I tried to get this chapter up a bit quicker than the last couple. Thank you for the recent follows and favorites! Glad you guys continue to enjoy my take on their story :)
Chapter 21
Later that night
On her laptop at home, Paige scrolls through the different dorm room layouts on Stanford's website. Most people at college complain about their dorm rooms, especially freshmen year, they are notorious for being small with dirty communal bathrooms and on top of all that they have to suffer with a horrible roommate that they can't get along with. For her, it's quite the opposite; Stanford has dorm rooms that are spacey than her room here. There is an option to set up a mini-lounge area with a couch and TV that Paige chooses to place right in front of the two twin size beds that are for her and Emily. Emily. The thought of the future break her face out into a smile and her heart warms with pure bliss. One of the best parts of being gay is being able to have her girlfriend as her roommate in college. She definitely won't struggle with the infamous horrible roommate drama, there is no one she would rather wake up and see everyday other than Emily. Waking up to those glowing brown eyes and that dreamy smile that makes Paige's stomach explode in butterflies. They won't even have the dirty communal bathroom problem because they have their own for just the two of them. This must be a dream, Paige thinks to herself.
The Stanford coach is going to be here in two days to watch her and Emily; she's going to blow them away. She looks back to their future room on her screen, its perfect. Tomorrow she will show Emily this; hopefully it'll give her extra encouragement to practice even harder. Her parents, especially her dad probably won't be too ecstatic about the idea that she will be living with her girlfriend her first year in college but ultimately it isn't up to them. They will both be eighteen by then and their parents won't have a say in the matter.
There is a soft knock on her door before it slowly cracks open, "Paige?" her mom pokes her head in, "Dinner is ready, what are you doing?"
"Oh, sorry," Paige closes the lid of her laptop, "I was just looking at the rooms at Stanford."
"You'll have to show me what you have come up with after dinner," her mom smiles lightly then turns to head downstairs.
Paige presses the home screen button on her phone, still nothing from Emily. She hasn't heard from her since she left to go to the funeral. As always, she begins to panic and assume the worst. What if something happened?
Earlier in Toby's apartment, he got a text that made his eyes go wide and he left quickly. He claimed it was nothing. Maybe 'A' got to him with something. Paige decides to text Emily and try to put her angsts at ease, 'How was the funeral? Was everything okay?'
Before she wanders downstairs for dinner, she grabs Emily's sweatshirt from her dresser and slips it over her head. The faint smell of chlorine mixed with vanilla wrap around her with warmth and security, her anxious heart starts slowing down and regaining control.
"Come on, Em, let me get you some ice, " Hanna insists when they get back to her house.
Emily clutches her shoulder; trying to not let any more tears fall from the horrendous pain radiating from her shoulder. She knows what she did was the right thing to do; 'A' would've killed Mona and Aria with their car. But, the selfish part of Emily's brain can only think about Stanford and Paige. What if she hurt her shoulder so bad she can't swim for awhile?
She lowers herself into a kitchen chair as Hanna struts over with a bag of ice in her hand, "You know you didn't have to do that for Mona."
The coolness of the ice causes her to flinch at the stinging sensation; "I couldn't let 'A' run over Mona and Aria."
Her tense shoulders drop as Hanna exhales, "I know but you could've been killed too. But, are you going to be okay to swim? What are you going to tell Paige?"
As usual, she's going to be pushed to lie to Paige; that's the worst thing about the 'A' game, having to lie to Paige in order to protect her safety. "I don't know yet," Emily shakes her head, "The Stanford coach is suppose to be coming to the swim meet this week, I need to be able to swim."
"I'm sure your shoulder will be fine by the meet," Hanna states overconfidently, " By the end of the week, you'll be on Stanford's team picking out those puffy drapes with Paige."
Emily can't suppress the grin that splits across her face at the thought of living with Paige at Stanford, "You're probably right, I hope so at least."
"I am right! You are so lucky that you have the option to live with Paige next year. Living in your own little world. Away from this. Away from 'A'," her tone seeping with hopeful emotion," And probably having lots of sex."
"Hanna!" Emily shrieks with a small laugh.
"Like you haven't thought about that!" She dismissively waves her hand at Emily. The phone sitting in front of Hanna dings and lights up with a message, Emily immediately tenses, assuming the worst. "Em," Hanna smiles reassuringly, "It's just Caleb, he said that him, Toby and Paige had a game day today."
"That sounds a lot more fun than that funeral today and tonight's disaster," Emily rolls her eyes and grabs her own phone to respond to Paige's message from earlier.
'The funeral was exciting as funerals get. I'm sorry that I didn't message you right away. The rest of the day has been pretty busy. I heard that you had a game day with the boys. Wish I had been there instead. I miss you 3.'
Next Day
"Hi," Emily opens the front door, smiling then places a soft peck on Paige's lips.
"Hey," Paige whispers back then meets Emily's kind brown eyes, "How's your shoulder feeling?"
She gently rubs a hand over her shoulder. "Still stiff, I was just looking for a heating pad," Emily closes the door then turns to see Paige's face rigid with concern, "It should be fine by tomorrow, I'll be fine."
"It needs to be," Paige takes a step closer to Emily then gestures towards her with her hands, "Can I give it a massage or something?"
Emily takes a sharp inhale through her nose, she hates herself for lying to Paige about how much pain she is in. But, she can't let the story from last night leak, she needs to convince herself and Paige that she will be strong enough to swim tomorrow to impress Stanford, "Just help me look for that heating bad. But, I might take you up on that massage later." Emily says with a suggestive hint in her voice before kissing Paige sensually and letting her lips linger briefly.
Her eyes are still fluttered closed as she is left breathless from the kiss, "good, good," she finally manages to murmur under her breath before following Emily into the bathroom.
After a couple minutes of digging through the cabinets in the bathroom, Paige finds the heating pad hidden beneath a stack of bath towels. "Em? I think I found it," she holds out the heating pad to show and Emily breathes a sigh of relief, "Thank you, I've been looking for that everywhere.
Emily hands Paige the remote when they sit on the couch," Find something you want to watch as I try to figure out this heating pad."
"You mean you aren't going to make me watch Rudy?" Paige flashes Emily a teasing grin as she starts flipping through the menu.
"Shut up," Emily giggles as she messes with the heating pad. "Really?" Emily looks up at the TV, "Law and Order? Out of all things you choose Law and Order?"
"Did you see anything better?" Her eyebrow is quirked when she turns to face Emily with a playful challenging tone in her voice.
Emily chews on her lip in defeat, "I guess not," then puts the heating pad down beside her to lift her shirt over her head, grimacing at the sharp pain shooting in her shoulder.
The exposed skin causes Paige's eyes to widen happily, "I see something better now."
The way Paige's eyes roam over her nearly bare torso cause Emily's cheek to turn a shade of pink, "The heating pad said it works best directly on the skin," she adjusts her position to attempt to hide her shoulder for as long as possible. The girls told her it looks pretty bad, Paige will probably know that Emily didn't "sleep funny' once she gets a site of her shoulder.
"I'm secretly hoping that doesn't work," Paige smirks at Emily as her eyes shift up from Emily's toned stomach up to her black lace bra.
"That's not so secret anymore," Emily teases with a flirty smile then bumps Paige's shoulder.
Paige laughs, dipping her head slightly before she places a gentle kiss on Emily's cheek and entwines their hands. The affectionate action makes Emily's heart flutter in her chest and smiles lovingly at Paige as she gazes at her face. "So…What's happening in this episode?" Emily nods her head towards the TV.
Paige shrugs, "I have no idea now, I got a bit distracted," she winks in Emily's direction.
They sit in a comfortable silence for a while, letting their thumbs brush over each other's hands every so often. The heating pad is helping relieve some of the tension in her shoulder that the pills didn't fix but she can feel a slight twinge of pain. Emily takes off the heating pad and drops it next to her on the couch before she scoots closer to Paige.
"Did it help?" Paige asks when she hears the heating pad drop to the cushion.
"Yeah, I think-," Emily starts but is cut off when Paige catches a glimpse of her exposed shoulder, "Whoa, Em, it looks really bad! Are you sure you're okay?"
Emily glances over her shoulder and sighs, "It's worse than it looks. But, I promise it helped."
"Are you sure? It looks like you really messed it up! Are you sure you don't need a massage?"
Emily leans in and kisses Paige slowly then teasingly runs her tongue across her lips before she breaks away, "I might not need one but I want one."
Paige nods speechlessly then scratches the back of her head, "Um, is your mom going to be home soon? I don't want her to walk in on us with you pretty much half naked…"
Emily pauses to check the time on her phone, "It's not even five yet. Since Wilden, she's been working a lot later than normal. Plus, she will call me on her way home probably to check to see what we have for dinner."
"Okay," Paige exhales, "Turn a bit, so I can get a good angle at your back, " she gives a slight tilt to her head as she shifts to fully face Emily on the couch.
Emily smiles then turns her back towards Paige. As Paige positions herself, Emily reaches behind her back to unhook her bra and lets it fall in her lap. A breath gets stuck in Paige's throat as she gently starts rubbing Emily's neck and working her way down to her shoulders. The discoloration around Emily's right shoulder is much worse than Paige could have imagined it. Her anxiety kicks up when she figures out this couldn't have possibly come from "sleeping funny". There is something that Emily hasn't told her, leaving the pit of her stomach unsettled.
Emily allows herself relax into Paige's touch, enjoying the way her strong hands work against her strained muscles. "Does this hurt at all?" Paige asks quietly as she applies a little more pressure.
"No," Emily hums, "it feels wonderful." Even Emily's back is beautiful in Paige's eyes, the way it curves and the defined muscles around her upper back and shoulders are gorgeous. She brushes Emily's hair to the side and places tender kisses along the back of Emily's neck. The electrifying kisses cause Emily's eyes to flutter shut and she moans softly. Emily tilts her head back to capture Paige's lips in an open-mouthed kiss. Paige's hands drop to Emily's waist to hold her tightly but Emily immediately turns in the embrace and wraps her arms around Paige's neck. As their lips move quicker together, Emily grips the collar of Paige's flannel and pushes it off her shoulders. Her body is already buzzing for more of Paige. Paige immediately throws her shirt to the floor. Her head is completely dizzy and intoxicated with Emily's kisses. She leans forward with her body weight until Emily's back hits the couch and she falls on top of her. The irritating ringing of Emily's phone breaks Paige's slightly out of her daze.
"Do you want to check that?" Paige mumbles between kisses when the ringing doesn't stop.
"Not really," Emily whispers breathlessly, sucking on Paige's lower lip as her hands start to push her white tank top up her body.
"What if it's your mom?" Paige slows their kisses, reluctantly trying to force them to think clearly.
Emily inhales deeply, wanting Paige's tank top off but knowing it's a good idea that her mom isn't warning them that she's going to be home soon. "Yeah, true. Can you grab me my phone? You kind of have me trapped." She adds with a lighthearted tone and small smirk.
Paige sits up, straddling Emily's waist and reaches over for her phone on the table as it rings again in her hand, "It's Hanna." Instantly feeling relieved that it's not Pam on her way home.
"She can definitely wait," Emily dismisses it quickly before she grabs Paige's face and crashes their lips back together. Her hands find the hem of Paige's tank top again and yank the material hard up her body, causing her to whimper involuntarily at the sudden sharp pain in her arm. Paige pulls away, breathing hard and her face scrunched with concern, "Em? Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she lies then tries to pull Paige's face back down towards her. Her brow creases when Paige resists, "Maybe we shouldn't. You need to rest your shoulder for tomorrow."
Emily grunts, internally frustrated with her shoulder. "I told you, I'm fine, I promise. Plus, I don't need my shoulder for this." Her tongue licks her lips sexily, the action makes Paige's mind to go blank and she almost gives in but shakes her head of the thought, "I don't want to risk it. You need to be on your game for Stanford tomorrow. Then we can do this as much as we want when we have that room together next year."
The crease in Emily's forehead fades at the reminder of the goal tomorrow and a wide hopeful grin splits across her face, "Fine. You're probably right." Her fingers trace along the back of Paige's neck, "Put your shirt back on before I change my mind."
Next Night
The emergency room keeps spinning around Emily, the noises echoing and seeming distant. "Emily Fields?" A woman's voice asks her but she can't make out the blurry face, but she assumes it is a doctor or nurse.
"Yes?," she slurs her answer, trying to focus in on the face near her. All she can see is blurred brunette hair and a blue scrub.
"I see that you had an accident during a swim meet and need a couple of stitches. Can I take a look at your head?"
Her eyes begin to gradually refocus when the nurse hovers over her and brushes her fingers above her eyebrow. "They didn't let me finish the race," Emily mumbles.
"You were in no shape to finish a race," the nurse states firmly, "The paramedics mentioned you said that you injured your shoulder a couple of days ago?"
"I told them I fell off my bike," Emily says a little clearer, her eyes start to be able to make out smaller details of the nurse's face. The light green eyes looking down on her become sharper.
"I'm going to need to take a look at that shoulder when I'm done with these couple of stitches. Now this is going to hurt a bit," the nurse warns her before she starts threading her head. There is only a slight pinch that Emily can feel, assuming that all those pills that she took are still working.
"I'm looking for Emily Fields, she came in with an injured head? I need to see her!" Her favorite worried voice echoes in Emily's ears.
"Paige?" She tries to call out in a louder voice but the nurse hushes her and asks her to stay still before she is able to lean up to find Paige.
Paige faintly hears Emily's feeble voice calling out for her and spins in the direction of her voice. She immediately marches towards Emily's hospital bed in the far corner but is blocked by another nurse before she can make it. "That's my girlfriend!" Her hand points to Emily getting her head stitched up, "Can I please go see her?" She begs the nurse but she shakes her head, "No, I'm sorry. Not until her family is here."
"Emily?" An older voice calls out frantically.
"Pam!" Paige calls out when she spots her scanning through hospital beds. Pam relaxes significantly when they make eye contact and rushes over, "Paige! Is Emily okay?"
"They won't let me see her!" Her voice cracks with worry and frustration as she motions to the nurses in her way.
Pam grabs Paige's arm and pushes through the couple of nurses standing in the way, ignoring their demands to stop. The nurse stitching up Emily's head looks up, "Excuse me?"
"I am Emily's mother and this is Emily's girlfriend. We want to be with her," Pam demands sternly as Emily instinctively reaches out for Paige's hand. Paige sighs with a little relief, taking Emily's hand between both of hers and kisses her knuckles soothingly. A weak smile tugs at the corners of Emily's lips, feeling more relaxed now that Paige is here.
"What happened?" Pam's eyes dart between Emily, the nurse and Paige.
"She hit her head when she was swimming. She might be a little bit disoriented right now. I unfortunately don't know what caused her to hit her head, if it was just an accident. She should be able to tell you when her head starts to clear up," the nurse briefly explains to Pam as she finished up the final stitch.
Emily breathes in sharply and squeezes Paige's hand tighter as guilt starts to wrap around her, knowing she hasn't been completely honest with Paige about her shoulder and that she might have messed up her chances for Stanford. The thought of Stanford making her panic inside, her heart starts speeding up and she tries to fight the tears shaking deep in her eyes.
"She did mention something about her shoulder, I gave it a quick look and I think she needs further consulting," the nurse jots down a specialists name to hand to Pam before she walks away.
"Did you know about this?" Pam whispers quietly in Paige's ear.
"I didn't know how bad it was," Paige shrugs, already knowing that Emily didn't tell her everything about her shoulder. The glossy brown eyes looking at her, confirm her suspicions.
"Come on sweetie," Pam motions for Emily to get up, "Let's get you home and rested."
Emily slowly swings her legs over the side of the bed, her head still spinning slightly, "Can Paige come for a bit?"
Pam smiles warmly at Paige and nods, "Of course"
Paige wraps her arm around Emily's waist when she notices her wobbly legs when she goes to stand up. Her strong arm holds her girlfriend up as Emily loops one arm around Paige's neck for additional support before walking out.