Piper finished two essays and studied for her final exams in history and calculus before crashing on the sofa with a thud and a sigh, television remote control in hand.

"We're going to the mall to look for a present for Alex's graduation," Diane stated. "Wanna come?"

"No, thanks." She flung her head back, addressing Diane upside down. "I just spent the past six hours doing homework and just want to do something that doesn't involve thinking."

Cal looked up at his father. "Can I buy a comic book?"

Bill grabbed his keys and walked towards the front door. "Don't you have 20 comic books already?"

"Yeah, but there's this one called Bone…" Cal walked outside, still yammering.

Piper flipped on the television, not caring what she watched as long as it was mindless. It was between The Fugitive and Jurassic Park, and she settled for Harrison Ford over Jeff Goldblum.

"You awake?"

She had no idea how long she'd dozed off, but when she awoke, Alex was standing in front of her. "Oh…yeah." She rubbed her sleepy eyes. "Hi."

Alex smiled. "The Fugitive?"

"Yeah." She sat up, back against the armrest, legs still splayed across the length of the sofa. "Did you know that Richard Kimble's limp in the movie is real? Harrison Ford tore a ligament in his knee during the escape scene in the woods and decided to postpone surgery until after filming."

Alex had already changed into jeans and a gray t-shirt, and her hair was wet. "Are you into weird movie trivia?" She grinned, picking up Piper's legs and sitting next to her. She placed the blonde's legs across her lap.

"I read a lot of reviews and general commentary about films," she replied, surprised that Alex hadn't chosen to sit in one of the two recliners. Her heart fluttered at their proximity, but she tried to keep her cool. "There was a time when I thought I might want to be a screenwriter."

Alex's hands were perfectly still on Piper's shins. "You could still do that, you know."

"True." Piper tied her hair in a low ponytail, needing to busy her nervous hands with a task. "How long have you been home?"

"Long enough to shower and change." She reached for the remote and turned the volume on the TV lower. "Is anyone home?"

Piper could smell the tropical lotion that Alex must've rubbed all over her body. "No, they went shopping." She hoped her nervousness would pass quickly, but then Alex returned her hands to her bare legs. Piper was grateful that she'd shaved that morning.

"You have very long legs," the brunette commented around a chuckle.

"They go all the way to my hips," she joked, feeling the uneasiness of the smile she shot her companion.

Alex turned her attention back to the television. Her thumb made little circles on Piper's calf, and it took all of the blonde's willpower not to jump on her. There was something incredibly sensual about Alex, and Piper assumed she had no trouble finding girls, rather women, to kiss.

"Do you recognize that actress?" the brunette asked.

Piper didn't think Alex was going to make a move on her—touching her leg was probably as far as she would go for fear of Piper's reaction if she went too far. So she took matters into her own hands and swung her legs from the brunette's lap and sat next to her, not close enough to touch, but close enough to feel Alex's breath on her forehead when she twisted her head to watch Piper adjusting her position on the sofa.

"Jane Lynch," Piper offered, eyes trained on the TV.

"She was so young." Alex swiveled her head again, returning her attention to the movie.

Although Piper's hands were sweaty, she tentatively reached for the brunette's—she wasn't going to let this moment pass. Her fingertips brushed Alex's pinky, and Piper looked at her lap, and then back up at the brunette. She troubled her lower lip as she stared into Alex's eyes behind black frames. A tiny grin formed on Alex's face, and Piper felt her tangle their fingers together.

"Well, then," Alex remarked, grin now broader.

The blonde squeezed her hand and smiled. "Yeah."

Alex reached out with her other hand to tuck a piece of hair behind Piper's ear. "I'm assuming you remember what happened last night."

She nodded; it was now or never. "I assume you understood that I wasn't talking about kissing just any girl."

"Yeah," Alex chuckled. "You weren't exactly subtle."

Piper glanced at her full lips, and then looked back into her eyes. Before she knew it, Alex was leaning down and kissing her. It was three little pecks followed by a slightly open-mouthed kiss.

The brunette put her hand on Piper's cheek and silently checked to see if what she was doing was welcomed.

Piper answered by closing the gap between them. This time, they did away with the little pecks and opened their mouths to properly kiss. Piper felt kind of the way she did the night before: intoxicated, but this time not on booze. Alex snaked her tongue inside, and Piper whimpered. She could feel the brunette smile against her lips. It was still gentle, but then Piper put her fingers around Alex's wrist and deepened the kiss. They kissed in that position for several minutes until Alex pulled back.

She ran her hand down Piper's cheek and smirked. "That's what it feels like to kiss a girl."

"Fuck," was all she could say. Piper reached for Alex again, this time placing her hand on the back of her dark hair and drawing her closer. She couldn't believe how absolutely marvelous it felt.

Unlike Larry, Alex's lips were full and soft, and there was no stubble on her face. Her mouth was much smaller, and it almost felt cozy. In that moment, Piper didn't know if she'd ever go back to kissing boys.

Alex pulled away again.

"You're an excellent kisser," the blonde offered, running her fingertips through Alex's hair.

She wiped Piper's glistening lower lip. "So are you."

"Really?" The blonde twisted her head a bit to kiss the pad of Alex's thumb.

"Yes."

Piper heard a key in the door and jumped as far away from Alex as she could. She cocked one leg up on the sofa and twirled her hair with her index finger. As casually as she could, she looked back at her family as they entered the home.

"We're back," her father said needlessly.

"Buy anything fun?" Alex asked. She hadn't moved an inch.

"I got that new comic book!" Cal ran over to show Alex.

The family talked for a few minutes before Alex excused herself to her bedroom. Piper was left with slightly swollen lips and a crush that was growing by the minute.

After their kiss, Alex entered her room and shut the door. She'd spend exactly 10 minutes studying for a quiz that she'd have first period the next day, and then probably go to sleep. Of course, kissing Piper distracted her to no end. She didn't expect the blonde to be such a talented kisser. Alex lifted her fingers to her lips and closed her eyes, remembering the feeling of Piper's thin lips against her fuller ones.

She shook her head and sighed. There was no way for this to end well, she thought. They couldn't be in a full-blown relationship due to their circumstances, and she didn't even know if that's what Piper wanted. Hell, she didn't know if it was what she wanted. There was no question that she was attracted to Piper—she'd figured that out the night she sat next to the swimming pool. But Alex was graduating from high school and had high hopes of living a life on her own in Manhattan.

If Piper wanted to experiment, Alex was all for it. She thought about her perky breasts and a grin crossed her face as she pictured Piper's nipples. Alex wondered if the blonde kept her pubic hair trimmed nice & neat and if it was the same color as the hair on her head. She inhaled deeply, thinking about putting her mouth on Piper's center and wondering what she tasted like.

No, no, no…she tried to banish those thoughts as she rolled over in her bed to try going to sleep. Almost of its own volition, Alex's hand reached between the juncture of her thighs, under the waistband of her underwear and began exploring her folds. She rubbed her clit with her index and middle fingers, picturing Piper's head between her legs, licking her. It took four minutes for Alex to orgasm.

Piper was so busy with studying for AP exams, competing at the state competition in track, and doing college research that she didn't have time to try making out with Alex again. For her part, Alex was working multiple shifts at Salvatore's and just hoping to graduate. They were like ships passing in the night at the Chapman home, but when they did see each other, Alex would sometimes wink at her or give her an intimate, knowing smile.

The blonde enjoyed their flirtations and longed to kiss Alex again, but she wasn't sure how far she wanted to go. She'd masturbated the other night, thinking about Alex's tongue in her center, and that pretty much informed her what she really desired, but going that far in reality was still a big question in her mind. Piper was a virgin for no particular reason other than she hadn't wanted to sleep with Larry or any other person at school.

Graduation came and went, and the family celebrated Alex's diploma by going to a restaurant other than Salvatore's—although Alex thought the food at her place of employment was delicious, the brunette was tired of Italian cuisine.

Piper was surprised that she and Alex could mostly act as if nothing happened between them. A big part of her was ready to ask the brunette how they should proceed, but Alex seemed to be the type to let things flow naturally.

Not long after graduation, Alex went to New York to spend a few days with her friend, Nicky, whom Piper had yet to meet. She'd told the blonde that she had "somewhat of a lead" on a job in the City, but it wasn't enough to inform her mom of the possibility.

Piper had gotten a job at the local country club as a lifeguard and was excited about working on her tan for 20 hours a week.

The brunette had purchased a pair of black, patent leather pumps and a professional-looking black and blue dress to meet with Liza Pope that day. Alex had never been interviewed by anyone, so she was anxious about a line of questioning that she knew she could very well fuck up. Nicky tried to get her drunk the night before, but Alex refused. This had the potential of being something big, and she didn't want to show up hungover with bags under her eyes.

She took the Subway to the Chanin Building in Midtown and rode the elevator to the sixth floor as her hands began to sweat. Alex wasn't accustomed to being nervous—nothing typically rattled her, so she tried to convince herself that she could handle an interview, no problem.

"Hi, may I help you?" A blonde receptionist greeted her.

She ran her palm down her side. "I'm Alex Vause. I have an appointment with Liza Pope."

"She'll be with you shortly." The blonde answered a ringing phone. "Elite Model Management, Brittany speaking."

Alex looked around the room, taking in the framed black & white photos of models, all of whom were gorgeous. There was no way Liza Pope wanted to meet with her about modeling—she wasn't that attractive.

"Alex, hello." Liza strutted into the lobby, hand extended.

She shook the older woman's hand. "Nice to see you."

"Yes, and not at Salvatore's." She opened the door. "Let's go back to my office, shall we?"

It was a smaller space than Alex had expected with only two small offices that she could see off the main hallway. They arrived in Liza's office, which was as well-appointed as Liza was dressed.

"You look very nice, by the way." Liza closed the door behind them.

Alex tucked her hair behind her ear. "Thanks."

"Stay standing." The well-dressed woman lowered her glasses and looked over the rims as she took a spin around Alex, eyeing her up and down.

She felt awkward, just standing there, and put a hand on her hip.

"Please, have a seat." Liza sat behind her ornate wooden desk. "I'm just going to cut to the chase. You have a…look about you, Alex," she stated. "It's a look we're relentlessly searching for at Elite. Have you ever considered modeling?"

"No," she chortled.

"Now might be the time." Liza removed her eyeglasses and held them between both hands. "By the end of the month, I'm hiring nine models to work in Milan, and I think you could be one of them."

Alex let out a surprised laugh. "Me? A model in Milan?"

"Don't worry—we'd teach you how to walk and obviously give you clothes to wear." She wrote something on a pad of paper. "The rest just comes naturally."

Alex blinked heavily almost as if waking from a dream. "Wow, ok."

"We need to get some photos of you before this is a done deal, but if you have three or four hours to spare tomorrow, I can have an answer for you by the end of the week. That is, if you're interested."

"Yes, of course. I can come by tomorrow." She folded her hands in her lap. "Does this sort of thing pay, or would it be, like, an internship or something?"

Liza threw her head back with laughter. "Yes, darling. 'This thing' pays quite well." She grabbed a stack of papers off of the printer and handed them to Alex. "If you're selected, you'd start out with a $5,000 signing bonus, and we'd cover the cost of travel and pay for accommodations." Liza stood and held her arm out as if requesting that they leave the office. "We'll go over the details if the executive director offers you a contract, and this stack of papers should provide you with further information. Stop by the front desk on your way out and have Brittany schedule some time for the photo shoot tomorrow."

"I don't know what to say," Alex replied with humility and shock in her voice.

Liza smiled. "Thanks for coming in, Alex. I'll see you tomorrow."

The brunette scheduled her photo shoot for the next day, and as soon as she exited the building, her first thought was to call Piper.

She boarded the Subway, cell phone in hand, ready to call the blonde, but she didn't hit the green button to put the call through. They'd only kissed the one time, so it wasn't like they had a thing. Sure, they flirted, mostly in silence at home, but it hadn't led anywhere. Perhaps Piper really did only want to kiss a girl and feel that exhilaration. Maybe Piper had determined that she wasn't into girls—or Alex in particular.

She tried not to concern herself with Piper—she had bigger things to worry about, like landing a modeling gig in Milan. She couldn't wait to celebrate with Nicky.

Alex had been gone four days, and Piper's mood deteriorated as the days went on. She knew all she had to do to find out when Alex would return was text her, but Piper was too confused about their situation to make first contact. If Alex wanted to be in touch, she knew how to reach her.

The first good thunderstorm of the summer rolled through town that afternoon, and the pool was closed due to lightening in the area. Piper sulked around the house for much of the day as Cal was at camp and her father and Diane were at work. She finished reading one novel and then started another when Alex barged in.

Piper sat taller on the sofa. "Alex!"

She didn't expect to be this overjoyed upon seeing Piper, but butterflies flitted around her stomach. "Hi."

"How was New York?" She closed The Sound and the Fury. "Did you get a job offer?"

"It was great, but I'll talk to you about it later. I have to be at Salvatore's in 10 minutes." Alex stood behind the sofa and put a hand on Piper's shoulder. "Brandon is outside waiting for me."

The blonde looked up at her with dejected eyes. "Ok."

"I wish I could spend time with you right now," Alex sighed, squeezing Piper's shoulder. "But I really have to go."

She smiled weakly. "I think my dad is taking us to Salvatore's tonight for dinner, so I guess I'll see you then."

"Good." Alex leaned down and kissed her on the forehead, and then disappeared in her room to change into her work outfit. She returned minutes later, speeding down the hallway and opening the front door. "Later, kid."

Piper threw her head back on the sofa cushion and sighed. Alex had kissed her forehead—that counted for something—but it was more of the same gestures that they'd displayed days and weeks after their kiss. The blonde was convinced that Alex was "into her" for that moment in time, and now that she'd given Piper what she wanted, the brunette probably had no interest in pursuing things further. After all, she was just a girl.

Piper had nearly a week to think about what she sought from Alex, and that's where her mind was singularly focused. She could finally admit that she wanted more than a one-time lip lock. She wanted to get to know Alex better, and she definitely wanted to make out beyond what they'd done on the sofa. Piper wanted Alex to touch her intimately, but she didn't know how to make that known to the brunette.

Her dad and Diane came home, made Cal shower and change clothes, and then they all piled into the Mercedes to go to Salvatore's for dinner.

"You know, I've never seen Alex at work." Diane smiled.

"Here's your chance." Bill put his hand on her leg. "I'm sorry she won't be able to join us for dinner."

"Oh, that's alright! She eats here every night anyway."

They pulled under the wood-beamed overhang, and Alex greeted the family. "Welcome to Salvatore's," she said with an eye roll.

Piper smiled bashfully as if the air between them had changed. "Hi."

She grinned. "Hey."

Diane walked around the car to hug her daughter. "Look at you, all professional!"

"Not when you hug me like that," Alex complained with a tiny smile on her face.

"I'm just proud of you, kid," Diane said.

"If you can get away even for ten minutes, please join us," Bill offered.

"Ok."

The family walked into the restaurant, and Piper swiveled her head around. Alex had already gotten into Bill's car and started the engine. The blonde frowned as they were shown to their table and Alex was nowhere to be seen.

After their entrée's Piper fidgeted with her fork, and then her napkin, and then the hem of her skirt. She couldn't keep still. "I'm going to go say hi to Alex."

"Sounds good, honey," her father said.

She stood. "No dessert for me. I'll just meet you at the car."

"Can I have her dessert?" Cal asked before Piper was out of earshot.

She walked out of the restaurant and spotted Alex leaning against the stone wall, talking to one of the other valets. "Hey."

"Hi." She tucked a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

Alex pushed herself off of the wall. "This is Jeremy."

Piper shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you."

"He thinks you're cute," Alex said with a wide grin.

He punched her arm.

She rubbed her bicep. "What? You made the comment as soon as Piper got out of the car."

His face turned almost as red as his hair. "You weren't supposed to tell her that!"

"Sorry, Jeremy." Piper looked directly at Alex and hoped her next statement made her intentions clear. "But I'm not into boys."

The brunette hooked an eyebrow and pursed her lips.

"I've got this one, Jeremy." A car rolled up, and Alex walked around to the driver's side. "Piper, why don't you come with me?"

"Am I allowed to do that?"

"No," the pimple-faced boy said, looking at Alex like she was his worst enemy.

Ignoring the young valet, Alex opened the driver's door of the white Audi Q7, had a brief conversation with the owner, and when he stepped inside of the restaurant, Alex motioned for Piper to get in.

Despite it being against the rules, Piper found exhilaration in breaking them. She opened the car door and hopped into the passenger seat.

Alex drove to the back of the restaurant, turning on the windshield wipers as a crash of thunder sounded around them. "So, you're not into boys anymore?"

The blonde blushed. "Not at present time, no."

Alex backed into a parking space on the perimeter of the property, mostly away from the other vehicles. She put her hand on the back of Piper's headrest as she looked behind her. Piper could smell her familiar tropical lotion. She put the car in park and turned off the engine.

Alex grinned. "Does that mean you're into girls?"

"No, not really." Piper leaned her head against the headrest, but her eyes were still trained on Alex. She could feel her heart pounding like a jackhammer. "Just one in particular."

The brunette cupped Piper's cheek. "Do I know her?"

Piper twisted her head even more until her lips met Alex's wrist. "You do."

The women smiled at each other as the rain pelted the sunroof and windshield. Piper couldn't take it any longer. She thrust forward, meeting Alex's lips with her own. This kiss was fierce—there was nothing gentle about it the way their first kiss had been. Piper wanted to express her desire through her mouth, and she hoped Alex recognized the desperate yearning that coursed through every vein of her body.

Tongues tangled as much as arms, and Alex hooked one of her hands down to move the driver's seat as far back as it could go. When it reached the maximum distance, the women were disjointed, so Piper flung herself onto Alex's lap, a knee on either side of her hips. The brunette positioned Piper perfectly on top of her and snaked her hands under the blonde's shirt.

"Ungh," Piper moaned.

While their mouths were fused together, Alex rubbed Piper's stomach and sides, but didn't move her hands where the blonde wanted them. Piper took matters into her own hands and scooted down until her butt hit the steering wheel and Alex's fingers glided up to cover her breasts.

"Right there," the blonde breathed heavily, and then leaned down to her original position with her tongue in Alex's mouth. "That feels really good."

Alex massaged her tender breasts, lifting her bra above them so flesh could touch flesh. She tweaked the blonde's nipples, and Piper moaned again. Larry had touched her breasts, but she certainly didn't remember it feeling like this. This was other worldly kind of good.

Piper could feel something vibrate between them, and Alex mumbled fuck against her mouth.

She reached for the offending object in her pocket. "Damn, I have to go. There's a line of cars waiting to be parked."

Piper sat up, and their centers were nearly pressed together, so she ground against the brunette. Alex's hands landed on her hips and followed the motion three or four times before pushing away. "I want to do this with you, babe, but I really have to go."

The blonde leaned down for one more kiss, and then grabbed the door handle. She gracelessly hopped off of Alex and exited the car in the rain.

"Run!" Alex yelled, reaching behind her for Piper's hand.

They ran hand-in-hand to the overhang in the back of the building, when Alex finally released her.

"Breaking the rules is fun," Piper whispered as they walked around the corner.

Alex laughed and handed Piper a towel that she pulled from the valets stash on the side of the restaurant. "Dry your head. You wouldn't want your dad thinking we made out in the rain."

Piper smiled. "I don't want my father to think I make out at all!"

She rested one hand lightly on Piper's waist and leaned down to place a tiny kiss on her swollen lips. "Have a good rest of your night."

"You, too." Piper walked alone into the restaurant with a grin so wide, she probably looked like she was high.