Jaiden took the rest of her day to pick up a few things from in town for the following evening. Her right hand continued to ache, but she continued to flex it upon Stacie's instructions in order to keep it from stiffening up. Around 5 pm, she rolled back into the apartment complex parking lot with two bags of groceries, a new dress, and about seven new candles.
"Hey," Chloe looked up as Jaiden stepped into the apartment and barely managed to set her bags on the counter without dropping anything. The frazzled 18 year old looked up and acknowledged her with a tired smile.
"Hi. Is Beca at class?" Jaiden asked. She began to pull an assortment of foods out of her grocery bags and put them in the fridge.
"Yeah. She won't be done until like 7. Are you staying in tonight?" Chloe's voice came across a bit hopeful and Jaiden paused for a second in putting away her ingredients for the dinner she was planning.
"I wasn't planning on anything. Why?"
"I don't know. I just thought it would be nice to spend some time together. I wanted to ask how you were doing?" Chloe let her voice trail off and Jaiden could hear the subtle fear that she had pushed her boundaries.
"I'm okay." The 18 year old answered quietly. She went back to the counter and started unwrapping the candles she had bought. Jaiden set them in a neat row and her sister's girlfriend came to sit beside her tentatively.
"I don't want to force you to talk, alright? But, I want you to know that I'm here for you, and I know things have had to be hard for you after Ted showed up." Chloe said quietly. Jaiden sighed before she quit trying to distract herself and finally paid attention to the redhead.
"Well, yeah. But I'm okay. Actually, I punched a girl today." Jaiden changed the subject abruptly and grinned nervously at Chloe's shocked reaction.
"What? Why?"
"She started hitting on me and saying shit about Stacie." Jaiden explained defensively. When Chloe didn't relax, she shot her a skeptical look. "You wouldn't punch someone for talking crap on Beca?"
"Touché." Chloe admitted. "But you're really okay? There's nothing you want to talk about?"
"No, not really. I swear I'm not trying to, like, avoid things either. I'm just…I'm fine, you know?" Jaiden elaborated awkwardly. Chloe nodded in understanding and squeezed the younger girl's arm affectionately.
"I was just going to order takeout tonight. Sound good?" She asked.
"Yeah. Look, I have a paper to work on, so can you come get me when it's ready?" The younger girl hopped down off of her stool and grabbed her dress off of the one next to her. Chloe nodded and examined the garment as she walked towards her room.
"That dress is hot," She announced. Jaiden turned around to shoot her a quick smile before stepping into her room and shutting her door behind her. The brunette sat down at her desk and opened her laptop, preparing for what she knew would be a long night.
Jaiden spent the majority of the next day finishing her report and then finally exiting her bedroom in a disheveled, slightly stressed appearance. Beca and Chloe, who were lounging on the couch, looked up from their respective laptops and took in the younger girl in subtle amusement.
"Do you love college yet?" Beca asked. Jaiden rolled her eyes before dragging herself into the kitchen and returning minutes later with a large bowl of cereal.
"I hate essays." Jaiden grumbled irritably. She plopped down in between the couple and shoved a spoonful of cereal in her mouth.
"You'll get used to spitting out paragraphs of bullshit in a few months." Beca assured her. Jaiden grunted in response and continued to devour her late breakfast/early lunch. It was 1:00 in the afternoon and she was running on three mugs of coffee, which had left her jumpy and slightly irate.
"So, Beca and I are going to head out at 6 and we'll make sure to stay out until at least 11. This classy piece of work is taking me to dinner and a movie." Chloe smiled with a playful wink at Jaiden. The tiny brunette winked back before continuing to mess with the audio streaming on her laptop.
"I should start getting ready." Jaiden groaned. However, instead of getting up, she continued to sit in between them and shovel cereal into her mouth. Despite her less than adorable appearance, Beca couldn't help but stare at Jaiden. The 18 year old seemed really comfortable, or at least enough to willingly put herself near them. "Do you think this idea is too cheesy? Or stupid? Am I going to look dumb?"
"Dude, Stacie's probably never had anyone do something nice like this for her. She's going to love it." Beca assured her. Jaiden breathed out nervously before standing up with her bowl and spoon ad starting towards the kitchen.
"I hope so." Jaiden muttered. The freshman put her dishes in the sink before retreating to the bathroom and turning on the shower. She took nearly half an hour to calm herself down and work out what times she needed to start on certain foods. Her bruised hand flared up when she attempted to rinse her hair, which reminded her that she had in fact mildly assaulted someone the day before. She began to flare up with guilt over what had happened and it took a few minutes before she could convince herself that Amber had been asking for it and she didn't need to apologize.
Guilt was always something that Jaiden had struggled with. The brunette had a knack for blaming herself for nearly every situation that she got caught in. Her therapist had insisted that her hostility for Beca had been a result of her projecting her own guilt onto the older girl, which had apparently set the scene for how she managed it in all other aspects of her life.
Pushing Amber to the back of her mind, Jaiden stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel. The 18 year old wrung out her hair and dried herself off before wrapping the towel around herself. She stepped out of the bathroom and waved shyly at Chloe when she realized that the redhead was looking at her. Jaiden scampered into her room and let the fabric drop to the carpet before starting the process of getting ready.
Close to five hours later, Jaiden was moving frantically around the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on the two plates she had spent a good part of her afternoon preparing. She had picked out fresh salmon at the grocery store the day before and followed an online recipe she had found nearly a year ago; checking the fish every few minutes in order to make sure that it was cooking right. The entire kitchen was a mess, considering all the work that went into smashed red potatoes, and she hurried to shove all of the dishes she had used into the sink. After a quick wipe down of the counters, Jaiden grabbed a lighter out of one of the drawers and lit the three candles sitting at the kitchen table. Just as she finished pouring two glasses of wine, there was a knock at the door.
Jaiden hurried towards the door, pausing one second to check her appearance in the mirror on the wall, before turning the handle and opening it. Her jaw practically dropped when she saw Stacie standing in the hallway expectantly. She could feel the taller girl's eyes running up and down her body and her face reddened slightly.
"You look beautiful," Stacie's voice drew her out of her sudden embarrassment and the compliment was soon followed by a passionate kiss. Jaiden pulled away after a few seconds, though she did so reluctantly, and she pulled Stacie through the door before shutting it behind her. "Oh my God," Stacie murmured as she eyed the candle-lit dinner waiting for her in the kitchen area of the apartment.
"I hope you like salmon," Jaiden chuckled anxiously. She hurried forward, her heels clicking on the wooden floor, and she pulled the older girl's chair out for her.
"I love it. And I love you." Stacie replied sincerely. She smiled at the brunette that sat down across from her and took a few seconds to admire her features in the soft glow of the candles between them. She hadn't expected this at all when Jaiden had told her that they were having a night in. The 18 year old looked gorgeous and the amount of effort she had put into the night was obvious, something that Stacie had not anticipated, nor was used to.
"I love you back." Jaiden smiled. With that, the two girls clinked their wine glasses together and took a drink.
After 45 minutes, the two girls sat at the table with empty plates and a bottle and a half of wine down between them both. Jaiden built herself up for a few seconds before standing and extending her hand. "I have one more surprise," She informed Stacie. The older girl arched an eyebrow in surprise, but stood up and took her hand. She allowed herself to be led down the hallway and took the time to admire the younger girl's body in her dress. Her eyes were locked on the zipper that trailed down Jaiden's back when her girlfriend stopped for a second. The slightly shorter brunette opened the door that they had halted in front of and Stacie's breath caught in her throat as she took in the bedroom. Jaiden turned around to gauge her reaction and squeezed Stacie's hand lightly.
"Come here," Jaiden pulled her into the room and shut the door behind them. The smell of the four vanilla candles by the bed filled the space and they flickered orange light across the walls warmly. A subtle trail of rose petals, which Jaiden had picked up the night before led them to the bed and the two girls made their way there slowly. Jaiden stopped at the foot of the bed and looked up at her lover with a questioning gaze. Stacie broke out of her stupor and looked down at the other girl with a newfound adoration. She leaned down and pressed her lips to Jaiden's while simultaneously kicking off her heels. The shorter brunette followed her lead and stepped out of her own shoes, all the while synching her lips' with the movement of Stacie's. Jaiden pulled her over to the bed and gently pushed her girlfriend down onto the petal covered duvet. Stacie watched lustfully as Jaiden crawled over her and locked their lips together once again. She smiled into the kiss as she felt Stacie's hands pulling at her dress's zipper and she leaned up enough for her to remove the garment.
"My turn," Stacie pulled back from the kiss in order to flip them over and she slipped out of her own dress expertly. Jaiden sat up enough to cup Stacie's cheek in her hand and brushed their lips together hungrily. Stacie straddled her dominantly and began working her lips down the 18 year old's neck. Jaiden arched under her touch and she hooked her fingers through Stacie's hair. Taking the cue, Stacie slipped the other girl's back panties down and propped herself up enough to look down at her as she slowly pushed two fingers up into her. Jaiden gasped in response and dug her fingernails into the brunette's back. Stacie couldn't help but smirk at the reaction she elicited and went back to marking Jaiden's neck as she moved hand steadily. Jaiden's breathing rate began to spike as Stacie picked up the pace. The freshman buried her face into the crook of Stacie's neck and attempted to stifle a moan as she came undone on her girlfriend's hand. Despite the fact that her legs were still shaking, Jaiden reversed their positions a few seconds later.
"You're so beautiful," Jaiden panted out. She stared down into Stacie's eyes in the soft light of the candles and she practically had to force herself to break her gaze away after a few seconds. The dark haired teenager moved down on the bed and pressed her lips to Stacie's inner thigh, relishing in the fact that she could feel her shudder at the contact. Jaiden paused for just a second in order to pull off her underwear before giving Stacie exactly what she wanted. The taller brunette cried out at the contact and her hands dug into the comforter below her tightly. Jaiden hooked her arms around Stacie's legs and held them as still as she could. The younger girl hesitated before biting down on her clit lightly. Stacie yelped in response and bit her bottom lip in an attempt to keep quiet. Less than two minutes later, Stacie couldn't manage it any longer and she whimpered loudly as a wave of pleasure swept through her body. The girl between her legs lifted her head and crawled back up in order to kiss her softly.
"God, I love you." Jaiden whispered. She wrapped her arms around the other girl's waist and pulled her up against her tightly. Stacie's breathing gradually slowed and she snuggled up against her lover, feeling the warmth radiating off of the other girl's skin. She moved her hand down to Jaiden's and ran her thumb across the back of it lightly.
"I love you too."
Ted took a drink from the flask in his hand and continued staring at the restaurant entrance in front of his truck. He had been sitting outside the building for almost an hour, ever since he had caught sight of a slightly familiar head of red hair and spotted Beca walking next to the ginger. The two girls had been exiting a movie theater and he had nearly jumped out of the truck when he saw that they were holding hands. How his bitch of an ex-wife could raise two dykes, he would never understand. Surprisingly enough though, the alcoholic managed to exhibited a bit of self-control by waiting for them to get into their car and then following them. They had stopped at a little Italian place down the street and he had decided to wait and find out where they were living. He would wait, and then he would get the bitch that had started this whole thing. If Beca thought she could protect her from him, she was a damn fool.
Ted perked up as the door to the restaurant opened and the women he was following walked out. The drunk slouched down in his seat to avoid being noticed and then revved his engine to life as they got into their vehicle. Ted kept his truck a reasonable distance back as he pulled out of the lot after them. The man was formulating his course of action over and over again in his head as he matched his step-daughter's course turn for turn. The town he had been lurking around for the past day seemed vacant enough for him to do what he needed to without being seen, which would keep him out of trouble with that damned probation officer.
20 minutes later, Ted pulled into the first available spot he could find outside the apartment complex that he had watched Beca and the other girl go into. Once again, he was forced to restrain himself from doing something rash as they walked into the building together. Ted took another long drink from his flask before leaning back in his seat and preparing to sleep for the night. However, another flurry of movement caught his eye and he straightened up immediately. Even through his blurred vision, he could recognize Jaiden across the street. The 18 year old was dressed in an outfit that made her look like a whore, at least in Ted's opinion, and his vision went red as he saw her similarly dressed companion. He took one more drink, feeling the sudden burst of adrenaline mixing with the alcohol in his bloodstream and then turned towards the passenger's seat. The man hesitated for a second before grabbing the pistol that rested there and getting out of the truck.
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