The setting she finds herself in is unfamiliar. Detail from the posters on the walls to the lay-out of the chairs in the waiting room differs in nearly every way from the times she visited Alex at Litchfield, and although just being on the visiting side of a prison makes her anxiety heighten, the thought that she finally gets to see Alex after weeks of waiting proves as a consolation.
She's directed into the visitation room, and to her surprise, it isn't yet very busy - I must be early, she thinks to herself. Providing a further element of surprise, Piper observes the lack of a glass partition present to separate inmates from the person visiting them. It's something at Litchfield that prevented her from doing as little as touch fingers with her wife, and in knowing Alex will be sitting opposite her within a space where they can actually touch one another, the blonde feels a course of excitement rise and make itself apparent in her chest.
A few more people enter the room to take a seat in their directed spot, and as Piper turns and sees the small clock at the back of the room strike to 11am, she knows that any minute now, the inmates will be entering the room. She doesn't have long to wait when the door at the back of the room opens and, led by a CO, a queue of inmates dressed in a dark navy uniform begin to filter out.
When her eyes first land on Alex, the blonde has to prevent herself from crying. Not knowing whether she'd get to see Alex again - not knowing if Alex even wanted to see her again - proved to be pure agony, but in finally getting to see her in the flesh, all thoughts of what had previously happened between them throughout the last few months seemed to fly to the back of her mind.
Blinking her eyes rapidly, Piper watches her wife walk quickly across the room and towards the seat opposite where she herself is seated. She notes that the brunette looks less tired - more energised, perhaps, and although it's something she loves to see, it's the emerald eyes hidden behind familiar black lenses that render her speechless.
Observing her smiling wife take a seat, Piper outstretches her left hand to finally feel some form of contact with her wife while also mirroring a smile. She feels the heat from the brunette's hands - a sign of her nervousness, as Alex moves her hand to meet half-way on the wooden surface separating them to intertwine their fingers in a longing fashion. The moment doesn't last long - they didn't want to get caught breaking any rules before they got a chance to talk, but when they both settle into their seats, the smiles adorning both of their faces seems to prove that they share the feelings of elation given that they're finally seeing one another in person.
"Hi," Alex whispers, breaking the silence as she rubs her hand along her bicep.
"Blue looks nice on you," Piper begins, eyeing her wife's torso before looking back up into her eyes, "considering it's a uniform."
Laughing at the Piper-esque comment, Alex tilts her head back while shrugging her shoulders.
"I try my best," she jokes, causing both women to erupt into toothy smiles.
They remain silent for another few moments, basking in the fact that they're finally in each other's company, and if it weren't for the fact that Piper had been right on time for the 2 hour visitation slot, they'd worry they were wasting time.
No one was occupying the set of seats to the side of Piper's right, making their reunion somewhat private, and although they'd have loved for it to have been under different circumstances, this is their second best bet.
The 'basking' silence eventually shifts into a somewhat awkward phase; what do they even talk about after everything they've recently been through? However, before they manage to dig themselves into a hole of awkwardness, Alex leans forward in her seat and reaches for Piper's hand, guessing it must be allowed given the number of other people holding their visitor's hand throughout the room.
"I don't want this to be like last time," she comments, squeezing the blonde's hand.
"As in our relationship last time or-" Piper trails off, not knowing exactly what her wife meant.
"No, well, minus the drugs, I want that," Alex pauses, thinking carefully about what she's going to say next. "I don't want these visits to feel forced and awkward. I want to be able to talk like a normal married couple and not worry about anything else."
Feeling a light blush cover her cheeks at the sound of Alex calling them a married couple, Piper looks down at their locked hands and smiles.
"I want that too," she nods, leaning forward. "So how is it in there?" she asks, knowing that because of everything they've been through since her own release from prison, they have learnt to be honest with one another.
"Better than Litchfield," the brunette chuckles, releasing their hands so she can rest her head against her palm. "The people are nicer here. I can go and do my own thing and not be bothered - just how I like it."
"How nice?" Piper asks, also moving back to straighten her posture.
"Friendly nice," Alex smiles, sensing an element of jealousy from the woman opposite her. "You have nothing to worry about, Pipes. I'm in this for the long run. If there's one thing I figured out in these last months, it's that I don't want to ever be with anyone except you," she explains, sounding somewhat vulnerable at the end.
"I feel the same way. It's always been you, Alex," the blonde smiles, happy that they're finally in a stage of their relationship where no one is posing any form of threat. "Did you make sure to delete our conversation from the other evening?" Piper goes on to ask.
"Of course I did, kid," the brunette chuckles at the sight of her wife's shoulders deflating out of relaxation. "No one saw the goods except me."
"Your goods," Piper smiles, correcting the woman opposite her as she reaches forwards to grip her right hand. "Just to again reiterate," she adds, fiddling with her wife's long index and middle fingers, knowing those are the ones she likes to use when getting herself off.
With a smirk on her face - clearly aware of what the blonde is doing, Alex bites down on her lip.
"They're all yours in just under 3 years," she responds, looking down at the fingers in Piper's grip.
"1022 days," the blonde corrects, running her tongue along her bottom lip. "Not that I'm counting or anything, but just know that I don't need anyone else, Al. It's not something I really needed before and I certainly don't need it now. I can wait."
"I know that. Plus, I wasn't going to suggest it this time. Too much imagery for my liking."
"I understand," Piper chuckles.
Their talk flows throughout the next hour and a half, whereby conversation took them to the ins and outs of Piper's new apartment, to where they're now discussing how the blonde told her parents about her move to Ohio.
"So you haven't heard from them since?" Alex asks, intrigued by how Piper dealt with the situation, especially what happened with her father.
"My mom's been trying to contact me, but my dad," Piper pauses, tilting her head as though in thought, "not so much," she adds, smiling at Alex's eye roll.
"The offer's still there to fuck him up."
"I don't think we need to give him another excuse to not approve of our relationship, Al. And I don't want you ending up back in here after you get out."
"Of course, Captain Chapman."
"That's Captain Vause-Chapman to you ma'am," Piper says in a deep voice, eliciting a laugh from the woman opposite her.
"It'll all work out in the end, Pipes. You should talk to your mom… she seems to be more understanding?" the brunette says out of question.
"She's been trying, and in fact even went as far as mentioning my bisexuality without turning it into an insult or life lesson."
"Oh, that's a plus!" Alex says sarcastically, yet still happy that someone in Piper's life is attempting to be supportive when she herself can't be there.
The sound of a man announcing that the time for visitation is over breaks the two women out of the bubble they had built around themselves.
"Fuck that went so quick," Piper says, looking around and seeing other pairings stand up to say their goodbyes, moving to do the same.
"At least we got to see each other," Alex comments, also moving into a standing position.
"I'll be here same time next week."
"What about your job?"
"I managed to get Fridays as my day off instead of Saturdays. I don't want to miss out on seeing you every week."
"Thank you, kid. I appreciate that," Alex smiles, leaning forward to pull the blonde into a hug.
"Call me when you can," Piper responds while wrapping her arms around her wife's body, closing her eyes over as though memorising what it feels like to be in the comfort of Alex's arms.
"Of course," Alex says leaning back. "What else do you think keeps me going in here?" she adds rhetorically before smirking and leaning forward to connect their lips.
The kiss elicits elements of longing and relief from both women, and although it doesn't last as long as they would have liked, it's a reminder that they're lucky a glass partition isn't separating them from carrying out such an act.
"I love you," Piper says, placing her right hand against Alex's cheek as she pulls away.
"I love you too," Alex smiles. "So much."
"See you next Friday."
"Can't wait," the brunette says through a toothy smile, for the first time not feeling overriding negative emotions at the thought of Piper leaving, instead telling herself to keep looking forward to whenever she'll see or hear from her wife next, knowing that's what's going to make her time inside pass by so much quicker.
That's how it continues for the best part of a year. Piper visits every Friday; Alex calls whenever she can. Both women have established a routine whether that being on the inside or outside world, and despite the barriers a relationship burdened by distance and separation inevitably brings, the task to keep going is one that both women have embraced with both hands.
Alex spends the bulk of her time either reading in the library or working out in the outdoors gym facility. Well, by gym, it consists of some basic equipment that can't be moved or cause any harm, but she makes sure to try and utilise the race track to make an attempt at running, remembering the cold mornings Piper would make her go for a run when they were still together and living in New York.
Piper, meanwhile, was promoted at work, meaning she now isn't just a barista and has taken on more of a managerial role. Although it's something Alex heavily praised her for, the blonde made an effort to make it clear that working in a coffee shop was only temporary; Piper wanted to do something more with her life that meant she could help those around her. Subsequently, based on an article she read in the newspaper, the blonde signed up to attend night school, whereby she's studying elements of criminal and federal law, hoping it'll aid her quest to find a higher purpose in both her working and private life.
She'd seen both her parents together a handful of times - well, excluding the number of times her mother would often visit alone, and although a part of her just wants to get on with her father, she can't help but feel hurt by the fact that he can't except who she really is. The last time they'd seen one another was her birthday; Piper had come back from visiting Alex to her parents being parked outside her apartment, and although she felt humbled by the surprise, the eye roll she received from her father having announced that she had just returned from visiting Alex did nothing but add to their hostile relationship.
"Something came in the mail today," Piper says down the phone as she places it down onto her kitchen counter, putting it on speaker.
"Oh yeah. What is it?" Alex asks, as though the blonde can't already tell it's got her wife's handwriting on the front.
"Funny," the blonde responds, knowing the brunette is trying to be comical.
"Give it an open then!"
Despite the mail arriving the day before, Piper had chosen to wait until Alex called at her regular time, whereby she now impatiently moves to open the envelope which she assumes holds a letter inside. Peaking into the envelope, she lets out a throaty gasp at what she sees, immediately guessing - based upon what she herself had sent her wife in the past - what it is.
"Are these what I think they are?" the blonde asks while shoving a hand deep into the large, brown envelope to grab some slips of paper.
"Hmm - say what do you think they are and I'll tell you if you're right or not," Alex says smugly.
Because you cry every time at the end of Titanic.
Because your laugh is ridiculously infectious.
Because your need for speed made me break my finger.
"Seriously, Al?" the blonde laughs, referring to the last comment she had read.
"Well how else did my finger break? Was the fact it was wedged inside your vagina just a coincidence?"
"You know what I mean," she pauses, smiling at the memory of them as a happy couple before their break up and time in prison.
"Those are the reasons why I love you back," Alex begins, wanting to explain despite knowing it isn't necessary. "I figured you'd gone to a lot of effort to make yours, so I thought I'd return the sentiment."
"Thank you, Al. I really love it."
"I'm glad because ripping that shit up gave me more paper cuts than I'm willing to admit."
"Oh, the things we do for love," Piper sighs sarcastically.
"Gives us some memories to recount when you come on Friday."
"About that," the blonde begins, preparing herself to explain why she won't be attending visitation for the very first time since she moved to Ohio just over a year ago.
"You're not coming?" Alex asks, her tone of voice unable to mask the fact that her heart had just dropped in her chest.
"I'm not too sure if I'll make it in time, but I have an appointment I've been waiting for that I can't change."
"Are you… are you okay?" the brunette asks, unaware that her wife was having problems that she needed to be making some form of appointment.
"I'm perfectly fine, Al. It's not that kind of appointment. It's…" the blonde pauses, trying to carefully calculate what she's about to say next. "I'm preparing for the next time I visit, but this is the only chance I have to get what I need."
"Okay…" the brunette utters, playing along despite having no real idea what her wife is talking about.
"I'm sorry, babe. I know I've never missed one before, but this is important. I think you'll forgive me when I tell you where I went the next time we see each other."
"That's okay. I'll call instead. Look, I need to go; I want to get something from the library before it closes."
"Of course," Piper smiles, happy her wife is still reading as much as she used to. "Only 657 days left. I love you."
"Love you too."
Once the call ends, Piper flicks through more of the pieces of paper adorned with Alex's neat, cursive writing.
Because you know your way around a hot glue gun.
Because you attempted to fix my headboard after you broke it.
Leaning back against the kitchen counter thinking about the memories Alex has painted in her head, Piper smiles, excited for the events she has perfectly planned throughout the coming week.