Chapter 5
The door lock clicked and the wooden barrier swung aside, revealing the apartment behind it.
"C'mon into my kingdom, milady!" said Steph with a smirk, signing her girlfriend to come in with a bow. Both had just closed the store after the successful sale and were now in need for some rest from the exhausting day. And in the course of this, Steph had made the proposal to spend the night in her apartment, instead walking over to the Black Lantern.
Knowing the tidy record store and how Steph tended to keep things clean, Alex was more than surprised to find the apartment stuffed with boxes, old furniture and lots of other items that once used to be displayed in the store, everything covered in a layer of dust.
"Wow," she said in surprise. "Is this now the real Steph or am I about to step into another dimension, where you're livin' like a hobo?"
"True story," the nerdy girl replied after she had chuckled once more. "The apartment came with the job as the store's manager and I barely use it, 'cause I mostly spend my time in the store, in my booth or hangin' out with you guys. I just use the bed maybe twice a week to catch some Zs. Otherwise there's a kitchen in the back of the store and a cozy chair to sleep in."
"Aaaand what about your dates?" Alex kept on asking, seducingly closing in on her girlfriend. "Are you always hoggin' their place or do you like crampin' up in your cozy chair?"
Did Alex just propose to spend the night with her together? Did she hint to get cuddly tonight? Of course she did, because this was supposed to be happening as a couple. Still, Steph was always so nervous and overwhelmed when it came to Alex. She didn't know why, but guessed, finding your soulmate does that to you, because you're always scared to do something wrong and therefore lose it all.
While Steph was still pondering, Alex had already entered the apartment and was inspecting her sleeping place - the by far tidiest place. A mattress with bed linen, a lamp and a pile of different magazines. Nothing fancy, and so not comparable to her comfy bed.
"Well...it's somethin'..." was the Asian woman about to say as Steph stepped closer, embraced her and gave her a deep kiss.
"How about you move in here with me?" she said, giving her a warm smile. "We can both work in the store and live up here. You could help me with the radio show. And we could also give lil' performances to the people from time to time. True, it's a lotta work, but we can do this!"
Sighing deeply, Alex avoided her girlfriend's gaze, answering timidly "I-I don't know. I mean...it sounds cool, but…"
"But?"
A wave of fear hit the young Asian woman, as a purple aura appeared around her girlfriend, accompanied by her thoughts.
'Fuck, Steph, you totally overdid it. Moving together after a few weeks, sure. You idiot! Why not ask her to get married in Vegas and spend the honeymoon in a cheap motel?'
"Steph, i-it's not like that," said Alex, trying to calm Steph's fears. "I totally would love to move in with you, no questions asked. It's just, for the first time in my life I've a place of my own and...I like it, I really do. The freedom to do whateverthefuck I want. A steady home. This rooftop with this awesome view…"
"Fuck!" Steph eventually chuckled, her fear vanishing. "Can't compete with that roof."
Resting her hands on the brunette's hips, Alex took another deep inhale to overcome this aura of fear and put on a sly smirk.
"Y'know, let's sleep about this another night, okay? I mean, it's not like we're on a clock here, and…"
Once again their lips collided, this time even more intense while the Asian girl's hands glided a bit deeper to take a strong grip on her girlfriend's butt cheeks, making her groan in surprise.
"...you can bet this sweet ass of yours that I'm gonna move together with you. One way or the other."
As their kisses and moans got more and more, Steph's purple aura of fear changed into gold. Yet, it always flickered back to purple of nervousness when she made another intimate move, like sliding Alex's jeans jacked off her shoulders, undressing the black hoodie or opening the buttons of her jeans.
Alex sensed it and thrived on these emotional colors like on waves on the ocean. She went with the flow, mimicking her girlfriend's doings until both were only clad in their underwear.
Breathing heavily, Alex broke the contact, soothing Steph with another peck on the lips and said "Don't worry!" in order to keep her fear at bay.
With a wry, insecure smirk, she took a step back and unclasped her laced, black bra, letting it fall to the ground.
Steph's jaw immediately dropped and her mouth went dry as she saw her girlfriend's breasts for the first time. Especially the fact that they were pierced, caught her so much by surprise that she could only stare, which caused Alex to chuckle.
"Your turn, Miss Gingrich!" she mentioned cheekily, resting one hand on her hip as she waited with raised eyebrows.
Shaking off her stupor, Steph undid her bra as well as her blue panties, now rendering Alex speechless. Now it was on the brunette nerd to be the cheeky one by closing in again and brushing over her moaning girlfriend's by a black slip covered intimate region, enjoying every bit of texture.
"Well, satisfied, Miss Chen?"
Her nervousness, doubts and fears entirely gone, Steph went even past the thin layer of fabric, whiffing in the other girl's ear "Yup, definitely satisfied. Don't ya wanna check how I'm doin'?"
In return, Alex buried her left hand in Steph's brown hair at the back of her head and pulled her in for another deep kiss, while her right hand explored the nerdy girl's nether region.
Entangled and lost in their lust, both girls sank down onto the mattress, not breaking the contact once. Ahead of them, were two hours of intense love play.
The entire room was glowing golden as Alex and Steph were basking in the afterglow, laying side by side.
'Steph is happy,' Alex thought, turning her head, so she was looking at her girlfriend instead of the ceiling. 'I am too. I can't believe that this happened. It's been ages since I felt so alive. So…indescribably awesome.'
Suddenly, like she had felt Alex's gaze on herself, Steph turned her head as well, giving the Asian woman a toothy smile and softly whispered "Hey!"
Alex smiled back and cuddled closer to the nerdy girl, replying "Thanks for this awesome night, Steph!" Which caused Steph to chuckle.
"Good god, Chen. I should be the one thanking you. I mean, four times in a row. Can't remember anyone who ever managed to get me off that many."
Then she turned around entirely, looking deeply at the other girl while brushing over her cheek.
"Besides, after all that shit, we both deserved some quality time."
Quality time. For Alex it had been ages since she had had some quality time. Her mom's demise, then being left alone by her father, the separation from her brother, the foster care system, eventually her move to Haven and her following struggle with Typhon upon her brother's death, and now this stupid contract.
Immediately, her mood took a nosedive which became instantly obvious for Steph, even without powers.
"Hey, what's wrong? Still thinkin' 'bout that stupid stuff from earlier?"
Alex simply nodded and cuddled closer to her girlfriend, seeking comfort in closeness.
"Just don't let that fucking hag's rambiln' get close to you," Steph tried to soothe, brushing with her fingers over the other girl's back. "No matter what freakin' contracts or other shit they're gonna throw at us, we'll just flip 'em off. You know I got your back and will support you, no matter what."
"Even if I'd sign that contract?" Alex asked to Steph's surprise and backed away a bit, whereas the brunette froze in her doing, gazing sternly at the Asian girl.
"Alex," she sighed, shaking her head. "What I said before… It's just…"
"Who's Rachel?"
As well, this question came out of nowhere, hitting Steph hard. Now she broke any contact and rolled on her back, a red aura engulfing her out of a sudden.
"So, you read my emotions?" she mentioned bitterly, but Alex wasn't impressed by this at all and stayed calm. She even dared to softly touch the angry girl's cheek and turned her head so that she was once more looking into her eyes.
"You know very well about my powers. Back at the Lantern, when you freaked so hard, I caught some glimpses of your thoughts though I never planned to do so. Ryan then told me about your mom when I asked him, but he didn't know anything about Rachel."
A single tear ran from Steph's eye over her nose and onto the sheets as she explained "Rachel Amber. She, um…she was a good friend. She and Chloe… we, um… sometimes used to play with Mikey some D 'n' D. I crushed on her so hard during High School, but… she was just friendzone. Well, after I left she died, too."
"Because of the storm?"
This time, Steph shook her head and a blue aura appeared. "No, she was murdered six months prior. And after what had happened to you and…and now this offer by Typhon, I…I just freaked. I…"
Right away, she got taken into a strong hug that seemed to last hours, because it felt so soothing. So full of warmth and love.
"Shit, I'm so sorry! I-I didn't know."
"Nobody here knows," Steph replied, breaking the embrace and wiping some tears with her hand away. "Rachel was a good person…or so it seemed. During my last year at Blackwell she somehow changed. Became mixed up in some serious shit. At first, I blamed Chloe for this, but… Now I think it was herself. She was the one who messed with the wrong people and…paid the price."
Steph stopped for a moment, looking into empty space before her green eyes made contact with Alex's again.
"This is why I don't want you to sign this shit. No matter if Ryan's right or not. You'd mess with the wrong people and maybe this time it will get you killed. Like Rachel."
Now it was on Alex to ponder about her girlfriend's words. The story of Rachel Amber. A tragic tale. A tale that had almost become reality for her, too. From this moment on, there was no doubt what Alex had to do.
"Y'know what?" she then said with a wry smirk. "Fuck it! Fuck Typhon. Fuck Ryan. Fuck this fucking contract. I won't sign it. And after my last paycheck, I'd love to get a new job. Maybeee as your little minion?"
In an instant, Steph's blue aura changed back to gold as joy overwhelmed her and she embraced Alex into another tight hug while chuckling like crazy.
"But under one condition!" Steph then mentioned after they parted again.
"Name it!"
"You're my partner, not my underling. Same work time, same salary and the one or other bootycall in the backroom from time to time."
Now chuckling as well, Alex eventually answered "Deal!"
