A/N: Sorry it's taken me ages to update again, I just haven't been all that in to writing any of my Skins fics at the moment and work has
been crazy. I'll try to update as often as I can as you guys have been awesome in reading and leaving feedback and I've had this fic planned for a while so I really want to get out! Also for those who commented on Kinesiology tape, it is indeed awesome ;)
"Bollocks."I stare hopelessly at my reflection in the full length mirror on the back of my bedroom door. The dress I'd planned on wearing tonight sits above my knee, showing off the multi-coloured tape that's wrapped around it. I bite my lip as I consider taking it off, but I remember Emily's words of warning about it hurting like a bitch if it's just ripped off. It's not like I could even put it back on if I did manage to get it off and I promised Em I'd try it out for a few days. I'll just have to wear something else.
It takes me an hour to find something else to wear, after pulling out half of my wardrobe I finally settle on some black leggings that stop at my ankle and a white shirt that doubles as a dress. I add a chunky black belt, some red heels and matching beads to complete my outfit. I've already done my hair so I just frump up the soft curls a bit in the mirror before I do my makeup.
"Took your fucking time." Effy rolls her eyes at me as I walk in to the living room and find her already pouring out drinks. The measures of vodka she's adding to the glasses are sure to have me on my arse after my first drink. It's been weeks since we've been out and it shows as I nearly choke on the vodka and coke she hands me. "Pussy." Effy smirks at me as she drinks from her own glass without any problem. I don't know how she does it. The stuff tastes like paint thinner. She knows just how to push my buttons though, so I take another gulp and force myself to swallow it.
"Where are we going tonight then?" I flop down beside her on the sofa and throw my legs over her as I carry on drinking.
"I've got to work till eleven, after that we can go wherever you want; as long as it involves getting you fucked up and fucked."
"Last time you said that Cook tried to take me to a brothel." I wrinkle my nose in distaste at the memory of the seedy place that James Cook took me to after our last night out; one of many of course. Cook is Freddie's best friend, they've known each other for years; not that they have much in common apart from smoking weed.
Cook's alright I suppose, when he's not trying to whisper vulgarities in my ear with his hand creeping up my skirt. He used to try his best to get me in to bed with him when Effy and Freddie first got together. He still does now, but it's mostly for show. He knows he doesn't stand a chance with me. Guys just aren't my thing. Cute redheads who happen to be personal trainers on the other hand… God, I wish Emily had taken me up on my offer to come out tonight. With the measures Effy pours I'd have the confidence to ask her out after one drink; or at the very least find out if she's actually gay or not.
"So what's happening with that girl at the gym? Have you asked her out yet?" Effy quizzes me while still managing to sound like she's not remotely interested in my answer; aloof is Effy's forte.
"I invited her out tonight, but she had plans." I shrug it off like it's no big deal, but Effy sees right through my act. She knows what I'm like. I rarely take a chance an actually ask a girl out. If it wasn't for her or Cook setting me up with girls I wouldn't have ever been out with anyone. I consider myself a pretty confident person. I'll stand up for social justice and shout my mouth off about civil liberties, but when it comes to asking a girl for her phone number I suddenly become a mute. I just can't waltz up to someone and act all cool like Effy does, or cocksure like Cook. I can barely talk to a pretty girl, never mind flirt with one; that's why I'm so amazed at how easily being around Emily is.
"Her loss." Effy gives me a genuine smile which, coming from her, is a rarity. "We'll find you someone tonight." She shoots me a wink, which is more like her. I touch my knee and feel the tape underneath. It would be just my luck to pull tonight when my knee looks like it's been in a fight with a roll of electrician's tape. Fuck it! Whether I pull or not I'm going out to have fun tonight. I'm feeling pretty good and I have been since I started going to the gym, though I'm not sure whether that's to do with the endorphins that exercising releases or just from being around Emily.
I haven't seen Cook in weeks and I'm actually looking forward to being out tonight, so when Effy and I finally arrive at the club to meet the boys I let Cook pull me in for a crushing hug. Cook's hands drop to my arse and I slap them away, laughing at his predictability. "Alright gorgeous?" He leers at me, his eyes fixed on the low neckline of my shirt.
"My eyes are up here, wanker." I cross my arms over my chest and he just laughs at my futile attempts to cover up.
"It's not your eyes I'm interested in babe." He guffaws as he throws an arm around my shoulder and leads me straight for the bar. He's honest, I'll give him that.
I can't stay mad at him for long, by the time we get served at the bar my good mood is back and I'm even indulging him by playing his favourite game of picking out potential targets for the night. Despite being a first class arsehole he tends to be able to talk his way in to any girl's knickers. It's still early, so the club isn't exactly packed, but Cook's already got his eye on a handful of girls on the other side of the bar. They spot him looking their way and break in to chorus of giggling as he winks at them. I roll my eyes as I pay for our drinks. I hope he has the good sense to ask to see ID if he tries anything with any of them. The group of girls are dolled up to the nines with too much foundation and fake tan, but I'd put money on none of them actually being old enough to be in a pub, never mind a 21 bar.
I look back over at Effy to try and make her aware of the possibly underage group, seeing as she's the bar manager and it's her license on the line if there are minors drinking in here. Of course she's too busy snogging Freddie's face off to notice me. They're like a bunch of lovesick teenagers and it's enough to turn my stomach. Giving up I turn back to the young guy working behind the bar and tip him off about the group. He knows I'm friends with Effy so he nods his thanks and calls over one of the bouncers by the door. Within five minutes the group are being escorted out of the premises.
"Aw fuck." Cook grumbles as he sips his pint and watches them go. It doesn't take him long to pick out his next target, though he thankfully decides to stay and keep me company until Effy and Freddie can find the willpower to tear themselves away from each other. I can't help but think about Freddie's fiancée. I just don't get why he's still engaged when he's clearly in love with Effy. The boy is hopelessly smitten and even if Effy tries to hide it, she is too. I've been thinking about it a lot and I think he should just grow some balls and tell his fiancée it's over. Even if she is someone like Katie Fitch she doesn't deserve to be strung along. Nobody does.
"Can you believe I was shopping for tuxes with that fucker earlier?" Cook seems to read my mind as he nods his head towards his best friend with a sour look on his face.
"He's still going ahead with the wedding then?" I try to be discrete as I probe for information on Freddie's fiancée. It's been bugging me ever since I found out it might be Emily's sister that he's supposed to be marrying.
"Next month." Cook huffs in response. I hadn't realised it was quite that close. From the way Effy talked I figured the wedding was years off. "I've warned him if he fucks up I'll have Effy off him." Like I said, Cook's nothing if not honest. He's had a thing for Eff for as long as Freddie has. Effy likes to lead him on, but it's mostly just to get a reaction from Freddie.
"What's she like? Freddie's future wife?" I can't believe he's supposed to be getting married in a month's time.
"She's well fit mate." Cook seems to cheer up a little bit as he manages to send a dirty leer my way. "She's a twin too, one each yeah?" He nudges me with his elbow and I start choking on my drink. He just laughs and pats me hard on the back, not realising why I'm really choking. Freddie's future wife has to be Katie. Emily said her twin was sure she was being cheated on and Freddie does go to the Fitch gym. Fuck! I'm supposed to have aerobics with her Monday afternoon. How am I supposed to look her in the eye when I know her future husband is doing my best friend behind her back? I might not like the girl, but that doesn't stop me from feeling sorry for her. I mean, she's obviously head over fucking heels in love with the twat to be marrying him.
"How the fuck can he do that to someone he's supposed to be marrying?" I can't hold my tongue any longer. Cook shakes his head as he finishes off his pint.
"They're just not right for each other Blondie… She's too good for that fucker." I don't know whether he's talking about Effy or Katie as he's busy staring at Effy as he answers and before I can ask him to elaborate he's ordering shots of tequila and shoving them under my nose. We stand at the bar and down shot after shot until the supervisor who's taking over from Effy finally turns up and we can go to another club.
We end up down the gay scene sometime in the early hours of the morning and I'm completely fucked by the time Cook pushes some lanky brunette my way to dance with me. She gives me a coy smile as she starts grinding against me. I try to back off, but I've got Cook pressed up against my back so I don't get very far. The girl is nice enough. She's pretty; but her hair is too brown and too short and she's just too tall. Her arms wrap around my waist as she tries to get in closer, but all I can think of is Emily. I want it to be her who has her hands on my hips as she leans in to kiss me, but it's not Emily that's going in for my lips. I pull away from the stranger with a polite smile. She doesn't quite get the hint though and tries to invade my personal space again.
For fuck's sake, can't she take a hint? I do the only thing I can think to do to get me out of this and slip my hand through Cook's and mouth sorry to the tall brunette. She shrugs with another coy smirk as she slides up beside Cook. He's grinning from ear to ear at the prospect of a threesome before I slip away from the pair of them. I've had enough. It's late and I'm tired. Everything's starting to hurt; except for my knee which seems to be holding up thanks to the layers of tape that Em wrapped around it earlier. I find Effy and Freddie, still wrapped around each other, and tell them I'm ordering a taxi home. Effy promises to come down and meet me once she's finished her drink so I head off down the steps of the club and back on to the street.
Its times like these that I wished I still smoked. I twirl a straw through my fingers as I wait for the others to come down. I think Cook will probably end up staying out with his new friend, but I hope Effy and Freddie won't be long. I can feel the cold air seeping through my clothes and in to my skin and my back tightens painfully as a result. I fucking hate this feeling, no matter how hard I try to relax the muscles in my back they just won't comply and pain starts shooting through my lower back. I'm hunched over with my arms wrapped around my chest by the time the taxi turns up. Eff and Freddie finally show up and share the taxi back to the flat with me. We leave Cook to his own devices, as we usually do.
When we get back to the flat I head straight in to the shower, letting the hot spray run over my aching body. The tape on my knee holds up pretty well against the water and I find myself staring down at the pink tape and grinning like an idiot as I think about seeing Emily again on Monday.
Once the muscles in my back unclench I finally step out of from under the water and wrap myself up in a big thick towel that's been sitting on the radiator all night. It's lovely and warm and I feel my eyes growing heavy as a steadfast fatigue washes over me. I'm practically asleep on my feet as I go to my room and change for bed. I can still feel a twinge in my back from getting a chill so I go to the kitchen for some painkillers and a glass of water before bed.
Freddie's standing by the fridge in nothing more than his boxers and pouring himself a glass of milk. His eyes are bloodshot and unfocused and he offers me a wide smile. He's more than likely had a couple of joints tonight. "Good night?" He quizzes and I shrug at him. My good mood from earlier has worn off and now I'm just aching and exhausted. I want to climb in to bed and sleep away the rest of the weekend. I've got an article that's due to be handed in to my editor by midweek so I'll probably stay in and work on in it tomorrow. I'm supposed to exercise every day as part of Emily's exercise plan for me, but I couldn't possibly face going to the gym. Maybe I'll go for a walk or something. It still counts. "'Night then." Freddie shuffles off towards Effy's room and I go back to mine after popping a couple of paracetamol. I crash in to bed and I'm out like a light before I can even pull the covers over me.
Monday afternoon sees me standing at the back of Katie Fitch's aerobics class, struggling to keep up with pensioners who are moving like they're on speed. I have absolutely no sense of direction or timekeeping, which makes trying to copy Katie's actions all the more difficult. She keeps catching me doing the wrong thing and glaring at me, which really isn't helping. How this girl considered herself fit to teach anyone anything is a mystery. Emily is far more patient than her marginally older sister. If I do something wrong in our training sessions she'll give me some 'constructive criticism' or sometimes she'll just gently move me in to the right position, whether my leg's too far out from my hip or my arm's too low when I'm lifting a weight; sometimes I deliberately get it wrong.
After turning the wrong way and bumping in to a woman who's old enough to be my grandmother, and receiving yet more scorn from Katie, I'm ready to call it a day. I'm just not sure how to slip out of the class without Katie setting the hounds on me. She probably has hired goons lurking around to stop deserters. Maybe I should dig a tunnel or set off the fire alarm; or just throw myself on the floor and start screaming I've pulled something?
I'm still contemplating my escape when I feel a hand on the small of my back. I stop my jogging on the spot to look over my shoulder and find Emily standing behind me with a conspiratorial smile. She cocks her head towards the door and I bolt for it without a second thought. Katie shoots us both a steely glare, but Emily just tosses her sister a careless wave on her way out. We're both laughing and giggling like two school girls playing hooky as we walk in to Emily's office.
"Did you see her face? She's going to murder me!" I crack up as I throw myself down on the phyisio table in the corner of the room and lie back against the soft padding. "She'll probably use a kettle ball to smash my head in or something!"
"Remember you need to cool down properly!" Emily scorns as she rolls her eyes at me. She's been trying to drum warming up and cooling down in to me every time I exercise but it never seems to sink in. I hate stretching; I usually end up pulling something, though I've got to admit I don't tend to be quite as sore the following day if I follow Emily's strict warm up and cooling down routine.
"Yeah, yeah!" I wave my hand dismissively and she knows I have no intention of doing any stretching as I place my hands behind my head to get comfy.
"Now Campbell!" She tries to snap at me, but her words have no weight behind them and it's pretty hard to take her seriously when she's still smirking at me.
"In a minute." I mumble back at her and close my eyes over to goad her. My heart is still pounding in my chest from the aerobics and I'm far too comfy to move right now. I just want to lie her and get my breath back, but Emily has other ideas.
Before I can register what's happening her hands are clamping around my ankles and she's pulling me forward, dragging me half off the bed. My eyes fly open as I sit up and grab hold of her shoulders to steady myself. "I love it when you're rough." I tease her, still trying to catch my breath. I laugh at the blush that spreads across her cheeks, but the sound dies in my throat as I catch her eyes dipping towards my lips. Fuck… it's now or never Campbell.
With my hands on her shoulders and my legs pretty much wrapped around her waist we're already so close that it doesn't take very much for me to bring my mouth up to hers. I kiss her before I lose my nerve and her lips part in surprise. Her fingers dig in to my ankles as her hands clench and she lets out a little gasp. She doesn't try and stop me though. I move my lips against hers. Slowly at first, giving her a chance to tell me to stop before I make a tit of myself; but she doesn't ask me to stop. Her lips finally move and she's kissing me back.
It's over all too briefly though as she suddenly jumps back, her eyes wide with something close to fear. She touches her fingers to her lips as she looks down at the linoleum floor and I feel the pit of my stomach dropping as she can't look me in the eye. "Naomi, I…I'm seeing someone." She finally chokes out after what seems like an eternity and I feel like there's a band tightening itself around my chest. Why the fuck did I have to go and kiss her? Why couldn't I have just left it alone? God, it's hard enough knowing Effy is fucking her sister's fiancé. How the hell am I supposed to face her now after that incredibly hot, yet now awkward, kiss?
"She's a lucky girl." I try for sincerity but it just comes out as flippant and I could kick myself as I see the flash of hurt cross the smaller girl's face. Way to go and fuck things up Campbell! "Em, I'm sorry. I-"
"I'm getting married, Naomi… To a man…I'm straight."
Fuck.
How could I get things so wrong? How could I think a girl like Emily Fitch could actually be interested in me? All of her concern, all of the time she's spent trying to help me, even all of the touching, that was her just doing her job! Of course it was! And I go and fucking molest her! Nicely done Campbell!
Fuck!
She's straight! She's getting married! Wait…
Oh, fuck.