Chapter Text
Gina was having one of her bad days, and to make matters worse, Audrey wasn’t picking up her phone. What on earth could she be doing? She always picked up her phone. Was whatever ( or whoever ) she was doing really that important? That distracting? Gina couldn’t think of many things besides the obvious that could be keeping her girlfriend away.
Of course, Audrey was doing nothing of the sort. Yes, she was hanging out with Emma. No, she wasn’t doing anything of the scandalous sort with her. Gina should have known she wasn’t that type of person, but then again, Gina should have known her ex would cheat on her. Gina should have known a lot of things in hindsight. Hindsight is 20/20, after all.
“Pick up, Audrey…” Gina called once more, leaving no message before shutting her phone off. If Audrey didn’t pick up after the last three tries, there’s no reason she would pick up in the next. So, she just laid there, staring up at her ceiling. “Jesus,” It was happening again. Someone she loved with all her body and mind was betraying her again. And all she could do was watch, wait, and hope for the best.
Maybe Audrey wouldn’t tell her she was dating Emma? That way, Gina could go on being happy with her, while she and Emma had even more fun along the way. It seemed about fair. At least Gina would bring Audrey and Emma entertainment.
No, no, she shouldn’t think like that. Staying with someone who didn’t love her was out of the question. There had to be someone who really had the ability to love her, and Gina couldn’t afford to waste any time finding her. But what if it was already too late? Her one true love may have already found her own lover. That would make sense. After all, Gina’s already spent too much time on people who didn’t care for her.
Dull, brown eyes shut as their owner took in a deep breath. She had to calm down- all this worrying wasn’t doing her any good. Abby always told her not to cry over spilled milk. Maybe she was right ( even if she was the bitch who knocked the glass over ). Abby was always right. In every single argument they’d had, she always managed to come out on top. She was just so much smarter than her. Everyone was smarter than her though. Smarter, prettier, just generally better really. Gina wasn’t anything special. She really needed to stop going after the quality girls who were too good for her.
By some weird, unwanted miracle, Gina fell asleep not long after these thoughts left her head. Normally it took her a solid hour before she was able to cry herself to sleep. If Audrey wasn’t trying to call her back, perhaps this could have been considered a blessing.
--
When Gina woke up, she found herself entangled in someone’s arms. For a second she was afraid, then happy, then sad. Audrey was the one hugging her. But had Emma been locked in this very same embrace before? Was Gina just an afterthought? If she hadn’t called so much, would Audrey have even come home?
“Gines?”
“Yeah?”
“Are you okay? Your pillow was damp when I walked in.”
Gina shrugged her shoulders. “I guess.”
“Really?”
“‘Suppose so.”
Audrey simply sighed, squeezing her girlfriend softly in her arms. “Come on, you gotta be honest with me. What’s up? Is it because I didn’t hear your cal-”
“No.”
“So it was?”
No reply. “Sorry. I forgot to turn my ringer back on after yesterday’s movie. By the time I even checked my phone, you had already rang me about three times.”
“How was Emma?”
“As alright as she can be. After having your last two boyfriends try to kill you, I don’t think you’re ever really ‘alright’. You know?”
“Good thing she has you then.” Audrey was taken aback at how bitter her tone was. What on earth did she wrong? Was it something she said?
“Wait. Are you… Jealous of us?”
“Jealous of ‘us’? So you two are a thing. I knew it, I always-”
“Whoa, whoa, calm down! We’re not a ‘thing’, we’re just close friends. Why do you even think we’re… dating?” She hesitated even saying the word. Emma was her friend- probably her best friend after Noah. Dating her just seemed weird, awkward even.
“That’s exactly what she said.”
“‘She’? Who?”
Oh. Gina must have forgotten to tell Audrey about her ex, all the wrong she had done against her, all the pain she had caused. “Abby. My ex.”
Audrey was silent. She knew that with every name came a story, and that it was best she just listen for a bit. She could poke and prod Gina for answers later- after she felt better.
“We were close. Really close, a-at least, I thought we were. All of a sudden she ends it. On our first anniversary, no less. Then, she lets me know that she’s been cheating on me for eleven months. With a man. It came as such a shock, and I just started crying, and... I don't know. I guess I just have a lot of trouble trusting people anymore... What if they leave too?”
Thankfully for Audrey, she had a damn good poker face. Otherwise Gina might have misread her confusion for carelessness. How was someone supposed to respond to that? ‘I’m sorry’ would be insulting. ‘You didn’t deserve that’ was cliche as hell. And forget ‘Poor girl’. Since nothing she thought up sounded appealing, she decided to just let instincts lead the way.
“What a bitch. Did she ignore your calls a lot?”
“Whenever she was with him. Which… Was kinda all the time.”
Audrey shook her head and pulled Gina closer to her chest. “It’s alright. I’ll remember to make sure to never leave my phone on silent when I’m out. And just so you know, I’m not cheating on you with Emma. It’s just… Hard to understand, I guess?”
She was right- it was impossible to, but Gina decided to just go with it for now. At least Audrey was feigning love for her. That was enough for Gina, really. All she needed was to be able to pretend someone loved her. “Okay. Thank you for coming home, Audrey. I needed to see you. It was one of my weaker days.”
“That’s fine. What’s not fine, though, is how fucking sad you look. Let’s watch something really stupid. Leo the Lion work for you?”
“You’re so silly.” Despite her words, Gina finally let herself smile as she nodded her head. “And I love you for that.”
“I love you too.”
Gina knew that was a lie. But for now, all she needed was to hear her say it.