boundaries
Alexis wakes up in a daze the next morning. Stevie’s breath is fluttering against the crown of her head and for a minute Alexis is confused, wondering why she feels so warm, but then her eyes blink open and Stevie’s fast asleep against her, face set peacefully.
Alexis grins, snuggles in more, content to stay comfortable and happy for a moment. Stevie’s arms tighten around her and she giggles slightly, blinking against Stevie’s neck.
She knows Stevie’s awake by the way her grip tightens again, and she smiles as there are suddenly soft lips at her hairline.
“Morning,” she whispers, and Stevie murmurs in reply, bundling her up tighter. Alexis sighs happily. She was worried that their relationship would simply be fuckbuddies – friends with benefits, whatever you wanna call it. But this – this is nicer, deeper, and god does Alexis love it.
Stevie shifts eventually and Alexis takes the opportunity to lean up and press her lips gently against Stevie’s, who smiles slightly into the kiss and winds her wrists around Alexis’ neck, pulling her closer.
“Mm,” Alexis mumbles happily. “What are your plans for the day?”
“I probably need to work,” Stevie grins. “But I’m gonna need coffee first.”
“Café?”
“Café.”
0o0o0
Twyla’s squeal almost deafens Stevie’s not-quite-awake-yet eardrums, but she watches with a smile as Alexis squeals back and they wrap each other in a hug.
“Oh my god, it’s been too long,” Twyla gushes, and Alexis entertains her with stories of celebrities Stevie’s never heard of but Twy seems to love, and Stevie doesn’t care because Alexis is glowing. She’s got their feet hooked under the table, playing a light game of footsies as she tells Twyla all about how she visited the set of The Morning Show and meet Reese Witherspoon, how she’s brought Twyla a gift from New York but you’ll have to wait!
Alexis orders Stevie’s coffee – double espresso, black and strong – and an egg and bacon roll, and herself a smoothie, and Twyla finally steps away, Alexis turning to Stevie with sparkling eyes.
“You don’t realise how much you miss a place til it’s gone,” she says, and Stevie smiles.
“Mm, and did you miss the motel?”
Alexis scrunches her face up. “I missed the girl who works at the desk.”
Stevie blushes so heavily she’s sure she can be seen all the way from the kitchen.
0o0o0
Alexis seems nervous when she drops Stevie at work. Stevie waits for her to walk into the lobby and then kisses her against the front desk, and Alexis giggles before she asks ‘can I stay with you?’
Stevie scoffs. “It’ll be boring as hell.”
Alexis smirks. “I’m sure we can find ways to make it fun. Besides, my other option is staying at the store with David and Patrick, and they’re a little too in love for my liking. I feel like I’m constantly third wheeling.”
“That might be… because you are?”
Alexis hits her. “But, Stevie,” she whines. “Normally I’m the one who’s getting third wheeled!”
0o0o0
It’s quite nice to walk back into the lobby and see Alexis lounging over her seat, picking at her nails. At one point, Stevie walks in and Alexis is sitting on the desk, legs dangling over the side, and she reaches out needily to Stevie until she walks over, stands between Alexis’ legs, and kisses her. Only then does Alexis giggle happily, legs hooking around Stevie’s thighs, hands lost in her hair.
They’re in the back room, making out, when Roland walks in. Stevie springs back, laughing silently, one hand covering Alexis’s open mouth. She walks out with a chill ‘hey, Roland, what’s up?’ and Alexis follows her, waving at Roland with a classy smile.
“Oh, hey, Alexis,” Roland grins at her. “Here, wait, you got a little – wait-” he swipes his thumb under her mouth, and she recoils back as he smudges some lipstick.
Stevie’s almost pissing herself laughing, and she takes Alexis’s pouting face in her hands as soon as Roland leaves and presses her lips gently to her nose. “Got a bit of lipstick,” she whispers, and Alexis fucking growls.
“I will literally never kiss you again.”
“Oh, well we wouldn’t want that to happen, huh?” Stevie laughs, and Alexis kisses her. Just to make her shut up.
0o0o0
They head to the Apothecary in the afternoon, to pick up some new moisturisers for the rooms. If David notices anything weird about them coming in together he doesn’t say anything, but Alexis swears she sees Patrick eyeing her, smirking a little when she frowns. She helps Stevie tease David, but something’s pressing at the back of her mind, and she doesn’t bring it up until they’re walking back home, bags of products swinging from their fingertips.
“We should maybe set some boundaries.”
Stevie looks up, and Alexis is pretty sure this is the first time she’s been completely unsure in a relationship. Even with Ted, it was apparent that they loved each other, apparent what they were going to be. With Stevie, it’s new, unusual, and Alexis feels weirdly insecure.
“Boundaries?”
“Mhm.” Alexis tries to stay cool. She fails. “Like. Are we gonna… tell anyone? Are we gonna label it? Are we just – I don’t know, I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“Listen,” Stevie says gently – more gentle than Alexis has ever seen her. “I like you, okay? I’ve liked you for a really long time. This is – lowkey fucking terrifying for me, because I don’t know what we’re doing, and you’re gonna jet back off to New York in a few weeks and I’m not sure what I’ll do after that, but what I know is that I liked waking up with you, and I like kissing you, and I like walking into work and seeing your face, okay? And if you don’t like that, that’s cool. I made peace with admiring you from afar a long time ago. This is just an added bonus.”
Alexis bites her lip. “It scares me – a lot – but… I like you too. And I’m not sure how I lived here for four years and this never… happened. I like everything that’s happened in the last day. A lot. And so… I don’t know, I don’t wanna force you into anything.”
Stevie gives her this look that’s almost pity, and Alexis does not like that. “You’re not forcing me into anything. I want this. If you do.”
“I do.” Alexis meets her eyes finally, right outside of the motel.
Stevie grins. “That’s a fucking relief.”
0o0o0
They’re sitting inside when Stevie brings it up again. “I don’t care if we tell people, but I’m definitely not opposed to being able to sit on your lap at Christmas dinner with David and Patrick.”
“Oh, please,” Alexis says, filing her nails. “As if you’d ever sit on my lap in front of them.”
Stevie snorts. “Hmm… maybe you’ll be surprised.”
Alexis raises an eyebrow. “I’d like to see it.”
“So that’s a yes-Stevie-we’ll-tell-them? Or a no-we-won’t-tell-them-but-I-want-you-on-my-lap-anyway?”
Alexis giggles, reaching out to boop Stevie on the nose. “I think they’ll figure it out pretty quickly.”
0o0o0
They come up with a plan that night, and they ring David to invite them to the café. When he and his husband arrive, Alexis’ fingers are laced with Stevie’s, and she yawns dramatically and plops them on the table.
Patrick just smirks, gives them a nod. Of course, David doesn’t let it go quite as easily.
“Um, what the fuck is going on here?”
“Though I’d add another Rose to my list,” Stevie drawls. “Got a problem?”
“God, Stevie, she’s my sister.”
“And she’s my girlfriend,” Alexis counters, leaning over to press a kiss to Stevie’s cheek. “God, David, are you having an aneurysm? You knew I was bi, and Stevie literally dresses like a lesbian – no offence, babe, you look adorable – why are you surprised?”
“Normally you have a type, and Stevie is not it. No offence, Stevie.”
“None taken,” Stevie says, looking dazed. “Girlfriend, Alexis?”
“Oh, fuck,” Alexis whispers, panic flashing across her face. “Fuck.”
Patrick looks to David, who’s watching Alexis, a slight look of surprise on his face. He’s never seen his sister quite so flustered when it comes to a relationship.
Stevie’s – also surprisingly – right on it. “Hey,” she grins easily, but she’s rubbing Alexis’ hand calmingly under the table, aware that she’s suddenly clenching her hand a lot tighter. “I’m good with girlfriend if you are.”
Alexis looks at her, a slow smile replacing the panicked frown on her face. “Yeah,” she says quietly. “I like girlfriend.”
0o0o0
Patrick and David drive them back to the motel after, because they walked there and now it’s cold and dark, and Alexis ‘can’t be bothered, David!’ When they get into her room, she immediately plops herself on her bed, scooting up against the headboard. David looks around the room for a second, taking in Alexis, the beds, the pictures on the wall, and sighs softly, lacing his fingers with Patrick. He’s missed this, as much as he wants to ignore it. It feels weird waking up without Alexis’s constant chatter, without his mom’s meaningless moaning, without his dad’s weirdly simple requests. He loves his life with Patrick, but he still misses them.
Stevie’s looking at him like she knows what he’s thinking, and he sticks his finger up at her before they say their goodbyes and they’re gone.
Stevie stands there, looking at Alexis, who’s looking back at her through her long eyelashes. “There’s alcohol in the fridge, if you want it.”
Stevie grins. “You know me too well.”
She returns shortly after, bottle of Everclear and two mugs in her hand because what type of motel stocks shot glasses? She gives one to Alexis and pours a generous amount into both, sipping at it with a grimace on her face. “Really not for drinking slowly.”
“Mm,” Alexis agrees, and downs a huge gulp. Stevie cackles.
Then there’s silence.
“Listen,” Alexis says softly, a minute later, looking up at Stevie, who’s still standing over her bed. “I’m sorry for springing the whole girlfriend thing on you earlier. This whole – this whole feelings thing isn’t – I’m not used to it.”
Stevie smiles, eyes down. “It’s – it’s good,” she grins. “I like girlfriend. I wanted – I wanted it, but we both know how great I am with confidence.”
Alexis smiles back, but – “You’re really changing up my whole confidence thing,” she says, weirdly open, hands moving anxiously. “Normally I’m like – I’m sure that the other person likes me, right? And it’s more of a me thing than a them thing. This is… weird. I don’t like emotions.”
Stevie smiles under her breath. “Can I?” She gestures to the bed. Alexis nods immediately, scooting backwards to make room for Stevie. The shorter girl sits close – but not touching – cupping her vodka in her hands and finally meeting Alexis’s eyes.
“You wanted boundaries,” she says gently, and Alexis nods, eyes wide and almost… scared? “I’m gonna lay this all out, totally honestly, and you can take and leave what you want, okay? Because unlike you, I’m used to this. I could be setting myself up for complete heartbreak, but whatever, David can deal with that.”
Alexis laughs quietly, and picks up Stevie’s hand, fiddling with her fingers anxiously.
“I like you,” Stevie says, a tiny smile on her face. “I’ve liked you for… fuck, I don’t know, a long ass time. Since pre-Ted round two? I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that I’ve spent the last two and a half years quietly coexisting with that fact – watching you go about your day, smiling like a goofy asshole the minute you walked into the room – god, that sounds creepy as fuck, hey?”
“No,” Alexis says with a tiny laugh. “No, it doesn’t.”
Stevie starts to run her thumb across the soft webbing between Alexis’ thumb and finger. “It does. But whatever, right? You had Ted, I had – well, no one, but looking after your brother was like, a full time job – but then he found Patrick and I made peace with it. And I’m happy to stay that way. But you do not have to worry if I like you or not. I like you. I like you so much, and I’ll keep saying it as many times as you need to hear – which is a privilege, by the way, it’s scaring me how open I’m being right now and that’s clearly your fault because I wouldn’t do this for anyone else and –”
“Stevie,” Alexis says, voice tight. When Stevie meets her eyes again, Alexis’ are burning. “Please will you kiss me?”
“Y-Yeah,” Stevie says, swallowing. “Yeah. I can do that.”
Alexis drops her eyes closed, leaning forward expectantly, and Stevie looks at her for a moment before taking her spare hand and tracing her fingers carefully over Alexis’s face. The other girl leans into the touch, clicking her tongue lazily against the roof of her mouth.
“Loving this, babe,” she says, once Stevie’s traced her whole face. “But –” Her eyes open, sparkling. “You just said a whole bunch of things that I really liked, and I just – please fucking kiss me, Stevie Budd.”
Stevie swears her whole body twitches at that statement, and she sets her Everclear aside and presses Alexis up against the headboard, landing her legs either side of Alexis’s waist as their foreheads brush.
“Jesus. Fucking. Christ, Stevie!” Alexis pants, and she leans up and finally – finally – their lips connect. Alexis is pressing up against her and Stevie’s never felt so gay in her life and her lips are soft and her hands are everywhere, on her hips and in her hair and curling around her neck until they each break apart breathlessly. “God. That’s better.”
Stevie laughs, resting her head against Alexis’. “Much better.”
“I don’t know how this is gonna work,” Alexis whispers, biting her lip. “But I want it to. God, I want it to. So… I’m in if you are.”
“I’m in,” Stevie wets her lips and kisses Alexis’s nose softly. “I’m so in.”