Alex walked down the few steps to the door of Cubby Hole. After multiple outfit changes, she had decided on a sparkly silver top, skinny jeans and her favorite leather boots. The biggest debate she had was whether or not to wear her glasses. She typically preferred them as they gave her an inexplicable sense of security, almost as if they kept out the world at large. But, she had resolved to wear them less these days as she tried to become more of the person she wanted to be. After a lengthy internal struggle, she decided to afford herself the minor solace of her glasses since she was already going way out of her comfort zone.

God, I haven't been here in a while, she thought as she walked in. It must have been 5 years. The bar was smaller than she remembered and she hadn't quite appreciated the kitschy atmosphere as much as she did now. It was kind of like an eclectic hoarder's living room but in a cleaner, less disgusting way. She silently reproached herself for watching Hoarders.

Olivia stood at the end of the bar, on the opposite side of the entrance. She had a good view of who was coming and going and couldn't stop herself from glancing toward the door, anticipating the arrival of the blonde. She wasn't sure why she felt so nervous. Relax, she thought, downing the rest of her whiskey.

"Liv, have you heard from Sutton? Is she coming?" Jamie asked as she pulled her long, reddish-brown hair up into a ponytail.

Olivia was grateful for the distraction and happy she had her friends with her tonight.

"Mmmm, well, she emailed me last week but didn't mention tonight. But I guess I'm babysitting Reese while she and John are away in Montreal."

"That whore" Jamie exclaimed, slamming her drink down dramatically. "She promised me that WE were going to go to Montreal for my 35th birthday, WITHOUT John. I'm going to kill her."

"Great, please pick a fight a tonight. It will be so much fun for the rest of us" Rachel chimed in sarcastically.

"Would you prefer I pick a fight with you, Rach? Cause I'm sure I can muster up something to yell at you for" Jamie retorted.

"You couldn't possibly get mad at me, you love me too much" Rachel said and pulled Jamie into a hug, kissing her persistently on the cheek until Jamie gave in, laughing and squirming away.

"Ok, ok, off of me, woman. I want to look single in case someone catches my eye" Jamie said.

Olivia smiled at the two. She loved her friends and was grateful to spend time with them. But she still had an uneasy feeling about the night. And about Alex.

God, why am I so anxious about this? she wondered.

Alex began walking through the packed bar, scanning the room as she went. She didn't spot Olivia until she was nearly halfway across the bar.

Once she saw the detective, she was all she could see. Olivia looked sexier than usual leaning casually against the shorter edge of the long bar. She was wearing a tight black top, jeans and a dark leather jacket. Her slightly-past-her-shoulder-length hair fell in front of her face and she pushed it back behind her ear.

Alex hadn't realized that she was no longer moving through the crowd, that she was standing still. Staring. At that moment, Olivia glanced up and smiled at her. The familiar, bizarre pang hit Alex and for a moment, she felt close to identifying the feeling for what it really was. But then it was gone.

Olivia's smile widened and she waved her over as two cute brunettes sitting in stools surrounding the detective turned around and smiled, almost in unison.

Jamie turned back to Olivia as Alex made her way over.

"Fuck, she's hot" she whispered.

"Don't be an animal" Olivia warned quietly under her breath, maintaining her smile and watching as Alex finally made her way over to the women.

"Hey, so glad you could make it" Olivia said warmly, trying her best to sound natural. She had been taken aback for a moment by how beautiful Alex had looked standing across the bar.

She gently put her hand on Alex's back.

Alex held her breath, the warmth of Olivia's hand unexpected. And kind of nice.

"So this is Rachel and this is Jamie. This is Alex, guys" Olivia said.

Before anyone could get a word out, a woman with jet-black hair sidled up to the group.

"And I'm Sutton, really nice to meet you Alex."

Sutton shook Alex's hand before greeting the rest of the women with shrieks and hugs. Olivia pulled over a stool for Alex and leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"Sutton had a baby 9 months ago so she's a little excited to be out. Plus, she's naturally a shrieker. We try not to hold it against her."

"Ah, I see" Alex said. Her ear tickled where Olivia's warm breath washed over.

"Sutton, what do you want to drink? Rach, Jamie and I already have one on you."

"Vodka soda" said Sutton.

"Alex?"

"I will... have... a Dos Equis" Alex decided quickly as she started to field myriad questions from the three women.

Olivia was happy to see her friends embrace Alex and vice versa. She shouldn't have been surprised. Rachel, Jamie and Sutton were pretty much universally loved by anyone who met them. Plus, they were great at getting others to open up. Including Olivia. Despite her natural ability to connect with people and make them feel safe, she was fairly guarded when it came to her own feelings. Even with her good friends.

She ordered the drinks and a round of shots from the bartender. When she had handed them out to everyone, Jamie decided to make a toast.

"To Alex for joining us tonight and for finally, at long last, providing the group our very own token blonde" she joked.

"Glad to help out where I can" Alex said.

Everyone clinked glasses and drank their shot. Olivia couldn't help but notice Alex out of the corner of her eye. She gracefully downed the shot, tipping her head back, exposing the length of her neck. Olivia smiled at her and she received a very slight, very Alex-like smile in return.

God, she's so pretty, Olivia thought before she could stop herself.