me."