Locum Tenens

by snowballs

Locum Tenens – place holder, substitute. Paige & Emily have been connected through only one girl. Jai has been Emily's girlfriend for almost 3 years & Paige's best friend for 7. When she died, the dynamic between the two drastically shifted. As Emily slowly comes to grips with her loss, she enters into a tentative relationship with Paige. But has Emily truly let go? Paily AU.

12. sic infit : chapter ii

DISCLAIMER: Pretty Little Liars and all its characters is the intellectual property of others. Some characters used in the writing of this fic belong to PLL. Events that transpire, will transpire and have transpired in this story are entirely of my own creation.

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As always… Thanks for your awesome reviews!

Jes Angell, StagHen, Nae10 and sampledbeats... Thanks for the PM.

BTW, I created a blog for this fic on Tumblr. In case you guys want to read excerpts for the next chapter or ask questions regarding this fic, you can find me under 15xtn21. I'll try to answer your questions without ruining the story for you.

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PART TWO: "Sic Infit"

~ So it begins. ~

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CHAPTER TWO

Paige zipped the blue running jacket she was wearing and checked her reflection in the revolving doors of her apartment building on a cold Wednesday morning before finally deciding to step outside. She tilted her head upward and studied the overcast sky, turning the palm of her hand face up to check if it's starting to rain. Satisfied that it's merely a light drizzle, Paige headed to the side of the building to retrieve her bike, ready to pedal her way to campus where she'll then try to break the stats of her previous run that was stored in the sports watch she was wearing. This afternoon is the first time that she's going to meet her teammates and train with them and she wanted to do well. She wanted to show them that despite being a freshman, she has no trouble keeping up with the rest of the upperclassmen in her team. She wanted their respect.

Her body was already warmed up from the laps she did in the indoor pool of her apartment building earlier but she decided to do a few leg stretches once she was outside the street again before turning the front of her bike to the left and mounting it. She put on her helmet and made sure that it was secure before starting to make her way down Chestnut Street, gaining speed as she approached the bridge. She turned left on 30th once she crossed the bridge and exited on Walnut Street, making another left on 33rd as she headed for Shoemaker Green, an area beside Franklin Field. There were several bicycle racks there and she decided to make that spot her start and finish line for her runs.

Paige found an empty spot not too far from the entrance and she gracefully dismounted her bike, taking off her helmet and hanging it on one of the handlebars before crouching to lock her bike. Satisfied that it's secured, she got up and tied her hair into a ponytail before checking the time on her watch. Five o'clock. Gotta start running. Paige took out her iPod from inside one of her jacket pockets and wore her earphones before setting the music to the playlist she listens to whenever she ran and pocketing the device again. She did another round of leg stretches and jogged back to the way she came, about to cross the street to Towne Building as she broke into a run when a flash of brown rushed past her, making her almost lose her balance so she took a step back to steady herself once she reached the entrance.

"Hey watch it!" Paige exclaimed angrily when she realized that the flash of brown that almost ran her over turned out to be a girl with long, wavy, dark brown hair who was riding a bike.

Paige waited for the girl to look her way but she didn't. Either the girl didn't hear her or just chose to ignore her as she rode her bike into Shoemaker Green, stopping near a vacant spot and dismounting her bike like Paige did earlier. When it became obvious that the girl was about to run as well, Paige contemplated waiting for her so she could give the girl a piece of her mind but she decided against it. She was wasting precious time just standing there fuming so she gave the girl the meanest glare she could muster when the girl finally looked her way before breaking into a jog and gradually into a run, clearing her mind of the incident just now.

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Emily stepped out of the warmth of her college house and checked the time on her watch, relieved that she still had a lot of time left before her first class of the day. She didn't want to have to make a run for it considering her class is just a few blocks away. Fixing the strap of her shoulder bag, Emily turned left to start making her way past the Mayer Residence. She checked all sides of the street once she reached the intersection, about to cross it when she saw a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye.

"Paige!" Emily called out when she saw the girl cross the street from her right. Paige was in her usual running attire and her long, brown hair was tied back into a ponytail. Two things Emily has seen before but for some reason it felt like she was seeing Paige in it for the first time.

Paige tore her gaze away from her sports watch and looked up when she heard her name, her eyes lighting up when she saw Emily standing just a few steps away from her. "Hey." She said in greeting, taking off the earphones she had on as she smiled at Emily and closed the distance between them.

Emily took in the appearance of the girl standing in front of her and smiled. If her hunch was right, Paige has been running around the campus for a few hours but the girl didn't look tired at all. She was sweaty so her skin was glistening but she didn't seem out of breath. Emily almost forgot that Paige ran everyday. She let her eyes wander, studying the girl closely. Because Paige's complexion was light, it was easy to detect the tinge of red on the girl's cheeks. As Paige tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and lifted her hair to wipe the sweat off her nape, Emily found herself studying the girl's arms. They were slender, toned.

"What's up?" Paige asked before doing a quadriceps stretch on her right leg.

Emily tore her eyes away from Paige's arms and focused her attention back to the girl's face, slightly embarrassed. "Nothing much. I saw you running just now and thought I'd say hi." She admitted, fixing the strap of her bag on her shoulder again.

Paige nodded, doing a quadriceps stretch on her left leg this time as she studied Emily closely. "You off to your class now?" She guessed when her gaze landed on the books the girl was holding to her chest.

"Yeah. I have Econ10 now in the McNeil Building." Emily answered, gesturing to one of the buildings across the street from them. "What time's your first class?"

"Not until after lunch. This sem I have mornings free. Which I don't mind since I get to run longer." Paige added, doing a posterior stretch on her right, then her left shoulder.

"You really love running, huh?" Emily commented as she made a conscious effort to keep her eyes trained on the girl's face.

"Yeah. It helps me think. Clear my mind." Paige admitted.

"Is there something bothering you?" Emily asked, her eyebrows creasing in concern.

Paige shook her head. "No. Just some random stuff that keeps popping in my mind. Nothing big really." She added, fanning herself with her right hand when she began feeling self-conscious, sure that her cheeks were turning a brighter shade of red. "Sorry I'm all sweaty." She said apologetically as she took a step back. She didn't want her perspiration to accidentally transfer to Emily especially when the girl was on her way to class. "I've been running since five in the morning."

Emily smiled. "It's okay. I don't mind." She reassured the girl, finding herself studying Paige's appearance once again. "So..."

"So." Paige repeated, waiting for Emily to continue. "So what about you? Are all your classes in the morning this semester?" She asked when the girl didn't say anything.

"Well I have one class on Fridays that's in the afternoon but other than that, yeah. I have afternoons free." Emily replied. She fixed the strap of her bag once again and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear when a cold wind blew past them. "I, uh, guess I better get going." She said as she indicated the time on her watch, suddenly getting flustered being around the girl.

"Oh. Yeah. Of course. Wouldn't want you to be late." Paige said understandingly. "I'll see you around." She added, smiling at Emily.

"Yeah. See yah." Emily replied, smiling back.

Paige put on her earphones again and gave the girl a small wave before moving past Emily, breaking into a jog before running at full speed down the street. Emily watched Paige's progress until the girl rounded a corner and disappeared from her sight, biting her bottom lip anxiously before crossing the street to head to her class. Paige is definitely one of those girls who look really good despite being sweaty and for some reason she couldn't shake the image of the girl in her running attire just now. What's the matter with you?! Emily scolded herself, giving her head a firm shake as she held her books tighter to her chest.

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Paige put on an extra burst of speed as she neared the end of the last lap in the track in Franklin Field that afternoon, a feeling of exhilaration rushing through her when she imagined her coach pressing the start/stop button of the stopwatch he was holding in his hand the instant her feet crossed the finish line. She ran a few more steps to gradually change her momentum before slowing down her pace to a walk and finally stopping to catch her breath, looking towards the direction of her coach to check if he wanted her to come over. When the sandy-haired man just gave her a thumbs up sign, Paige nodded her head in acknowledgment and turned her back before breaking into a huge grin. Her coach just confirmed what she already knew. She did well.

Heading towards the spot in the football field where she left her duffel bag before practice, she sat down on the freshly cut grass with her legs stretched out in front of her before retrieving a small towel and the water bottle Emily gave her from inside her bag. She wiped the sweat off her face, neck and arms then opened the lid of the water bottle to hydrate. Once she was done, she returned the towel and the bottle inside her bag and started doing some leg stretches while studying her coach and his assistant coach as they watched her other teammates' performance.

Hey. I know that girl. Paige thought to herself when she saw a tall girl with long, wavy, dark brown hair approach the two coaches and started talking to them. She hastily looked away when her coach suddenly pointed to her direction and the girl said something in parting to the two men before walking towards her. What's going on? Paige continued doing her stretches while discreetly tracking the girl's progress until she was standing right above her.

"Good form out there." The girl said in greeting as she removed the green scrunchie from her wrist and used it to tie up her hair into a ponytail, smiling down at Paige warmly.

Paige stopped stretching and looked up at the girl. "Not what I was expecting to hear from you but thanks." She replied before bending her knees and resting her arms on top of it. "Anything else you want to say to me?" Paige added, staring at the girl expectantly.

"Like what?" The girl asked, her green eyes twinkling in amusement as she crossed her arms in front of her chest. "I don't even know you."

"Yeah you do. I was the girl you almost ran over this morning with your bike." Paige told the girl accusingly. "What are you doing here?"

The girl let out a short laugh. "Oh so you were that girl who needed a lesson when crossing the street." She said, recognition finally dawning in her eyes. "I thought you looked familiar. You need to work on your glares. It wasn't threatening enough."

Paige narrowed her eyes at the girl who was clearly making fun of her. "You almost ran me over and that's all you have to say?!" She uttered incredulously.

"What do you want to hear? Sorry my bike doesn't come with a horn? You're the one who came out of nowhere." The girl pointed out, the amusement never leaving her eyes.

"I didn't come out of nowhere! I was coming out of Shoemaker Green. You need to improve your reaction time." Paige reprimanded the girl, annoyed that she had the nerve to refuse to apologize. "Did you come over here just to tell me that you're not sorry?"

"Hey I came over here not knowing who you are. You're the one who started it." The girl pointed out wryly. "I wanted to introduce myself. I'm Reese." She said, extending a hand to Paige. "Gabriel." She added.

Paige's eyes widened in shock. "You're the team captain?!" She exclaimed incredulously.

"Oh so you've heard of me." Reese said, grinning smugly. "No worries. I get that reaction all the time." She continued, referring to Paige's facial expression. "Tell me. Is it because I don't look captain-y enough?" Reese asked, scratching her head thoughtfully. "Maybe I should start wearing an eye patch and start using words like parley or something. What's your name newbie?"

Paige finally took the girl's outstretched hand and shook it. "Paige McCullers." She said reluctantly before releasing Reese's hand.

"Well, Paige. The reason I actually came over is because I was watching you run earlier and I wanted to say that it wasn't bad for a freshman." Reese admitted. "I checked with Coach Steve and he said you beat my record by two seconds when I was your age. No one's ever done that before."

"I didn't know there was a record to beat." Paige commented, getting up and finding herself just a couple of inches shorter than the girl.

"There isn't." Reese affirmed, smiling at Paige reassuringly. "I just meant what I saw out there today was impressive. Do you compete? And by compete I meant outside of track meets."

Paige nodded. "I've been joining triathlons and marathons since I was twelve." She admitted, taking a small step back as she dusted the back of her blue track shorts.

"Same here. But in my case I didn't start competing until I was thirteen." Reese said, raising her hand in greeting when one of their teammates called out to her in passing. "Did you join the one in Virginia last April?" She asked, her attention returning to Paige.

"I joined but I wasn't able to make it on the day of the competition itself." Paige confessed. "Something more important came up." She added, feeling like she had to explain herself to the girl.

"Oh. That's too bad." Reese commented ruefully. "You would've loved it. Being there... in your element... surrounded by all these other tri-athletes like yourself... I mean of course I've joined lots of triathlons in the past but the one in Virginia was a completely different experience. You shouldn't have missed out on it." She told Paige earnestly.

"So I guess it's safe to assume that you competed?" Paige asked, focusing the conversation to Reese's experience rather than dwell in the past. She made her choice that night. She didn't regret it.

"Placed in the top twenty, competed in the Nationals last June." Reese revealed proudly.

"That's awesome. I was aiming for the top twenty, too." Paige admitted, unable to shift the conversation entirely away from her when she felt a twinge of envy towards the girl just now. "How did you fare in the Nationals in Ohio?"

Reese grinned sheepishly. "That one, not so good." She admitted. "I was a second off dismounting my bike and I wasn't able to recover. But this year I won't make that mistake again. I'm aiming for the World Triathlon Series."

"That's the one with the competitions all over the world. Not the Nationals. Right?" Paige asked, eager to learn more about the WTS but their conversation was cut short when one of their teammates came up to them.

"Hi. Sorry to interrupt." The girl said, glancing at Paige before turning to face Reese. "Are we still on for that study group tonight, Patrice?"

Reese gave Paige a warning look when she saw the girl's stunned expression and nodded at the other girl instead. "Yeah. But spread the word that I need to move the time to eight. Turns out my girlfriend needs me to pick up her little brother from soccer practice again." She explained. "And stop calling me Patrice or you're out. I'm serious."

The girl laughed. "Sorry. Won't happen again. Reese." She added before hurrying to catch up to the rest of their teammates.

Reese rolled her eyes when she saw Paige struggle with trying to control her laughter. "Yes. My real name's Patrice but people who want to keep breathing tend to call me Reese." She told the girl wryly. "You're obviously one of our team's best runners so I suggest you keep that in mind."

Paige nodded and took a deep breath, turning serious. "You're holding a study group?" She asked, debating whether or not to ask if she could join them. She knew she needed all the help she could get if she wanted to stay on the team.

"You can say that." Reese began. "I'm a junior in Wharton. Taking up dual concentrations in Accounting and Management. It's sort of our thing in this team and it was Coach Steve's idea. We're such a diverse group of student athletes so every year the older members of our team from each undergraduate school hold study groups for our younger teammates to make sure that we all maintain our GPAs. I'm in charge of the Wharton group this year. Usually a senior student conducts the study group but there's no senior from Wharton this year so I'm it." She explained. "Don't worry. It's not mandatory."

"Oh I'm not worried. I was actually going to ask if there's room for one more. I need all the help I can get." Paige admitted, deciding not to let the opportunity pass. "I'm in Wharton too. So can I join your group?"

Reese nodded. "We don't put a limit to the number of people in our study groups. Of course you can join us." She replied. She grabbed Paige's wrist to check the time on the girl's watch. "Actually if you don't have any plans right now we can hold a one-on-one study session so when you join us tonight you won't have a problem catching up with the discussion." She offered. "I don't have to pick up Brian for another hour and a half."

"That would be great. Yeah. I don't have any plans after this." Paige said, eager to get some studying done.

"Okay. First things first. Do you have your books or notes with you?" Reese asked. When Paige nodded, she continued. "Good. Let's head back to the lockers and change out of these clothes then we can go to Café Prima to study. It's a coffee shop in Harrison. That's where I live."

"I know that place. The college house not the café." Paige clarified, grabbing her duffel bag from the ground. "I actually know someone who lives there." She continued, her mind immediately drifting to Emily. Maybe she'll run into the girl again.

"Oh. Anyone I know?" Reese asked as they started to make their way back to the locker room.

"I doubt it. She's a freshman too. We went to high school together. She and her roommate." Paige added as she followed the girl inside.

"So I just let you join my study group... does that make up for me almost running you over this morning?" Reese asked, looking at Paige teasingly.

Paige smirked. "Aha! So you're admitting that you were at fault." She concluded.

Reese shook her head. "You still need lessons on crossing the street but I won't deny that I was preoccupied that's why my reaction time was off." She explained as they rounded a corner.

"That's not even an apology." Paige said wryly.

"That's because it's not. You think I'm in the wrong, I think you're in the wrong. Let's just agree to disagree." Reese suggested.

Paige rolled her eyes. "I still can't believe you're the team captain." She muttered under her breath as she pushed the door open to the locker room and went inside ahead of Reese.

---

"Can you start today?" The blonde-haired guy seated behind the manager's desk in the back room of Café Prima asked Emily as he pushed back his eyeglasses up the bridge of his nose.

"Yes." Emily answered, nodding her head for emphasis.

Last week Emily decided to apply as a barista in the coffee shop at the lower level of her college house. She wanted to grab a cup of coffee before she headed back upstairs to the room she shared with Spencer so she went inside the café and she came across the help wanted sign. She figured it was the perfect job for her. She's had experience working as a barista at the Brew so she won't have any trouble working as one here. But the fact that the café was directly below where she lives added to its appeal. John, the coffee shop manager, called her in for a final interview a few minutes ago and decided to give her the afternoon shift starting today since she indicated in her schedule that she has afternoons free this semester.

"Good. West is going to show you the ropes around here. He's the guy with the dreadlocks out front." John said, standing up from his seat indicating the conversation was over. "Welcome to the Café Prima family." He added, extending a hand to Emily and giving the girl a warm smile.

"Thanks." Emily replied, shaking the guy's hand firmly before heading out front. She donned an apron before walking over to the guy with dreadlocks who was manning one of the cashiers. "Hi. You're West, right?" When the guy nodded, she continued. "I'm Emily. It's my first day here and John said you're supposed to show me the ropes."

"You know how to make coffee?" West asked without looking at Emily since he was tending to a customer paying for his coffee and sandwich.

"Yeah. I've worked as a barista in a coffee shop before." Emily admitted.

"That's good to hear. As you can see we're kinda swamped so I can't orient you right now." West said as he tended to another customer, still not looking at Emily.

"So what can I do to help?" Emily asked, her eyes taking in the sea of people inside and outside the shop. Café Prima is obviously a popular place to hang out among students.

"Aaron and Kit could use an extra hand with serving the customers so maybe you can help take orders and bus tables. Don't worry about the menu. Each table already has one printed on its surface. If you have questions don't hesitate to run things by me. Give a wave if a customer asks you a question you can't answer and I'll be with you as soon as I can." West instructed.

"Okay." Emily answered, looking at the long lines at the cashier.

"Good. Here's an order pad and pen. Several customers just walked in." West said, pointing vaguely to the crowd in front of them. "I promise I'll show you the ropes later when we're a little less swamped."

Emily nodded and tried to look for the group West was referring to as she stepped outside of the counter when she spotted a familiar brown-haired girl seated in a corner of the crowded room. She smiled and made her way towards Paige, eager to ask what she's doing there when she saw something that made her stop.

A tall girl with long, wavy, dark brown hair and attractive features grabbed the chair opposite Paige and placed it beside the girl instead, moving closer so she was practically rubbing elbows with Paige. Are you kidding me?! We've been here barely two weeks and she's on a date already?!

Emily debated whether or not to head over to the two girls, looking around for one of her co-workers who could take her place but Aaron and Kit were busy taking the orders of other customers. She was about to head back to the counter so she could help serve orders instead when the girl with Paige saw her and waved her over. Emily sighed and slowly made her way to the table, pasting a fake warm smile on her face.

"Good afternoon, my name's Emily. What can I get you?" Emily asked politely, pretending not to notice Paige as she trained her eyes solely on the other girl.

Paige looked up from the menu she was reading on the surface of the table when she heard Emily's voice and smiled when she saw that it was indeed the girl. "Hey!" She said in greeting.

"Paige?" Emily uttered, widening her eyes for effect as she feigned surprise upon seeing the girl.

"I take it you two know each other?" The attractive girl asked, looking at Paige and Emily back and forth.

Paige nodded. "Yeah. She's the girl I was telling you about. The one I went to high school with." She explained, her eyes never leaving Emily. It amazed her how a simple and worn out apron could look good on anyone but Emily pulled it off effortlessly.

That's it?! I'm just somegirl you went to high school with?! Emily hid her irritation and continued smiling. "That's me. Well me and my roommate." She added.

"Um Emily, this is Reese. Reese, Emily." Paige said, finally making the introductions. "Reese here is a junior and the self-appointed captain of our track team." She added, jutting her thumb to the girl seated to her left.

"Hey I wasn't self-appointed, newbie!" Reese protested, elbowing Paige on the side playfully. "But if you must know, I bribed Coach Steve with loads of coffee and bagel with cream cheese to be team captain." She added jokingly, making Paige laugh.

Newbie? Seriously?! Her name's Paige! Emily fought the urge to roll her eyes at the two girls' bantering and cleared her throat loudly to remind them that she's still there. "I guess that answers the question of where did you two meet." She said, trying not to sound annoyed when the two girls looked at her. "Casual place for a first date."

Reese smiled. "Oh we're not on a date..."

"Right now." Paige continued, realizing that she would have to tell Emily that she's getting help with her studies this early in the semester if she told the truth and she was trying to change the girl's opinion of her. "We're just getting coffee until it's time for the movie." She added, hoping Reese would play along with her story.

Reese glanced at Paige then back at Emily. "That's right. We're seeing Casablanca at the revival theatre in a few hours. Totally romantic. Great for a first date." She added, scooting closer to Paige. She didn't know what the hell just happened but she understood that Paige had her reason for lying.

"That's... great." Emily said, trying to sound enthusiastic despite starting to feel uncomfortable again at the sight of Paige with a girl. "So can I take your orders?" She asked, itching to leave the company of the two girls.

"I'll just have a brewed coffee." Reese said before turning to Paige. "What's your poison? It's on me since I was the one who asked you out." She emphasized, trying to keep a straight face. "Espresso? Latte?"

Paige felt her cheeks redden in embarrassment and in an effort to hide it from the two girls, she looked down to study the menu on the surface of the table again, pinching the corners of her mouth with her thumb and middle finger as she tried to calm her nerves. "Um..."

Emily studied Paige's pink cheeks and tightened her grip on the pen she was holding in her hand. "Paige doesn't drink coffee." She answered for the blushing girl, ignoring Reese's look of amusement at the fact that she knows Paige's preference. Instead, she looked past Reese and straight into Paige's eyes when the girl looked at her. "A bottle of apple juice, right?" She asked knowingly.

Paige nodded. "Thanks." She said, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear self-consciously. "I didn't know you work here." She added, trying to make conversation.

"First day." Emily answered curtly.

Reese looked at Emily then at Paige in amusement. "O-kay. I guess that covers the 'since when' question. Paige, do you want something to eat? We can share a cookie. They have the best oatmeal raisin cookie here. Not only is it good for sharing, there's not much calories in it as well." Reese added, placing an arm loosely around Paige's shoulders to sell the girl's story better. She already had a vague idea about what was going on. "We'll have a cookie." She decided, not waiting for Paige to answer as she looked at Emily again.

"So that's one brewed coffee, a bottle of apple juice and one oatmeal raisin cookie." Emily repeated without writing anything down. "I'll be back with your orders." She said, giving the girls a thin smile before heading back to the counter.

---

"I am so sorry." Paige told Reese once Emily was out of earshot. "I didn't mean to say that." She added, getting embarrassed again.

Reese grinned. "It's fine. I understand. You didn't want to look bad in front of the girl you like." She concluded, making Paige blush. "Since when?"

"Since I was thirteen." Paige admitted, stealing a glance at Emily and looking away when she saw the girl look at her.

"And she still doesn't know? That's a long time to like someone and not do anything about your feelings. How exactly do you know the hot, new barista again?" Reese asked, her curiosity piqued.

Paige sighed. "She's my best friend's girlfriend. Was my best friend's girlfriend." She corrected herself. "My friend died a few months ago. Plane crash." She added.

Reese nodded thoughtfully. "Ah. Pining after your best friend's girl. Such a cliché." She commented, laughing lightly.

"I know." Paige agreed, burying her head in her hands before looking at Reese again.

"So now you're trying to make a move." Reese guessed. "Well telling her you're on a date with me won't help your situation."

"Yeah but I don't want her to know that I'm struggling with my classes already." Paige admitted. "My best friend was like this perfect everything and I don't want Emily to be disappointed. I'll find a way to tell her the truth but not right now."

"So what you're trying to say is that you want me to continue pretending we're on a date." Reese said, amused. "I have no problem helping you out. But let's get one thing clear. If I do this we're even."

"You almost ran me over!" Paige reminded the girl. "Pretending we're on a date right now isn't enough."

"But I also let you join my study group. For the rest of your college life." Reese added emphatically.

"Which would've been cut short this morning if you ran me over." Paige argued.

"But I didn't. I declare us even as of this moment." Reese said stubbornly. "What do you want to do now?"

"Can we go somewhere else to study?" Paige asked anxiously. "I won't be able to get any studying done here. I can't exactly take out my books with Emily around. She'd know something's up."

Reese pursed her lips. "I have an idea." She finally said, pushing her chair back. "Come on. We're getting out of here."

"Uh, where are we going?" Paige asked, grabbing Reese's arm before the girl could walk far.

"I'm taking you with me to Brian's soccer practice. We can study there until I have to take him home." Reese explained patiently. "Then you're going to treat me to dinner before we meet the rest of our teammates for the study group. Come on." She said, leading the way to the counter with Paige close behind.

---

Emily busied herself with transferring one oatmeal raisin cookie on a serving plate, trying to forget the sight of Paige blushing at something Reese said before the girl looked at her. Ever since she saw the two girls, Paige did nothing but blush around Reese and she looked like such a girl that it was unnerving to see Paige react that way.

"Hi. Emily, right?" Emily looked up from behind the counter when she heard the voice, surprised to see Reese standing in front of her.

"Yeah." Emily answered. "I'm sorry it's taking so long. I'm still trying to find my way around here." She said apologetically.

Reese shook her head. "It's fine. I just came over to say that we're changing our orders to go. I want to give Paige a more in depth tour of the campus before we catch that movie. If you know what I mean." She added, winking at Emily conspiratorially.

Emily fought the urge to tell the girl to go date someone who's closer to her age, reminding herself that it's none of her business who Paige hangs out with. "Oh. Okay. Just give me a sec then." She replied, pretending she didn't understand what Reese meant. She looked around the counter to find a paper bag for the cookie before pouring the girl's coffee in a paper cup. She grabbed a bottle of apple juice from the display fridge and deposited everything in front of West so he could ring up the purchase.

"Do you mind if I ask?" Reese blurted out before Emily could leave. There's still a line at the cashier and she wanted to take the opportunity to grill Emily about Paige while she waited for West to scan the items she bought. "Your friend Paige. What's she like? I just met her today so I'm actually glad we ran into you. You know. Someone from her past." She added, trying to gauge the girl's reaction.

Emily hid her annoyance at the girl for what she was trying to imply when she looked past Reese and saw Paige approaching them. "Sorry but I can't help you. I really don't know her that well." She replied, her gaze returning to the girl standing in front of her. "She's my girlfriend's best friend but we really didn't spend that much time together."

Reese nodded. "Got it. I guess I'll just have to find out for myself then." She said, taking out a twenty from her wallet and handing it to West to pay for the food, smiling at the guy as she did so. "I normally don't do relationships but I might make an exception just this once. I think I hit the jackpot with your friend. Paige is drop dead gorgeous among other things. Don't tell me you haven't noticed that."

Emily shrugged. "I haven't." She answered nonchalantly.

Reese studied the girl closely and chuckled. "I think you have. But just in case you really haven't, I suggest you start looking closer." She told the girl in a low voice. "Thanks. I just got everything I needed." Reese said in her normal voice, grabbing the pastry and the steaming cup of coffee from the counter. She was about to grab the bottle of apple juice for Paige when a slender hand appeared beside her.

"I got it." Paige said as she stepped up next to the girl. "May I talk to Emily for a sec?"

"Sure. I'll see you out front." Reese answered. "It was nice talking to you Emily." She added, giving the girl a knowing look before heading for the front door.

"I can see why you're so eager to go out with her." Emily commented as she watched Reese make her way around the crowded room. "Upperclassman, team captain. Plus she's really pretty."

Paige tore her eyes away from Emily to look behind her briefly before facing the girl again. "I guess. I haven't really noticed." She said offhandedly. "So do you want to grab a late dinner with me tonight?" Paige asked hopefully. "Maybe around nine?"

"You mean after your date with Reese?" Emily asked, annoyed. "No thanks but I already made plans with Spencer." She lied, not exactly in the mood to spend time with Paige when the girl was fresh from a first date. She would have to be polite and ask how the date went and she wasn't keen on pretending she's interested to hear all about it.

Paige frowned, wondering why Emily seemed to be in a foul mood now when just a few minutes ago the girl was fine. "Okay. I guess I'll just have dinner with Kayla then." She said as she studied Emily closely. "I better go. I don't want to keep Reese waiting outside for me. It's getting cold. Um, thanks for this." She added, raising the bottle of juice and waving it at Emily before heading for the front door.

Ugh. Movie with Reese then dinner with Kayla? Seriously?! Why do you keep hanging out with girls who like you?! Emily thought as she watched Paige's retreating back. And why do I care?!

Emily instinctively touched the locket on her necklace as she watched Paige exit the café. When they were in high school she got used to being treated by Jai like a girl and seeing Paige treat girls like girls despite the two best friends being girls. If that made any sense. Now she was seeing someone treat Paige like one and she felt weird again. Like when she saw Paige with Kayla. Apparently it didn't matter who the girl is with. It just bothered her to see Paige with any girl. And now Paige snagged a junior who also happens to be the captain of the track team and she's the one being treated like a girl. How can I compete with that?

Emily bit her bottom lip and gripped the locket tighter. What's the matter with you? Why would you want to compete?

---

Paige checked the time on her watch when she was done locking her bike to one of the bicycle racks beside Huntsman Hall on Thursday afternoon, praying that she won't have trouble looking for the room where the lecture for her MGMT100 class is once she was inside the building. She hurriedly made her way to the side entrance and looked for the nearest set of stairs, taking them two at a time until she reached the third floor. She scanned each room number as she made her way down the corridors and breathed a huge sigh of relief when she finally found the right room.

Oh thank god. Paige thought as she entered the lecture hall. She scanned the spacious room for an empty seat and made a beeline for one of the chairs in the third row in front when she saw a guy make his way towards the same spot. Not today pal. She wasn't in the track team for nothing.

"Sorry but this seat's taken." Paige declared as she deposited her messenger bag unceremoniously on top of the desk just as the guy touched the back of the chair.

Emily looked up from the book she was reading and studied the two people fighting over the vacant seat next to hers.

"Yeah. I saved that spot for her." Emily told the guy apologetically when she saw Paige.

"Whatever." The guy muttered, looking around the room for another vacant seat and making his way towards another girl seated by herself at the back of the room.

"Fancy meeting you here. I thought you said the only afternoon class you have this semester is on Fridays?" Paige asked when she was seated beside Emily, smiling at the girl quizzically.

"I did." Emily answered once she got over her surprise at seeing the girl. "But I decided to change schedules with this subject at the last minute." She explained.

"Because…" Paige trailed off, waiting for Emily's explanation.

"Because I need to attend the recitation class of this subject on Friday mornings instead so I could go home to Rosewood by Friday afternoon. I want to visit Jai's grave as often as I can when I'm there so this way, I get to visit her when I get home Friday night and then on Sunday afternoon again before I leave." Emily admitted. "I checked and the only lecture class still open with that kind of recitation class schedule is this one so I changed lecture classes. Now Thursdays is when I have my only afternoon class."

"Right." Paige uttered, her smile faltering when she heard Emily's reason. "Well then I'm glad that the only class you have in the afternoon is with me." She added, thinking at least she got Emily as a classmate in one of her classes this semester.

"So what's the concentration you're planning to take?" Emily asked, inclining her head to the side. "I didn't know you applied to Wharton too."

"Well Physics and Calculus aren't really my forte so Engineering is out. I don't have the makings of someone in the field of Medicine so Nursing is out for me too. It's either Arts and Sciences or Wharton actually and the courses in Wharton seemed more interesting to me." Paige explained.

"But... you don't know what you want to major on just yet." Emily said slowly.

"Not yet. But I still have two years to decide and Reese is helping me." Paige admitted, embarrassed that she seemed undecided to Emily.

Emily nodded and faced forward, debating whether or not to ask how the date went. She wanted to know but she didn't know what she wanted to hear. She finally faced Paige again and tried her best to seem nonchalant. "Speaking of. How was your date last night?" She asked, holding her breath as she waited for the girl's answer.

"Date?" Paige asked before she remembered her lie. "Oh. You mean my date with Reese. It went great." She replied, praying Emily won't ask her about what she thought of Casablanca because she didn't know anything about the film.

"You had fun?" Emily asked, trying to seem unaffected.

"I did." Paige answered. "In fact, I had so much fun that I'm considering going out with her again some time." She added in case Emily saw her with Reese again. She made a mental note to give her team captain a heads up later about the new lie she told.

Emily felt her insides squirm when she heard Paige's answer but she chose to ignore it. "Some time. But not tonight, right? Do you have plans with her tonight?" She asked timidly.

Paige shook her head. "Nope. Why?" She asked, giving Emily a puzzled look.

"I was wondering if maybe we could have that dinner tonight instead." Emily suggested. "The one you invited me to yesterday?" She added in case Paige already forgot.

"Uh. Sure. But are you okay with eating a home-cooked meal?" Paige asked, looking at Emily hesitantly.

"Yeah. Why do you ask?" Emily replied, creasing her eyebrows at Paige quizzically.

"Well Kayla's cooking dinner at my place tonight." Paige admitted.

"Oh. Then we should have dinner some other time. I don't want to intrude." Emily said hurriedly, hiding her disappointment.

"You're not." Paige told the girl reassuringly. "Kayla won't mind if you join us for dinner and it's about time you tasted her cooking."

"I don't know." Emily said slowly. It sounded like Kayla planned the night so she could spend more time with Paige and Emily didn't want to see the two girls acting all chummy again in front of her.

"Em, come on. Clearly you don't have plans for dinner tonight since you invited me. So now I'm inviting you. You don't have an excuse to say no." Paige pointed out.

Emily bit her bottom lip to keep from smiling. Paige just called her 'Em' for the first time and she liked hearing the girl call her by her nickname. "Fine." She said, finally finding an excuse to grin when Paige pumped her right fist in jubilation.

"And you could bring Spencer along if you want." Paige offered.

Emily shook her head. "Spencer already has plans." She explained. "What time should I come over?"

"Around eight." Paige answered, taking her phone out to send a message to Kayla that Emily's joining them for dinner just as their professor entered the room to begin their lecture.

---

At exactly eight o'clock that night, Emily found herself seated in front a lavish spread of steamed vegetables, mashed potatoes and grilled chicken, her mouth watering from the aroma. She looked at the girl seated next to her in front of the island kitchen countertop, her smile conveying her surprise and admiration of Kayla's cooking skills while Jai's sister continued moving around Paige's kitchen, her back turned to them.

"Wow. You really went all out with this." Emily commented when Kayla finally faced them with a gravy boat in one hand. "I don't even know how you managed to grill the chicken." She added, looking around Paige's kitchen for any sign of a griller but she didn't find one.

"This building has a grill area." Kayla revealed as she placed the gravy boat in front of Emily. "I figured I shouldn't let it go to waste so I decided to make use of it tonight."

"Well these smell amazing. I'm glad I let Paige talk me into joining the two of you for dinner tonight." Emily admitted, smiling at Kayla fondly.

"Thanks." Kayla said, grinning at the girl proudly. "Cooking's kinda my thing. Jai's got her smarts; I've got my culinary skills."

"I can see that." Emily replied, her smile waning.

"Hey why don't you pull up a chair so we can start eating?" Paige told Kayla hurriedly when she saw Emily's smile falter at the mere mention of Jai's name. She lifted the plate of steamed vegetables and handed it to Emily, giving the girl a small smile.

They began eating in silence until Kayla decided to break the solemn atmosphere in the room. "So Em. Your birthday's coming up next week. What do you want to do?" She asked, looking at one of the two girls seated in front of her. "We can go out, check out some clubs. Or if you're in the mood for something different I know some great places we can check out in the gayborhood."

Emily stopped slicing a piece off the portion of chicken in her plate and looked at Kayla. "The gayborhood?" She repeated, giving the girl a curious stare.

"It's the area on this side of Philly just past Rittenhouse Square." Paige explained. "They call it the gayborhood because it's the heart of the LGBTQ community."

"Oh." Emily uttered. "Um... that place sounds great. I definitely don't mind checking it out some time." She said as she resumed slicing a piece off her chicken. "I haven't really thought about what I'm doing for my birthday. To be honest I don't feel like celebrating." She added, not meeting Kayla and Paige's eyes as she poured more gravy on her mashed potatoes.

"What?! But that day only comes once a year! You should totally celebrate! I know this club... ow!" Kayla exclaimed, gripping her ankle suddenly. She looked at Paige who was giving her a death glare and glared back at the girl, rubbing her ankle gingerly.

Stop talking. Paige mouthed to Kayla when she noticed that Emily's expression changed from curious to wistful. The girl didn't even react to the exchange between her and Kayla just now because Emily's mind was probably on the last time she celebrated her birthday. With Jai.

"Uh, so. How do you like your new gig as the hot, new barista in Café Prima?" Paige asked, nudging Emily gently in an effort to bring the girl out of her stupor. "Reese's words not mine." She hurriedly explained when she saw Emily's look of surprise.

Emily shrugged. "Okay. It's really not that different from my job at the Brew so I got the hang of it pretty fast." She replied, pushing the food around her plate. For some reason she wasn't so hungry anymore. "But it's better because I live in the same building."

"You got a job already?" Kayla asked after she took a sip of her water. "That's cool. Congrats."

"Thanks. I think." Emily added, shaking her head wryly. "So does Kayla know about your date last night?" She asked Paige, turning the swivel chair she was sitting on so she could face the girl next to her.

Paige grabbed the glass of water in front of her and drank it to help push the food she was chewing when she felt her mouth go dry. She didn't expect Emily to bring up Reese in front of Kayla and judging from the expression of the girl seating in front of her, she was in for a game of twenty questions starting now. She had to do something. Fast. "Um..."

"No. I don't. You went on a date?" Kayla asked, not giving Paige a chance to speak. "With who? Is this girl supposed to make you forget about your feelings for the other one?"

"Oh. So you know about Dominique too." Emily said before Paige could react.

Crap. The conversation was starting to have a life of its own. Paige saw Kayla's look of confusion and acted before the girl could ask who Dominique is.

"Ow!" Emily exclaimed, grabbing her ankle. "Paige did you really have to kick me? I can take a subtle hint like a slight shake of your head if you want me not to say anything about Dominique." She reprimanded the girl while rubbing her ankle.

"Sorry." Paige uttered, feeling her cheeks flush in embarrassment. Of course she miscalculated and kicked Emily instead. "Can we please just find something else to talk about other than my love life?" She pleaded.

"What's more interesting than you dating an upperclassman?" Emily asked, putting emphasis on the fact that Paige was seeing someone older than them.

"I don't know... the weather?" Paige suggested. "Have either of you noticed that it's been raining a lot lately?" She began, looking at the two girls with feigned fascination. "Or we can just go back to eating in silence." She muttered under her breath when Emily and Kayla just stared at her unresponsively.

---

An hour later, Emily was back in her room in Harrison, sitting cross-legged in the middle of her bed as she stared miserably at the rectangular wooden box in front of her. She turned her head to the side and her gaze landed on her bedside table where a framed photo she brought along from Rosewood of her and Jai sat. She leaned in close to take the frame but pulled back when she heard the bathroom door open.

"Hey. I didn't hear you come in. How was dinner?" Spencer asked as she closed the bathroom door behind her.

"Okay. Kayla could start her own restaurant if she wanted." Emily answered, smiling at her friend weakly.

"Then why does it look like you just got food poisoning?" Spencer inquired, studying her friend closely. "What happened?"

Emily shook her head, unable to tell the girl what's really bothering her. Instead, she lifted the lid of the wooden box and stared at the contents inside, her gaze landing on the party hat Jai asked her to wear last year. She took it out and wistfully studied it before deciding to put it on.

...I just wish I didn't have to leave so early... I wanted to celebrate your birthday with you...

...Jai it's fine. It's just one birthday. When you get back we get to celebrate my birthdays for years to come...

For years to come. "Over dinner Kayla reminded me that my birthday's next week." Emily said absentmindedly, her gaze never leaving the contents of the wooden box in front of her. It held all of the memories she made with Jai over the years and she decided to bring it with her when she went to Miami last summer and now here in UPenn. "She didn't mean anything bad by it. She just wanted to know what I was doing to celebrate." She continued softly.

Emily felt Spencer's arm around her shoulders and she let the tears fall. "I miss her." She whispered brokenly, crying on Spencer's shoulder as the girl rubbed her back gently. "I thought I was going to be fine... being here without Jai. But I'm not." She said in between sobs. "I'm not okay. I really miss her."

"Em..." Spencer uttered, holding her friend closer. "It's going to be okay. You're going to be okay." She said soothingly, letting her friend weep in her arms. "I'm sorry. I should've known." Spencer whispered, racked with guilt that she didn't see how much her friend was still struggling with everything despite smiling and laughing.

---

"I'm sorry. How many times do I have to say it?" Kayla asked as she stood beside Paige in front of the kitchen sink. "I didn't know Jai's still a sore subject when it came to Em."

"Jai's her first love. You don't get over someone that easily." Paige ranted as she furiously scraped the plates clean before placing them inside the dishwasher. "And you've seen how in love they were. It doesn't take a genius to know that Emily's just putting on a brave face when she's around us." She pointed out, slamming the door of the dishwasher close with more force than she intended as she grew even more agitated. She felt stupid that she had to remind herself of these things when she's supposed to have known it all this time.

Kayla studied Paige's rigid posture and stood up straight. She needed to do something to lessen the girl's distress. "Fine. I'll go call Emily now and apologize. Just... calm down and stop being mad at me." She pleaded, moving to get her phone from the front pocket of her denim cutoffs.

Paige sighed and ran a hand through her hair resignedly. "Kayla I'm not mad at you." She said, touching the girl's wrist to stop her from dialing Emily's number.

"Then why haven't you said anything to me since dinner and now you're biting my head off for being insensitive?" Kayla asked wryly. "You're mad."

"But not at you." Paige said softly. "I'm mad at myself because I can't seem to make things better for her." She admitted, looking away.

"Paige it's not your job to make things better for her." Kayla reminded the girl quietly. "You can't shield Emily from the pain of losing Jai."

"Then what am I supposed to do? I don't want to just stand by and watch her suffer. It's killing me." Paige said helplessly.

"You're not a mere bystander. You know that." Kayla pointed out, touching Paige on the arm to force the girl to look at her. "Paige your being there for Emily ever since Jai died makes a difference already. Even if she's still struggling, you're there to make her smile and that matters. Trust me." She said, giving the girl a quick hug. "Now who's this Reese person?" She asked, crossing her arms in front of her chest and looking at Paige quizzically.

"She's the captain of the track team and Emily saw us together in Café Prima yesterday afternoon." Paige explained as she headed for the couch in the living room.

Kayla followed after Paige, confused. "What were you two doing there?" She inquired. "She asked you out? You asked her out?" She continued, starting to get jealous of this Reese girl. The only reason she was still keeping mum about her feelings for Paige is because she's waiting to see if anything comes out of the girl trying to make a move on Emily. If things don't work out for Paige... if Emily says no to her, then Paige would get her answer and maybe the girl would finally notice her. There was no room for a track and field team captain in her scenario.

"No one asked anyone out." Paige admitted sheepishly, adding to Kayla's confusion. "Reese and I were actually there to get some studying done. Turns out there are study groups in our team for all the undergraduate schools in UPenn and Reese is the one in-charge of the Wharton group. She was going to help me catch up with the rest of my teammates under her before we had to meet as a group last night but then we ran into Emily at the café and she thought I was on a date..."

"So why didn't you correct her?" Kayla asked, giving Paige a quizzical look.

Paige wearily sat down on the couch. "I don't want her to know that I already need help with my studies when the semester's hardly begun. What would she think?" She asked anxiously.

"But you'll tell her the truth eventually, right? Paige?" Kayla asked, looking down at the distressed girl sitting on the couch. "You're going to tell her that the thing with Reese was just a lie and that she's the only girl you like. Right?" She repeated anxiously.

"What's the point?" Paige asked, refusing to meet Kayla's eyes. "You saw Emily tonight. She's nowhere near ready to move on." She said dejectedly.

---

Three Years Ago...

Emily hurriedly navigated the hallways of Rosewood High, eager to reach the parking lot to meet her girlfriend. School was over for the day and Jai was going to take her out to dinner at some fancy restaurant outside of town to celebrate her birthday. But first she had to make a quick stop at her locker so she could return and then get some of her books. As she rounded a corner, Emily saw something near the end of the hall that made her slow down her pace. There, standing in front of the opposite row of lockers from hers, was none other than Jai's best friend, Paige McCullers. The girl hasn't seen her yet. Good.

Stopping in the middle of the corridor, Emily debated whether or not to continue heading towards her locker or to just head for the exit without returning her books and getting the ones she would need to do her homework tonight. If I don't get my books, Jai's going to wonder why I need to borrow hers when we do our homework later. You have no choice. You can do this. Steeling herself, Emily resumed walking towards her locker, aware that she was trying to remain inconspicuous by walking slowly so her shoes won't make a sound on the polished floor. They were the only ones in the corridor now, if that even seemed possible. It was like they were transported to a vacuum space and everyone else disappeared and it was just them. She tried to regulate her breathing; feeling like any sound she made would alert Paige that she's there.

Emily grimaced when she heard the sole of her right shoe squeak and she held her breath, waiting for the girl to look her way and start giving her a hard time. She thought the day was going to come to an end without her running into Jai's best friend and she preferred it that way. Because seeing the girl and Paige calling her Sniffles was going to ruin her day and she didn't want to be in a foul mood on her birthday. When Paige didn't seem to hear her just now, Emily felt silly for being so paranoid and finally decided to make a dash for it since there was no way that Paige wouldn't hear the sound of her locker opening and closing behind her.

Once she was standing in front of her locker, Emily took a deep breath and dialed the combination, straining her ears for any sound coming from behind her. She pulled open the metal door and returned her books, quickly taking out the ones she would need before closing the door as silently as it would allow her. She bit her bottom lip and held her books closer to her chest, dreading having to turn around because Paige could be staring at her right this second, just waiting until they were standing face-to-face before starting to make fun of her.

You can do this. Just ignore her. Emily told herself. She counted to three and finally turned around, her eyes immediately landing on Paige whose back was still turned to her as the girl continued rummaging the contents of her own locker. Emily jumped back when Paige suddenly closed her locker door, feeling exposed. Standing there just across the hall from Paige, she felt like she was a sitting duck and she wanted to run and hide but she was frozen in place. Emily breathed a sigh of relief when Paige turned around and she saw that the girl's head was currently buried deep in a book. Must be the reason why she didn't notice me. Paige was engrossed in whatever she was reading.

Emily followed Paige's progress when it became obvious that the girl was headed for the front exit as well, making sure that she kept her distance from the girl walking in front of her. When another girl called out to Paige just as they were nearing the exit, Emily took the opportunity to slip past Jai's best friend unnoticed as the other girl engaged Paige in a conversation. Oh bless you, you flirtatious creature. Emily mentally said to the girl talking to Paige when their eyes met. She quickly made her way down the steps and felt a sense of relief when she saw Jai pull up in front of her in Logan's royal blue V8 Vantage S Coupe Aston Martin.

"Your carriage awaits, milady." Jai said in greeting from the rolled down car window, smiling at Emily affectionately.

Emily grinned as she opened the car door of the passenger side and got in, placing her books and bag on her lap as she struggled to buckle her seatbelt.

"Ready to go?" Jai asked, looking at Emily eagerly.

"Yeah." Emily replied as she moved to roll up the car window, her eyes landing on the school entrance. She was about to look away when she saw Paige emerge from behind the door and look straight into her eyes, like the girl knew where she was all along. Bracing herself for one of Paige's trademark smirk and glare, she was surprised when Paige just looked away and descended the steps, heading towards the opposite direction with her head down.

So she did see me. Why did she pretend she didn't until now?

---

Present Day...

Emily reluctantly opened her eyes on Monday morning, dreading having to get up and face the day. She wished it was still Sunday and that she was still sitting in front of Jai's grave, waiting until the clock struck twelve. She'd rather sleep the entire day until it was Tuesday but she had classes and swim practice and work. She wanted this day to be over even if it hasn't even begun.

"Birthday breakfast!" Spencer exclaimed from their bedroom door as she closed it behind her using her foot. She walked over to Emily and sat on the edge of her friend's bed with a cup of coffee and a muffin. "They didn't have mint chocolate chip cupcake in Café Prima so I bought a blueberry muffin instead. Happy birthday Em."

Emily got up into a sitting position and smiled. "Thanks." She replied, taking the cup of coffee and muffin from her friend. She placed the muffin on her bedside table and wrapped her hands on the cup of coffee, inhaling its aroma and enjoying the warmth of the cup in her hands.

"We are going to celebrate all day." Spencer declared, vowing to make her friend enjoy her birthday despite knowing that Emily wasn't really looking forward to today. "We're gonna have a birthday lunch and a birthday dinner. My treat."

"Spence you don't have to do that." Emily said hurriedly.

"Em I'm one of your best friends. If Hanna and Aria were here you know they'd insist on spending the entire day with you too." Spencer pointed out. "Come on. It's your birthday. We should celebrate."

"I'm not really in the mood to go out tonight." Emily admitted.

"Then we'll just have dinner here. Hawaiian pizza anyone?" Spencer coaxed.

Emily sighed. She knew Spencer wasn't going to take no for an answer and her friend was trying to make her feel better about today so she nodded. "Okay. Hawaiian pizza party for two." She said, smiling when her friend gave her a brief hug.

"Great! We'll wear our pajamas and it'll be like when we were ten." Spencer promised before getting up. "I'm taking a shower first while you enjoy your breakfast."

"Lunch is on me." Emily called after her friend. "Dinner's on you." She added before the girl could protest.

Spencer nodded. "Deal." She replied. "You better answer that." She said, nodding her head towards Emily's study table when she saw her friend's phone vibrate. "And keep your phone with you at all times. You know there are a lot of people who want to greet you today." She added before locking the bathroom door behind her.

Emily got up from her bed and walked over to her study table, putting down her cup of coffee on the surface before grabbing her phone to see who was calling. She smiled when she saw the name and eagerly sat down on the edge of her bed before answering it. "Hey." She said in greeting.

"Hey." Paige repeated. "Did I wake you up?" She asked uncertainly. "You sound like you just woke up."

Emily shook her head. "No." She replied when she remembered that Paige couldn't see her. "I mean yeah I just woke up but it was before you called. What's up?" She asked, expecting Paige to greet her.

"Nothing much. Um... I just need your help with something." Paige answered slowly.

"My help?" Emily repeated, frowning. She thought Paige called because the girl remembered what today is. "Help on what?"

"I need your opinion. You love horror movies. Right?" Paige asked.

"Yeah." Emily answered, waiting for the girl to continue.

"So you probably know the best ones." Paige concluded. "Is there a horror movie you haven't seen yet?"

"Not really. I've seen most of it." Emily admitted, wondering where Paige was going with her questions.

"Okay then, what's your all-time favorite?" Paige inquired.

Emily bit her bottom lip, thinking back to all the horror movies she's seen. "Um... if I have to choose just one... well it's a really old film. And it's rare. I don't know if you've heard of it. Repulsion?" She said, waiting for Paige to react.

"Repulsion." Paige repeated like she was saying it to someone else.

"Yeah. Why?" Emily asked, getting curious as to what Paige was up to.

"It's highly recommended?" Paige continued, ignoring Emily's question.

"Yeah." Emily replied.

"Do you have a DVD of it or something?" Paige asked.

Emily creased her eyebrows in confusion. "No. Why?" She asked again.

"Oh." Paige muttered before the line went silent.

"Paige? Are you still there?" Emily asked, moving the phone away from her ear for a second to check if the call has ended. "Why are you asking?" She said when she saw that Paige is still on the line.

"I was hoping I could borrow it so Reese and I could watch it tonight." Paige finally answered.

Emily gripped her phone tighter. "Why? Does she love horror movies like you?" She asked, surprised that her voice sounded normal despite the annoyance she was feeling. This wasn't the conversation she wanted to have with Paige right now.

"No but she insisted that we watch one. She said it could be fun watching with the lights turned off especially when the scary parts come on." Paige explained.

Emily rolled her eyes. "I bet." She muttered under her breath, unable to believe that an upperclassman would use such a lame move just to get a freshman to sleep with her. And that Paige is so vulnerable not to see what the girl was trying to do.

"What's that? I thought I heard you say something." Paige said uncertainly.

"You're probably hearing things. I didn't say anything." Emily lied, starting to get irritated. "Is that the only reason you called?" She asked, still hoping that the girl would remember what today is before Paige ended the call.

"Yeah. That's the only reason." Paige repeated. "Thanks for the help. I'll go rent one now."

"Wait." Emily said, for some reason anxious to keep Paige on the line. "Like I said it's a rare film. I don't think you can find one this late so you should just see that film some other time. Maybe you could see a comedy film instead at the theatre where there are lots of people." She suggested, her tone sounding a little too insistent to her dismay.

"Don't worry about it. I won't stop looking until I find one." Paige said determinedly. "Thanks again. Bye."

"Wait, Paige!" Emily called out but the girl already hung up on her. She sighed and stared at the phone in her hand. Paige didn't even remember her birthday. And to top it off, the only reason the girl called just now was because she wanted Emily's help for a movie date tonight with Reese, her attractive junior team captain. Emily touched the locket on her necklace again, a feeling of loneliness overwhelming her.

---

"They don't have Repulsion on DVD here." Reese reported as she approached Paige from the back of the store.

"Are you sure? Maybe the clerk heard you wrong." Paige said as she pocketed her phone.

Reese rolled her eyes at Paige in exasperation. "Yeah. 'Coz there is just so many ways you can say Repulsion that he didn't understand me the first time I asked him." She said sarcastically. "Are you sure you can't just give her a different horror film? How about this?" She suggested, grabbing a DVD displayed on one of the racks and handing it to Paige. "That seems scary. It's the thought that counts."

"Just because it says Scary Movie on the cover doesn't mean it's scary." Paige pointed out dryly, returning the DVD on the rack. "She said Repulsion's her all-time favorite horror film so I'm getting her that."

"But they don't have it here." Reese repeated.

"Do you know of any other video stores around the city?" Paige asked, looking at Reese thoughtfully.

"Yeah but the ones I know are far from here." Reese pointed out.

Paige suddenly grinned. "That's why I asked if you're free this morning." She revealed, making Reese stare at her in open-mouthed shock. "Come on. You have a car. And you know the city more than I do."

"You do realize that I'm a junior. And I'm your team captain." Reese reminded Paige, the amusement evident in her voice. "I shouldn't be taking orders from you, newbie."

Paige shook her head. "Sorry but to me you will always be that girl who almost ran me over." She replied.

"And you will always be that girl who never learned how to cross the street properly." Reese shot back. "Just give her any horror movie for crying out loud. I don't understand why you're making such a big fuss over this. It's just her birthday."

"Actually, it's not. It's her first birthday that I could actually give her a gift." Paige finally admitted. "I never could do that when she was with my best friend. I felt it was inappropriate so in the past this became the one day I didn't bother her."

Reese looked at Paige quizzically. "As opposed to the other days you did? What exactly went on with you two?" She asked.

"I was horrible to her back in high school. Things gradually changed our senior year but for three years I was horrible to her." Paige confessed. "I know it's stupid but I had to find a way to stop myself from liking her and that's the solution I came up with. For her to hate me so much that she herself would be the one to constantly remind me why she would never fall for me."

"And now you're trying to make up for lost time." Reese concluded. She studied Paige for a second then sighed. "Fine. I'll drive you around the city until you find that Repulsion film."

"Really?" Paige uttered, starting to grin.

"Yes. Really. You hot, adorable mess." Reese said, placing one hand on Paige's shoulder. "I hope Emily knows how lucky she is. You're pretty awesome."

Paige felt her cheeks grow warm. "Thanks. You're not so bad yourself." She admitted as she followed the girl outside the store.

"Not so fast newbie. You're not paying me back for this with that lame compliment. You're treating me to lunch. And breakfast by the way since you pulled me out of my girlfriend's house this morning." Reese reminded the girl.

"Yeah. Sorry about that." Paige said sheepishly.

"Nah it's cool. We've been together close to four years and she never once cared whenever I leave in the middle of breakfast." Reese said offhandedly.

Paige glanced at the girl walking next to her as they reached the spot where Reese parked her car. "Four years, huh? That's..."

"Long?" Reese interjected wryly.

Paige shook her head. "No. I was going to say shocking. That you found someone who could tolerate you and that she stuck around for four years." She added teasingly. "Word of advice. Don't ever let her go."

Reese let out a laugh. "Don't worry. I don't plan to." She said before unlocking the car doors and getting in.

---

Emily emerged from the Pottruck Fitness Center that afternoon, fresh from another swim practice in the Sheerr Pool with her teammates. Although it was only mid-September and the first swim meet isn't until November, their coach is already subjecting the entire team to a rigorous training that left her muscles sore. Her body was still getting used to the new routine but she had to remind herself that college athletics is on a completely different level. The competition is much fiercer and she had to improve her times and skills if she wanted to keep up with the rest of the team.

"Come join the annual dance marathon hosted by Penn Dance. It's for a good cause." Emily took the flyer the girl was handing to her and stared at it.

"Dance through the ages?" Emily said as she scanned the material and fixed the strap of her duffel bag on her shoulder.

"If you're interested to participate it's going to be held at the Platt Student Performing Arts House next month. It's from six a.m. to six p.m. We encourage participants to dress up in any era they want to. You can wear dresses from the sixties or seventies. Even futuristic." The girl explained enthusiastically as she handed several flyers to other passersby.

"Proceeds will go to the Gray Matter Foundation." Emily read at the bottom of the flyer, her mouth going dry.

"You probably haven't heard of it. I swear it's not made up. It's a new foundation started early this year by one of UPenn's benefactors, Dr. Logan Hayes. We decided to donate the proceeds to the foundation this year since his late wife was one of our alumni in Penn Dance even though the foundation was started in memory of his oldest daughter." The girl continued, oblivious to Emily's distress.

"No I, uh... I've heard of it." Emily said, her eyes never leaving the flyer. "I know their daughter. Knew. I knew their daughter." She corrected herself hoarsely.

"Oh. Good. Then you know it's a really good cause. You should register and join. Tickets are sold all over campus like at the bookstore and at dining establishments." The girl supplied.

"Thanks. Maybe I will." Emily said, giving the girl a faint smile before walking past her and folding the flyer. She placed the folded piece of paper in the front pocket of her jeans and took out her phone when she felt it vibrate. She glanced at the display and felt slightly better when she saw who was calling. "Hey."

"Hey." Paige repeated from the other end of the line. "Did I catch you at a bad time? You don't sound too happy. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm fine. What's up?" Emily asked, starting to feel optimistic. Maybe Paige remembered now that's why she's calling. After all, when Kayla called her earlier today Emily hinted that some people may have forgotten what today is. "Did Kayla call you?" She added just to check if her hunch was right.

"Kayla? Yeah. Just now actually. Why?" Paige asked.

Emily fidgeted with the strap of her duffel bag. "No reason." She replied nonchalantly. "What did she tell you?"

"Nothing important. She just asked if I was forgetting something about today. Turns out I was. Did she call you to remind me too?" Paige inquired.

Emily frowned. "No. But, uh, what was it that you forgot? Did you remember?" She asked as she continued walking towards her college house for her shift at Café Prima.

"I did. I should've remembered it earlier today but I spaced out. I forgot it was my turn to buy the ingredients for our dinner tonight. But no worries. I'm on it." Paige said confidently.

Emily abruptly stopped in her tracks and gripped her phone tighter. It's official. She was having a really bad day. "If you remembered already then why did you even call?" She asked, starting to get annoyed.

"Oh. I'm glad you asked. I sort of need your help again. Cupcakes. What's your stand on them?" Paige inquired.

Cupcakes? She seriously called me to ask about cupcakes?! What's going on with Paige today? "I love them." Emily admitted.

"Frosting or no frosting?" Paige asked.

"Frosting. Lots of frosting." Emily answered.

"Hmm. Okay. Cupcakes with lots of frosting." Paige repeated. "And what would you say are your top three flavors?"

Emily creased her eyebrows in confusion, wondering why Paige is playing a game of twenty questions with her. "Uh... Chocolate Chip Mint, Caramel Apple and Blueberry Cheesecake." She finally answered.

"Cho...co...late... Chip... Mint. Ca...ra...mel... Ap...ple. Blue...berry... Cheese...cake." Paige repeated slowly.

"Why do you ask?" Emily inquired.

"Well I don't know the first thing about cupcakes and Reese wanted me to come over with half a dozen tonight. She's not big into popcorns when watching a movie but she said she loves cupcakes. I just needed help with the flavors. There's a lot here and I have no idea which flavors to choose." Paige explained.

Emily closed her eyes in frustration. Of course the phone call was about Paige's big date with Reese. "So you're coming over to her place tonight with a movie and a box of cupcakes. What's she bringing to this date again?" She asked, not bothering to hide her annoyance.

"Well her sense of humor for one. Then there's her wit and sarcasm so all in all that's three. And she's got a home theatre system so I really don't mind coming over with cupcakes overflowing with frosting." Paige answered.

"You know what? Maybe you should go easy on the frosting. Sometimes it's better if there's no frosting at all." Emily suggested anxiously, trying to erase the mental image of Reese leaning forward to remove a leftover frosting on the corner of Paige's mouth with her lips.

"But you said lots of frosting is the way to go. I'm taking your advice." Paige insisted.

"I meant I love frostings. You don't know if Reese does and just to be safe maybe you should bring over plain ones. Or..." Emily paused, struck with a better idea. "Or... just have them store-bought. Like those ready-to-eat cupcakes you see on grocery aisles." She suggested.

"But those are cheap ones." Paige argued. "I'm not buying those. I'm buying the flavors you suggested from a gourmet cupcake store."

Emily sighed, running a hand through her hair in frustration. "Paige..."

"Yeah?" Paige uttered, waiting for her to continue.

I'm not comfortable seeing you hang out with Reese. Emily thought as she placed her hand inside the front pocket of her jeans. "There's this dance marathon next month sponsored by Penn Dance." She said instead when her fingers grazed the edges of the flyer the girl handed to her earlier. "And the proceeds will go to Jai's foundation. I was thinking..."

"Em, I gotta go." Paige interjected. "I'm next in line. I'll talk to you later. Thanks again for the help."

"Wait, Paige..." Emily trailed off when the line went dead. Worst. Birthday. Ever. She thought, disappointed.

---

"Wow. I didn't know I was loaded." Reese commented as she handed Paige the box of cupcakes she was carrying together with the list of flavors the girl gave her earlier. "That would be ten bucks for the three cupcakes." She added, extending her hand to the girl. "But seriously? A home theatre system?"

"I know. I'm sorry." Paige uttered as she returned her phone in the front pocket of her jeans and took out her wallet, handing Reese ten dollars before taking the box from the girl. "Thanks. And again, sorry for dragging you into this. I just needed her to buy the idea that I'm doing all of this for our so-called date tonight." She explained sheepishly.

"Yeah but did you have to make it sound like I'm living in luxury? I live in the same college house as her." Reese reminded the girl warily.

"But she doesn't know that." Paige pointed out. "And I'm going to come clean to Emily tonight once I meet her." She promised.

"About everything?" Reese asked, raising an eyebrow.

Paige grimaced. "Well everything about today." She corrected. "Sorry I made you miss your classes."

Reese shook her head. "It's cool. I only have one class on Mondays so I have no problem catching up. I can't exactly leave you running around the city, newbie." She said wryly. "You should worry about your studies rather than mine. You're the one who missed all of your classes this afternoon."

"I didn't know Repulsion would be so hard to find." Paige admitted.

Reese tapped Paige on the shoulder lightly. "Hey. Cheer up. You're part of my study group. We'll help you catch up in no time." She told the girl confidently.

Paige let out a relieved sigh. "Thanks. You don't know how much all of this means to me." She said, giving Reese a small smile. "And you didn't have to come here with me. You could've just dropped me off. So thanks for that too."

Reese shrugged. "Well I was about to drive away when this nagging thought occurred to me. What if the flavors Emily wanted weren't here? So I decided to stick around in case you needed to go to a different store." She admitted.

"I'll make it up to you one of these days." Paige promised.

"I'll keep that in mind. I just might take you up on that offer." Reese said before checking the time on her watch. "So where are we headed now?"

"Um... Penn Dance. Do you know where that org meets?" Paige asked hesitantly.

"Not really but we can probably ask around. Why?" Reese asked as they exited the cupcake store.

"I want to buy tickets for the dance marathon next month." Paige explained.

Reese stopped in her tracks and stared at Paige incredulously. "You dance?" She asked, giving Paige an amused onceover.

Paige laughed. "No. I was born with two left feet." She admitted. "But as it turns out the proceeds generated for the dance marathon will go to the foundation started a few months ago by my best friend's dad for her. And I know Emily wants to join it." She explained as they resumed walking.

"Is your best friend some kind of saint?" Reese asked jokingly.

"Close to it." Paige answered quietly, making Reese stop in her tracks again.

"So what you said back at the café. About her being this perfect everything. You weren't exaggerating." Reese concluded. When Paige nodded, she pursed her lips, debating whether or not to tell the girl what's on her mind. "Can I ask you something?" Reese continued cautiously. "Emily. Is she really worth all of this trouble you're going through?"

"Yeah. She is. Why?" Paige asked, giving the girl a confused look.

"Nothing. I just hope everything turns out well for you." Reese answered, looking at Paige worriedly.

---

"Don't you like the pizza?" Spencer asked, trying to catch her friend's attention as they sat on their respective beds with the box of pizza sitting on the chair she placed between them. "You still haven't touched your first slice and I'm on my second one already." She added, gesturing to the half slice of pizza she was holding in her hand.

Emily stared at the cold slice of Hawaiian pizza sitting in her plate and slowly removed the pineapples from it before picking up the pizza and forcing herself to take a small bite.

"What's going on with you?" Spencer inquired after she swallowed the portion of pizza she had been chewing. "You've been in a foul mood ever since you got that first phone call this morning and now you look like the weight of the world is on your shoulders."

"I'm fine." Emily said, trying to smile at her friend weakly. "I just can't wait for this day to be over." She admitted.

Emily looked towards the slightly parted curtains when she heard a low rumble and stood up to walk towards the window, watching the rain pour outside. At least the weather understood her mood. All day she had been getting phone calls from her parents, her friends, her relatives. All of them wishing her a happy birthday. Even Logan and Kayla took the time to call and greet her.

Everyone but Paige. And she knew that shouldn't bother her. In the past she looked forward to this day because it was the one day that Paige cut her some slack. She didn't realize it sooner but eventually she understood that the girl pointedly stayed away from her on this particular day. But that was because they didn't get along. Things were supposed to be different now. So why is Paige still staying away from her today?

After what the girl did for her last week she didn't think Paige would forget this day. But then again, maybe she got it wrong. Maybe after all these years Paige really didn't know about this day. Maybe it was just pure coincidence that Paige wasn't in the mood to bother her in the past when it was her birthday. Paige couldn't remember something she doesn't know. Right? After all, she herself never bothered to find out when Paige's birthday is.

"Are you gonna answer that?" Spencer asked, distracting Emily from her musing as she nodded her head towards the vibrating phone on top of Emily's bedside table.

Emily drew the curtains close and headed for her bedside table to pick up her phone, frowning when she glanced at the screen to see who was calling and saw that it was a blocked number.

"Hello?" Emily said in greeting once she put the phone to her ear. "Hello?" She repeated when she didn't hear an answer. "Hello who's this?" She asked again before moving the phone away from her ear when the line went dead, staring at it quizzically.

"Who was it?" Spencer inquired.

Emily shrugged. "I don't know. There's no answer. It's probably just a wrong number." She said dismissively. She started when she felt her phone vibrate again and let the phone ring as she stared at Paige's name on the screen this time.

"Maybe that's them again." Spencer said when she noticed her friend's blank stare.

"I doubt it." Emily said wryly. She took a deep breath and finally pressed the answer button. "Calling to ask for another favor?" She said in greeting.

"How did you know?" Paige asked, her tone indicating her surprise. "Are you some kind of psychic?!"

Emily rolled her eyes at Paige's lame attempt to tease her. "Seriously? You called to ask for another favor?" She repeated, barely able to keep the irritation out of her voice.

"Yeah. I was wondering if you have a CD I could borrow." Paige said slowly. "Preferably something that's easy on the ears. You know. Something mellow. Sort of just background music..."

"Perfect for a date with Reese?" Emily finished sarcastically.

"Bingo. So do you have one lying around? I want this thing with Reese to be perfect tonight so please say yes?" Paige pleaded, oblivious to Emily's foul mood.

Emily stood up and headed to her study table, scanning the titles of her CDs until she found the one she was looking for. "You're in luck. I happen to have one." She said as she studied the tracks in the CD with a mischievous grin, feeling a little better.

"Great. I'll meet you outside your college house in a few minutes. I'll give you a missed call once I'm there. Thanks, Em. You're such a lifesaver." Paige said before hanging up.

"What's with the smile?" Spencer asked, studying her friend curiously.

"Paige just asked if she could borrow a CD with mellow tracks in it for her date tonight." Emily replied, the mischievous grin on her lips disappearing once she was reminded that Paige called her for the third time today to talk about her date with Reese.

Spencer stood up and walked over to her friend, taking the CD from Emily's hands to study the tracks. She laughed out loud when she saw the titles, shaking her head in amusement. "At least you still found the time to play a prank on her despite the mood you're in. She's going to flip when these songs come on the player." She said, returning the CD to Emily. "I suggest you lay low for a few days after tonight." She added before returning to her bed to resume eating her dinner.

"Yeah." Emily uttered, staring at the CD to avoid her friend's eyes for fear that Spencer would take one look at her and know that she wasn't playing a prank just to ruin Paige's night. She really didn't want the date to go well.

---

Ten minutes later, Emily was riding the elevator on her way down to the lobby to meet Paige. The rain wasn't letting up but Emily didn't care if she got drenched at this point. The satisfaction she felt at the thought of deliberately ruining Paige's date tonight merely lasted for a few seconds and it was replaced with annoyance again that the girl called her three (four if you counted the missed call just now) times the entire day and not once did Paige even greet her a happy birthday. She just wanted for their meeting to be over so she could go back to her room and bury her head in her pillows until it was Tuesday morning.

As she exited the elevator, Emily got more agitated with every step she took towards the front door and when she saw Paige standing outside with an umbrella, she increased her pace and pushed the glass door irately. She stopped short when she saw Paige grinning at her with one hand holding the umbrella and the other holding a plain, light pink rectangular box with its top open and lights flickering inside. Emily closed the distance between them, curious to see what the girl was holding and why Paige was grinning at her triumphantly, while Paige hurriedly stepped forward when she noticed that Emily didn't bring an umbrella with her.

"I didn't forget." Paige uttered softly, those three words instantly ebbing Emily's anger. "Did you really think I would forget?" She asked, trying to make Emily look at her but the girl just kept staring at the open box of cupcakes she held in one hand so she continued. "I didn't need Kayla to remind me. I know what today is the moment I opened my eyes this morning and I've been running around all day trying to get you a present."

Emily kept her gaze on the three cupcakes inside the box; unable to meet Paige's eyes for fear that the girl will see the emotions playing across her features right now. She was moved, she was frustrated. She was happy, she was annoyed. She was speechless.

"You should probably blow the candles out before they melt all over the cupcakes. Or the wind decides to blow it for you." Paige added, bringing the box closer to the girl. "Happy eighteenth, Em." She said quietly.

Emily finally took a deep breath and blew the candles out but she still refused to meet Paige's eyes.

"And I got this for you." Paige said, briefly handing the umbrella to Emily while she took out from one of the pockets inside the lining of her leather jacket the DVD she bought earlier. She handed it to the girl, gesturing for Emily to give the umbrella back to her.

Emily wordlessly took the DVD of Repulsion and returned the umbrella to Paige, feeling like she was about to cry but she held back her tears. Still unable to comprehend Paige's ruse, she produced the CD she was holding in her other hand and gave it to the girl timidly. "For your date." She said hoarsely, still not looking at Paige.

Paige smiled. "Keep it." She said, refusing to take the CD. "There's no date with Reese. I just had to find a way to get you to tell me the things that you like without letting on that I was running around the city finding it."

Emily felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment and she was torn between hitting and hugging the girl standing in front of her. "There's no date?" She repeated, finally meeting Paige's warm brown eyes.

"Nope." Paige answered; breaking eye contact with Emily when she saw the CD the girl was going to lend her. She narrowed her eyes, confused. "Beyoncé?" She asked, making Emily stare at the CD as well. "That's your idea of mellow tracks?"

"What?" Emily uttered, feigning surprise as she pretended to study the CD she was holding in her hand. "Oh. I must've grabbed the wrong CD on my way down." She lied, feeling her cheeks flush in shame.

"Well it's a good thing that there's no date then." Paige said, giving Emily a smile.

Emily swallowed hard. "Yeah. It is." She admitted, her voice hoarse. "Only because it would ruin the mood." She added when she saw Paige's quizzical look.

Paige closed the lid of the box and handed it to Emily. "Here." She said, taking the DVD out of Emily's hand to hand her the box of cupcakes before placing the DVD on top of it. She patted the pockets of her jacket and took out the tickets she bought earlier, handing it to Emily. "I also took the liberty of buying these from Penn Dance. I heard what you said earlier even if I cut you off and pretended that I didn't care. I know you want to do this for Jai so I'm coming with you." She revealed, placing the tickets in between the box and the DVD. "I'm sorry I lied to you all day. Are you still mad at me?"

"Still?" Emily asked, looking at Paige curiously.

Paige laughed. "I could feel your anger the second you stepped out of the elevator." She pointed out. "So are you still mad at me?" She asked again.

Emily shook her head. "No. How can I possibly stay mad?" She asked quietly, instinctively leaning forward and depositing a soft kiss on Paige's cold cheek. "Thank you." She said once she pulled back.

Paige nodded, telling herself to breathe as she fought the urge to grin. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, feeling self-conscious, before pinching the corners of her mouth with her thumb and middle finger, trying to stop herself from smiling like a Cheshire cat again. She knew there was nothing else left to do but to say goodnight and head home. But Emily was standing in front of her in her cotton pajamas and loose shirt and all Paige wanted to do was kiss her. She swallowed hard, gripping the umbrella tight as she held Emily's gaze.

It's not possible.

Emily thought as she took in the girl standing in front of her. Lately she's been looking forward to spending time alone with Paige, laughing at the simplest things the girl said. And she noticed everything Paige did. Like the way the girl tucked her hair behind her ear and the way Paige brought her thumb and middle finger to her mouth to pinch the corner of her lips. And it just made her smile. Seeing Paige's quirks. She didn't know what to make of it. Somewhere in the back of her mind she knew what it was. She just didn't dare pay attention to it.

Until tonight.

Because she's so happy that Paige remembered her birthday and she couldn't ignore it anymore.

It's not possible. Right?

It can't be.

And then three things happened at once.

A gentle wind blew past them, making Paige tuck another loose strand of hair behind her ear self-consciously,

Emily's stomach fluttered,

And her heart...

skipped...

a beat…