Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Ema couldn't believe it. Rachel Caldwell was asking her on a date.

a fake date.

She tried her best to remind herself how she even got to this point. She immediately scowled when she remembered.

Fucking. Spoon.

The two of them were walking down the hall, she was trying her best to listen to whatever he was rambling on so quickly about, when Whitney ambushed them.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" She looked over to Spoon, who looked like he was trying to make her disappear with his mind. "Alone."

"Hell no." He immediately stated.

"Dude." Ema glared at him

"Hell. No. Ema, whatever bullshit she needs to say she can say it with me here too." She could've sworn she heard Whitney scoff at that.

She sighed, quickly realizing she wasn't winning this and that maybe she would need him there. "He's staying. Go on, quickly. We have stuff to do."

Whitney looked unamused but nodded and began. "Okay look. I know what I did to you was unforgivable. You didn't deserve to have your shit aired out like that, even if I was being blackmailed. I can't apologize enough, Ema."

"And yet you haven't properly apologized yet." Spoon mumbled under his breath, just loud enough for Ema to hear and smile at.

"But I've missed you like crazy and.. I think I love you. Can you please give me a chance to prove that I'm not actually the person to do that type of thing to you? Please?"

Ema was about to respond, she really was. She was about to tell Whitney all the things she had been thinking about and call her a pathetic fucking idiot for even attempting to get her back. It's just that she froze when she saw her in the corner of her eye.

Rachel Caldwell with an exasperated look on her face as Troy was begging for her forgiveness.

A double ambush, she thought to herself.

Rachel must've noticed her too because she looked over and rolled her eyes before shooting her a playful smile. And just like that, Ema had completely forgotten what was happening and instead of responding to Whitney's poor excuse of an apology, she was giving Rachel an awkward smile back.

Then she's snapped back into reality by Spoon's voice. "Actually, Whitney, you're too late."

The blonde raises an eyebrow "What?"

Ema looks at Spoon like he's lost his brain, because what the actual fuck was he saying?

"Yeah. Yeah she's actually seeing.." Spoon scans the hallway before his eyes land on the girl Ema was totally not entranced by a few seconds ago. "Rachel! Yup. They've been dating for a few days now."

Just as the shorter girl is about to speak up, Whitney beats her to it. "Is that true?"

She really wants to say no, to tell her that Spoon is making shit up. But how can she when she notices the hurt look on Whitneys face? The same look Ema had when Buck announced her biggest secret, a secret she had told Whitney in confidence, to the whole school.

"..Yeah. Yup. Me and Rachel are.. yeah. We're together." She stammers out, hoping Whitney wouldn't press any further.

Thankfully, she doesn't. "Oh. Okay. Sorry for wasting your time then. I meant the apology though." She gives Ema a disappointed look before walking away, stopping to grab Troy and tell him to stop trying along the way.

As soon as she's out of their sight Ema turns to Spoon and slaps him harshly in the chest.

"What the actual fuck was that? You know I'm not dating anyone, especially not fucking Rachel." She slaps him a few more times for good measure.

"Ow! Ow! I know that, obviously! She was just the first girl I saw that you actually know!" He shuffles away from her to avoid getting hit again. "But hey, think about this positively! I may have just accidentally solved both of your ex problems."

"No you didn't. All you did was piss me off and cause a bunch of problems for Rachel who, mind you, didn't even ask to be involved in this." Ema didn't realize that she was getting louder until a voice appeared behind her.

"What problems are being caused for me?" Rachel questioned, her presence making Ema jump.

"Oh hey Rachel!" Spoon beamed at her and waved.

"Hey Spoon" She chuckled and waved back. "So.. what were you guys talking about? And also what was with that double ambush?"

"You noticed too? Creepy, right?" As cool as Ema was trying to be, she knew she could only avoid telling her what just happened for so long.

"Yeah totally. You know why Whitney called Troy off though? Did you say something?"

"Uh well-" Just as she was about to try and explain, the trio all got a text.

Mickey : Why are you guys taking so long?

Thank the world for Mickey Bolitar, Ema thought as she looked down at the text. She had almost forgotten that they were supposed to be heading to the boiler room for lunch before they got interrupted.

"I'll tell you when we get to the boiler room." She smiled before speeding down the hall.

"What's up with her right now?" Rachel looked up at Spoon.

"Oh uh.. Whitney just threw her off I guess." He couldn't meet her eyes, instead just looking at the floor as they walked.

When the three of them made it down to the boiler room Mickey was lying on the couch waiting for them. Spoon quickly sat next to him and put Mickey's legs over his lap.

"Finally. What took you guys so long?"

"The two of them got stopped by Whitney and Troy." Spoon said while trying to pretend Ema wasn't glaring at him.

"Yeah but for some reason Whitney pulled Troy away." Rachel looked over to Ema who immediately looked away.

"Oh right.. that. Spoon you wanna explain?" Ema fidgeted with her fingers and continued to glare at him.

"I accidentally fixed both of your ex problems!" He smiled and when Rachel kept looking at him he continued at an impossible speed. "By telling Whitney that you and Ema were going out.."

Mickey let out a loud laugh and Rachel looked surprised. She didn't look angry though, thankfully.

"That was all you could think of? Ema, why didn't you say anything?" Mickey says through fits of laughter.

"I was distracted! And Whitney had just said she loved me so I was thrown off!" She snaps.

Rachel turns to face her. "She actually told you that?"

"You knew about it? That she.. thinks she feels that way?"

"Yeah. She told me when Troy and I broke up. She even asked me to talk to you for her." She rolls her eyes.

Just then Rachel gets a text. When she sees the notification she groans.

"Speak of the devil."

Spoon taps a rhythm against Mickey's legs comfortably. "What's it say?"

She sighs before putting on her most dramatic deep voice, making Spoon and Mickey smile. "'Ray, I miss you and I'm genuinely so sorry. I heard that you were going out with Ema now though. Be careful, since she's clearly spreading rumors. As if a loser like her could ever date someone as great as you.' God what a fucking dick."

Ema shrinks into herself slightly as Rachel finishes reading the text. He was right, she thought. She obviously wasn't the type of person Rachel would ever go out with. Hell, she didn't even acknowledge her presence until all the Ashley stuff happened.

As if she can read her thoughts, Rachel puts a hand on Ema's shoulder. "He's full of shit by the way. He doesn't know just how incredible you are."

Ema smiles and forces herself to ignore the pleasant buzz she gets from Rachels comforting touch. "Yeah. Thanks."

"Seriously though. Him saying you're a loser is wrong. And saying you're the type to spread rumors." She paused, clearly deep in thought. "I wanna prove him wrong, as stupid as that sounds."

The shorter girl choked on air. "What."

"I mean Spoon already said that we were dating, and after all the shit Troy just said I really want to make him see how wrong he is about you. And not to mention, it would make him and Whitney stop bothering us. Just saying I'm on board if you are."

Mickey piped up from the couch "By the way, if you guys actually go through with this my aunt told me the school is having this basketball lunch event to boost morale after losing the game this weekend. The both of them are sure to be there if you feel like acting like a couple there to get them off your backs."

I take back everything nice I've thought about Mickey today, Ema thought. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Was she actually about to go through with this?

Right when she was about to say no, she remembered the time she spent in her room after her secret was announced. She remembered all the crying, the feelings of betrayal, the way she couldn't get out of her bed. She hated that Whitney made her feel like that. And as much as she hated to admit it, she kind of wanted to make her feel the same way.

"Fuck it. I'm in."

Rachel beams and wraps an arm around her. "Hell yeah! Let's go on a fake date!"

As Ema chuckles at her, she can only think one thing.

She is so screwed.

Chapter Text

"I'm fucked. What am I even supposed to wear to this thing?" Ema screamed as she frantically searched her closet.

Mickey, who was currently sitting on her bed and typing away at his phone, chuckled. "It's brunch. You can just wear whatever, right?"

She poked her head out of the closet to glare at him. This was her first ever date with Rachel- fake date, she had to keep reminding herself of that detail- of course she couldn't just wear whatever. She had to go all out.

"No, Mickey. What if Rachel sees me and hates how I dress? I need to impress her."

"You dress the same way every day and she doesn't seem to mind? In fact, hasn't she complimented your fashion sense before?" He looked up from his phone to meet her gaze. "Why are you so worried right now? What's up?"

She sighed and walked over to the bed "I don't know. I don't get why I'm overthinking this so badly. Just… I want it to go well I guess."

Mickey gave her a comforting look. How is he always so comforting? "You wanna think further about why you want this to go so well or.."

"No actually, I don't. Cause whatever you're thinking isn't the case. We're just friends playing pretend to help each other. Nothing else." She felt her chest tighten when she said it out loud but she was quick to ignore it.

She walked back to her closet and began to look through her clothes for the hundredth time "Now help me pick something please?"

Mickey rolled his eyes softly and nodded "Sure." He followed her into the closet and began scanning her wardrobe "Oh, and by the way.. she wants to impress you too."

She quickly whipped her head around "Excuse me?"

He tried- and ultimately failed- to hold back a laugh "Yup. Me and Spoon have been texting all day. He's at her place doing this same thing. Apparently she's totally freaking out too."

She notices a fondness in his eyes when he brings up Spoon. Huh. Interesting.

The second she pushed that thought aside it hit her what Mickey had said. Rachel was freaking out over this too. Rachel was freaking out over her. She felt a faint smile creep onto her face at the thought.

She shook her head in an attempt to force her thoughts out. "Great. Okay. Shit. That just means I actually have to be perfect for this."

"She probably already thinks you're perfect but okay, I'll bite. What are our options?"

As Ema tried to prepare herself all she could think about was the nervous pit in her stomach. She knew the feeling well, in fact it was the same feeling she had that night with Whitney. Only this time it felt deeper. It felt more.

That feeling stuck with her until she and Mickey got out of her car and she saw Rachel. She wore a sage green dress and Ema swore to god she couldn't name a more beautiful sight if she tried.

Every thought left her head as she stumbled to find the right words to say to her "Wow. You look.. You're gorgeous."

She thought she could see a faint blush on Rachels cheeks but she quickly brushed it off. There was no way she had made Rachel Caldwell blush. Right?

"Thanks! You look great too! Love the shirt." Ema sighed in relief, it took her an hour to settle on the black turtleneck she was wearing.

Ema felt butterflies emerge in her stomach at the compliment and she was quick to try and bury them. However, when Rachel interlaced their hands and led her into the school where the event was being held, those same butterflies returned with a vengeance. The entire time she was being led through the building Ema stared at their hands. She felt as if she were in the clouds. The nervousness she had felt prior was gone and in its place was something new, something indescribably light that gave her tingles all over.

"Ema? You good?" Rachel asked and brought her out of her head. Shit, was she really that obvious?

She quickly nodded and separated their hands. "Yeah. I'm fine."

When Rachel looked at her skeptically her eyes darted around the room for a distraction.

Luckily, she noticed Spoon and Mickey settled into the corner of the room. Mickey was talking about something and with the way Spoon was looking at him you'd think he had created the entire galaxy.

"Have you noticed how they've been acting recently?" She whispered to Rachel and nodded in their direction.

"Oh my god I thought I was the only one who saw it! Spoon literally couldn't talk about anything other than Mickey the entire time we got ready, it was so cute."

"Do you think they even realize how obvious they both are?"

"Oh absolutely not." Rachel giggled and Ema silently wished she could keep listening to the sound forever.

Then, because of course he shows up to ruin good things when they happen to Ema, Troy approaches them.

“Rachel, can we talk?” Rachel rolls her eyes and Ema has to force herself to not laugh.

“Not now. As you can see, I’m busy. With my girlfriend.”

Girlfriend has a nice ring to it even if it's fake, Ema thinks as she turns her head to smile at Rachel, earning a glare from Troy.

“Come on. You can’t be serious. I mean what could you even see in her?” Troy smirks as if she's something to laugh at and it makes Ema want to shrink into herself and die.

“Actually she’s the best. She’s kind, talented, gorgeous, and definitely better than you so just shut up.” She scowled at him.

Ema looked at her in awe. Did she really think all of that about her?

Rachel’s words actually got a laugh out of him and Ema felt her stomach twist into knots.

“Her? Now you’re just making shit up. I mean for real Rachel? She’s not any of that at all. She’s just a loser and a fucking freak.”

“Troy-” The taller girl begins before Ema cuts him off.

“Just leave it Rachel, it’s no big deal.” She tried to smile at her but it looked more pained than anything.

“At least you know your own place.” He spat out at her, his words full of hatred. “Now Ray, can we please go talk?”

Troy started to reach for Rachel's arm. Immediately Ema goes to shove him away but before she can Rachel slaps him.

“Get the fuck away from me!” She raised her voice and suddenly Ema became acutely aware of the people that were watching them.

Thankfully, that was enough to get Troy to back away, staring at Rachel with a pained expression as if the reaction hadn’t been deserved.

As soon as he was out of sight Rachel looked at Ema and her face instantly softened. They stared at each other for what felt like years, and the entire time Ema felt her heart pounding in her chest. Something about the way she was staring at her made her feel like she was going to melt. It was so soft and genuine and it made her feel like she was the only thing that mattered to her in the moment.

The entirety of what just happened then settles on her and before she can second guess herself, she's enveloping Rachel in a tight hug.

“Sorry he’s such an asshole. He shouldn’t be bothering you like this." She quietly said to her.

She felt Rachel relax in her arms “It’s nothing you need to be sorry for. Not your fault he’s being more of a dick than usual."

They pulled away from each other, their eyes still fixed on one another as if they'd disappear if they looked away for even a moment.

"Hey.. do you feel like getting out of here?" Rachel broke the silence.

"Yes please. I can still feel people staring and it's making me feel weird."

Rachel laughed at that and took her hand again, leading her into the hallways of the building.

They walked around aimlessly for a while, the silence between them comfortable as it always was.

"Thanks for saying all that stuff about me by the way. Meant a lot, even if you were just playing into the dating thing" Emas eyes stay glued into the floor.

"I didn't say those things just because of that. I said it because it's true."

When Ema finally looks up she sees Rachel looking back at her, gentle eyes glancing over her face as if she wanted to take in every single one of her features.

"..You're amazing, Ema." She says and for the quickest second her eyes trail to her lips.

"..So are you. Even more so than me, obviously." She mutters out.

Rachel playfully rolls her eyes, a small smile on her face. She then started to lead Ema through the halls once again.

"Where are you taking me now?" Her voice was laced with fondness.

"My favorite place in the school.” She smiled and it’s so infectious that Ema smiles along without even realizing.

Eventually they end up in the gym, Rachel sitting on the bleachers and Ema awkwardly joining her.

“Why’s this your favorite place in the school?” Ema asked while fidgeting with her fingers.

“A few reasons actually. It's where I first met Ashley for one. Being here brings back happy memories of her.” She looks around warmly. “It’s also one of the places we do our cheer practices so it makes me especially happy.”

“That makes sense. Also I think anyone could guess cheer makes you happy just by how in your element you look while doing it.”

“You were looking at me that much, huh?” Rachel nudges her shoulder.

Ema coughs and she feels her cheeks turning pink. “Well- I mean… you were shining.. It was like, literally impossible to not look at you.”

Rachel goes quiet for a moment and Ema immediately thinks she messed up. She’s internally panicking until she feels Rachel move closer to her, their shoulders brushing against each other. She immediately looks over to her, surprised to see the other girl already staring back at her. This time, the blush on her cheeks is unmistakable. Holy shit, she made Rachel Caldwell blush.

"That's.." Rachel begins but then stops herself. "I get that, actually. Not being able to look away from someone."

"Yeah.." The implementations of what she said aren't lost on her, but she refuses to let herself have false hope.

"Hey, I know it's random but.. can I come to your house?"

"Woah, random is an understatement. Why do you want to?" Ema tilts her head.

"It's gonna sound stupid but the Troy shit made me wanna take pictures together and make him even more angry. And I've never been to your house so.." She playfully smirks at Ema.

She's learned by now that she can hardly say no to Rachel, but she's trying her best to hold her resolve.

"Besides.. I wanna do your makeup, and we can maybe even have a sleepover if you're down?" There's an excited gleam in her eyes and every wall Ema is trying to hold up completely crumbles when she notices it.

With a heavy sigh she nods "Fine. Come on." Rachel claps and cheers and Emas heart flutters in her chest.

What is it about Rachel Caldwell that makes her completely give in, She thinks to herself as she follows her out of the gym.