This is sort of just a filler chapter. I was kinda lost on what I should have happen next. Let me know if you have any ideas!
Chapter Nine
Hours later, Emily, clad in just a towel was laying face up directly in the middle of her full-sized bed in their hotel room, waiting for JJ to come out of the bathroom so she could sneak back in. She could hear her co-worker fumbling around tiredly and she could tell how exhausted the blonde was from dealing with all the additional questions and concerns from the parents after the original interviews so she was giving her some extra space.
A quiet knocking at the door interrupted her thoughts and with an unnecessarily loud groan, she rolled off the bed, clutching the towel to her chest, and stood on her toes to glance through the peephole.
"Hang on a sec, Derek." She called as she pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top before she opened the door. "What's up?"
"Is, um, is JJ around?" He asked somewhat nervously.
"She's in the bathroom." Emily replied, stepping aside to allow him to enter. "She should be out any minute."
"Hey, Em, do you have an extra tampon?" JJ groaned as she stepped back into the room, while towel drying her hair, clad in her usual sleep attire, which consisted of a pair of boys shorts and a tank top. "I apparently forgot to refill my bag."
"Yeah, they're in my suitcase." She replied nonchalantly. "Oh, and Derek's here to see you."
"What?" JJ dropped the white towel she was holding and snapped her gaze to the door where Derek was standing awkwardly right inside the doorway. "Um, sorry, Derek…"
Grinning sheepishly, Derek shifted his weight from his left to his right. "I, uh, just wanted to talk to you."
"I'm going to go call Ben." Emily interrupted their staring contest. "Use what you need from my suitcase, Jay."
"Thanks, Em." JJ nodded, smiling at her close friend before turning back to her boyfriend.
Once the hotel door had closed, Derek finally approached the blonde and wrapped his arms around her small waist. "Hey." He grinned down at her.
"Hey." She replied, unable to stop her smile from growing. Derek made her feel like she was back in high school, being pursued by the star quarterback. "What are you thinkin'? I can tell there's something on your mind."
"I'm just… happy. And I want to make sure you are, too." He admitted. "I've had these secret feelings for so long that it's strange that they're out in the open now."
JJ nodded before leaning forward and placing a kiss to the center of his shirt-covered chest, lingering there to inhale his freshly showered scent. "I'm really happy, too. You make me happy, Derek. I had gotten used to the idea that I'd never be able to share my feelings and now that I can… I'm really happy." She buried her face in his chest and tightened the hold her arms had around him.
After hearing her confession, Derek mimicked her actions and tightened his hold on her but then took it one step further and lifted her off her feet, causing her to let out a squeal of surprise and to wrap her legs around his waist as a reflex.
"Derek!" She giggled, now look down at him.
Unable to stop grinning, he leaned up and captured her lips with hers. As their tongues began to battle for dominance, Derek turned towards what he hoped her JJ's bed and lowered her to her back. Leaning over her, he ran his left hand up and down the back of her thigh that was still hitched up around his waist.
So involved in their heated makeout session, they didn't hear door unlocking and opening slowly nor did they hear Emily's voice announcing her return.
"Oh my God!" Emily exclaimed, slamming the door closed before yelling through it at her friends. "Again?"
Startled by the slamming of the door, JJ and Derek pulled apart, breathing heavily. Resting his forehead against hers, Derek chuckled. "I better go before Em kills me."
Biting her bottom lip to refrain from giggling, JJ nodded. "Okay, I'll… see you in the morning then." She leaned up to kiss him briefly. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight." He whispered, hesitating a moment before climbing to his feet and exiting the door.
JJ laughed quietly when she heard a muffled grunt come from Derek, obviously on the receiving end of Emily's physical assault.
Less than a minute later, the door swung open and JJ was met with Emily's glare.
"Em…" JJ started to apologize but didn't get the chance to finish her sentence.
"You're so swapping beds with me." Emily told her, switching her glare for an amused look instead.
Confused, JJ glanced around the room, realizing for the first time that they had landed on the bed Emily had originally claimed not even an hour prior. "Oh… yeah, uh, sorry. I didn't realize…"
"I bet." Emily smirked, falling face-first onto the other bed.
The room was quiet for a minute before JJ broke the silence. "Em, really… I'm sorry. This is the second time it's happened." She sat up cross-legged on the bed, chewing on her bottom lip and running a hand through her hair.
Emily turned to face her friend, realizing that she pretty troubled over the situation. Instead of responding right away, she quickly joined JJ on her bed and grabbed the hand that wasn't currently holding her bangs out of her face. "JJ, what's going on?"
Sighing, the blonde raised her gaze to meet her friends' brown eyes, full of concern and curiosity. "I don't know. I'm… I'm happy with Derek, I really am. I just… I guess I don't really understand what's happening?" She frowned, unsure of her words.
"Didn't you talk to him about this?" Emily asked.
"I did, we did, we're together. I know that. It's just… it's been a while since I… since I've had someone, you know? I mean, my last significant relationship was… in college."
"You've dated other men, Jay. We've talked about them." Emily replied, completely confused with this conversation.
"Yeah… going out once doesn't constitute a date though. It was more about them wanting to get laid." She explained dejectedly. "They ran when they found out what I did for a living."
Deciding to save JJ the embarrassment of replaying her one-night stands, Emily made a turn in the conversation. "Jay… what happened with Will?"