-A Note: You guys are amazing. Over 10,000 views? Are you kidding me? Thank you guys so so much! This is a shorter chapter but gives you Emily's POV on the club scene. Thanks again for reading you guys! Can't tell you how much I love it!
Emily isn't sure what to expect when she walks into the new gay club in town. She knows Paige might be there since Spencer had informed her earlier that Paige had returned from her fleeting absence. The knowledge that Paige was safe allowed her to breathe a sigh of relief. She had been extremely worried about Paige. When the brunette hadn't answered her calls or texts for the first few days after the kiss, she understood it was probably because of that morning in the pool. However, when a week had gone by and no one had heard from Paige, Emily started panicking. She was terrified that something had happened to Paige or that she had left. As confused as Emily is, she doesn't want to lose Paige again. Actually, she can't lose Paige again. Her heart had already gone through that devastating loss once and Emily was sure she wouldn't be able to survive that again.
Eventually, Spencer used her super-sleuthing skills and found that Paige had bought a bus ticket but Spencer wouldn't tell her to where. She explained to Emily that the solider probably needed some time and that Emily shouldn't chase after her. She needed to come back on her own. In the end, Spencer was able to convince her to drop the search if the other girls went and camped out at Paige's until the girl returned.
"I just want to know she's safe Spencer! And I want to apologize," Emily exclaims, getting frustrated at her friend sitting in front of her.
"I'm not telling you were she went Emily," Spencer retorts with a calm even tone. "She needs time. You chose Stephanie and Paige needs time alone to accept that and move on herself."
"Spence, I just need to talk to her..."
"By tracking her down?" Spencer scoffs with a look of sarcasm. "I'd love to be around for that conversation: 'Emily what are you doing here?' 'I just needed to say sorry' 'How'd you even know where to find me, Stalker?'" Spencer turns her head with each change in conversation ending with a look of immense amusement. Emily on the other hand looks as if she is going to hit Spencer in the face.
"Look Em…if you want her to be your friend again, just give her time," Spencer pleads with her scowling friend, attempting to calm her down. "You're just going to keep pushing her away if you don't." Spencer is right and Emily knows it. It pains her to think she could lose Paige entirely…for the second time in her life.
"Ok, Spence, you're right. I'll back off," Emily says with a look of defeat.
"Of course I'm right, it's me," Spencer comments, a smug look on her face. Emily just looks at the confident girl and rolls her eyes. She needs to find a way to get back at her for this.
"…On one condition," Emily adds with a side glance. Spencer's face drops. She isn't sure where this is going. "You guys go to her house and let me know when she gets back and is safe." The request elicits a frustrated groan as the seated girl rolls her head back. Of course Emily would find a way to turn this around on her. The dark-haired girl stands in front of her friend smugly, her weight sifted to one leg, her arms crossed waiting for her friend to relent.
"Ok, ok… I'll do it," Spencer replies rubbing her temples. The things she'd do for her friends…
The music of the club is just beginning to slow as Emily pushes the door open, walking into the crowd with Stephanie behind her. The place is surprisingly more packed then she thought it would be. She didn't realize there were so many gay people in this area.
"Wow, this place is busy," Stephanie says into Emily's ear, earning a nod in response from Emily as the girl searches the crowd. Stephanie knows that Emily has been worried about her ex just disappearing suddenly and assumed it was because of the fact that she had already lost her friend once in her lifetime. The short-haired girl doesn't know about the kiss so she is not worried or jealous that her fiancé is currently scanning the crowd for Paige. They both know the solider was back from her mysterious trip and Stephanie knows that Emily needs to see her.
"I'm going to go find the other girls," the blue-eyed girl says, giving Emily a kiss on the cheek. The girl turns to her fiancé and gives her a nod and a smile before returning the kiss with a peck on the lips. Emily is still amazed at how understanding and gracious Stephanie is being about the situation. The thought causes Emily to feel a tinge of guilt for keeping what happened between her and Paige a secret. On one hand the choice shouldn't be so difficult but in reality she was literally in pieces over the decision. Stephanie was there when she needed it most. The girl is even there for her know despite the immediate risk of Emily possibly breaking her heart. There really is no doubt to the depths of Stephanie's love for her fiancé. Paige on the other had was the love of her life. If she hadn't disappeared, Stephanie wouldn't be even in the picture. There is no easy decision and either way, one or more of the three would end up getting hurt in the end.
Despite the fairly dense crowd, it doesn't take Emily long to find Paige dancing cheek-to-cheek with a girl who has darker blonde, wavy hair. Paige is holding the girl awfully close for her to be someone the brunette just met tonight but Emily shrugs off the thought as she begins to advance towards the dancing girls. She's caught dead in her tracks when she witnesses Paige pull the girl slightly away from her to place a hand on the girl's cheek before connecting their lips together. The sight shouldn't make her angry because she's engaged and Paige should be able to be with whomever she wants, but it does bother her. She doesn't like the idea of Paige with another girl. Hatred for the girl in the brunette's arms starts to bubble inside of Emily as she watches the girl rest her head back on Paige's shoulder. The jealousy she is now experiencing, pushes her to regain movement in her legs and start approaching the girls once again. When she reaches the content and happy-looking pair, Emily places a gentle hand on Paige's shoulder causing her to break the hold she has on the girl and look at Emily in the eyes. Emily can't deny the satisfied feeling she experiences the moment the pairs' hold on each other is broken. Paige's face looks surprised for a second before turning emotionless.
"Paige, can I dance with you?" the dark-haired girl asks before turning to the other girl. Emily can't help but notice the blonde's stunning deep green eyes and fair skin. She's beautiful and she can see why Paige might be attracted to her. "Is that ok?" She adds, asking the blonde-haired girl, even though she couldn't care less if the girl was ok with it or not. The girl obliges, telling Paige she'd wait at the bar before turning around to walk away. She doesn't get very far because Paige grabs her arm to turn her around and give her a kiss, directly in front of Emily. Emily's anger rises inside her as she stands there, helpless to stop the lip-locked woman. She hears Paige say something to the girl before the blonde confidently walks away with a smile that Emily wishes she could slap right off. Turning back to Emily, Paige extends a hand and pulls Emily close. She wants to pull her in and kiss her again to show the girl that Paige belongs to her, but she doesn't since Stephanie is wandering around somewhere. Emily looks into Paige's eyes and compliments her appearance, the solider really does look good tonight and in fact she looks hot.
"Who was that you were, um, dancing with?" the raven-haired girl asks, trying her best not to reveal her jealousy. Emily probes for more information, wanting to know more about the connection between the two girls. She doesn't like the answer she gets. Paige is interested in someone else and she doesn't like that. No, it isn't fair to Paige for her to be jealous when she is engaged to someone else but she can't help the searing feeling in her gut. The smile Paige gives her when she's talking about the blonde makes her sick. That's her smile, not that girl's. As far as Emily is concerned, what's-her-name does not deserve an award winning smile from Paige.
"I don't know how I feel about that," she blurts without thinking, immediately regretting the words as Paige pulls away from her. The face she sees is full of anger and disgust.
"Excuse me? You don't get a say here, Emily. I'm trying to move on from you, just like you moved on from me," Paige says forcefully, her eyes cutting into Emily like daggers. Before Emily can say anything else, the jealous girl is left alone on the dance floor, when Paige turns and leaves the bar with Alex on her arm. Emily stands shocked and fuming on the dance floor for several minutes until the image of an angry Paige yelling at her isn't so fresh in her mind. She finds her way over to the bar and sits down with a look of shock still on her face. Out of now where, another girl comes up and leans her back again the bar to her side. Emily doesn't look up until she sees a shot of vodka slide under her arm. She looks up at the girl standing next to her before rolling her head and eyes accompanied by a muttered, "Oh great."
"I told you so," Spencer says smugly, throwing back a shot of her own. She had seen the whole scene and of course since Spencer is Spencer and can read lips, she knew what was said as well. Emily hangs her head again. She should have listened to Spencer and just left the solider to move on in her own way. Shaking her head, she lifts her shot to her lips and downs it, grateful for the burn she feels as the liquid travels down her throat. It matches the searing pain in her heart and the raging jealousy in the pit of her stomach. Spencer places her hand on Emily's back, patting it twice before saying, "Come on, I think someone wants to dance with you." She nods her head towards the dance floor, allowing Emily's eyes to follow and spot her very adorable looking fiancé on the dance floor beckoning for her to join in. The scene makes Emily chuckle before she gets up to join Stephanie. She's grateful the cute, short-haired and goofy girl is there with her. As the girl is pulled into the other's arms to be twirled on the dance floor, Emily focuses her mind on the girl in front of her who allows her to forget, at least for a moment, about Paige being with someone else.