Chapter 9
Alison wasted no time illuminating Paige on the antics she got up to while she was indisposed. She loved rubbing in that Emily panicked and ran as soon as she realized what was going on. The way she told the story you'd think Paige struck out trying to pick up chicks at a bar. She shook her head as she tried to get rid of the fuzziness that remained from her stint in the ER and stood up, determined to make things right with Spencer. However as well as she might have been she was still in no condition to walk or do pretty much anything other than wait and hope that Spencer will come visit her so they can clear the air.
Spencer never showed up though. She kept hoping and wishing she would, only to be disappointed every time she'd wake up and find the seat next to her bed was empty or occupied by her mom or dad or Emily. She had no reason to be there yet she stuck around, despite the risk of carrying Paige's infection to the twins or her students. Paige bitterly remarked to herself that she was more present now that they were not in a relationship than she ever was when they were together.
Alison only showed up once, to rub it in that she upset both women. She apologized to Emily who shrugged the incident off as just a slip of the tongue or a fever dream, but Paige gleamed from her demeanour that she took it in her stride. She would let her hand linger on top of Paige's from time to time or brush it against her arm. Nothing overtly sexual but things she wouldn't have done before. Things Paige knew Emily was using to lead her on. It reminded her of Junior year when Emily was still with Maya and Paige was trying to let her know that she was hers if she wanted her and she was being so overt about it and Emily knew what she wanted and what she meant and she played right into Paige's hand, leading her on, only to stop her when she tried to kiss her later that same night.
Paige felt like a jackass and blamed herself but now that the dust had cleared on that memory she remembered the way Emily was looking at her all day like she was a piece of chocolate cake with coconut frosting. Something she knew she shouldn't have but, at the same time, something she was craving so hard she was practically shivering. Paige felt guilty when Emily turned her down but she wouldn't have tried anything if Emily hadn't been leading her on all day. Things were just like that again. Even though Paige is trying to move on, Emily's looking at her like she's a piece of cake again.
Paige endured the hospital stay as well as she could. She wasn't allowed a phone or her personal belongings as they were more-or-less quarantined and so it took until her release day to finally gain the ability to call Spencer. She couldn't get through the voicemail and she didn't have a ride home because her parents didn't know the shaky turn that things had taken with her and Spencer so she was about to hail a taxi when Emily pulled up next to her in the driver's seat with the twins in the back and offered her a ride home.
When Emily took a turn towards her old house, Paige intervened and corrected her, reminding her that she lived with Spencer now. Emily had completely frozen. Her mind had drifted back to when they were in High School and she was dropping Paige off after some 'extra training' behind the bleachers in the school pool. The comfort and safety she felt as she readjusted to reality was suddenly gone and she was suddenly sitting in her old car with her daughters and a woman she had no right to claim as her own. The truth hurt.
Emily pulled into the driveway of Alison's house and reached for her keys mechanically, after unbuckling her seatbelt. Fearing an awkward send-off, Paige bade the lot of them goodbye and shifted out of her seat before Emily even had a chance to respond. Emily watched her leave, furrowing her brow, wishing she had had a chance to say all these things that were running through her mind. Things she'd never be able to say in front of present company. She reached back with a fake smile and undid the girls' seatbelts before coming around and getting the door for them, letting them out of the car and shepherding them inside. She stole one last look at Paige, who was standing in front of Spencer's door, hesitating slightly, before knocking on the door and waiting. She wished she could see her eyes just once more but duty called. The girls were hungry and Lilly was dragging her inside by the arm.
The house was empty and dark. Paige knocked for a good five minutes but when nobody answered she let herself in. She found empty take-away boxes all over the kitchen and a basket full of dirty laundry by the washing machine. The dust had settled all over the place, like a single window hadn't been opened for weeks. She checked all over the place hoping to find a letter or a note but there was nothing, almost as if Spencer didn't live there anymore.
She checked the bedroom and found the bed untouched, with the same sheets she saw there last. And she checked the bathroom and it was bone-dry, without a single dirty towel in sight. Spencer hadn't been here in a while, Paige realized.
This cold and empty house felt like a punishment. A punishment for a crime she didn't commit. It wasn't her fault she was delirious! She had no control over what she said and she shouldn't be penalized for it! So she decided to rebel against the misery. She took all the take-out containers and threw them out, and then she washed the odd fork and dish that Spencer used the first couple of days that Paige was in the hospital. She ran herself a bath while the laundry was being finished and then she dried, sorted, folded and put away the clothes. She opened blinds and windows letting the sun in and sprayed the dust off the furniture and by the end of her little cleaning spree she was feeling loads better.
She shot Spencer a text begging her to come home so she can apologize in person and sat down and watched a movie while waiting for a reply.
The light flickered in through the window dotting the peripheral of Spencer's vision. She didn't remember where she was or how long she had been there. The only thing that mattered right now was the pounding in her head. She reached for an aspirin and downed it with a mini bottle of jack before lying back in bed and checking the message on her phone, whose alert set her headache off. Paige was home and she wanted to talk. Great. Spencer threw the phone away and reached for the Jack. She downed it in a couple of sips and lay back down. She felt Toby's hairy arms wrap around her exposed navel.
"Who was it, babe?" he mumbled in a sleepy haze.
"Nobody" Spencer assured him, snuggling into him and feeling his naked form spooning her back.