A/N : *waves* Hey. This was supposed to be up yesterday but my computer decided it had nothing to live for and crashed, taking over 2,000 worded casualties with it. Anyway, here it is. To the guest that wrote the deeply inspiring, 'Dude. Update.' here it is.. dude, your update.
It had been a month since Piper and Alex had begun their, what the blonde had deemed "transitional" phase, as a rebuttal to the brunette's careless reference of an affair. A month of stealthily sneaking searing lip locks; A month of the brunette making casual excuses to meet the blonde at her apartment as her roommate was at church; and a month of Alex grimacing guiltily as Larry had been planning a birthday dinner for his girlfriend.
Currently, the two roommates were hunched over Larry's laptop situated at the kitchen table, looking for potential venues to host the intimately small party. Alex had poured herself another whiskey-neat as she looked over the broad shoulder of her friend and roommate.
"What do you think of this?" Larry mumbled around the thumb lodged into his mouth, as he gently chewed on the nail; a nervous habit he had acquired during all night study sessions in college.
"mm," Alex hummed while throwing her tumbler back. Swallowing the amber liquid, she pointed her finger to the screen as she scrunched her face, hissing slightly at the burn of the alcohol running down her throat. "It says bring your own chair."
"What? That's insane! Where does it say that?" Larry smiled crookedly in disbelief, side-eyeing the onyx haired girl to his left.
"Right there! Scroll down a bit…" Alex trailed off as she rested her forearm on the man's shoulder, leaning in closer. "Where did I see it?" she mumbled to herself. "Right there! See?" she exclaimed with a laugh
Shaking his head dumbfounded, Larry chuckled to himself. "Only in New York." He murmured, continuing to flit his eyes wildly over the screen in desperation. Huffing exasperatedly, he ran his hand through his thick brown curls in annoyance. Piper's birthday was a week from Friday, and he was no closer to having it organized than he had been a month ago. "It's hopeless." He whined in defeat.
"I don't know," Alex reasoned with a tilt of her head "That place that 'grinds your hamburger meat in front you' sounded colourful." Alex grinned playfully.
"Please don't joke right now." Larry muffled as he layed his head down into his crossed arms on the table top.
"It's going to be alright." Alex cooed as she ran her hands along Larry's back comfortingly.
"No, it's not! Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a restaurant for my girlfriend who, 'will only eat farm raised, grain fed chicken's that died humanely of broken heart?" Larry's voice strained as he rose to straighten in his seat.
"Yeah, I never understood that. I'm pretty sure I'd eat human if it were spiced properly." Alex offered absentmindedly, fingering her beaded bracelet.
"Would you?" Larry perked up in interest as he rested his elbow on the table, lowering his head to lean against his closed fist.
"I'd try it." The brunette jested with a shrug. "I imagine it tastes like overgrown, emotionally unavailable chicken."
Larry chuckled as tiredly, punctuating it with a yawn as he heard the distinct jingle of keys. His eyes widening at Alex, he turned his head towards the front foyer, watching as his girlfriend ushered through the threshold of the door. Standing quickly, he snapped the lid closed on his laptop just as Piper made her way into the kitchen. Smiling widely while trying to appear, and failing miserably to come across nonchalant, he rested his hand on his laptop as he leaned forward slightly.
"Hey sweetie. What's up?" he asked, his voice an octave higher than usual
Piper eyed him skeptically before lowering her eyes to the computer below his slightly shaking hand. Knitting her eyebrows together, she raised her hand, index finger pointing towards the laptop non-committedly. "Were you watching porn?"
"What? Of course not." He replied quickly with wide eyes. Glancing over to his roommate who was still seated and grinning mischievously, he chucked a thumb over to her. "And Alex is sitting right here."
"Oh." Piper responded flatly. "Were you and Alex watching porn?" she asked with a quirk of an eyebrow; a laugh almost escaping as she took in the slight flush of the man's cheeks.
"Cute, Pipes." He smiled sarcastically.
"Yeah, well." Piper shrugged with a grin of her own as she walked over to her boyfriend, pecking him softly on the lips. AS she pulled back, her eyes blinked over to Alex, watching her intently.
Lately, Piper had been having an issue with seeing her boyfriend and mistress in the same room. The issue being that her initial reaction after walking through the front door, was to make a beeline straight to Alex.
"Hey, loser." Piper murmured with a wink towards the brunette
"Hey." Alex husked a chuckle back, eyeing the blonde up and down.
"So…" Piper held her eyes for a moment before turning back to the dark brown orbs of her boyfriend. Wrapping her arms around his waist playfully, she twisted him left and right. "Why so secretive?" Piper inquired as she raised a sculpted eyebrow towards the two roommates.
"Who's secretive? Us?" Larry asked with a smile
"We're not being secretive." Alex shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest. "And if we were being secretive, we wouldn't be able to tell you why; because it would be a secret."
"Which it's not." Larry jumped in reassuringly before tossing a glare over to his grinning roommate.
"Or is it?" Alex quipped, unable to let the joke on the man die.
Alex laughed throatily as Larry reached over to grab a stray dishtowel, throwing it at her. Unfortunately for him, she was able to catch it, adding to her erupting laughter. Larry joined in as he reached around his waist, grabbing Piper's hands from around him and gently untangling her body from his. Reaching down to retrieve his laptop, he tucked it under his arm as he eased out of the kitchen backwards.
"Okay, I'm going to bring this upstairs for no reason what-so-ever." Larry spoke as he threw a threatening glare towards the brunette. "I'll be right back." He murmured before turning on his heel, beginning to retreat quickly up the stairs.
Both sets of eyes watched him from the kitchen silently for a moment before being magnetically pulled to one another. Piper smiled deviously as she made her way over to the brunette, still seated nonchalantly at the kitchen table watching her with taunting eyes.
Piper leaned down slowly, raising her arms to tangle around the shoulders of the smirking brunette. Leaning in closer, she hovered in front of her lips teasingly before skimming them on a path along the girl's cheek toward her ear. "Hey." She whispered softly before taking the lobe of the girl's ear between her teeth.
"Hey." Alex responded as her eyes fluttered shut in relation to the blonde's actions. It had been a week ago that she had discovered Alex's earlobe to be an especially erogenous zone, and used it to her full advantage in torturing the brunette. "Bitch." Alex strangle out, earning a laugh tickling her ear in response.
Piper continued to tug at the girl's earlobe as she tangled her right hand in dark tresses. Alex's mouth slacked slightly before her hands raised to grasp the blonde's face bringing her messily to her lips, both instantly opening their mouths to tangle their tongues together.
"Where were you?" Alex murmured against the swelling lips of the blonde as she lightly scratched at her scalp with her filed fingernails.
"I had to work late." Piper murmured in response, quickly bringing her lips to the brunette's once more before separating once again. "When did Larry get home?" she asked, punctuated with a gasp as Alex moved her lips to the side of her neck, kissing a wet path towards her throat.
"Five o'clock." Alex breathed as she stilled her movements, hearing heavy footsteps on the floor above them. Sighing deeply, she pulled away unable to mask the frustration she was currently feeling. She and Piper had made plans to meet this afternoon after a particularly shitty morning at the bookstore. Alex had looked forward to releasing her accumulating tension all over Piper. However, the blonde had evidently had to work late leaving Alex, once again, alone with Larry.
She could hardly look the man in the eyes these days. What started off as him a distant afterthought, suddenly he was present in her thoughts constantly. She liked the guy; she adored him, in fact. He had opened his home to her when she had nowhere to go. Now, Alex was feeling incredibly guilty every time she marked the blonde's thighs; every time she tasted the salty-sweetness of her skin. However, she still could not bring herself to feel guilty enough to stop.
Piper had become an addiction. She craved her, constantly. More than anyone in her entire life, she ached for her touch; including Genevieve, whom Alex had stopped calling immediately following the first time she had slept with the blonde. Aside from the burning bag of dog shit on their front stoop, she handled it rather well.
The most infuriating aspect of this web they have woven, is that Alex was starting to like the girl. At first, it had been easier to carry on as she could barely stand sitting in the same room with her; now, Alex not only craved her touch, but her presence. That was a gargantuan problem. Alex now felt her touch becoming softer, slower, and more passionate as oppose to what they had previously taken part in. The fact that there was a very, very fine string attached to this arrangement frightened her. She was already risking a good friend and the roof over her head. Could she afford to potentially risk her sanity as well?
Being catapulted out of her thoughts by the tight grasp of her wrist, Alex came to the present time as she was being forced to stand. Being pushed backwards by her hips, the brunette's back suddenly came in contact with the cold stainless steel of the refrigerator door. Softening her eyes, accompanied with a lopsided smile, she layed her hands on either side of the blonde's smiling face, bringing her closer for a soft kiss.
Piper's lips curved into a smile as her lips brushed gently against those of the brunette. The kiss remained just that; soft, timid. That is until Piper snorted a laugh as she lowered her right hand down the front of Alex's pants.
"Pipes." Alex chastised with a slight chuckle as she pulled away from the woman's lips.
"Shut up." Piper said simply as she once again attached her lips to the plump lips of Alex once again.
Alex, once again receded her protest as she melted into the blonde's kiss once again. Hearing shuffling again from the floor above them, she shook her head as she pulled herself away from the persistent blonde. Piper, who's hand was hovering dangerously close to the brunette's center, pulled out of the brunette's pants only to fiddle with the button on the front of the girl's tight blue jeans.
"Piper, stop." Alex commanded as she stilled the blonde's preoccupied hand, receiving a glare in response. "Larry is upstairs." She reasoned "He could comph dwnn-" her speech was effectively muffled as the blonde placed her left hand over her mouth to silence her.
"I said shut up." The blonde laughed before latching her lips onto the brunette's ear, silently coaxing her into reluctant participation; all the while, her hand still covered the brunette's mouth as her right hand slid up and down the seam of the girl's jeans.
Alex closed her eyes in torturous bliss before hearing the pitter patter of feet shuffling down the stairs. Trying and failing once again to reason with the blonde, she began to panic. Attempting to shove the girl away once more and having her pushed forcefully back, she became irrationally angry; she did the only thing she could think of to defuse the situation.
"Son of a bitch!" Piper yelled as she jumped away from the taller girl. Shaking her hand wildly to rid herself of the stinging pain in her hand, she let slip a few more explicit choice words escape her throat, bouncing off the walls of the kitchen.
Larry entered the kitchen once again to see his girlfriend swearing like a sailor; at the opposite end of the spectrum, he found his roommate silently leaning against the fridge in a casual stance, watching the girl move about the kitchen in angry circles.
"What the hell happened?" Larry asked, thoroughly confused
"She bit me!" Piper exclaimed with wide eyes, throwing her hand wildly in Alex's direction for emphasis.
Larry paused as his mouth hung open, then closed suddenly as his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. Turning to Alex, he placed his hands on his hips. "Did you really bite my girlfriend?"
Cringing at the title, Alex shrugged sheepishly. "Yes."
"Why?" Larry asked quietly; stunned with disbelief.
"Trust me," Alex glared at the blonde "she had it coming." She finished coldly as she turned on her heel, making her way up the stairs and into her room, the blonde glaring at her the entire way up.
Piper turned to her slumbering boyfriend as he shifted positions, turning onto his side facing away from her. Sighing, she attempted to drag her eyes back to the book laying lazily in her hands. Larry had attempted to ask Piper what had happened with the other girl, only to be brushed off dismissively claiming a playful fight gone awry.
He seemed to have bought the story; He seemed to buy a lot of her bullshit excuses lately. Piper grimaced as she realized the reason why; he had undoubtedly, unknowingly trusted her completely. Up until meeting Alex, not months ago, he had every reason to.
Hearing a thump come from the room next door, Piper's body became instantly alert. Knowing that Alex was still awake on the other side of the thin wall while she was curled up next to her sleeping boyfriend with a book that was almost good, absolutely tortured her.
Settling her focus back onto the book in her hands, she her eyes once again began to scan the pages absentmindedly. Hearing another round of soft thumps, she threw the book onto the nightstand before throwing the down-fill duvet off of her legs, swinging them off the side of the bed until her feet were firmly planted to the hardwood floor. Taking one last glance towards Larry's sleeping form, she quietly tip-toed out of the room.
Piper knocked softly against the door; earning only the soft sound of heavy breathing coming from the other side of it, she turned the doorknob cautiously. Entering the room, she scanned it with her slightly creased cerulean eyes before landing on the brunette's sweaty form, punching away at her 'everlast' kickboxing bag hanging in the corner. Taking in the movements of the girl, she could see the tension radiating off of her as she swiftly punched away with her glove-clad hands.
Clearing her throat as she simultaneously stepped forward, she approached the woman hesitantly until she was not a foot away from her. Noting the girl hadn't acknowledged her presence yet, she reached her hand out, gently laying it on the soaking shoulder of the girl's t shirt covered body. Feeling Alex stiffen slightly, she noticed the girl abruptly halt her movements as her shoulders sunk lower in exhaustion.
Piper smiled crookedly as she stepped forward, wrapping her arms around the waist of the girl from behind. One of the advantages of being five-foot-nine was that it gave her the perfect vantage point to lay a kiss to the back of Alex's clammy neck. Hearing a soft sigh as she placed another soft kiss on the flushed skin, she ran her hand up the flat surface of Alex's stomach as a calming gesture. "As much as I enjoy watching you do this, you need to keep it down." Piper whispered softly, her words slightly muffled as her lips were still pressed against the skin of the brunette. "Larry's asleep; I could hear you through the wall."
"Sorry." Alex mumbled tiredly as she moved her hand to her eyes, wiping away a lone bead of sweat that had managed to make its way through her lids. "I'll keep it down." Alex threw over her shoulder, disentangling herself from the blonde's embrace as she began to unwrap the tape around her wrists, holding her gloves in place.
Piper watched her warily for a moment; she watched as the brunette threw her gloves in the corner of the corner before sitting down on the hardwood floor, stretching out her sore muscles silently. Rolling her eyes, the blonde crouched down so that she was eye level with a visibly disgruntled Alex. Holding her hands out, palms facing skyward, she huffed slightly. "Okay, what's wrong?"
"Nothing." Alex murmured as she leaned forward, legs stretched straight out in front of her as she grasped the tips of her toes.
"Obviously something is wrong." Piper all but hissed as she ran her right hand through her blonde locks in frustration. After another long silence, Piper took a calming breath before her lips curled into a half smile. Lowering her eyes to catch the grey-green orbs of the brunette, her smiled widened. "I mean, if anyone should be mad, it's me. You bit me." The blonde attempted to break the tension.
Sighing loudly, Alex finally raised her head slowly as she locked eyes with the blonde. Letting her posture relax as she leaned back, she raised her legs to bend at the knees, her arms wrapping around them as she assumed a much more casual position seated on the floor.
"Do you want to get caught?" Alex asked simply with a practiced sense of calm
"Excuse me?" Piper asked with wide eyes.
"It's a simple question, Pipes. Is this a game to you? Or some kind of really messed up foreplay for you and Larry? Do. You. Want… to get caught?" Alex punctuated the words for emphasis.
"Messed up foreplay?" The blonde hissed with wild eyes before shoving the girl's legs roughly, making her slightly lose her center of gravity. "Fuck you." Piper spat as she stood straight, turning to walk away.
Smirking venomously at the theatrics of the blonde, Alex stood quickly, jogging quietly to stand in front of the door, effectively closing off the blonde's only escape. "No, you're going to listen to what I have to say." Alex stated calmly.
Crossing her arms defiantly, Piper nodded her head once as she urged the brunette silently to continue.
"I know that you're this boring, privileged yuppie who realized that she ended up living the life her parents mapped out for her since she was in the womb and craved excitement and danger or whatever," Alex began as she raised her glasses to the top of her head to look unchallenged into the blue eyes of the blonde. "But just keep in mind that this isn't a fucking game or adventure to me. I could potentially lose a really good friend as well as my home over you, Pipes."
Piper glared at her challengingly before looking down to her feet, nodding as she stepped impossibly close to the brunette. Raising her eyes, full of intense fire she straightened her posture to extend to her full height. "How good of a friend could he be if you're fucking his girlfriend?" Piper spat calmly. Receiving a stunned expression in response, Piper shook her head as she raised an accusatory finger towards the taller girl. "Do not put this on me." She whispered threateningly.
Alex stood quietly as she regarded the blonde's words. She knew that the blonde was right; yes, she had been careless in her discretion, but Alex could not put the blame on her if and when this all eventually blows up in her face.
Stepping aside without another word spoken, Alex opened the door for the blonde, watching her intently as she slipped past her and out of her room.
The days of the following week flew past them as their interaction had become limited at best. Alex kept herself busy with the bookstore, managing to accomplish a month's worth of work within a span of a few days.
Piper, who had resisted the urge to visit, also threw herself into her work at PoPi's Manhattan location. The Barney's launch was fast approaching and she busied herself by trying desperately to figure out the logistics and technical side of the business.
Friday rolled around, marking the blonde's 25th birthday. She had smiled politely every time Polly would excitedly share the news with their customers, and she half-heartedly fawned over the bouquet of flowers that had arrived for her at the shop from her doting boyfriend. However, her mind never strayed too far from a certain onyx haired woman who had consumed her thoughts for the past week.
As Piper climbed the stairs of her boyfriend's brownstone later that evening, her pulse raced at the potentially awkward encounter that was awaiting her on the other side of the door. Taking one last calming intake of air, she turned her key in the lock, stepping through quietly.
Piper's eyes widened as she took in the sight in front of her. Wild flowers adorned the expanse of the open dining area; Candles and assorted trinkets were splayed all over the elegantly set table, and a handful of her friends and family smiled adoringly at her as she took it all in.
"Hey sweetie," Larry smiled widely as he approached her, finally enveloping her in a warm embrace as he reached her.
Piper hugged him tightly, her eyes still traveling wildly over the beautiful set up. Pulling away, she was granted a soft kiss from her boyfriend as he ushered her in.
"Hey, everyone." Piper smiled softly as she made her way around the table, embracing her loved ones as they wished her well. The blonde thought this was the perfect way to celebrate a milestone birthday, however she couldn't help but notice that Alex was not present. Successfully masking her disappointment, she smiled as she made her way to her father.
"Happy Birthday, pumpkin." He grinned happily as he enveloped his only daughter in a warm embrace.
Hugging him back whole-heartedly, she buried her face into the crook of his neck. "Thank you, daddy."
Forty minutes and a few cocktails later, The group was seated around the table with Piper at the helm. They dug into their food with satisfaction only a home cooked meal could provide.
"mm" Piper murmured around her fork. "This is amazing. Did you make all this?" she asked clearly impressed with the effort the man had put into giving her the perfect celebration.
"Actually, no." Larry chuckled as he poured himself a healthy amount of Cabernet into his wine glass. "Alex did the cooking; and chose the flowers." Larry added with a grin. "I'm completely hopeless, you know that Pipes." He finished with a laugh
"Alex did all this?" Piper asked, the shock barely managing to be concealed in her voice as her eyes darted to Polly to her left, who sat silently observant of the current conversation.
"Well, I lit the candles." Larry pouted playfully "But yes, she was a huge help. I've been trying to plan this for almost two months!"
"Where is Alex, by the way?" Piper asked as her eyes ticked around the room.
"She said she had to work late. She literally came in, made dinner and bolted." Larry responded absentmindedly as he rose the wine glass to his lips. "Oh, she said to say Happy Birthday." He added as an afterthought before turning to Piper's youngest brother Cal, engaging in what was sure to be a completely inappropriate conversation.
"Oh." Piper threw out softly as her eyes looked over to the orchids lining the dining area.
"I don't know why, I just do." Piper giggled as Alex kissed a trail up her stomach, taking a detour and spending special attention to the blonde's side along her ribcage.
Lifting her head after a moment, Alex lowered her weight on top of the blonde as she rested her head on her hand, gazing into the sparkling blue eyes of the girl. "But orchids? Aren't they just a twig with a few petals on them?" Alex asked with a slight chuckle as she ran her finger distractedly up the blonde's arm.
"Yes, to a person who is dead inside, I imagine they would be." Piper laughed as the brunette shoved her playfully. "You asked me what my favorite flower is and I told you." She reasoned as she moved a stray lock of hair behind the girl's ear.
"Why?" Alex asked somewhat sleepily as she suppressed the need to yawn in the girl's face.
"My grandmother." Piper paused. "She hadthe most beautiful garden back in Connecticut. When I was a little girl, I used to walk through it." The blonde smiled in memory before continuing. "I remember I saw the orchids, and I thought they were the ugliest fucking flower I've ever laid eyes on." Piper paused to join the brunette in quiet laughter. "But she took my hand and said, 'Piper. The orchid represents beauty and love; but also strength. Beauty means nothing if you're not strong. It takes strength to let yourself love."
"Smart lady." Alex said seriously as she let the wise words resonate inside her head.
"She was." Piper nodded sadly. "She died while I was away at college. So every time I see an orchid, I think of her words of wisdom." Piper spoke as she trailed the lines of the brunette's lips with her index finger. "So that's why I love a twig with petals." She slapped the girl's face gently as rolled her eyes with a chuckle.
"Are you sure you can't stay, Pipes?" Larry coaxed as he waggled his brows at his girlfriend. The rest of the party had left a short time ago, leaving the blonde alone with her slightly inebriated boyfriend.
Pulling away from his wandering hands with an uncomfortable laugh, she placed her hands on the sides of his face, pulling him in for a soft kiss. "I would, sweetie but I need to go home and pack for the Barney's meeting."
"But it's Friday." He whined slightly as he pulled her back towards his body.
"I know, I'm sorry." She whispered once again as she placed one last kiss on his lips. "I'll make it up to you, I promise." She smiled as she turned on her heel, heading out the door.
Walking towards the front door of the store, she stopped suddenly to observe the lights shutting off one at a time. Darting her eyes to the glass of the swinging door, she noticed the open sign still prominently displayed in the window. Smiling to herself as she knew Alex would eventually make her way to the front of the store.
As the last few sets of lights were extinguished, Piper straightened as she saw the silhouette of the brunette come into view. Moving closer to the window, Piper layed the palm of her hand against it as she waited; her breath effectively fogging the otherwise spotless glass. Seeing the brunette come to a halt, she held her breath, not knowing if the girl would give her the slightest bit of acknowledgment.
Her breath escaped her lips in relief as Alex finally approached the window, her facial features coming into view as the streetlamp outside illuminated it. Neither moved a muscle; staring into each other's eyes intently as the transparent barrier guarded them.
Slowly, Alex reached for the latch located towards the top of the door before, never breaking eye contact, she unlocked the heavy lock beside the door handle. Hesitating only briefly, Alex swung the door open, silently enticing the blonde to come inside.
There was no hesitation in Piper's movements as she walked into the store with purpose. Grabbing the sides of Alex's face, she brought her slightly lower to crash their lips together messily. Forcing her tongue inside of the other girl's mouth as she let a deep moan escape her throat, she moved her fingers to tangle into Alex's dark tresses.
Alex responded immediately as she pulled the blonde further inside, spinning her around, and kicking the door closed with her foot distractedly as she backed the blonde up against the counter of the cash. Assisting her in lifting her onto the countertop, her lips broke away for the briefest of moments, hovering in front of the swollen lips of the blonde.
"Happy Birthday." She husked before devouring the blonde's mouth with her own.