Alex had a rule of thumb, if something seemed too good to be true, it probably was. She was also a firm believer in not getting too comfortable in any given situation, lest something awful happen if you completely let your guard down. Call it survival instincts or call it cynicism but Alex was never one to get caught up in how good things were going. If happiness was allowed to take over everything, including hard work, if it made her lazy or complacent, it was then she got a reality check.
Sitting at the counter in the hole in the wall restaurant, eating the best fucking pizza she'd ever had (which was saying alot for someone who lived in Brooklyn), watching how Piper's laugh literally lit up her entire face, kind of listening to what she was saying, but more just enjoying the sound of her voice and the animated way she used her hands when she got really excited, Alex felt it. The quick, sharp hint of dread, like a pin prick to deflate the joy of the moment. She'd shaken it off, attributing it to needing sleep or anxious anticipation about playing The Riv. More likely, she thought, her nerves were shot from squashing down her silly crush on her bandmate. Whatever the reason was, she had no time to worry about such things as there was a ton to get done in a short amount of time.
Everyone got through the meeting in Alex's room without incident, they rehearsed for a few hours (with Nicky only complaining minimally), and Alex actually got some sleep. It was a productive evening.
The next day, they all met for breakfast at Over Easy, a plan formulated by Poussey to "boost morale" before they started an intensive rehearsal. Alex would've totally called bullshit except it got Nicky out of bed before noon and her banana rum spiked french toast was so good, it made her believe in love.
Piper sat next to her in the booth, Poussey and Nicky across from them. She wore jeans and a white tank top, looking well rested and happy and she kept stealing bites of Alex's breakfast, spearing pieces of french toast with her fork. Alex rolled her eyes at this intrusion but said nothing, shaking her head when the blonde pushed her own plate toward her as a peace offering.
"What?" Nicky was staring at them as if they had two heads. "Haven't you seen anybody eat before?"
"No, nothing," The bassist crossed her arms in front of her chest. "It's just you would fuckin' slap my hand away if I tried that," she pointed to Piper, her fork poised in front of her mouth. "You're insanely possessive when it comes to your food."
"You sing like Chapman and you can eat all my food, dude," Alex replied smoothly. Although her friend had accepted Piper into their fold, it was obvious she couldn't resist ribbing her whenever she had the opportunity. She definitely wasn't going to give her friend the satisfication of thinking she'd ruffled her.
"Uh huh," Nicky raised an eyebrow, "You never let me eat off your plate, even when we were together. I mean, I ate other things, so it didn't really matter but it's the fuckin' principle, ya know?"
Piper stopped in her tracks. "Wait. You guys were together? Like together together?"
Fucking Nicky, Alex fumed silently. It was glaringly obvious that she was trying to pull a reaction out of Piper, to see if she was jealous, and Poussey realized it right away as well because she kicked her under the table.
Nicky yelped and glared at the drummer who shrugged sheepishly. "Sorry, I got restless leg syndrome," she explained to Piper.
Ignoring the others, Alex turned to the singer. "We were together for like a nano second. And even then, we weren't a couple. We realized pretty quickly it was a bad idea. Luckily, we stayed friends and well, you know the rest."
"At least you guys didn't let it ruin your friendship," Piper said neutrally. "Imagine if you had? None of us would be here right now."
"We wouldn't be the same band, that's for sure," Poussey nudged Nicky with her elbow. She raised her orange juice cup. "To Nick. If she kept it in her pants, we all wouldn't be here now."
"To Nicky," Piper raised her coffee mug. "Oh, c'mon, Al, it's funny."
"To Alex," Nicky grinned, raising her own mug, "For realizing I was insane and dodging a big fuckin' bullet."
"You guys suck," Alex shook her head but smiled in spite of herself. "To decent coffee," she tipped her cup toward them, "Fucking finally."
The buzzing of Piper's phone cut through the shouted agreement."It's Larry," she said, glancing at the screen. "I'm going to take this outside,"she excused herself as Alex slid out of the booth to give her room.
"Shit, I'm shocked he didn't call first thing yesterday," The bassist said through a huge mouthful of pancake. "He's so far up her ass, I half expected him to install a fuckin' tracking device in there before we left."
"Three things," Alex fumed, propping up on her elbows, "First, stop talking with food in your mouth, it's fucking gross. Secondly, she called him when we got in but he was at work and then when he called her back, she didn't answer because we were rehearsing. And third of all, Jesus Christ, Nick, why did you tell her we used to sleep together? Like seriously, what does it have to do with anything?"
"What's the big deal? So she knows, so what? Like she wasn't gonna find out eventually," said Nicky defensively. "And wouldn't you want her to know if you guys end up hooking up?"
"I'm gonna have to call bullshit, man," Poussey interjected. "That's not the reason you opened your mouth and you know it."
"Look," Alex took a huge gulp of coffee and sighed, focusing on her friends. "You guys know me. You bitches are more like sisters to me than friends and I know that means you're gonna tease the shit out of me all the time, but please, can we be adults about this? Or like...kind of adults, and chill the fuck out?" Turning around toward the door to make sure their lead singer hadn't walked back in, she continued quietly, "Piper and I are never going to sleep together. Let's be real here, OK? And she's never going to be jealous. Of you, of anyone. Because she's not into girls. And it's fine. I've excepted it, you guys are gonna have to except it too."
Poussey started to open her mouth, only to shut it again when Piper strode back into the diner. "Hey girl, everything OK?"
The drummer had a keen sense of when someone was upset and aside from being an amazing listener, (Although Alex liked to think of herself as intensely private, she'd come to the other woman with things she couldn't necessarily talk to Nicky about, the topic of Nicky herself, for example), she hated to see people sad. It was endearing and one of the reasons Alex loved her so much.
Piper's mouth was set in a thin line as she slid back into the booth. "It's all good."
"You sure?" Alex asked gently, "Because you look pissed."
Maybe she was overstepping her boundaries, but after their bus ride, the guitarist felt there were really no off limit topics between them.
"He's just making me feel really fucking guilty," She sighed, running her hand through her hair. "Like crying over the phone. It's totally unnecessary. I mean, this is everything I've worked so hard for and he knows that..." She shook her head, "I shouldn't be pissed. He's the nicest guy ever and he's been so supportive. But it's like reality hit him and he doesn't want me to be here."
"You get to be mad, Pipes, it's ok," The brunette said. "And there's no reason to feel guilty. You're right where you should be. You know it too."
"I'm going to take off for awhile. I need to work some stuff out in my head," Piper took out her purse and fished a twenty out of it. "Here," she handed it to Alex. "See you guys at rehearsal."
With that she climbed over the guitarist, out of the booth and out of the restaurant, leaving the others in stunned silence.
"What the fuck was that all about?" Nicky finally asked. "She was so fuckin happy a hour ago and one phone call, she's Girl Interuppted."
"He got inside her head." Alex wanted to go to Boston, waltz into the publishing company Larry worked for, and grab the dick by his fucking shirt collar. The last thing Piper needed was some guilt trip because Larry couldn't hold it the fuck together without her. Ordinarily, it would have come more from a place for the band as his dependency on their lead singer was a nuisance, but having gotten to know Piper, it fucking pissed her off.
"Whatta I tell you," Nicky shook her head, "I fucking called that asshole interfering. Right?"
"It ain't about who's right," The drummer retorted, pushing her plate away. "It's about convincing her she gotta stay. If Chapman leaves this tour, we're fucked."
"She's not leaving," Alex insisted vehemently. "She's too smart to let him play the guilt card."
"You sure about that? You barely know her. We all barely know her."
Alex groaned, "Seriously, Nick, this shit again? Yeah, we just met her. But we got to talk a little over the past few days and this opportunity means everything to her. And I really don't think she's going to let anyone stand in her way. Even Larry."
"Hope so," Poussey said, reaching into her wallet and throwing money down. "I'm gonna do some explorin' around the city. "Unless you wanna come?"
"Can I take a raincheck? After rehearsal, OK?"
Nicky blinked in disbelief, looking at Poussey. "You mean we're actually gonna get out of rehearsal in time to see the sun? And here I thought this whole time we were fuckin' vampires."
"You're hilarious, Nichols." Alex rolled her eyes. "If you guys don't fuck around then yes, I'd like to end early tonight."
"Praise Jesus," The girls made the sign of the cross and Alex flipped them off but her heart wasn't really in it. There was too much going on in her head; worrying about how much of an influence Larry had on Piper, wondering what would happen if she decided not to continue with them, and most of all, thinking how utterly shitty it would feel never to see her again. Because though she'd resigned herself to nothing happening, (which was really for the best; nothing would ever fuck up Solitary Confinement again, she'd make sure of it), she knew if the blonde left, she'd really fucking miss her.
"Look, I'll talk to Red later, see if she'll speak to Chapman. Red's pretty persuasive."
Nicky snorted. "She can fucking sell an Eskimo a beach house."
"Yeah, I don't know what that means," Alex took her wallet out for the bill, handing Poussey's money back to her. "It's on me this time. See you guys in two hours."
The next two hours seemed the longest of the guitarist's life. She went back to the hotel, thinking about going for a swim but decided against it. Flitting with the idea of calling Diane, she eventually ended up going for one of her long, rambling walks.
The summer sun warmed her bare arms as she strode through Wicker Park. Calling her mom, while comforting (and she had to begrudgingly admit, Diane gave damn good advice), would have been totally fruitless because she couldn't exactly determine why she felt like shit. Was it that Larry could possibly fuck things up, just when they were starting to get back on track? Or was it because Piper had, in the span of a few days, gotten to her in a way no other woman had? Whatever it was, it was making her stomach twist painfully where she wished she hadn't eaten breakfast at all.
Once or twice as she walked, past parks and stores and restaurants, past people who didn't know she was having an internal panic attack, she took out her phone to text Piper, each time shoving it back into the pocket of her jeans. The look on the singer's face at the restaurant had been one Alex recognized. A face of self-doubt, of questioning. The very same expression Alex had held, two days after her eighteenth birthday, staring into a dirty mirror in a tiny, cramped bathroom while the father she'd just met snorted coke in the next room. The reflection staring back at her was of a scared, helpless little girl who'd just made a very big mistake. One she wouldn't have made if she'd listened to her mother in the first place.
If it were her, she would've wanted space and an opportunity to sort through things without anyone bothering her about it. Whatever Piper was feeling, she knew it was probably something she needed to work out on her own.
Two hours later, they were all congregated outside the door of the rehearsal studio. Glaringly absent was Piper and as her bandmates confirmed they hadn't heard from her, Alex felt it again, the same small, sharp pang of dread. She should've followed through and spoken to Red about the situation, as she'd told Nicky and Poussey she was going to. She liked to keep Red out of their personal lives as much as possible, but Alex couldn't help but wonder if she should have called in reinforcements on this one.
As Alex was taking out her phone to call, Piper walked up, breathless and apologetic. "Sorry guys, I missed the train."
Normally, Alex would have chewed any of them out if they were late, even a minute late, but she was so relieved to see Piper, she just shook her head. "No big deal. C'mon ladies, let's get started. Grab a mic stand," She gestured to the blonde as she unlocked the door. "We're headed upstairs, guys."
They set up quickly and went over the set list, which would be the same as St. Louis, and made their way through it with no mistakes. At one, Alex called for a twenty minute break.
"You guys really wanna get the fuck out of here today, huh? Because everyone sounds on point."
"Hell yeah we do," Poussey grinned widely. "The city is my oyster tonight, yo."
"Go get some lunch and meet back here in twenty," The guitarist waved them away. "Hey," She turned to Piper who was sitting on the floor, legs crissed crossed beneath her, studying a piece of sheet music intently. "You've been super quiet...you OK?"
"I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"
Her reaction, while not as blatantly angry as at the bar, was a bit chilly and it took Alex aback. She had sounded perfect when they practiced but there had been something slightly guarded to her where there was ususally a beautiful open quality to how she sang.
"OK," The other woman sat down next to her. "Is this about your phone call?" she broached, careful not to let her own personal thoughts on Larry creep into her words.
Piper sighed. "I'm not going anywhere, Alex, if that's what your worried about. Not only did I sign a contract, but I don't just skip out on my commitments."
"That's not what I thought at all," she replied quietly. "Look, Piper, of course I asked because I care about the future of this band, but I was asking because you're my friend and I give a shit if you're upset."
Piper visibly softned. "I know and I'm sorry for snapping at you. The thing is," she hesitated, "Larry called again and he asked me to set a wedding date. And we've been engaged for almost a year now and I kept going back and forth on a date because I was so involved in getting my name out there more...which was really unfair to him and I know it...he's been so great and I owe it to him to set something in stone, you know?"
Alex really didn't think Piper owed anyone anything just because she was getting ahead in the industry she belonged in and certainly not out of some twisted sense of obligation, but she said instead, "So when did you decide on?"
"Right after the last tour spot in New York."
"That's like in two months," She quickly calculated. "You're going to plan a wedding in two months, while you're on tour?"
"It's going to be super small. Just Larry's parents, my brother, Polly, and a few of our friends. And you guys too, of course, if you want to come. Larry's father has a contact at The Ritz, so we'll have the ceremony there and a brunch after. Of course, Larry's parents wanted like this big interfaith ceremony with all of their friends, but we're paying for most of it ourselves so..."
If Piper had been giving this speech to Nicky, there was no doubt in Alex's mind that her curly haired friend would have replied with something along the lines of, "What are you, fucking nuts?" For her part, however, she knew responding this way probably wouldn't have been very tactful.
"I'm only gonna give my opinion if you want it," She offered, studying her hands. "I know I hate unsolicited advice so I'll keep my mouth shut if you don't want any."
"The thing is, I do value your opinion, Al,"she smiled slightly. "If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be touring across the country so, yeah, of course I'll listen."
"OK then," The brunette took a deep breath, "My thing is...it's your life, Pipes, and you need to do what you have to do but please, please don't let anything or anyone get in your way because singer's like you? They don't come around all that often. If this is your break, and God, I'd like to think it is and that you stay with this band for fucking ever, you gotta run with it. All that shit you went through, it was leading to this, right here, right now. This sounds so fucking cliche, but please, don't throw it away because he's pressuring you. He's feeling insecure but that's not on you, OK?"
Alex had never really believed in the old "eyes are the windows to the soul" bullshit and truthfully, it was probably because she'd never stared deeply into someone's eyes or had someone stare deeply into her eyes either. It seemed kind of creepy. But as she got the courage to really look at Piper after she'd finished talking, those eyes, those big, blue eyes that made her lose her thoughts, that unnerved her on more than one occasion, her eyes held endless words Alex didn't need to hear to understand.
Finally, after what seemed like a eternity, Piper looked away. "You don't understand. It's not because he's pressuring me. I love him and I want to marry him. And of course, he understands how much this all means to me. We've been together for a long time. It's hard, Alex, we've never been apart in like eight years. He's having a difficult time...of course I'm going to feel guilty being on the road, getting to see and do these incredible things while he's at home."
"That's the thing though, you shouldn't have to feel guilty. This all didn't fall into your lap. You've worked damn hard to get here."
"What you're basically saying is me marrying him now is stupid," The other woman's voice held an edge to it. "You think if I marry him, my career is going to stall."
"That's not what I'm saying at all, dude, but it's interesting...because it sounds like something you've thought about." Alex didn't know why she beginning to get a little pissed but she was. "I'm not saying this to be a dick, Piper. I genuinely-"
"Care?" Piper supplied. "I'm a big girl, Alex. I promise I'm not going to bail on you guys but that's where it ends. You don't get to have a say in my personal life. I think...I think it's better we keep this about the music."
"That's fine with me." It wasn't difficult to stuff down her disappointment, she'd been doing it her whole life. "We have ten minutes left," she reminded her curtly before heading out the door and down the stairs.
"Fuck," She leaned against the wall of the building, wishing fervently for a cigarette, though she'd given up smoking years ago. Hot tears pricked the corners of her eyelids, only serving to annoy her more. What the fuck was happening to her? She hardly ever cried to begin with and certainly never over a girl. Piper Chapman was legitimately fucking with her head, even if she wasn't meaning to.
A quick glance at her phone told her everyone was due back soon and there was no way she was about to let Nicky and Poussey see that she'd shed tears over something she should've had control over, a control which she'd prided herself on.
Wiping her eyes, careful not to smear her eyeliner, Alex popped next door to grab an iced cappuccino, downed it in ten seconds, and headed back inside.
Thankfully, her other bandmates didn't seem to notice anything amiss with her and Piper and they got through the entire set three times before Alex was satisfied enough to break them at seven. Luckily, she and the singer only had to speak at brief intervals and then it was only concerning tempos and asking if she wanted to pick up again from the chorus.
"Thank fucking God," Nicky put her bass in its case. "Vause, you're a fucking goddess for getting us out of here early. I'm buying us all dinner and drinks and I won't take no for an answer."
"One drink," Alex frowned. "Do you not recall last night?"
"I'm not going to vomit on anybody's shoes, I promise," Piper interjected, carefully wrapping the mic cord. "And I'll pay you back for your boots," she tossed over her shoulder to Alex.
"And I already told you, it was fine," The guitarist responded tightly without looking at her.
"What the fuck?" She caught Poussey mouthing to Nicky who shrugged. Alex shook her head at both of them and gestured for them to continue packing up.
"You comin'?" Poussey asked the blonde as they lugged equipment down the stairs.
"Uh, sure. I mean I guess dinner would be fine. I have to eat, right?" She turned slightly toward Alex who was behind her on the staircase. "If that's OK with you."
"Why wouldn't it be," she replied haughtily and the second the words flew out of her mouth, she felt completely fucking stupid. She sounded less like an adult and more like those little bitches who had tortured her in middle school.
Well, fuck, she rationalized miserably, If Piper's gonna shut me out for having an opinion, what does she expect? Larry was a douche bag. Nothing Piper did to defend him was going to convince her otherwise.
"Alright, cut the bull shit, what the fuck is going on with you two today?" The bassist blurted, rushing up along side them to go back upstairs. "You've been weird since we got back from breaking. What gives, huh?"
"Nothing," They replied in defensive unison, causing Poussey to nearly drop her drum kit down the staircase.
"Gross. You guys even fight in unision," Nicky mutterd, making a face. "C'mom, let's get the rest of this shit in the rental. Meet somewhere in half an hour? Piper, you coming with me? I got room up front."
The blonde shook her head. "No, you go ahead. Text me and I'll meet you where ever. I need to walk for awhile."
As soon as she headed down the street, Nicky turned to her friend questionigly.
"Don't ask, dude. I really don't wanna get into it right now."
"Shit, you're serious. You just did your "I'm serious right now" thing where you push your glasses on the top of your head, ya know?" Nicky said, squinting. "OK, I won't say anything else about it but shit, Vause, you two were fucking cold...like I got frostbite."
"Just get in the damn car, please."
Not soon after, they'd gathered at The Gage, an Irish pub. Piper had gotten there first and secured them a four top and Alex couldn't help but observe, even in her irritated state that she'd changed into a long patterned skirt and fitted tank top almost identical to the color of her eyes. She looked up from the menu briefly at her when they had come in and Alex had gotten a quick pang of hope that she'd speak to her again but she'd simply murmured a monosylic, "Hi," and went back to reading the menu as if it were the most interesting thing in the world.
Playing games wasn't something she was in the mood for at all, so she took the seat next to Nicky at the table, forcing Poussey to sit with Piper (she knew the drummer wouldn't mind).
"Vause, can I just say, you look hot tonight," Nicky winked. "Pitcher of Stella," she ordered when the waitress came over. "Keep em' coming," she fished out her credit card to start a tab. "No, really though, you look good. You gonna pick up a girl?"
Alex hadn't given herself more than a quick glimpse in the mirror before she'd left the hotel, but she supposed she looked OK, having actually put in more of an effort than her usual uniform of a blank tank top, black skinny jeans, and boots. She wore a black and white halter dress, with ample cleavage, her hair long and loose, and red lipstick.
"Maybe," she demurred, pouring herself a glass of beer when the pitcher arrived. "Ladies?" She busied herself pouring beer for everyone else, pretending not to notice Piper staring at her.
"What's it been, man, two weeks?" Poussey laughed, sipping her drink.
"Mmm, more like a month."
"A month?! Shit, man, that's a fucking dry spell, that's what that is," Nicky declared. "The question is, Vause, what are you gonna do about it?"
"She's gonna find a pretty girl in here and buy her a drink, right Vause?" The drummer grinned. "You up for a challenge?"
"What's that?" Piper asked, closing her menu.
"One of us picks out a girl for another one of us. The challenge is to get the girl to take us home." The bassist explained, looking around the restaurant. "How about that one?" She pointed to a statuesque redhead sitting at the bar by herself, drinking a martini and reading.
"Sure, why not?" The girl was attractive enough and God knew after today, she needed the release.
"So you're just going to let a random girl take you home?" Piper asked incredulously. "But you don't even know her...what if she's like a serial killer or something?"
"Yeah, Chapman, total serial killer material right there," Nicky pointed out. "She's reading fucking Whitman."
"What do you care who I go home with?" Alex questioned, a little more harshly than she'd intended and she could tell by the look in Piper's eyes that she was taken aback but she recovered quickly.
"I don't," she said carelessly. "I just think it's kind of sleazy, that's all. Something guys would do. Did you say you were too old to be someone's conquest? Doesn't it work both ways?"
Eyes gleaming, Alex turned to Nicky. "Challenge accepted. Order me a burger and bring it back to the hotel for me, please." Chugging back the rest of her beer, she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and headed toward the bar. "Don't wait up, ladies."
Getting the redhead (whose name was Rachel) to take her back to her apartment had turned out to be easier than Alex had expected. Rachel had both cats and a roomate who was home when they stumbled into her bedroom, tugging off clothes and giggling from one too many drinks. She tasted like rum and cokes and strawberry lip gloss and Alex had to cover her mouth when she came to keep from waking up the roomate.
It was nearly one in the morning when she dressed in the dark, leaving Rachel snoring softly in the twin bed with pink sheets. Ordinarily, she at least stuck around for a little while, long enough to make some awkward small talk, but this time she felt itchy in her own skin. The release had been nice but it hadn't been enough to quell the creeping anxiety in her bones so she caught a cab back to her hotel room.
Nicky had left her burger on the desk and Alex smiled when she saw it. Deciding to jump into the shower first, she let the warm water wash over her, wishing it would sweep away some of sadness lingering on the surface of her skin.
Finally, she got out, wrapped her long hair in a towel and dressed quickly in pajama shorts and a tank top. Settling down in bed, she switched on the TV and prepared to eat her dinner. She'd just cracked open the styrofoam container when there was a knock at the door.
"Hit me up for details later, Nick," Alex grumbled, getting up to peer through the peephole. "Shit," she muttered when she saw who it was. Quickly she unlatched the chain and wordlessly opened the door to let her guest in.
"Hey," Piper said breathlessly, "Sorry it's so late. I came by earlier but you weren't here. I uh...yeah." She came into the room and sat down on the unmade bed. "I'm guessing you probably want to know why I'm here. The truth is...I really don't know why."
Gingerly, making sure there was adequate space between them, Alex sat down next to her. "I'm kinda at a loss myself here, Pipes."
The blonde looked down at the duvet. "You were right. About me asking myself those questions. There's so many things I have questions about...things I just don't know the answers to. I think I was mad because some small part of me knows you're right, Alex, that marrying Larry is a really bad idea. And there's this other part of me..."
"Yeah?"
"I used to know who I was. What I wanted. There were no questions, no doubts. But then I auditioned for you guys and you took my hand. And...fuck, Al. I felt something. I'm not sure what it was but you touched me and I forgot how to fucking speak. And then I got to know you and we played together and it was so amazing and I just kept feeling all these crazy things that I couldn't really think about because I don't understand them." She was quiet then. "And I think our fight was less about Larry and more about...about me. About you and me, I mean. The way you make me feel."
"How do I make you feel?" Alex's heart thudded wildly in her chest and Piper looked at her then and Alex saw fear in the endless ocean pools of her eyes. Fear but something else too...longing and hope.
"See, that's the problem," Piper whispered, "I don't know. It's confusing. You like, confuse me."
Alex laughed but kindly and she reached out to touch her forearm but stopped. "I don't blame you. I'm a confusing person."
"I should go," Piper murmured but she made no move to leave, instead closing the small gap between them, the warmth of her body emanating off of her.
"You should," Alex agreed softly. Piper was so close now she could smell her shampoo, see the thin layer of goosebumps that had formed on her arm, feel how despite her words, she knew just what she wanted.
Their eyes connected again and she couldn't look away. Like an addict who couldn't get enough, she was prepared to dive into their depths, get lost in them.
Then Piper took her face in both of her hands, the pads of her thumbs slowly stroking her cheeks. In slow motion, she leaned forward and captured Alex's lips with her own.
Time seemed to stop. It was only Piper and only her lips, soft and hungry, her hand tentatively stroking her back. It was their tongues meeting and moans and delicious hot mouths as they sunk deeper and deeper into the kiss.
And then all too soon, Piper had broken away, wild eyed and disheveled, like a beautiful animal, leaving Alex completely breathless and void, as if she'd been missing Piper's kiss all along and without it, there was a profound emptiness.
"Oh God," Piper put a hand to her mouth, "God, Alex, I am so sorry. I completely...that was so out of character...shit. I'm sorry, I have to-"she gestured toward the door.
"Piper, wait," Alex began.
But Piper had already sprung up, her hand on the door knob. "I gotta go. I...I'll see you tomorrow."
The door shut loudly behind her and Alex collapsed backwards onto the bed, flushed and turned on and thoroughly confused. She wasn't sure what the fuck just happened but she knew one thing.
She was royally fucked.
