Chapter 13
Kaylie Cruz never went into the gym early on a Saturday morning. Really, she could count on one hand the number of times she'd been there more than ten minutes early, but with everything that had been going on between her and Austin and Kelly, she needed some time alone in the gym so that she could focus.
Once she was inside, she saw that the floor was empty. She frowned. Payson was always in the gym on Saturday mornings because of the time she had to give up for publicity. And her car was in the parking lot, so she must be somewhere.
Voices echoed out of the office. One was definitely Sasha.
"You're bloody well right I am! There should only be one person who gets to see you like that, and it should be me!"
Kaylie frowned. What in the world was Sasha talking about, and who was he talking to? She moved closer, staying tight to the wall so that no one would see her, her instinct to be nosy overriding all else. There were more words, but whoever was talking was too quiet for her to hear.
"Yeah, well, I'm still seeing Rigo." That was Payson. Kaylie frowned. Payson and Sasha were obviously arguing over something, but that wasn't exactly new. They'd been arguing a lot lately. But Kaylie couldn't figure out what they were arguing about. Her gut said it was way personal, but the words were too out of context.
She risked pulling away from the wall enough to look into the office, crossing her fingers that she didn't get caught spying.
What she saw made her gasp, and she barely got her hand over her mouth in time to stifle it. Payson and Sasha were wrapped in a heated embrace; his lips were attached to her neck and he had her bent over backwards. Payson's hands were buried in his hair and her head was thrown back, her eyes screwed shut. She looked like she was enjoying it.
"Stop, Sasha," Payson breathed. Kaylie scurried back to her place against the wall and then dashed out of the gym. She would give them a few minutes while she tried to process what she'd just seen, and then she would go back in.
Were Sasha and Payson involved? Clearly they were to some extent, but what kind of relationship did they have? Payson just said she was with Rigo, and as far as Kaylie knew Sasha was with some blonde cheerleader type. Kaylie was at a loss. It didn't seem like Payson was at all opposed to his advances, at least not in the way that would cause her concern.
"Hey Kaylie," Kelly said. Kaylie jumped. She hadn't heard Kelly's car pull into the parking lot.
"Uh…Kelly," she greeted. The two of them weren't friends, not after what happened with Austin, but they were still trying to be mostly civil to each other.
Kelly moved towards the doors, ready to go inside. Kaylie's heart started to race. Until she figured out what was going on, she didn't want anyone else to know about Payson and Sasha, not if they couldn't be trusted, and Kelly had proven time and again that she was not trustworthy.
"What are you doing out here?" Kelly asked, watching Kaylie carefully, looking part amused and part wary.
"Um…just enjoying the fresh air," Kaylie stammered. Kelly frowned.
"If you wanted fresh air why didn't you just hang out at home?" Kelly asked. Kaylie sputtered. She had no response, but she didn't want Kelly to go inside and see Payson and Sasha. Then an idea occurred to her.
"Payson and Sasha are fighting about something. He sounds really pissed, so we should just stay out of their way," Kaylie said. Everyone at the Rock hated it when Payson and Sasha fought, and most of the time they all found a way to get out of the gym. Kelly blanched.
"Oh shit," Kelly breathed, like she knew something that Kaylie didn't. She pushed past Kaylie and reached for the door.
"No, wait!" Kaylie called, but Kelly was already inside.
#
Payson thought she might faint. Sasha was everywhere; one hand tangled in her hair and the other roaming over her butt, her stomach, her chest. His tongue was ravaging her mouth. After so long apart the proximity and sensation was overwhelming.
"Sasha," she begged, though she wasn't sure what she was begging him for. Sasha's hands both drifted down to her thighs and then he lifted, setting her on the desk and urging her to wrap her legs around his waist. She did, squeezing tightly and pulling him as close as possible. He ground his hips against hers and her head fell back as she groaned.
"Payson. Don't ever leave me again. Please," he begged. She wanted to remind him that he was the one who left her, but then his teeth were scraping over her jaw and she couldn't see straight, much less form actual words.
And then a million things happened at once. Footsteps sounded on the stairs outside the office, but didn't register in Payson's mind until someone shouted.
"Whoa!" It was Kelly. Sasha was so startled he bit her shoulder, hard enough to make her cry out. She fell back, banging her elbow on the edge of the desk and causing shooting pains up and down her arm.
"Damn it Kelly!" Payson hissed. Sasha's eyes went wide as he scrambled off of her. Kelly just laughed. She laughed so hard that Payson could hear her struggling to breathe and she needed to lean against the doorway for support.
"Sorry, sorry!" Kelly cried, waving her hand and turning her back to the office. Sasha turned panicked eyes to Payson.
"She's known all along," Payson assured him. "Apparently we aren't as stealthy as we think we are."
"That's supposed to make me feel better?" Sasha asked, not as angry as she expected him to be. Instead he seemed to be fighting an amused smile. Kelly was still trying to hold in her laughter, snorting with the effort.
"Oh get it together, KP. I didn't laugh when you told me about you and Austin," Payson snapped.
"Wait, Kelly and Austin? Why don't I know about anything that goes on in my gym?" Sasha asked. Payson just rolled her eyes.
Kelly took another moment to compose herself, pressing a hand to her chest and taking deep, gulping breaths as she calmed down.
"Look, as much as I want to be happy that the two of you are at least heading down the road towards back together, we have a problem," Kelly finally said.
"What problem?" Payson asked.
"I think Kaylie saw you guys."
Payson felt her heart drop to her feet and had to reach out for the desk to steady herself. An instant later she felt Sasha's hand close around her elbow, keeping her upright.
"Why do you think that?" Sasha asked. His voice was too calm, too measured. Payson knew he was about to lose control on the inside.
"She was standing outside when I got here, looking kind of freaked, and when I asked her why she said it was because she wanted some fresh air. Then when I pressed her about it, she said you two were fighting but she looked way more green than usual. Then when I started in here, she tried to stop me. I don't know, I just feel like she saw you," Kelly explained. Payson felt her knees wobble and sank back down against the desk.
"We were fighting," she said weakly.
"Is there a way for us to find out what she knows without admitting anything in case all she saw really was us fighting?" Sasha asked.
"It should come from me," Kelly said. "Maybe if I make some comments that just seem like speculation , she'll give herself away."
"She's never going to come right out and tell you," Payson said. Kelly rolled her eyes.
"No, but that girl can't lie for shit. Her face will give it all away," Kelly said.
Sasha rubbed his hand across his forehead, squeezing his eyes shut. Payson could see all the tension he was holding in, especially in his shoulders, and she wished she could just massage it right out. Finally he stopped pacing the small area behind his desk and looked at the both of them.
"Go warm up and start working. Try to act as normal as possible and if anyone asks I was yelling at the both of you for that ridiculous GQ spread. Kelly, try to ferret out what Kaylie knows but don't let it distract you from training. The Classic is only two weeks away and even though everyone knows you two are the best we've got, you still need to make a strong showing," he explained. Kelly and Payson both nodded and moved towards the door.
Sasha stopped Payson just as she was about to pass through the doorway, twining his fingers through hers. He lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles.
"We have a lot to talk about," he said. Payson met his eyes for a brief moment, nodding.
"Yeah. I'll drop by the apartment tonight," she promised.
She followed Kelly out of the office.
#
It was another ten minutes before Kaylie finally ventured into the gym. Payson and Kelly were working through each other's beam routines like nothing happened.
"What took you so long?" Kelly asked over her shoulder. Kaylie wandered over.
"Uh, I don't know. I just wasn't ready to come inside yet," Kaylie said. She refused to look Payson in the eye.
"Well, you missed Sasha giving us a total earful about the GQ shoot we did with Austin. I mean, he was really pissed," Kelly said casually. "I'm surprised he didn't suspend us."
"He wouldn't do that," Kaylie muttered. Kelly just shrugged.
"Well, in any case, I'm glad it's over. I've never seen Sasha so mad," Kelly said.
"Will you two shut up? I'm trying to land a double flic-flac and if you keep distracting me I'm going to land on my head," Payson hissed.
"Tighten up your core," Kelly suggested. Payson did and landed the move solidly.
A few more moves and she threw herself into the dismount, a double back handspring, double pike that would earn her major points. She saluted Sasha, who was watching from the office, and then turned to Kelly and Kaylie.
"How was that?" she asked.
"Wow," Kaylie breathed. Payson let herself smile. "You won't have any trouble being ready for the Classic."
"I'm not even sure I'm going to use these routines at the Classic. I might use my old ones and then pull these out for the Visa Champs and Trials," Payson explained. Both Kelly and Kaylie gaped at her.
"Are you kidding me? Payson, come on, there's no way anyone will be able to match your routines by Trials. Why not debut them at the Classic, where there isn't much pressure?" Kelly asked.
"Because I don't know how much I can improve on them between the Classic and the Olympics, and I don't want people to say I peaked at a Nationals qualifier and then coasted the rest of the way to London," Payson said. Kelly sighed and threw an arm around Payson's shoulders.
"Payson, you're such a perfectionist it would be impossible for you to peak before London," Kelly assured her. Payson sighed, glancing up at the office. For weeks she'd been avoiding Sasha, but she needed to hear his opinion and after that angry make out session, she thought they might be in an okay place.
"I'm going to talk to Sasha about it," she said, pulling away from Kelly's embrace.
"He just spent ten minutes bitching us out and she's running right back to him with her issues. They're like an old married couple," Kelly said as Payson disappeared into the office. Kaylie shifted uncomfortably.
"Uh, I guess," Kaylie said.
"You know," Kelly said. "They make a pretty good looking couple. Do you think they'll ever actually get together? Even if it's just once…just to see?"
Kaylie sputtered, her cheeks flushing as she kicked absently at the mats. It was right then that Kelly knew she'd seen Payson and Sasha. A Kaylie who didn't know would have laughed with Kelly, would have speculated about the blonde babies Payson and Sasha could someday have, but she was way too uncomfortable to know nothing.
"You saw them this morning, didn't you?" Kelly accused. Kaylie's head snapped up, her eyes locking onto Kelly's.
"What…"
"Don't play stupid Kaylie, it's never worked for you. You saw them in the office, right?"
For a long moment Kaylie just stared at Kelly. Then she nodded.
"Yeah, I did."
"Forget it," Kelly snapped. Kaylie frowned.
"What are you talking about?"
"Forget you saw it. Forget you know anything. Look, I know it's not conventional, but Payson is a legal adult and they are so good together. They're just now starting to work through their shit and towards getting back together, but if they think for even a second someone else knows…they might never recover. We could lose Sasha, or Payson, or both of them. So you're going to forget you saw anything, wipe it from your mind, and if you so much as think about telling…"
"I wouldn't do that! I'm not Lauren," Kaylie hissed. Kelly arched an eyebrow at her like she wasn't so sure, but pressed on anyway.
"Just erase it from your memory. I'm going to tell them you just heard them arguing and after everything with your parents it makes you super uncomfortable so you split. Got it?" Kelly asked. She glanced at the office to make sure Payson wasn't coming back. She'd spent almost two months watching Payson be miserable over not being with Sasha, and she wasn't going to let anything ruin her friend's chance at happiness, not when they were so close to finally letting themselves be together.
"Yeah," Kaylie said with a nod. "I got it."
#
Payson sighed as she relaxed into the couch in Sasha's apartment. The leather was soft beneath her, cushier than any bed, and part of her just wanted to nap the evening away. His apartment was a sanctuary, and she'd been so long without it.
"Here," Sasha said, setting a mug of tea on the table in front of her. She curled her hands around it, breathing in the lemon scented steam, and held it close to her body. Sasha sat down beside her, their knees brushing. It was the closest they'd let themselves get to each other in weeks, not counting the incident in Sasha's office.
"Thanks," Payson whispered into her tea.
"That was a close call today," Sasha said, leaning back into the cushions and draping his arm over the back of the couch.
"We're always going to have close calls Sasha, as long as we're keeping this…whatever it is, a secret," Payson reminded him. He reached out to toy with the ends of her hair.
"What is this?" he whispered. Payson felt her heart falter as she met his gaze. His eyes were always so intense.
"What…what do you want it to be?" Slowly, so that she could pull back if she wanted to, Sasha leaned in and brushed his lips against hers once, twice, and then a third time.
"I don't want to be without you anymore. The last six weeks have been the worst of my life, trying to stay away from you and then fighting with you. I can't stand it, Payson," he whispered, his lips resting against her cheek. Payson snuggled into his side, snaking her arm over his waist and burrowing into the crook of his neck. She breathed deeply, letting the scent of sandalwood tickle her nose.
"We have to be extra careful," she told him.
"I'll be on my best behavior, I promise," he said, pressing a kiss to her jaw. She hummed, spurring him on.
Sasha gently scraped his teeth over the shell of her ear and shifted on the couch, pressing forward so that his body blanketed Payson's. She held him close, happy to feel the weight of him against her again. She sighed, her entire body tingling, as he trailed his lips down the column of her neck to her collarbone. His fingers traced the tiny sliver of skin exposed between her jeans and her top before sliding his hand beneath her shirt and trailing over her ribs. Payson squirmed. He knew that was her ticklish spot.
The feel of his fingers against her bare skin, his lips over her pulse, and the stubble of his chin tickling her were adding up to overwhelming sensation. Pleasure was dragging Payson under and she was ready to surrender to it, ready to give herself over to the man above her, until some else's face swam into her mind.
"Sasha, wait," Payson gasped, unable to truly catch her breath. Sasha stilled, but didn't let her up. "Rigo, I have to break up with him before we do anything. I can't…I can't be that girl."
This time Sasha did sit up, pulling her with him. His eyes were dark with desire and disappointment, but he nodded.
"I'm sorry," Payson said, trailing her fingertips over the stubble on his cheek. Sasha caught her hand and pressed it fully to his face.
"Don't be. It's part of what makes you, you. And I love that about you," he assured her.
Payson smiled at him and then leaned in and pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. His acceptance, his quiet strength, was exactly what she needed.
Steeling herself for the confrontation she knew was coming, she gave Sasha one last lingering kiss and then walked out the door.
#
Rigo was already waiting for her at Spruce Juice when Payson arrived. His trademark knit cap looked like it was about to fall off, even though it never did, and he was playing with his iPhone. Payson didn't want to hurt him, he was a nice guy, but her heart belonged to Sasha and she knew it would be worse for everyone if she strung Rigo along.
"Hey," she said to get his attention. He smiled as he looked up at her, and then stood and kissed her cheek.
"Hey. How was practice?" Rigo tucked his phone into his back pocket, giving Payson his full attention. She squirmed uncomfortably.
"Uh, fine I guess. I decided to debut my new routines at the Classic instead of waiting for the Visa Champs. And Sasha was pissed about the GQ shoot," Payson said. Rigo's gaze darkened.
"For once I think I agree with him. I get that you're an adult and all, but I don't love the idea of every man in the world being able to ogle my girlfriend," Rigo said, his voice gentle. He wasn't thrilled, but he was staying calm, which bode well for the conversation they were about to have.
Taking a deep breath, Payson decided to dive right in.
"I don't think I should be your girlfriend anymore," Payson said. She tried to keep her voice firm, but it wasn't as strong as she'd hoped.
Rigo blanched, his entire face going slack. She knew it was a surprise to him, no doubt he thought things had been going really well.
"What?" he whispered.
"I'm so sorry, it just…I like you Rigo. You're a really nice guy and I know you're going to be great in London, but I just don't have any romantic feelings for you. I'm sorry," Payson said. She hated doing this to him, hated to hurt him.
"So the last few weeks you were what? Pretending?" Rigo asked. His voice held no venom, just shock.
"No! I thought…well, I liked you and I just thought that given more time to get to know you I would start to feel more strongly. But I haven't, and I'm not going to," Payson said. She didn't feel like she was explaining herself well, but it was the best she could do without letting anything slip about Sasha.
"It's okay, Payson. I knew you weren't feeling it, you were holding yourself at a distance. Don't apologize for doing what you have to do. Can we still be friends?"
At that request, Payson breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'd really like that Rigo," she said, smiling for the first time since she sat down. "I wish I could stay, but I have to get home."
"Sure. Stay in touch, okay?" Rigo pulled her into a hug.
"Definitely." Leaving Spruce Juice, Payson climbed in her car and steered it back in the direction of Sasha's apartment. Now that she was no longer with Rigo, they were free to do what they please, and they had a lot of catching up to do.
A/N: You guys are awesome! Thanks so much to Isabella, JTellersOldLady, Ida-cullen, BearyFunny66, Barrel of Monkeys, flowerchild3286, DarkMoon2222, mtm2011, poppetrussell (congrats again on the baby, and I'm honored to be your first post-baby review!), Ncisluver, and hazel-3017 for your reviews! Your reward is me posting after just two days!
So, the next chapter is going to be the Classic. I thought it was about time for a gymnastics heavy chapter, and it may or may not coincide with the ACTUAL Classic (Jordyn Weiber for the win! I gotta cheer on my hometown girl!) . This also means that I'm planning for it to be a long chapter, and depending on how carried away I get, it could take a little bit for me to get it written. But I will try my best to make it quick.
Let me know what you thought of the chapter! If you do, I'll be even more motivated to update sooner. I also may or may not be procrastinating on final projects. ;)