A/N: This chapter feels like a bit of a fragmented mess to me, but I've been feeling a bit lost so I suppose it's apropos. Hopefully it makes sense to you guys and you can enjoy it. Please let me know any feelings you're having about it, as it may help me get back into the writing groove a bit. -K
"Pleeeaaase, babe." Piper wined over the phone.
"Absolutely not."
"Come on, It'll be fun."
"I can almost guarantee it won't be."
"But we always have fun together." Alex could practically see her girlfriend pout.
"...Why do you have to be so cute?" The brunette groaned out her frustration.
"I promise I'll keep it short. If you run a mile with me then we can go to your place after to take a shower. And I'm a long distance runner so I'll have plenty of energy left for you, baby."
"Sold. But you can't tease me about how out of shape I am."
"I wouldn't dream of it. See you bright and early tomorrow morning!" Piper cheered.
"Ugh. See you babe. Sleep well."
"You too. Good night."
"Night, kid."
The next morning Piper woke up and changed into her running gear. She opted for a tight pair of shorts and a sports bra, hoping to tease her girlfriend a bit. She heard a knock at her door and quickly threw her hair up into a ponytail and she went to greet her girlfriend. The brunette had on a pair of cropped leggings and a cutout tank top with a sports bra underneath. She had her hair in a ponytail and no makeup on.
"You look so fucking cute!" Piper squealed quietly.
"It's so early, Pipes. You're lucky you look so good right now. Your abs are killing me." The blonde chuckled and tightened her abdomen. Alex groaned at the sight of her muscles gaining even more definition. "Mmmm, let's go straight to my place, instead."
"Uh uh. I don't think so, babe. It's one mile! It'll be over before you know it."
"Alright, let's get this over with." Piper smiled and the two made their way down to the beach to start their run. The sun was only just beginning to rise and it was glorious. As soon as Piper made it to the shore she started jogging. Alex kept up with her pretty well, but she could hear her breathing becoming more labored as they continued.
"You alright?" The blonde checked in.
"Splendid. Thanks." She huffed out sarcastically. Piper chucked.
"We're almost there. You need to slow down?"
"Nope I'm good." She was always so stubborn.
"Fine. Good. I was actually thinking about sprinting the last few meters so that's great." Piper smirked to herself before picking up her speed. She heard Alex groaning a bit in the distance. She was surprised when the brunette never picked up the pace to catch up with her and glanced back to check she was alright. It was then that she realized her girlfriend was staring at her ass and she smirked. She checked her watch to see that she had just reached one mile and slowly came to a stop. After a few moments, Alex finally reached her. By this point she was breathing heavily and collapsed onto the sand by her feet.
"You doing alright there, baby?" The blonde tried to fight off her laughter.
"Fuck me." She panted out, her chest rising and falling rapidly.
"That's the plan." She smirked.
"I can't believe you do this all the time." She wiped the sweat off her forehead. "For a lot further distances. And actually enjoy it…."
"You really aren't going to appreciate my come-on line?" Piper frowned, having been impressed by her own joke. She sat down in the sand next to her girl.
"Your wit is not lost on me…..I just needed a second. Oh my god. There's no way I can fuck you after that." She sighed, finally gaining control of her breathing again.
"That's why I'm going to be the one doing the fucking. All you have to do is relax and enjoy."
"Sounds good to me. But you might have to carry me back to my place." The brunette teased. She slowly lifted herself up to mirror Piper's position.
"Riiiight. I'll get right on that." The blonde rolled her eyes.
"Fuck, kid. Why do you look so good right now? You're barely sweating and your body looks glorious. I'm actually dying."
"Polly always gets pissed and says that I look good even after I run like three miles. She's full of shit, though." She chuckled. Noticing Alex's breathing was back to normal, she stood up and extended her hand.
"I don't know Pipes." She accepted her hand and aided her in lifting her out of the sand. "I think she's right. You look so good I'm a little frustrated." She ran her hands along her toned stomach and around her back before pulling her into a kiss. Their lips both tasted of salt from the layer sweat that had developed on their skin.
"Mmmmm. Let's go shower now." Piper groaned against her lips.
"Yes please." The two made their way back to Alex's place walking hand in hand. Every once in a while the blonde would whisper into her girlfriends ear about the dirty things she was desperate to do to her upon their arrival. As soon as they were through the front door they were all over each other and stumbling to the shower. They both reveled in the feeling of the water cascading down their bodies and remained wrapped up in each other. The blonde fulfilled everything she had promised and more. Alex began to think that maybe she should take up running.
Piper and Alex's relationship remained steady throughout the month. The brunette's job became a bit more demanding after a member of the club staff quit, but the two savored each moment they had together. Before they knew it, July was upon them, and Polly invited Piper to spend the fourth at her place with their significant others. She checked in with Alex and discovered she had the morning shift and would be free all evening. After quite a few days apart, the blonde was ecstatic at the prospect of seeing her.
Piper went over to Polly's house early and texted the address to her girlfriend. She spent about an hour with Pete and Polly before they heard the doorbell ring. She stood up immediately and practically ran to the door. The blonde made an effort to calm herself as she swung open the door. A huge smile formed on her face when she saw her gorgeous girlfriend.
"Hi babe." Alex returned a smile. Piper immediately stepped forward and wrapped her arms around her.
"I've missed you." She whispered next to her ear.
"I've missed you too, Pipes." The two pulled apart and made their way into the living room, hand in hand.
"Heya stretch!" Pete called out to Alex. "Long time no see."
"I know, I know." She chuckled at his nickname for her. "How have you guys been?"
"Pretty good." Pete responded.
"We've been great. Happy you could come tonight." Polly said with a smile. "There's some food in the kitchen. We were just about to pick something to watch for a while until it starts getting dark." Alex nodded and made her way into the kitchen with Piper.
"Did you bring a suit?"
"Yeah, I've got one on under this." She gestured to her outfit. She had on a pair of loose jeans and a v-neck t-shirt.
"Good." Piper smirked at her. She leaned in to give her a quick kiss on the lips, not willing to wait any longer. The two continued chatting as Alex made a small plate of food.
"We going down to the beach later?" Alex questioned, assuming that was why Piper requested she wear a suit.
"Nope. Polly has a hot tub on the back patio."
"Mmmm. Even better."
"I guess." Piper shrugged. She loved the hot tub, but nothing compared to being in the ocean in her opinion.
"You have to admit that being in hot water is way better than the chill of the ocean after it gets dark." Alex rolled her eyes, knowing exactly what her girlfriend was thinking.
"Whatever you say….Any body of water feels hot when you're in it with me." Piper winked.
"Very clever, babe." The brunette chuckled.
The two rejoined Pete and Polly in the living room and the four of them spent some time debating what to watch. Eventually they found a film that they were all happy with and settled onto the couches. Each couple cuddled up, enjoying a night in with the people they cared about. The movie came to and end as the sun had almost left the sky and they all made their way outside. They shivered as they settled into the warmth of the tub, the cool evening airs' contrast evident against their exposed skin. Once the sky had gone completely dark, the fireworks began to go off. Pete and Polly progressively got closer and closer, making the environment a bit uncomfortable.
"Really guys?" Piper frowned.
"Do you want to go down to the beach?" Alex inquired, feeling a bit out of place due to the tension between Pete and Polly.
"Do you?" The blonde replied with a raised brow, recalling their earlier conversation.
"I want to do whatever makes you happy. Plus, I don't really want to see this go any further." She chucked, gesturing to Pete and Polly who were now sharing a particularly steamy kiss.
"Good point." Piper giggled. She stepped out of the tub and extended a hand to her girlfriend to help her out. The two dried off a bit, slipped their clothes back on, and headed down to the beach with a blanket. They made their way down to the shore and the blonde spread out the blanket for them to sit on. As they watched the colorful display taking place in the sky, Piper couldn't help the way her thoughts began to wander. The summer was coming to a close within the month and she wasn't ready. She wasn't ready to let go of Alex. Sure, they wouldn't be too far apart, but any distance would make things a bit more complicated.
"Do you think that this is a firework?" Piper asked Alex, her eyes not leaving the sky.
"What?" The brunette raised her eyebrows.
"Us. You and me…" She whispered.
"What do you mean, babe?"
"Are we just this sudden blaze of light and warmth? Like this beautiful, enlightening thing…" She explained with her hands out in front of her, gazing toward Alex before looking back into the distance. Her gaze had now fallen to the ocean, watching as the colorful bursts were reflected in fragments. "...that doesn't last. That just...fades away into the darkness like nothing ever even happened." She felt moisture collecting in her eyes and cursed herself internally.
"Pipes…" Alex whispered. When the blonde refused to look at her, she grabbed her by the chin and turned her face until their eyes met. A single tear rolled down the blonde's cheek and Alex attempted to fight off tears of her own. She wiped her thumb over the trail left by the droplet. "We're not a firework. That's not going to happen to us…..I won't let that happen to us." Piper smiled sadly at her. Both women knew that it was going to be much more complicated than that, but they wanted to believe it for just a moment.