Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“-you’re kidding, right?”

“Ava, I have at least nine kilos of muscle on you.”

“Yeah, nine more kilos you have to lift!”

“What’s all this about?” Beatrice interrupts Ava and Shannon’s quarrel. Mary and Camila stand off to the side, not wanting to be dragged in.

“Babe-“

Shannon jumps in. “Ava thinks she can do more push-ups than me.”

Ava jabs her elbow at Shannon, who jerks away in time to avoid it.

“Tell her, Bea!” 

Beatrice puts her hands on her hips and purses her lips.

“Bea!” Ava pouts.

“I’m sorry, Ava, but Shannon has extensively trained her upper body since Halo.”

Shannon nods, raising one eyebrow.

Ava crosses her arms. “Then why don’t we test this out?”

“It’s your loss,” Shannon remarks as she pulls her shirt off and throws it to the side. She stands in her sports bra and pants, proudly displaying her ripped figure. Muscle cords her body, from her defined shoulders, the plane of her abdominals, down to the V at her hipbones. 

Mary lets out a low whistle.

Ava quickly removes her shirt as well (not to be outdone) and glances toward Shannon. Her jaw drops. “Holy shit, you’re jacked.”

Shannon smirks back. 

"Why don’t we raise the stakes?” Camila says with a mischievous smile. “Loser has to eat a spoon of-“

“-oh God, not the hot sauce,” Ava groans. They keep a bottle of LD50 hot sauce for challenges like this, originally bought for Bea as the resident biochem major, as a joke. 

“Hmm. Afraid you’ll lose?” Shannon taunts. She stretches her arms behind her head, intentionally flexing her biceps.

Ava narrows her eyes. “Let’s do this, Masters.”

“Oho! It’s Masters now!” Mary crows.

Beatrice mutters something under her breath while Camila digs her phone out of her pocket.

“Uh...evidence? For accuracy?” she says when Beatrice quirks an eyebrow at her.

Shannon and Ava lower themselves to the ground. 

“Chest has to touch the floor,” Mary calls out. “You can rest in a plank position. I’ll count for Shan. Bea, you count Ava’s?”

Beatrice nods. 

“Go!” Camila presses record.

The two rise into a plank position and immediately start their push-ups. Ava chooses a strategy of completing hers as quickly as possible, trying to avoid fatigue. Meanwhile, Shannon is almost mechanical in her form, rising and lowering in a repetitive pattern.

Ava begins to slow down around number forty. “Fuck,” she exhales.

“Tired already?” Shannon doesn’t even pause or sound winded, continuing her push-ups.

“Thirty-five, come on babe,” Mary encourages.

“Rest, Ava,” Beatrice suggests. She mentally prepares herself for the upcoming shitshow (praying it’s not a literal one).

Ava pauses and rests in a plank position. She completes five more as Shannon finally starts to slow down. 

Ava’s next three are shaky, and she forces herself to rest again. 

“Uh uh, keep that butt down, girl!” Mary hollers with glee. 

“Fuck - you-“ Ava says between puffs of breath.

“Come on, Ava!” Beatrice slaps a hand on her thigh.

Shannon rests as Ava barely completes one more. 

“One more, Ava!”

Ava’s entire body shakes when she lowers herself, groaning as she pushes back up. She squeezes her eyes shut and lowers once more, but-

-collapses onto her stomach.

“Fifty,” Beatrice says.

Shannon decides to end her rest at this exact moment and continues on as before. She turns her head toward Ava who’s laying on her back and heaving for breath once she gets to fifty. She winks.

Shannon completes ten more before dropping to her knees. 

“Sixty.” Mary is positively gleeful, as is Camila, who immediately stops recording and runs to the office to grab the hot sauce. 

Ava groans and lays both arms over her eyes. “Why did I do this,” she mutters.

Beatrice kneels down by her and rests a hand on Ava’s shoulder. “You can never refuse these challenges, love.”

Behind them, Mary looks Shannon up and down. “How many more did you have in you?” 

Shannon smiles secretively. She doesn’t answer, but instead replies with, “I didn’t want to embarrass her too much.”

Camila’s voice grows louder as she jogs back. “Hot sauce! Hot sauce! HOT SAUCE!”

Mary and Shannon join in the chant as Ava sits up and Beatrice pinches the bridge of her nose.

“Okay, okay, hand it over.” 

“Wait, Ava-“

Ava dips the spoon in her mouth and pulls it out clean. She shrugs. “Not too bad.”

Then.

Ava’s eyes bulge as a flush spreads up her neck to her ears. “Holy shit, what the FUCK-“ She starts gasping for air and reaches for the closest water bottle. 

Camila zooms in on her face as she records but Beatrice steps into the frame, deathly serious, although Mary and Shannon’s raucous laughter can be heard in the background. “Camila. You didn’t bring any milk?"

Beatrice sprints to the office as Ava gets down on all fours, tears streaming down her face. “Hate - you - Shan-“

“This is all you, Ava.” Shannon snaps a quick picture and says, “I should have some ice cream in the fridge. We can get Bea to-“

Beatrice’s steps are rapid. She clutches a carton of milk in her hand. “Ava!”

Beatrice kneels down once more and removes the lid. Ava claws for it, chugging it greedily. Milk sloshes out of her mouth and down her sports bra, but she doesn’t care. Her entire body is tight and she resists the urge to punch something. 

Shannon stands over her. “Learned your lesson yet?” She asks.

“Asshole,” Ava spits out without any bite. “I’ll beat you at the next one.”

Beatrice sighs and Camila stops recording.

“What’s the next one?” Mary asks, unable to hide her smirk.

“How about you and Bea do something?”

Mary and Beatrice look to each other.

“Pull-ups?” Mary pats her own bicep.

Beatrice’s face is carefully blank.

“Sure.”

Chapter Text

Beatrice sighs as she fills a bucket with warm water. Window-cleaning usually falls onto Mary today, but she took the day off to celebrate her six year anniversary with Shannon. Beatrice taps her foot impatiently as the water line slowly rises. While she doesn’t usually mind completing chores, she had been looking forward to getting some climbing in before the gym fills up.

She shuts off the tap and squeezes some dish soap into the bucket. She grabs her handy sponge mop and wrestles a spare dish sponge out of its plastic packaging, just in case. Beatrice shoves the dish sponge in her pocket, lifts the bucket with one hand, and carries the sponge mop in her other.

La Fuente is regarded for its natural light that enters through the numerous large windows. Unfortunately, this also means that cleaning can be a tedious task. Beatrice wastes no time, carefully settling the bucket down and dipping the mop in, making sure it’s soaked through. The sooner she finishes, the higher the possibility she’ll be able to climb Lilith’s new boulder. 

Beatrice scrubs at the glass and reminds herself, amused, to refrain from informing Ava the name of Lilith’s route. She wouldn’t put it past her partner to grab a drill and remove Shorty Probs from the wall herself.

Long, smooth motions are the most efficient for cleaning windows. Beatrice dips the sponge back into the bucket and swishes it around. She taps it against the rim of the bucket to remove excess droplets and continues her task. It’s almost peaceful, she realizes, engaging in a repetitive task in the near-empty gym. Her Quiet Mornings playlist is kept at a low volume, providing a relaxing backdrop.

Once the windows are wiped clean to her exacting standards, Beatrice removes the dish sponge from her pocket. She squats down and plunges it into the bucket then squeezes out some of the water, taking the time to notice how it drips down her palm.

Beatrice presses the sponge onto the nearest window in almost a caress, gently wiping away chalk and grime in those hard-to-reach corners. At times she has to use more force, scrubbing at stubborn marks, the sponge curving in her hand and sometimes releasing too much liquid. The window simply squeaks. Once Beatrice’s task is complete, she uses some paper towels to wipe at the extra drips and streaks.

Beatrice stands back and inspects her work. Her eyes rove from the upper corners down to the bottom of each window. She nods in satisfaction and returns the cleaning equipment back to the storage room. The used sponge looks almost lonely when it's deposited back on shelf.

The office’s cool air greets her and she lets herself bask for just a few seconds before attending to her next duty. 

The computer chair rolls back as she sits down and logs in. Beatrice makes sure to check their online booking system at least once daily to ensure they have plenty of time to set up for rentals to run smoothly. Beatrice scowls once the desktop loads. The default blue background with four neat squares is covered with folders and documents haphazardly named and positioned. Her own Bea’s Docs folder remains in its neat corner.

Not one to snoop, Beatrice quickly scans over the file names to determine what to name an appropriate folder to drop them in: new comp routes, To Buy( 1), Mary’s Docs, hot sauce losers.jpg, Route Ideas, OSHA.png, music, flightless bird, December comp for Website, New Logo (7), January Sales-R, January Events, Shannon’s Workouts, recipes 25.01.23,Yosemite summer pls, and more.

Beatrice creates a new folder and names it Misc. Docs.

A half hour later once everything is completed, she finally logs off, free at last to start warming up. Beatrice releases the mouse and swivels to the side. She looks at the various photographs on the desk. Mary and Shannon embracing at the Innsbruck World Cup; Beatrice with her arms crossed, frowning at the camera with someone’s thumb captured in the upper right corner; Shannon collapsed on the ground after completing a five minute plank while Mary pretends to fan her. 

Beatrice strokes her thumb along the intricate dark brown frame of her favorite. Ava sits on her shoulders, laughing while trying to pre-clip the second draw. Beatrice’s hands are firm on Ava’s thighs, looking up at her partner with an affectionate grin. Beatrice smiles softly as she gazes down at the photograph and touches Ava's cheek with her index finger, smudge be damned. Then, she grabs her bag and closes the door behind her.

Chapter Text

Ava, as usual, asks at the worst possible time.

“So,” Ava stutters out a one-syllable word into three, “how did you and Grandma meet?” With a grunt of exertion, she returns the bar to the rack and sits up.

Mary removes the clamps from each side of the bar so she can add more weight as Ava gasps for air. Sweat drips from Ava’s forehead down her neck. Mary chucks a towel right at her face.

“Thanks.” Ava’s voice is muffled.

“Are you asking how we met or how we got together?” Mary absently scratches her waist. She’s wearing one of Shannon’s cutoff tanks today, the armholes so large more skin is revealed than covered.

Ava finishes with her towel and begins wiping down the bench. “Um…both, I guess?”

“Scoot.” Mary jerks her chin. 

Ava walks around to spot and Mary settles herself down on the bench. She grips the bar but doesn’t lift it off quite yet.

“This’ll be a long story, babygirl. Let me finish this set.”

People can romanticize the first time they met their partner; most beautiful girl in the room, couldn’t take my eyes off him, bitch who almost kicked me out whenever Ava and Bea get together. But what Mary remembers about Shannon is that she looked completely unapproachable. 

All the squads and coaches were gathered together in a conference room to have the comp’s guidelines explained to them. After the meeting ended, most of her competitors made small talk or at least acknowledged each other. There was one girl, though, around her age, who spoke with no one, not even her own team members. Mary watched her from a couple tables over. It was evident the girl was taller than her after she gathered her belongings and stood up, walking out out the room with purpose.

At the time, Mary chalked it up to nerves. There were only a few teenagers at the comp and she could feel the butterflies in her stomach as well, no matter the brave front she put on.

The next, day, though, she figured out it was more than just that. Everyone was gathered in the isolation zone, warming up before they were called out in groups to compete. Mary stuck with her peers on Team USA and her eyes found the tall brunette from the day before. Mary continued her static stretches while she tracked the other girl. 

Her posture was tight, controlled, and she had earbuds shoved in both ears. That wasn’t unusual, but what was was that she didn’t talk to anyone. No fist bumps, no hellos, hell, she barely even made eye contact. 

One of Mary’s friends slapped her on the knee. Mary broke out of her observations and turned her head to the side. 

“That’s Shannon Masters,” her friend informed. “The one who climbed Cuna de Gato?”

Mary has never given a shit about who’s famous for doing what or achieving this or that. She climbs for the love of it. Even so, she’s heard about the up-and-comer who sent Cuna de Gato, an 8c+. 

“She never talks to anyone, so don’t even bother.”

“Wait.” Ava jumps in, biting at her smoothie straw. “She’s like - not as outgoing as you - but she was…cold?”

Mary flicks the brim of Ava’s cap, chuckling at Ava’s squeal of surprise. “Shan was…different back then. Remember, this was almost ten years ago. She was trained only to win. To push grades as hard as she could, rack up the medals.”

Ava’s brow furrows in confusion. A frown tugs the corners of her mouth down. “That’s no way to live.”

Mary clenches her jaw, still unable to reign in her feelings about it. “I know. But her bastard of a dad was strict and that’s all she knew.”

“Her dad was her coach?”

“Yeah, at the time. Anyway, the first time we spoke was during the next comp.”

Ava slams her cup onto the table. “Then why did you tell me about that?!” 

“Patience.”

Mary doesn’t recall anything about the problem she was attempting during the next comp, but she remembers what happened next in vivid detail.

Shannon was on the problem next to her, but Mary barely even registered her presence until she heard a loud thud and a hastily muffled whimper of pain.

Mary looked over to see Shannon sitting on the mat, clutching her knee. She glanced at the clock. One minute, enough for one last attempt. She looked back at Shannon, who kept her eyes on the wall, as if she was about to get back on.

No way in hell.

Clapping her palms on her shorts, and not even bothering to remove her tight climbing shoes, Mary jogged to Shannon and kneeled. 

“Can I help you up?”

Shannon drew back, covering her knee and looking like a wounded animal. Her eyes were cautious but she bit her lip in pain. Mary refused to drop her gaze until Shannon gave her a terse nod.

“Put your arm around my neck,” Mary ordered, calm.

Shannon acquiesced and Mary gingerly lifted her, carrying her toward the medical tent, ignoring the shouts of her coaches all the while.

“Oh my god, how did she not fall in love with you immediately?” Ava gushes. “Also, technically you didn’t speak in that story?”

Mary rolls her eyes. “She obviously said thanks.”

“So then what? Is that when you started talking?”

“Nope. She went and disappeared after I took her to Medical and I had to compete in semis.”

Ava shifts in her seat. “I didn’t know she had those other injuries.”

Mary’s hands ball into fists before she forces herself to unclench them. “She always had some sort of injury. Concussions, pulley strains, bruises everywhere. She pushed herself past her limits and never gave herself time to recover.”

“I’d fucking curbstomp her dad if I could,” Mary adds as an afterthought.

“Can I join?” Ava says seriously.

“Yeah, we can take turns kicking his head in.” Mary pushes back so she can stretch out her legs. “I had to wheedle her down. Kept asking how she was doing whenever I saw her.” She laughs to herself. “One time I just sat down next to her at dinner. She had no idea what to do. Turned red and everything, just like-”

“What would you have done, dear, if a gorgeous woman you had a growing crush on sat herself right next to you?” Shannon’s voice comes from behind and she wraps her arms around Mary’s neck. Shannon presses a kiss to her cheek and takes the seat next to Mary.

Mary smirks. “Better than dropping the chicken off my fork twice in a row.”

Shannon slaps lightly at her shoulder. 

“Okay, okay, so how and when did you get together!” Ava leans in and directs her attention at Shannon instead.

“There was a big international sesh after the Villars World Cup,” Mary answers. Ava groans. “No coaches present.”

Shannon jumps in. “Mary was very charming-“

“-babe, I wasn’t even trying to charm you-“

“-which made it even more charming. She invited me back to her hotel.” Ava raises her eyebrows, face lighting up. Shannon kicks Ava under the table. “Not like that. She wanted to show me a taping method for back pain.”

Mary winks. “I got her shirtless in my hotel room.”

Shannon lays a hand on Mary’s. “Hush. She was very respectful. I had no inklings she was attracted to me.”

Ava tilts her head in confusion. “But-“

“She and Bea have a lot in common,” Mary says.

Shannon tangles their fingers together and gives her a warning squeeze. Mary gets it and smothers a smile. No more Bea talk for now. “I kissed her. I had been hiding my feelings for months-“

“-and then you ran out and didn’t speak to me again for a week.” 

Shannon turns to Ava. “The end.”

Ava’s chair scrapes on the floor when she darts up in indignation. “The end? You two are the worst storytellers ever!”

She holds her empty smoothie cup in her hand and heaves it at the nearest trash can four meters away. The cup sails through the air and bounces off the rim, landing on the ground.

“Fuck.”

“Ava.” Bea shows up out of nowhere and her voice is tinged with exasperation. “I’ve been looking for you.” She nods at Mary and Shannon.

“Bea!” Ava perks up and a smile overtakes her face. Mary and Shannon watch as she deposits the plastic into the trash under Bea's watchful eye and walks off with her, chattering away.

“We have a wonderful story,” Shannon says, voice soft. 

Mary leans forward to press a kiss to Shannon’s forehead. “We do.” 

Chapter Text

“Babe?” Ava shouts up.

Beatrice looks down from where she’s hanging in the air, over ten meters meters above Ava's head, almost done with setting a route. She carefully sets the hold the was going to drill back into the sack that hang in arm’s reach from another rope. As she does this, she surreptitiously checks her watch. Nine p.m. Good. Ava’s completed her workout and has warmed up properly for forty-five minutes.

“Have you seen my shoes?” Ava’s voice projects so loudly that from her vantage point, Beatrice can see other patrons glance at her curiously.

Beatrice shakes her head no. “Have you checked your cubby?”

Ava brings a hand to her ear.

Beatrice raises her voice just slightly louder. “Cubby?”

Ava sighs and taps her foot. “Of course!” She frowns and decides to let Beatrice finish setting in peace. “I’ll go ask Mary and Shannon since they’ve been on the ground.”

Mary’s sanitizing rental shoes and harnesses when Ava approaches.

“What’s up?” A satisfying shhk when she presses the nozzle combines with the assaulting scent of disinfectant.

“Have you seen my shoes?”

Mary doesn’t look up. “Have you checked your cubby?”

“Why does-“ Ava growls. “Of course I’ve checked my cubby!”

Mary sets the canister down. “Don’t you have another pair?”

Ava crosses her arms. “Mary, you and I both know those are so busted my big toes practically stick out of that pair.”

Mary raises an eyebrow. “And?”

“Ugh!” Ava throws her arms in the air. “Where’s Shannon?”

Mary returns to her work. “Overseeing a belay test out.”

Ava grumbles to herself. She’ll get to the bottom of this.

Shannon stands with a clipboard in hand and is just signing off on the sheet when Ava runs up to her. 

“I recommend you take our belay class and try to test out again,” she says to the patrons, who grab the sheet in annoyance and storm away in a huff.

Shannon turns to Ava and rolls her eyes. “Didn’t even know how to load the ATC,” she informs her. “What is it, little one?”

Ava narrows her eyes but doesn’t take the bait. “Grandma, do you know where my shoes are?”

Shannon puts her hands on her hips. “I might.” A sly smile Ava doesn't like at all creeps its way on her face.

“Masters, I swear to god-“ Ava steps forward to grab Shannon’s collar in jest before remembering how it would look to the people around them. She lowers her arm and steps back, taking a deep breath. Ava glances at her watch. She only has fifty minutes left to climb. The clock is ticking.

Shannon whips the clipboard back out and flips the sheet upside-down so the blank side is atop. She starts to walk at a brisk pace. “Follow me.”

Ava groans and trudges along with her. Shannon leads her first to her cubby where her old, beat up shoes sit and orders her to grab them, along with her harness. She drops off the clipboard with Mary, shooting her a wink, then takes Ava to the rope wall, specifically the lead-only section. The fucking comp section.

“Your shoes are on top of the wall.” Shannon is gleeful, barely holding in a laugh.

Ava gapes as she reads the grades. “Are you fucking kidding me?! 8a lead after just warming up?”

“Do you want them or not?” Is Shannon’s infuriating reply.

Ava sputters. “You - I - Shan-“ Shannon crosses her arms and has the gall to openly laugh. “You know what, Shannon? Bea has a giant sword at home and-“

“We don’t need to hear about Bea’s giant sword,” Mary says as she walks up, amusement pulling up the corners of her mouth.

“Yeah Ava, we’re in public.”

“I would fight you right now if I didn’t have to-“

“As if you could take me.” Shannon flexes her still-crossed arms. Okay, yeah, Shannon could take her easily but she’ll never admit that.

Bea shows up at the perfect time. “Ava? You have just enough time to top this route.” She carries a rope and a GriGri with her.

“Yeah, Ava, begone-“

“Shut the fuck up! Shut up!” Ava yanks her harness on with impatience. She misses a leg loop the first time around and endures Mary and Shannon cackling at her. With all the chaos, she can't begin to comprehend what's going on. The only thing that could make it worse is if Lilith were around. 

Ava jerks straight up and whips her head around. She scans the area frantically. No Lilith.

Bea’s quiet voice calms her. “Ava?” Bea lays a hand on her shoulder.

“Nothing,” she mutters and tugs her shoes on. She wiggles her big toes that almost poke out through the holes in the toe boxes.

They complete Bea’s safety checks and Ava quickly and carelessly reads the route. Of course, it’s a Shannon set which means 1) it flows well, but 2) there are some powerful, muscley moves.

“Think you can finish in time?”

“Fuck!” Ava almost jumps right into Beatrice’s arms. “Lilith!”

Lilith smirks. Although she doesn't seem as towering when she stands near Shannon and Mary, her presence is still what Ava would have to describe as looming. “Well?”

Ava scoffs and pulls her face into a smirk of her own. “Watch me.”

She dips her hands into her chalk bag and claps them once, twice. “All right, climbing.”

“Climb on.”

“Climb onnnnnn!” Shannon and Mary yell at her. Ava wonders if she and Bea will be as annoyingly in sync after dating for six years. Maybe they’d be married by then.

“Ava, clip!”

Ava startles and grips her left hand extra tightly. “Shit,” she says, realizing the first draw is at her shin. She straightens her left arm completely to lower herself as much as she can without down climbing and awkwardly clips the draw.

As predicted, the sequence of moves flows quite well and Ava finds herself halfway up the route without much trouble. The next half, though….she rests and chalks up while looking upwards. Of course. Of course Shannon would set slopers combined with high feet. Ava remembers comparing her hand size to Shannon’s once, shocked at the contrast.

Better to start now than get too pumped while resting too long. She has to groan out at four sequentual moves, Shannon’s bread-and-butter upper body pushes and pulls, and just barely manages to clip the permadraws on top.
 
Ava steps up higher so she can see over the top of the wall. Her jaw drops at what she sees. Her undamaged pair of shoes sits next to another. She’s never seen the other pair before. It’s her size, with bright green leather, pink stitching, it's a downturned aggressive shoe, slip on, and-

“Grab them and get down here!” Shannon hollers.

Ava turns her head and looks down. Bea, steady as always, meets her gaze with a small smile.

Smug Bea, huh. So everyone was in on it.

Ava clips both pairs of shoes to free gear loops on her harness. “Ready to lower!”

“Lowering!”

Ava doesn’t even bother to untie her knot when she reaches the ground.

“What’s this all about, Bea?” 

Bea shakes her head, smile on her face. 

“Mary?”

Mary jerks her head in Shannon’s direction.

Shannon in turn eyes Lilith, who stares pointedly at the wall.

“It’s from all of us,” Shannon says. “Mary came up with the idea to design you a shoe, Bea contacted La Sportiva and handled the logistics, we chose the green because it’s your favorite color, and-“

Lilith interrupts. “I told them to make it a slipper since you barely have the patience to properly velcro your shoes half the time.”

“Aww Lilith loves me!” Ava gushes only slightly sarcastically.

Lilith glowers. “My only love for you is the killing kind.” She goes to say more but Mary kicks her leg.

Ava tilts her head and partially registers Mary telling Lilith, "you don't know what the means." It’s not her birthday, or her and Bea’s anniversary. “What’s the occasion?”

Bea answers. “We wanted to celebrate you, Ava. For the joy you’ve brought into our lives.”

“You bring a frenzy to the gym,” Mary says. “Interpret that however you’d like.”

“The fuck?”

Mary scratches the back of her head. "You're like my kid sister, Ava, don't make me say it again." Mary shifts and Ava melts.

Beatrice’s lips part but Lilith interrupts yet again. “Yes, yes, we all know what you’re going to say, Beatrice. Save it for when you two are alone.” Beatrice flushes the faintest pink - an improvement! - and allows Lilith to speak her part. 

“You’re terrible at climbing my routes, and it brings me no greater joy than to see you whip,” Lilith goads. 

This time, Shannon elbows Lilith. “Lilith doesn’t want to admit you actually do bring her joy.” She dodges a kick.

“Ava…” Shannon pauses. “No one cheers louder than you, Ava. It means more to me, to us, than you’ll ever know. Your unwavering belief and support-”

She cuts herself off when Beatrice lays a hand on her shoulder. Even Lilith respectfully looks away.

“They're called AS Pros. Want to try them on?” Mary says after a pause. 

Ava swallows and clears her throat. “Hell fuckin’ yeah!” 

Chapter Text

“Shan?”

Mary’s voice echoed off the bare walls of Shannon’s apartment, the gallery of climbing pieces having been flung off the walls into the corner by the overflowing closet containing Shannon’s equipment.

No response.

Mary raised her voice. “Shannon, I know you’re here!” You never leave.

“In here,” came the flat reply.

The bedroom door creaked as Mary gently pushed it open. The sight that greeted her was nearly the same as the one yesterday. Shannon was propped up on two pillows, her face illuminated by the harsh glow of her phone screen that she scrolled on mindlessly. She laid in the dark, curtains resolutely covering her windows, not a single lamp lit. Mary knew that under the covers, Shannon’s ribs were tightly bandaged, months from fully recovering.

Mary leaned her shoulder against the door frame. “Have you eaten today?”

Shannon’s eyes didn’t leave her phone. “What do you think?”

Her eyebrows knitted together. “It’s five in the afternoon, Shannon! You’re telling me you didn’t eat since last night?”

Shannon continued to scroll.

“You know you’re supposed to eat before you take your meds!” Mary stomped into the room and wrenched the curtain back, bathing Shannon in golden sunlight. Shannon winced and squinted her eyes. “You-“

She plucked the phone from Shannon’s weak grasp and thrust it into her hoodie pocket. Mary opened her mouth to continue and clamped it shut at the ice in Shannon’s glare.

“You’re telling me I should - what - bound my way up, stroll to the kitchen, bend to reach items in the fridge, reach for a plate?”

“You know you could have just called, Shan.” Mary’s voice was soft.

Her partner looked away. “It’s just one of those days, okay? Listen-“

“It’s been 'one of those days' for a month! Why can’t you-“ Mary took a deep breath. “You know you just have to ask.” She sat on the edge of the bed. “I wish you’d let me take care of you.”

“I know, I know.” Shannon stared at the ceiling. One second passed in silence, then five, then twenty.

“You have the biggest heart of anyone I know. You’re the most generous, giving person. You know you deserve the same.”

Shannon let out a shaky breath.

“You’re still the same Shannon in my eyes. The one who wouldn’t get off that problem even after you fucked up your knee?” Mary patted said knee. “Reckless idiot,” she muttered.

Shannon closed her eyes as the corner of her mouth pulled up.

“I wish I could take away your pain, but I can’t. But I can do anything else, I can-“

“Will you just hold me?” Shannon’s eyes were still closed, squeezed shut.

“Of course, babe.” Mary rose and unlaced her boots, then walked to the other side of the bed. She crawled in, feeling the warmth beneath the blankets. She carefully rested her forearm so her hand was on Shannon’s hip. Shannon turned her head and breathed in deeply.

“I’ve never been so lost,” Shannon mumbled into her collar.

“I know, Shan, I know.” She kissed her forehead. “You don’t have to think about anything right now. Just feel me. Later, I’m going to cook you dinner.”

She was graced with one nod. As Shannon’s breathing slowed and evened out, Mary marveled at what they had built together. Despite all the circumstances that could have kept them apart, that could have kept them from meeting each other in the first place, here they were in that moment of time.

“What’s wrong?”

“Hmm?”

Shannon nudged her. “You’re trembling.”

“Oh.” Mary tapped a beat on Shannon’s hip. “I’m just trying to commit this to memory.”

“You want to remember this? I haven’t showered in three days, or washed the sheets in two weeks, and all this started with an argument!”

“Yep, I do. I want to remember every moment we have.”