A/N: Once again, I am terribly sorry for my long hiatus again! I hit some really bad writers block, but I think I'm finally back into the groove. I hope you all enjoy the update And again, thank you SO much to everyone who takes the time to leave a review. It really does motivate me to keep writing.
Warning: M rated material in this chapter.
Paige's POV
The sun snaked its way in through the curtains and immediately brought me from my deep slumber. I reached over to the nightstand for my phone. 6:27am. Never fails. I'm not sure why I even set an alarm anymore when my body has been waking me up early for years. Glancing to my right, I couldn't help but smile at the raven colored hair spread across the pillow. It took every bone in my body to not just reach over and caress the beauty who was currently occupying the bed with me. But then surely I'll be late, I reasoned.
Slowly sliding my bare body out from underneath the comforter, I bit my lip as the bed dipped and slightly squeaked. Seeing Emily softly stir, I released a shaky breath when she didn't wake up.
I began to find my clothes among the ones scattered across the floor. Sliding and clipping my bra on, my jeans soon followed. I quietly tiptoed around to the front of the bed in search of my shirt. To no avail, I settled on my Rosewood Sharks sweatshirt.
"Mmm I'm starting to feel a little cheap here." I smiled and bit my lip as I finished zipping up my sweatshirt.
"I'm sorry, it's just, you looked so adorable asleep and-" I turned around and my mouth became agape as Emily sat up in bed, the sheets falling down and revealing her bare chest. "And…I-I don't think I'll have the willpower to leave if I…stay." I choked out, getting lost in the fantasy of hopping back into bed with her and making her scream my name over and over again.
Emily smirked, no doubt trying to keep me here longer on purpose. "Fine. You've been on time to work every morning for the past month, who am I to ruin that streak?" I mean, she could ruin it if she wanted to. I'd gladly let her ruin it if it allowed me to swirl my tongue around her taunt nipples. I shook the thought away from my head.
"Well, thank you, I appreciate that. Besides, since my lease finally came through, I should probably start showering at the place I pay to live at, right?"
Emily was in the process of sliding on a loose tank top. Ah. There's my shirt.
"Technically, yes, but you know that you are always welcome here." She sauntered over to me, hooking her index finger into the pocket of my sweatshirt and tugging me into her.
I smiled into our kiss and wrapped my arms around her waist. "Mmm I know, but maybe now that I'm all moved in and almost unpacked, you'd like to start spending some nights with me? Maybe tonight? I'll bring home takeout."
"Sounds perfect." And with another quick kiss goodbye, I was out the door.
"Alright, everyone! Homecoming is next weekend and I'm still short a few chaperones to the dance. Any volunteers?" I had my back turned to Principal Hackett as I was pouring myself a cup of coffee at our monthly staff meeting. I slightly chuckled as I heard a few groans. I didn't blame them. Who'd want to give up a Saturday night to watch and monitor a bunch of rowdy teenagers?
Principal Hackett's voice droned off as I drifted into a caffeine induced haze. Ooh, donuts. I grabbed a chocolate glazed one and took a large bite, almost moaning at the delectable taste. Principal Hackett's muffled voice came to a deafening loud and pulled me out of my sugar induced coma as I spun around, mouth still full of chocolate donut.
"Coach McCullers, Ms. DiLaurentis. Neither of you have volunteered for a homecoming activity yet, so I'm delegating the two of you to round out the chaperone list." I could see Alison's eyes dart up from examining her nails.
"Me?" Although, with a mouthful of donut, I'm pretty sure it sounded like "Ne?"
"Yes, you and Ms. DiLaurentis. Unless either of you have a legitimate excuse as to why you can't."
Mine and Alison's expressions were mirroring one another, somewhere between a deer caught in headlights and someone about to vomit in their seat on an airplane. I'd personally take either of those scenarios than to spend an evening chaperoning with satan's mistress.
Principal Hackett quirked his brow at me and I rapidly swallowed my chunk of donut.
"Uh, no, sir, I'd be happy to help out." Principal Hackett looked to Alison for a protest and when he received none, he hastily moved on.
"Alright. Next on the agenda, have we received anymore recon on to who was behind the bologna slices on the cafeteria ceiling?"
I quietly glanced over at Alison, my stomach full of knots. This is going to be fan-fucking-tastic.
Emily's POV
"I didn't know teachers were allowed to drink on their lunchbreak?" I teased Alison as she walked up to the bar at The Radley and perched herself in front of me.
"Ha ha. I'm here for lunch, silly. I heard about the new salads you added to the menu. Are they any good?"
"Don't try the chicken cranberry, it's actually quite bland. The cobb is pretty good though."
"Okay, I'll try the cobb. And an iced tea, please."
"Coming right up." I could feel Alison's eyes scan me up and down as I punched in her order into the POS system at the bar. It always made me nervous whenever somebody would watch me work, especially since this was still a fairly new job. But, I tried to pay no mind as I waltzed back over, grabbing a glass and pitcher of tea on the way.
"So, how have your classes been going so far?" I placed the glass on a coaster in front of Alison and slid a plastic straw toward her.
"Good, great actually. I'm surprised that I've actually gotten quite a few students really interested in The Winter's Tale. I think it'll turn out to be a really good semester."
"That's good to hear. Now, do you want to tell me the real reason you're here?" I couldn't help but throw Alison a smirk. I've known her for years and she's never been one to come and visit for a quick chat or small talk. There had to be another reason.
Alison hesitated for a moment, almost as if she were taken back by the fact that I called her bluff so quickly. But, she immediately recomposed herself with a quick shake of her head.
"I, um, I wanted to talk to you about Paige…" I furrowed my brows in confusion.
"What about her?"
Alison glanced over her shoulder to make sure we couldn't be overheard, I presumed. "Have you…said anything to her, you know, about…"
"Seriously? No, I haven't. And as much as it kills me to look her in the eye every day, knowing…we did what we did, I don't plan on dragging her back into that black hole."
I could see Alison's worry and fear fall from her like a second skin and she settled back into her chair. "Good. The less people know, the better. Besides…" she trailed off once I raised my brows at her, warning her to tread softly.
"Besides what?" I drummed my fingers on the bar, waiting for Ali to respond.
"It's just, you and Paige haven't spoken in what, two years? I mean, can you honestly trust her? She suddenly shows up back in town for a coaching job at a high school? And you have no questions as to why? And whatever happened to the Olympics? You said she got in, right? But yet there's no evidence of her ever competing."
I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. I couldn't help but let Ali's words settle in me. This past month with Paige had been nothing short of amazing. I guess I had gotten so caught up in rekindling our relationship that I hadn't even really asked about her past. A past I truly knew nothing of. I still didn't even know how she had torn her rotator cuff. And then, there was the tattoo…
My eyes began to roll to the back of my head as Paige lapped her tongue between my dripping folds. She took a hold of my clit and sucked on it, pulling me further and further to the edge. I ran my hand through her auburn locks, gently scraping at her scalp as my other hand was gripped onto the headboard behind me.
"Oh god, Paige, I'm so close." I rasped out, digging my fingers further into Paige's hair and pulling her closer to me, if that were even possible.
Her tongue stayed in place, licking and sucking on my clit. My eyes shot open as I felt two fingers enter my folds and began pumping in and out of me. My thighs instantly reacted and clasped around Paige's head, holding her in place.
Paige didn't falter and continued her menstruations, pumping in and out of me, over and over. I began to move against her tongue, riding against it as I drew closer and closer to my orgasm.
It wasn't until Paige flexed her fingers inside of me that I jerked up off the bed and finally came tumbling down, riding my orgasm out as she continued to keep her tongue in place.
I collapsed back down onto the bed, completely out of breath. I flashed a lazy smile to Paige as she crawled up toward me, falling into place next to me.
"That…was…" I trailed off, at a loss for words to even describe what that was.
"It was." Paige chuckled, draping her arm across my bare stomach and tucking her head into the crook of my neck. Sex with Paige had always been amazing, but after so many years, it seemed as if it had gotten even better. Maybe she had become quite the experienced lady after me. I quickly shook the thought away, not wanting to picture Paige in bed with another woman, doing the same things she had just done to be.
"I'm going to grab a Gatorade, you want one?"
"Seriously?" I couldn't help but laugh as Paige got up from the bed. This was our thing, Gatorade after sex. It always helped quench the thirst and get our energy boosted for another round. "You've stocked your hotel mini fridge with Gatorade already?"
Paige had grabbed a t-shirt from the floor and as she slid it on and turned around to face me, I caught a glimpse of a small tattoo, just above her right hip bone. I couldn't quite see exactly what it was before it was hastily covered up by the t-shirt, but I could make out two letters. 'H' and 'S'.
Ali reached her hand across the bar and began to affectionately caress mine. "I'm sorry, Em. I'm not trying to cause any problems, I just think there's a lot of questions you should be asking before this goes any further."
I gently pulled my hand away from Ali. I wasn't upset with her, she did have some valid points. I just didn't want to continue this conversation any further. "I'm gonna go check on your salad."
Paige's POV
"Come on ladies, push yourselves! Our first meet is in 4 days and I'm not impressed with what I'm seeing right now!" I was pacing up and down the side of the pool as the girls were currently in a relay race. I wasn't trying to be mean to the girls, I was trying to push them. Because honestly, they had more potential than even I had myself back in high school.
Natalie then dove into the water. Anchor. I couldn't help but smirk as I watched her form. It didn't remind me of her sister Nadine's, but rather, Emily's. She wasn't much shorter than Emily, so her stroke and form were extremely similar. Once she made the first turn and plummeted off the wall, I knew she had the race in the bag. I pulled my stopwatch out. Glancing to the wall of previous records, Natalie was on the verge of setting a new one. But at the last moment, she hesitated, adding a half second to her time as she touched the wall. I'll definitely be talking to her about that later.
As the other teams finished their relays, an assistant from the office came into the natatorium and handed me a slip of paper. It was a note, requesting that I go to Principal Hackett's office immediately.
"Thank you." I said to the assistant as I crumbled the piece of paper and stuffed it into my pocket. I was confused as to why Principal Hackett needed to see me and a lump formed in my throat as I began to slightly panic.
"That was great work, ladies. We still need to work on our finish though, make sure we're shaving off those milliseconds. They can really make a difference. I have to go the principal's office-"
"Ooooh someone's in trouble!" Some of the girls teased in union.
"Ha ha, very funny. I want you all to take a fifteen minute break and then do fifteen laps before leaving today. Assistant Coach Fuller will watch. I'll see you all tomorrow."
I heard the echo of "Bye Coach" as I rounded the corner and left the natatorium.
The walk to Principal's Hackett's office seemed to carry on for miles, even though it was up two flights of stairs and then down a short hallway. I reached his door, it was shut. I took a deep breath before knocking.
"Come in, Coach."
I opened the door and saw Principal Hackett perched at his desk, looking over some papers.
"Have a seat, shut the door." He said without even looking up. Oh boy, I don't really like the tone of his voice. It was cold.
"I'm sure you're wondering why I asked to see you." He said, removing the spectacles that sat atop the bridge of his nose. Um duh?
"Yes, sir."
"Well, I'll just cut to the chase then. I didn't do a whole lot of checking up on you when you applied for the coaching position here." Oh no, where is he going with this?
"And it's because I didn't think I needed to. Well, apparently I was wrong." He picked up a folder that was on his desk and slid it forward to me. I gave him a questioningly look, hoping he would explain as to what the hell he was talking about. When he gave none, I reached for the folder and opened it. I took one glance, caught one word before closing it shut. The only word I needed to see to know what all of this was about was "Acetaminophen".
"Do you want to explain why you were removed from Stanford's swim team your senior year?" I could only shake my head in disbelief because deep down, I knew that Hackett didn't do all of this "digging" alone.
"This sessions, to our great grief we pronounce. Even pushes 'gainst our heart: the party tried. The daughter of a king, our wife, and one of us too much beloved. Let us be clear'd of being tyrannous since we have so openly proceed in justice, which shall have due course. Even to the guilt or the purgation. Produce the prisoner."
I began to clap, slowly and loudly. Alison's head snapped up and I leisurely began to make my way into her empty classroom.
"You know, Alison, you talk with such conviction and so eloquently, it's a shame you haven't grown the hell up already."
"Excuse me?" She asked as she closed her book and tossed it onto her desk. I began making my way down one of the rows, closer to her, drumming my hands along the desks as I walked. Once I reached her, I stood less than a foot away and looked dead into her empty orbs.
"We're not in high school anymore, Ali. And I'm not afraid of you anymore. So the next time you want to bring to light any "information" about my past, you might want a bigger shovel to help you "dig."
The look on Alison's face, the fear that washed over her, was better than snow on Christmas morning. I smirked at her when she gave no response.
I turned and began to walk back out, but decided I wasn't quite done yet. "Oh, and don't worry. I won't gloat about the fact that Emily and I are back together. Because I just can't stoop to your level. See you at Homecoming." I threw her a fake, peppy smile as I turned on my heel and walked out. As soon as I rounded the corner out, I let out a deep and shaky breath, one I had been holding in the moment I walked into the classroom. I didn't actually think I'd be able to go through with that without faltering, but damn it felt good!
Emily's POV
I knocked onto Paige's new apartment door and shifted on my feet as I waited for her to answer. I heard movement and then sounds that surely resembled Paige tripping over something. A few seconds later, she opened the door with a bashful smile.
I looked around her shoulder and saw her living room scattered with boxes. "I thought you said you already unpacked?" I asked with a teasing grin.
"Correction, I said I was almost unpacked. I got the bedroom and kitchen done, the essentials." I chuckled as Paige stepped aside and let me in. I smelled Chinese food coming from the kitchen.
"I'm just nuking the takeout in the microwave, I wanted it to be hot." Paige disappeared into the kitchen and I began to scan around her place. It was a pretty decent size. Her living room was scattered with boxes, some opened, some not. There was a coffee colored couch on one side of the room and a bookshelf to the other. I started to make way over to the kitchen and then noticed that there wasn't a table for us to eat at.
Paige was currently spooning noodles and chicken into glass bowls. She then reached into her fridge and grabbed a six pack of beer.
"Okay, ready?"
"Um, where are we eating?"
"My dining table is still on order. So tonight, we eat upstairs."
"Upstairs?" I asked, gesturing in confusion. Paige handed me the six pack and then scooped up the two bowls.
"Come on, follow me." I did as instructed and began to follow Paige upstairs. We made our way into her bedroom. Hmm dinner in bed? I bit my lip at the thought of what could lead to after. But Paige didn't stop in the bedroom. She made her way across the room and slid open a glass sliding door. Oh, the balcony. How cute! Nope. Paige didn't stop there either. There was a flight of metal stairs on her balcony, which Paige quickly ascended and disappeared.
"Are you coming?" I heard her ask from above me. Where could she have possibly gone? I cautiously made my way up the stairs and was met with a small rooftop. A rooftop that was clad with a blanket, pillows and numerous candles scattered across everywhere.
"Oh my gosh, Paige, this is beautiful." I was in such awestruck that I was still standing on the last step of the stairs.
"Well come on, silly. You have to check out the view, we can see the Philly city lights." I made my way over to her and sure enough, she was right. The city lights looked magical in this moment. I set the beer down and slipped my hand into Paige's.
"I can't believe you live here and can see this view whenever you want."
Paige hummed softly, her way of answering me I'm sure.
The evening carried on with delicious food and beer, soft conversation and lots of snuggles. I was currently tangled up into Paige, my head on her shoulder and arm draped across her stomach. Her fingers were lazily drawing circles on my arm as we watched the stars up above.
I didn't want to ruin the moment, but Ali's words were still echoing into the back of my head.
"Um, Paige?"
"Hmm?"
"What is that tattoo of? The one on your hip bone…"
Paige tensed up at this and I almost regretted saying anything. But, I pressed on. Sitting up, I brushed some hair from my face and tucked it behind my ear. "And your scar…I know it's from a torn rotator cuff, I've seen lots of scars like that before."
Paige sat up and pulled her feet into her, placing her chin on her knees. She remained quiet and looked completely uncomfortable now that I had brought anything up.
"Paige…I hope you know that you can trust me with anything. I just…I think that if we're going to continue seeing each other, we need to be honest with each other." Which means I should also be honest about my secrets…
Paige took a deep breath and looked me in the eye before answering. Her eyes seemed so lost now and on the verge of spilling over with tears. I instantly felt horrible for being the cause of this.
"Em, I didn't tear my rotator cuff swimming…It was severed."
