NEW AN: Ok, taken the lemon down because someone has added it to a Reportable C2. The last thing I want is my account banned. I'll be writing this into something that is 'more acceptable', and if anyone wants to see the full version it's up at my ao3 account, which I'll link to in m profile when I redo it in a day or two.
AN: Hi, I'm sort-of-not-really back. If this fic isn't your thing, there might be different shit coming soon. Feel free to request anything. I'll update my profile properly in a few days, when I have more time.
So, basically, words-wise, this is, like, about 1k of backstory followed by 1.5k of lemon. Definitely lemon. Much citrus here, if not too graphically described, I don't think? But if you want to just read a quick little fluffy thing about how Mariah and Mariam got together then you can stop after the second set of 000 marks.
Mariam looked up as the front door slammed loudly.
"Mariah?" she called.
"What?" The snarling reply sent a worried chill down Mariam's spine. Getting up from her comfortably sprawled position on the sofa, she followed the sound of thundering footsteps as Mariah stormed upstairs.
Walking through the doorway, she eyed Mariah carefully. She was sitting stiffly on Mariam's double bed, her glare boring a hole in the floor.
"Why does Lee think he can judge other people?" she fumed.
Ah, right. She had been surprised at Mariah turning up for their little 'sleepover' as arranged.
"Because Lee sees you as a virgin angel, him as your righteous protector and me as a predatory lesbian?" Mariam sat down next to Mariah, who just rolled her eyes at her. Not for the first time, Mariam wished she was better at the whole 'tact' thing. "Does Ray know you're here?"
Mariah nodded, but her gaze slid to the floor again. Mariam knew that shifty look;
"You still haven't told him?"
Mariah shook her head.
"Even though we discussed last time how he'd understand because he's in exactly the same situation? If not worse, because of the pervasive homophobia of male het culture?"
"You lost me at the political speech last time too," Mariah muttered to the floor. "And it doesn't help Lee's opinion of you as my friend, either."
"I don't give a shit what Lee thinks of me." Ok, so, that was unnecessarily blunt, but Mariam had never claimed to be good at the whole 'tact' thing. Or, apparently, at the whole 'having a closeted girlfriend' thing.
Right. Different tack?
"I was watching - " she named a show Mariah loved; "Do you want to come and watch it too?"
Mariah sighed, but she was smiling as she replied,
"Ok."
As usual, they started side by side on the sofa, like the friends they pretended to be. The program was a bland daytime show, but Mariah watched it regularly so regaled Mariam with all of the backstory she thought was necessary. Which was all of it. It wasn't Mariam's sort of thing at all.
On the other hand, the bright, open animation in Mariah's expression, with dancing eyes and flying hands, and lips that never stopped moving … that was definitely Mariam's sort of thing. The fuzzy fond feeling quickly heated up. She tried to ignore the wave of arousal and to at least pretend to look interested in what Mariah was saying. Even a month into this relationship, she was still wary of being too forward and scaring Mariah away.
They had met for the first time about five months ago. Hilary had had some strange idea about bringing all the girls of beyblading together. It had initially been an incredibly awkward flop of an event. Ming-Ming and Emily had sensibly declined to attend, which left Mariam stuck on her own as Mathilda, Julia and Mariah squealed over their reunion. Hilary had tried some conversation, but since their only common experience involved Mariam as mostly an adversary, it hadn't gone well.
Whoever would have thought that Queen's unexpected appearance, launching her blade straight through Hilary's carefully constructed cake, would have saved the day? For all that there was a definite air in the room that nobody actually liked Hilary, the sight of her in tears had banded them together.
Ok, so maybe the chance of revenge for a defeat that still rankled had been what drove Mariam on.
Nevertheless, the uncomfortable tension had dropped away as battle-lust took its place, and even though Queen had backed down and disappeared under the threat of four blades all pointing at her, the atmosphere stayed relatively clear.
Julia had been the first to challenge Mariam, of course. It had been a perfunctory battle, without bitbeasts and ending in a draw, but it set the pattern and their cosy little clique had broken into a crisscrossing melee of battles.
That was the first time Mariah had really caught Mariam's eye. She was so different to the others. Mathilda was sweetness and light and somewhat of a tactician. Julia was all bullish determination and undeniable strength. Mariah, however …
Mariah was fierce and wild and scrappy, and her eyes looked like they were glowing when she called out Galux. And, Mariam was always honest with herself, that hourglass figure may have played a part in the initial attraction, yes. But then, back to something slightly higher-minded, she'd melted inside when Mariah had won. Her victory face was just that cute; a grin so wide that her eyes squeezed shut and a double punch in the air.
She'd left that event with an undeniable attraction towards Mariah. However, had they not met again, it would have stayed just there. A little private fantasy for her to play until it faded.
They had met again a month later, in Hong Kong. Mariah had come to see Ray, who by some ridiculous turn of events worked at the same restaurant that Mariam had been craving food from for months. Cue meeting, and mutual recognition from both Ray and Mariah. Ray hadn't been able to stay and chat for long, so the two girls had ended up wandering to a bench and sitting and talking. Mariah was naturally very, very talkative, but it was a while before Mariam moved her replies from small-talk to slightly more personal. Once Mariah realised that they had rural, old-fashioned Chinese mountain upbringings in common … well, they hadn't left the bench for three hours, even then only shutting up because Ray was standing over them, half-glaring and half-laughing. When they'd stood up, Mariah had no feeling in her left foot, and Mariam's left bumcheek was also numb. So naturally, she had invited them back to her small flat about twenty minutes' walk away.
And then somehow this had become a weekly thing.
After three visits, she had carefully, casually dropped it into the conversation that she was gay. Ray had gone white, then red, then gasped, "Really?"
She knew the signs. "You?"
He went red again and refused to say anything else. However, Mariah filled in the silence with all the info. Kai. Ha, like that wasn't obvious to anyone with eyes. Ray was a surprise, though.
"I thought you two …" She trailed off and gestured vaguely. Ray snorted. Mariah sighed.
"Oh, in the Elders' wet dreams."
Despite Mariah's blasé reaction, Mariam more than half expected her not to return, or to be awkward when she did. What she didn't expect was Mariah's curiosity.
Immediately her suspicions and her hopes were roused, but she had squashed them down again very quickly. That way led nowhere fun.
Or so she thought. In the end it was like something from a B film, or porn; they had been curled up on Mariam's sofa, passing bottles of wine between them. Mariah had started asking questions, and, tipsy, Mariam had answered them even as they went past the propriety barrier. Then Mariah had kissed her.
More stuff coming, promise. Sorry about this.