8dr Whovian: Thank you so much! :) That's so encouraging to hear! Aw I'm glad to hear it. I struggled writing that part so you have no idea how happy that makes me haha. Oooo yeah. It felt like they were writing week by week rather than planning stuff out which was so frustrating to watch! Aw thank you I hope it's coming across well. *sends virtual hug* Yeah what they did with Cheryl made me ultimately stop watching, as she was my favourite. :( Indeed! She's flawed but a good person at heart. Ah yes! And this tangled web is just getting started! Thank you! Yes she's slowly but surely stepping out of her comfort zone. Yeah some of the later writing for him to sum up in a word: Yikes! I didn't go into detail but Elena is on Team Cap mostly for Wanda haha. She does have a thing for redheads after all.
As Elena simultaneously ate and scribbled in her notebook, she couldn't help but wonder how demented she looked to anyone passing her by. She was shovelling pasta into her mouth all while scribbling down conversation starters, half of which she was worried sounded too practiced. Could you be too practiced? Or was she totally overthinking this? Elena considered it for a moment, before taking a picture of the contents of her notebook and sending it to Nell along with an update. If anyone could cut through the fog that made up her overthinker self, it was her.
AV Club went good! They want me to go again. Seeing Ethel again for history what do u think?
Half a minute later, she got a response.
congrats! so proud of you!Elena warmed at that. She was like the human form of a warm hug, even in text 's a human being living in the 21st century so odds are good on the Friends one! :)
This was why Nell was so good to confer with. She was amazing at simplifying things for you!
btw i'm going furniture shopping with ur mom
Elena paused in surprise, reading over Nell's message for a second time. Why was her mom trying to spend time with Nell?! why ?!
she liked the stuff in the bakery and wants some help
ah ok xThat sounded fairly innocuous.
and probably wants to be sure I'm not a serial killerElena refrained from texting back that out of the two of them, her Mom was inarguably the more dangerous Blossoms came down from their lair to see Patrick at Pop's 's eyes widened. Jeez. What a to say they aren't happy. How's Cheryl?
haven't seen her yet but she said she'd meet me for hesitated, but eventually opted to begin typing. She owed Nell her life, she couldn't keep this from her, no matter how torn it made her took the morning off to go hire my math tutor/PI to trail Patrick.
Nell is typing...
Nell is typing...
Nell is typing...
I want to say I'm surprised, but I'm snorted. She could practically hear the tired resignation in her words.
Blossoms huh?
You can't help but love em. U look after urs and I'll look after mine x
Will do x give Patrick a heads up?
I'll text him now x u want pancakes for dinner?
YES PLEASE!
I'll pick up the mix after work
I LOVE YOU!
Elena grinned delightedly as she put away her phone and notebook, returning her attentions to her lunch just as she caught sight of Betty and Veronica approaching her table together. Elena blinked in surprise at the sight, startled but happy nonetheless that they had seemingly made amends. "Hey!" She greeted, as they joined her with their respective lunches. "Are you two-"
"We're good." Veronica confirmed with a smile, bumping Betty with her hip.
Betty smiled at the gesture, turning to Elena. "How's Cheryl? She seemed a little off last night."
"Last night?" Veronica glanced between the two of them, eyes wide with curiosity. "What happened last night?"
"Bonding was had." Elena told her. "We all spent some time making each other over."
"Aw!" Veronica smiled, glancing between the two other girls, who were both turning red. "That's so sweet. Though next time I demand an invite."
"Duly noted." Betty laughed, as they began to tuck into their respective lunches.
"She's ok, given the circumstances. She'd just seen her brother again." Elena explained.
"How goes the older Blossom living with you?" Veronica prodded, her expression filled with intrigue. "Does he make as big an impression as his sister?"
"In a way." Elena laughed. Patrick was definitely a unique character to say the least. "Him and Nell are like a vaudeville act. He seems really nice though. I believe he really wants to reconnect with her, and Nell's really happy having him with us. It's sweet." Nell had decidedly not been a fan of his long showers, as Elena had discovered that morning when she'd awoken to Nell screeching at him to get out of the bathroom.
"Oh look, perfect timing!" Veronica pointed behind Elena, prompting her to turn her head around to see Cheryl looking for her.
Cheryl perked up at once as she spotted the three of them together, a mischevious smile on her face that Elena recognised as a particular one that meant one of her plans had fallen into place. Things with Hermosa had gone well then. Cheryl sauntered on over, seating herself next to Elena and tapping her hip with her own. "Ladies! I must say I've had a most fruitful morning all things considered."
Elena shook her head, placing a hand on Cheryl's shoulder. "Ahhhh! I see your eyes aglow with the fire only a forthcoming takedown can bring."
"That they are!" Cheryl grinned, squeezing her hand just before Elena pulled it away. Elena could only hope Patrick didn't have anything embarassing hiding on the internet somewhere. Hermosa had shared some stories about various clients in the time that they'd known each other, and it was safe to say from the sound of things that the woman was scary good at her job.
"A takedown?" Betty stared, an equally confused Veronica looking between them.
"Need to know basis Betty." Cheryl dismissed, pointing between them. "Soooo... You're both aware of mine and Elena'sfriendshipnow."
"And we won't say a word about your-" Veronica glanced at Elena for help.
Elena racked her brain for a moment, before finally deciding to simply take Cheryl's lead. "Ourfriendshipwould be pretty controversial to say the least if it got back to her parents. They're old school."
"Old school fossils more like." Cheryl muttered under her breath, as she inspected her nails. "Under normal circumstances I'd have you both sign ironclad NDAs, but given that I can't exactly make use of the family lawyer without risk of exposure, I'll simply have to-" Cheryl gritted her teeth, like her next set of words were the hardest things she'd ever had to utter aloud. "Trust you both. Elena has repeatedly assured me you're both trustworthy. And-" Cheryl shot Elena a tender look that made her soften. "-you've accepted her."
Both Betty and Veronica balked in surprise, but found themselves nodding nonetheless. "We won't breathe a word about it." Veronica smiled assuringly at them both, lightly tapping Elena's foot under the table with her own. "I'm just glad you're happy." Elena smiled warmly, eyes drifting to Cheryl, who while still looking at her nails, had gone noticeably still. "And as for any friends of Dorothy that aren't in a positon to announce anything to the world, I- I just want them to know they can talk to me if they ever need a frenemy to lean on."
Betty opened her mouth hesitantly, but forced herself to speak. "I second that. We all have more in common than I realised. No one should ever have to feel on their own with no one to turn to. Especially in their own home." Betty stared pointedly at Cheryl, who met her unshakeable stare with her eyes that were filled with emotion.
"Duly noted." Cheryl replied, swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat. Elena reached over and squeezed her hand briefly under the table, hoping desperately that she was taking what they were saying to heart.
Cheryl held her head up high, plastering on a smile as she forcibly veered the conversation away from the subject of their relationship. "So Veronica," she laced her fingers together, a funny look in her eye as she looked at her sister that could not mean anything good. Chaotic things happened when Cheryl had that particular look. "Elena's hanging out with Jughead Jones tonight, what say we get her to press him about his feelings towards a certain blonde in our midst?"
"No!" Betty protested, her voice turning comically shrill. "No! No way!"
"I second that!" Elena agreed, cringing at the thought of having to ask him something like that. "Who's crushing on who isn't exactly something we talk about."
"Well make it something you talk about!" Cheryl urged, pointing at Betty. "Your new bestie needs to know!"
"I do not need to know." Betty denied, willing the ground beneath her to swallow her whole. Though Elena wasn't exactly jumping for joy at the turn their conversation had taken, a giddy part of her couldn't help but gleefully note that Betty hadn't denied the "new bestie" title that Cheryl had bestowed upon her. Were they solid, no going back friends now?
"Don't you wanna know if he likes you back?" Veronica asked, a teasing smile on her lips.
Betty squirmed, her cheeks turning so rosy that Elena wondered if she should put a cold compress on them. "Of course I do but-" She sighed. "I don't wanna get rejected again so soon after the whole Archie thing."
Elena knew she had to say something about that. "Who says he'll reject you?"
Betty buried her face in her hands. "Because-" She sighed, taking her hands away from her face. "Because stuff like guys liking you back doesn't happen to me Elena."
Elena's face fell at that. She opened her mouth and tried to say something, but to no avail. What did you even say to that?
"B don't let one guy set the tone!" Veronica urged, pleading for her to see reason. "You're smart, you're beautiful, you're a total catch!"
"You do have a certain-" Cheryl waved her hand vaguely in Betty's direction, as she tried to think of something to say. "-way about you. I'm sure Jughead Jones wouldn't be entirely opposed to the idea of seeing you in a less than platonic lens."
Elena noted the look of quiet resignation on Betty's face, and knew what she had to do. "I'll poke around." She promised. "In a non-embarassing to you way."
"Really?" Betty balked in surprise.
"Really?" Veronica and Cheryl chorused, equally surprised at her sudden change of mind.
"Really." Elena confirmed, firm in her decision. "I mean you're all gonna have to write out an appropriate script out for me, because -oh dear god!- but-" She heaved a breath, ignoring the race of her heart. "I'll poke my foot in the water, so to speak. For you."
"Thank you Elena." Betty replied, smiling so gratefully at her that Elena had to force herself not to look her in the eye.
Elena tapped her knuckles out against the bench, before opening up her notes app and setting it down in the middle of the table. "Now ladies, please tell me what the hell I should say."
In the five minutes Nell had spent waiting for Hermione Lodge, she'd changed her mind about five dozen times as to whether or not this was a good idea. It was furniture shopping, totally harmless right? You couldn't find a more innocent way to spend time with someone. And yet as Nell replayed every moment she'd spent with her roommate's mother one on one over and over again on a loop, it suddenly didn't feel so harmless. Hermione was charming. Absurdly so. So much so that every second she spent around her, the part of Nell's brain that remembered that she was Elena's mother seemed to switch off like a toggle option on an app.
This was bad. This was so so bad.
Because the fact of the matter was pretty simple. Nell liked her. Nell really, really liked her. And yet nothing could ever happen, for a million different reasons that should all have put her off from even agreeing to hanging out with her like this. God Patrick was right. She had girl fog. When she liked a girl so much that the logical side of her brain seemed to pack up shop and leave her to the other woman's mercy.
But it was so nice to talk to her.
She didn't have to filter herself or put on her grownup shoes around Hermione. She could flirt, she could chat animatedly about this or that without fear of judgement and just let all the tightly wound coils that made up every inch of her inner self unwind and unfurl. She was something for herself, something fun and exciting that made her body quiver from a messy blend of excitment or nervousness and so completely wrong because this was a married (perhaps seperated) lady who was the mom of one of the most important people in the world to her.
She was an idiot. A goddamn idiot.
As though summoned through the sheer power of Nell's girl fog, Nell felt a gentle tap on her shoulder.
She turned around to find a smiling Hermione, wearing a beautiful dark coat that perfectly complimented her hair. It was all blow dried and perfect, and Nell longed for nothing more than to tuck a strand of it behind her ear and play with the rest. Right. That was it. She needed to just test this out like Patrick had suggested, and confirm what she already knew. Hermione was straight and totally not interested. This was all in her head.
"Hi." Hermione smiled, all bright and mind bogglingly dazzling. Nell felt every bit of tension leave her body all at once, blowing away like smoke in the air. It wasn't fair for someone to be that pretty.
She's so doing that on purpose.
"Hi." Nell greeted, a little breathless at the sight of her. "Did you get here okay?"
"Oh yeah, in fact I walked." Hermione shrugged, sticking her hands in her coat as she looked around where they were stood. "It's a nice part of town." It was. Aside from the odd store dotted about here and there and the road leading to them, this part of town was mostly long, towering trees. If you'd stuck it next to a picture of somewhere in Canada, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. It was very picturesque, and the open blue sky paired with the fog currently curling around the trees made for a scene that was begging to be plastered all over a postcard or on someone's geography pinterest board.
"Well..." Nell flashed her a pearly grin, rocking back and forth on her heels.
"Well..." Hermione repeated, still smiling at her in the way she always seemed to do when she was being a flustered mess.
"The treasure trove awaits!" Nell let out a nervous laugh as she gestured for Hermione to follow her into the store. She stuck her hands into her pink coat in a bid to anchor herself, her heart pounding wildly as they made it inside.This is fine.She thought, taking a deep inhale of the immediate wood scent that hit her.This is totally fine. You're just over complicating this.
The first hour of their visit went completely fine. Nell guided Hermione around the shop with a familiarity that only came with numerous visits to a place, a fact which Hermione was more than happy to tease her about. "Do you know all the catalogue numbers too?" Hermione chuckled, the sound sending gentle shivers down Nell's whole body.
"Not yet but gimme time." Nell bantered back, eyes catching Hermione's once more as they walked through the aisles of precariously stacked furniture. The shop was located in an old storage warehouse, so every click and clack of both women's heels echoed throughout the entire space, the soundtrack to Nell's frantic energy as she desperately willed herself to act normal.
"Oooo!" Nell cooed in delight, a hand flying to her mouth. Opting not to let herself think, Nell grabbed a hold of Hermione's hand and began pulling her down to the end of the aisle.
Hermione seemed happy to be dragged along, chuckling in confusion. "Where are we going?"
They came to a halt in front of a pair of dining chairs, which Hermione immediately stopped short at. "Oh!" She gaped, stepping forward to admire them. She turned her head to Nell, shaking her head to herself. "Do you have a sixth sense for this kind of thing that I don't know about?"
"Oh well, I only reveal my secret to my closest friends." She beamed, chuckling lightly at the happy expression on Hermione's face. Nell found that she liked making Hermione smile. A lot. Even when said smile threatened to make her faint from how mind-numbingly dazzling she found it. "Superman has flying, I have tracking down cute furniture."
"They are something." Hermione smiled apprasingly, her gaze lingering on Nell for so long that she began to get goosebumps.
"Yeah..." Nell smiled, not allowing herself to look away first. "Something."
Elena had been glancing at her notes app for over an hour into Casablanca's runtime, when she finally worked up the courage to talk to Jughead.
Cheryl, Veronica and with some occasional help from a still fretful Betty, had spent all of lunch crafting an air tight script for her to ask Jughead about Betty with. She'd been going over the notes one last time, when Jughead bumped his foot against hers. "What's got you so tense?" he wondered, making Elena bolt upright.
They were sat on either side of the movie projector in Jughead's work room and bedroom, both teenagers content with the quiet as they overlooked the handful of older couples watching the movie outside in their cars. This was what Elena loved most about hanging out with Jughead. They didn't have to talk about a million things at once just to fill a gap in the conversation. They could just sit in comfortable silence, and not have to worry about what the other person was thinking. He was probably the most chill person Elena had ever met.
"Nothing." Elena denied. She hurridly stuck her phone back into her jacket pocket, sitting upright with a smile on her face. She placed both of her hands on her thighs in a bid to ground herself, holding back the urge to cringe at herself as Jughead stared at her with a raised brow. Man she sucked at being nonchalant.
"Nothing?" Jughead quizzed, clearly not believing her.
"Yeah nothing."
"Then why are you wringing yours hands?" He argued, pointing to her hands, which had re-joined one another without her even realising. "You do that when you're nervous."
Damn it. Elena exhaled deeply, squaring her shoulders before turning to Jughead. "So Jug..." Elena waved a vague hand in the air. "Anything you want to share? Any lady folk catch your eye?"
Jughead shifted in his seat in surprise, the corner of his mouth itching upwards as he fought the urge not to laugh. "Why do you sound like you're reading from a teleprompter?"
"A tele-" Elena buried her face in her hand, willing the ground to swallow her whole. Did she sound that rehearsed? Forget the notes. As much as the idea felt like a swift kick to the ribs, Elena knew she needed to cut right to the heart of things. "What would you think if I told you someone liked you? Cos- Well- Someone does. She's super smart and accomplished, she goes to school with us, and she's really pretty too."
Jughead seemed surprised by that. "A girl likes me?"
"Yes." Elena nodded.
Jughead took some time to contemplate her words, before finally shrugging. "I can't say I'm upset about it." He smiled, reaching into the snack box he'd brought for their little outing and throwing her a juice box. He always thought of others. She'd noticed that when they had hung out for the first time. He would never outright say anything, but he always took note of things like people's snack preferences or likes or dislikes.
Elena caught it, chuckling nervously. "It's Betty. You know Betty, right? Of course you do, since pre-school. I knew that as well." She rambled, forcing the straw into her juicebox and taking a long sip in order to stop herself from talking.
Jughead's eyes went wide, a delighted smile splitting across his mouth as he registered Elena's words. "Betty likes me?"
Elena paused, taking in the expression on his face. He was happy about this! She began to grin as well, her body abuzz with excitement as he looked away from her bashfully. "Oh my god you're adorable."
"Shut up." He laughed, still unable to meet her eyeline. "I- May have thought about her from time to time."
"May have?" Elena raised a brow, urging him on. "You think she's cute?" Jughead's almost immediate blush sent Elena roaring. "AHHHH!" she exclaimed in as hushed a tone as possible, tapping her feet excitedly on the box she was sat on. "No way!"
"Like you said-" He chuckled, smiling fondly. "I've known her since pre-school."
"Jughead that's-" Elena let out a happy laugh of disbelief. "That's amazing! You have to tell her!"
"No, no way. Her and Archie-"
"Aren't happening." Elena assured him. "I say let the dust from the Archie situation settle, then test the waters-"
"-and tell her she's the only lady folk that's ever caught my eye?" Jughead teased, fighting back a laugh.
Elena pulled a mocking face, throwing a handful of popcorn at him. Jughead swatted it away, his laughter only doubling at the action. Elena took a second to enjoy the moment, to truly appreciate how far she'd come to feel comfortable with this boy. To not only feel safe around him, but to be confident in the knowledge that he was her friend and he liked her just as much as she liked him. "Thank you." She found herself saying.
"For what?" Jughead queried, tilting his head in confusion.
"For treating me like everyone else. It-" Elena laughed sheepishly, feeling slightly awkward as she explained herself. "It sounds dumb but I've just missed this." She gestured vaguely. "Having friends and feeling like an ordinary person for once. Like I'm the main character in a teen rom-com."And not the main character in a HBO crime drama.
Though he didn't say much, Jughead seemed to understand what she was putting down. He knew she'd been bullied at her last school, and the two of them had bonded over their shared hatred for the social scenes at high schools. "You're welcome." He replied earnestly, smiling sweetly as he snatched a stray popcorn kernel that had landed in the folds of his shirt and dropped it into his mouth.
After a few moments of comfortable silence, Elena tossed him a bag of skittles from her own snack box. She liked to make a point of remembering things about others too. "So are you gonna go for it? With Betty I mean."
"You think I should?"
Elena nodded. "Anyone would be lucky to have someone like you in their life Jughead. I think you should let Betty get to know you better, and vice versa. You two could use each other I think."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Okay I'll think about it." Jughead agreed, making Elena clap her hands together delightedly. "So..." He opened up his bag of skittles, a playful smile on his face. "Since we're talking teen rom-coms, name your top five."
Elena found herself gaping at the proposal. "Of all time? I can't, that's like asking me to pick who my favourite kid is."
"Hence the point." Jughead grinned. "Sorry." He teased. "But I must insist upon an answer!"
As he finally finished up his business for the day, Patrick found himself recieving a call from his wife as he was leaving the Riverdale bank. This in itself wouldn't be all that unusual, aside from the fact that he'd packed up all his things and took a plane to another country without telling her. Patrick figured if she could keep secrets so could he. It was childish and petty of course, but it'd smoothed over some of the hurt of finding out she'd been spying on him.
"Hey Mo, you missing something?" Patrick drawled as he answered the phone, unlocking his car as he reached where he'd parked it by the kerb. His baby, his everything, his beautiful, flawless Lamborghini Aventador had arrived that morning. It also happened to be a car that Hermosa hated, which defintely wasn't fueling his love for it at that moment in time.
"Well you make yourself laugh, that's what counts." Patrick grinned, hearing the unmistakeable sound of irritation in her tone. "You're a child."
"And you have no boundaries." Patrick shrugged, sitting himself down and shutting the door behind him.
"I was only doing it on orders."
Patrick jumped out of his skin, his phone sent flying at the sound of Hermosa's voice coming not just from his phone, but from his backseat. Patrick turned around to find Hermosa sat in the back seat without a care in the world, one leg thrown over the other as she ended the call and looked up from her phone to smile sweetly at him.
Patrick narrowed his eyes at her, deeply unimpressed as he brought his hand to his chest like a startled southern belle. "This is grounds for divorce."
"Don't be dramatic." Hermosa sighed, rolling her eyes.
"Oh I'm the dramatic one? You just broke into my car!" Patrick exclaimed, eyes wide in incredulity. "What the hell are you even doing here Hermosa?"
She looked beautiful. God he hated that. She'd clearly came from somewhere, as she was dressed to the nines in a black cocktail dress and matching heels she was no doubt tempted to kick him with. Hermosa brushed aside a lock of her perfectly coiffed black hair, eyes baring into his as she leaned forward. "I pose the same question to you. The word all over town is that you're back for Cheryl, and yet you've taken it upon yourself to move in with Nell and Elena."
"Ahhhh." Patrick laid back with ease in his seat, suddenly understanding why she had appeared out of nowhere like a demented pop-up book. "Hiram sends his love I presume?"
"He's not impressed." Hermosa deadpanned.
"When is he ever?" Patrick laughed, not the least bit rattled as Hermosa glowered unpleasantly at him. She was so cute when she was mad at him. "What do you want me to say? Yes, I schemed my way into living with Elena. Oh! In fact I masterminded Nell taking her in! Jason even offered to die just to help me out and really add to the story."
The majority of Hermosa's anger seemed to slip away at Patrick's venomous comment. She reached out to touch him on the shoulder, but he shifted away, shooting her a hurt look.
"The Elena thing is a coincidence. While it did give me a good giggle at your expense as well as your jailbird's, that's all there is to it. She's a nice kid. She's been good to my sister." Patrick informed her sincerely, emotion crossing over Hermosa's face that he understood all too well. How many times had she talked to him about her sisters? Wondering what they were like and whether they'd get along or not. Hiram gave her second-hand stories of course, but Patrick knew those hadn't been enough for her. Merely light meals to temporarily satiate her. Her dad was a piece of shit for keeping her on the sidelines, and he'd told her as such so many times that he'd lost count. But Hermosa had her head firmly lodged into the sand, and would hear no bad words against her father. Hiram had brought them together, but he was also the one that was driving them apart.
After a moment of tense silence, Hermosa chose to speak once more. "Then why are you living there?"
"Maybe I want to spend some time with my best friend, you know, someone I can actually trust." He sniped, pointedly looking her straight in the eye.
"Papi asked me to do a sweep of everyone in our inner circle. Trusted and non-trusted." Hermosa sighed, rubbing tiredly at her temple. "You fall into the former mi amor, I swear it."
Patrick softened at that, the wind taken out of his sails as he tapped her on the knee. "You okay?"
"Relatively."
The two exchanged soft smiles, a gentle, contented feeling sinking into Patrick's chest at the look on her face. It was a stark reminder of why he was still riding this dysfunctional merry-go-round after all this time. He'd loved the woman in front of him since he was eighteen years old. His first love, his only love, the one who'd pulled him from the dark depths he'd fallen into and had never wavered in her love for him, nor he for her. She was it for him. No matter what insane stunts she or her father pulled, or how many times he cursed the day she'd ever agreed to work for him.
Hermosa seemed to recall why she was there, smoothly slipping back into business mode as she reached for a file sat on her left and handed it to him. "Cheryl's hired me to dig up dirt on you."
Patrick found himself immobilized as he took the file from her, his brain stitching everything together and rendering him speechless. Maury would have a field day with the Lodge family. "Woooow."He scoffed. "You're Elena's tutor?"
"How did you-"
"Word travels fast around this place, plus I have a phone." Patrick snorted. "You're unbelievable."
Hermosa closed her eyes, bracing for what she knew was coming. "You don't understand."
"I wonder if Elena will enjoy going down to the courthouse to get her first restraining order? I'm sure it will be a fun new experience for her." Patrick pondered mockingly, shaking his head at Hermosa. "So she's your East Coast business. And I bet he's alternating you when you're not here with Adams and Andre, right? That's not creepy at all."
"Papi was hardly going to let her leave home without some form of protection." Hermosa defended, "If an enemy of the family were to seek retaliation, she'd be the first they'd go after."
"So your Dad's got you babysitting your sister and you can't even tell her who you are. That's fucked Mo."
"I'll live." She sighed, her voice turning soft.
"He has zero consideration for your feelings." Patrick argued, fury etched into his tone. "You're just another lackey to him. Hell he kicked Elena out for not being some perfect little princess!" God was he stuck in a time loop or something? How many times had they had this exact same argument over the years?
"Are you going to tell her?" Hermosa asked, pointedly ignoring his words. "Because if you are-"
"He'll set Adams and Andre on me? Ooooo!" Patrick let out a fake shiver, pretending to faint. "Not the gruesome twosome!"
"Patrick!"
"Are you asking as my wife or one of Hiram Lodge's capos?" He queried, all the humor draining from his face at once.
"Both."
Patrick merely shrugged. "I don't know, I haven't made up my mind yet. On the one hand I seriously don't wanna be involved in this shit, but another part of me is trying to figure out whether or not you and Hiram have anything nefarious planned for her. I don't wanna freak the girl out without knowing for certain. Plus I do like the idea of holding this over your father's head. It's enough to make a guy positively giddy."
"Of course not." Hermosa stared at him in disbelief. "What are you alluding to?"
"Just that his trial is coming up, and Elena would be a pretty damning witness what with him chucking her to the curb and all. Sofia's testifying against him isn't she?" Patrick grinned, seeing his words hit their intended mark. "Ooooo it's bad isn't it?"
Patrick shifted closer, taking delight in the uncomfortable look on her face. "Tell me!" He urged, eyes wide with a childlike glow of pettiness.
"Stop enjoying this so much. His lawyers are working on it."
"Hiram's psycho sister isn't afraid of lawyers and you know it." Patrick reminded her, watching as a rare look of fear crossed over her face. "Steer clear of her Mo."
"I'm not an idiot." She snapped.
"I know." He nodded, reaching forward to take her hand in his.
Hermosa rolled her eyes, smiling despite herself at the gesture. "I thought you were angry with me?"
"The dress is lessening my anger." He joked, tracing circles into her palm.
"I'm sorry."
"I know you are."
Hermosa squeezed his hand, a gentle expression on her face as she too drew closer to her husband. "What do you want me to do? About Cheryl?"
"Give her everything."
Hermosa balked in surprise. "You want her to know all of it?"
He nodded, not meeting her eyes as he continued to distract himself with her hand, smiling as he messed around with her wedding ring that matched his own. "She'll never trust me if she doesn't get a full picture." Patrick winced. "Though this will probably land me in some hot water. You think Daddy dearest will mind?" He asked, barely keeping his disdain for the man out of his voice.
"Let me handle Papi." Hermosa assured him. "So are you going to tell Elena?"
Patrick looked up once more, smiling sweetly at his wife. "You're so pretty." He gushed, his tone imitating that of an infatuated schoolboy. Patrick brought her hand up to his mouth, softly kissing the knuckles before setting it back down again.
"And you're so deflecting." Hermosa noted, watching him knowingly. She let out a heavy sigh, realising the delicate balancing act she now had ahead of her. Keeping the peace between her father and husband was a full time job in itself.
"I guess you'll just have to wait and see."
Nell didn't want her time with Hermione to end.
After their shopping trip where they'd both came away with their wallets significantly lighter, Hermione had suggested they stop by a nearby coffee place to grab drinks and talk some more. Nell had agreed, and that's how she found herself sat outside in a cosy little outdoor garden alone with Hermione. The place had been pretty full when they had arrived, so the two of them had opted for some privacy and headed outside.
As Nell sipped her coffee, Hermione had taken to showing her some pictures on her phone. Nell had been holding her breath the entire time, as Hermione was sat right beside her. She would occasionally brush her bare forearm against Nell's, her skin sent tingling every single time.
"This was when they did a Thanksgiving campaign for Macy's." Hermione swiped over to show her a picture of Elena and Veronica as toddlers, dressed in turkey costumes as they both beamed happily at the camera. It was singlehandedly the most adorable thing Nell had ever seen, and she planned on teasing Elena about it for months to come.
"Oh my god! I demand you send me this so I can torment Elena with it forever." Nell laughed along with Hermione, her shoulders shaking. She was glad that Hermione felt comfortable enough to share treasured pictures with her, the thought made Nell rather happy in fact.
"You've got it." Hermione giggled, sending her said picture.
Nell forwarded the picture to Elena, biting the inside of her cheek to keep herself from laughing too make such a cute turkey!She texted alongside a turkey emoji, only having to wait a few seconds before getting a reply.
I'm gonna kill Mom.
She showed me the Christening pictures too fyi. Do you want everyone in our building to get a copy or just our closest neighbours?
If ur phone suddenly goes missing tonight don't be alarmed. Make her stop!
Nell sent a series of laughing emojis back, smiling to herself as she tucked her phone away once more. "Elena sends her love, as well as a polite request to stop showing me her baby pictures."
Hermione smiled, a thoughtful look on her face as she put her own phone away. "You said you had a lousy upbringing when we met. And yet you're so good with her."
The corner of Nell's mouth twisted upwards as she laughed uneasily. "Thank you. That's sweet of you to say." Nell found herself grimacing as unwelcome memories began to surface, tugging at the collar of the white shirt she was wearing. "It took about ten years of therapy and avoiding the Sisters of Quiet Mercy like a crazy ex girlfriend, but-" She shrugged. "I survived. I made it." She pronounced proudly, her memories fading away once more as she remembered that uncontestable fact.
She sat up straighter, noting the horrified look on Hermione's face. "You've heard of the place I take it?"
"Yes, I-"
Hermione placed her hand upon Nell's, concern shining clear and bright in her eyes. "Everyone who grew up here has. The hell hole no person ever wanted to end up at."
"Me and my brother called it home for fourteen years. It was... Well it was exactly what you said. A hell hole. A workhouse where the nuns could abuse you and work you dry, then toss you out when you aged out." Nell shuddered, closing her eyes. "I'm sorry for that delightful little mood killer there. Nothing like a trauma dump to get the conversation going right?"
"Hey!" Hermione chastised softly, placing her hand on top of Nell's to squeeze it. "Don't be sorry. You're not dumping, I asked."
Nell offered her a grateful smile, realising with a start that she was still touching her hand. And she'd drawn close to her.Reallyclose. Nell could even smell the perfume that she had on. A mixture of citrus and jasmine combined together to make Nell all the more dizzy as she inhaled the scent, all while glancing down at their interlocked hands. Rather than follow her instincts, Nell kept her hand where it was, her heart thumping so loud she could swear that Hermione heard it as well.
Hermione began to trace gentle patterns against her knuckles with her thumb, still not saying a word.
"You know when I first saw you at Andrews Construction, I-" Nell laughed nervously, feeling as though whatever connection existed between them was being pulled tighter and tighter with every breath she took. "I thought you were the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen." Too shy too look up, Nell continued to occupy her thoughts by observing what Hermione was doing.
"Really?" Nell froze, not missing the unmistakeable sound of delight in her tone. Butterflies flapped their wings frantically in her stomach. Though her girl fog brain wasn't allowing for her to outright see it, somewhere in the back of Nell's mind she recognised that a line was quickly evaporating between the two of them.
"Yeah." Nell laughed, unable to help herself. "You had that whole femme fatale thing going on. I mean even now-" Nell gestured to the black velvet top she was wearing, looking up to meet her heated gaze. She froze, the rest of her words dying instantly.
She was looking at her with something akin to desire, dark brown eyes swirling with unfettered amusement as she watched Nell's throat bob. "You wanna know something?" Hermione asked, a faux sense of casualness to her voice as she dangled the question in front of Nell. Nell nodded, not trusting herself to speak. "When I saw you for the first time that day, I thought you were the prettiest thing I'd ever my laid my eyes on."
Hermione tilted her head, observing Nell like a cat with a mouse as she reached forward and tucked some of her hair behind her ear. Her amused smile increased tenfold as she closed the last bit of significant space between them, lips merely inches apart as they stared at the other like a ravenous person who could barely constrain themselves. Nell shuddered as she felt the heat of Hermione's mouth, the world around them fading to nothing.
"Nell-"
"Hermione-"
Nell didn't know which one of them it was that closed the gap. Only that one minute they were apart, and then in the next Hermione's mouth was on hers. Both her hands went to delicately cup Nell's face, a comical juxtaposition to her lips as they ravaged Nell's. She could hardly breathe, hardly think as liquid heat pooled in her stomach, the only thing she could do was kiss her back. Nell slipped her tongue into her mouth, a skilled dance lasting for only a few seconds as the toggle in Nell's brain seemed to switch back on.
I'm kissing Elena's mom.
Nell broke apart from Hermione in alarm, the noise of the rest of the world filtering back in all at once. Nell noted some residue from her pink lipstick against Hermione's ruined red one. Nell wiped furiously at her mouth, shame threatening to drag her down to it's depths and never let her surface. Oh god. What had she done?
"Nell-" Hermione reached for her arm to stop her, but Nell was already up. She threw her coat back on in a flurry, getting her bag back over her shoulder before Hermione could even stand. She reached into her pocket and threw down some money on the table. "Nell wait!"
But Nell ignored her, rushing away from the table, back into the coffee shop and out the door before she could even stop to let herself think.