Hey there. Sorry for the delay. Merry Christmas and A very Happy New Year guys. Hope you guys like it.

Chapter Seven

It was undeniable, the attraction between them and they both could feel it when they were together and also when they were apart. For Alex, everything seemed so surreal; her life had become a dream that she was living every second of and as much happy Alex was, she was also worried as to what the blonde haired girl felt about her. Piper had been different than any of the women that Alex had dated in the past and as much as she enjoyed the feeling of falling in love, she was terribly scared as to what Piper might actually feel for her. As far as Alex knew, Piper was straight, she had a few girl crushes whilst growing up but Alex was her first real relationship and Alex was scared that one day, all of this would come crashing down.

The raindrops pelted hard against the window as the rain fell in a torrential downpour. Piper sat at the study table, reading the script for an upcoming project that she was supposed to start filming soon but her mind was somewhere else, or on someone else, someone by the name of Alex Vause about whom the blonde haired actress just couldn't stop thinking about.

For Piper, Alex was an enigma, a mystery, a feeling that she had never felt before. All her life, she had been loved by people, put on a pedestal and worshipped but with Alex, everything came so naturally. It was like, she had been hiding herself all these years and now that she had met Alex, she didn't need to hide anymore or worry about not being enough. She had thought that Larry had been the one for her and when he cheated on her, she was devastated and lost all hopes of finding love until Alex Vause came into her life with her know it all smirk and eyes that made her lose any clarity in life. And it was scary, to say the least. Piper had her share of girl crushes in the past but nothing as serious as Alex. She wondered how her parents would react, how her agent would react and above all, how her fans would react. And at a time like this, Piper wished that she was just a common girl rather than the Hollywood star that she was. She made a mental note to tell her agent, Suzanne about Alex and she. She could only hope that she would be happy for her as well.

Piper had spent majority of the day musing over her relationship with Alex and her future endeavors that it was almost evening by the time Piper decided to call Alex and she smiled when she heard the taller woman's voice. She could feel Alex smile as she greeted her "Hello."

"Did I catch you at the wrong time?" Piper asked her as she heard a great amount of hustle and bustle in Alex's background.

"No, no. Our latest book sold a million copies so there is some celebration at the office. Nothing big."

"Oh ok. I wanted to ask if you are free tonight. We could watch some movies and get some dinner."

"It's Nicky's birthday today and she is having this party tonight. I can just show up for like ten minutes then I am all yours."

"No, she is your friend Alex. Would it be ok if I came with you?" came the instantaneous reply and to say that it surprised Alex would be an understatement. Nicky would surely be thrilled to have Piper Chapman grace her party.

Alex tugged on her coat as she entered the elevator to Piper's apartment. No matter how many times she did this, the nervousness didn't seem to fade any time soon. Alex took a long breath and wiped her sweaty palms on the side of her coat as she rang the door bell. And no matter how much she mentally prepared herself, Alex would never get used to the sight of seeing Piper. Alex was met with a pair of the most beautiful eyes as soon as the door opened. Piper wore a black dress that hugged all her curves perfectly and her messy blonde hair had been neatly combed and straightened and fell atop her shoulders perfectly. For a second Alex had to pinch her self to make sure that she wasn't dreaming and then a huge smile graced her lips as soon as she saw Piper.

"Wow Pipes, you look beautiful."

"Thank you Al, you don't look so bad yourself." And just like that, all the nervousness and awkwardness disappeared as they made their way to the car.

During the ride to Nicky's party, Alex filled her in on how she and Nicky had met during college and become great friends and how Nicky was also a partner at the publishing house and worked with Alex. And from what Alex had described, Nicky really loved to party.

By the time they reached, Nicky's party was in full swing. Drinks were flowing and the music was loud. Alex walked hand in hand with Piper and as the people began to recognize Piper, she held on to her hand a bit tightly.

"Yo Vause. Why are you so freaking late to my birthday party?" Nicky shouted and when she saw Piper standing next to Alex, Nicky Nichols had been speechless.

"I am so sorry Nicky." She hugged her friend while she continued to openly stare at Piper.

"Is Piper Chapman really at my party or am I so drunk that I have started hallucinating Vause?" Nicky asked after she regained finally regained her voice.

"If I tell you it is a dream, what would you do?" Alex played at her.

"Then I would never wake up at all." Nicky told her, giving her a dreamy smile.

"Piper, this is Nicky. Usually she is a bit put together but today she seems to be a bit star struck." Ale teased her as Piper held out her hand to Nicky.

"Ha . Nicky Nichols. Pleased to meet you ."

Nicky told her as she shook her hand, a wide smile on her face.

"Well I must say, this birthday has turned to be one of the best I have ever had. Thanks Vause." Nicky winked playfully at her as she made her way to greet some more of her guests.

Alex was in awe of Piper, of how she easily began chatting with her friends and never once made it seem like she was just Alex's girlfriend and not a hot shot Hollywood actress. As the word girlfriend came across her mind, Alex felt a small smile tug on her lips and when Piper noticed it, she raised an eyebrow questioningly at her. The night continued with more music and alcohol and by the end of the party, each and every one of Alex's friends and colleagues had been completely smitten with Piper.

As they made their way out of the party, Piper intertwined their fingers as they walked together. The rain lightly drizzled as they decided to walk home together to Piper's apartment. They walked in a comfortable silence, their presence warming up the cold and rainy night.

"Thank you for today, Pipes. Thank you for coming along and meeting me and my friends and making the night special. It means a lot to me. And I am sure that it meant a lot to Nicky also."

"You don't need to thank me Alex. It was nice to meet your friends and hear lots of stories from your past. It feels like I have gotten to know you more."

"So now that you know me more, do you like me less?" Alex jokingly asked Piper.

"Now, I am not so sure about this relationship Al." It was out of her mouth before Piper could stop herself and she could feel her cheeks redden with embarrassment after her slip of tongue.

"Relationship huh?" Alex jokingly cocked her eyebrows.

"Are you telling me that you want to be in a relationship with me Pipes?" Alex asked her.

The question made Piper stop midway and she looked at Alex and told her

"What if I did? What if I told you that I want to be your girlfriend?"

"Well, when you put it that way, how can I refuse Pipes?" Alex smiled at her as she pulled Piper in for a chaste kiss on her lips and they continued the short walk to Piper's apartment.

As the reached Piper's apartment, Alex didn't want to leave nor did Piper want her to. As they rode the elevator to her Piper's floor, Alex admitted how nervous she had been on their first date and Piper felt herself falling more for the blonde haired girl and she pulled Alex in for a long kiss as the elevator dinged signaling that they had reached.

"Piper?"

Larry Bloom stood on the other side of the door with a dumbfounded expression on his face.