Feels great to be back guys ^_^ So great that I really got rolling and wrote a quick update, mostly Braige-centric this time. Hope you enjoy!
Paige's lips were on hers, lightly brushing against them at first then easing into a firmer kiss, causing her breath to catch in her throat for the slightest moment. She'd shared kisses before, but nothing like this, she thought as Paige's hands found her hips and gently brought her closer...
"Brie! We're here."
Brie gave a soft grunt and opened her eyes to find the very subject of her dream looking right at her. She instantly blushed as the mental images flooded back and quickly rubbed her eyes, hoping to hide her now flushed expression. "Sorry, dozed off."
"You don't say." Came Nikki's voice from the drivers seat in front of her. "Gosh Brie, you slept most of the flight here and now again."
Brie rolled her eyes at the back of her sisters head. "I was sleepy. And now I'm hungry, so let's dump our stuff and find some food."
"I second that." Said Paige enthusiastically, shooting Brie a grin before hopping out the passenger seat.
"Sounds like a plan." Nikki agreed.
They all grabbed their luggage and made their way to check into the hotel they'd be calling home for the next few nights. Since John had arrived the day before to do some press, Nikki would be staying with him, which left Brie and Paige sharing a room to themselves (prompting Nikki to quietly inform her sister that she and Paige could now "totally get it on with no one in the way"). After checking in, they took a moment to leave their things in their rooms then headed for a quiet cafe down the road to fuel up.
Whilst eating, Paige and Nikki maintained easy conversation, but Brie didn't participate much. Her head was mostly in other places, namely the dream she'd been having when they'd arrived. She knew she was somewhat (okay, fine...a whole lot) physically attracted to Paige, she also knew that she loved her personality and loved spending time around her, but up until then she'd been able to more or less box it up as nothing more than a light crush. Something that would wear off and eventually disappear entirely without her having to even mention it. Her dream had thrown all of that off and now, simply put, she had the urge to act upon it. But how? And when?
"Earth to Brieeee." Sang Nikki, wafting a hand in front of her face. "You like totally zoned out on us. C'mon, we're leaving."
Brie gave a small laugh, pulling herself out of her thoughts. "Guess I didn't wake up properly yet or something."
"Looked like you were daydreaming." Paige teased as she got to her feet.
You have no idea...Brie thought to herself, standing up too. "Nah, just need the coffee to do its job."
"I hope it does it before our signing, I don't want you to like fall asleep on the table." Commented Nikki, earning another eye roll from her twin as the three of them left the cafe and walked back to their hotel to get changed and freshen up for the day ahead.
Once her fan meeting/signing was over, only one word could describe Paige, and that word was "overwhelmed".
The fact that so many people had actually paid to come and see her was something that she had a hard time grasping, understandably so considering she'd only been on the main roster for a few months. She was aware of the good reactions her feud was getting, but hadn't expected such a large part of that to be because of her and not just because of who she was feuding with. It was amazing to see.
After finishing up and greeting a few stray fans on her way out the back exit, the Brit pulled her phone out her pocket and unlocked the screen, a small sigh escaping her when she saw there was still no word from AJ. A part of her wanted to just call and fix everything, but she was still too upset to go through with it. Stubborn too, and kind of scared, but mostly upset.
Her thumb hovered over AJs name a few seconds longer then quickly moved down and hit Brie's instead. After a couple of rings, the call was picked up:
"Heyy there."
"Hey pumpkin, where you at?" Paige asked, leaning against a wall.
"Some shop near Axxess. Nikki and I got finished and she went off with John, so I thought I'd hang around so we could leave together. You know, since we're sharing a hire car and all."
Paige smiled, genuinely touched. "Aww, what a sweetheart. Meet you at the car then?"
"See you there."
Still smiling, she blew a kiss down the phone and hung up before making her way to where they'd parked earlier in the day. They met up shortly after and traded stories from their days as Brie drove them back to the hotel, where they decided they'd relax on their rooms balcony and order in some food.
As much as she tried to deny it to herself, Brie had a decent case of the butterflies. Sure, she'd spent time alone with Paige before, but never in this kind of situation. It all felt so...date-y. Or maybe that was wishful thinking on her part. Either way, there was just the two of them and she really felt she had to take some form of action, even if it was against her better judgement. There was no such thing as the perfect time, right? One simply had to make things happen for themselves.
"You still here?" Paige asked playfully after swallowing the last bite of her pasta carbonara.
"What? Oh yeah, sorry." Brie began apologetically. "I zoned out again."
Paige waved her hand dismissively as she drank some water. "No worries. You have been kinda distracted today though, you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm all good." Brie replied with a smile. She took a moment to look at her companion, who was now slightly slouched back in her chair with her feet up on the railing, wearing her usual casual outfit of a crop top and her merch sweats. Not fair to look good without even trying...the Bella twin thought before speaking again. "I did want to ask you something though, if it's not too personal."
The younger woman raised a suspicious eyebrow in her direction then cracked into a grin, showing she was messing around. "Hit me."
"Well...er...what's the deal with you and AJ?" Despite Nikki's assurances, she needed to know for sure before acting upon anything.
"Oh." Paige paused, clearly caught off guard. "I'm...I'm not sure, to be honest with you."
Brie frowned slightly. "Sorry, I'm not trying to be nosey."
"Nah, it's fine. I just haven't really put a label on it, you know?" Paige looked back up at the sky, as if searching for some hidden answer up there among the few stars that were emerging through the rapidly darkening twilight.
Brie nodded, letting the silence linger.
"It just started so suddenly. We got really close because of working together, she really helped me out transitioning to the main roster and all that...then we fucked. And it kept happening and neither of us questioned it, at least not out loud." It felt strange to be talking about all of this, but she continued. "I guess we basically act like a couple without any of the compromise."
"And is that what you want?"
Paige sighed and brought her feet back to the ground to sit facing her friend, her mind going back to the argument with AJ and how she'd stormed out at the lack of response to a similar question. "I thought it was, I thought it was a damn great deal, but now I don't know. Maybe part of me does want more."
Brie swallowed, trying her hardest to ignore the small sinking sensation she felt in her chest. "Would you ever tell her?"
"Tell her what?" The Brit asked with a wry smile. "I'm not even sure about this."
"I can understand not being sure. But some things are worth taking a chance for...at least that's what I think."
"You could be right, but how would I know?"
Brie swallowed again. Screw the butterflies from earlier, they were nothing compared to what was going on in there now. It felt like her entire stomach was going to take off any moment, but she forced herself to regain some semblance of composure. There wasn't going to be a better moment than this.
"I guess you just know." She replied quietly.
And with that, she threw her better judgement aside and leaned forward...
