Catherine awoke before her alarm like she usually did. Turning it off before it could ring, she turned and smiled seeing Jackie lay asleep beside her. Taking full advantage of being able to wake up next to her again, she closely studied the features of her face-the length of her eye lashes, the way her mouth slightly parted when she slept, and the rhythm of her chest slowly raising as she breathed. Quietly slipping out of bed, Catherine got ready for her early day. As she was studying her lesson plans in the kitchen, she heard Jackie come in. Unsure of how to act, she casually let her know there was a pot of coffee on the counter. Packing up her things, she threw her bag over her shoulder. When she went to leave, she felt Jackie's hand on her arm, stopping her.
"Good morning," Jackie smiled sweetly, easing her apprehension.
"Good morning," she smiled back.
Jackie asked if she was going to see her the next night, but Catherine had research she needed to work on. Jackie insisted she stop over her place after, considering she lived so close. Catherine leaned into her, "Not until you get Hannah's key," she whispered in her ear.
"How am I supposed to do that?"
"You'll figure something out," she smiled. This was her chance to convince her to get Hannah's key back. She tortured her, kissing all of the spots she knew would make her weak in the knees, using her vulnerable state against her.
The next day as she was deep into her research at the library, she was almost startled when she heard a heavy clank on the table. A hand was pressed down in front of her and when she looked up, she saw it was Jackie. Without saying a word, she slowly lifted her hand, revealing a key underneath.
"How?" Catherine asked, stunned at her swiftness.
"I have my ways," Jackie said slyly. "So will I see you tonight then?"
"We'll see how this goes, it'll be late."
"After all my hard work? I'm offended!" Jackie gasped sarcastically, being adorable.
"The sooner you leave, the sooner I get done, and the better the chances become," Catherine tempted her.
"Consider me gone then," Jackie smiled before disappearing behind the stacks.
Catherine texted her as she was leaving the library, making sure she still wanted her to stop by.
As soon as Jackie opened the door, Catherine was pulled inside by her. She kissed her and pushed her against the table. Her spontaneity took Catherine by surprise, but she thoroughly enjoyed it.
After, when she began gathering her things, Jackie pled for her to stay and frowned when she denied her request. Catherine walked over to her with a smile, sweeping the hair from her face. "It's been a really long day, I need sleep" she said, before kissing her on the forehead.
Catherine knew the risk she was taking, but couldn't resist. Memorizing her colleagues schedules, she snuck Jackie into her office whenever the opportunity presented itself. They both had become professionals at scouting out areas where cameras and students couldn't see them. To her surprise, Jackie pulled her into a stairwell one day, kissing her against the wall. Her new impulses were fueling Catherine's fire. Her new trait was almost unrecognizable, especially when Catherine received a text one late Friday night.
Jackie: Come to the bar.
Catherine smiled when she saw the message light up on her screen. "My colleagues are long gone by now."
"Come anyways."
"I'm already in my sweats, curled up on the couch."
"It doesn't matter what you're wearing, I'll meet you in the parking lot."
Catherine drummed her finger tips on her knee as she thought about it for a minute. Was she crazy for even giving this a second thought? When she didn't answer her right away, Jackie texted her again.
"Please. I want to see you. "
"Fine, I'll be there soon."
Catherine couldn't believe she was there, she never left her house in this condition. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she spotted Jackie rounding the corner and walking towards her car. When she got in, a big smile encompassed her face.
"What did you tell your friends?"
"Nothing" she said, leaning over.
"Wait, what?"
"If they ask where I am I'll just tell them I'm in the bathroom. It's crowded in there, they won't notice."
Catherine could taste the alcohol on her lips, but it was strangely turning her on even more. Jackie smacked the top of her head on the roof of the car as she was moving over to Catherine's seat. "Owww," she cried, rubbing it.
"Aw, are you okay?" Catherine laughed, placing her hands on Jackie's face.
"Did you have to buy the smallest car?"
She smiled as she pulled the lever on her seat, leaning it back. As things were heating up, Jackie's phone began to ring and Catherine made her stop to answer it, nervous Hannah would come looking. She could hear the loud bar and Hannah's voice through the receiver. "I had to make a phone call, but I'm on my way to the bathroom. Where are you guys at?"
Catherine took advantage of the position Jackie was in, and began kissing her neck.
"Okay, I'll see you in a minute," She said before hanging up. "Not cool!" She pointed a finger at Catherine as she laughed.
Catherine smiled at her flirtatiously, biting the side of her lip, but Jackie just smiled and started to move back over to the passenger seat. "Noooo... Five more minutes," Catherine pled.
"You know I can't" she said, buttoning her pants.
"Come over after?"
"I can't. I told the girls they could crash at my place. Hence needing to see you now."
Once her clothes were straightened, she leaned over and kissed Catherine. "I'm sorry, I hope this was still worth your drive."
When she got out of the car, Catherine sighed as she moved her seat back up. Suddenly her door opened and Jackie stuck her head in. "I almost forgot."
Catherine looked back at her questionably.
"You look gorgeous" she said, kissing her on the cheek and closing the door. Before disappearing around the corner, Jackie looked back at her and smiled.
When Catherine got home she caught her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was tousled, she was wearing sweat pants and a sweat shirt, not her usual put together self, but a smile crept on her face as she thought back to Jackie's remark.
On campus that week, she was walking with Leslie when she spotted Jackie and Hannah standing outside one of the buildings. Jackie looked distraught at a passing glance. When she tried taking a closer look without Leslie noticing, she saw Hannah rubbing Jackie's arm, consoling her. In class later that day, she tried to read Jackie but she was too invested in the lecture, vigorously taking notes. She made eye contact with her as she was packing her things, so held her finger up, motioning that she needed a word.
Jackie approached her desk, "Hey I need to be somewhere, can we talk later?"
"Uh, yeah. Sure."
Later that night, Catherine got up from her typical spot in the library to use the restroom. On her way, she noticed Jackie and Hannah sitting at a table working. When she passed by on her way back, Hannah was missing from the table, so she walked over. "Hey."
"Hi," Jackie smiled. "I didn't know you were here. I guess I wouldn't though, if you're tucked away in your usual spot."
"You know me," she smirked. "Is Hannah still here?" She asked, looking around.
"Not this second, she went to grab us some dinner."
"That's nice of her."
"Yeah," she smiled. "Sorry we haven't gotten the chance to talk, do you want me to stop by your office tomorrow?"
"Yeah, that works."
Catherine left the library around 9:30pm and noticed Jackie and Hannah still pounding away, a sense of jealousy twinged through her chest.
In her office the next day, Jackie seemed somber.
"Is everything okay?" Catherine asked, once they were seated.
Jackie hesitated before shaking her head.
"What's wrong?"
She pulled a piece of paper from her backpack and slid it across the desk to Catherine. It was a statistics quiz that she had scored poorly on. "Oh, no."
Jackie buried her face into her hand and began to cry.
"Oh Jackie, don't..." Catherine got up from her chair and came around the desk. She squatted in front of her and placed her hands on Jackie's knees, rubbing them sympathetically. "It's okay, you still have half of the semester left to make up for it, you'll be fine."
Jackie lifted her head up and wiped the tears from her face, taking a deep breath in and slowly releasing it. "I have to go," she said so quietly it was almost a whisper.
Catherine looked up at her as she rose, "How about I take your mind off of it tonight."
"I can't. I need to stop messing around and get focused."
"Ouch." Catherine remarked as she stood.
"I'm sorry, I don't mean you. It's everything. Between you, Hannah, school, acting..."
Catherine couldn't help but feel offended once more.
"Ugh, I'm sorry. Again!" Jackie winced. "The words aren't coming out right. I'm just having a really bad week and I'm going to go before I make myself look like an even bigger asshole."
Uneasy about their conversation, Catherine stopped by Jackie's house on her way home that night to talk. Spotting Hannah's car out front, she felt disheartened. Knowing it was childish, she couldn't help herself and parked her car. "Feeling any better?" She texted her.
"Sort of. Sorry again for today."
"It's okay. I'm out, can I stop by?"
"Don't take this the wrong way but... I'm just really not in the mood for company right now."
Catherine's heart sunk as she stared at the words for a long time before finally texting her back. "I understand. Feel better."
She waited and no response.
Maybe Hannah had just left her car there, she waited, needing to know for certain. After giving up almost an hour later, feeling like a psychopath, she saw Hannah finally emerge from Jackie's apartment just as she was starting her car. She slid down into her seat as Hannah passed and saw Jackie's light turn off from the window.
The next day Jackie shyly came up to her after class. "I'm sorry. I needed some time to cool down."
"I get it, I need to be alone when I'm upset too," she said, testing her.
"Exactly. Thanks for understanding."
Catherine smiled back, disguising her disappointment.