Just friends

Author Note: This is my first story, so please let me know what you think. Thanks to PositivelyUncertain for convincing me to publish it.

I own nothing.

She wasn't quite sure how they had ended up here. How she had ended up curled up in the arms of a most beautiful, captivating, amazing girl she'd met in a long time. She also wasn't sure how she'd let these arms be those of a student. Her student. But lying here Jen felt utterly relaxed just chatting about their day, discussing their love of art, talking about her teaching training. Despite them both knowing deep down it was wrong, neither of them really cared right now.

"Maddie really is how I described her from that picture at the art event, isn't she? As well as seeing herself as the queen bee" Jen pointed out.

"Yeah, but it is easier to just go along with her, than to fight it. You get used to her" Tilly explained, "She'll love showing people round at college open day next week"

"Can I have you're help on open day? Need to set the room up and just have an extra pair of hands on standby" Jen asked.

"Yeah sure, I'll have to try and get some work done before though"

"I've got a stack of marking to do. It doesn't get done very effectively when you're mind keeps wandering to a certain person"

"And you're clearly not a distraction at all. You work really hard" Tilly observed

"So do you. And you're so smart" Jen countered.

"Well it was you who told me that I was on track for a place at Cambridge. And you definitely don't get one of those from not working hard" Tilly replied.

"That's true. I swear no-one ever told me as a student teacher I'd have so much marking to do," Jen moaned.

"Yeah, what's with that?" Tilly agreed. "Every time I see you, you seem to have a pile of marking in front of you."

"Someone obviously thinks its good practice or something. Most of it is coursework from students who undoubtedly have submitted the bare minimum for the rest of the year and are now panicking about the amount of work they have left to do"

"Ha yeah, sounds about right" Tilly accepted. "I could never work like that. I have to get on top of it all straight away or it just mounts up."

"Ooo, serious dedication" Jen teased. "You're right though, I hated leaving my uni work till the last minute as something always seemed to happen just before the deadline."

"Do you have a lot of work for your teacher training stuff?" Tilly asked.

"Some, but I'm on top of it all at the moment, thank goodness" Jen said obviously relieved.

"Good" Tilly decided "More time for us to spend together"

"Really? And what gave you the idea I wanted to spend any time with you?" Jen continued to tease.

"Fine then, I'll leave if you like?" Tilly asked making a moving to get up.

Jen grabbed her wrist, preventing her from going any further. "No, don't go."

In these moments together, away from prying eyes, they were just 2 young women getting to know each other. They could be exactly who they wanted to be without the judgement of society or having to conform to the roles that they fitted into.

"Jen?" Tilly said

"Hmm"

"Should this feel wrong?" She queried.

"Probably"

"Because it really doesn't.

"No I know, which makes it really hard to stop" Jen said looking up at Tilly.

Tilly suddenly looked worried, "You don't want to stop do you?"

"You know the answer to that" Jen reassured Tilly "But I'm never going to escape the fact that I'm risking my career, my life's dream on this. That's hard, however much I may want to see you."

"I know. I'm sorry, I promise we will be very careful. I don't want you to get caught. But just for a while can we enjoy it. Because it feels amazing" Tilly smiled, looking at Jen intently.

Up until this moment, all the time Tilly and Jen had spent together they had managed to be just friends. There had been the odd look, which could have tempted them into more, the odd brush of skin, more than friends would do. But nothing had ever happened. However right now they had both got a feeling of the atmosphere changing between them. The way Tilly said that this felt amazing had a subtext laced through it and they both knew it.

Tilly looked at Jen intently as if studying a piece of art or a subject for drawing. She saw how beautiful Jen was, enchanting almost. There was no way that the way Tilly was looking at her now; the tension between them was just as friends. Tilly covered Jen's hand with her own lacing their fingers together, shuffling closer so their legs were virtually touching. Jen looked down at their interlaced hands and then up at Tilly. They were so close; the tension between them was immense. It was taking every ounce of Jen's will power not to devour Tilly as she sat there. All she wanted was to kiss her, to feel her soft skin against her own. Tilly, as if she could read Jen's mind looked at her, first as if for permission before leaning forward and closing the remaining gap between them.

As their lips touched the world around them melted away. The kiss captured weeks of unresolved tension between them. It was tender yet passionate. Every reason Jen was about to give for why they couldn't do this was blocked out by this one kiss. It was too good. There was no way Jen neither wanted nor felt able to give this feeling up. There was no way back from this, and as much as Jen knew she needed to stop it, she didn't want to. The kiss continued into multiple kisses, neither of them wanting the feeling to end. As they pulled away smiling, they just wrapped their arms round each other returning to being curled up on the couch, as if nothing had changed. Although they both knew there was no going back now.

After a while Tilly broke the silence by saying "Please don't say we're still just friends?"