It was her fifth day in Prague, but it was the first morning she woke up with Alex in the bed next to her, still fast asleep. The sunlight shining through the partially drawn curtains highlighted her sleeping form, and Piper felt like she was looking at a porcelain doll.
The blonde kissed her lover's bare shoulder. "Good morning."
Alex twitched and then rolled onto her back. Her eyes blinked rapidly as the sunlight shone right in them. "Morning." She reached for Piper, who immediately snuggled next to the brunette's naked body.
One of Alex's legs was tucked under the rumpled sheets, and the other was hooked at the knee. The blonde covered Alex's bare leg with her own and pulled her thigh higher so that it rested just below her center.
"I still can't believe we did it last night," the blonde mused, rubbing her lover's upper arm.
"Did it?" Alex chuckled. "What are you, like, in high school?"
Piper kicked her shin under the sheets.
"Ow! That hurt!" The dark haired woman yelled, but her smile proved that she wasn't injured.
"That was really special to me, Alex," she said innocently.
The brunette kissed her temple and hugged her tightly.
They laid in each other's arms, lazily rubbing and kissing each other for another 10 minutes before Alex muttered, "Fuck," when she looked at the digital clock on the nightstand. "I have to go."
"But it's a Saturday," she complained.
"Believe me, there's no place I'd rather be than in bed with you." Alex kissed her thoroughly. "But technically I'm here for work, and I'll get in serious fucking trouble if I'm not where I'm supposed to be in 30 minutes." She hopped out of bed and walked into the bathroom.
Piper heard the faucet running, and then Alex reappeared in the doorway leading to the bedroom with a sweet smile on her face. "By the way, it was special for me, too."
The blonde bit her lip and blushed as her lover retreated into the bathroom. She thought about joining her for a split second, but Alex seemed determined to get out of their hotel room quickly. Piper wondered what Alex did for a living. The dark haired woman had told her when they'd first met that her job was too insipidly complex, yet foolishly boring to provide details. Piper'd left it at that.
The hair dryer shut off and Alex walked hurriedly into the bedroom, rushing around to put together her outfit. Piper heard her mutter fuck several times, and ironically, thought it was adorable. She dared not tell Alex that—not when she was clearly on a mission. The blonde watched her lover put on Navy blue underwear and a black business suit with a green, silk blouse underneath. She looked all business, but still extremely hot.
"When will I see you?" Piper stretched, revealing her still naked torso.
Alex eyed her up and down and licked her lips as she fastened the backs of her earrings. "It's another long day. I probably won't be back until you're asleep."
She rolled onto her side. "I'll wait up for you."
"Don't." The dark haired woman walked to the bed and kissed Piper first on the cheek, and then on the lips. "Get some rest, and I'll see you late tonight."
Piper pouted at the thought of not spending the day with her new lover. Their first night together was indeed very special, and she'd pictured them lounging around the hotel room all day, eating a lot of protein between love making sessions.
Alex slipped on her heels and opened the door. "Have a great day, Pipes."
She pulled the covers high over her body. "You, too."
Piper's mood the day after they had sex for the first time was affected greatly by not being able to spend it with Alex. She thought of her lover at every turn and wondered if the brunette was thinking about her. She decided to call Polly to check in and hear a familiar voice.
After quick hellos, Polly dove right in. "Have you slept with her yet?"
"Polly!"
"Well, have you?"
Piper could feel her cheeks turning pink. "Last night."
"Wow, I didn't expect it to happen so soon," her friend commented.
"It was inevitable," the blonde replied. "I'm just glad we waited until Larry and I were on a break. It could've happened much sooner, you know."
"Speaking of Larry, have you talked to him?"
"No, why?" She paced in front of a boutique in the Hradcany district.
"I saw him yesterday at Zabar's," Polly stated. "He looked depressed."
"Did you talk to him?"
"Only briefly. He asked if I'd heard from you."
Piper stopped walking, focusing solely on the conversation. "And?"
She pictured her friend shrugging. "And I told him that I hadn't heard from you."
"I'm not ready to talk to him." Piper brushed her hair back with her free hand. "I want to see where this thing with Alex goes."
"You can't do that to him, Piper," she said in a strict tone. "If things don't work out with your lesbian neighbor, it's not fair to make Larry your next choice."
"That's not what I meant." She hung her head. "I'm not ready to make any decisions, Polly, and whatever I decide will be with a clear conscience."
Silence hung in the air between them. The blonde swore she heard Polly about to retort with a comeback, but no words were forthcoming.
Her friend was the first to breach the silence. "When are you coming home?"
Piper shrugged. "I'm not sure yet. Maybe another week. I think Alex will find out her next assignment today."
The women wrapped up the call, which only worsened her already bad mood. She shoved her cell phone back into her bag and proceeded into the shop, absentmindedly looking at fashionable hats, gloves and scarves. There was one scarf in particular that she liked, but paying the equivalent of $130 US was not in the cards.
Piper walked out of the shop and headed back to the hotel. She looked at her phone to see if she'd missed a call or text from Alex, but her screen was blank. She decided that a run was in order—it was the one activity that she hadn't done in Prague, and it had always served to clear her mind in New York.
After a quick change of clothes back at the hotel, she stepped onto the sidewalk and stretched before setting out on a slow jog. She already felt comfortable in the streets of Old Town, and she figured she could get in a good two mile run before 7 p.m. Although the sky was dark, Prague was lit up by street lamps, store fronts and restaurants that all glowed from within. She ran down Nerudova Street, admiring the Prague Castle where she'd been with Alex the night before; she'd give anything to be there with her lover again.
As Piper passed the boutique she had ventured into just an hour earlier, she noticed a new sign in the window that read, "30% off all scarves," so she decided to go inside to see if the one she'd wanted was on sale. Sure enough, it was, and she asked the store clerk if she'd hold it, promising she'd return the next day to pick it up. As she walked outside, she looked down the street and could swear she saw Alex talking with the same well-manicured man she'd seen her with twice before. The brunette was too far away to hear Piper call her name, so she jogged towards her, heart beating wildly at the unexpected run-in.
Before Piper reached the corner where Alex had stood, a black towncar came and she swiftly stepped inside.
"Alex!" she tried, waving a hand in the air.
It was no use; the dark haired woman was whisked away in the car with what looked like one other passenger. Piper stood with her hands on her hips, breathing heavily after having picked up her pace to catch up with her lover. She went inside the restaurant to see if she could find the man with whom Alex was talking. It was an upscale bar where she immediately felt out of place in her black tights, running shoes and Nike sweatshirt, but she told herself she'd only be a minute.
She spotted the well-dressed man ordering a drink at the bar.
"Excuse me," she began with a tap on his shoulder. "I'm sorry to bother you, but were you just talking to Alex Vause out there?"
The man eyed her suspiciously. "With whom am I speaking?"
"Oh, sorry. My name is Piper. Piper Chapman." She extended her hand.
"Piper?" The man pumped their joined hands twice before letting go. "I don't know that I've ever met someone with such a unique name." He grinned. "Hello, Piper. I'm Fahri."
"Nice to meet you." The blonde thought that despite his good looks, he resembled a villain in a Disney cartoon.
"Yes, that was Alex Vause," he said, smoothing his mustache and returning to the original question. "How do you two know each other?"
"We're neighbors back in the States." Piper tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She decided to leave her statement at that and not go into the details about their rendezvous in Prague.
"I see." Fahri grinned. "Can I buy you a drink?"
"I'm clearly not dressed for a place like this." The blonde looked down at her outfit. "I was just hoping you could tell me if that was Alex, and when she might be back?"
"She's…running an errand." Fahri swirled the amber liquid in his glass. "I imagine she'll return within the hour."
"Are you one of her business associates?"
"Business associates?" The well-dressed man laughed. "Yes. Yes, we'll go with that."
Piper creased her forehead and took a tiny step back. This man was giving her an eerie vibe.
"What has she told you about her business?" He took a sip of Scotch.
"Nothing, actually," the blonde replied. "I just know she travels internationally for work and has a hefty expense account."
Fahri gave her a toothless smile. "That, she does."
Just then a drift of cold air entered the bar, and when Piper looked to her right, she watched Alex take several long strides across the room until she was standing in front of the blonde.
"Alex!" Piper smiled widely upon seeing her lover. "I was just asking this gentleman if that was you who I saw earlier on the corner."
The brunette put a hand on Piper's elbow and yanked her towards the door. "What the fuck are you doing here?"
The smile on the blonde's face quickly turned into a frown. "I was jogging, and then went into this little boutique a couple of blocks away, and I saw you from a distance, and..."
"You cannot be here, Piper," the dark haired woman interrupted, a stern expression etched on her face. "You need to leave now."
The blonde shivered, partially due to the cold air whipping in her face and partially at her lover's stern warning. "I don't understand…"
"I am working, Piper, and you can't interfere with that," she whispered unnecessarily as they stood face to face outside with no one else around. "What did that man ask you?"
"I don't know." The blonde shook her head, confused about the events that had just transpired.
"Did he ask you about my business?" she pleaded with raised brows.
"Yes, but I told him I had no idea what you do for a living." Fear began creeping into her voice. "Alex, what's going on?"
She took a deep breath and adjusted her posture. "Go back to the hotel. I'll be there in a couple of hours. Promise."
"You're scaring me," she admitted, folding her arms protectively over her chest.
"There's nothing to be afraid of, babe. It's all good." Alex stepped closer, hugging her tightly and finished the embrace with a kiss on the forehead. "Go back to the hotel, order room service and take a bubble bath. I won't be long."
Piper nodded, not at all reassured by her lover's words.
The dark haired woman released her and walked back to the entryway of the bar. She opened the door halfway before spinning around. "I'm sorry, Piper. I really am." And then disappeared into the warmth of the bar.
Piper had no idea how long she stood there, freezing as the wind had picked up and the temperature dropped significantly. At some point, she found her way back to the hotel and snapped back to reality when the dry heat from the lobby hit her in the face. She took the elevator upstairs, let herself into the room and felt tears prickling her eyes. She drew a bath, stripped out of her workout gear and took a few steadying breaths, not allowing tears to fall.
She replayed the scene at the bar over and over in her mind, trying to figure out what her lover was afraid of. Was she a CIA operative? Was Fahri not her business associate at all but instead, her competitor? She had no idea, but as soon as Alex walked back into the room, no matter what time of day it was, she intended to find out.
Author's Note: This was probably my favorite chapter to write of the entire story. (The next one is a close second.) Please let me know what you think.