For the Zoness mission, the party of Connor Griffon, Sasha Zura and her squad traveled back to Macbeth via civilian passenger cruiser, same as when they arrived. There was no major rush, no need for precision deployment, and the traveling population aboard the ship provided excellent cover to remain inconspicuous and incognito. Thus, civilian public transport was more than sufficient to suit their needs for the mission.

Public transport that traveled to Zoness carried mainly relief workers: charity volunteers, determined idealists who felt for the world's hardships, and wished to help set it right, or at least ease the heavy burden of the world. That was what the party had encountered before.

Those who traveled away from Zoness during this troubled time were another sort altogether: refugees. A great many of those that could, chose to leave Zoness in this most troubled time, to traveling off-world to wait until the deadly civil unrest blew over and settled. They were weary bunch by-and-large, not entirely certain about what they'll do next, but they were also somewhat relieved to leave the unbearable, deadly tension of Zoness behind...

Sasha could only wish she felt even that small shred of comfort to leave Zoness for Macbeth. With the mission over, and the return home looming ahead of her, Sasha Zura found her thoughts and feelings occupied by that which she'd left behind, and must now confront again when she arrived: Maya Kaido.

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The Heartfelt Homecoming


/

How could Sasha have been so stupid, so utterly and completely thoughtless? Maya was going through what must have been one of the toughest, most stressful times of her entire life. She had only just broken off her relationship with Evan Werhner, the boyfriend Maya had hoped she could finally commit to and settle down with, and that breakup was anything but smooth. She was in a state of near total misery, and what did her best friend Sasha do? Offer her comfort? Help her through this troubling time. No. She succumbed to her long-time lustful feelings, and kissed Maya full on the lips, springing a whole other can of worms onto her plate that she did not need at that time.

Sasha ought to have known better. She ought to have had more control of herself then. That's what Maya needed at the time: someone grounded, someone steady and stable who she could count on to be there for her. Maya did not need a lusty flake so easily overwhelmed by pent-up desires, especially when she wasn't even aware Sasha had those desires...

This was bad. This was very, very bad. That kiss from nowhere had completely overstepped the bounds of their friendship, and could so very easily destroy it. What could Sasha tell her when she got back? How was she going to explain to Maya all those years of silent longing, and doing nothing? Was there anything that could be done to salvage it now?

It didn't seem like it, not from what she could tell...

Sasha had made herself alone with these thoughts, and confined herself inside her cabin's small, cramped bathroom. There was barely enough room in there for the required bathroom facilities, let alone Sasha herself. The husky wasn't wearing her 'mercenary' gear anymore; that had been stored away somewhere in the ship's cargo hold, besides which, combat gear would draw far too much attention among the passengers and crew. Instead, in order to better blend with the rest of the passengers, she wore a simple outfit of jeans, a tight-fitting lower cut shirt, and a tasteful vest made of roughly equal parts synthetic leather and denim. Still, Sasha could've been wearing a full set of power armor, and still feel utterly helpless at that moment.

There was no real sense of time in that minuscule shipboard cabin bathroom. All that was there was the constant humming rhythm of ship systems, and the overbearing thoughts that Sasha was having about her close friend, driving all other activity from her mind. After some indeterminate length of time, this continuous cycle of worrying and brooding feelings was finally interrupted, by a series of insistent pangs from her stomach, halting her conscious thoughts in their tracks...

Sasha reflexively clasped her stomach at the sudden pain, and tried to remember when her last meal was. Perhaps it was sometime way back on Zoness? How many hours ago was that, exactly?

The Husky cringed again as another hunger pang cried out insider her, and took her thoughts away.

That settled it for her. If her own body's needs and protests were the only indicator that Sasha noticed that time had passed was, then that was probably as good a signal as any to get out, and get something to eat. The worrisome thoughts would still be there when she got back, when her body was done protesting for nourishment.

Sasha didn't have anything to eat in her cabin, so she simply stepped out into the simple corridor outside, and did her best to remember where the ship's cafeteria was. It should've been somewhere in the forward section, a deck or two up–

There was someone approaching her through the corridor: it was Alastar, walking toward the husky at a brisk, restless pace. Like Sasha, he too was no longer in his combat gear, forgoing his armor for a pair of brown cargo pants, and a gray hooded sweatshirt that he wore unzipped, showing the dull yellow t-shirt he had underneath.

"Hey Sasha!" the merc greeted, his voice and stance were nearly bouncing with expectation.

"Oh, hello Alastar," the husky responded halfheartedly, "I'm just heading out to grab some food."

"Maybe I could join you then, if it's alright with you," Alastar Suggested, coming close alongside her.

"I... um..." Sasha stammered. She didn't quite know how to respond. Part of her wanted to go along with him, if for no other reason than to make things less awkward. Another part just wanted to be left alone for a while, to sink away and be invisible for a bit.

In her conflicting wants and indecision, Sasha found she was fidgeting, and had gently recoiled from Alastar when he tried to hold her by her exposed shoulders. The merc picked up on her hesitation immediately, and his demeanor changed.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, genuinely concerned for her, "You seem a little... distracted?"

"I'm fine," Sasha lied, looking away.

"No, you are most absolutely not fine," Alastar rebuked as he shook his head slowly. He wasn't buying it, and why should he have? It was a terrible lie anyway, "What's wrong Sasha? You can tell me."

"I... I really don't think I can," If he wouldn't take that hint, then maybe she could at least present the problem as something he couldn't help with. By all accounts, there probably wasn't much Alastar could do to alleviate the Maya situation, even if he wanted to.

"Try me," the merc implored, with such earnest concern. If their previous interactions were any indication, Alastar was hardly a convincing liar, so his concern must have been genuine. And now, seeing Sasha so worried and nervous, he wasn't going to let it go until he knew what was going on...

Fine.

With a defeated sigh, Sasha at last relented, and looked at the merc square in the eye, "I can trust you, right?"

"Of course you can," Alastar affirmed with a warming smile.

"Come on inside then, and I'll try to explain," she invited, motioning toward the cabin door behind her.

"Fair enough," he agreed with a curt nod.

If they simply had to talk about the sensitive Maya situation, then she'd rather do it somewhere private, as away from prying eyes and ears as she could. Once the two of them were inside, and the cabin door closed, Sasha took a moment to ready herself before beginning.

"Well... I don't know how else I can start this off so..." it took her a few more nervous seconds to form the words, and then to let them out, "I'm... I like girls."

"You mean..."

"I like girls, instead of guys..." Sasha said slowly, growing aggravated that she apparently had to spell it out for him. "You know: lesbian," she finally said, but that word felt so disgusting coming out of her mouth. She never wanted to use it to describe herself; the word made her preferences sound like some kind of disease, or defect. She was just as healthy and capable as anyone, moreso in so many respects. Who she happened to have feelings for shouldn't be treated like some kind of obscene flaw...

"You're...?" There was a brief moment of stillness in Alastar at Sasha's confession: just a blank, uncertain gaping stare at her. Then a look which seemed almost like fear dawned on him, as if he suddenly realized something horrible, "Oh... I see... I'll just be ah... leaving... then..."

He turned around and began to exit the cabin, head hung low, shoulders stooped, feet dragging. He looked so downtrodden, humiliated.

"No, Alastar wait! Let me explain–"

"Look, I get it: you're not actually into me," Alastar grumbled over his shoulder with a bitter sigh, "You played yourself up liking me for your little mission back there, to get me to do what you wanted, and now you want me to back off. You want to set me down easy, so you don't hurt my feelings or anything, so you say to me that you're "into girls". Message received, Sasha: I'm backing off, and I'm getting out of your face," and he continued on his cynical way.

No, that wasn't it at all! Alastar had gotten everything wrong, but he was about to walk out on her, pulled away by his bitter cynicism. Sasha needed to do something, and needed to do it quick...

"Alastar!" Sasha barked in a sudden burst of outrage, which stopped him in his tracks just as he reached out to open the cabin door. Then Sasha grabbed the merc's free hand and twisted his arm up, forcing him to turn around and face her. The look he had on his face was something between wide-eyed confusion, and anger.

"What?!" Alastar began, but Sasha grabbed him by his neck to pull him in, and forced her lips against his in an angry, yet desperate kiss. The sudden lip-lock out of nowhere stopped whatever he was going to say, whatever he planned on doing, and whatever he might've been thinking if his resulting stupor was any indicator.

After a few moments, she backed off from Alastar, and took on a much sterner demeanor, like she was addressing an inferior soldier, "Now will you let me explain?"

Alastar was completely speechless, baffled by the kiss, and the sudden assertive command backing up Sasha's words. All he could do in response for the moment was to give her a weak, affirmative nod.

"Good. Firstly, I really am into girls." she insisted, "I'm not simply lying for your sake or anything."

"Then... why did you just–"

"Shut up," Sasha cut him off sharply, and continued right along, "Secondly, I have a really close friend on Macbeth, one of a very small few that I have. We've been close friends for a very long while, and I may have completely screwed our friendship before this mission. So now, I have all that to go home to: that's what's wrong!"

"How did that happen?" Alastar managed to reply, some life beginning to return to him.

"She didn't know I was... that way for girls, and for her specifically. I'd kept it secret from her for all the years we'd known each other, for her sake. Then, just before this mission, she was going through a really tough time: a messy breakup that really, really upset her. In the middle of all that, when I should've been a good friend, I fucking kissed her, tongue and everything!" There was anger coming through Sasha's words. Most of it though was directed at herself more than anything else, "Of all the times I could've finally revealed my true feelings for her, I had to go and do it at the worst possible time, in the worst possible way!"

"Oh... damn..." the merc replied in a meek voice, scratching the back of his neck, trying to look anywhere else besides at Sasha. Poor Alastar couldn't have possibly been more uncomfortable in that moment if he tried. He'd just humiliated himself with major assumptions proven wrong, twice, "I'm so sorry, I didn't–"

"I don't know what to do, Alastar," Sasha admitted, rolling over his words again. There was a desperation to her now, an absolute need that she hadn't felt so strongly in her life, "I've never been in this kind of situation before, and I don't have anyone I can go to for guidance to help me through it."

She turned to Alastar with a pleading look, and quietly hoped to herself those weren't tears welling up in her eyes. Just because Sasha was using him as a kind of "shoulder to cry on" didn't mean she wanted to actually break down in crying. The bewildered merc was already knee-deep in a puddle of awkward as it was, she didn't want to add to it if she could help it.

"Well... hmm... How long have you and your friend known each other?" Alastar asked. He seemed a little emotionally detached now, but he was concerned for her, and that was enough for Sasha to latch onto.

"Early high school years, about seven years now," the husky answered, remembering their first meeting in the school's science lab, how the dark feline femme was so upbeat and alive, "We've been the closest of friends since we first met, shortly after I first moved from Corneria to Macbeth. We were always there for each other before, but this is a major goddamn screw-up from me, and I don't know if I can pull through this."

Alastar spent a few thoughtful moments in silence, probably thinking of what to say next. Frankly, Sasha was somewhat amazed that he was giving as much of his attention to this as he was. He didn't just reject her out-of-hand, or try to back out of the uncomfortable situation, he just went with it. Alastar Korvyn, despite his feelings for Sasha having been dashed to the ground not moments earlier, was again demonstrating his deep, unfaltering compassion. Or perhaps he was doing this because of those very same feelings...

"Your friendship seems to me like it's pretty strong, very strong, and I think you may be underestimating just how tight your bond is," Alastar told her, his stability and thoughtfulness being a welcome reassurance for Sasha. "If she's as true a friend as I speculate she is, then I'm sure she'll accept that you feel that way; any true friend wouldn't hold something like that against you. And who knows? She may even indulge the desires you have for her."

"I don't know, my desires for her are really, really intense..." Sasha said, feeling herself flush a little in her face, "Like, you know how guys ogle, have raunchy sexual fantasies, and do incredibly stupid things when lusty love takes over?"

"Yeah, I suppose," Alastar replied with a little shrug.

"That's pretty much how I am for other girls, and Maya especially."

"Maya? Is that her name?" He asked.

Sasha hadn't even told him her name? "Yes," she admitted, a little embarrassed that she'd forgotten about it.

"It's a very pretty name."

"Goes with her pretty face," Sasha said with a giggle, "Hold on..."

She took out her personal comm, brought up a picture of Maya –one where the dark feline displayed her confident, slightly suggestive smile– and showed it to Alastar.

"She is a fine looking feline, I'll give her that." he agreed, adding a small chuckle.

"I'm afraid I'll lose her, that I'll lose our friendship after making such a huge screw-up," Sasha said in a worried tone. Fear was coming back to her voice now, making her words waver and tremble in her uncertainty, "Sure, Maya might be able to accept me being attracted to her, but she likes guys, a lot, and has been with more guys than I can count. And then there's the fact that, I steamrolled my stupid hidden lusty wants over her when she was at her worst, when I should have been a good friend, and comforted her through the messy breakup..." the husky's voice dropped to a low, tortured whisper now, and her head dropped low, "It's all my fault."

"What's your fault, exactly?" Alastar asked, still as stable and in-control as ever, "Did something happen?"

"I was called away on this mission literally right after that dumb kiss," Sasha confessed, through such pained words, "I didn't have time to try and explain things. I just... abandoned Maya back there, in her pit of despair, without even saying a proper goodbye."

"Have you tried contacting her since then?"

"No..." she answered, her voice weak and frail now. It was so unlike her, unlike the leader she was supposed to be as a military officer, unlike the friend she ought to have been like, "God, I'm such a horrible person."

"No, Sasha, you're not..." Alastar rebuked, holding her up by her shoulders. "And furthermore, I believe you are being far too hard on yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... you don't know for sure that your kiss is having the ill-effects on your Maya friend you think it is," he explained. "For all we know, that sudden kiss could've even helped Maya through her despair, knowing that you care for her as deeply as you do."

"You think so?" Sasha asked, a glimmer of hope in her words now. She hadn't thought of the situation that way. It could make sense, but still, she had her doubts...

"It's possible, but there's only one way to know," Alastar's words now were full of determination, of that confidence Sasha had seen only a small glimpse of before. "You have to get in contact with her, and find out for sure."

"But, what if she rejects me for what I am, for what I've done to her?" the husky asked, dreading the other outcomes, and how they may play out. "I'm just... so afraid."

"But what if you do nothing, and abandon Maya to whatever fate may come? If you break away from her, or keep confining your feelings, I can promise you will spend an incredibly long time in remorse, constantly wondering 'what if?' and always regretting not trying to see this through." The merc's words were a grim warning, from prior experience? Did he have an old regret, an experience he was trying to spare Sasha from? It might've explained his emotional cynicism earlier... "Even if it turns out badly, you will have at least tried, and you can pick up with a fresh start knowing you did everything you could. But... if it goes well, then..." Alastar lifted a hand up to caress Sasha's cheek, and gently wiped away a tear that had burst free from her eye, "there's really no limit on how far it might go."

"Thank you, Alastar." she wrapped her arms around the merc, holding him close in a tight embrace. His armor was gone now, he'd shed his shell, and now she could feel the strength in his heart, in his core. She was so much more grateful than her words could possibly convey, grateful that she was able to borrow some of Alastar's strength, his underlying confidence and compassion that formed the very center of his being, despite how much he underplayed it. "I'll contact Maya as soon as we touch down on Macbeth."

"I'm... glad for you." he said quietly as he held Sasha in his arms.

In that moment, Sasha's hunger pangs tore at her again, back with a mighty vengeance after being ignored for so long. She broke away from Alastar's embrace, happier, but now all-too aware of her neglected hunger needs.

"But in the meantime, I'll to take you up on that offer to go out for something to eat." Sasha suggested to him, with a coy little smile on her face.

"Of course!" Alastar agreed, now with more enthusiasm. And the two of them left in search of that much-needed food.

He seemed happier now, seeing Sasha happy, and it was a good fit for him. Still she couldn't help but notice the slight underpinning of disappointment to Alastar, a disappointment he worked so hard to hide. He must've thought he'd found someone he could like in Sasha, maybe even love, only to have those hopes shattered by Sasha's attraction to women instead of men. She'd felt guilty about her preferences for women before, but never quite like this, to hurt someone she cared so very much about now...

Somewhere in her thoughts, Sasha Zura promised that she'd make it up to Alastar sometime, somehow. He deserved that much, at the very least.

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Comments,
Anonymous former member of Lylat Central Intelligence.

I wasn't around when Sasha met up with Maya after the return trip to Macbeth. I had to hear about it third-hand, and what I did hear was sketchy at best, no details or anything. What I know for sure is this: that moment in Sasha's life fundamentally changed her from that point forward. It helped to make her into what she became later.


/

Sasha had sent a text message to Maya almost the instant she landed at Wayland spaceport. Since she couldn't quite bring herself to speak, a text was perfectly fine for the moment. Maya's response was almost immediate, but terse. All she said was that she'd meet Sasha at the spaceport, and that they'd talk.

So Sasha waited for her...

The terminals at the Wayland Central Spaceport were always busy. There was always an arrival or departure occurring, even in the late night when they arrived back on Macbeth. This meant there were always people moving: coming or going. Those that stayed put were mainly the people who worked in the spaceport, in the shops, restaurants or other facilities. Sometimes there were shoppers in the stores, or customers at the restaurants, but they too would leave eventually, once they were satisfied.

Sasha Zura was sitting alone, on a bench in the terminal, where she had a clear view of the entrance, and continued her waiting...

She may have been empowered by Alastar's earlier encouragement, but she was still nervous, very much so. It was like all the pent up tension Sasha had toward Maya for all those years was distilled down into these moments, concentrating more and more with each passing minute she waited. She felt so many things: anticipation, giddiness, fear, nervousness, but worst of all was the tension, like a pressure building up inside her, a painful pressure, one that may explode at any second...

Sasha had wanted Alastar to stay with her until Maya came, he said he would have stayed too, but he had to leave. Alastar had to "arrange a few things with Connor" he said, and the merc also made sure to note that this was between her and Maya, and that he really shouldn't be involved at this most sensitive point. He was probably right, but still, it wasn't much comfort, sitting there in the spaceport terminal, alone, waiting, aching inside. The minutes seemed to stretch on for hours and hours...

Sasha continued waiting, watching the people as they entered the terminal, looking for any sign of that dark feline. Every once in a while, she'd see one that might've been Maya, only to be struck down with disappointment when it wasn't. It only made the continuing waiting that much more unbearable.

Soon enough, she found herself just wanting this whole thing to finally be over, one way or another.

Then, just as Sasha was resigning herself to that cynical mindset, a dark-furred feline woman stepped through the doors into the terminal building. Sasha felt her heart accelerate as she examined the features: white highlights, gorgeous physique, beautiful face... That was Maya! She finally made it! She looked nervous though, her features drawn down in a look of uncertainty, her normally smooth strutting walk slowed to an uneasy shuffling pace.

Sasha nearly jumped right off the bench, and walked up to Maya, waving her arm in the air to get her attention. The husky smiled, but she had to force it, so great was the pressure she felt inside her. Maya saw her, and returned the wave and forced smile as Sasha closed in on her, fast.

When the two of them came face to face however, there was something unsettling. Maya just looked at Sasha, and in a cold emotionless voice said, "let's walk."

What did that mean? Was she angry?

A little confused, and suddenly worried, Sasha simply gave the feline a small nod. The two of them quietly exited the spaceport terminal into the cool night of Wayland, Macbeth. The streets outside were still active, but much less-so in the dead of night hanging over the area. Maya and Sasha simply walked side-by-side down the sidewalk outside, into the quiet darkness...

The pressure and worry Sasha had been feeling quickly built up again, a lot. What did this all mean? Why was Maya so cold in her words? Where was she leading them? Was she mad at her? Sad? Disappointed? All the emotions contained inside her were cramped, uncomfortable, jammed, painful, tense... She just couldn't take it anymore!

Then, the pressure in Sasha burst out.

Everything went fast now. Sasha's stored emotions erupted all at once, and she tried to say a thousand different things to her dear friend. The husky's voice was desperate, frantic, humiliated, apologetic, and fast. "Maya I'm so sorry– I didn't mean to hurt– you have to let me explain–" Sasha's words all tumbled over top each other, like a verbal stampede, "I mean– I just– ever since we– I've always– I should've been–"

Then everything stopped.

Sasha found that something had blocked her mouth from speaking. Maya... it was Maya's lips, locked with Sasha's. The feline's soft hands were holding onto the sides of Sasha's head, supporting herself as she pressed in harder with the kiss, slipping her tongue into the husky's speechless mouth.

A warmth rushed through Sasha so fast, she felt like she was on fire, but it was such a wondrous fire; a hot flame of passion, of life. All of the dreaded emotions Sasha had been feeling suddenly burned away in the fire. Despair turned to joyful surprise, petrifying fear into absolute bliss, guilt and doubt into such deep desire...

Sasha grasped Maya by her waist and hips, and pulled the feline's perfect body close against her own. She responded to the kiss, sending her own tongue into Maya's mouth. Their tongues writhed against each other's, locked together in a fierce oral duel. They even exchanged a few moans of pleasure within the intensity of the kiss.

After some time, Maya released herself from the kiss she started. Both of them were panting, taking their breaths in deep heaving gasps. For Sasha though, the sheer emotional whiplash of the moment was just too much. It was the most powerful, perfect storm of raw feeling she had ever been caught in. Both the husky's eyes burst with her tears and ran down her face, and her breathing had broken down to a series of sporadic, uncontrolled sobs that made her body tremble and shake. Sasha would have fallen to her knees right then if Maya wasn't there, holding onto her, supporting her.

"Sasha... shut up," Maya whispered, through a voice just as affected as Sasha was, "I should be apologizing to you."

Sasha tried to reply, tried to say something to her– anything at all. The words didn't come though, so overwhelmed she still was by the sudden explosion of emotions inside her.

At this, Maya continued to fill the air with words of her own. "I should have seen the signs from the very start, how you'd always act around me, but I was so selfish, so self-absorbed that I missed everything. Looking back, it all makes sense now, but I should have known it from the beginning..." the cat's voice dropped to an astonished, pleading whisper. "All these years, Sasha. Why didn't you say anything to me?"

At being questioned directly, the husky managed to cobble together enough words to build an answer for Maya, however shaky and unstable those words were, "I... I always meant to, eventually, but... I was scared. You were the one good friend I had, and I didn't want to lose you."

"But during that time, when you were having your crush on me... It must've been just miserable for you."

Sasha finally found her words now: words she had wanted to say to Maya Kaido for so many years, but couldn't for fear of the consequences. Those consequences now held no power over Sasha Zura, and she was free to lay out the full depth of everything. "Every time I was near you, ever since we first met, I felt this... warmth heat up inside me, some kind wonderful, comforting heat that I'd never known in my life. In this crazy, cold, unfeeling world, I felt like I could actually be happy around you, that I didn't need to be afraid." Sasha felt herself blush, and begin to heat up inside her hips. She no longer felt fear at these feelings, but only pure bliss, and desire, with the confidence to say so, "But also... every time you were in a swimsuit, or undressed around me, I would get so... I wanted to– I kept... stripping you down in my mind. I imagined doing... dirty things with you, so many dirty things. I had to keep a leash on it though, I had to keep those thoughts and desires in check. It hurt to do that, to know I couldn't do anything with those desires..." She trailed off, nearly breaking into tears again as she remembered.

"God, Sasha. I am so sorry." Maya was nothing short of astonished, seeing her close friend let everything down like that. Sasha had always seen such a stable, stoic figure, naturally suited to the military career she was pursuing. Little did the feline know that Sasha Zura was simply clamping the lid down on the intense feelings that she always had, "I wish I'd known..."

"But it's okay now, Maya." Sasha pulled her into a close, tender embrace, "I forgive you."

"No, Sasha. That simply is not good enough for you, for all the pain I put you through." Maya broke away from the husky, looking at her with such earnest determination, "I have to make it up to you, and I intend to."

"But... what should we do then?" This was more than Sasha was expecting, much more. It was optimistic at best that Maya would even accept Sasha's feelings for her, let alone embrace them as fully as she seemed to be. This alone was already more than enough for her.

"For starters, how about we go on our first date, as a real couple? Maybe a dinner somewhere nice, just the two of us," the dark feline suggested. "After that though... well..." Maya trailed off, giving Sasha a suggestive smile, batting her eyes, and took a playful, teasing look about her.

Sasha quickly realized what she meant, and she went flush in a wave of lustful feelings rushed over her. Without thinking, the husky blushed with a nervous smile, and tried to return the look as best she could.

"Aw, look at you!" Maya said with a fun little giggle, like she found Sasha's shyness and inexperience cute?

The husky found herself feeling the hot tenderness of arousal rush through her again. Her heart pounded again, and some parts of her trembled, but it was a happy rhythm. Her breathing came in deep slow breaths, and made her speech stammer out, "Does that mean... you know... you and I...?" they were such hopeful words, longing words, words full of desire...

Maya leaned forward, and kissed Sasha on her cheek, then whispered with such intimacy, "For you, Sasha, I will go with you as far as you want to."

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/

Author Notes:

Yes! The Romantic drama and tensions I've been spinning finally come full circle, and everything is resolved (or is it?).

This is only the first arc of this story (which still isn't quite finished yet), and there will be much, much more to come.

As always, I love to hear back from you guys, and what you think about how its going so far. Until next time!