Sorry for the short and random updates, but when inspiration strikes who am I to try and contain it or bend it to my will? I'm having a lot of fun writing this fic and although I have a lot of vague ideas, I'm for the most part pretty much reading this fic as you guys are!
Please do comment as I use them to draw ideas from. Who knows, you might end up altering the course of this destiny!
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On my way to my next shift at the bar, Shay let me know that she would meet me there and bring me some supper. We hadn't seen each other in a few days as she had spent most of her time preparing for exams, so she wanted to just pop in to see me quick and grab the keys to my apartment where I would meet her later.
I had barely clocked in for my shift when I heard the bell above the door chime, alerting me to my girlfriend's entrance.
I looked up and my heart stood still.
Apparently this was also the night Emily decided to hunt me down and surprise me.
"Hey babe! I've missed you!" Shay bound over and hopped onto the counter in order to lean in and give me a kiss; a kiss I was too distracted to invest in as I saw the sheepish look on Emily's face.
Shay noticed and turned back to face Emily.
"Em, this is the one and only Paige. Babe, this is Emily. We met in class. Remember that extra literature course? Emily is studying English."
Shay was visibly excited and had obviously told Emily about me. I felt guilty for all she didn't know and was about to make up some lame excuse when Emily interjected.
"It's so nice to meet you." Emily decided to go with play-pretend and reached her hand over the counter in greeting. I shook it slowly, unsure what to say next, but Emily quickly filled the gap.
"Shay tells me you're a tattoo artist. That's pretty interesting." The tone of her voice could melt butter.
"Ah I'm only an apprentice at the moment. That's why I have to work two jobs." I shrugged shyly and lowered my hand back to the counter.
"Babe, Em here was thinking of getting a tattoo done. Aren't you in need of more canvases?" Shay bubbled on, unaware of how her choice in words triggered the memory of risky text messages at one in the morning.
"Well I'd be happy to offer up my body, for the sake of art, of course." Emily gave me a smirk that spoke volumes and I could feel the blood rush to my cheeks.
"So it's settled then." Shay clapped her hands together happily, then hopped to the next topic, leaving my mouth still dry from the images running through my mind.
Why did I have to be such a visual person?
"Babe, I'm taking Em with to your place. We're going to just relax and watch a movie." Shay held out her hand for my keys and I handed them over with a heavy heart.
Emily was going to be in my space.
With my girlfriend.
While I'm at work.
The equation seemed all wrong but there was nothing I could do or say in protestation without Shay figuring out that something was off, as I would normally never have an issue with her socializing with a friend at my place.
I couldn't get the thought out of my head all evening, and it was still stuck in the forefront of my brain as I carefully made my way through the front door at 2 am. The small lamp next to the couch was switched on and sitting by its side, basking in its glow, was Emily Fields.
I moved silently closer, locking my eyes with her gaze and stopped a few feet in front of her. She smiled at me but I scowled when I saw what was resting in her lap. It was my art journal that I used for drawing my tattoo designs.
"That's personal. Not even Shay gets to go through it without supervision." My voice was irritated, though I had the suspicion that my blazing nerves were more because of Emily being in such intimate proximity to my life. I felt exposed and it was making me feel weary and agitated.
"I'm sorry..." Her smile slowly faded, then her eyes were cast down at the journal again. "I didn't actually page through it. It was open on this and I just haven't been able to tear my eyes away."
I stepped slowly closer and sunk into the couch next to her, reaching for my journal to get a better look at what had her so captivated. It was my wolf lady that had been troubling me for weeks, and suddenly I knew why.
It wasn't just some random woman or random wolf. It was Emily.
"Paige I'm sorry!" She uttered in panic as I flew off the couch and over to my desk to grab some drawing tools, but I didn't reply as my hands took over. I was soon back on the couch and furiously started to edit my design as the inspiration flowed through me; energy fed straight into my veins, the source sitting beside me.
Whereas before the woman was wearing the Wolf like a cape, now the wolf was one with the woman, their souls inexplicably connected, looking out at the world with the same eyes. Dark tendrils of hair tangled into thick tufts of fur, while coat markings mingled with tribal paint.
It was finally perfect.
It was perfectly Emily.
"Do you want it?" I finally asked after handing the journal over to Emily and allowing her a few minutes to observe it. I was nervous at first, her silence worrying me. Then I studied the expression on her face and saw that she had found a piece of herself.
"Oh my god, yes..." Her eyes were full of wonderment as they gazed at me, like a hopeful child on Christmas morning.
I had to pause and admire the moment for memory's sake. It was beautiful. The raw emotion painted on Emily's face made her seem almost child-like, giddy and overwhelmed at the best unexpected present in the universe. A golden glow radiated from her and blended with my own energy, bestowing the gentlest touch upon my soul.
And somewhere a butterfly fluttered its wings.
"My planner is at work. I'll phone you tomorrow when I've had a look at it and we can arrange a time." My words grew in excitement and by the end I had a huge smile on my face, one that Emily was reciprocating happily.
Silence slowly crept up on us and thickened the atmosphere.
I watched Emily's eyes dip down to my lips. I knew what she wanted because I could feel it. I could feel her desire and I could feel her pull like a growing sun.
Most of all, the feeling was mutual...
I couldn't anymore. I could not deny myself of her any longer.
The moment slowed down and I pondered the nature of sin and what I was about to do and how I really didn't care...
I felt her breath on my lips, hot and insistent.
I knew her taste before I could even reach her.
I could already taste myself in her heat.
I could...
"Babe, you home?" Shay's voice cut through the air and shattered the bubble Emily and I had nestled ourselves into. We jumped to opposite ends of the couch for good measure.
"Yeah babe, I just came in." I called up to the loft area where Shay was still in bed, clearly very sleepy despite how jarring her voice was to us.
"Okay, Em is sleeping over. Don't bother her." Shay uttered through a yawn and no doubt rolled over and went back to sleep, leaving Emily and I to stare at each other with bated breath.
Finally we managed to relax slightly and I knew it was my cue to exit the situation before something happened that we couldn't take back. I moved from my seat and paused, thinking for a minute before I turned back to Emily and whispered to her.
"I just... I don't know... Are you here right now because of Shay, or ultimately because of me?" I arched my brows slightly and waited for her answer; an answer that would probably alter the course of my future forever.
The irony was, however, that I wasn't sure which answer I wanted to hear more.
"Paige⦠Don't make me answer that... Please... " Emily's features became pained and filled with concern and I couldn't quite understand why.
I let it be and let myself seek solace in bed, drifting off to the thoughts swarming around my head: Did she not want to admit that I was it, afraid she might seem not only callous, but also a little crazy; or did she not want to tell me that she had a genuine friendly interest in Shay and that this is all a twisted coincidence, but risk hurting me.
I was soon floating through torrid dreams and sweet moments of regret. But all I remembered when I woke was the sensation of being caught in a spider's web.
