I'd like to take you out.
As Alex's statement resonated amongst the New York morning traffic, Piper suddenly notices where she was and what she is doing - she is playing with fire.
I'm not single. I don't know this woman very well. I am straight. I have a boyfriend that I…I… care very much about. Piper's insides, along with the butterflies in her stomach and pounding muscle in her chest, were circling the drain of self-debate. Her heart wanted to say yes. NO, her heart wanted to SCREAM yes atop the noises of all of New York. For the last 30 minutes she had forgotten all else. With her arms around this tall, dark beauty who was now standing in front of her asking her to drinks, she felt secure, free, happy.
"Alex," Piper started with what sounded like a rejection. "I am flattered, but I can't. I am with somebody and while he may seem like an asshole in this particular scenario, I want to be fair to you; I am not emotionally available and I don't want to lead you on."
"I see." Alex was, of course, in the midst of rejection and experiencing her chest dropping to the pit of her stomach. This was new for Alex, she was never facing rejection. She did the only thing that she new how to do. Run. Put up a wall. Play it off. "Well, that's too bad. I'd take care of you, Piper." And with a mere glance over her shoulder back to Piper, she closed the face mask lid on her helmet and sped off.
Piper was left standing on the curb side. Alex's comment wasn't humorous, it wasn't flirty. It was surreal and suddenly Piper felt like she had a knife it her gut. It's impossible to ignore the spark between the two.
As Piper went into Popi to continue with her day she texted Polly, "I need a drink tonight, Pol. Lets go out."
xxxxx
Alex and Nicky were driving around getting ready for tonight's pier game in Alex's car. "Damn, Ace. We're gonna bring in 5Gs tonight and all you can do is sit over there and stare into a damn abyss. What the hell is wrong?" Nicky notices Alex's distraction and decide to confront her best friend and business partner from the passenger seat. Alex continues to stare and drive in auto-pilot, completely oblivious to her wild-hared friend. "I wanna lick your pussy," Nicky tried again.
"Huh? Oh, sorry, Nick. I was thinking about tonight."
"Bullshit. I haven't seen you this fucked since that bitch broke your heart in the 11th grade." Alex chuckled at how long her friend has known her, and reached across the console to playfully punch Nicky in the shoulder.
"Yea. It's a girl." Alex purposely didn't elaborate. She was a little embarrassed. Girls have never been a department that she has struggled with. Alex was a player; she always had any girl who wanted her but now she wants a girl she can't have. "You can't ignore chemistry."
"Well, that's vague as fuck but … maybe this babe will wan't me instead." Nicky was trying to lighten the mood and the pair chuckled as they pulled into the location for tonight's game.
"She's straight Nick, probly won't happen."
"Shit, Alex. This chick must have a hold on you. You know not to fall in love with a straight girl."
xxxxx
It was 9:00 and Alex's poker club members were starting to arrive, everything was ready. Security was in place, drinks were flowing, and the dealer, Lindsey, was in ready. These men and women came in to make thousands. Sometimes they lost and sometimes they gained. The pot had been plentiful all night, which meant more money for Alex and Nicky and the rest of the crew. Alex had to be careful, what she was doing was illegal, but the power was addicting. She got to call the shots, she made the game.
Everything had gone as planned and there were no emotional outbreaks tonight. The group cleared a lot of money and decided to celebrate.
Alex, Nicky, and the rest of the crew went out for drinks to Sliders, a local pool bar. It was a low-key joint and the beers were flowing after a high roller night. Lindsey, of course was all over Alex. Alex didn't mind the attention, it provided distraction from whose arms she really wanted to feel around her. Nicky delivered a round of shots as the group waited for their turn at billiards.
"Damn, it feels good to sit on stacks of cash." Nicky threw back her Don Julio.
The music of the bar played 80s in the background, the drinks were flowing, there was a good crowd, it had been a good night. Alex entertained small affections from Lindsey and Nicky was feeling up a random girl as the tribe racked their balls on the pool table. Alex loved billiards, and she was very good. Talk about hardcore. Alex and Lindsey were competing against Nicky and her flavor of the week.
"You can't beat me Nick, I'm that good." Alex was on a four-ball run and energized but the attention she was getting from Lindsey and the shots of tequila from Nicky. Alex sank the 8-ball and was rewarded with a champion's kiss from her companion as a particular blonde and her brunette friend entered. It wasn't until Nicky brought it to Alex's attention that their moment of victory came to a sudden halt.
"Heyyya, Stretch, that blonde over there is a-lookin over here mighty closely. Ya know her?"
"Fuck Nick, thats her."
"Oh, shit. She is hottt." Nicky consoled.
Piper was in a skin tight sark blue dress the cut off mid thigh. Her legs went on for miles until they reached her black stilettos. Alex looked on and dropped her gaze down the body of the blonde. When her eyes came back up, she and Piper exchanged a glance but it only lasted a second as Piper quickly turned her head. "Dammit, Polly. Is this really the bar that you picked?! Of all the bars in New York?"
"What the hell, Piper. Why are you acting weird? It's close and I have a baby at home." Piper ducked behind someone standing close to her as she and Polly waited for their turn at the bar.
"See that tall brunette? I embarrassed myself in front of her the other day." Piper neglected to tell Polly about her exchange with Alex this morning.
"Okay, well I can slice the tension with a knife so lets get a margarita then go rip off the bandaid." Piper, while feeling a little guilty for not telling her friend the whole truth, was looking forward to having a reason to talk to Alex. She stared on from a safe distance and noticed another girl giving Alex small kisses and touches from where they were seated at the hightop by the pool table. As the bartended hander her a margarita she downed in one large gulp and ordered another from the bartender.
On the other side of the room, Alex pretended to pay no attention to Piper. Lindsey was drunk and being extra handsy, the group was taking turns buying shots, and Nicky was not fooled by the vibe between her best friend and the blonde woman who seemed to have left a large impression on Alex. "Alex, that chick and her friend with the stick up her ass are walking over here."
"Fucking hell, Nicky." Alex looked on to confirm that her friend wasn't yanking her chain. And she wasn't.
"Don't worry, I'll diffuse the situation." Nicky smirked and sauntered over to the two girls as they approached the pool table.
"Hey girls, I'm Nichols. Would you like to join us in a game of billiards?" She motioned to the pool table where Alex was seated with a drunk Lindsey asleep in her chair.
"Sure," Piper responded, going with the flow. "I'm Piper, and this is my friend Polly."
Alex looked on from her chair. So far, so casual; good. As the pair and Nicky approached Alex's earshot, Nicky did anything but 'diffuse' the situation.
"So, Piper. My friend over here has been thinking about you all day. Your tatas must of felt real good in her hands—"
At that Polly coughed out the fluid in her mouth back into her margarita glass. She put her hand to her chest and there her eyes onto Piper. "Uhm, Piper???" Polly knew her friend was experimental but she was not gay.
As Alex heard her friend's 'unsubtleness' she threw her hands in the air and then placed them over her face.
"Uh relax, I'm kidding," Nicky clarified. "Just pulling the sticks out of your assess. Come join us for a drink."
Piper's guilt sank deeper. She totally used Alex this morning, and worse, was about to face her again and couldn't suppress the butterflies making an appearance in her stomach. Where is this coming from? It was like when she laid eyes on Alex, the rest of the world was forgotten. She forgot about her boyfriend, her parents, her perceived sexual preference, what society had planned for her, expectations. All she could recognize was the unmistakable connection between her and this highly attractive brunette who by chance met only a few days before. It was as if they had a magnetic field between them and they were being pulled together. It was inevitable, irreplicable, organic.
The three approached Alex and Nicky took the liberty to make introductions however Alex and Piper were ignorant of anything else but each other. A round of shots pulled them out of their trans as Nicky toasts, "to good sex and cigarettes." Everyone chuckled and the tension lightened as Alex racked up the billiards and everyone downed their shots.
"So, Piper—"
"You're up Nic. Let's get this over with." Nicky's question was interrupted by the loud sound of Alex breaking with the cue ball and then Alex's comment. "You and Piper, and I'll play with Molly over here to even out the teams. Don't worry Molly, I am rather good. We should be through with this in a minute."
"Christ, you must have really made an impression blondie." Nicky subtly spoke to Piper as she selected her pool stick and approached the table. Alex took a long slug of her beer as she and Piper looked each other in the eye. "Well aint that a bitch." Nicky hit a solid with the cue ball and it just missed the pocket.
Polly stepped up, amidst the awkward silence, and sank a stripped ball. "Ahh!" She squealed, but missed her second shot.
"Good job, Polly." Alex did know her name.
Piper chalked up her stick and took a drink before she stepped up to the table. Nicky decided to boost her teammate, "Now blondie, if there is one thing that distracts Alex, it's titties and ass. We might need a little home court advantage here." The group laughed at the confession and the tension lightened a little bit more.
"Don't worry Nicky," Piper stepped up and and sank three solids in a row before missing. "Alex doesn't know that I used to run the tables at Smith." The whole gang dropped their jaws at the skill level of the delicate blonde.
"Well damn, bringing you A-game huh Pipes?" Alex readied for her shot flirtatiously as Piper blushed at the nick name that seem to come so naturally. Alex pocketed three striped balls then Nicky stepped up.
"Well, don't expect much from me I am usually in this for the girls not the fame." Banter went back and forth for the next several turns. Several more shots of tequila were consumed and Piper was brushing against Alex's arm at the table as their teammates took their turns. Flirts were exchanged and Alex couldn't keep her eyes off of Piper's body.
"Like something?" Piper busted Alex mid-oogle as she took her turn. Alex was shooting the eight ball and had a chance to win the game. Piper decided to play this to her advantage. She walked to the other side of the table, across fro Alex, and bend down so that Alex had the perfect view down the top of her dress. Alex smirked and shook her head then shot and missed. She dropped her head before she stood up, disgusted at how the blonde's distraction worked. Lindsey approached Alex and gave her an affectionate side hug and wrapped her hands around the tall woman's neck. "It's okay, babe." She was obviously drunk.
Piper saw this and was a bit jealous. She recalled earlier in the day how those were her arms. And that could have been her tonight. It was her turn, and all she had to do was sink the 8-ball. She looked at Lindsey flirting with Alex and decided to claim back Alex's attention. As she bent down in her stance to shoot, she accentuated her hips and ass in the air, knowing that the tight fabric containing her cheeks left little to the imagination. She was right in Alex's sign of sight and when she turned her head over her left shoulder to capture Alex's eyesight, she shot the ball without looking not before saying, "I'll take another margarita, Alex." The sound of the ball hitting the bottom of the pocket could be heard around the bar and with the focus of Alex still in her possession, she smirked and raised her eyebrow at the brunette. The brunette smirked back and was wearing a smile from ear to ear.
"Holy shit, that was the hottest thing I have ever seen! If you were gay i'd have you in me bed tonight for sure." Nicky joked as Piper leaped into her embrace.
"Well that was a lot of fun, but I have to run." Polly said bye to the group and asked her friend, "Are you staying?"
Piper looked over to Alex, who was looking right back at her, "Yea Pol, i'll take a cab home."
As the night advanced, so did the flirtatious touches and dialogue between Alex and Piper. Everyone was highly intoxicated after several more rounds of pool and light chit chat. Lindsey was passed out again on the booth on Alex's lap. Alex easily slipped underneath her to close their tab. "I'll be right back, I'm gonna close my tab."
"I'll close mine too." Piper saw this as her chance to speak to Alex and explain the she was confused at earlier today.
The two were standing inches from each other at the bar as they waited for the bartender to bring their cards. They were smiling, and there was a certain twinkle in Piper's eyes as she leaned in to whisper in Alex's ear, "I don't like seeing you with other girls." Piper's confession expelled like word vomit. It was unintended as she motioned with her eyes over the Lindsey. Alex took in the comment, realizing that Piper was the one who was tied down and refused to give Alex a chance. The older woman forgot all of that by staring into Piper's blue irises. This girl. She reached out and placed her hand onto of Piper's. Piper looked down at Alex's thus stroking the top of her wrist. The brunette opened her mouth to respond but before any words came out, the closing time lights came on. They both looked up at the unwelcome lights and the moment was over before it really started.
Alex retracted her hand, "Come on. Let's get you home."
Alex had her Audi parked outside and she had sobered up significantly so she decided to drive Lindsey, and Piper home. Nicky was going home with a girl that she picked up earlier. Lindsey was passed out in the back and Piper sat up front. There were moments of silence, and Lindsey's light snores were the only thing that could be heard. "You know, I think we—"
"Hang on, I'll be right back." Alex but off Piper as she exited the car, scooped up Lindsey in her arms, and carried her inside the girl's apartment. Piper watched from the passenger seat. This woman is remarkable. Alex returned 60 seconds later, "She is just a close friend you know. Our chemistry is strictly friendly."
"Oh, okay." Piper was unsure how to respond to that. She was highly confused. What am I feeling? What do I want? Why is my heart telling me to pursue this?!
Sensing Piper's inner conversation, "Hey do you wanna make a pit stop with me? I've got a secret place in this city that is known to few." She looked over the console and grabbed Piper's hand before starting the car again. There is a visible connection between the two, every time they touch it is like the Fourth of July.
Piper looked down at their folded hands, "Yeah sure," and the two smiled at each other for what seemed like an eternity before Alex peeled away from the curb.
Alex put both hands back on the wheel but the two exchanged glances and flirtatious smiles for the next 20 minutes until Alex parked the car in a remote lot. She got out and opened Piper's door before the blond stepped out. "Okay, we've got to walk the rest of the way. You will want to lose the heels but I promise its worth it and I will take my shoes off too." Piper followed Alex's instructions and her could hardly contain her curiosity. Alex led them down a desolate path that was well lit by the moonlight and stars, and absent of the city lights due to a covering of trees. The Long Island Sound was audible in the back ground as a slight breeze hounded between the natural foliage. Noticing Piper's shiver, Alex stopped and removed her long sleeve flannel atop her black v-neck to give to Piper. She held it out for the blonde to stick her arms in.
"Coming to my rescue again huh?" Piper accepted gesture and could smell vanilla and ginger immediately on the brunettes shirt; which was oversized on the blonde.
"You are easy to want to rescue, Pipes." Before the two got lost further, Alex carried them along the path to what appeared to be a cove with a cliff ledge ahead. Piper smiled and reached out for Alex's hand. Alex accepted in the invitation. It is weird how natural this feels.
The got to the edge of the path and Piper could see they were at the edge of a cliff that bordered the Sound. "Stay right behind me and follow my steps exactly," Alex instructed Piper without letting go of her hand.
"Ok," Alex stopped them on the edge of the cliff in front of a large eroded cutout that funneled to the bottom of the Sound, "We need to get as close as possible to this ledge to see what happens next." She reached out her hand for Piper to take. The blonde proceeded cautiously. When she was in Alex's embrace, the taller woman explained that together they were going to take one final daring step to a lower shelf that was naturally formed in the cutout. Piper was hesitant. They were standing as close as possible and Alex let Piper catch her breath before leading them down to the lower level. Right as they were about to step, Piper grew wary.
"Alex, I —" She almost backed out, then she looked directly into the green eyes of this strong body that was holding onto her. "Tell me you won't let go."
Alex smiled, God she makes me mush, "I won't let go." And with that they climbed down inside the funnel, Piper still in Alex's arms.
"Get ready," Alex said.
"What for, Alex? What for?"
"Just trust me, kid." Three seconds later a large wave rumbled into the cove and forced air up through the funnel that Alex and Piper were standing in. A large blast came from under and blew everything up. Their clothes, their hair. It was powerful. It felt like they were floating, like they had become weightless. They gasped in awe. It was that speechless satisfaction in the midst of an adrenaline rush, when nothing but breathy sighs come from you lungs. It lasted for about 15 seconds and when it was over, and they were coming down from their high, they caught each other in a sated stare. Deep into each others orbs. After what seemed like an eternity, Alex grabbed Piper's hand and splayed it across her chest, over her heartbeat.
Alex gave her a second to realize what she was feeling. As Alex's heartbeat increased under the delicate touch of the blonde she whispered two inches from her face, "This is what you do to me."
Piper was speechless. There were no words that could adequately capture how she felt in this moment. How do you put words to a chemical match. Instead, she decided to show Alex how she makes her feel. Piper looked into Alex's eyes one last time then closed the distance between their lips. It was slow at first, it felt natural. Alex placed a hand on Piper's cheek as Piper placed both arms around Alex's neck. It was passionate and Piper felt weightless again, like this has been her missing link. As another wave came crashing into the cove and another flush of air came from beneath them, the two parted but just far enough apart to catch their breath and a wave of ambience surrounded them. As the vacuum of air settled, Alex smiled at Piper and went in for one last passionate but small kiss to Piper's lips. The blonde held on for a second longer before trying to speak, but she opted for a smile and a passionate embrace. Where have you been all my life?