Alex took a breath to brace herself as she prepared to open the interior door to the bar. It was just pool with Maggie, she reasoned. They'd played pool together several times. Logically, there was no need to be worried, no reason to be nervous, no call for any anxiety whatsoever. Still, Alex felt hesitant, tense, apprehensive. Though she hadn't seen Maggie since the night before, outside Kara's apartment, they'd texted throughout the day. At first, it had been tentative, with Maggie texting her to say that she hoped Alex had had fun at Kara's and if they were still on for pool that night. She'd smiled as she received the text while stopping at her apartment to shower and change, after having spent the night at her sister's.
"And miss a chance to beat you at pool? No way!" she'd written.
After that, the texts had gotten more competitive, with Maggie claiming that she'd been practicing, to which Alex had simply responded with an emoji that was laughing so hard it was crying.
Eventually, by afternoon, the texts had gotten more frequent and each woman took every opportunity to tease the other. Somewhere along the long line of texts, the teasing started to include other stuff, not just pool. Maggie had called Alex a nerd no less than three times, while Alex had made fun of Maggie being short.
"At least I can reach the top shelf in a kitchen," she'd sent out.
"Danvers, you're not that much taller than I am!" Maggie had replied.
"Ah, so you admit I'm taller," she'd written back.
"That's an empirical fact," the response had read. "But what is also an empirical fact is that it's max three inches, whereas you're making it sound like you tower over me."
"You're just jealous that you have to stand on your tip-toes to grab something from the top shelf." Alex had actually giggled while sending that one.
Maggie hadn't wasted any time in replying. "You think I'd put anything on the top shelf in the first place? I thought that, as a nerd, you were supposed to be smart, Danvers."
The texts had continued, in various bursts as the women proceeded through their work days, until around five, as they finished up work and got themselves to the bar. So there Alex was, just before six, about to meet Maggie for an evening of pool. There shouldn't have been much anxiety surrounding the evening. But Maggie's words to her from the night before were still bouncing around her head. She hadn't done a lot of processing about them, not wanting to overly complicate matters, but it was still hard not to think about what the other woman had said.
"And I care about you… a lot," she had said. "I don't want to imagine my life without you in it," she had added.
It felt… Well, Alex didn't really know how it felt. She just knew that her stomach was doing somersaults at the prospect of seeing Maggie, after their conversation the night before and after all the teasing texts from throughout the day. She took another steadying breath and opened the interior door, walking through and looking around for Maggie.
Her heart actually skipped a beat when her eyes found Maggie. She was wearing dark blue skinny jeans and a black button-up shirt that was loosely tucked in, sleeves rolled up, as usual. She looked beautiful, Alex thought, allowing herself a moment to appreciate how attractive the other woman was. It felt good, she decided, to acknowledge her physical attraction to Maggie. Okay, it might not have been the most helpful thing in terms of getting over her, but being open with herself about women whom she found attractive was something she was trying to do more, to get herself comfortable with recognizing attraction. Alex continued to look in Maggie's direction, watching her walk around the table. Her dark hair was cascading down around her shoulders as she chalked up her pool cue and carefully inspected her options. Maggie took her breath away; it was just that simple. Forcing herself to inhale, Alex made herself walk up to the table.
"Ready to lose?" she asked in a low voice, smiling, as she came up behind the detective.
"Danvers!" Maggie turned around with a big grin. "I'm ready to give you a run for your money, if that's what you meant."
"Someone sounds overly confident despite past events," Alex replied, pulling off her leather jacket.
Maggie laughed. "Well, see, tonight I have a strategy."
"Oh, really?" Alex asked, draping her jacket over a nearby bar stool. "What's that?"
"Wouldn't be much of a strategy if I told you," she grinned. "Now, if I recall correctly, I owe you some drinks for coming out."
Alex blushed, lightly, remembering the last time Maggie had offered to buy her drinks for coming it. It had happened at this very table, in fact. "Yes, yes you do," she said, shyly, trying not to remember pulling the other woman to her and kissing her soundly.
"So what are you having?" she asked, from, Alex noticed, the relative safety of the other side of the pool table.
"A beer's good to start," Alex said.
"One beer coming right up," Maggie replied, laying her cue on the table. "Be right back."
Alex smiled and went to the wall to choose a cue. She picked one that felt like it was the right heft and, after experimentally rolling it across the table, it wasn't even all that crooked. She placed her cue on the table and went about the business of racking up the balls while Maggie was getting their drinks. She smiled happily as she carefully plunked the pool balls into place within the triangular frame, taking pleasure in the solid thunk each of them made as she placed them carefully. Solid, stripe, solid, stripe went the pattern along the outside of the triangle and she made sure the eight-ball was in the center. She carefully placed the arrangement appropriately on the table and then removed the frame. She picked up her cue and chalked the tip and looked over towards the bar, seeing Maggie walking back to the table, two beers in hand.
"As requested, one beer," Maggie said, holding out the bottle to Alex.
"Thanks," she said, with a smile, as she accepted it.
"I've got a plate of nachos coming too," she said.
"Oh, perfect, thank you!" Alex said.
Maggie nodded. "To coming out," she said, holding up her beer.
Alex chuckled. "To coming out… to Kara, at least," she said, clinking the neck of her bottle against Maggie's.
They both took a sip of their beers.
"So," Maggie said, excessively casually, "when do you tell your mother?"
Alex choked on her beer and turned to Maggie, a panicked look on her face.
Maggie just smiled.
As revenge, Alex won their first game of pool handily, going on a run that let her sink five in a row, including the eight-ball, leaving Maggie standing there, slack-jawed.
"Pay up," Alex grinned.
The detective gave an exaggerated sigh, pulled a twenty from her pocket and slammed it on the nearby wall-mounted table they'd been sitting at, then started setting up the table for the next round.
Alex sipped her second beer happily, watching the other woman grumpily organize the balls within the frame. "Someone's a poor loser," she called out.
Maggie shot her a look. "Don't get cocky, Danvers, I'd hate for you to have to eat your words," she warned.
She laughed. "No chance of that happening," she grinned.
Maggie narrowed her eyes and removed the frame from the table. "Your break," she said.
"Don't mind if I do," she smiled, striding to the other end of the table and re-applying some chalk to her cue. She put the cue ball slightly to the left, then placed her left hand on the felt, resting the smooth wood of the cue comfortably in the groove between her thumb and forefinger. She took a couple of slow practice strokes and then allowed herself to hit the cue ball forcefully, breaking the racked set beautifully, with billiard balls bouncing around the table, sinking two striped balls and a solid.
"Shit," muttered Maggie, causing Alex to grin.
"Mmmm, I think I'll choose stripes," she declared, grinning. She spotted the thirteen ball by a corner pocket. "Thirteen in the far right," she said, calling her shot.
She lightly tapped the cue ball, causing it to ricochet off the thirteen, knocking it into the pocket, then the ball rolled into place to allow Alex to get a good shot on the nine by a side pocket.
"This isn't going to end well for me, is it?" Maggie asked no one in particular.
Alex confidently hit the nine into the side pocket. "Doesn't look like it, no," she smiled. "Just how much cash did you bring with you, anyway?"
"That's not polite to ask, Danvers," Maggie countered easily, causing Alex to laugh.
It was fun. She was having fun. She wasn't thinking about coming out to her mom, she wasn't thinking about her dad being with Cadmus — well, not too much anyhow. She wasn't thinking about anything to do with the DEO. She was just there, at the bar, having fun and laughing. It felt good.
She paced around the table, chalking up her cue again, looking for another reasonable shot. She ended up missing out on the ten, but it had been a tricky reversal which she'd been fairly certain she'd miss. Still, it had been worth a try. As Maggie studied the table carefully, Alex perched on a nearby stool and sipped at her beer.
"Need a suggestion?" she asked, having spotted the three in a vulnerable position.
"Nope," Maggie said firmly, eyes never leaving the table.
"Okay," Alex said, "I'll just be here, waiting for you to do the wrong thing." She sipped at her beer, cheerfully.
Maggie seemed determined to ignore her, which just made Alex grin even more.
Suddenly, Alex frowned and furrowed her brow, trying to listen to the music more carefully. She could just barely make it out, but she felt as though the song was familiar, just based on the beat. "What the hell song is this?" she asked, aloud.
"Lovers in a Dangerous Time," Maggie replied, without hesitation, still examining the table.
Alex blinked. "I'm sorry, what?"
Maggie looked up at her. "I said it's Lovers in a Dangerous Time."
"This is not Lovers in a Dangerous Time," Alex argued.
"Sure it is. Listen." She pointed up. "This vibrant skin, this hair like lace. Spirits open to the thrust of grace," she recited along with the singer.
"Never a breath we can afford to waste," Alex finished, hearing it herself. "But this isn't Barenaked Ladies!"
Maggie laughed. "Barenaked Ladies covered this song, which was originally by Bruce Cockburn. Whose version you're hearing right now."
"How do you know that?" Alex asked, surprised.
"I've been listening to Barenaked Ladies since I was a kid."
"Get out. You know of Barenaked Ladies?"
"Know of Barenaked Ladies? Danvers, I love Barenaked Ladies." She paused. "I always did think that was a cute name and completely appropriate for me to adore them."
Alex burst out laughing. "Oh God, I guess it is pretty appropriate, isn't it? For both of us."
Maggie grinned, walking over to Alex and taking a sip of her own beer. "So you're saying you love the ladies?"
She laughed again. "Yes, yes I am. And BNL, too," she chuckled.
Maggie grinned back. "Really, I never would have thought you liked BNL," she commented. "What's your favourite song?" she asked, a hint of a challenge in her voice.
"What's the matter, you don't believe me?" Alex asked, playfully.
"Just answer the question, Danvers."
"Well, who doesn't adore Lovers in a Dangerous Time?" she asked. "I think my favourite is probably Some Fantastic, though. You?"
Maggie nodded with appreciation. "Good choice," she said, "good choice. Though I'm a little surprised it's not Alternative Girlfriend."
Alex frowned. "Why Alternative Girlfriend?"
Maggie laughed. "Undercover cop? Pull up in a U-Haul?"
"I liked BNL before I was an undercover cop, thank you very much," Alex grinned. "I don't get the U-Haul thing, though."
The detective looked at her. "Danvers, I'm getting the impression that you know absolutely nothing about lesbian culture and I kind of just want to sit you down for a crash course."
"Wait, what?"
She sighed. "The joke goes, what do two lesbians do on a second date?"
Alex looked blankly at Maggie.
"Rent a U-Haul."
"Why would they rent a U-Haul on a second date?" Alex asked, completely confused.
"Because they're moving in together. That's the joke. The stereotype is that lesbians shack up together, fast." Maggie explained.
"Ohhhh." Alex nodded. "Okay, so I see the joke where that would be my favourite song, given the cop thing, the lesbian thing, right… I get it." She shook her head, wondering if she would ever quite get the hang of knowing when Maggie was joking.
Maggie shook her head, sighing. "Definitely need to do a crash course. You ever seen The L Word?"
"No…"
She rubbed her face with her palm. "Well, that's where we'll start, I guess. Your homework is to watch the first three episodes of The L Word."
"My homework? Being a lesbian requires homework?"
Maggie laughed. "Do you trust me?"
Alex looked at her skeptically. "I suppose."
She grinned. "First three episodes of The L Word."
"Okay, okay," Alex agreed. "So," she said, picking up the original thread of the conversation, "what's your favourite BNL song?"
"I'm definitely old-school," Maggie said. "And I love the hell out of Alternative Girlfriend, but my favourite? Gotta be Brian Wilson."
"Oh, that's a good one too," she agreed. "Steve songs or Ed songs?"
"Steve songs," Maggie replied, instantly.
"Interesting. I like Ed songs. But I miss Steve."
"Me too!" she exclaimed. "It's just not the same band without him."
"Yeah, but You Run Away and Subway Car and Odds Are, you gotta admit they're all pretty good," Alex countered.
"Oh, absolutely, but there's just something about Steve's voice. Such a rich timbre to it." She sighed. "Nothing like hearing him sing Break Your Heart in concert."
Alex smiled. "You arrogant man, what do you think that I am? My heart will be fine, just stop wasting my time," she sang, quietly.
"Holy shit, Danvers," Maggie said, gazing at her, "I didn't know you could sing."
She shook her head. "Oh, I can't," she said, "I'm not very good." She waved her hand to dismiss Maggie's comment.
"Are you serious? That was great."
Alex blushed. "Shut up, it was not."
"It was too," the detective insisted. "Now, I warn you, I can't sing well, but I can do Ed's raps in One Week."
Alex laughed. "No way."
Maggie grinned wickedly. "Wanna bet? Double or nothing on what I already owe you for pool."
"You're on. No mistakes!" she warned. "And I'll know if you mess up!"
"Be right back, Danvers. Get your money ready."
Alex furrowed her brow as she watched Maggie place her cue on the table and went to the bar. She saw her talking to the bartender, who then nodded. Maggie walked back to Alex.
"Well?"
"Give it a sec," she said, swigging her beer.
"Give what a sec?"
The opening lines to One Week started, at a much louder volume than Bruce Cockburn's version of Lovers in a Dangerous Time had been on. Alex grinned and sipped at her beer as Maggie rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck, getting ready.
Maggie nodded her head to the beat, taking a large breath as the first verse of the song ended.
"Hold it now and watch the hoodwink
As I make you stop, think
You'll think you're looking at Aquaman
I summon fish to the dish,
Although I like the Chalet Swiss
I like the sushi
'Cause it's never touched a frying pan
"Hot like wasabe when I bust rhymes
Big like Leann Rimes
Because I'm all about value
Bert Kaempfert's got the mad hits
You try to match wits
You try to hold me but I bust through."
She took another large breath.
"Gonna make a break and take a fake
I'd like a stinkin', achin' shake
I like vanilla, it's the finest of the flavors
Gotta see the show,
Cause then you'll know
The Vertigo is gonna grow
Cause it's so dangerous,
You'll have to sign a waiver."
Maggie gasped for air. "Oh man, it's been too long since I tried to do that."
Alex was in awe. "Oh shit," she laughed. "Now I'm in trouble."
Maggie grinned, still breathing heavily. "Yeah, the second part's the easy part." She listened to the musical interlude, knowing the second section was coming up. "Get ready to pay up, Danvers," she winked.
"Chickity China the Chinese chicken
You have a drumstick and your brain stops tickin'
Watchin' X-Files with no lights on,
We're dans la maison
I hope the Smoking Man's in this one
Like Harrison Ford I'm getting Frantic
Like Sting I'm Tantric
Like Snickers, guaranteed to satisfy,"
Maggie quickly sucked in a breath.
"Like Kurosawa, I make mad films
'kay I don't make films
But if I did they'd have a samurai."
She inhaled deeply once more.
"Gonna get a set of better clubs
Gonna find the kind with tiny nubs
Just so my irons aren't always flying off the backswing
Gonna get in tune with Sailor Moon
'Cause that cartoon has got the boom anime babes
That make me think the wrong thing!"
Maggie inhaled sharply. "And that, Danvers," she said, out of breath, "is how it's done."
Alex was laughing. "I am both wildly impressed and terrified that you can do that," she said, handing Maggie back the twenty she'd previously placed on the table. "Good job," she grinned.
"It was my party trick in college. Nobody ever believed I could do it," she admitted, pocketing the cash once more.
"Nobody can do it!"
"I can," Maggie smiled.
"Well, apart from you. And Ed," Alex added.
"I think he'd be pretty impressed with me, to be honest," she chuckled.
"I know I am," Alex replied, with a smile. She hadn't meant to be flirtatious, really, she hadn't, but Maggie shot her an interesting look and she did her best to look innocent, though she felt certain that Maggie wasn't buying it. She cleared her throat and gestured to the table. "I believe it's your shot?"
Maggie narrowed her eyes at Alex. "I suppose it is," she said, grabbing her cue. She gave Alex another look, as though she wasn't sure what to make of her, and then returned to studying the table.
Alex, of course, won the next game, though Maggie won the third game.
"Looks like we're even," Maggie boasted, after sinking the eight, holding her hand out for the twenty-dollar bill that had been passing between them all evening long.
Alex took the twenty from the table and handed it to Maggie. "I still won two of three games," she reminded the detective.
"Sure, but we're even!"
"Well, monetarily, but I'm the pool champ. Go on," she grinned, "say it."
Maggie snorted. "I am not saying that."
"It's true!" Alex laughed. "Come on, say it. Say I'm the pool champ." She cupped her right hand around her right ear and listened expectantly.
The detective folded her arms across her chest and gave Alex a look. "I'm not saying it, Danvers."
Alex drained the remnants of her beer. "Okay. One more game. Winner takes all. And gets the title of pool champ. And," she said, "and the loser has to call the winner pool champ for the rest of the night."
Maggie laughed. "Okay, you're on." She pointed to the empty beer bottle. "Another?"
"Sure," Alex said. "I'll set up the table for your break."
Maggie nodded. "Hey, Danvers, what's your favourite BNL album? Is it Stunt because of Some Fantastic or another?"
She thought about it. "You know, probably Rock Spectacle."
Maggie laughed.
"What? That's their live album. I like it!"
She shook her head. "They pronounce it 'speck-tack'."
Alex frowned. "Why would they do that?"
"They're Canadian. They speak French up there."
Alex considered. "Huh. Okay, that makes sense. Uh, yeah, so that's my favourite, I think. You?"
"Probably Gordon," she admitted. "Anyway, be right back," she said and headed back to the bar.
Alex was still smiling as she racked up the balls for Maggie. It had been a long time since she'd had an evening like this, an evening with a good friend, just playing a game. No external pressures, no uncertainties, no worries. She couldn't even remember why she'd been nervous before the evening had started. The butterflies in her stomach had settled and she felt as though she and Maggie were making real strides at being friends.
The sounds of Barenaked Ladies' Brian Wilson filled the bar and Alex recognized it as being the live version from the Rock Spectacle album. Maggie walked back to their table with a beer for Alex and a smile on her face.
"How'd you do this?" she asked, pointing at the ceiling to indicate the music.
"I gave them ten bucks to let me log in to Spotify and play an album."
"Aw, that's sweet of you," Alex said, smiling. "It's such a good album." She took comfort in the familiar sounds in the air and was extra pleased that Maggie had thought to ask her what she preferred.
"Pretty good, yeah. I love the Life, In a Nutshell track on this," Maggie agreed, picking up her cue and chalking it carefully. "All right, Danvers, prepare to bow to the pool champ."
Alex snorted, which, to her credit, Maggie ignored entirely.
Right from the start, Alex could tell she was in trouble. Whether it was luck, a sudden boost in skill or maybe the pool gods were just shining down on Maggie, she didn't know, but Maggie pocketed two balls on the break and then two more before missing, leaving only the two, the three, the six and, of course, the eight, while Alex had all seven of hers to go before the eight. She took another swig from her beer and approached the table, looking for her opportunity.
"What's the matter, Danvers? Can't find a shot? Need a suggestion?" Maggie called from the other side of the table.
"Ha, ha," Alex said, indicating that she knew Maggie was joking. "This is why you keep losing," Alex said, as her eyes examined the configuration on the table. "It's not just about the next shot, it's about all of them. Where should the cue ball go after you pocket that ball? How can you get that one in and then put the cue in position to get the next? And the next?" She shook her head. "So it's not just about the one shot. It's about finding a way to get as many in a row as you can and hoping your opponent doesn't do as good a job as you do," she said, finding what she thought was a good path to victory. With the sounds of Straw Hat and Old Dirty Hank playing, Alex focused on the shot and properly sank the nine, before the ball bounced back into a good spot to attack the thirteen.
"Do you know the story behind this song?" asked Maggie.
"Stop distracting me," Alex grinned.
"No, for real, it's based on an incident the Canadian singer Anne Murray had with a stalker."
Alex stood up. "What are you, the trivia god of Barenaked Ladies?"
Maggie shrugged. "Just making conversation," she grinned.
"You," Alex said, pointing a finger at the other woman accusingly, "you are just trying to distract me."
"Am I succeeding?"
She narrowed her eyes at the detective. "A little bit. Shush!" She turned back to her shot and plotted out her plan for the next shot as well. The thirteen fell into the appropriate pocket and the cue ball ended up just short of where Alex needed it to be for the fifteen. Rather than try another shot, she decided to play a bit defensively. She, very lightly, tapped the cue ball so it was stuck up behind one of her striped balls. It would be difficult for Maggie not to scratch on her next turn. She straightened up and, smiling broadly, went back to the table.
"Your turn," she said, taking a drink from her beer.
"Danvers, did you do that on purpose?"
"Who, moi?" she said, exaggerating her innocence.
Maggie took a breath and examined the table. Alex sat back and watched, listening to the music, which was now halfway through the album. She was definitely tipsy, heading towards drunk, despite having devoured half the nachos. She frowned. Was this her third beer? Fourth? No, third. She considered. Maybe it was the fourth. And how many had Maggie had? She glanced around and saw just one half-empty beer bottle.
"You're trying to get me drunk!" she accused the detective. "And you! You're hardly drinking at all!" she exclaimed.
Maggie laughed. "Wow, that took you a really long time to figure out, Danvers."
"This was your grand strategy?!" Alex demanded.
"In my defense," Maggie said, "I didn't think it would actually work."
Alex laughed. "Oh, you're never going to hear the end of how I won the title of pool champ while you were sober and I wasn't."
"Awfully confident, considering that's your fourth beer, aren't you?"
She laughed again and deliberately took another drink from the beer. "And I will still beat you," she promised.
"We'll see about that!" Maggie retorted and looked at the table.
"Mmm hmm," Alex hummed, not seeing a way out for Maggie. Maggie would be forced to scratch, then Alex would be able to place the cue ball and she should be able to have a good little run to end the game, hopefully. She nodded to herself, confident in her assessment of both their skills.
So it was with utter astonishment that she watched Maggie hit the cue ball towards the far end of the table, whereupon it hit the cushion at an awkward angle, causing it to come right back up the table and crash into the three, sending it screaming towards the corner pocket. The cue ball then bounced and smacked the edge the six, which caused it to teeter precariously on the lip of the nearest side pocket, before falling in.
"Oh shit," Alex breathed.
"Hah!" Maggie gloated, raising her arms in the air in victory. "Just two balls left, Danvers!"
Alex started praying. Her prayers were answered, as Maggie didn't succeed in her attempt to sink the two. Alex jumped off the stool, grabbed the chalk and stalked around the table carefully, as she applied the chalk to the tip of her cue.
She didn't even realize she was humming along to Hello City until she caught Maggie smiling.
"What?" she asked.
"You're humming."
"I'm…? Oh," she said, realizing she had, indeed, been humming. "It's a good song," she smiled.
"It's apparently about the city of Halifax."
Alex raised an eyebrow.
"They hated playing there in the early days."
"Source of Useless BNL Knowledge, that's what I'm gonna have to start calling you," Alex teased.
"It's useful information!"
"When on earth have you found it useful?" Alex challenged.
"Right now!" Maggie protested.
"How is it being useful?"
"I'm distracting you, aren't I?" she grinned.
She narrowed her eyes. "And back to the table I go," she muttered as Maggie chuckled.
Methodically, Alex started to sink her various remaining balls, until just the fifteen remained. The table was wide open, there was just Maggie's two and the eight along with the fifteen left.
"How is the neighbour downstairs, how is her temper this year?" she sang, softly, as she settled on an approach, bending down once more, focusing on her shot. She pulled her right arm back and then pushed forward, causing the cue to impact the cue ball just so, causing it to bounce off the fifteen. The fifteen spiraled around in tight circles, winding its way to the corner pocket before falling in, with the cue ball coming back to line up perfectly if someone should want to hit the eight into the far-left corner pocket.
Alex turned to Maggie, a huge smirk on her face. "Do you just want to concede now?"
"Never!" Maggie said firmly, although Alex could tell the other woman was a little concerned.
She took her stance again, lining up her shot. She'd made similar shots hundreds of times before. Sure, she was a little tipsy, okay, a lot tipsy, but she was fine. She could do this. Alex took aim, took a couple of slow practice strokes and then forcefully hit the cue ball.
The chalk had worn off the tip of the cue so, upon impact, it slipped down, causing the ball to jump into the air. Alex watched in horror as it landed on the floor on the other side of the table, rolling away.
"Nooooo!" she cried.
"YES!" Maggie laughed, running to grab the ball.
Alex had scratched, meaning Maggie would have the opportunity to place the ball and could set herself up for a perfect shot for the two. Maggie walked back to the table, brandishing the gleaming white cue ball.
"Wanna concede now, Danvers?" she teased.
"No," Alex grumped, reaching for her beer and downing the rest of it.
Maggie smiled at her, a real, true, 10,000 watt smile, showing off her dimples, the smile reflected in the twinkle of her eyes and Alex felt the previously-calm butterflies in her stomach rise up, as one, and flutter forcefully. 'My God, she is so beautiful,' she thought to herself, simply.
She smiled as she watched Maggie, listening to the Barenaked Ladies singing about Barbies doing it on the first date. Maggie carefully placed the cue ball in what she clearly thought was the best place in order to hit and sink the two. She watched as the detective took a breath and carefully pushed her cue forward with just enough force to send the cue ball towards the two, sinking it in the far-right corner pocket.
"Oh yeah, that's right, Danvers, I'm gonna be the pool champ tonight," Maggie grinned at her.
Alex smiled. "It ain't over 'till it's over," she said with a calm that belied her nervousness. It was a nervousness stemming not only from the prospect of losing the game, but also from her nervousness about her feelings for the other woman. She'd mostly been able to keep herself from thinking about Maggie as an attractive woman for whom she cared throughout the evening, but that smile... She sighed. That smile had done her in.
Maggie carefully chalked up her cue and walked around to the other side of the table. The eight ball was at the corner pocket closest to Alex, far-left for Maggie, and it was a reasonably easy shot. She settled into her stance and gazed across the felt at the eight, slightly altering her angle on the cue. Alex listened to the music and got an idea.
"But I don't tend to worry 'bout the things that other people say,
And I'm learning that I wouldn't want it any other way.
Call me crazy, but it really doesn't matter,"
And then, just as Maggie pulled back to shoot, Alex chimed in to sing along to a single line from the Barenaked Ladies' song Life, in a Nutshell.
"All that matters to me is she."
Maggie looked up in surprise at that, seeing Alex's eyes locked on her, and promptly whiffed on the shot, the cue ball spinning wildly in a completely unexpected direction.
To keep from laughing at the other woman's reaction, Alex kept singing along until the next verse ended.
"Man, I love that song!" she exclaimed, as she went to reclaim the cue ball.
"You did that on purpose, Danvers," Maggie said, pointing at the table, not ready to relinquish her position. "That is completely unfair."
"And trying to get me drunk is?" she bantered, sauntering up to the end of the table where Maggie was standing and placing it in a spot that would allow her a good shot at the eight.
"Oh, like you absolutely had to have four beers," the other woman countered. "It's not like I had a choice in hearing you sing along to one of my favourite songs," she pointed out.
"So you're saying we both cheated and, what, my methods worked better than yours?" Alex grinned, rising up from having placed the cue ball, folding her arms across her chest.
Maggie looked up at her and stepped into Alex's personal space, much like she had at their initial meeting. Alex enjoyed feeling the tension between them, particularly as it was mostly in good fun. They stared into each others' eyes, Alex almost shivering from the electricity flowing between them. Her heart rate skyrocketed and she forced herself to keep eye contact with the shorter woman. She swallowed.
"You okay there, Danvers?" Maggie asked, her voice low and husky.
She swallowed again. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Maggie tilted her head to the side. "Are you sure?"
"Uh, yeah, yeah, good, good, yeah," she stammered, unable to think.
"Alex?" Maggie asked, quietly, flicking her eyes down to Alex's lips, before returning to gaze into Alex's eyes.
"Yes?" she responded, uncrossing her arms, completely mesmerized by the other woman, resisting every instinct she had to just reach out and lean down and…
"Are you going to take your shot now?" the shorter woman asked.
Alex blinked. "Wait, what?" she asked, the spell broken.
Maggie smirked. "Or do you just want to concede right now?"
Alex's brain suddenly turned back on. "Oh my God, you did… you did not just do that!" she said, completely disbelieving. She took a step back.
"Do what?" Maggie asked, her tone one of pure innocence.
"You… you used your… your feminine wiles to throw me off my game!" Alex shot back.
She grinned. "Your shot, Danvers," she said, walking over to the stools and sitting down.
"I'm going to get you for that one," Alex promised, as she took a deep breath to try to center herself. She grabbed the chalk and made sure the tip of her cue was covered in the blue powder before leaning down and taking careful aim. Her heart was still racing and she still could not believe Maggie would do such a thing, but hearing the opening chords of If I Had $1000000, with the band singing the Grade 9 lyrics as a joke, brought her some measure of comfort. She smiled and looked at the table before her. She suddenly knew she had this. "Eight ball, far-left corner pocket," she said, making absolutely sure she couldn't lose on the technicality of not calling her pocket.
As always, she took a couple of practice strokes and then, on the third, she followed through, letting the cue strike the cue ball, which obediently trundled down the table to where the eight awaited. She watched, with a great deal of satisfaction, as the cue impacted the eight, causing it to fall helplessly into the called pocket, then spun away, harmlessly bouncing off a cushion, nowhere near a pocket itself.
"Pool champ," she declared, placing her cue stick on the table and raising her hands in victory. "Despite some very clever strategy by a certain cheating cheater who cheats," she laughed.
Maggie grinned. "Can't blame a girl for trying, can you?"
Alex laughed again and sat back down on her stool. "No, no I can't."
The other woman toyed with her now-empty bottle of beer. "So," she said, smiling, "you forgive me for using a dirty trick like that?"
She smiled back. "It's fine," she assured the other woman. "You had me going for a minute, though."
"Well, that was kind of the point," Maggie grinned. "But, seriously, if that wasn't cool, you'd tell me, right? Because I was just having fun and I get competitive and—"
"Maggie," Alex said, interrupting her.
"Yeah?"
"It's fine," she said.
"You're sure? I…" Maggie looked down. "I just don't want to hurt you any more than I already have."
Alex nodded. "Thank you," she said, "but I promise. It's okay."
Maggie looked up, somewhat sheepishly. "Really?"
"Really." Alex paused. "Cheater."
Maggie laughed. "That's totally fair," she admitted.
Alex cupped her ear with her hand again. "Let me hear you say it."
"Oh man."
"Come on!"
"Pool champ," Maggie muttered.
"A little louder? I didn't quite catch that."
"Pool. Champ," she enunciated, clearly, shooting Alex a look.
Alex grinned.
When Alex finally crawled into bed, after having had three large glasses of water and setting another by the bed with painkillers, she was smiling. She'd had a really good time with Maggie. Even if she'd tried to get her drunk. Even if she'd used her feelings for her to try to distract her. She smiled to herself in the dark. She'd enjoyed it. She knew that she'd have to get over it if she wanted to continue to be friends with Maggie, but this was the first time in her life she'd ever really been aware of her attraction to someone. She was going to acknowledge her own feelings, certainly, now that she was coming to terms with them.
She turned over on to her side. The tension between them. She couldn't stop thinking about it. There had been electricity arcing between them as they stood by the pool table, Alex had felt it. Was that something other people felt? Was that what television shows and books and movies referred to as chemistry? She'd never really experienced it before. Well, maybe a couple of times, she amended, thinking chiefly of Vicki Donahue. The heat, the passion, the desire to just press herself against Maggie and kiss her soundly… She sighed. It wasn't going to happen and she knew it. But… She reached out for her phone, wanting just one more quick conversation with the detective.
"Thanks for a great evening," she texted Maggie.
"I had a great time too," Maggie responded almost instantly.
"Despite losing at pool?" Alex typed back.
"Hey, I was one ball away from being pool champ. I think that was my best pool performance yet."
She smiled. "I can teach you, you know. I'm the reigning pool champ, after all."
"I might take you up on that sometime, Danvers."
"The offer's always open," she replied.
"Alex?"
"Yeah?" She was a little confused at the use of her first name. She waited, watching Maggie start to type, then pause, then start again.
"Thanks for hearing me out last night and agreeing to meet me tonight. It meant a lot to me. And even though you said you were cool about my, uh, cheating tactics, I want you to know that I'm still sorry. I care about you and I don't want to hurt you. Okay?"
Alex felt her heart explode with warmth. She hit a button to dial Maggie and brought the phone to her ear.
"Danvers?"
"Maggie, it's okay," she said, reassuringly.
The other woman let out a breath. "Are you sure?"
"It was fun. I'm fine. It's okay," she said, gently.
"I just really want you to know that I would never want to hurt you," the other woman said quietly.
"I believe you," Alex said, closing her eyes.
"You do?"
"I do."
Maggie sighed in relief. "Thanks."
"That's what friends do for each other, isn't it? Believe one another? Trust one another? I trust you, Maggie," she said, simply.
Maggie was quiet. "I appreciate it. And you."
Eyes still closed, Alex smiled. "Same here." She sighed, contentedly. "I should probably get some sleep," she said.
"Who needs sleep?"
"Well you're never gonna get it," Alex sang back.
"Who needs sleep?"
"Tell me what's that for?"
"Who needs sleep?"
"Be happy with what you're getting, there's a guy who's been awake since the Second World War." She giggled.
"We should totally go see BNL in concert someday," Maggie said.
"Oh, I'd love that," Alex replied. There was a short silence as Alex and, presumably, Maggie acknowledged the forward-looking statement. "Well, hey, thanks again for tonight, Maggie. Sleep well."
"You too… pool champ."
Alex laughed. "Bye."
"Bye."
She hung up and plugged her phone in, resting it on her bedside table near her glass of water, grinning the whole time. She curled up on her side and was soon fast asleep, her smile still lingering on her lips.