A/N: This one is a pretty solid PG-13 and depicts some light marijuana use.
As always, thank you for all your patience, supportive comments, follows, & favorites. This chapter was getting pretty long so I decided to break it up. Chapter 10 should be up in the next few days and will be the conclusion to the series.
I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 9
Warm sunlight and the pleasant song of birds chirping outside slowly brought Piper into consciousness. She stirred a little, somewhere in between sleep and wakefulness, eyelids fluttering. A soft weight across her stomach reminded her, even before she was fully aware, of the events that had taken place the night before, and a smile crept across her face as her eyelids finally opened for good.
Her smile slowly widened as her eyes drank in the adorable sight of Alex sleeping soundly facing the blonde, one arm draped heavily across Piper's abdomen. Her heart began to beat a little faster as memories of the previous night came racing back to her. She had been nervous (it had been her first time being that intimate with another woman), but so excited to share that experience with Alex. And Alex had been so patient and sweet with her (and had totally rocked her world).
Remembering it made her want to selfishly wake the older girl up; she missed her even though she was laying merely inches away. Piper reached her hand out to trace the wrinkles that were scrunched on Alex's forehead, between her eyes. The caress caused Alex to sigh and the wrinkles smoothed themselves out as she relaxed under the blonde's gentle touch.
The limp weight of Alex's arm suddenly tightened around her waist, tugging Piper's body closer to her own. Piper watched as Alex's lips twitched upward into a lopsided smirk. She quietly hummed a contented sound, and forced her eyelids open.
As sleepy green eyes met sparkling blue, Piper tried to suppress her smile (which was so big, it may have been bordering on creepy), but the giddy feeling of waking up with Alex's arm wrapped around, pulling her close, and that sexy smirk directed at her made it impossible. She gave up trying and decided to embrace this feeling of happiness which was a long time coming.
Alex's voice was raspy with sleep when she said with a raised eyebrow, "Were you watching me sleep?"
Piper's nose scrunched up as she denied guiltily, "Nooooo." Still smiling.
"Mmhmm." That contented hum again. Her hand slid up under the oversized t-shirt Piper had slept in and lightly traced her spine, up and down. "Whatever you say, creeper."
Alex's teasing only fueled Piper's giddiness and she lost all hope at wiping that goofy grin off her face. Goosebumps dotted her arms at Alex's feather-light touch and she shivered slightly. Alex removed her hand from within Piper's shirt and lifted it to her face instead. Her thumb gently caressed the blonde's full bottom lip for a second, fingers trailing across her cheek and down her neck. Alex licked her lips lightly as her hand cupped the nape of Piper's neck. Alex's eyes fluttered closed as she gently brought Piper's face in to meet hers.
It was a soft, close-lipped morning kiss, for which Piper was thankful as she was sure she had morning breath.
As Alex pulled away, she smiled and softly said, "Good morning."
Piper's smile matched the older girl's as she replied, "Morning."
Alex released her hold on Piper and rolled onto her back, stretching her arms above her head and yawning. She smiled up at the ceiling and said, "So I guess last night wasn't a dream." She turned her head so her eyes could meet Piper's.
Piper blushed. "Definitely not a dream." She hesitated, but Alex seemed truly happy and open and Piper figured she would give her a truthful answer. "How do you feel about that?"
Alex's eyes twinkled as she thought about messing with her; making a sarcastic comment in reply, but the vulnerable look on Piper's face encouraged her to be serious. "So happy, Piper. Really. You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that with you." She paused to chuckle at the dark pink color the blonde's cheeks were turning. "But more than that, how long I've wanted to be honest about the way I feel about you."
Piper couldn't help it. Through giggles she joked, "And how do you feel about me?"
Alex rolled back onto her side to face the younger girl and reached for her hand, linking their fingers together. "Well, I'm not completely disgusted by you."
"Hey!" Piper said with playfully exaggerated indignation as she pulled her hand out of Alex's grasp.
Alex smiled and claimed her hand again, tracing the lines on her palm. "I think you know I kinda like ya." She gently tugged the blonde's hand up to her lips to place a light kiss against her knuckles.
Piper smiled at the display of affection, but her face grew serious again. "What will happen to you if they find out we're together?"
Alex shrugged. "I'm not sure. Worst case is that they'll kick me out of the program, but I don't think that will happen. I think that rule is meant to protect students from being taken advantage of or benefitting unfairly from a romantic relationship with someone who has a hand in grading. I think it's meant to stop things like trading sexual favors for a higher grade or the TA grading more lenient or flat out fudging the grades by giving their partner a better score than they earned. I think those are the real concerns, and since we didn't do anything like that, I can't imagine they would kick me out."
Piper nodded. "That makes sense." She rolled into Alex's side and lay her head on her chest. Alex's arms immediately wrapped around her middle as Piper's snaked across the older girl's hip and up under her tank top so that her fingers tickled the bare skin there. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself if they kicked you out because of me."
"I don't think it will come to that." She kissed the top of Piper's head. "But maybe just until the end of the semester we should try not to tell too many people and be discrete in public. I think they would be less angry if they found out next semester, when you're no longer in my class."
"I can do that! But, can I at least tell Polly? She won't tell anyone. She's been telling me I need to get laid, so she'll be happy to hear that it finally happened," Piper said, tilting her head up to lock eyes with Alex, a mischievous smile creeping up her cheeks.
Alex laughed, "Yes, you can tell Polly; but maybe leave out some of the details."
Piper raised her eyebrows. Her voice deepened and she said suggestively, "Oh, you mean I shouldn't tell her about that thing you did with your tongue?"
Alex's eyes darkened, thinking back to the previous night. She let her hands trail back up Piper's shirt, letting her fingers caress the skin there. Piper pushed up on her elbows so she was hovering above Alex, blonde hair cascading around them in a curtain. She licked her lips as Alex's fingers glided up along her ribs to softly cup her breasts, her eyes heavy-lidded. Morning breath be damned. She closed the distance and connected their mouths together in a heated kiss. Piper immediately plunged her tongue past Alex's lips and into the wet warmth of the older girl's mouth. Alex groaned and gently squeezed Piper's breasts. Piper sucked Alex's full bottom lip in between her own and pressed her hips down against Alex's. Alex released Piper's breasts and her hands traveled down the blonde's sides to grip her hips.
As Piper pulled away slightly for air, her stomach let out a loud rumble. Piper froze, her face immediately turning red as she stared into Alex's eyes. "Oh my god."
Alex's laughter was instantaneous and it didn't take Piper long to join in. In a fit of laughter, the smaller girl collapsed onto Alex and rolled away clutching her stomach.
"Wow, Piper," Alex said laughter on her voice.
"I'm hungry," Piper replied through her own giggles.
"Yeah. Your stomach sounds like you haven't fed it for months," Alex teased.
"Shut up," Piper replied. "How about some breakfast?"
…
The following week was busy. It was the week before finals week, so final papers and projects had due dates nearing quickly, not to mention Piper also had Streetcar performances every night until Sunday. It was not exactly the best week to be starting up a new romantic relationship, to say the least.
Piper had wanted to spend some time with Alex, but the older girl was busy with her own end of the semester to-do list, and so it always ended with one of them busy when the other was free. They played phone tag a lot, even sometimes catching the other for a brief chat, and sent cutesy little texts that go along with the sweet stage at the beginning of relationships.
On Friday, as Piper's last ever Introduction to Psychology lecture ended her phone buzzed lightly on her desk. She finished shoving her notebook into her bag before checking the message.
From Alex (1:30pm): You coming to office hours?
Piper smirked. She had been planning to swing by since it was Alex's last day of office hours before the final next week.
To Alex (1:31pm): Be there in 5
When Piper bounded up the stairs to the wing of graduate student offices she was surprised at how deserted it already was.
"Do you guys not have finals or something? Where is everyone?" Piper asked as she rounded into Alex's office sounding slightly out of breath. She pulled Nicky's empty desk chair over to Alex's desk and flopped into it smiling at her girlfriend.
Alex smiled back, her eyes flitting to Piper's upturned lips and then to the open door of the office as she contemplated kissing her hello.
She seemed to think better of it and focused back onto Piper's blue eyes. "We usually have final papers that were due this week, so most everyone is done. I'll be free after my office hours finish."
"Must feel nice," Piper teased. "I still have three play performances and four finals next week!"
"And I have no doubt that you'll ace each and every one of them." Alex's smile was fond and made color rise into Piper's cheeks. The blonde wet her lips subconsciously, wishing that they didn't have to be so careful. She hadn't seen Alex all week, and she couldn't even show her how much she had missed her.
She cleared her throat and smiled back, "Well, I'm gonna try at least. Which reminds me," She says with a chuckle, digging into her backpack to find her notebook. "What the hell is cognitive dissonance?"
They slipped back into their old roles, TA and student, as Alex explained and gave examples for some of the concepts Piper was murky on. They had scooted their chairs closer together, hunched down over the textbook and notebook, faces close.
When Alex finished, she leaned back slightly to look at the blonde, to see if anything had clicked for her. Piper looked adorable as she tried to grasp the example Alex had given and apply it to the concept. Her brows were furrowed in thought and she was chewing on her bottom lip, eyes focused on the notes on the paper.
"So the reason the participants who were paid one dollar liked the experiment more is because they had to actually convince themselves they enjoyed it, because one dollar isn't enough to justify lying to another participant by saying it was fun?"*
"Exactly," Alex said, but it was her tone of voice that drew Piper's focus from the notes to her TA's darkened green eyes. It was only then that Piper had realized how close they had gotten.
Piper noticeably swallowed as her own eyes darkened and darted down to Alex's parted lips.
Alex stood quickly, walking briskly to the door to her office. Piper frowned, wondering if she was bolting for some reason. But Alex popped her head into the hallway, then turned around to face Piper, closing the door softly behind her.
Piper's heart picked up speed as Alex slowly advanced toward her. She stood right when Alex reached her, and their mouths crashed together. Alex was quick to grasp Piper's waist and hoist her up onto the desk. As Alex's tongue slipped past her lips, Piper let out a soft moan, and wrapped her legs around Alex's waist. Her fingers tangled into dark tresses, tugging Alex's face closer to hers. Alex's hands clutched at Piper's hips, pulling her body closer, pressing her thigh into Piper's center.
The sensation jolted her to her core, and Piper threw her head back at the pleasurable feeling. "God, Alex." she gasped, grinding herself harder against the older girl's thigh.
The sound of a door slamming caused Alex to freeze, stiffening. She brought a finger up to Piper's lips, signaling her to stay quiet.
They listened as two girls giggled; their conversation about winter break muted through the wall separating the office from the hallway. As their voices faded, Alex breathed out a sigh and took a step back. "Shit." She helped Piper off the desk and smiled at her. "Can you come over after the play tonight?"
Piper nodded reaching up to peck Alex quickly on the lips, one last time. "I'll text you when I'm heading over?"
"Sounds great. See you later, Pipes."
…
"Okay, so when do we meet Jess? I don't know how much more of Dean I can take." Alex entered into her living room carrying a big bowl of popcorn. Piper had made herself comfortable in the center of Alex's couch, blanket wrapped around her.
She laughed, "Not for awhile. I knew you wouldn't like Dean." She lifted the edge of the blanket up so Alex could slip in beside her. Alex settled the popcorn in Piper's lap, then settled her hand to rest on Piper's thigh. With her other hand, she grabbed some popcorn.
She tapped Piper's thigh with her pointer finger. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask. Are you going home for Christmas?"
Piper nodded. "Yeah. Just for a week, though. Are you and your mom going anywhere, or will you be in town the whole break?" She popped a few pieces into her mouth, settling more snugly into Alex's side.
"I'll be here the whole time," Alex replied. "When do you leave?"
"I think probably next weekend, after finals. Then I'll be home the week of Christmas, and come back the following weekend."
Alex squeezed Piper's thigh. "So you'll be here for New Years? We should do something."
Piper's heart soared. She was still getting used to the fact that Alex actually wanted to spend time with her; to do things together. She smiled and leaned up to kiss Alex's cheek. "We should! That would be fun."
Alex smirked, eyebrow rising. "Maybe we can go back to the Watershed. I can make up for leaving you on the dance floor on Halloween."
Piper jabbed her gently in the ribs, grinning. "That would be nice. Thank you."
Alex released Piper's thigh and wrapped her arm around her shoulders instead, pulling the blonde closer into a side hug. Piper sighed contentedly.
"Are you excited to see your family?" Alex asked. They hadn't really had much of a chance to talk more about their personal lives, and Alex was curious to find out more about Piper's family dynamic.
She felt Piper shrug against her. "I am," she said. "Mostly to see my brothers, especially my younger brother Cal."
"What's he like? I always wanted a brother growing up." Alex tossed a few more pieces of popcorn into her mouth.
"He's really funny and sweet. Danny was always the favorite of our parents, so Cal and I formed an alliance of sorts. He always has my back."
"That sounds nice," Alex said, lightly rubbing her fingers up and down Piper's arm. "I've got my mom, and she's my best friend, but it would have been nice to have someone on your team as a kid, you know?"
"Yeah," she said with a yawn. "I haven't seen him since the summer, so I'm looking forward to catching up with him."
Alex smirked at Piper's sleepy response. "Are you too tired to watch? Would you rather just go to bed?" Her hand trailed up Piper's arm and into her hair, scratching lightly at her scalp.
"No, I can stay up for one episode. Let's watch," she said, leaning forward to press play on the remote control. As she leaned back into Alex's embrace, she felt the older girl press a soft kiss to the top of her head. She couldn't help but smile, feeling so happy that everything finally seemed to be working in her favor.
…
Finals week was busy, for Piper especially, but she found time to sneak over to Alex's office during her few free hours, so the two could spend some time together. Those hours usually turned into make-out sessions, behind Alex's locked office door, or in a random supply closet in the psychology building.
The sneaking around was actually kind of fun; the threat of getting caught provided an added exhilaration to their meet-ups; and at this point it was really all they could manage with Piper's busy schedule.
On Friday, when she was finally finished, Alex ordered them take-out and they spent the night in at Alex's apartment saying their goodbyes.
The following morning, Piper left for Connecticut.
"Piper, are you almost ready, dear?" Piper sighed heavily, turning down the volume of the music she currently had blasting in her room.
"Coming!" She called, pausing in front of the mirror one last time to check her reflection; god forbid her mom find one small imperfection with her appearance.
As she appeared at the foot of the stairs, her mom walked toward her smiling. "You look beautiful." She reached out to tuck a loose curl behind Piper's ear. "Danny, Cal! We are going to be late!"
Carol Chapman managed to corral her husband and three children into the car and twenty minutes later, they had arrived to the Christmas party just fashionably late.
It only took ten minutes for Piper to become bored out of her mind. She hated these events. She never knew anyone, and she couldn't stand how fake her parents' rich friends were. They gave backwards compliments, "Oh, you've really thinned out, dear," and asked prying questions, "Do you have a boyfriend?" all to make comparisons between their lives and yours, to put you down so they feel better, and to gain information that they can twist around and use against you later. Piper didn't want any part of it.
Piper found the red wine and seated herself at a table in the corner, resigned to a night of people-watching, starring the Lady who Can't Hold her Liquor, Gropey McGroperson, Young Trophywife Golddigger, Mistress am I even Legal?, and Dr. Let Me Brag to You About How Much Money I Make to name a few. It may have been a different party at a different venue, but the cast of characters was always the same.
Her dad's firm had really outdone themselves this year. They had rented out a huge ballroom and hired a band, one composed of instruments only – no vocalist. The dance floor was already packed with couples waltzing along to the music (or at least she thought they were waltzing. Piper's mom had wanted her to take a ballroom dance class while she was in high school; Piper had flat out refused). There were numerous tables scattered throughout the room with ice sculptures, ice sculptures!, sitting atop. Piper wondered what happened when they started to melt. Crisp looking waiters and waitresses lapped the room offering trays of hors d'ouevres and collecting empty wine glasses.
Piper shook her head; it was all too much. She had never been able to imagine herself as part of this world, Cal neither. Her eyes found Danny, engaged in conversation with a professional-looking older man, surely attempting to make a new connection. He was nearly done with medical school and had been trying to make connections with doctors at all of the leading hospitals; give him an edge on the job market.
She looked around for Cal, thinking the two of them could hang out, maybe make this evening a bit more bearable if they faced it together, people-watching and trying to guess about the lives of the attendees, but she didn't see him anywhere.
She took out her phone instead, scrolling through her messages.
To Alex (8:16pm): Hey :) What are you up to?
As she waited for the reply to come, she looked around again for Cal. Where did he go?
She noticed a pair of double doors that looked as if they would lead out onto a balcony area. She checked her phone again. Still no reply. She stood up, thinking that some fresh air would be nice.
She pushed through the doors, making sure to close them softly behind her so as not to draw attention. "Wow," she whispered to herself as she took in the vast gardens before her. It was dark, but little lights were strung up along the paths and lit fountains cast out enough light for her to imagine how beautiful it must be in the daylight.
"Pretty dope, isn't it?"
Piper jumped at the unexpected voice, spinning quickly toward it, her hand flying up to rest on her beating heart. "Cal! You scared the shit out of me!"
Cal just smiled a lazy smile and shrugged, "Sorry."
Piper squinted at him, eyes narrowing at the way his body was slouched against the brick exterior of the ballroom, his face slack and eyes droopy. "Are you… high?"
Cal's grin widened as he lifted his hand which had been hidden between his thigh and the balcony railing, displaying to her the joint pressed loosely between his fingertips. "Don't tell mom," he loudly whispered, over-exaggerated.
Piper took a seat next to her brother and held her hand out for the joint. He passed it over, and Piper took a hit, coughing as she released the smoke from her lungs. She passed it back to Cal, saying with a small laugh, "It's been awhile since I've done that."
Her phone chimed in her purse, so while Cal took another hit, she pulled it out and read the message from Alex.
From Alex (8:30pm): Well hey :)
From Alex (8:30pm): I just finished watching a movie with my mom. We're about to start another. What are you up to?
Piper began to type out a reply.
To Alex (8:30pm): I'm at some fancy cocktail party. I wish I was curled up next to you watching movies. :(
From Alex (8:31): Me too. So, are you all fancy at this party?
Piper smiled.
To Alex (8:31): So fancy
From Alex (8:31): Send a pic ;)
"Hey, Cal, can I have another hit?" Cal passed over the joint. "Now will you take a picture of me?"
Cal blinked. "You want a picture of yourself with a joint?"
"I just want to send it to my, um, friend. I think she'll get a kick out of it." Piper passed him her phone.
"Okayyy." Cal gave in and snapped the picture as Piper took her second hit.
She exchanged the joint for her phone. She laughed out loud when she saw the picture. It was perfect; Alex was going to die when she saw it. The lights from the garden illuminated her, highlighting her perfectly curled hair and make-up. Cal had framed her in the image so that the bodice of her silky cocktail dress was visible. The way all that fanciness contrasted with the joint in her hand and the smoke being exhaled from her lips was just perfect.
She quickly hit send.
"So, a friend, huh?" Cal asked.
Piper smiled at the thought of Alex. With the whole secrecy thing, Piper had only been able to tell Polly about her new girlfriend; and she was pretty certain her parents would not approve of the fact that she had a new girlfriend anyway. She really wanted to tell someone about Alex, and she knew she could trust Cal.
She blushed as she looked at Cal, took a deep breath, and said, "Well, my girlfriend, actually."
Cal didn't look much surprised, and she wondered if that was due to the marijuana or if he truly just wasn't surprised. "Cool," he said with a nod. "You seem happy."
Piper smiled and replied, "I am."
Her phone chimed, and she quickly unlocked it, eager to see Alex's reaction.
From Alex (8:36pm): Piper Chapman! Is that a joint in your hand? Are you high?!
The message was followed by two laughter emojis.
Piper dissolved into a fit of giddy giggles. She held up her phone so Cal could read the message.
She quickly typed out a response as Cal sobered and said, "So tell me about her."
Piper was happy to oblige, and the rest of the night flew by as she and Cal caught each other up on their lives.
At the end of the week, Piper was ready to make the 4 hour drive back to Litchfield. It was nice to spend the holiday with her family, and especially nice to catch up with Cal, but she was ready to get back to her life, back to Alex.
Her phone chimed. She quickly checked her mirrors and noticed that there were no other cars around, and she was on a straight stretch of highway. She unlocked her phone and glanced at the message.
From Alex (3:07pm): ETA?
Piper smiled. It felt good to know that Alex missed her and was looking forward to her return.
She pressed her voice-to-text button and constructed a message back.
To Alex (3:08pm): About an hour. Wanna get dinner tonight?
From Alex (3:08pm): I'll cook. Just come straight to my place when you get into town. Miss you.
Piper couldn't stop the grin from stretching across her face. She pressed down a little harder on the gas, picturing Alex waiting for her with dinner set out on the table.
…
A/N: I don't condone texting while driving (please don't do it!) Please review and let me know what you thought of this chapter! I am working on finishing up what was supposed to be the end of this chapter and am hopeful it will be posted soon!
I am also considering doing a deleted-scene M rated fic to go between Chapter 8 and Chapter 9, since so many of you in the reviews wanted this chapter to pick up right where Chapter 8 left off. I've never written something M rated before, but thought I could maybe try to give it a shot. Let me know if that is something you would be interested in reading!
Happy to be back! Love you guys!
-HM :)
*This is a real study by Festinger & Carlsmith (1959)
