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The thing is, Emma is dating Will Belmont. Emma is dating WIll Belmont and they haven’t spoken in forever because Audrey kind of hates Head Bitch Nina and her faithful dogs. So when Emma corners her in a secluded part of the school where no eyes can possibly see them and presses Audrey’s body against the cold metal of lockers and presses her hands into Audrey’s scalp and presses her lips against Audrey’s shocked expression and kisses her, kisses her, kisses her before disappearing with the first ring of the school bell?
Yeah, Audrey has no clue what the heck is going on.
-
They don’t talk. Nothing goes back to how it used to be and Emma never mentions the kissing, to the point where Audrey thinks she must have dreamed it. Just like she must be dreaming the way Emma sometimes brushes past her in the hallways. Just like she must be dreaming the way Emma’s lingering gaze makes her insides combust. Just like she must be dreaming the way Emma’s sudden refusal to let Will kiss her makes hope bloom in her chest.
Because the thing is, Emma is still dating Will Belmont. Emma is still dating Will Belmont but Audrey is more than certain that the kissing happened because Emma’s here in her bedroom for the first time in over a year and before she can even ask Emma what she wants, hungry and desperate lips are claiming hers and hands are messing up her hair and Audrey thinks she’s probably dreaming again and and and-
“Emma, what the hell?!” She pushes her away. Because Emma is dating Will Belmont. She’s dating Will Belmont. Yet she’s here, in Audrey’s bedroom, smelling like strawberries and looking as though she still belongs here like she did in the old days. Only, Emma kissing her like she was desperate to feel something didn’t happen in the old days.
Audrey really has no clue what the heck is going on.
“Is this some kind of elaborate Nina prank?” She queries, anger bubbling under the surface of her flushed skin (Emma kissed her). Her throat scratches with the sharpness of her accusation, burning like the blush in her cheeks. (Emma kissed her.) These are the first words she’s spoken to Emma in over a year. (Emma kissed her.) How did her life come to this? (Emma kissed her.)
“N..no??? I’m…” Emma looks lost, a deer in the headlights of Audrey’s confusion and anger. She seems to suddenly realise where she is, as she lifts her hand and runs her fingers over her own kiss-bruised lips.
“Please don’t tell.” Emma begs, her face screaming how terrified she is, and there’s that ‘old times’ feeling again as goody two-shoes Emma begs Audrey for her silence and then disappears once she’s extracted a promise. Audrey flops onto her bed and mulls everything over in her mind.
What the heck is going on?
-
The pattern continues. Stolen kisses in empty classrooms, breathless moans in dark stairways, hands in her hair and at her waist and up the back of her shirt. Faceless, fleeting collisions and Audrey swears she’s starting to get some kind of whiplash from the ways that Emma is tugging her. Because she’s still dating Will Belmont, even though it’s now common knowledge that he’s a cheating cheater who cheated on Emma with Nina. Even though it’s now common knowledge that Audrey handed him his ass in PE class the day she found out. And Emma’s still dating Will Belmont. And she doesn’t even seem so upset that he betrayed her like that. And nobody but Audrey can figure out why.
“Emma we really should talk about this.” She mumbles against soft lips, hating how content she is to have Emma in her room, Emma lying on top of her, Emma’s lips on hers, Emma’s hips on hers. Emma smelling like strawberries and home.
“Or, we could just keep making out?” Emma asks, lilting hope trickling into a terrified smile and Audrey wants to give in, she wants to give in so hard, but she has Feelings for Emma. Feelings with a capital F, Feelings that mean something to her. She deserves an explanation at least.
“Emma.”
“Audrey.”
Audrey raises an eyebrow, waiting for the forthcoming answer. Or waiting for Emma to shut her up with a kiss. Whichever comes first. They’re locked in a silent battle, but Emma’s eyes are pleading, begging, then sadly apologising. Audrey recognises those emotions. She’d seen them in the reflection of Rachel’s car window in her own eyes. She hates that she understands and opts for dragging a strangled moan from Emma’s throat with a rough bite to her lips. Emma kisses back as softly as she can. Audrey takes it as a question and a promise. Wait until I’m ready? I’ll tell you when I’m ready, just please. Wait.
-
Noah is insufferable when he finds out. Because Emma is dating Will belmont but Audrey has the ghost of Emma’s lips bruised into the side of her neck and has the subtle scent of strawberries clinging underneath the lynx body spray and how could you not tell me!?
“O geeze, Foster, I wonder why I didn’t tell the guy who can’t for the life of him stop talking that I’m selfishly letting Emma freaking Duval cheat on her boyfriend with me.” She hisses, probably a little too harshly but now she’s said it out loud she hates herself and if there’s anything Audrey’s good at it’s accidentally taking her self hate out on other people. She hates his hurt expression more.
“Look, I didn’t mean that. I-” He waves her apology away before she even gets to say it.
“So, do you like her?” He grins and she throws a pillow at him.
“Get lost, Virgin!” She laughs, avoiding the uncomfortable question before her treacherous tongue lets the words yes, yes I do, yes, so much escape into the ether and become a reality.
“Whatever, Bi curious.” His smirk tells her that he probably already knows.
-
Emma is no longer dating Will Belmont. Emma isn’t dating Will Belmont and Audrey is on edge because the game has all changed again. She’d just gotten used to being the other woman and now that tiny voice in the back of her head is singing a symphony because she’s single. And they’re friends again. She’s single and they’re friends again and she’s still kissing Audrey only now Will Belmont isn’t haunting every second they spend together. Only he is, a little bit. Because Emma is no longer dating Will Belmont but Will Belmont won’t take no for an answer.
“So, what, you’ve dumped me for the degenerate?” He stalks up to where they’re laughing at some stupid joke and Emma removes her hand from Audrey’s shoulder like the plaid has suddenly bitten her fingers. Audrey bites her tongue to stay silent. Audrey clenches her fists to stay still.
“Don’t call her that.” That hope blooms in her chest again and her heart thumps a little faster. You defended me she thinks. You defended me, you defended me, you defended me with every beat of her fluttering heart.
“Why not? It’s what she IS. Looking at you like a sad little puppy. Everybody knows ,” he hisses maliciously, throwing a sneer Audrey’s way, “How freaking gay she is for you, Emma. Do you get off on leading her on?” Do y-” That’s when he shuts up. Audrey almost misses it because everybody knows is repeating in a downward spiral in her head. But he shuts up, because his mouth is too busy eating Emma’s fist.
Because the thing is, Emma punches Will Belmont. Emma punches Will Belmont for Audrey and if she weren’t already completely heels over head, Audrey would have fallen so quickly and so fast she’d never recover. And then she takes Audrey’s hand, in the middle of the hallway, and drags them both to Audrey’s car.
“Are you okay?” She asks, extremely worried and extremely in awe of Emma who is as white as a sheet and is trembling.
“Just drive, I don’t care where we go.”
Audrey drives.
-
Her dad comes home early from church and Audrey’s heart jumps into her throat when Emma only just manages to propel herself across the room away from her as her Dad opens the door. Unfortunately, he’s not an idiot. The red dust across her cheeks, mussed up hair and general dazed expression makes him fill in the blanks and it isn’t until after he’s sweetly asked Emma to leave that the yelling starts.
(Honestly, it’s more like a sermon and she’s heard it all before.)
(She can’t help but think of Emma instead of paying attention.)
(Emma kissed her. )
(Emma is single. )
She’s brought back to the present when she feels the sharp thwack of a leather bible against her cheek. Well, that’s new. Anger boils in her chest as she watches him leave, and she bares her teeth at the closed door before she gathers her bag and clambers out the window. Her face throbs where he hit her (He HIT her!?) and the engine of her car rumbles beneath her. She shows up at Emma’s in record time and knocks sheepishly on the front door, praying that Maggie won’t be the one to answer.
“Audrey!” Emma’s gasp of concern automatically starts making her feel better, and she can’t help but feel as though everything is going to be okay when Emma is fussing over her bruised cheek and wielding righteous anger like a sword. She kisses Audrey’s growing black eye before she presses an ice pack to the wound and she doesn’t even look round to see if her mother might see. Her grin is all teeth as she looks up at the girl she loves.
(because she does, she loves her. She loves Emma freaking Duval. Isn’t that terrifying?)
“You’re staying here tonight.”
“Thanks, Em.”
-
The thing is, Audrey is dating Emma Duval. Audrey is dating Emma Duval, she hasn’t spoken to her father since they became official and Nina’s been forced to re-evaluate if bullying the self proclaimed Bicurious (and, by extent, the Virgin) is worth Emma’s wrath.
Because Audrey is dating Emma Duval.
And it’s everything she ever dreamed of.