Chapter Text
Charlotte had been working non-stop for the past year. She had finally gotten the job she’d been fighting for since high school: She was an internist. She still couldn’t quite believe she had made it, after all, the odds always seemed to be against her. However the fight wasn’t quite over when she had gotten the job. Turns out, to be respected in a workplace full of white, straight (mostly) men, as a black, jewish lesbian woman you have to work twice as hard. But luckily Charlotte was a fighter. She was used to always having to work harder than others to reach her goals, and that didn’t make her any less determined. In fact, it only fueled her determination and ambition. So she worked more hours than she was supposed to, stayed up late every night studying patients files, living only on caffeine. She took any and every opportunity she got to show her coworkers that she’s a damn good doctor of internal medicine.
So that’s how she ended up at this medical conference. Her supervisor had asked her to attend and take notes when people were giving presentations. She hated these conferences with all her might. The people that come here look down upon her, even though she knows she’s brighter than most of them. Yet, here she was. Following her boss’ orders, listening to some old man talk about high-pressure liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. She knew plenty about these things already.
She looked around the room and saw a couple of food stands in the back. Food! That’s a good enough reason to stop listening to the old man, she thought to herself.
She quietly got up from her chair and walked towards the food stands. She caught some people throwing her a dirty look while she was walking, but she ignored them.
Charlotte reached the stands and looked around again, confused. She didn’t see a vendor behind the stands. Should she just take something, or…? She continued to look around, not sure what to do, until she saw a blonde woman walking up to people with a tray of food in her hands. She couldn’t see her face, but by the looks of the tray and her apron, she was the owner of the food stands. Charlotte started walking towards her, but paused when the woman turned around after having been rejected by a pair of snobby doctors. She looked defeated and exhausted, but oh was she beautiful. She wore a bright yellow crop top, matched with denim jeans and simple boots. Her blonde curls framed her face perfectly and she wore a little sunflower clip on the left side of her head.
After a while, the woman caught Charlotte’s eye. She wasn’t quite sure how she did it, but it’s like the girl forced herself to plaster a bright, beautiful smile on her face as she started walking towards her. Charlotte panicked. She could make it to the bathroom without raising suspicions right? But she would probably make the the woman sad if she just ran off and that was the last thing she wanted. Before Charlotte could even decide what to do, the blonde was already in front of her, holding out her tray.
“Would you like something?” She asked. “Cooked them myself.” The blonde smiled at her and Charlotte almost forgot where she was.
She didn’t quite know what to say so she stammered quietly:
“I-I’m kosher… But they look delicious!” She added quickly, not wanting to upset the woman.
“Oh that’s alright! I have some apple scones back at my stand. Those are kosher I think. If you want me to name the ingredients I will.” The woman talked happily, hoping that someone would finally taste her food.
Charlotte smiled at her, genuinely surprised by the blonde’s consideration.
“You don’t have to. I’ve had apple scones before.” Charlotte says.
“Well I assure you, you haven’t tasted anything like mine!” The woman giggled and gestured for Charlotte to follow her over to one of the stands. Charlotte chuckled and followed the woman. She now got a closer look at the girl’s apron. It said: “Cordelia’s Catering.” She smiled to herself as she read the name. It suited her.
Cordelia handed her a little plate with an apple scone on it.
“There you go.” She smiled and Charlotte smiled back at her, taking the scone. She was starting to regain her confidence a bit.
“Thank you very much, miss Cordelia.” She smiled. Cordelia seemed shocked at that, a light blush appearing on her cheeks. She didn’t say anything, and Charlotte suddenly worried she had overstepped.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you in any wa-“ Charlotte started.
“No! No it’s fine. It’s just that you’re the only doctor here today who has thanked me for my food. Most of these people don’t even give me a glance.” She said, looking at her feet.
Charlotte suddenly wanted nothing more than to fight everyone around them for making Cordelia sad. Her more sensible side told her that that wasn’t the best idea though.
“Yeah they’re all jerks.” She said instead and took a bite of the scone. Cordelia laughed at that, which made Charlotte’s heart flutter. She had quite an unusual laugh, which many people would probably find obnoxious, but Charlotte found it adorable.
“Oh my god, this is so good!” Charlotte said with a mouth full of scone, making Cordelia giggle.
“Sorry. That was rude. But really, these scones are amazing.” Charlotte said once her mouth was empty.
“You really like them?” Cordelia said, somewhat shyly. Charlotte nodded sharply, taking another bite.
“I’m so glad!” Cordelia beamed. She seemed so happy by the fact that Charlotte was actually eating her food.
“I guess I’m a better baker than I am a cook. But I still love to do it! You know, experimenting with new recipes, making them look perfect and making people happy with them! Except well, that doesn’t happen too often… but I still try!” Cordelia smiles.
“That’s amazing. All I can cook are grilled cheese sandwiches and omelets.” Charlotte chuckled. Cordelia laughed and raised her eyebrows.
“Is that what you live on?” She asked playfully.
“Yep. And coffee, that also helps a lot.” Charlotte grins, making Cordelia laugh.
“That’s not very healthy for a doctor, is it?” She grins as well. “I’m going to teach you how to cook an actual meal, ok?” Cordelia states.
“Oh are you now?” Charlotte smirks. This was going better than she thought.
“Yes. Are you free this evening? After the conference?” Cordelia asked.
Charlotte thought for a minute. She didn’t have a shift today because of the conference so this was actually the perfect timing.
“I happen to be free. What will you be teaching me?” Charlotte smiled at the taller woman.
“Let’s start with something simple. Spaghetti bolognese, kosher of course. If you’re up for it?” She asked.
“Sounds perfect.” Charlotte said with a smile. She then realized she hadn’t even told Cordelia her name yet. “I’m Charlotte, by the way. Doctor Charlotte Dubois.” She held out her hand and Cordelia took it, shaking it gently.
“Cordelia. But you already know that.” Cordelia giggled, looking down at her apron.
Charlotte almost fainted at the feel of Cordelia’s soft hand against her own, but regained herself as she let go. Damn, she really was head over heals for this girl already, wasn’t she?
They talked for a while longer, about Charlotte’s job, Cordelia’s new business, entitled doctors and eventually love.
“So, dr. Charlotte. Your husband must be very lucky to have such a successful woman by his side.” Cordelia said, subtly. Charlotte grinned, clearly knowing what Cordelia was doing. Charlotte had never been one to hide who she is, and has no problem telling people her sexuality. She figured that if people did n’t like it, that’s their problem.
“Well, I consider myself to be quite lucky not to have a husband. I can barely deal with straight men as it is.” She chuckled. She watched Cordelia’s face intently. She was quiet for a moment and in those few seconds, Charlotte’s heart sank. Could she have read this entire conversation wrong? Was Cordelia straight after all?
“I totally agree.” Cordelia said with a giggle, as Charlotte’s face relaxed. She hadn’t read this wrong.
“Phew. For a moment there I thought you were straight.” Charlotte chuckled and Cordelia faked offence.
“Excuse me, doctor?!” She gasped, but she couldn’t help but smile.
It felt nice to talk to someone about this and not have to hide who she is.
Charlotte completely forgot about the conference that was happening, and she didn’t really care. She could tell her boss most of these things from her own knowledge and she desperately needed a night off. Also, listening to Cordelia talk was way more appealing than listening to any of the men giving presentations.
They kept on talking until it was time for Cordelia to clean up her stands, which Charlotte offered to help with. Together they finished up and left the building, walking towards Charlotte’s apartment.
—
Their first dinner/cooking date soon became a weekly thing as the two women were clearly smitten with one another. Cordelia would come over to Charlotte’s appartement after work and each week she’d teach Charlotte a new recipe. Then they’d eat their creation together and talk until late into the night. Charlotte would then walk Cordelia home, because she didn’t want her going out alone that late. Those walks were Charlotte’s favourite moments of the night. She loved every moment she spent with Cordelia, but something about walking next to each other in the moonlight, stars shining above them, made Charlotte feel giddy and happy.
This night was a rather cold night and Cordelia was wearing a long, colorful plaid coat and a dark blue beanie that contrasted with her bright, blonde hair. Charlotte looked her over subtly, and smiled. She was so beautiful.
Cordelia caught Charlotte looking at her and blushed.
“What are you looking at, doctor?” She asked with a grin, still walking beside each other.
“You.” Charlotte simply said with a smile. Cordelia blushed more now and it made Charlotte giggle.
They continued walking in a comfortable silence and Charlotte considered grabbing Cordelia’s hand. It was the middle of the night so there were barely any people out on the street so she could do it.
She gently brushed her hand against Cordelia’s, who definitely noticed because her already red cheeks from the cold, turned even more red and she smiled, looking ahead of her.
Charlotte just wanted to make the move when she felt Cordelia’s fingers intertwining with her own. She looked down at their hands between them and smiled. They walked like that until they reached Cordelia’s appartement.
There they stood opposite each other, still holding onto the other’s hand.
Charlotte took a moment to look at the woman in front of her. She felt so happy being with her. It was like all of her stress and exhaustion from work just fades away whenever Cordelia smiles. Charlotte decided to take a risk and follow her heart.
She walked a little closer to Cordelia, still holding on to her hand. She placed her other hand gently on Cordelia’s waist and leaned in. She closed her eyes and kissed her gently on the lips and the taller woman melt into her touch. She felt Cordelia’s soft lips move against hers in a gentle but loving kiss.
After they pulled away, Charlotte leaned her head against Cordelia’s, keeping her close.
“I’ve been wanting to do that for a while.” Charlotte said, her voice no louder than a whisper.
“I’m glad you did.” Cordelia whispered back and this time she was the one to lean forward and initiate another kiss.
Charlotte finally let go of Cordelia’s hand, only to wrap both her arms around her waist as Cordelia placed her hands on Charlotte’s cheeks. They kissed with more passion this time, their longing for each other more clear with every movement of their lips.
They broke apart only when they needed to catch their breath.
“You know… It’s a very cold night.” Cordelia started, still rather out of breath.
“Hmm… I would probably freeze to death if I walked home tonight.” Charlotte murmured, pulling Cordelia’s body against her own.
“Well… you’re lucky I have a very warm and cosy bed right here.” Cordelia grinned, running a hand through Charlotte’s hair.
“Lucky me.” Charlotte smirked and kissed her lover once more.