“Little Annie Edison, didn’t expect you to go so full-out for the end of year picnic.” Annie spun around to the voice behind her. Something about today didn't seem right, she was especially paranoid as it seemed.
When she came face to face with a familiar smirk she felt herself relaxing almost entirely. Valerie. “Oh, well, you know, all my friends wanted to-“
“No need to justify it, Edison. You look good. It’s sweet that you’re dressed up.” Her English accent made Annie’s cheeks flush but the use of ‘sweet’ stopped the younger girl from swooning as usual. Valerie saw her as a child - cute. Annie wasn’t sure what she saw Valerie as and her feelings were confusing her more and more. The pit in her stomach seemed to depend the more she thought about it and once she’d snapped out of her trance the woman was gone.
Valerie had moved to Greendale at the start of the year and was in Annie’s newest class - Linguistics 101. She had switched from psychology at city college and was looking into a career in criminal linguistics. All of this Annie found out from Abed thankfully as she couldn’t seem to last two minutes in a conversation with the woman without stuttering and blushing. She was tall, taller than Annie, and had dark red hair. Annie thought she looked like a rockstar's girlfriend but she’d never say that. Not to anyone bedside Abed.
Annie couldn’t help from feeling ashamed of her get-up now. She looked like some old timey bar maid. Of course Valerie would just be wearing her usual criminally tight clothes with a cowboy hat. Jeff incarnate.
“Annie? You’re monologuing. You’ve been staring at the floor where Valerie was standing for about 4 minutes now.” Abed. Perfect.
“Did that funny looking ice cream woman just say 100,000 dollars?” Shirley squeaked out before all hell broke loose.
-
‘The study group’ was not something Valerie was interested in getting herself involved with. But since Annie’s little friend-crush she found herself being pulled towards them more and more. Abed and her had started a scratch off scary movie poster and were currently on film 33 out of 200. This was later joined by Troy but Abed insisted he caught up on the movies before he did. Some nights Annie would join if she had later classes and the four of them would joke about renting a place together. All of them secretly wished it were true if not just to get Annie out of her scary apartment building. So Troy and Abed would suggest Annie spent the night on their couch and in turn Valerie would get a few more hours with her before she disappeared back to her old dorm. It was innocent. The boys would ignore Annie’s little giggles and the snuggling on the couch between the women and Valerie would stop by the study room a couple of times a week. It was simple. Annie liked simple. Until it wasn’t.
Annie started having dreams. Dreams that made her head spin and her heart race. Dreams that meant she couldn’t look Valerie in the eye anymore. And so Annie started avoiding her.
Valerie knew what was up. Annie found out she was a lesbian. She knew Annie was into her the same way that she knew how the girl liked to arrange her binders in colour order. But she knew that Annie had to come to terms with her feelings, alone. So Troy began sitting on her spot on the couch and Val took the bean bag. Her and Annie drifted apart.
-
When Abed found Valerie looting the debate kids for bullets he knew they had to make a truce. Neither felt they had a chance against the other if they didn’t and it was logical. Keep your enemies close.
After an hour or so they had looted enough people for bullets that they had enough to share out with the people they wanted. Thankfully Valerie’s closest friend beside the study group was hiding in his office like a little baby so that meant her next stop was Annie. She separated the pink bullets and stuffed them into a container for the girl while Abed went to find Troy.
She’d heard rumblings of where Annie could be and after seeing the den in one of the science labs - she knew it was only a matter of time until she showed up.
And she did. “Now this is an outfit I can get behind, Edison. Figuratively, of course.” Val laughed at herself while continuing tucking into the can of beans on the side. Annie’s gun aimed at her head wouldn’t stop her enjoying her meal.
“I ripped my skirt.”
“I can see that.” Annie’s long skirt was replaced with some short black shorts and a thigh holster. “Anyway cutie I just came to give you some bullets. Thought you’d need them”
Annie scoffed at this but snatched the pink bullets off the counter. Val had been told by Abed how intense this game gets but clearly wasn’t prepared to see this side of the sweet little nerd she was starting to get to know. “I don’t need your help.”
“Whatever Annie. I get you’ve been ignoring me. I figured only soon enough until you found out. Just wanted to make sure you were okay. I know how seriously you take this.”
“I’m not- forget it. Thanks.” Annie kept her gun aimed at the woman as she walked towards the door.
“I’m going to go see my cheerleaders. Find me if you need me.”
-
“For your betrayal of the cheerleaders alliance I sentence you to pretendzies death!” Heather aimed the gun at Chang’s chest as all the other cheerleaders watched in amazement. Val watched from on top of a pile of chairs guarding the door in something a whole lot short of amazement. Something closer to amusement.
“Guys! You don’t have to do this!” Chang gulped between breaths “I betrayed the maths club for you!”
“Ready?” Heather spoke as the other girls aimed their guns.
“I’m sorry I told Trish about Amber and Valerie!” Chang squealed as the girls held their guns in the air.
Valerie raised a brow at this. A couple of harmless hookups with some cheerleaders and the team was falling apart. “Aim-“ Heather shouted louder.
Annie met eyes with Val before intruding, hoping the girl wouldn’t stop her. And she didn’t.
“Fire!” Annie called before massacring the cheer team.
“Holy crap” Jeff spoke as he entered the room followed by Abed. Of course perfect little Annie would be with Jeff.
“Not cool biatch” Heather sneered at annie.
“That’s what you told me at last year's try-outs.” Annie spat back. Valerie pulled herself down from the chairs and stepped beside Annie. Trish rolled her eyes and began trying to wipe the paint of her uniform.
The squad all mumbled and left. Amber turned and motioned ‘call me’ to Valerie before grabbing her gun and following the girls.
Jeff was grinning like a moron clearly assuming it was about him and so Val shouted back a quick “maybe” just to put him in his place if nothing else.
“Who’s there?! Can I join you?” Chang shouted from where he was blindfolded and the group turned in sync to deny him. Annie went to shoot him but realised she was out. Clearly she didn’t accept Vals truce and if that wasn’t message enough the redhead ran after her when she began to chase Chang.
“Stop trying to fluster me with your handsomeness. You’re creepy.” Annie spoke from inside the room and immediately Val regretted chasing after her.
“Why’s your chest getting all flushed” a deep voice came from within the room and that was enough to send the door flying open.
“Hey.” Val spoke as Abed appeared in the other doorway.
“I’ll save you for last” the tall creep whispered to Annie as he held her up like some human shield.
“You won’t get the chance.” Val spat as she opened fire on the loser.
Jeff appeared too and suddenly it was a shoot-out. Before long he had snuck away and the whole room was shocked into silence. “I got a better look. He’s not that good looking.” Jeff spoke as he reloaded.
“Truer words never spoke Jeffrey.” Val mumbled as she made her way to Annie. “Did he shoot you?”
“He tried”
“He’s a bad shot too?” Jeff quipped while Val gave Annie a thorough inspection for paint.
Once the team had found the dean and stopped themselves dying of laughter at the state they found him in, he led them to the bullet stash.
“Where you going?” Abed spoke as Annie began to storm off.
“To speak to Pierce.”
“She’s awesome today.” He mumbled.
“Tell me about it.” Val whispered back. Troy used his gun to stop the redhead's jaw hanging open. Britta rolled her eyes at Annies clear obliviousness to the situation when Vals jaw fell straight back open.
“So you and Annie?” Troy began
“Shut up. Annie doesn’t even know. She asked me last week why she gets a tummy ache when she’s around Val. She was worried she was developing a bug from England had never been exposed to.” Britta started grabbing bullets as she spoke. “Even the thing with the cheerleaders she couldn’t understand why you responded to Amber when she was talking to Jeff. I don’t think Annie realises lesbians even exist.”
“Huh.”
-
As soon as Val and Annie started their joing Han Solo act, Troy was feeling left out and started some pissing contest with Jeff. The whole thing was weird - but so was greendale.
Annie, Val and Shirley went to get supplies while Troy and Abed attempted to control the new rebellion.
Once they found the supply closet with paint it was clear that city college was going down “Jackpot. Shirley, you keep watch while we get these.” Annie grinned as she began looking around at the buckets of neon pink goop.
“Here, help me with this.” Annie motioned to the bucket of paint.
“Sure thing, your worship.” Val grinned and leant over from behind Annie. Clearly swapping her cowboy hat for Star-Burns vest was making her act up.
“Val. Stop trying to be Han Solo, it's making me embarrassed for you. You’re turning into Abed.” She shoved the woman away and went to move the paint by herself.
“Come on, admit it, you like it.”
“I like having conversations with adults. Playing Star Wars is worn out and immature.”
“You like me because I'm immature. I balance you out. There's not enough immaturity in your life.” Val smirked and ignored the flush growing on Annie’s cheeks.
“I hope I don't get shot waiting out here! I'd hate to go home to my babies.” Shirley called from outside and snapped the pair out of whatever was going on.
Back in the rebellion den Jeff and Troy were still swinging their dicks around. “Do you happen to have a better plan?” Jeff mocked as he stared Troy down, AGAIN.
“I do happen, Jeff. I happen very much. We use sneak attacks to draw their patrols to the library, where one of us will pull the fire alarm, activating the sprinklers, which I will have rigged, to shower everything in the building with paint.”
“Paint in sprinklers?”
“Are we the Little Rascals?”
“I was.” Lenard chimed in which earned dirty looks from the entire room.
“Have you heard your plan? You wanna charge a machine gun!”
Annie shot her gun in the air and the room went silent “I've got something to say!”
“I don't take orders from girls, because they don't talk to me.” Some loser shouted from the back of the room which earned a gun to the side of his head from Val.
“Watch it, freak. Annie's a good kid and a better shot. So listen up or you'll be floating home.”
“Thank you, Val. Sorry…’Han.’”
“Now who’s being immature, Princess Edison. Okay, I think we should split the troops in half and carry out both plans simultaneously.”
“Troy, your plan will lure people off the ice cream truck, allowing Jeff's troops to take the stronghold.
“Hey, thanks for sticking up for me back there.This group gets so tangled in each others' feelings.” Annie spoke in hushed tones as the room dispersed to do their individual jobs.
“Nothing wrong with feelings.” Val leant past Annie to grab more ammo and chose to ignore the woman's breath loudly hitching as she did.
“Anyway, I just wanted to let you know, I don't think you're immature.I think you're great, for a no-good, laser-faced, Jabba scoundrel.”
“Geek. Don’t get cocky.”
-
“Only one of us needs to get out of here alive.” Troy headed out the study room followed by Abed to face the troops. Annie dragged Val towards the library as she tried to take a photo of Garrett stuck in the vent.
Val ducked behind a bookshelf soon followed by Annie as soon as they were out of the line of fire.
“We’re dying out here!” Britta shouted down the headset and Annie’s face tensed.
“I fucking love this school.” Val pulled off her headset and slumped to the ground, pulling out her gun to reload. Her face dropped when she realised her clip was almost empty, “I’ve only got one left .”
Annie pulled her gun from her holster to check, “I’m out…”
“This is it.” Valerie groaned, resting her head on Annie’s shoulder. Annie kept her eyes forward to hide the blush spreading across her face and went to reach for the woman’s hand. Instead her hand landed on her thigh and she felt Valerie tense up.
“I’m sorry” she groaned in embarrassment, pulling her hand away. “I meant to get your hand-“
“It’s okay.” Valerie whispered with a painfully lovestruck smile, taking Annie’s hand in her own.
“Will- will you still be Han Solo after we die?”
“Annie, I was never Han Solo, I’m not Abed, whatever’s been going on with us today- that’s just me.”
“Oh, well, obviously, but-“ Annie was cut off with the sound of gunfire as Valerie dramatically shot herself in the chest. “Why would you-“
“So you know I meant it when I did this” Valerie put down her gun and used her free hand (the one that wasn’t still tightly gripping Annie’s) to gently tilt Annie’s face up to meet her own.
Annie’s face was scarlet but she was still able to act oblivious, “do what?”, until Valerie’s lips crashed into hers. After a few moments, Annie pulled away already breathless.
“Well then know that I mean this too.” She mumbled before pulling herself onto the woman’s lap and pressing their torsos together as they locked lips again. Annie’s shirt and chest were now stained with purple paint but she gripped onto the other woman’s shirt to pull them closer together anyway. After what felt like seconds, but must have been at least 5 minutes, the alarm blared and paint gushed from the ceiling.
Annie pulled away, struggling to contain her laughter, before going silent. “I think I’m a lesbian.”
“It was that good, huh?”
“Shut up.” She half pouted before slamming herself back into the woman. Valerie held her hips and couldn’t help but smile into the kiss. Paint covered them both from head to toe and despite the chemical taste, Valerie was sure she could still taste Annie’s cherry lipgloss.
-
“So all we have to do is pick a class for next semester.”
“Well I’m definitely taking linguistics 102.” Annie smiled to herself as Abed began mumbling about sequels.
“Are you now?” Britta grinned, “clearly I was the only one who kept their headset on.”
Annie’s face visibly twitched before Jeff began yapping about his summer plans. She relaxed when she realised no one even picked up on what Britta was saying.
“How about we decide classes later, sleep on it.” Troy added and the group all enthusiastically agreed.
“Talking about sleeping on it.” Britta laughed and snorted at her own joke as Valerie stuck her head around the study room door.
“I’m going to- uhh- I need a shower.”
“Has anyone noticed how both Valerie and Annie’s chests are only covered in purple paint and not orange?” Abed finally spoke up.
“And how Annie’s cleavage is covered in orange…” Troy whispered, directly to Abed, but loud enough that everyone was stunned into silence.
“Lord grant me serenity.” Shirley mumbled as she began packing up her things.
“I’m craving a hot shower. Anyone care to join me?” Valerie nodded towards Annie as the group all began getting their things. “The paint is hiding that blush pretty well.” She mumbled as Valerie stepped closer.
“How about we head back to mine for a shower to get that paint off then, hmm?”
“I like the sound of that.”
Valerie grabbed Annie’s bag from under the table and slipped her hand into the woman’s back pocket. “Sixteen candles style!” Annie whisper-shouted and wrapped her arm around Valerie’s back tightly.
“They make me want to puke.” Troy giggled from the sofa beside Abed.
“It’s like we’re invisible.” Abed noted before picking his blow up guitar back up.