Chapter Text
To say she missed Kelley was an understatement. The older girl was in Georgia for Thanksgiving, while Alex was stuck in New York doing lab work over break. They had seen each other on Tuesday; the younger girl had taken Kelley to the airport for her flight home after the two had lunch together. The older girl had kissed her cheek with a promise to call when she landed and a reminder that she would be back on Sunday. Alex had been invited to the O’Hara family Thanksgiving, but she had had to decline due to school obligations.
Their apartment was too quiet, too empty. Alex was always in awe of just how big of a part of her life Kelley was, though she suspected the older girl had some idea. As she locked the door and started walking towards campus, her eyes trained on the ground and she attempted to focus on the music flowing through her headphones. She was quickly distracted, counting her steps and wishing there was a second set of feet next to hers as she made this journey. She would follow the older girl anywhere, and all of their friends knew it too.
After all, that is how they ended up together in the first place, back during her freshman year. A drunken night at some frat party, a drunk kiss because of a dare, an offer to take her home, and waking up next to each other had the two in a relationship at warp speed, but it worked. Alex still remembered, before she got too drunk, Kelley sitting on the couch with a few friends, clutching a beer bottle and telling some story that was likely only half true. She remembered getting lost in the older girl’s movements, her mind drifting and wondering it would be like to feel her hands on her body, to feel her lips against hers.
She remembered not being upset when one of their friends (fairly certain it was Rose or Mal) daring the two of them to kiss. She remembered Kelley making sure she was comfortable with the dare before proceeding, the way their lips moved so in sync. The way the older girl looked into her eyes had pulled her in, intrigued her. When Kelley had offered to take her home, she quickly agreed. She was slightly disappointed when she discovered the older girl had meant that she would take her back to her dorm, but that was quickly turned around when she invited the freckled girl inside. Her roommate was gone (probably spending the night with her girlfriend), so she had the room to herself.
She had pulled Kelley inside her room by her collar and pushed her down on her bed. The older girl had laughed and asked just how long she expected that position to last. The younger one had smirked and told her that she was a forward, after all, used to being on top. The freckled girl had smirked back and quickly flipped them. They had spent the rest of the night fighting for the upper hand. It had been the best night either of them had had in a long time.
The two started quietly seeing each other. It was mostly physical for the first two weeks. The taller brunette had felt like she was back in high school, sneaking out to see the older girl. They started dating three weeks after sleeping together for the first time. Alex was attracted to Kelley’s personality, and the older girl’s physical attractiveness definitely did not hurt. The hazel-eyed girl radiated frat boy/fuck boy energy to those who didn’t know her or only saw her at frat parties.
But, Alex knew the truth to Kelley O’Hara.
She knew what lay underneath the “frat daddy” persona. She saw a hint of it that first night, and every night since, she saw a little more. She saw the truth to Kelley’s personality on their first official date, walking hand in hand down 16th Avenue. She saw it in the way the older girl grabbed her hand as soon as they started walking down the sidewalk. She saw it in the way Kelley walked slightly in front of her, guiding her and showing her protectiveness. She saw it in the way she pulled open the doors for Alex and the way she kissed her at the end of the night.
It had been pretty obvious to everyone just how much Alex liked her. She had an affinity for getting lost in the other girl, always distracted by her hazel eyes or the freckles dusting her face. She was pretty sure Kelley had caught on within a week of them sleeping together for the first time. It was only confirmed when the older girl teased her for always staring at her. But she hadn’t really cared that she had been caught; she knew Kelley felt the same.
As she approaches her lab, her mind wanders to think about how far the two of them had come in their three-year relationship.
They had been dating for over a year now. Alex still lived in a dorm on campus, not being able to afford to live off-campus quite yet. Kelley had an apartment that she lived in with Christen, Tobin, and Allie. It was expected that Alex would move in the next school year, especially since she practically lived there already. She spent most nights there, falling asleep curled up next to Kelley. Her roommate was more than okay with it, it gave her time to have her boyfriend over.
It had taken her a while to get used to automatically feeling comfortable here. In the beginning, she often felt like she was intruding even though Kelley insisted that everyone liked having the younger girl around and she was already friends with Christen, having shared a dorm with her freshman year.
“Yes, even Allie. Yes, even though she always complains about fifth wheeling. She’s just missing Bati.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive. Now come here and cuddle me while we watch Disney movies.”
Alex had eventually learned to be comfortable, to make herself at home. She would spend her mornings making coffee and breakfast for the girls. She would watch Christen send Tobin off with a kiss and handing her something she had forgotten (usually a shoe). She and Christen would clean the kitchen and talk about classes. Christen would leave after giving her a hug and yelling towards Kelley’s room to ensure the hazel-eyed girl was actually awake. Alex was usually about halfway through her crossword when Kelley would come out of her bedroom and hug her from behind, pressing a kiss to her cheek. The two of them would walk to campus together, parting ways when they reached Alex’s science building. Kelley would go off to one of the writing labs and come back to pick Alex up at the end of their school days.
They were both content with their lives. They felt no need to rush the relationship; they had done enough of that in the beginning. Sleeping together for two weeks before even going on their first date. Kelley had told Alex she loved her after a month and a half of dating, something the younger girl reciprocated very quickly. Practically living together for most of their relationship. Alex saw a very real future with the older girl, possibly one leading to marriage. She was still young, only nineteen, and Kelley was only twenty. She knew the older girl didn’t want to get married before graduating, and that she would prefer to get married after grad school.
But Alex also knew she was not going to wait around forever. She did not necessarily want to get married while still in school either, but she would be okay with getting engaged during her undergrad. She had tried to make that known to the older girl without blatantly stating it. She was fairly sure Kelley had gotten the hint by this point. At least, she hoped so.
She was leaning against the car, waiting for her girlfriend to make an appearance. She had sent a text fifteen minutes ago, letting her know she had deplaned and was heading to baggage claim for her checked bag. She was sipping her own coffee and holding Kelley’s in her other hand, scanning the crowd for the older girl. Finally, she saw the backward baseball cap and sunglasses she had been missing these last few days moving through the crowd. Pushing off the car, she smiles at her girlfriend and hands her the coffee. The older girl drops her bag and pulls her into a hug, burying her face in the younger girl’s neck.
“I missed you.”
“I missed you too, love.”
Kelley eventually lets go of her and grabs her bag, tossing it in the back seat. They get in the car, Alex in the driver’s seat, and pull out of the lot. She fiddles with the volume knob on the radio, turning it down slightly so she can hear the hazel-eyed girl talk about her break and her family, dropping her hand to Kelley’s thigh after doing so. The older girl keeps rambling about how her sister and brother both gave her a hard time for coming home instead of staying in New York with Alex. They sit at a red light and the younger girl takes the opportunity to look at her girlfriend, a smile on her face as she does so.
“Where are we going? This isn’t the way home,” the older girl is confused and it makes Alex want to kiss her silly. She doesn’t though; she merely hums in response and continues driving when the light turns green. They reach the park soon and Alex swears she falls even more in love when Kelley’s eyes light up like a kid’s on Christmas. Reaching into the back, she grabs a soccer ball and the two walk to a relatively vacant patch of grass to play.
“Have I ever told you how much I love you?”
“Hm, I may need a reminder,” the younger girl says and Kelley smirks before responding.
“Just wait ‘til we get home, babe. I’ll make sure you don’t forget.”
“Is that a promise, O’Hara?” Alex raises an eyebrow teasingly as her girlfriend flicks the ball up and catches it.
“Why don’t we go find out, Morgan?”
It’s a race back to the car, both of them giggling like teenagers when they get in and start the journey home. Kelley does everything in her power to make Alex squirm during their fifteen-minute drive and there is a smirk plastered on her face the entire time. Alex, being the driver, can only do so much, but she does what she can to work her girlfriend up. By the time they get back to the apartment, they are both overwhelmingly hot and bothered. They speed up the stairs and when they reach the top, Alex pushes Kelley against the door and kisses her harder than she had in a while. They hadn’t had any time for anything lately, both caught up with exams and other work. They stumble through the doorway, neither noticing the two other couples sitting in the living room until Allie clears her throat.
“Damn, Al. I know you missed your girlfriend, but her friends missed her too,” the blonde teases as the couple separates, their faces identical shades of red. Allie stands and pulls Bati with her, heading for the door. Christen and Tobin quickly follow suit, following the other couple to the doorway.
“Don’t get us a noise complaint, but have fun! No sex on the couch,” the blonde calls over her shoulder as they leave. The door closes and Kelley glances at her girlfriend, feeling like the mood has been ruined by their friends, but the look in Alex’s eyes said otherwise.
“You’re not getting out of this, darling. I’ve been waiting for this for, like, a month,” the younger girl kisses the older one, tugging at her bottom lip as she pulls away and winking as she walks towards Kelley’s bedroom. She laughs when the older girl follows, hot on her tail and picks her up, spinning her around before tossing her on the bed and climbing on top of her.
“I love you,” the blue-eyed girl breathes out.
“I know.”
Alex swats playfully at her girlfriend and rolls her eyes. Kelley leans down and kisses her softly, pulling away just enough to speak.
“I love you too.”