A/N: Hello to anyone and everyone still reading this:) Again, so sorry about the delay, but I really have been working on this since the last update, just a little at a time.

Hope you enjoy:)

Chapter 12: Cutting The Ties That Bind

"Emsy, it's me. Listen, sweetheart, I've been texting and calling all week, but you've yet to return a call. I've missed you, so I'll be in London in an hour. Can't wait to see you, dear."

Emily had knocked the call over to voicemail earlier and continued working. It wasn't until later as she and Naomi sat at lunch when she remembered it was waiting for her.

"Fuck!"

Naomi's head snapped up, confusion written across her face. "What's up, Ems?"

Emily looked at the time on her phone then muttered under her breath. "She's on her way here."

"Who's on her way?" Emily could only stare and wait until Naomi finally understood. "Oh, her."

Emily laughed at the way that small word came out of Naomi's mouth, coupled with the anger she could see in those blue eyes.

"Well, I guess I have been distracting you, so it's not like you've had a chance to break things off with her." Naomi mused as she took a bit of her sandwich, the nerves that flared up whenever she thought of Emily and her girlfriend together swirled.

"Honestly, I've not thought about her at all since that night." Emily responded with a smile as she reached out for Naomi's hand. "I've had other…things to occupy my mind."

Naomi's sneer changed into a smirk and her eyes twinkled with humour. "Cheeky…that's new."

"I'm sorry."

Naomi laughed out loud. "Don't apologise, it's a very attractive feature."

Emily blushed as she took a bite of her sandwich, still unaccustomed to Naomi's compliments.

"I meant what I said, Naoms," she looked up, making sure she had Naomi's attention, "I'm not taking that back, okay?"

Naomi could only smile and nod, her emotions getting the better of her, which was a first in her life, only further proving her point that Emily was special.

They finished eating and then went back to work, both on edge, waiting for Georgina's imminent arrival.

After lunch, Emily tried not to let her anxiety get the best of her, and Naomi did what she could to help, but in the end, she knew that she would have to face and deal with Georgina. It had been way past time to end it with her, Naomi or not, and Emily knew that deep in her heart. And the thought of a relationship with Naomi, with nothing standing in the way, was a very welcomed prospect. One that made Emily feel optimistic and hopeful for the future.

Georgina's Mini pulled up to the site as everyone was breaking for the day and Emily stood and waited for her. She knew that she had to get the other woman away from the worksite, and as much as she hated the thought of the anger that was bound to come her way, Emily knew she had to do this alone.

Mary had been clear on the steps that Emily needed to take to break away from her past, and this was one of them.

Taking full responsibility for the mess of Georgina.

"Sweetheart, I've missed you so much."

Emily stood still as Georgina wrapped her arms around her and used one of those many pet names that she hated, the sound of her voice grating on every nerve that Emily had, but instead of the usual fear of any kind of confrontation that had always washed over her, Emily felt nothing.

'Well, that's new.' Emily thought to herself, proudly.

"Hello, Georgie." Emily finally responded, pulling herself away from the other girl. "Let's get out of here, yeah?"

Georgina's face was a picture of smugness, because Naomi and Effy happened to walking past as Emily grabbed her hand, and she didn't miss the look of contempt that Naomi threw her way.

"Just what I was thinking, honey." She said, fake sweetness dripping from every word. "I'm in the mood for Italian."

Emily sighed loudly as she walked. "Fine, whatever."

Naomi watched, anger at Georgina burning through her, as the two women walked down the pavement, and she didn't move again until the ugly pink Mini Cooper sped down the street and out of sight.

"Don't worry, Nai," Effy said as she stood next to her, "I'm sure Georgina won't be staying too long."

"I'm not worried about that, Efs." Naomi replied quietly as she started walking again.

"Then what's that look for?"

Naomi didn't say anything until they got into the office. "I just don't like her, that's all."

Effy laughed. "That's an understatement, I think."

Naomi sat at her desk, chewing nervously on her thumbnail, a habit from when she was little, and wondered how much she should tell Effy. "I'm in love with her."

"With Georgina?" Effy asked suspiciously, causing Naomi to look disgusted.

"Emily, you twat. I'm in love with Emily."

Effy managed to keep the look of shock off her face at the openness of the statement. "Damn, Nai…," although she had not managed to keep the shock out of her voice, "I knew you had feelings for her but I never thought they went that deep."

"I'm way out of my depth here, Eff." Naomi said quietly, turning herself to stare out of the window, her thoughts swirling in her head. "I have no fucking clue what I'm doing, I have no control over anything and ya know what?" She looked back at Effy, gauging her reaction.

Effy cocked her head to the side, thinking how open the Naomi sitting in front of her was being. "What?"

"It doesn't scare me, the not having control." Naomi replied with a grin. "I care about Emily and she makes me feel less alone."

Effy sat down in shock. The one thing about Naomi has always been her need to control the things in her life. It was what made her a great director, it was that need for control that propelled her through college, film schools and countless episodes of trash reality tv.

"Wow, Nai, I really don't know what to say to that."

Naomi laughed out loud. "That'd be a first, Effs. I can't believe after all these years, I've finally struck you speechless."

Effy blushed before laughing along with her. "Fuck off, you twat."

Naomi was about to tease her friend when Katie and Cook stepped into the trailer. "What's up, guys?"

"Cook is having a fit because Emily left with Georgina." Katie replied with a roll of her eyes.

"She makes me nervous, is all." He looked sheepishly around the room.

"Don't feel bad, Cookie," Effy said, "she makes me nervous too, but Emily's a big girl."

Naomi watched Emily's best friend closely, noticed the pained look on his face. "C'mon, let's get the group together and go to the pub." She stepped up to Cook and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "She'll be fine, Cook."

Cook gave some serious thought about just heading home, but then thought better of it. "Yeah, yer right. I just wish she'd grow a set and break up with that bitch."

Naomi laughed at the mental imagery that Cook's words conjured up, "She will, she's just got to do it in her own time and way, yeah?"

Again Cook agreed, then he and Naomi left to gather their small group. Once they all decided on where to go, they made their way across town, but Emily rested heavy on Naomi's and Cook's mind the rest of the night.

Georgina drug Emily to a fancy restaurant, one of those posh places that Emily never felt comfortable in, especially now because she was in her work clothes, and whilst she never usually gave two fucks about her appearance before, she knew that she would have to start making an effort for the sake of the show.

"I hear the food here is wonderful." Georgina stated as the waiter showed them to their seats. "You'll love it, sweetheart."

Emily sat down, barely containing the growl that she was about to unleash. "Georgina…," she sighed loudly, as she gathered her thoughts and tempered her nerves.

"Yes, I know." Georgie rolled her eyes, causing Emily to think of Naomi and she smiled slightly before she managed to hide it from the other girl.

Emily stayed silent until they ordered their drinks and waited until they were brought out to them, trying to give herself little pep talks to bolster her courage.

"Listen, we need to talk." Emily knew it was time, after the waiter left, to just get done with.

"I was thinking the same thing, honey." Georgina rushed out over Emily with a smile on her face, not giving her a chance to speak. "I was thinking that since you've moved to London now, we could get a place together, I was looking online, and found some places in Chels-,"

"No!"

It came out more forcefully than Emily intended but it did the job of getting Georgie's attention. Emily sat up, ignoring the looks from the other patrons and fighting the deep blush she knew she now sported.

"I can't keep doing this anymore, Georgina." Emily said quietly and a little hesitantly, because suddenly, she didn't really want to have this conversation here, but the other girl was giving her no option.

The smile that had froze on Georgina's face hardened into a grimace, when she thought that Emily was giving up what she was sure to be fame and fortune. "What? The show?"

Emily closed her eyes in frustration and sighed deeply. 'Is she really that obtuse?' She thought to herself, before answering.

"Us, Georgie. I can't do us anymore." Emily felt something shift as she finally spoke the words out loud to the other girl. "I can't keep pretending that this is anything other than what it was meant to be."

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Georgie spat out through clenched teeth, trying her hardest to keep her voice down. "What was it meant to be?"

Emily could feel herself tensing up because she noticed the signs of Georgina's anger, and her heart started racing, but she heard Mary's voice in the back of her mind, going through each step that the doctor had taught her on how to deal with anxiety.

"C'mon, Georgie, you know this was never meant to be a relationship, yeah? It was a fling that got out of hand." Emily was trying to be as delicate as she could but Georgina made it hard.

"A FLING!" Georgina surged up and out of her seat, leaning on the table toward Emily. "How dare you-,"

The explosion that she had been preparing for had caused Emily to shrink into herself, the need to avoid this confrontation became so palpable and the urge to run was almost choking her, but Mary's words and the thought of Naomi filled her head and the shifting feelings warred with one another until calm finally won and came roaring back.

"Enough, Georgie!" Emily growled out, causing the other girl to shut her mouth with an audible click and sit back down. "I'm sick of your tantrums. I'm so over the pet names that you refuse to stop using, and I'm over the mind games that you try to play."

"I have never played any games with you."

Emily rolled her eyes, shaking her head at Georgie's denial. "Yeah, ya have and I'm sick of it. It's like you try your hardest to control me, to get me under your thumb and you're not even very good at it. You can't even see that I don't care enough about you to fall in line with your plans, Georgina."

"Why are you doing this?"

It had been asked so quietly, and Emily knew that Georgina was about to look like a victim, but at that precise moment, Emily didn't care. "Georgie, can you honestly tell me that you're happy being with me?" When there was no answer, Emily kept going, taking the very real opportunity presented to her. "Seriously, can you tell me that you're happy with who I am?"

Georgina had that wounded look on her face, the one that always made Emily give in and stop any thought of breaking up with her, but this time was different and it felt significant and Emily didn't know who to thank for that. Was it because of Mary? Or was it Naomi's doing, this small change in how Emily thought and felt? Or was it all really down to her? Had she really had this kind of power all along?

"But I love you, Emsy." Georgina responded, sniffling a few times for proper effect.

Emily sighed deeply, tired of the act and ashamed once again, however fleetingly it was felt before she pushed that down and away, hearing Mary's voice in her head, 'You have nothing whatsoever to be ashamed of, Emily. It's a coping method that your brain has created for you and you need to learn how to banish that feeling when you've done absolutely nothing wrong.'

"You don't love me, Georgie, not really," Emily said. "You loved the idea of me, the idea that you had of me, but I don't think you've ever truly known me at all, Georgie. I don't think you know how to be with me without trying your hardest to change me, because the real me is flawed and broken and sometimes booze-soaked, Georgina. The real me is a shattered shell, who has never been arsed enough to care about the games you play, like right now," Emily pointed out the almost comical look on Georgina's face, "right now you're trying to act hurt, as if I'm causing you pain, because you're thinking it's always worked before, but I've got a secret for you, it's always worked because I just didn't care."

"Of course I'm hurt, swe-," Georgina stopped herself because she knew, had always known about Emily's hatred of the pet names, and she needed to try everything to salvage her relationship, "I'm mean, yes, I'm hurt, Emily. You're sitting here, telling me that I don't know you? So that hurts."

Georgina knew how to reel Emily back in, add just the right amount of passion and pleading into her words, some tears, because those have always stopped Emily in her tracks, because she did not want to lose her now. Not now, not when Emily was on the verge of becoming someone.

"I do love you and if you weren't so thick headed you'd see that."

Emily rolled her eyes again. "Just stop, please?"

"Can I take your order now?" The waiter chose that moment to interrupt. "Let me tell you about our specials this eve-,"

Emily smiled up at him sadly, as she cut him off. "I'm sorry, but that won't be needed. Can I get the check for our drinks?"

The poor man looked lost, as Georgina groaned in embarrassment.

"Of course, ma'am."

"Jesus, Emily, what's gotten into you?" Georgina, who could barely contain the disgust she was feeling at Emily's attitude, spat out before the waiter could leave. "I don't understand why you're doing this."

Emily watched as the waiter scurried off before turning back to Georgina. "Go back to Bristol, Georgie. I don't want you here. I'm sorry for dragging this out, but this will be the last time I apologise to you."

Georgina felt her plans crumble in front of her, as Emily took care of the bill. She knew that this was a different Emily that sat in front of her, and that there was no way of making her change her mind. There was an air about the redhead that she had never witnessed before. "This is because of her, isn't it? The blonde bitch! As if I haven't seen the looks she gives you, or the way you look back at her. Am I supposed to just sit back and let you fuck around?"

Emily only shook her head as she placed money on the table and stood up. When she walked away, Georgina followed, seething at the nerve of the other girl.

Once they hit the pavement, Georgie unleashed her fury. "How dare you treat me like that? You're fucking her, aren't you?

"I'm not gonna let you drag me into a fight, Georgie. I refuse to allow it!" Emily replied and started walking toward the taxi rank. "I'll make my own way home."

"I can't believe you're going to do this to me."

"Believe it or not, Georgina, this is about me, yeah?" Emily snapped, as spun around to come face to face with the other woman, the calm she had managed to keep ahold of finally evaporated, and a completely unusual feeling came over her. Anger. It was a twisting feeling, churning deeply within her, an old friend that had become a stranger long ago. "I can't waste my energy to care about you and I know that sounds shitty as fuck, but it's the truth."

Georgina recoiled as if Emily had slapped her, never having seen this side of her. "Ya know, I never thought you could be this cruel, Emily."

Frustrated, Emily drug her hands through her hair, before sighing deeply and loudly. "That's because you've never known me. I never knew that you were so shallow, but then again, I've never wanted to get to know you."

"So, what? You're just willing to throw away three years?" Georgina was trying desperately to hold on to her relationship. "Three years, Emily! Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"No, Georgie, it really doesn't." Emily replied sadly, not even giving it any thought at all, as she glanced toward the taxi rank, hoping to see a car.

Georgina was livid, never had she been so humiliated and she was about to unleash her pent up fury, but before she could a black taxi pulled up next to the rank and Emily opened the door and slid quickly into the seat.

"Emily!" Georgina called out, getting no response as Emily gave an address to the driver. "Emily! Wait a god damned minute!"

Emily was just about to close the door when Georgina reached out to hold it open, glaring at her.

"Wasn't I clear enough?" Emily asked, the anger still coursing through her. "It's over, Georgie. There was never gonna be a happily ever after, no happy family in the future, yeah?"

"You're going to regret this, Emily."

Emily sighed deeply, shaking her head. "I've been regretting this for three years. Goodbye, Georgie." That seemed to do the trick as Georgina slumped her shoulders in defeat, dropping her hand from the door, allowing Emily to finally close it.

The taxi pulled away from the kerb and Emily sat back into the seat, as her feelings collided with one another, unable to adjust fulling to what she had just done. She wanted to call Naomi, but when she pulled out her mobile, she found that her hands were shaking so badly that she couldn't even scroll through her contacts to find the blonde's name, so she slipped it back into her pocket and tried to calm herself.

"Excuse me, could you take my to the Cross Keys pub, instead?" She asked the driver.

"Sure thing, luv."

As the driver changed course, Emily smiled to herself as she really started to process what had just happened and realised that for the first time since Felicity, she was happy with herself, completely and fully happy and she laughed out loud because of the giddiness she suddenly couldn't control and didn't even care if the driver thought she was a complete nutter.

Naomi stood under the lamppost outside of her building, giving herself a few minutes before heading up to her flat, feeling a mix of emotions.

She hadn't heard a thing from Emily all night, and neither had Cook or Katie, and she had been worried, but when the night kept getting later and later, she started to feel angry about the lack of communication, and that was something new.

She had never allowed her negative emotions to control her before, but then again, this was Emily she was dealing with now.

Emily, who was different.

Emily, who was special.

Emily, with whom Naomi was incredibly in love with.

And even if Emily had not responded back to Naomi's declaration, it didn't even matter.

Naomi looked up, finding her darkened windows and knew her mum was asleep, so she couldn't talk to her about it and she knew that she needed to talk to someone about what she was feeling. Because it was huge. The feelings she had for Emily felt wonderful and terrifying all at the same time, and she knew she needed a level head to help her sort them.

She glanced at her mobile one last time as she headed into her building, growling when there still wasn't a text from Emily.

As she made her way up the staircase, Naomi went over every scenario in her head. Maybe Emily hadn't been able to bring herself to break it off with the other girl. As much as that thought hurt, Naomi knew that this was something Emily had to do in her own time. She couldn't push Emily into doing anything that would cause her pain or make her uncomfortable, that much Naomi knew.

It was also the reason why Naomi hadn't been pushing the issue about Georgina at all. She trusted Emily when she said she had wanted to make a go of things between them, so she was content to let Emily set the pace.

"Of course, it wouldn't hurt if she could speed things up just a little bit." Naomi muttered to herself, as she unlocked the door and stepped into her flat.

She quietly made her way down the hall toward her bedroom in the dark. Her immediate goal was to climb into bed and just let things go for the night, so with that plan in place, Naomi quietly closed the door and made her way over to her bed, stripping off her clothes as she went.

When she had laid her head against the pillow, Naomi closed her eyes and was about to pull her duvet around her when she felt something next to her.

Her heart almost stopped, as she gingerly felt around and noticed that someone else was in her bed, but then it started racing when that someone shuffled further into the bed.

"Naoms, stop. I'm too drunk for that."

The relief was instant when Naomi heard Emily's voice from under the duvet.

"Ems? What?" She was too shocked to really form a sentence, as she sat up and switch on her bedside lamp and looked fully at the redhead.

Emily sighed when she realised that she wouldn't be getting back to sleep anytime soon. "I don't suppose we could talk about this in the morning?"

Naomi gave her a confusing look, giving the request some thought. "Maybe, but tell me this," she cocked her head, as her frown turned into a smile, "what are you doing here?"

Emily pulled herself into a more upright position and brushed her hair out of her face. "The place Georgina took me to was a few streets over. After I left her there, I found a pub close by and started drinking. By the time I left, I started walking-,"

Naomi frowned again. "Ems…," displeasure thick in her voice as the thought of Emily out there alone, drunk and walking around scared her.

"I know, Naoms but I recognised where I was, so I made my way over."

Naomi laid back down and wrapped her arms around Emily. "You could've called."

"Yeah, I could've," Emily said with a smile as she and Naomi snuggled in deeper under the covers, "but I thought I would surprise you, ya know?"

Naomi laughed at the cheekiness of the redhead. She really loved that Emily felt comfortable enough to let herself act this way around her. "So, instead of ending up with me, you ended up with my bat crazy mum." She tried to reply with a serious look, but couldn't keep it up when Emily elbowed her in the stomach.

"I love your mum." Emily said with a yawn before burying her face in the crook of Naomi's neck.

"Alright, let's get some sleep, but one question," Naomi waited until she knew she had Emily's attention, "and only because it's killing me, not knowing."

Emily smiled and laid her head back down, because she knew exactly what Naomi was wondering. "Yes, it's over."

It took awhile for them to finally fall asleep as they lay in the silence, because they both envisioned their own versions of a brighter tomorrow and the excitement they felt resembled the kind a small child feels on Christmas Eve, waiting impatiently to hear the tell tale signs that Santa has arrived.

Emily had the sweetest dreams for the first time in a long time, and her unconscious mind pondered deeply, was it because of Naomi?

Or was it because she was finally able to see glimpses of herself that she hadn't seen since the whole mess of Felicity?

"Seriously?"

A few days later, on the morning that they were set to complete the current and final project, Naomi, Katie and Emily sat in the office as Effy explained the new schedule for the up coming few weeks.

Effy laughed as Naomi looked unusually excited. "Yes, seriously." she replied, passing out the new plans. "Mum has been working with Telecinco and they want to do a collaboration."

Emily looked at Katie and then over to Naomi and then smiled. "This is great." She felt excitement run through at the thought of actually going international, just like her and Naomi had talked about weeks ago.

"It is great, Emily, and you've only got yourself and Katie to thank." Effy said, smiling back at the redhead. "Look, Mum has an invested interest in our show, and even if she had been doubtful about you guys at first, she's not doubting you now." She explained as she passed out folders to each of them.

"What exactly are you trying to say, Effs?" Naomi asked as she picked up the file that was placed in front of her and started to thumb through the papers she found inside. What she read made her earlier excitement start to disappear. "Damn, Effy! This is gonna be a month worth of reshoots."

Effy sat down next to Katie before responding. "Only for the adverts and promos. Gerald has already lined up a couple of projects, remodeling projects, as well as working with an architect from the CSCAE, planning permissions and getting an architectural engineer to help with the building regulations and permits as we go. Mum has been arranging for shooting to begin as soon as we wrap up this week. We can take Freds and Cook, but the majority of the crew will be local."

Emily was quiet as Effy explained everything and Katie and Naomi asked questions, feeling a little bit out of her depth. Sure, she'd been all over building houses, hospitals and schools, but that was as part of a crew. A big fucking crew of contractors and architects and other volunteers, with planning and permits and zones already planned out. Were all she had to do was show up and swing a hammer. This was huge, no, scratch that, this was massive, this was something huge that she could fuck up, because she wasn't good enough.

Naomi noticed it first, the way Emily's fists started to clench and how pale her face was. "Ems?" She asked quietly, careful not to touch her, as all of her training with Mary kicked in, but Emily didn't hear her. "Emily." She said a little bit more forcefully and slowly slid Emily's chair sideways so that she could place herself in front of her, as the sweat started to bead up on Emily's forehead.

Katie and Effy stopped talking when they heard Naomi's voice and the slight fear in it, and looked toward Emily, causing Katie to gasp.

"Fuck." She whispered quietly. "Emsy?"

It was just as painful now for Katie as it had been all those years ago, being faced with one of Emily's panic attacks, to witness her sister going through that pain. And she was on the verge of stepping in until Naomi motioned her to stay still and took control of the situation.

"Emily, listen to my voice, yeah?" Naomi spoke louder than normal and then gently reached out to place a hand squarely against Emily's chest, hearing Mary's voice in her mind, instructing her, happy that she didn't flinch away from her and then brought Emily's hand to rest against her own chest. "We're gonna breathe together, okay? Just like Mary showed us."

Emily felt herself start to panic, and had started using all the tools Mary had given to her over the last couple of months, but as hard as she tried to fight against the rising tide that was threatening to crash into her, she knew she was going to lose until she finally heard Naomi calling out to her, and when her chair was pulled around and she came face to face with those bright baby blue eyes that she knew she loved, Emily started to feel a glimmer of hope that she wouldn't fall back into painful habits.

She felt Naomi's hand on her chest and a surge of warmth rushed through her body as Naomi called out to her again. She waited until Naomi started breathing deeply, in and then out, slowly and then she did her best to copy her lover.

They sat like that for about five minutes, until the colour came back into Emily's face and tears started to build up in her eyes and Naomi knew she didn't want to let them spill over, so she didn't even give Emily a chance to wallow in self doubt.

"Tell me what's on your mind?" Naomi asked quietly, approaching the subject gently.

"I-it's t-too much, Naoms, I'm n-not good enough for something this huge." Emily was finally able to word her doubts and relay them to Naomi. She wouldn't give it much thought until later as she lay in bed, but this was the first time in years that she hadn't given in to the panic.

Naomi shook her head, fighting the urge to tell her not to be crazy, because if anyone could do this job it was Emily. "No, we're not accepting that, Ems…listen, it won't be you all on your own, yeah? It's you, Katie, Freds and Cook. The rest of the team will be local builders, people who know what they're doing and it's not as if we're building massive homes from scratch, babes."

Emily kept her eyes on Naomi's and continued to breathe in and out slowly, processing Naomi's words. She started to feel more settled and was amazed by it.

"We'll have a week to get to know the crew down there, go over the plans and then we're giving ourselves three weeks to complete the two projects, Ems. And that'll be a wrap for the series." Effy explained softly, not wanting to disturb Emily's peace of mind.

Naomi smiled at Effy before turning back to Emily. "See, Ems, it won't be too much, yeah? How about we talk to your dad and we clear another week or two after that to take a break before the publicity starts for the show?"

"A break? I don't know, Naoms…," Emily didn't like leaving all the work for her dad to do, "I don't think that'd be fair on Dad."

This time it was Katie who interjected, and just as Effy did, kept her voice gentle and soothing. "You know Dad won't mind, Emily. He'll be excited, you know he will be."

Emily looked at all three of them and sighed deeply, knowing she was about to be outnumbered, but the was eclipsed by the fact that her panic attack had evaporated as if it had never started happening, the only tell tale sign was the dull ache in her chest from trying to breathe properly. She and Naomi had effectively averted what could have been a major attack before it really even had a chance to get started.

"I guess those sessions with Mary are really paying off." Emily said quietly, hoping that only Naomi heard her and smiled when the blonde laughed hard.

Naomi had to wipe at her eyes, as humour washed over the seriousness. "I guess they are. Are you okay?"

The redhead gave it some serious thought, because she could honestly say that yes, she was okay. "Ya know what? I really am, thank you." She replied, leaning in to give Naomi a chaste kiss. "You've been paying attention in those sessions."

Naomi shrugged it off, not even trying to fight the blush she felt working its way onto her face. "Yeah, well I've got a reason too, don't I?" she replied with a grin, delighted when Emily's blush started to spread.

"Whatever." Emily rolled her eyes, smiling back at the blonde, before taking a deep breath to clear away the last of the panic attack.

Three pairs of eyes turned toward her as she sat in thought, giving the project her full attention briefly before turning her thoughts to other, more pleasurable things.

"So, how does Italy sound?" Emily asked with a smirk, earning a round of yeses from the rest of them, wondering with a mix of anticipation and nerves what one actually does on vacation.

Naomi saw the look on Emily's face and smiled at her. "I think that sounds perfect."

Later that evening, Naomi and Emily had declined to head out with the rest of them, Naomi choosing to take Emily out to dinner. They discussed the show and the newest addition to the program. Again, Naomi pointed out her faith in Emily's abilities, making sure that Emily knew she was good enough. It caught Emily by surprise to suddenly process that her an Naomi were on an actual date, and whilst she should have been freaking out, despite everything that had already happened between them, she did just break up with her girlfriend after all, but it didn't at all. She hadn't been this calm in years.

Suddenly, two weeks in Italy sounded very exciting to Emily.

okay my friends, hopefully it won't be forever for the update….but I won't promise anything except that I will finish this story. If you've stuck with me this far, thank you so much!

Love to you all, Marci