Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Four gin and tonics, please.”

“Really, Cupcake? You sure you don’t want something a little more…” The bartender, Vi, trails off for a moment, letting her eyes trace slowly up and down Caitlyn’s figure. “Fruity?”

Caitlyn rolls her eyes despite the flush that spreads to her cheeks. “If the fruity thing you’re about to recommend is you then I suggest you keep it to yourself. Four gin and tonics, please.”

Vi just grins at her, unperturbed. “Coming right up,” she says with a wink, turning to prepare the requested drinks. Caitlyn watches her for a moment, considering, before she calls out again.

“Add a little lime to one of those, will you?”

Vi barks out a laugh and complies, adding a slice of lime onto the rim of one of the drinks before sliding all four of them across the counter to rest in front of Caitlyn. “Will that be all for you?” Vi asks, her mockingly polite tone tempting Caitlyn to roll her eyes again.

“For now,” Caitlyn replies, scooping up all the drinks and attempting to arrange them for safe travel.

“Need any help with that?” Vi asks, looking amused.

“I’ve got it,” Caitlyn insists. She gets the drinks settled and raises an eyebrow at the bartender as if to say see. Vi raises her hands in surrender and turns to help someone else at the counter.

Caitlyn carefully makes her way back to her table where her friends are waiting, dodging pool sticks and drunk patrons having a good time as she goes. Jayce immediately stands up to help, relieving her of two precariously perched glasses. Caitlyn smiles gratefully at him and settles in her seat next to Viktor, sliding him the other drink in her hand. “Well,” Caitlyn says, raising her glass and looking at her friends. They all raise their own drinks in turn, even Mel, although it’s with a fond shake of her head. “Here’s to the successful end to another semester, and only one more to go.”

They all drink to the toast and the conversation turns toward what their plans are for their semester break. Jayce and his mother are visiting family from out of the country. Viktor, of course, plans to lock himself away in a lab, and Mel says something about visiting her brother.

Caitlyn distantly listens to the conversation, her eyes roaming around the bar. The four of them have been coming to The Last Drop for years now, though Caitlyn has only been getting actual drinks here since she became legal about year ago. It’s not the nicest bar in town, nor is the rattiest, settling somewhere in the middle that makes it kind of perfect for their little group.

It's the kind of place that makes Caitlyn’s mom roll her eyes whenever Caitlyn mentions going out to it, which makes the appeal of it that much better.

Subconsciously, Caitlyn lets her eyes drift over to where Vi is working at the bar; wiping the counter, pouring drinks, occasionally harassing some of the regulars that she knows well. To be quiet honest, everything she does is attractive, Caitlyn is not too proud to admit, and every single time Vi has flirted with her over the year that she’s been working there has been enough to fluster her in the tiniest bit- that much she is too proud to admit.

It would be incredibly easy to give in to Vi’s flirtations, even if they are said in a joking manner. Caitlyn has no doubt that they could hook up for one night and that Vi would still pour her drinks with an easy smile and eye roll-worthy pickup line.

The only complication is the fact that Vi is… trouble, to say the least.

There were all kinds of rumors that swirled around the enigma that was Vi the bartender. Some say that she was an orphan and that her parents were killed in some factory explosion. Some say that she’s an orphan and she was the one that set off the explosion that killed them. Others claim that she’s done multiple years in prison, and that she beats up people on the street just for the hell of it.

There are other, more salacious rumors as well, but Caitlyn usually ducks her head down and walks away before anyone can get into them.

However true the rumors are, it’s obvious that Vi is not really the kind of person Caitlyn can see herself becoming entangled with.

“Cait?”

Caitlyn rips her eyes away from the bar and focuses back on her friends, all of which are staring at her with a mixture of concern and amusement.

“You okay?” Jayce asks, his face more on the concerned end of the spectrum.

“Yes, I’m sorry. I got… distracted,” Caitlyn says, waving a hand dismissively. “What were we talking about?”

“We were just wondering what you were doing over the break,” Jayce replies, relaxing back in his seat. He throws an arm around Mel and Caitlyn feels Viktor stiffen beside her.

“Oh.” Caitlyn shifts in her seat and twists her glass on the table. “That. Um, nothing interesting, really. My parents are throwing their usual Christmas party- which, you are all invited to, by the way.” She gives each of them a pointed look as if to say this is not an invitation, it’s a demand; you must come and continues. “I’ll probably spend most of the break hiding away in my room, as always. You know me, I’m never really one for spontaneity.”

Mel shoots her a wry grin. “We are aware, yes.” Jayce snickers into his drink beside her.

Caitlyn’s brow wrinkles at the obvious ribbing. “Wait a minute, since when is that a bad thing?”

“It’s not bad thing,” Jayce says. “You’re a stickler for the rules and comply to whatever your parents ask.” He shrugs like it’s not a big deal.

Caitlyn bristles a bit. “I- I do not always do what my parents say,” she insists hotly, glancing between Jayce and Mel. They both look down at their drinks in response, their silence speaking louder than words. Caitlyn focuses her gaze on Viktor, who averts his eyes and taps his fingers on the side of his glass. This only makes Caitlyn narrow her eyes further, and Viktor signs resignedly.

“You may have a tendency to, ehh, complain about their policies and then never actually do anything about them,” he says hesitantly. He gives Caitlyn a half smile as if to apologize. “I’d say you have a squeaky-clean record in their books.”

The silence from her friends after that is deafening. Caitlyn looks each of them over once more. She wants to protest, to tell them how wrong they are and how they don’t know what they’re talking about, but the longer she sits with this information, the more Caitlyn begins to realize just how right they are.

Moments in Caitlyn’s life start flashing by as if on fast forward. When she was ten and wanted to go to her friend’s sleepover, but her mother said no because she didn’t approve of the girl’s parents. When Caitlyn was fourteen and didn’t kiss the girl she liked because she was worried what her parents might think. When Caitlyn was seventeen and didn’t sneak out to party with her friends because she needed to study. All times where, in some form or another, Caitlyn didn’t do what she wanted because she was too busy worrying about what the proper thing to do was.

“This is really what you all think?” Caitlyn asks, feeling numb.

“It’s really not a big deal, I promise-” Jayce tries, but Caitlyn isn’t having it.

“No, it is a big deal, because you are completely right.” Her friends all look up at her in shock. Caitlyn slumps back in her seat. “I’ve never done anything wild or crazy or rebellious in my life. How pathetic am I?”

“We don’t think you’re pathetic,” Mel says. She reaches across the table and lays a hand on Caitlyn’s wrist. “That’s just who are, Caitlyn. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s not like any of us are exactly the sort to make reckless decisions whenever we feel like.”

“But at least you three have all rebelled in some way or another,” Caitlyn says, gesturing around the table. “Jayce and Viktor regularly sneak into the labs after hours to work on dangerous prototypes. And you cut your family off years ago after you decided you didn’t want to comply with what they told you.”

Mel’s expression darkens. “That isn’t necessarily a good thing, you know.”

Caitlyn sighs. “I know, I’m sorry.” She reaches out and squeezes Mel’s hand once before letting go. “I just… hell, I just wish I had the guts that you all have sometimes.” All three of them give her sympathetic looks, bordering on pity, and suddenly Caitlyn can’t stand it anymore. Her hands clench into fists on the table and she looks away from their gazes, and suddenly an idea strikes her. “You know what? I’m going to change that. Right now.”

She pushes herself off the table, standing up with strengthening resolve. She locks her eyes on her target across the bar.

“Uh, Cait? What are you doing?” Caitlyn hears Jayce ask behind her.

“Being spontaneous,” Caitlyn replies, and then she is striding across the room. Her senses block out everything around her, save for the figure behind the bar.

Vi turns to greet her. “Hey, cupca-”

“What time do you get off your shift?”

After a moment of looking surprised, Vi grins. “I’d say right about now.”

“Good,” Caitlyn says. Then she’s leaning across the counter so she can kiss the grin off Vi’s stupidly attractive face.

* * *

Caitlyn spares half a glance toward her friends’ shocked faces as Vi leads her up the stairs to, what she assumes is, a loft area above the bar, but most of her focus is dedicated toward containing both her nerves and her adrenaline.

What was she doing?

No really, what the hell was she doing.

Vi looks back and grins at her. Caitlyn’s heart starts doing a gymnastics routine in her chest.

Well, whatever it was that she was doing, she might as well commit.

They reach the top of the stairs and Caitlyn wastes no time in pinning Vi against it, capturing Vi’s lips with her own once again. Vi gasps in surprise and puts on hand on Caitlyn’s hip, the other scrambling to reach the doorknob behind her. “Fuck, you’re hot,” Vi groans out between kisses. Her grip on Caitlyn tightens. “You gonna let me open the door, cupcake?”

Caitlyn huffs a laugh before the door is opened and Vi is slipping out from in front of her, leaving Caitlyn to nearly fall into the room. She catches herself with a few stumbling steps and hears the door shut behind her. The room she’s been led up to is indeed a loft space; a kitchen area off to her right, a worn couch in front of a TV by the window, and a bed pushed against the far corner.

Of course, Caitlyn only gets a moment to take this all in before Vi is crowding her, backing her up until Caitlyn’s back hits the door and then hot lips are at her neck.

Caitlyn threads her fingers through short pink hair, biting her lip to hold back the moan that she can feel building in her throat. Vi’s mouth continues its (welcomed) assault on her neck while her hands drag down her body, slipping beneath the fabric of her shirt once they reach the hem. “What made you finally decide that I was worth your time?” Vi questions, warm breath spreading across Caitlyn’s skin. It takes a moment for Caitlyn to compose herself enough to answer, but by then Vi has apparently changed her mind. “Never mind, I don’t want to know. Just don’t want this to end.”

The remark is punctuated with a sharp nip of teeth against her collarbones as rough, callused hands push her shirt farther up her torso. Caitlyn’s head hits the door behind her. “Nothing is going to stop this, I promise,” she gasps.

Vi seems to like that because she hums pleasantly against Caitlyn’s throat, pressing one last kiss there before pulling back, hands on the hem of her shirt with obvious intent. “May I?” she asks, one eyebrow raised as if she already knows the answer.

Caitlyn answers by pulling the shirt up and over her head herself.

Vi groans and reaches for her again, sliding her hands along the expanse of Caitlyn’s taut stomach. “Fuck, you’re hot.” It’s said in a murmur this time, like Vi is saying it more to herself than Caitlyn.

“So you’ve said,” Caitlyn quips, lips quirking up in teasing smile. Her confidence grows again from the way Vi is so openly admiring her body, so Caitlyn decides to use the momentum to regain some control in the situation. She plants one hand in the middle of Vi’s chest and starts pushing, away from the door and across the room to where the bed is. With one final shove Vi is sitting on the bed and Caitlyn quickly moves onto her lap, settling with a knee on either side of Vi’s hips.

Their lips meet again and just like every other kiss they’ve shared it’s hungry; tongues meeting and teeth pulling and breaths heaving as they all but attempt to devour each other. Vi isn’t the most precise kisser that Caitlyn has ever had the pleasure of locking lips with, but Caitlyn is quickly starting to learn that what she lacks in cleanliness she makes up for in enthusiasm- kissing Caitlyn so deeply, so filthily, that it forces Caitlyn to wrench her mouth away for some much-need air.

The look in Vi’s eyes is enough to send a shiver down Caitlyn’s spine; eyes wide, pupils blown as if the other girl is trying to take in every possible detail of this moment. Her lips are pleasantly swollen, and the knowledge that she must be in a similar state sends a thrill through Caitlyn. The look emboldens Caitlyn further and she moves to tug at the front of Vi’s shirt. “Care to even the playing field?”

A mischievous glint appears in Vi’s darkened eyes and Caitlyn has no time to even wonder what she’s up to before Vi is standing again, lifting Caitlyn along with her with two hands under her thighs. Caitlyn lets out a small yelp that she just knows she’ll feel embarrassed for later and clings to Vi’s shoulders as she spins them around, tossing Caitlyn gracelessly back onto the bed while she stands at the foot.

“Not fair,” Caitlyn huffs.

“I just thought you might want a little show, is all,” Vi replies innocently.

“Feeling confident, are we?”

“You’re not making it hard to be with the way you’re already undressing me with your eyes, cupcake.”

Caitlyn rolls her eyes at that but can’t find it in herself to deny it. She settles back on the pillows instead, waving an impatient hand in Vi’s direction. “Go on, then,” she says dismissively. “Let’s see this show.”

Vi chuckles lowly and without another word peels her shirt off in what Caitlyn can tell is a purposefully teasing manner. It works wonders, though, and Caitlyn can feel her mouth water more with every inch of toned skin that is revealed. The shirt is dropped to the floor with a lazy flick of Vi’s wrist, leaving her in a sports bra, and Caitlyn can’t even pretend like she isn’t staring.

“Shit,” Caitlyn murmurs, mostly to herself. “Are those real?” Her eyes are fixed on… well, everything that is Vi. Vi, who is all broad shoulders and muscled arms and abs and tattoos and- “Shit.”

Vi grins with another one of those damned cocky smiles of hers, but Caitlyn can see the light blush that colors her cheeks at the attention.

Interesting. Caitlyn files that information away for later.

Next comes Vi’s pants, which are shoved down equally toned thighs in a much faster manner than the shirt had been, and then Vi is crawling across the bed toward Caitlyn, that same hungry look in her eyes making Caitlyn gulp. As soon as she’s close enough, Caitlyn reaches out to touch one strong arm. Her fingers trace the contours and ink all the way to the shoulder, and Vi shivers, eyes fluttering shut for a moment before opening again to look at Caitlyn under a hooded gaze.

“I think it’s you who needs to level the playing field now, cupcake.”

A sudden jolt of boldness strikes though Caitlyn, then. “It’s Caitlyn,” she says, bringing the hand on Vi’s shoulder up to hook under Vi’s chin. She pulls up until she can just ever so slightly brush her lips against Vi’s. “Say my name.”

She can feel Vi’s smile. The girl waits a beat before giving in to Caitlyn’s request. “Caitlyn.” It’s breathed in almost a reverent manner as Vi kisses her again, and Caitlyn sighs into it, only to have Vi pull away a short second later. Caitlyn is about to protest when Vi starts kissing her way down her body instead, rough hands and soft lips leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake.

The sight of Vi moving lower and lower causes Caitlyn’s limbs to shake in anticipation. Something in her mind sparks, sputters, and short circuits completely when hands hook at the top of her pants, pulling both them and her underwear down in one smooth movement. And then Vi is kissing her way back up and then-

Yeah, it’s kind of hard to think, after that.

* * *

Caitlyn shuts the large door behind her as quietly as she can, wincing when a low boom echoes around the entry hall despite her efforts. She darts her eyes quickly around the room, checking the doors and grand staircase for any signs of movement, sighing in relief when it appears as though she is alone.

Twenty minutes earlier she’d been slipping out of Vi’s bed while the other girl slept soundly, lifting one pleasantly heavy arm from where it had been draped across her waist and starting the scavenger hunt that was finding all her clothes. She had been mostly successful, although her bra’s whereabouts remained a mystery to her. After getting dressed she’d made her swift exit, glancing back at Vi’s sleeping form one last time before she was sneaking down the loft’s stairs and into the early morning mist.

Truthfully Vi was not her first one-night stand, but she is the only one-night stand that Caitlyn has had that’s made her feel like she just broke about seven different laws- both legally and morally. In reality there was nothing wrong with the hookup, but it was Vi. Someone who was known for getting mixed up with the law. Someone who had reportedly started – and ended – several street brawls. Someone who was dangerous.

It was too early in the morning for Caitlyn to figure out why that last thought sent heat creeping down her spine.

She’s tiptoeing by her mother’s study on her way to her room when she hears a faint voice call out.

“Caitlyn.”

Caitlyn freezes. Curses under her breath. Pauses for a moment. Opens the door to greet her mother.

“Ah, it was you,” Caitlyn’s mother says with little more than a flicker of her eyes to Caitlyn standing in the doorway. She sips some tea and focuses her attention back on the papers in front of her. “I thought I heard the sound of guilty footsteps."

Caitlyn sighs. “Why are you awake, mother? It’s 6 in the morning on a Sunday. You don’t even have work today.”

“I am well aware of what time it is,” her mother replies curtly. She glances back at Caitlyn over the top of the paper in her hand. “Are you?”

The accusatory tone is enough to make Caitlyn shift where she’s standing. She moves a hand to the side of her neck where Vi had found particular pleasure in latching onto just a few hours earlier. Hoping there was no visible evidence of her spontaneous tryst, Caitlyn attempts a sheepish grimace. “Jayce drank too much last night. I had to help him home and ended up crashing there when I saw how late it was.”

It was a stupid lie, one that almost anyone could see through. Jayce never drank past his limit, and if he had, Mel would surely be the one helping him home afterward.

Her mother studied Caitlyn for a long moment, crystal blue eyes seeming to cut right through Caitlyn’s shakily structured story. Eventually her mother sighs, looking back at her work. “Very well. Next time I would appreciate some sort of message on your whereabouts, Caitlyn.”

Caitlyn tried not to let her shoulders sag with relief. “Right, of course,” she says hastily, already beginning to back out of the room. “It won’t happen again, I promise.” Her mother nods her head approvingly and dismisses her, sending Caitlyn to duck back into the hall with her tail between her legs. She shuts the door gently behind her, resting against it briefly as she huffs out the breath she’d been holding.

How she just got away with that, Caitlyn doesn’t know. Not wanting to push her luck further, Caitlyn quickly makes her way back to her room, flopping face-first down on her bed and hoping that she can catch a few more hours of sleep before truly getting up for the day.

Except, Caitlyn’s brain is far too wired for sleep.

Every time Caitlyn shuts her eyes, it’s Vi that she sees. Vi, looming above her on the bed with a cocky grin on her face. Vi, pulling her hair as Caitlyn goes down on her. Vi, all hard muscles and wicked tattoos contradicted with kind eyes and gentle hands.

Caitlyn found that she didn’t regret last night. Was it entirely out of character for her? Yes. Did she think that was necessarily a bad thing? No. No she did not.

She slowly rolls onto her back. Stares at the cover of her canopy bed. Pulls her shirt up to her nose and takes a whiff.

Her clothes smell more like the bar Vi works at than Vi herself, and Caitlyn finds that confusingly and frustratingly disappointing.

With a sigh, Caitlyn sits up and swings her legs over the side of the bed, figuring she wouldn’t be able to get any sleep after all. She pulls her phone out of her pocket and sees that she has a few texts from Jayce from last night.

Jayce (Sat 9:55 pm)
I hope you know what you’re doing

Jayce (Sat 9:55 PM)
You’re crazy Kiramman, you know that?

Jayce (Sat 10:31 PM)
We’re heading out. Let me know when
you make it home in one piece

Caitlyn rolls her eyes at Jayce’s over protectiveness but types out an update to him regardless.

Caitlyn (Sun 6:10 AM)
Made it home with all my limbs attached

Surprisingly, she gets a response back right away.

Jayce (Sun 6:10 AM)
Thank god. Your brain still works too, right?

Caitlyn (Sun 6:11 AM)
Very funny. If my mother asks,
you drank too much last night and
I crashed at your place

Jayce (Sun 6:11 AM)
I live to cover up your sexual
adventures with shifty individuals

Caitlyn snorts and tosses her phone on the bed, staring at it for a moment before deciding that she could use a shower.

The warm water cascading down her body does, in fact, put Caitlyn at ease as she attempts to scrub away the remnants and memories from the night before. As she washes the shampoo out of her hair, Caitlyn’s thoughts drift toward her mother, and she can’t help but wonder if she was completely right to lie to her about her whereabouts like that. It wasn’t as if Caitlyn had never lied to her parents before, but lying to them was never something that exactly sat right with Caitlyn.

Probably because you’re too much of a square, Caitlyn’s mind whispers to her, the conversation with her friends from last night still echoing in her ears. You do one rebellious thing in your life and you’re already having regrets about it.

Caitlyn clenches her jaw and glares at a corner of the shower, angry at her own thoughts.

The thing was, Caitlyn didn’t regret last night. She had enjoyed herself, enjoyed everything that Vi had to offer. Had enjoyed the rush of adrenaline in doing something spontaneous, something a little risky, something…

Something she knew her parents wouldn’t approve of.

Suddenly Caitlyn almost regrets not telling her mother exactly where she’d been last night, not because she felt guilty lying to her, but because she wishes she could see the look on her face. So that she could see how her mother reacted when she learned that her perfectly behaved, perfectly trained daughter had spent the night fucking some lowlife, possibly criminal, no-name bartender who probably didn’t give two shits about the Kiramman name.

Caitlyn turns off the water and steps out of the shower, reaching for her towel with a small smirk on her face.

Oh, the look on her mother’s face would have been priceless indeed- terrifying as well, surely, but priceless nonetheless.

Caitlyn is rubbing the towel through her wet hair when an idea strikes her. A terrible idea, really, one that she would surely come to regret if followed through, but Caitlyn is still running on just enough leftover adrenaline that she finds she can’t quite care about the possible consequences of it at the moment.

She looks in the mirror and sees a souvenir from last night in the form of a dark bruise on her skin, just beneath her collarbone, and her mind is made up.

There was a bartender she needed to have a little chat with.

Chapter Text

Truthfully it takes Caitlyn a few days to buck up the courage to return to the bar.

She had talked extensively with Jayce about her idea, of which he was, of course, not entirely on board with.

“You realize that this is just you going through an extremely delayed teenage angst phase, right?” He’d said, that Sunday right after Caitlyn had gotten out of the shower. Even through the phone, Caitlyn could hear the bewilderment in his voice. “There are way easier ways to play this out, you know. You could get a tattoo. Show up drunk an hour after your curfew. Get your bellybutton pierced.”

Caitlyn rolled her eyes. “Do you have any other objections other than just thinking it’s ridiculous?”

“… I mean, I guess not.”

“Good.”

So now Caitlyn finds herself standing right outside the scene of her crime, The Last Drop staring menacingly down at her as if daring her to enter. Caitlyn feels like her stomach is swirling with countless butterflies, which she finds absurd, so without another thought she pushes her way through the doors.

The bar is unsurprisingly sparse considering it is the middle of the day. A few patrons sit scattered about; two men huddled in the corner having a hushed conversation, a woman sipping on a water typing away on a laptop, one man halfway through a beer as he watches some baseball game playing on TV.

And of course there’s Vi. Caitlyn doesn’t think she’s ever been to The Last Drop and not seen Vi working behind the counter, scrubbing glasses, wiping at the countertop, making sure all the drinks are properly stocked. She’s wearing a black shirt today, stretched tight over the muscles in her arms in a way that makes Caitlyn want to bite her lip.

Focus. She’s here on a mission.

There’s another guy behind the bar, with spikey hair and an angular, mischievous face that instinctively makes Caitlyn clutch her bag closer to herself. He rolls his eyes at Caitlyn before she can even introduce herself and nudges Vi to get her attention. Ah, so her must have been here the other night.

Vi turns around and a grin finds its way onto her face. She’s busy wiping down a cup at the moment, and Caitlyn tries not to stare at the way her forearms flex at the action.

“Hey, Cupcake,” Vi greets. Her grin slides into more of a smirk. “Back for more already, or are you just looking to get drunk at two in the afternoon?”

Caitlyn scoffs and rolls her eyes. “You’re infuriating. Would you like to date me?”

Vi’s eyes widen in surprise and Caitlyn curses herself internally. That wasn’t how that was supposed to go. Luckily, Vi seems to recover from her shock quickly enough. “Look, Cupcake-”

“Caitlyn,” Caitlyn corrects her.

Vi sighs, whether in annoyance or something else Caitlyn can’t tell. “Caitlyn,” she amends, slinging the cloth in her hands over her shoulder. “The other night was fun and all, but I don’t really make a habit of pursing anything more with every girl I hook up with.”

Caitlyn’s cheeks heat up at the initial rejection. “No, me neither. I just- what I meant to say was-” she huffs at annoyance with herself and plops down on one of the barstools next to her. “Can I start over?”

Vi’s eyebrow crooks slightly, intrigued. She looks around the bar briefly before shrugging and leaning on her hands against the countertop, setting the cup down somewhere to her left. “Let’s hear it.”

After a centering breath, Caitlyn tries again. “I had, what you may call, an… epiphany. Right before we hooked up,” she starts hesitantly. “And my decision to kiss you may not have been the most thought-out decision I’ve ever made.”

“And what was this so-called epiphany of yours?” Vi questions.

Caitlyn looks up at her sheepishly. “Promise you won’t make fun of me.”

“I feel like that’s just you begging me to make fun of you.”

Caitlyn’s expression turns into a glare. “Vi,” she says sternly.

Vi raises her arms up in surrender. “Fine, fine. No teasing, I promise.”

“Right, okay,” Caitlyn says, nodding her head to psych herself up. “I realized that I’ve never really… disobeyed my parents before? Or ever really done anything truly rebellious.” She risks a glance up at Vi and sees the other girl struggling to contain her grin. “Vi,” she says again as a warning, but this time her tone has a hint of pleading to it. “You promised.”

“I’m sorry,” Vi says, not sounding sorry at all. She schools her features a bit, but there’s still a playful gleam in her eye. “So you’re a fucking stiff. Go on.”

Caitlyn narrows her eyes in offense but continues. “So when I realized this, I saw you, and I knew that you found me attractive, and I knew you weren’t someone I should get involved with-”

“-can I make an objection-”

“-and I thought, why the hell not.” Caitlyn finishes. She slumps forward on the bar top and props her chin up on one hand. They’re both silent for a moment while Vi processes Caitlyn’s admission. Eventually, Vi speaks up, rubbing a hand along her jaw.

“So, you think I’m scum of the earth and don’t trust me, but you fucked me anyway because you had some kind of… I don’t know, rule-breaking vindication to settle?” She asks. Caitlyn watches her warily, but finds no trace of offense on her face. “That still doesn’t explain why you’d want to ask me out.”

Caitlyn sighs. “Well, after I got home, my mom asked me where’d I’d been, and of course I couldn’t tell her the truth, but then I started to regret not telling her the truth because what’s the point of doing something she’d disapprove of if she doesn’t even know about the thing that she should be disapproving of?”

“And I’m the thing that she should be disapproving of?” Vi asks.

“Precisely. So then I thought, what if I just had Vi around all the time? Because my mother would despise you, obviously-”

“As we’ve established,” Vi comments drily.

“-and if I dated you, she would see that I’m not just some obedient puppy on a leash that obeys every command she makes.” Caitlyn pauses and then shrugs a shoulder. “I’ll admit it seemed less childish in my head, but the logic is still clear to me.”

Vi stares at her thoughtfully and Caitlyn resists the urge to squirm under the scrutiny of her gaze. “It is childish,” she agrees, and Caitlyn grimaces. “But I can somewhat see your logic.” Caitlyn perks up again.

“And we wouldn’t even have to actually date,” she quickly adds on. “You’d just need to hang around often enough to make them think we are. Just enough to get a few good eye rolls and snide comments about how I could ‘do better’.”

Vi leans in toward Caitlyn ever so slightly. “You really know how to woo a girl, you know that?” she asks in a low voice.

“Who said I was trying to woo you?” Caitlyn counters, matching her tone.

Vi hums and lets her eyes flicker across Caitlyn’s face. “What’s in it for me? If I’m going to subject myself to parental scrutiny, there has to be something I’m doing it for.”

Caitlyn considers that for a moment. That was true, she supposed. It was only fair if she was going to ask Vi for something like this. “Well, I mean, I did have fun the other night, despite my initial reservations about you,” she starts slowly. “I’d have no problem continuing to do some more of… that. If that sweetens the deal for you.”

Vi inhales deeply through her nose and leans back once again, and Caitlyn finds it easier to breath with the extra space between them. “You drive a hard bargain, Cupcake,” she says, eyes dragging slowly up and down the upper half of Caitlyn’s body.

“No feelings required whatsoever,” Caitlyn adds. She looks up at Vi through her lashes in what she hopes is an enticing way. “Just some fun while you help me piss of my parents a little.”

There’s a tense few seconds after that where Vi thinks things through. Caitlyn waits with bated breath, pleased that she got this far in the first place. Before coming here, she had half expected for Vi to laugh her right out of the bar, banishing Caitlyn in a pit of embarrassment that she would never recover from. She and her friends would have to find a new bar, and she’d probably have to pay Vi off to keep her mouth shut, and Caitlyn would never attempt anything even remotely scandalous ever again-

“Alright. I’m in.”

Caitlyn blinks once in surprise. “Really, just like that?”

Vi shrugs. “You’re hot, Cupcake,” is her only explanation.

Caitlyn resists the urge to cheer, but she can’t stop the smile that comes to her face. “You might just be my new favorite person,” she tells Vi, reaching over to squeeze one strong forearm.

Vi gives her a teasing smile. “Well I better be, considering I’m kind of your girlfriend now.”

Girlfriend. The word sits heavily in Caitlyn’s gut. The word makes everything feel incredibly real, suddenly. Caitlyn is going to start bringing this girl home with the intentions of making her parents upset.

Was she a bad daughter? Just for this one thing, maybe. But that was the whole point of this little game, wasn’t it? Up until this point, Caitlyn has been a perfect daughter.

It was time to leave a black mark on her record.

* * *

Mel, Jayce, Viktor, and Caitlyn go out to the bar again the following Saturday, exactly a week after Caitlyn started this whole thing. When they arrive, Caitlyn is disappointed upon seeing that for once, Vi isn’t in her usual place serving drinks behind the bar. Two boys are behind the counter instead, one of them being the guy with spikey hair she saw the other day.

She tries to keep her attention on the conversation her friends are holding, she really does, but once again Caitlyn finds herself looking around the bar instead, hoping to catch a glimpse of pink hair across the room.

Caitlyn had left pretty soon after Vi had agreed to her scheme just a couple days earlier. She’d put her number in Vi’s phone and received a text from the girl shortly after. That text sits open on her phone now as clutches the device in her hand, debating whether or not to text Vi and ask her if she’ll be around tonight.

“Looking for you girlfriend?”

Cailtyn stiffens and turns her gaze on Jayce, narrowing her eyes. Jayce, of course, seems unbothered by her hard stare and continues to look back at her teasingly.

“Girlfriend?” Viktor asks, perking up at the new information. “Caitlyn, you have a new girlfriend?”

“I, um, sort of?” Caitlyn replies, unsure exactly how to answer the question.

“Do we know her?” Mel questions.

“Possibly,” Caitlyn answers evasively.

“It’s hard not to know her after you disappeared upstairs with her a week ago,” Jayce says casually, taking a sip of his drink.

It takes a second for the implication to sink in, all the while Caitlyn tries to meld into her seat. Viktor is the first to realize, spluttering on his drink as soon as he does. “Vi?” he chokes out, pounding one fist against his chest. He looks up at Caitlyn in bewilderment. “You’re dating Vi?”

“Sort of?” Is once again Caitlyn’s response.

“Now this is interesting,” Mel hums, leaning forward with her elbows on the table, long fingers lacing together. “You two realize you had so much in common the other night, did you?”

There’s no judgement in Mel’s tone, only slight teasing, and Caitlyn relaxes a little. “Not exactly,” she says. From there she explains her plan and how it all ties into her epiphany from a week ago, and how Vi agreed to said plan, though she leaves out the conditions on which the agreement was made. She figures her friends don’t need to know all the details of her falsified love life.

“I still think it’s silly,” Jayce says when she’s done.

Mel turns to look at him. “You knew this whole time?” she asks accusingly. “And you didn’t think to mention it?”

Jayce holds up his hands in surrender. “It’s not my crazy hellion plan,” he says.

“It’s not a terrible plan,” Viktor says. The rest of the table looks at him in surprise, and he only shrugs. “It may be an, eh, slightly unconventional way of going about getting parental disapproval, but it gets the job done.”

Caitlyn smiles at him. “Finally, someone with some sense around here,” she praises, shooting a pointed glance Jayce’s way.

“Speak of the devil,” Mel murmurs, cutting off whatever retort Jayce had on the tip of his tongue, eyes trained somewhere over Caitlyn’s shoulder. Caitlyn pivots in her seat, eyes scanning the room for a moment before landing on what is indeed the woman of discussion descending the stairs to the loft.

She looks as frustratingly attractive as ever, and Caitlyn finds that she can’t tear her eyes away.

“Ah, young love,” Viktor muses. Jayce snickers and Caitlyn turns back around to shush them both.

“I’m going to get another drink,” Caitlyn announces, ignoring her almost full beer in front of her. “Anyone want anything? No? Alright,” she says, not giving them any time to respond before sliding out of her seat and making a beeline for the bar.

Vi is still making her way down when Caitlyn leans against the counter, and Caitlyn makes a conscious effort to not look over at the other girl as she waits for one of the guys serving drinks to notice her.

A warm presence is Caitlyn’s only warning that someone has sidled up next to her before a low voice is murmuring in her ear. “You know, it’s rude to not tell your girlfriend when you’re at her workplace.”

Caitlyn shivers and resists the urge to glance over. “I figured you’d turn up eventually,” she replies.

Vi hums and leans in even more, close enough that Caitlyn can smell the shampoo she uses. “You know me so well,” she says, false adoration dripping off her tone. That pulls a chuckle from Caitlyn and she finally looks over at Vi, just as she’s pulling away to step around the counter. Vi grins at her and grabs two glasses. “What’ll it be, cupcake?”

Caitlyn taps her chin in contemplation. “Surprise me,” she says after a moment.

That makes Vi grin even wider and she gets to work, grabbing whiskey and a few other things before quickly mixing them together. In the blink of an eye, Vi is presenting Caitlyn what looks to be an old fashioned. “Milady.”

Caitlyn accepts the drink with an eyebrow cocked in amusement. “Manners and everything,” she hums in approval before taking a sip of her drink. It’s good – Vi’s drinks are always good – and by the time she’s done enjoying the first taste Vi has made her way back around the bar to sit next to her. “Not working tonight?” Caitlyn asks, surprised since Vi literally just made her something.

Vi shakes her head and reaches for the other old fashioned she made for herself, abandoned on the bar top. “Nope, not tonight,” she confirms, then glances slyly at Caitlyn. “Disappointed?”

“Not particularly,” Caitlyn says. She holds up her drink. “I still got my drink.” Vi laughs- a free, easy sound that always brings a smile to Caitlyn’s face. “Actually, I was hoping to get the chance to talk to you tonight, so I was a little disappointed when you weren’t here.”

The corner of Vi’s mouth quirks up at that, but surprisingly no teasing words follow. “What was it you wanted to talk about?” she asks instead.

Caitlyn opens her mouth to answer, but one glance back at her table confirms her suspicions that her friends are watching every single moment of she and Vi’s interaction. “Can we go sit somewhere else? Somewhere less… exposed?”

Vi’s eyes follow Caitlyn’s to where her friends are not-so-subtly watching them. “Definitely,” she says.

Vi leads them to a table near a mostly empty back corner of the room, safely out of sight from evasive eyes. Once they’re all settled, Caitlyn finally answers Vi’s question. “I guess I just wanted to get to know you a little better, is all,” she says, swirling her drink in its glass as she talks to avoid Vi’s gaze. “I mean, just because we’re not actually dating doesn’t mean we have to be total strangers.”

“I’d say we’re far from strangers, Cupcake,” Vi quips. Caitlyn narrows her eyes at her.

“I want to know more than just what sounds you make in the bedroom,” Caitlyn says, heat flushing to her cheeks despite her best efforts. “Real things. I’ve heard a lot about you, but I don’t know how much of it is true. Are you in school right now? Do you have any siblings? How long have you been working at the bar? Are you-”

“Fuck, stop,” Vi cuts her off, holding up a hand and sounding suddenly very agitated. Caitlyn’s jaw snaps shut at the tone and looks at Vi with wide eyes. “Okay, new conditions, Cupcake,” Vi says, leaning forward and looking more serious than Caitlyn has ever seen her. “You don’t ask about my life. Ever. You can share all you want about your life, but I’d rather not tell you all the gory details of mine just because we’re supposed to be dating or whatever. If you want to ask about my favorite color, that’s whatever. But don’t go poking around trying to get answers out of me that I don’t want to give.” There’s a pause where Vi looks her straight in the eyes. “We clear?”

Caitlyn honestly has no idea how to respond. She knew Vi was mysterious based on the murmurings of those around town, but she figured that was because no one had ever thought to ask. From the sounds of it, Vi’s obscurity was entirely self-inflicted.

“I… you mean I can’t ask anything?” Caitlyn asks, hating how whiney her voice sounds even to her own ears.

Vi thinks for a moment before leaning back in her seat. “You can ask me three questions. They can be about anything, but I have the right to veto any of them.”

Caitlyn perks up, mind already racing about what she should ask. She thinks about all the rumors she’s heard and decides that those are probably a good place to start. “Do you have parents?”

Vi glowers at her and suddenly Caitlyn feels foolish for bringing up the topic of family at all. “Veto.”

This was not getting off to a great start. Caitlyn pushes onward. “Did you blow up a factory?”

“That one,” Vi rolls her eyes. “No, I didn’t blow up a factory.”

“Were you in prison?”

Vi is quiet for a moment, and for a second Caitlyn thinks she’s going to veto this question, too.

“Yes.”

Caitlyn’s eyebrows raise in surprise. “Really? Well, if you weren’t in prison for the factory explosion, what were you in for?”

“Your three questions are up,” Vi says as an answer. She grins sardonically. “Thanks for playing.”

Caitlyn crosses her arms. “That wasn’t a very fun game,” she says petulantly.

Vi laughs despite the serious composure she’d maintained for the last few minutes. Her shoulders relax and suddenly the Vi that Cailtyn has always known is back; the switch so fast that Caitlyn nearly gets whiplash from it. She feels Vi lightly kick her foot under the table in attempt to pull her out of her self-pity. “I agree. Not fun at all. Let’s play it again.”

Caitlyn blinks at her in surprise. “But, I thought you said no more questions.”

“Not with me,” Vi says, as if it’s obvious. “It’s my turn to ask some questions about you.” She takes a swig of her drink. “Should be way more fun.”

“Yeah, more fun because I’ll actually answer your questions,” Caitlyn scoffs.

“Exactly,” Vi grins.

Caitlyn can’t help but roll her eyes fondly. “Okay, I’m ready when you are.”

Unlike Caitlyn, Vi actually has to think about the questions she wants to ask.

“What are you going to school for?”

That first question surprises Caitlyn. “How do you know I’m going to school?”

It’s Vi’s turn to roll her eyes now. “Please. I can smell the academia from you and your friends a mile away.”

Caitlyn thinks about the time Viktor literally brought his textbooks to the bar with them and shrugs. “Fair. I’m going into criminal justice with a minor in political science. I have a job all lined up for me once the semester is done.”

Vi snorts into her drink. “A polisci minor? Really, Cupcake? What, are you going to start a debate with me?”

“I’ll have you know that I added that minor on only at the insistence of my mother,” she informs Vi stiffly.

“Okay, second question, then. What do your parents do for a living?”

“Father’s a doctor and Mother is on the city council,” Caitlyn says.

“Damn,” Vi grunts, setting her drink on the table with a low thunk. “You really didn’t have any fun as a child, did you?”

Caitlyn bristles. “Is that your third question?”

“No, no,” Vi says dismissively, teasing glint in her eye. “That was rhetorical. I already know the answer.”

Caitlyn sighs. “You know, this game isn’t very fun the second time around, either.”

“You’re the one who wanted to get to know each other,” Vi points out. Caitlyn glares at her and Vi holds her hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay. Last question.” Her voice becomes quieter, more hesitant. Almost as if she’s unsure whether she should ask the question or not. “How do you know you can trust me with all this-” Vi makes a vague gesture with her hands- “dating stuff? How do you know I won’t fuck it up?”

Caitlyn actually has to take a moment to think about it before she responds. Why did she trust Vi? Surely it would be easier to get in her rebellions through means other than “dating” someone with a bad reputation, Jayce had said so himself. So why did Caitlyn feel so strongly that Vi was somehow the best course of action here?

“I suppose because you can’t fuck it up?” Caitlyn finally answers, her tone coming off uncertain. Vi tilts her head in confusion. “I mean, the whole point of this is kind of for me to fuck up purposefully, right? Show that I’m not perfect. And obviously you’re not perfect-” Vi huffs at that, but Caitlyn reaches across the table and puts a hand over one of Vi’s to silence her- “but I like that. You seem… genuine. Which is honestly more than I can say about a lot of people in my life. Despite all I’ve heard about you, I can tell.” Caitlyn squeezes Vi’s hand. Just once. “You have a good heart.”

A heavy silence settles over them as Vi stares at Caitlyn with an unreadable expression. Caitlyn starts to feel self-conscious that she’s said too much and pulls her hand back. “But also, the worse you are, the more my mother’s head will spin, so,” Caitlyn shrugs as she attempts to lighten the mood. “It’s kind of a win-win situation, really.”

Caitlyn’s attempt at a joke is met with the slightest of smirks from the other girl, not much more than an upward twitch of her lips. Vi continues looking at her for a second longer before breaking her gaze, glancing over Caitlyn’s shoulder instead. “Ah, shit. Mylo’s getting overwhelmed again.”

Unsure of how to respond to Vi’s lack of response, Caitlyn looks over her shoulder to see that the bar is indeed a madhouse. The spikey-haired guy – Mylo, apparently – is moving as fast as he can, looking dangerously close to punching a customer. The other boy is nowhere to be found, probably grabbing something from the back.

“I should probably go help settle things down,” Vi says, an apologetic expression on her face. She starts standing from her chair.

“Of course,” Caitlyn says with a wave of her hand. “Go save the day.”

Vi starts walking away, but pauses and turns back before she can get far. “This was… nice,” she says with a gentle smile, one hand reaching up to scratch at the back of her head. “Listen, I don’t know how long it’s gonna take for things to calm down, but would you mind…” Vi trails off, but Caitlyn thinks she knows where she was going with that.

“I’ll hang out until you’re free again,” she promises. She holds up her nearly full glass. “I still have a drink to finish, after all.”

Vi grins for real, then, which automatically makes Caitlyn smile as well. “Awesome. Cool. I’m just gonna,” she doesn’t finish the sentence, instead walking briskly away until she reaches the frenzied Mylo, hopping easily over the bar top and shouting to maintain some sense of order.

Caitlyn watches on, sipping the drink that Vi made for her, happy to enjoy the view instead of returning to her friends.

That probably says something, but Caitlyn is far too content to think about what that may be.

Chapter Text

Surprisingly, Vi doesn’t jump her as soon as they’re alone.

Vi leads her upstairs to the loft area again, except this time around there is a good foot and a half of space between them and Caitlyn doesn’t have to worry about tripping up the stairs. The door swings open easily, and Vi holds it open for Caitlyn as she steps through, closing it once she’s passed.

Caitlyn takes note of the sound of a lock clicking after that.

“So, is this where you live?” Caitlyn asks, looking around the small but cozy space around her. The first time she’d up here, she hadn’t really had a moment to really take it all in, too preoccupied with more pressing matters. Namely, Vi pressing her into her bed.

There’s really not much to the loft, but Caitlyn finds that she likes it. The kitchen isn’t anything grand and the table is a little uneven, one leg slightly shorter than the rest. The couch looks like it’s seen better days, the cushions sunken into the frame in a way that means they are obviously worn out. Nothing about the room screamed new or expensive, which was a far cry from how Caitlyn grew up.

Yes, Caitlyn finds that she likes the loft very much. It was… charming. Genuine. Kind of like Vi herself.

“Yeah, this is my place,” Vi says. There’s movement to Caitlyn’s right and she turns to see Vi sneakily placing some stray dishes in the sink. “The owner of the bar lets me stay up here. Doesn’t even make me pay rent.”

Caitlyn’s eyebrows raise in surprise at that. “Really? Does your work money go towards living here, then?”

“No, I still get paid regularly,” Vi says, like it’s nothing out of the ordinary. When she sees the confusion on Caitlyn’s face she shrugs. “He’s an old friend of the family.”

Although Caitlyn still has a million questions, she decides not to push, remembering Vi’s reservations about questions earlier. “That makes sense,” she says instead, nodding her head in understanding. “That’s generous of him.”

Vi hums in response, finishing her haphazard tidying up of her home. She turns to look at Caitlyn sheepishly. “I wasn’t expecting to have anyone over tonight.”

Caitlyn shrugs. “I don’t mind,” she tells Vi truthfully, letting her eyes drift around the room again. Her gaze lands on a certain article of clothing flung on top of a dresser and Caitlyn quickly crosses the room. She turns and holds up her own bra that she left last time, a teasing smile on her face. “Keeping a little memento, were you?”

Vi flushes a deep red. “I would have given it back if you’d asked, I swear,” she hastily explains.

“And if I never asked?” Caitlyn asks innocently, taking far too much pleasure in making Vi squirm.

Vi’s blush deepens impossibly. “You know, you’re the one who left it here,” she protests, arms crossing petulantly. “I can’t be responsible for tracking down every girl that leaves shit at my place.”

Caitlyn’s grin turns wicked. “You have a box full of girls’ things hidden somewhere, don’t you?” Vi’s silence is the only confirmation she needs. Caitlyn laughs and starts looking around the room, hoping that there will be a big box labeled something like ‘prizes’ that she can use to tease Vi further.

“You know,” Vi says, pulling Caitlyn’s attention away from her search. “I think we’ve been doing far too much talking since we got here.” She takes a few steps closer to Caitlyn, seeming to gather her wits with each step she takes. It doesn’t take long until she’s standing right in front of Caitlyn. “I think it’s time to change that.”

Caitlyn gulps at the close proximity. Vi places her hands on the dresser behind her, bracketing Caitlyn’s hips. “On the contrary, I’d be happy to exploit you for my own entertainment all night long,” Caitlyn counters, trying to keep her voice unbothered.

Vi laughs a bit and shakes her head. “You’re lucky you’re hot,” she murmurs, and then kisses Caitlyn before she gets the chance to respond.

The bra and all thoughts of teasing Vi drop the moment their lips meet, Caitlyn’s thoughts once again being overcome by everything that is Vi; Vi slipping her tongue into her mouth, Vi leading them over to the couch and pulling Caitlyn down to sit on her lap, Vi’s hands spreading out against her back. Caitlyn feels warm all over, and she wonders if that will ever change when it comes to Vi.

The first time they’d done this, Caitlyn could only focus on fuck what have I done and holy hell she’s hot and getting what she wanted now now now. It had been fast and passionate as hell, but it hadn’t left a whole lot of room for Caitlyn to actually appreciate the situation and who she was with.

This time around is slower, like they’re in no rush at all- probably because they aren’t. Vi kisses Caitlyn slowly, deeply, and now Caitlyn can take the time to notice how soft Vi’s lips are, the scar on her upper lip the only thing disrupting the feeling. She runs her tongue over that scar and hums, deciding she likes the contrast. Vi groans and tightens her arms around Caitlyn in response.

“You’re a good kisser, you know,” Caitlyn pants when she breaks for air, her buzzing mind making it difficult for her to filter her words.

Vi makes a pleased noise and presses a kiss to the hollow of her throat. “You’re not so bad yourself, cupcake,” she murmurs against Caitlyn’s neck. Caitlyn shivers at the feeling of lips brushing against her skin and threads a hand through Vi’s hair. “And you’re much less annoying when your mouth is occupied.”

Caitlyn gasps in offense and tries to push herself away from Vi a bit, but Vi only laughs and tightens her arms around her, preventing her from going too far. “You’re one to talk,” Caitlyn retorts, eyes narrowing accusingly. “It seems like every other word out of your mouth is an attempt to rile me up.”

Vi grins dangerously and leans in to brush her nose against Caitlyn’s. “Well, it works, doesn’t it?” she asks in a low voice, and Caitlyn already knows that she’s lost this battle. “Making you flustered, getting you all worked up. It’s my favorite pastime.”

Caitlyn feels her cheeks blush violently. “I don’t believe I’m impelled to give you an answer on the matter,” she says, going for a dignified tone but too breathless to pull it off. Vi only chuckles lowly in response and kisses her again, and Caitlyn decides that maybe talking isn’t the best use of their mouths right now after all.

* * *

The steady ticking of the grandfather clock is the only noise disrupting the quiet that has fallen over the parlor. Normally the sound didn’t bother Caitlyn; normally was almost soothing in a way. Today, the audible representation of each passing second only serves to heighten her anxiety.

Tick.

Caitlyn stares harder at the book in her lap, willing her mind to focus on the words on the page. She flips back a page when she realizes she doesn’t remember what she’s read in the past five minutes.

Tick.

Caitlyn’s father flips a page on his own book, finding much more success in his reading than Caitlyn.

Tick.

Her mother clears her throat softly and studies the paperwork in front of her more closely, the paper shifting with a subtle swish.

Tock.

“I started seeing someone.”

Both her parents look up, the words penetrating the air.

“Did you now?” her father asks, surprised but not unpleasantly so.

Caitlyn nods. “I did.”

“Do we know them?” her mother questions.

“I don’t think so,” Caitlyn says. She feels her nerves build in her chest and she swallows. This was the hard part. “She works at The Last Drop.”

Her mother’s face falls imperceptibly. “Oh,” she says, apprehension clear in her voice. “That… bar that you and your friends like to visit?”

Caitlyn nods her head again in confirmation. “Yes, that’s the one.” She flits her eyes back and forth between her parents and tries to continue as nonchalant as possible. “She’s a bartender there and we just got to talking, I guess. And something… clicked, I suppose.”

Her mother’s lips press together in a way that Caitlyn knows means she’s formulating an appropriate response in her head. The same way Caitlyn does. Her father looks back down at the book in his lap.

“And you two are… official?” her mother asks next, voice even.

“Oh, yes. Quite official.”

“Well then I suppose we ought to meet her,” says her mother, smiling stiffly. “Dinner? This Friday? Assuming she isn’t busy, of course.”

Caitlyn smiles in a way that feel equally as stiff. “Sounds perfect.”

Her mother lets her eyes linger on Caitlyn for another few seconds before focusing back on her paperwork, a crease between her eyebrows now that wasn’t there before. Caitlyn bites at her lip and looks at her own book, confident that she won’t find any more luck reading it now than she did before the conversation.

Tick.

* * *

It takes surprisingly little convincing for Vi to agree to dinner. One short phone call and the deal was done.

“Are you working on Friday?”

“Of course I am.”

“Is there any way you could get the night off? My parents have requested that you come over for dinner.”

“Shit, cupcake. Don’t you think it’s a bit soon to be meeting the parents?”

“You forget the point of this whole thing entirely. So you’ll be there?”

“Sure, sure. I’ll be there.”

Knowing that Vi would be in Caitlyn’s home and actually seeing Vi in Caitlyn’s home are two completely different things. If Caitlyn’s being totally honest, she stands out like a sore thumb.

The minute Caitlyn hears a knock at the front door, she rushes to open it before anyone else can, not wanting Vi to be scared off before even stepping foot inside.

The door opens to reveal Vi in all her roguish charm, wearing a black leather jacket over a dark red t-shirt and black jeans with a hole in one knee. Her pink hair is as messy as ever and Caitlyn can just see the edges of her tattoos peeking out from the collar of her jacket, the one on her neck standing out most prominently.

She looks perfect.

“If I had known you lived in a palace I would have put gel in my hair or something,” Vi says in lieu of a greeting, staring at the grandiose doors of Caitlyn’s home with wide eyes.

“Oh hush, you,” Caitlyn says, pulling Vi inside by one of her arms. “You look fine.”

Vi looks at her like she’s speaking a different language. “I knew you were rich, but shit, cupcake. I don’t think I own anything nice enough for this place.” She looks around the entry hall in wonder, mouth hanging open just the slightest bit. “I think I might hate you, actually.”

Caitlyn snorts. “Would you like a tour? I’m afraid photography is restricted, but you can pick something up at the gift shop on your way out if you’d like.”

Vi blinks at her, clearly not able to decide if she’s being serious or not.

“I’m joking.”

Vi lets out a sigh of relief. “Thank god,” she says, shoulders relaxing slightly. “I was about to break up with you right here right now.”

Caitlyn swats at her arm with a roll of her eyes. “Come on. I actually will give you a tour,” she says, tugging on Vi’s arm again to get her to move. “It’ll give us a chance to hide out from my parents until dinner starts-”

“Well, if it isn’t the guest of honor.”

Caitlyn freezes in place at the new voice and lets her eyes slowly move over to the top of the grand staircase. Her father stands at the top, a smile on his face as he starts descending the steps towards them.

“Father,” Caitlyn greets as pleasantly as she can. “We were just on our way to find you.”

“I’m sure you were,” her father says, a knowing twinkle in his eye. He reaches the bottom of the staircase and holds out a hand to Vi. “Vi, was it? I’d say I’ve heard a lot about you, but I’m afraid that isn’t the case,” he continues, giving Caitlyn a pointed look.

Vi shakes his hand a little awkwardly. “It’s, uh, nice to meet you,” she says, obviously not prepared for what to say.

Caitlyn watches as her father takes Vi in, eyes tracking across the tattoo on her cheek, the scars on her knuckles, the dirt on her boots. His expression is unreadable, not outright disapproving but not pleased at what he sees either. “That’s a strong grip you’ve got,” he tells Vi, pulling away from the handshake and putting both of his hands behind his back.

Vi shoves her own hand in her jacket pocket. “Um, thanks.”

Her father lets his eyes linger on Vi for a moment longer before looking at Caitlyn with a pleasant smile. “Your mother’s out back. Why don’t we go collect her before dinner?”

Caitlyn reaches into Vi’s pocket and laces their fingers together, giving her hand a quick squeeze. Vi raises a questioning eyebrow at her in response but otherwise makes no objections.

“Sounds like a great idea,” Caitlyn says with false enthusiasm. “Lead the way.”

* * *

They can hear her mother before they can see her.

Crack.

A gunshot fills the air. Birds on the nearby trees take flight at the noise.

They round the corner to the shooting range and Caitlyn can’t help but roll her eyes. Mother, she thinks not so fondly. Always with the dramatics.

Cassandra Kiramman turns to greet the approaching party with an appraising gaze, rifle cradled comfortably in her hands. Her expression is carefully neutral as she takes in Vi, and Caitlyn feels Vi stiffen beside her.

“Caitlyn,” her mother says, pulling out a polishing cloth to clean some unseen speck off her gun. “Aren’t you going to introduce your guest?”

Caitlyn barely resists the urge to roll her eyes again. “Mother, this is Vi,” she says, gesturing to the still wary-looking girl at her side. “Vi, this is my mother. Obviously.” The last word is muttered under her breath, and it makes Vi snicker.

“Caitlyn, your tone,” her mother warns. Caitlyn crosses her arms and looks over at the targets spread out across the range, many with fresh bullet marks in them.

“Have you been out here long?” Caitlyn asks, ignoring her mother’s disapproving gaze.

Her mother hums a bit. “A while, yes,” she says, tucking her polishing cloth back in her pocket and checking the bullet chamber instead, ensuring that she still had ammo. She looks pointedly at Vi. “One must always keep their skills sharp.” The chamber is shut with a snap and Caitlyn’s mother takes aim, squinting one eye briefly before firing a shot, hitting the dead center of the farthest target.

Vi makes a choking noise and tries to cover it up by clearing her throat.

“Now then,” Caitlyn’s mother says pleasantly, lowering her gun and turning back towards their group. She smiles warmly and Caitlyn almost believes that it’s sincere. “Let’s go see what the chefs have cooked up this evening, shall we?”

* * *

Dinner is silent for a good five minutes before Caitlyn’s father breaks the silence.

“Good salmon this evening, isn’t it?”

Caitlyn’s mother hums in agreement. “Almost as good as when we have it down on the coast,” she pauses to take a sip of water before glancing at Vi. “Have you ever been to the coast, Vi?”

Vi shakes her head while she pokes at the fish on her plate with what is supposed to be her salad fork. “Uh, no. I don’t really travel all that much.”

Caitlyn takes a bite of her food and listens to the conversation play out.

“That’s a shame,” her mother says. She looks back down as she cuts into her salmon. “We’ve been going there since Caitlyn was small.”

Vi makes a little “hm” noise and takes and takes a bite of her fish.

More silence. The sound of silverware clinging and cutting food fills the air.

“So Caitlyn tells us that you’re a bartender, Vi,” her father says, breaking the silence once again.

“Yeah,” Vi replies through a mouthful of food. Caitlyn sees her mother squint slightly. “Down at The Last Drop. I’m usually working Fridays, but Cait convinced me to take the night off.”

Caitlyn raises an eyebrow at the new nickname but chooses not to comment. She kind of liked it.

“And are you going to school while you work?” her mother asks.

The tension in the air thickens ever so slightly. Vi swallows her food and glances at Caitlyn before answering. “No, I’m just working. Don’t really have any plans to go to more school.”

Her mother is quiet for a dangerous moment. Caitlyn glances at her father, sees that he is apparently engrossed in his salmon.

“May I ask why you have an aversion to furthering your education?” This question again comes from Caitlyn’s mother.

Vi hesitates for a moment, shifting in her seat a little. She pushes a piece of fish around her plate. Eventually she shrugs. “I just never found the appeal, I guess.”

Caitlyn suspects there’s more to her answer than just that, based on the way Vi is pointedly avoiding eye contact with every person at the table, but Caitlyn also knows that Vi isn’t too keen on sharing details of her personal life with just anyone – let alone Caitlyn’s snobby parents that she’s known for all of twenty minutes.

“I see,” her mother says shortly. Caitlyn is surprised by the obvious restraint she’s showing for the sake of keeping herself somewhat cordial. There’s another beat of silence where the sound of silverware fills the air again before her mother speaks again. “Well, you should know that Caitlyn is incredibly studious.”

And there it is.

“Mother,” Caitlyn groans. She is ignored.

“She has been on a full academic scholarship since her freshman year,” her mother continues, cutting into her salmon as she talks. “Sixteen credits a semester, and nothing but straight A’s since she was in high school. It takes work for that kind of record, you know. Dedication.” The last word is punctuated with a stab to the section of fish that she has just finished cutting. She looks squarely at Vi. “I would hate for anyone to distract her from continuing to meet that standard.”

Caitlyn’s father glances up to look between his wife and Vi, no sound of silverware breaking the silence now.

The corner of Vi’s mouth quirks up slightly. “Well, considering how much your daughter distracts me when I’m at work, it could only be considered fair to return the favor,” she says, a teasing edge to her voice. “But I guess I can hold back on the distractions a little.” A pause, wherein Caitlyn’s eyes widen on the innuendo of the word ‘distractions,’ before Vi adds on as an afterthought, “For the sake of her record and all.”

Vi’s stare is solid against Cassandra’s stare. A challenge. Caitlyn swears she sees her mother’s nostrils flare.

And then Vi is looking down at her food, popping a piece of fish into her mouth. “Good salmon this evening, isn’t it?”

Caitlyn swears she hears her father choke, and she tries to hold back a reaction of her own. She bites her lip and kicks at Vi’s foot under the table. Vi only grins and continues eating.

No one talks for the rest of dinner.

* * *

 Caitlyn shuts her bedroom door with a sigh that’s equal parts relieved and exhausted. She stares at the floor for a moment before looking up at Vi curiously. Vi looks back at her impassively.

“Your mom’s nice,” she says seriously. Caitlyn snorts loudly and Vi’s composure breaks as she snickers at herself, spinning slowly to walk further into Caitlyn’s room.

“She actually wasn’t as bad as I thought she would be tonight,” Caitlyn admits, leaning against the door as she watches Vi take a turn about the room, glancing at pictures and plants the general décor. “Although she could have done with at least one less vague threat to your well-being.”

Vi hums, inspecting the ribbon she got from a science fair in fifth grade. “I agree. Hey, do you think she’ll wait to shoot me until after you’ve gotten your first A minus, or just get it over with right away?”

Caitlyn groans. “I can’t believe she did that. I’m almost positive that the whole thing was a set up. My father was a paid actor.”

“Your dad didn’t say much at dinner,” Vi notes, putting the ribbon down and picking up a picture of Caitlyn playing soccer when she was eight. A smile brushes across her lips as she looks at it. “Is he usually that quiet?”

Caitlyn thinks for a moment. “I believe my father has mastered the art of keeping his head down and keeping attention off of himself.”

Vi nods her head in understanding. “Wish I was good at that,” she says, setting the picture back on the dresser and making her way to the desk in the corner with all of Caitlyn’s big trophies on it. “I try to keep my head down, keep my mouth shut. But somehow I always end up screwing myself over.” She talks almost in a murmur, her words secondary as most of her attention is focused on reading the various plaques and awards in front of her. Caitlyn continues to observe from a distance.

“I can see that,” Caitlyn says. She looks Vi slowly up and down, allows herself to admire the width of her shoulders, the subtle curve of muscle beneath her jacket, the firm swell of her ass. “I don’t think you could blend in if you tried.”

Vi gives her a sly glance over her shoulder, as if knowing exactly where Caitlyn’s thoughts had headed. Caitlyn smirks at her before pushing off the door and moving to stand next to Vi at the desk, purposefully letting their shoulders press against each other. To her surprise, Vi keeps her focus on the display of trophies, but still leans into the contact.

“I see deadly accuracy is a family trait,” Vi says, reaching out to brush her fingers against one of Caitlyn’s first place trophies from some odd shooting competition in high school. It was one of many, and although Caitlyn didn’t really have time for competitions anymore, she still found time to go out and keep her skills sharp once or twice a week.

“Just my mother and I, I’m afraid,” Caitlyn says, still watching Vi carefully. “My father is hopeless with a gun; the staff have forbidden him from holding a rifle while any of them are outside.”

Vi laughs. “Well, it’s good to know I stand a fighting chance with at least one Kiramman.”

Caitlyn lets her eyes roam across Vi’s face. “I think you stand a better chance with another one than you think.”

Vi hums lowly, eye hooded. She leans in slowly and stop a breath away from Caitlyn, her lips brushing Caitlyn’s lips as she talks. “Is that so?” she asks. Caitlyn makes some noncommittal noise, eyes fluttering shut as she waits for Vi to close the gap. “I don’t think that’s true,” Vi continues, voice low. “Because your mom really doesn’t like me.”

And just like that Vi is stepping back with a teasing grin, and it’s all Caitlyn can do to keep herself from pouting at being baited like that. “You’re cruel,” she tells Vi.

Vi shrugs and steps back toward the middle of the room. “You asked me out, remember?” She tips her head back to look at the ceiling. “Who the fuck has a chandelier in their bedroom, anyway?”

Caitlyn sighs and walks over to the bed, laying down in the middle of it with her arms splayed out on either side. She keeps her eyes up ahead of her as she talks. “Someone with a tacky mother and too much money.”

She feels the bed dip as Vi crawls onto it from the bottom, making her way up until she’s on all fours above Caitlyn. Her hair hangs down from her head, tickling Caitlyn’s nose in a way that makes it scrunch up. Caitlyn brings a hand up and threads her fingers through the long bangs, pushing it up and out of the way.

“I don’t think I can disagree with that, cupcake,” Vi says, mock seriousness on her face. Caitlyn snorts again – she really needs to find a way to stop doing that – and soon she’s giggling, shaking her head and telling Vi that she’s ridiculous.

Vi grins and leans down to kiss her once before flopping down on the bed next to her. Caitlyn pulls her arm closer to herself so that it doesn’t get trapped under Vi’s head. They lay there in silence for a minute, both staring at the canopy cover above them.

“That was the first time I’ve eaten fish.”

Caitlyn turns her head towards Vi in surprise. “Like, ever?”

“Ever,” Vi confirms.

“Huh,” Cailyn says, turning back to stare at the canopy. “How’d you like it?”

“Like I said at dinner,” Vi says. They glance at each other. “Good salmon.”

And really, Caitlyn can’t just not kiss her stupid smug face after a comment like that.

Chapter Text

The door shuts with a soft creak behind Vi. It was fairly late at night, but one light still shone in the house, coming from the kitchen. She walks as quietly as she can down the hallway, heavy boots thudding on the hardwood floor despite her best efforts.

Realistically she knows that she shouldn’t have expected anyone to be in bed already, seeing as it was the weekend. Still, she was somewhat surprised to see Vander sitting at the kitchen table, laptop open in front of him.

“Working late on a Friday night?” Vi asks, making her way over to the fridge.

Vander grunts, eyes still on his screen. “No one ever warned me how much paperwork goes into owning a bar,” he says, deep voice even gruffer with the late hour. He glances up at Vi wryly. “You’d think I’d have learned to stay on top of it more after twenty years.”

Vi snickers and rummages around in the fridge for a bit, procuring a water bottle. She screws the lid off and takes a sip, silently watching Vander work for a moment. “You should get someone to do it all for you,” she says, leaning back against the counter. “Like, an accountant, or some other hotshot business nerd.”

“I could make you do it,” he says, glancing back up at Vi. Water goes down the wrong pipe in her throat and she coughs, pounding a fist against her chest.

“I’ll pass,” she croaks, not knowing if he was joking or not.

Vander’s composure breaks and he chuckles, looking back at his work. Vi checks her phone as she continues sipping her water and sees a text from Caitlyn asking if she’d gotten home safely. She smiles a little and sends off a quick reply to tell her she did. When she puts the phone back in her pocket, she sees Vander watching her with a curious look on his face.

“What?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Vander says innocently, cracking his knuckles absentmindedly- a habit that Vi picked up from him when she was young. “What were you up to tonight, anyway?”

Vi shrugs and turns to rummage through the fridge again. “Just having dinner with a friend.”

“A friend, huh? Didn’t know you had any of those outside Mylo and Claggor.”

Vi shoots him a dry look over her shoulder before going back to her scavenging. “I have friends,” she mutters.

“Speaking of friends,” Vander says, tone careful. Vi hears him close the lid of his laptop. “Grayson stopped by earlier.”

Vi immediately stiffens, hand clenching around the fresh bottle of water she was grabbing. She takes a deep breath before standing up straight. “She’s not my friend,” she says tightly, shutting the refrigerator door a bit too harshly. “No matter how much she may think she is.”

Vander sighs heavily. “She just wants to help, kiddo.”

“Yeah, well, maybe she should have thought of that before she let me stay locked up for four years,” Vi says sharply, turning to face Vander. He holds his hands up in surrender.

“Look, I can’t tell you what grudges you are and aren’t allowed to hold. That’s not my place. But I told her I’d tell you that she stopped by regardless.”

The understanding in his tone bugs Vi as much as it eases her. “Thanks, but tell her no thanks,” Vi grumbles, switching both her waters to one hand. She grabs an apple out of the basket on the counter for good measure. “I’m going to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She thinks she might hear Vander sigh again as she walks out of the room, a tired ‘goodnight’ following shortly after. Vi opens the front door and steps out into the cool night air, stopping on the front steps just long enough to take a deep, slow breath to clear her head before continuing her walk.

It didn’t take long at all for Vi to walk from Vander’s house to The Last Drop, the two about ten minutes away from each other. Vander had always insisted he stay close to his bar, which worked out perfectly for Vi considering that she lived there.

When she’d gotten out of prison a year ago, Vander had given her the option of moving back into the room she’d shared with Powder or moving into the loft in The Last Drop. It had been kind of a no-brainer, honestly, even if it did feel a little weird to not share a space with Powder anymore.

Although, with how often her sister invades her space, it’s like she never left at all.

“It’s late,” Vi says as she walks into the loft, not even surprised to see Powder sprawled on her bed.

“It’s Friday, dummy,” Powder says, head hanging off the end of the bed as she looks at Vi. “You’re the one that has to get up early tomorrow, not me.”

Vi curses under her breath, having forgotten that she’d promised Mylo she would work a double tomorrow for covering her shift tonight. “All the more reason for me to kick you out, then,” she says, dropping her waters and apple on her wobbly kitchen table before falling face-down on the bed next to Powder, feet hanging off the edge. She puts no actual effort into kicking her sister out, knowing that any attempts would be futile.

“You were out with that blue-haired chick tonight, weren’t you?”

Vi peers over at her. “Who told you that?” she asks, not bothering to deny it.

“Little man.”

Vi grunts. “I thought Ekko grew out of his eavesdropping habit, like, five years ago.”

“Just because you got locked up doesn’t mean that things got any less exciting around here,” Powder says, twisting herself around so her head is toward the pillows next to Vi. She pauses for a moment, pondering. “Actually, it did get kind of boring, but now that you’re back, Ekko for sure has plenty to keep watch on.”

Vi turns her face back towards the bed, voice muffled by her comforter. “Good to know.”

“So is she your girlfriend?”

“No.”

“Are you sure? Ekko said you two were looking real cozy the other night.”

Vi sighs and rolls onto her back. “We’re just hooking up.” She shrugs. “Nothing I haven’t done before.”

Powder lets out a little hmph “I don’t trust her,” she announces, like she’s come to some grand decision.

Vi shoots her a bewildered look. “You’ve never even met her,” she protests.

“Doesn’t matter. I don’t trust her,” Powder repeats, convinced. “She seems snobby. Spoiled. I bet she’s rich. She’s rich, isn’t she?”

Vi snorts. “You have no idea.”

“I knew it,” Powder says, nodding assuredly. “She’s rich and snobby and- oh, wait-” Powder bolts upright, one hand coming down to clamp around Vi’s arm- “wait! You totally got yourself a sugar mama, didn’t you?”

Vi chokes on her own spit. “How do you know what that is?” she sputters, sitting up as she coughs. Powder ignores her.

“I take back everything I said,” Powder amends, reaching up to pat one of Vi’s cheeks. “You’re doing the good work, sister.”

“Caitlyn is not my sugar mama,” she says with a scowl, lightly batting Powder’s hand away. “She’s just a nice, normal human being. We have fun together.” She continues with an afterthought. “Even if she is disgustingly well off.”

Powder hums. “Well that’s not nearly as exciting,” she decides, flopping back down against the bed. “You’re no fun after all.”

Vi laughs and lays back down as well. “I’m fine with that. I think I’ve had enough excitement for a few years.”

“True that.”

They’re quiet for a minute after that. Powder fidgets with some random objects she’d had stuffed in her pockets and Vi closes her eyes, nearly falling asleep as she listens to her sister mumble things to herself under her breath.

“You know that if she hurts you I will cause her bodily harm, right?”

Vi glances at Powder, only to see her sister’s attention still firmly set on whatever she’s toying with in her hands. “Yeah, Pow-Pow. I know,” she says with a light laugh. Powder seems satisfied with her answer, shoving her items back in her jacket pockets and pushing herself up off the bed. She walks out the door without another word, only saying goodnight when Vi calls after her to tell her first.

With a fond shake of her head and a smile on her face, Vi sits up again. She pulls off her boots, and sheds her jacket, catching a whiff of the perfumy scent that seems to follow Caitlyn everywhere clinging to the leather material.

Vi still wasn’t quite sure what to think about Caitlyn Kiramman.

In the year that she’s been working at the bar, Vi has always noticed Caitlyn. Always hanging out with the same group of friends, mostly keeping to herself. Caitlyn was stunning, that much was obvious to anyone with eyes. Sharp features, soft skin, legs that seemingly went on for days…

Yeah. Vi has been noticing Caitlyn for a while now.

She had figured there was no harm in flirting a little whenever she got the chance. Worst case scenario was that Caitlyn was straight and told her to fuck off, best case scenario was that they hooked up. Although Caitlyn had never reciprocated Vi’s advances, she’d never outright told her no, either, and thus they’d existed in a state of Vi pouring drinks and doing her best to make that pretty blush appear on Caitlyn’s cheeks as often as she could.

Eventually when the best-case scenario finally did occur, Vi was content to let that be that and go back to teasing Caitlyn like they were used to.

Obviously that hadn’t happened, and here she was. Sniffing the scent on her jacket from the girl she fucked on a semi-regular basis.

Vi didn’t mind their arrangement, in all honesty. Did she completely understand why Caitlyn wanted to rebel in this particular way? No. But pissing off pretentious socialites seemed like something in Vi’s wheelhouse, so she figured going along with it wouldn’t be the worst thing she’s ever done.

Vi tosses her jacket onto the couch and pulls off her pants before crawling into bed, too tired to do anything more. She wills her brain to turn off, banishing all thoughts of Caitlyn and her scary parents. The girl might be hot, but she wasn’t worth losing sleep over, especially when Vi had to work a double tomorrow.

* * *

It’s a few days until Vi sees Caitlyn again. When she does, it’s because she shows up when Vi is working a slow morning shift, citing boredom as she plops down on a barstool. Apparently, her friends were either busy or out of town, travelling for Christmas coming up in a week. Vi was totally fine with her hanging out, letting her ramble aimlessly while she took stock and made sure things would be ready for the evening shift.

“They finally said something about your tattoos.”

Vi blinks herself out of her stocking concentration and focuses in on what Caitlyn was saying. “What?”

“It took them a while, but they finally brought up your tattoos,” Caitlyn repeats nonchalantly. She’s absentmindedly sliding an empty glass back and forth on the counter while she talks. “Mother asked why you had a tattoo of your own name on your face. Real worked up while she asked, too, like she had been holding it in since she first laid eyes on you.”

Vi barks a laugh and makes note of their whiskey supply on her clipboard. “I bet she was. What did you tell her?”

“Well, since you’re so allusive and probably won’t tell me the real reason anyway,” Caitlyn starts pointedly, pausing as if giving Vi the opportunity to fill in the blanks. Vi simply bares her teeth in a grin and winks. Caitlyn rolls her eyes and continues, “I told her that you got it on a dare.”

Vi bobs her head in a nod as she considers this. “Not a bad explanation, cupcake. Did you also tell her that you think my tattoos were sexy?”

Caitlyn blushes a brilliant pink, ducking her head adorably. Although she’d never told Vi in words that she’d liked her tattoos, her actions said more than enough. Nearly every time they were naked and tangled up together, Caitlyn took the opportunity to carefully trace the dark lines spanning the skin of Vi’s back, trailing kisses until she reached the gear on her neck where she would leave dark bruises that Vi would happily sport for days.

“Can I get a drink?” Caitlyn asks, avoiding Vi’s claims.

Vi grins at the lack of denial. “Sure, one sec,” she says, grabbing an empty cup. She turns and fills the glass with water, adding some ice cubes for the hell of it before sliding it out to Caitlyn.

Caitlyn huffs in protest and glares up at Vi. “Not what I meant.”

Vi pats the top of her head. “It’s not even noon yet. Come back in five hours and then we’ll talk.”

Caitlyn grumbles into her glass but drinks the water anyway. Vi watches as she takes long gulps, the graceful curve of her neck bobbing with each swallow. She lets her eyes trace over the smooth, unmarred skin of her throat, so unlike Vi’s own tattooed and scarred body.

“You’d look good with a tattoo,” Vi decides.

Caitlyn coughs and sets her cup back on the counter with a clank. She stares at Vi as if trying to tell if she was being serious or not. “You think so?” she says after a beat.

Vi nods. “Yeah,” she says, becoming more convinced by the idea each passing second. “You’d look hot.”

“Hm,” Caitlyn hums, leaning forward onto the counter, considering. “I mean, I’ve always kind of wanted to get one, but I don’t really know what I’d get,” she says. “Plus, I always knew that my mother would absolutely lose it if she ever found out I’d gotten one.”

“You see, cupcake, that’s your problem,” Vi says, rolling her eyes. She leans against the counter so her face is closer to Caitlyn’s. “You always look at something and think about if your mommy would approve before you even consider it being a viable option. If you really want to piss her off, you’ll ask for forgiveness instead of permission.” Vi reconsiders and then shrugs. “Or don’t even ask for forgiveness. Just do it.”

“That’s not fair,” Caitlyn protests. “I didn’t ask them for permission before dating you.”

“True,” Vi says, but she’s not willing to back down her point so easily. “But think about this: I’m temporary. Exposable. Easy to forget once this is all done.” Caitlyn looks like she wants to protest again but Vi barrels through. “You need to do something permanent. Something that will forever remind them that they don’t own you.”

It’s quiet in the bar after Vi has said her piece, she soft music playing over the speakers the only thing keeping it from being completely silent. Caitlyn ponders Vi’s words for a good long while. Long enough that Vi goes back to writing supply numbers on her abandoned clipboard.

“Alright.”

Vi blinks over at Caitlyn. “Alright?”

“Alright,” Caitlyn repeats. “Let’s do it. Tonight. You’re not working later, right?”

Vi blinks again, this time in surprise. “Whoa, hang on. Tonight? And I never said that I was going to be the one to take you.”

“Too bad,” Caitlyn says, a mischievous look coming over her face. “Your idea, your follow-through.” She levels Vi with a truly heart-stopping stare. “I’m not asking for permission here, Vi.”

“Fuck,” Vi breathes out, but she’s grinning. Oh, she’s grinning hard. “I’ve created a monster.”

And when Caitlyn grins back, Vi thinks that she doesn’t mind the monster she’s created so much.

* * *

Caitlyn hangs out around the bar for the remaining few hours of Vi’s shift, the two of them talking about possible tattoo designs here and there before Claggor comes to take over for Vi. With one more assurance that Caitlyn is really sure about this (she is), they head off, heading towards the shop where Vi got some of her own tattoos done.

What Vi doesn’t tell Caitlyn is that most of her tattoos were done by a guy she knew in prison, but she figures that guy’s contact information might be a little hard to come by.

So they go to this little tattoo shop in the more shifty part of town that doesn’t charge too much but still gets the job done right. Caitlyn presses closely to Vi’s side as they walk down the street, wide eyes darting to every dark corner they pass. Vi snickers and rolls her eyes a little, but loops an arm around Caitlyn’s waist, keeping her close. Just in case.

The shop is just as it was the last time Vi was there: small, smokey, a little dingy. Music filters through the room from a crackly stereo in the corner. Lock, the only tattoo artist that works there, glances up from the arm he’s working on as they walk in. His narrowed eyes don’t soften as he looks at Vi, but he does grunt and nod his head once before focusing on his task, so Vi takes that as a good sign.

“Is he actually going to do this?” Caitlyn asks, uncertainty clear in her voice. Her eyes are trained warily on the large man with the tattoo gun.

Vi looks at Lock, takes in his huge muscles and multiple face piercings. The tattoos covering nearly every inch of visible skin. The permanent scowl.

She grins. “He’ll do it.”

Caitlyn stares at her, unconvinced.

“It’ll be fine, cupcake,” Vi says, nudging Caitlyn’s shoulder with her own. “Don’t you trust me?”

“I really don’t think you want me to answer that.”

Vi laughs. “Come on,” she says, pulling Caitlyn over to the counter in the front of the shop. She slides the big binder on it in front of her. “If you haven’t thought of any specific designs yet you can look for one in here.”

Caitlyn opens the binder hesitantly, flipping through the first few pages slowly before becoming more comfortable once she sees the quality of the designs. Vi leans against the counter watches her as she goes through the binder, absentmindedly reaching up a hand to tuck a stray hair behind Caitlyn’s ear.

“Where do you think you’ll get it?” Vi asks, her voice a murmur. She trails a finger from Caitlyn’s ear down the side of her neck and smiles at the shiver it pulls from Caitlyn.

“I’m not sure,” Caitlyn admits, eyes still focused on the pages she’s flipping through. “I was thinking my ribs, maybe? That way it’s at least mostly discreet.”

“Aw, come on. Not the face?” Vi teases. She brushes a thumb across Caitlyn’s cheekbone. “We could match.”

Caitlyn shoots her a look that says don’t push it and Vi backs off, choosing to distract herself with looking at the posters lining the walls of the shop instead. A few minutes later, Lock finishes up with his client and trudges over to the counter, his hulking frame making even Caitlyn look short.

“You know what you’re gettin’?” Lock asks, his deep voice rumbling.

Caitlyn swallows before squaring her shoulders, putting on a façade of confidence. “Yes,” she says assuredly, flipping the binder around a pointing at one of the designs on the page. Vi tries to lean over to see what Caitlyn’s picked out, but Caitlyn pushes her face away. Lock grunts in acknowledgement and gestures with his head that they should follow him. Vi makes a noise of protest at being left in the dark and Caitlyn looks over her shoulder at her. “It’s a surprise,” is all she says.

Once Caitlyn has gotten all settled in the chair and pointed out the spot she wants the tattoo – on her ribs, just under the line of her bra – Lock starts the process of cleaning the area and getting all his tools out. When he applies the stencil for the design, Caitlyn’s nerves seem to come back full-fledged.

“Is this going to hurt?” Caitlyn asks, turning to Vi with wide eyes.

Vi shrugs. “Um, yeah? It’s a little needle stabbing you a bunch, Cait.”

“And it’s on the ribs,” Lock adds unhelpfully. Caitlyn’s eyes grow impossibly wider.

“Okay, look, look. Here,” Vi says before Caitlyn can break down in a full-blown panic. She reaches out and takes Caitlyn’s hand. “Just squeeze my hand if it gets too bad. Just like giving birth, yeah?”

“I seriously don’t believe comparing this to giving birth is helping me.”

Vi shuts her eyes and takes a deep breath before opening them again. She tries for a reassuring smile. “Just squeeze my hand, okay?” she says solidly, squeezing Caitlyn’s once for emphasis.

It’s quiet once Lock gets to work with the actual tattoo, the buzzing of the tattoo gun and the classic rock playing from the stereo filling up the silence. Caitlyn takes most of the pain like a champ, occasionally wincing and hissing in a breath, squeezing the life out of Vi’s hand as she does so. The tattoo is on the other side of Caitlyn, positioned such in a way that it’s just out of sight from where Vi sits on her other side.

The whole process takes a little under an hour, coming to an end when Lock leans back from Caitlyn’s side and starts wiping away some of the excess ink.

“Is it done?” Caitlyn asks, surprised. She releases Vi’s hand, leaving it feeling cold.

Lock grunts something that sounds like a confirmation and gets out a bandage to put over the tattoo.

“Wait, can I see it first?” Vi asks, feeling as though she’s been patient enough. Lock halts his movements and Vi looks at Caitlyn.

There’s a small blush on Caitlyn’s cheeks, though Vi doesn’t know why. “Go ahead,” she says.

Vi eagerly leans over Caitlyn to see her other side and gasps. “You did not.”

Caitlyn’s blush is even deeper now. “I did.”

There, placed perfectly on the side of Caitlyn’s ribs, is a cupcake.

Vi isn’t sure whether to keep her eyes on the tattoo or on Caitlyn’s face. “But- but,” she stumbles, at a loss for words. She looks at Caitlyn dead in the eyes. “You know this is, like, permanent, right? That shit is on you for life.”

Caitlyn shrugs. “I thought it was appropriate,” she says simply. “I would have never even gotten one without your encouragement.”

“Shit,” Vi breathes. Her bewilderment shifts to joy and a grin spreads across her face. She brushes a finger gently just underneath the inked cupcake. “You’re crazy, Kiramman. You know that?”

Caitlyn hums. “I believe I’m learning from the best.”

They let Lock wrap up the tattoo and go to pay at the front counter. Caitlyn doesn’t even bat an eye at the price, just hands over her card like it’s the easiest thing in the world. She thanks him with the utmost sincerity, and Vi swears she almost sees the corner of his mouth lift.

That’s the thing about Caitlyn Kiramman, Vi has decided. She is unapologetically one of the most sincere, genuine people that Vi has ever met. It wasn’t one of the things that initially drew her to Caitlyn, but it was something that Vi decided might be worth sticking around for. There weren’t people like that in Vi’s world very often- hell, Vi was anything but sincere and kind more often than not.

Caitlyn was different. Not just because she had money and grew up in the lap of luxury. Vi was convinced that Caitlyn was different because she was just… Caitlyn.

The walk back to The Last Drop isn’t very long, the cold night air nipping at Vi’s cheeks as they make their way down quiet streets.

“Do you have any plans for the holidays?” Caitlyn asks, breaking the comfortable silence between them.

“Not really,” Vi replies. In all reality, she would probably spend it working. “We don’t really make a big deal about Christmas in my family. Never have.”

That wasn’t exactly true. When her parents were still alive, they always tried to make the day somewhat special for Vi and Powder. They’d put up a little tree, go look at lights in the city, open the few precious gifts they could afford… but that was a long time ago. After they died, things got more complicated and the holidays slowly fell to the wayside.

It’s obvious that a million questions spring to Caitlyn’s mind at the vague mention of Vi’s family, but she manages to hold them back with visible effort. The sight of her mental battle is cute, so Vi bumps her shoulder against Caitlyn’s affectionately.

“What about you?” she asks. “How does the top one percent spend Christmas? Buying boats? Flying on blimps?”

Caitlyn rolls her eyes, albeit fondly. “If you must know, my family only has two boats, and one of them is so old that it doesn’t even run anymore.”

“What a shame you must be on the rich community,” Vi remarks, face serious.

Caitlyn bumps her shoulder against Vi’s in playful admonishment. “My family doesn’t do anything all that special either, to be honest. Every year my parents host a grand party that’s mostly an excuse to drink champagne and talk about how much money everyone’s made that year, and it’s always a big hit. I personally can’t stand it, of course. Lucky for me this year’s is already passed, which means that I have 365 days to prepares for next year’s.”

Vi snickers as The Last Drop comes into view. “I’m hurt that I didn’t receive an invite,” she jokes.

“Darling, you would have gone absolutely mad,” Caitlyn assures her. Vi’s mouth quirks up at the term of endearment. “I would never subject you to something like that.”

They meander through the parking lot, in search of Caitlyn’s car from where she parked it so many hours ago. Vi has no idea what her car looks like, so she just keeps her eyes out for the most expensive car in the lot.

“You know, I’m full of surprises,” Vi says casually. “What if I want to go to your fancy parties? I like champagne. Plus, you’d be there, so I’d have a pretty girl to stare at all night.”

Caitlyn blushes, which is rapidly starting to become one of Vi’s favorite things. “I’ll keep that in mind,” she promises.

It only takes Caitlyn another minute to find her car (Vi was right; it’s a sleek black thing that looks like it costs more than Vi’s entire yearly salary) and she pulls out her keys, looking like she wants to say something else while she fiddles with them.

“Thank you for tonight, Vi. Really,” Caitlyn eventually says. Vi slides her hands into her jacket pockets with a shrug. She really has no idea what Caitlyn is thanking her for, but decides to humor her anyway.

“Yeah, well,” she says, scuffing her foot against the ground. “If you ever want encouragement to get another permanent mistake on your body, you know who to call.”

Caitlyn chuckles softly and opens her car door. She looks back at Vi with a contemplative look on her face and hesitates before leaning in ever so slightly. At the last second she pulls back, seeming to catch herself and climbing into the car instead. “Goodnight, Vi,” she says, closing her door and pulling out of the parking lot.

Vi stands there for a moment, watching her drive away. As she makes her way inside, Vi doesn’t know what’s weirder: the fact that Caitlyn almost kissed her goodnight, or the fact that Vi sort of wanted her to.

* * *

Vi wakes up Christmas morning with a text from Caitlyn. She opens it immediately, sucking in a breath when she sees that it’s a picture of Caitlyn wearing absolutely nothing, the angle perfectly displaying the brand-new cupcake tattoo standing out proudly against her ribs.

She rolls onto her back and drops her phone on the bed, picking it up a second later to double check that the picture is still there.

A smile spreads to Vi’s face and she wonders when Caitlyn Kiramman will stop surprising her.

A Merry Christmas indeed.

Chapter Text

Caitlyn pulls on a pair of sweatpants and a bra before leaving the bathroom, rubbing a towel through her damp hair as she heads toward her dresser for the lotion she needs. Really, she had no idea why she took it out of the bathroom in the first place.

She’s humming a song under her breath, something that she thinks she listened to a few days ago, and barely glances toward the person in her window as she screws the lid off her moisturizer-

Wait.

The person in her window?

Caitlyn’s back is to the window so she can’t turn around to double check, but the sound of the glass pane being slid open is all the confirmation she needs. Her fingers tighten around the container of lotion in her hand as she hears one foot land on the windowsill, followed by another. She takes a deep, steadying breath before spinning around quickly, launching the lotion at the intruder’s head.

“Hey- ow, ow. What the hell, cupcake?”

Caitlyn blinks. “You’re asking me what the hell?” she asks, outraged.

Vi is crouched in the window frame, both hands gripping the edges to save herself from toppling back outside after getting smacked in the face by a bottle of lotion. She lowers herself safely inside Caitlyn’s bedroom. Once her feet are firmly planted on solid ground, Caitlyn strides across the room and whacks her in the arm. Vi lets out a little yelp of protest.

“What the hell were you thinking?” Caitlyn hisses, hitting Vi’s arm once more for emphasis. “I thought someone was breaking in!”

“Hey, it’s your fault for leaving your window unlocked,” Vi grumbles, rubbing at her arm.

“There’s no reason to keep my window locked, Vi,” Caitlyn huffs. “I live on the second floor.”

“Exactly. You live on the second floor,” Vi says, as if that makes any sense at all. She stoops down to retrieve Caitlyn’s moisturizer. “And lotion? Really? I’m, like, seventy-five percent sure that there’s a firearm in your room somewhere. Should’ve gone for that.”

“I could still pull one out on you if you’d like,” Caitlyn offers, taking the lotion from Vi’s hands.

Vi grins and shakes her head. “I’ll pass.”

Caitlyn snorts and rolls her eyes a little, turning around to head back into the bathroom. Vi trails after her, leaving the window wide open behind her.

“Why didn’t you just come through the front door like a normal person, anyway?” Caitlyn asks, scooping a dollop of moisturizer out of the container and rubbing it into her cheeks.

Vi shrugs. “Your mom scares me,” she replies, leaning against the counter next to Caitlyn.

Caitlyn shoots her an unbelieving look.

“I’m serious!” Vi says. “I figured I’d either show up at the front door and have your mom pull a gun on me or show up at your window and have you pull a gun on me. I decided there’d be a slightly less chance of you pulling the trigger.”

Caitlyn laughs and screws the lid back on her lotion. “I can’t say that I disagree with your logic.” She turns to look at Vi, only to find that Vi’s eyes are decidedly not focused on her face, instead wandering all the exposed skin of Caitlyn’s torso as if just realizing Caitlyn’s state of undress. Caitlyn raises an eyebrow with a smirk. “Can I help you?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I think you can,” Vi murmurs, distracted. She slides closer to Caitlyn, pressing her gently into the counter. A nose presses against the skin of Caitlyn’s neck as Vi inhales deeply, followed closely by warm lips brushing over the same area. “You always smell so good, cupcake. Is it the lotion? Maybe I should get some. Shit, probably costs a hundred dollars.”

Caitlyn hums and threads a hand into Vi’s soft hair. “I’d say it’s probably the shower I just took, actually.”

“Should’ve waited for me,” Vi says, pressing unhurried kisses along the length of Caitlyn’s throat. She feels the slightest hint of a smile against her skin before Vi continues. “I could use some good rich pampering right now.”

Caitlyn’s hand slides down to hold the back of Vi’s neck. “Later,” she promises with a sigh.

Logically, Caitlyn knows that she should ask Vi why she’s here. She has never shown up unannounced like this- not even a text in advance to say that was coming over. Surely there must be some reason that she’s here, in Caitlyn’s bathroom, having climbed through her window to get there.

Vi sucks languidly at her pulse point and all thoughts of logistics and reasoning fly from Caitlyn’s mind.

They stay that way for a while, Vi trailing kisses up and down Caitlyn’s neck, across her collarbones, wandering to Caitlyn’s chest. Vi’s hands come up to hold onto Caitlyn’s waist, thumb brushing against the cupcake tattooed on Caitlyn’s right side. Caitlyn lets out relaxed sighs every so often, content to let Vi continue as long as she wants.

Vi finishes sucking a bruise into the swell of Caitlyn’s breast with a particularly pleased hum, pulling away to admire her handiwork. Caitlyn’s chest and neck are a patchwork of red marks and darkening bruises, all of which Vi takes in with hooded eyes.

“You know, I did come here with a purpose,” Vi says.

Caitlyn blinks herself out of the daze she’s found herself in. “And what would that purpose be?” she asks, voice breathier than she’d like.

“Are you doing anything tomorrow night? New Year’s Eve and all that,” Vi says, leaning away slightly so she can get a clear look at Caitlyn’s tattoo. “Some people I know are having a party. You should come.”

“Hmm,” Caitlyn hums, considering. She slides her arms up to rest on Vi’s shoulders. “Well, I suppose that would be better than staying here, sipping champagne and watching the ball drop while my mother talks about work all night. Are you sure I wouldn’t ruin your street cred?”

Vi finally looks up to meet Caitlyn’s eyes with a wry grin. “Cupcake, you only make my street cred better.”

Caitlyn laughs and tightens her arms around Vi’s neck. “Alright, I’ll come. But next time you can just text me to ask, you know?”

Vi shrugs. “I guess I just missed you,” she says easily, and Caitlyn’s heart flutters in her chest before she realizes that Vi is addressing her boobs, gaze pointed downward.

“You’re ridiculous,” Caitlyn says, pushing at Vi’s shoulders. Vi laughs and doesn’t let herself be pushed too far, leaning back in quickly to take Caitlyn’s lips in a kiss. Caitlyn allows it, but only for a few moments before pulling away again. She isn’t very successful, Vi chasing her lips and kissing her a few more times before Caitlyn finally pushes her away with a chuckle, cheeks flushed even as she rolls her eyes.

She walks back into the bedroom, making her way over to her bed where her shirt is waiting, and thinks about how… weird, it is that Vi is here. Not weird as in weird having her here in her bedroom, having shown up unannounced just to ask her a simple question, but weird in the sense that it doesn’t feel weird. In fact, Caitlyn would almost dare to say that it felt normal.

All her life, Caitlyn has struggled to fit into the norm of society. She’s sat through countless lectures about propriety and how to properly conduct herself, all while watching those around her navigate the same concepts with ease. Her classmates lived much the same way she had, of course, but Caitlyn always felt as though there was a disconnect there. Whenever she would explain an old murder investigation with too much enthusiasm, whenever she would share her feelings about a professor too candidly, whenever she got too little sleep and showed up to class looking less than polished. Cailyn always felt as though there were certain parts of herself that she needed to bury.

It felt different with Vi.

Maybe it was because there was a complete lack of expectation with Vi. Vi certainly had her fair share of flaws, same as anyone, but she never seemed to shy away from them. Sure, she was elusive with her past and refused to talk about certain things, but her personality was an open book. She was unapologetically Vi one hundred percent of the time.

It was inspiring, really. Comforting, too.

Vi had never judged Caitlyn, either- besides maybe just for the fact that she’s wealthy, but even then, it was usually her making digs at her parents. She’d never been cruel towards Caitlyn, never made her feel weird when she said something strange or out of line. She encouraged it all, usually with a smirk or a teasing comment that was in no way meant to belittle or scold Caitlyn for her behavior.

“I think you should get another tattoo.”

Caitlyn shakes herself from her thoughts and startles a little when she realizes Vi has snuck up behind her. She picks up her shirt and glances over her shoulder. “Oh yeah?”

Vi nods. “Yeah.”

“And what do you think it should be?”

Vi ponders for a second. “I mean, you already got a cupcake because of me. Might as well get my name, too.”

Caitlyn chokes on a laugh. “You’re not still trying to convince me to get a matching cheek tattoo, are you?”

“No, no. Not Vi. Violet,” Vi says, her voice suddenly becoming shy as she realizes what she’s just revealed. She scratches at the back of her head and avoids Caitlyn’s gaze. “That’s, uh- that’s what Vi is short for.”

Caitlyn smiles softly. “Violet,” she says gently, testing the name on her tongue. Vi glances up at her and Caitlyn swears that there’s a light blush across her cheeks. “And where would your name go?”

Vi hums, bringing a finger up to trace along Caitlyn’s collarbone. “Here, maybe?” she says, and suddenly Caitlyn can’t tell if she’s joking anymore. “Or here-” Vi reaches down to brush her fingers against the inside of Caitlyn’s forearm. Caitlyn doesn’t breathe as Vi’s brow wrinkles in concentration, still trailing her fingers along Caitlyn’s arm. “Could look pretty good.”

It’s scary how fast Caitlyn thinks she would do it if Vi asked her to.

It takes another heart-stopping moment before Vi composes herself, clearing her throat. She drops Caitlyn’s arm and looks back up at her, taking a step away. “Hell, might as well make it my whole face. Right there on your arm where everyone can see it.”

Caitlyn laughs and the tension breaks as she pulls her shirt on over her head. “You wish.”

“Then again, you’d have to go back into the sketchy part of town for that, and I don’t know if you have the guts,” Vi jokes.

“I’ll have you know that I did exceptionally well last time, thank you very much,” Caitlyn fires back.

“Yeah, only because I was there to-”

“Caitlyn?”

There are two knocks on the door before the door pushes open to reveal Caitlyn’s mother. Vi and Caitlyn both freeze where they’re standing.

Thank God Caitlyn put her shirt on when she did.

“Your father and I are running into town for-” her mother stops short when she sees Vi. “Oh. Vi. I didn’t realize you were here.” Her eyes flick to the still open window behind them and her lips purse as she puts two and two together.

“Yeah, I was just-” Vi scratches at the back of her head again- “dropping by to see Cait.”

Her eyes drift to Caitlyn, taking in the obvious marks on her neck that Vi so graciously left behind earlier. “So I see. You would do well to use the front door next time you decide to drop by, yes?”

Caitlyn can tell that Vi barely holds back a scoff. “Yeah, sure.”

Her mother’s eyes linger another tense second before she shifts her focus to Caitlyn. “As I was saying, we’re going out. Do you need us to pick anything up for you?”

Caitlyn shakes her head. “I’m alright,” she says. When her mother turns to leave with a nod, she changes her mind. “Oh, wait! Can you get some more of that lotion I like?”

Vi can’t hold back her reaction this time. She barks a loud laugh that has Caitlyn’s mother looking startled before she agrees to getting the lotion and quickly leaves the room. Caitlyn winks at Vi and heads back into the bathroom to finish drying her hair.

* * *

The party is already in full swing by the time Caitlyn and Vi arrive just before ten o’clock, music pumping loudly through the basement of the apartment complex they’ve found themselves in.

It’s packed- bodies dancing and grinding together on the makeshift dancefloor, people milling around the refreshment table off to one side of the room. Most of the people look somewhat similar to Vi: bright hair, tattoos covering their skin, an all-around dangerous look in their eyes.

Caitlyn shivers, but not from fear. She presses closer to Vi’s side and continues looking around the room with wide eyes.

“Welcome to the playground, cupcake,” Vi murmurs.

Vi leads them across the room to get drinks. Caitlyn starts pouring herself some punch from the big bowl in the middle, but Vi immediately stops her with a shake of her head, handing her a bottle of beer instead. It isn’t long before someone Vi knows finds them, jumping on Vi’s back from behind.

“Heya, sis!”

“Jesus, Powder,” Vi grunts, stumbling forward a couple of steps from the velocity of the girl’s attack. The girl only cackles, slipping off of Vi’s back. She turns her attention on Caitlyn, her long blue braids swaying slightly behind her as she pivots.

“So this is her, huh?” the girls asks, fixing Caitlyn with an oddly analytical look. “The little rich princess you’ve been hanging around with. Well, not little, I guess. You never told me she was eight feet tall, sis. You play volleyball or something, princess?”

The girl talks at such a speed that Caitlyn has trouble keeping up, her thought process moving at a rapid pace.

Vi grins, apparently accustomed to the girl’s way of speaking. “Caitlyn, meet Powder. Powder, Caitlyn,” she says, putting a hand on Powder’s shoulder. “Powder is my sister.”

Although Caitlyn is delighted to not only learn the Vi has a sister but to also meet said sister, Caitlyn tries to play it cool. She holds out a hand for Powder to shake. “A pleasure to meet you, Powder.”

Powder stares down at Caitlyn’s offered hand before narrowing her eyes and looking back up at her face. “If you hurt my sister, I’m gonna gut you like a fish.”

Caitlyn blinks, her hand falling to her side. She leans in, certain she hadn’t heard her right. “Come again?”

Powder huffs. “I said, if you hurt my sister, I’m gonna-”

“Alright,” Vi interrupts, putting two hands on Powder’s shoulders and stepping between them. “Hey, Pow, you know if Mylo and Claggor are here? Ekko?”

It’s as if a switch is flipped, Powder’s entire demeanor changing in a split second. She straightens up and turns to look around the room. “Oh, yeah! They’re here somewhere. I think Mylo was trying to do a keg stand? But he threw up. Or was that someone else? Either way someone threw up. Ekko was trying to- oh, right!”

Powder grabs Vi’s arm and starts dragging her through the crowd. Vi lets herself be pulled, snatching Caitlyn’s hand to ensure that she follows, too. They’re led to one corner of the room where a table is set up for a game of beer pong. A boy with dark skin and blond curls stands waiting on one side, leaning against the table and idly throwing a ping pong ball up and down in the air.

“There you are,” the boy says, fixing Powder with an impatient, if not amused, look. “Who takes ten minutes to get some water?”

“Sheesh, don’t get your panties in a twist,” Powder says, waltzing up to him and snatching the ping pong ball out of his hands. “I found some strays.”

The boy notices Vi and Caitlyn standing over Powder’s shoulder, then, and he grins at Vi. “Hey, I didn’t know you were coming tonight.”

Vi leans over to playfully punch his arm. “You know I can’t let you two go anywhere without supervision. Like, seriously. You’re actual children. How did you get in, anyways?”

He shrugs. “It’s Deckard,” he says by way of explanation.

Vi grunts. “Of course. Ekko, this is Caitlyn,” she says, putting a hand on the small of Caitlyn’s back and pushing her forward a bit.

Ekko smirks. “Yeah, I know.”

Caitlyn’s brow furrows as she tries to figure out how that is, but decides to ask later and gives Ekko a little wave. “Nice to meet you.”

They are all interrupted by a loud groan from Powder. “Are you guys finished yet?” she asks, leaning heavily against the table. I feel like I’ve been waiting to play this for like an hour.”

“It’s been two minutes,” Ekko says, stepping away from Vi and facing Powder. “You’re the one who left me here to fend for myself.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Powder says with a wave of her hand. She rounds the table and shoos away the two guys standing at the other end. “Get lost, bubs. I want to see how well Vi’s little girlfriend holds up.”

Caitlyn’s eyebrows raise in surprise. “I’m perfectly happy to watch,” she says, not wanting to cause any trouble.

“Come on, it’ll be fun, cupcake,” Vi says, pulling her to the end of the table by the wrist while the two guys walk away grumbling. “Have you ever played beer pong?”

Caitlyn shakes her head. “No, but I understand the basics of it. Land the ball in one of their cups, yes?”

Vi nods once in affirmation. “You got it.”

Powder appears by Caitlyn’s side and drops a ping pong ball in her hand. “I’ll allow you the honor of going first, since you are our guest in hell this evening.”

Caitlyn thanks her before sizing up the cups positioned on the other side of the table. Her eyes narrow slightly as she takes in the distance between them and calculates how much force she’ll need to get the ball in a cup.

Her concentration is almost broken when Vi leans against her side. “Now, it’s alright if you don’t get it on your first try, cupcake. This takes practice. If you’re not perfect, I’ll just pick up the slack. I promise that no one is expecting you to-”

Vi is interrupted in her assurances by Caitlyn’s ball landing squarely in one of Ekko and Powder’s cup.

“Oh, shit!” Ekko says, grinning. Powder starts laughing.

Caitlyn nods her head with a little huff, satisfied with herself. She turns to look at Vi and sees that her eyes are wide. “What?” she asks, a little smugly. “Is that not the objective of the game?”

“I thought you’d never played this before,” Vi says, still astonished.

Caitlyn winks, feeling emboldened. “I’m an excellent shot.”

Before Vi can say anything, a ping pong ball splashes into one of the cups on their side. They both look up to see Powder doing a victory dance.

“Looks like Powder finally has a worthy competitor,” Vi says with a grin, plucking the ball out of the cup and going to down the beer. Caitlyn stops her and takes the drink from her hand.

“You drove us here, remember?” Caitlyn reminds her at Vi’s questioning eyebrow. Vi huffs but acquiesces, lining up her first shot while Caitlyn throws back the beer like a shot. She grimaces at the taste and puts the cup to the side before noticing that Vi is staring at her. “Aren’t you going to take your turn?” she asks, gesturing to the table. “We have a game to win.”

Vi blinks herself out of whatever daze she was in and grins, a competitive look in her eye that Caitlyn has never seen before. “Let’s do this.”

*

As it turns out, Caitlyn is really good at beer pong. So good, in fact, that they’ve drawn a small crowd.

After narrowly beating Powder and Ekko – only because, according to Powder, Ekko was a “disappointment of a partner” – Caitlyn spends the next hour or so playing, team after team of challengers coming and going with Caitlyn beating them all. Vi plays for a couple more games until Powder shoves her aside, claiming that she’s missed too many shots and it’s painful to watch. From then on they’re pretty much unstoppable, winning each game by a landslide.

The thing about playing beer pong for an hour, though, is that you drink. A lot.

Even if Powder and Caitlyn win every game, their competitors still land a fair amount of shots, forcing them to split the drinks between the two of them. Assuming that Vi would appreciate her little sister not becoming completely trashed, Caitlyn ends up taking more than Powder, claiming that it’s helping her loosen up.

It loosens her up, that’s for sure. It loosens her up so much that she’s not sure how she’s still making shots.

She must be really good at this game.

When her vision starts to sway and her bladder begs her to take a break, Caitlyn finally calls it quits, relinquishing her end of the table for someone else to play. There’s some disappointment from the crowd, but some of them start to clap for her as she makes her leave, which kind of makes her feel like royalty.

Ha. Royalty. In a place like this. If these people knew that she actually lived like royalty, Caitlyn was certain they wouldn’t receive her so well.

After a trip to the bathroom that probably takes longer than it ought to, Caitlyn sets out to find Vi or Powder or anyone that she knows. She ends up getting sidetracked along the way, some blond guy with a bad haircut and way too much cologne on offering her a drink. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Cailyn knows that she’s already drank too much, knows that she shouldn’t accept drinks from strangers, but she can’t find Vi anywhere and this guy is patting the spot next to him on a couch, and she has been on her feet for ages-

So Caitlyn finds herself sitting between blondie and a girl with dark hair and even darker makeup, laughing so hard at a joke someone made that her sides hurt and tears prick the corners of her eyes.

Blondie slings an arm over the couch behind Caitlyn’s head and asks her a question, but the music is so loud and there are so many voices around her and her head is sort of swimming right now that she doesn’t really catch it. She leans in closer, trying to catch his words, but another voice entirely cuts through the haze of her mind.

“Deckard, you son of a bitch.”

Blondie jerks away from Caitlyn suddenly. Caitlyn blinks at the motion, sitting up straighter before realizing that was a mistake and slouching forward, forehead resting in her hand. The drink in her other hand is torn away and she distantly hears two voices arguing beside her, one of them becoming increasingly angrier.

She peeks over just in time to see Vi throwing Caitlyn’s drink at blondie. He stands, outraged, drenched, and shoves at Vi’s shoulders. Vi shoves him back, snapping something at him that makes his face twist in rage, but instead of fighting back he pushes his way past Vi, the people on the seats around them standing and following after him.

Caitlyn tries to blink, tries to clear her head. The lights here were dim when they walked in, right? Why did they seem so bright now?

A hand gently grips her arm, and that familiar voice is back, murmuring in her ear.

“Time to go, Caitlyn.”

Caitlyn doesn’t have it in her to protest, letting herself be pulled up off the couch and guided through the crowd of people. Vi’s arm is tight around her waist, keeping her close. She doesn’t stop to talk to anyone on the way, heading straight for the exit.

A countdown starts as they’re walking, the people around them shouting as the clock ticks down. The New Year strikes with cheers and bottles popping, streamers shooting all across the room, and Caitlyn can’t make herself be aware of any of it.

Vi’s arm only tightens around her body, shielding her from it all.

Caitlyn blinks and she’s sitting in Vi’s beaten down truck, head resting against the cool glass of the window. Vi’s knuckles are white on the steering wheel and her eyes are focused intently on the road ahead. Distantly, Caitlyn wonders if she did something wrong, but can’t latch onto the thought for long before her heavy eyes are closing again.

She opens her eyes and Vi is easing her out of the truck, slinging one of Caitlyn’s arms around her shoulder and slowly making her way inside a new building. This one is quieter, though there are still many people around. The lights are easier on her eyes and the air isn’t as stuffy as it was at the party. Her legs feel like jelly and she leans heavily into Vi’s side.

One more blink and she feels herself being tucked into a bed. Her shoes and pants are off (when did that happen?) and the blankets feel like absolute heaven, so she allows herself to sink into the soft mattress. A hand rests on her head, thumb brushing against her hairline, and Vi crouches down next to the bed.

“I’m sorry,” Vi murmurs, so soft that Caitlyn almost misses it. “I should have never left you. I-” Vi’s thumb pauses its movements as Vi pauses and looks away. Caitlyn distantly thinks that she misses the color of Vi’s eyes. Vi looks back a moment later. “Get some sleep, cupcake.”

A kiss is pressed to her forehead as Vi stands up. She moves to walk away, but Caitlyn’s hand shoots out to grab her arm without her brain telling it to do so.

Vi looks back at her, surprise and concern equally visible on her face.

“Stay,” Caitlyn says. Her voice sounds far away.

Vi looks like she’s going to deny her request, but instead she softens and gives her the smallest of nods. She quickly kicks off her shoes and pulls off her pants before sliding under the covers, leaving too much space between the two of them. Caitlyn makes a noise of protest and rolls until she’s curled into Vi, face pressed against her chest. Her heartbeat is strong, and she smells just like herself even after being surrounded by people all night.

It takes another moment before Vi’s arms come around her, holding Caitlyn closer than she probably means to. Another kiss is dropped onto her forehead and Caitlyn thinks Vi says something else, but she’s already too far gone to make out what it is, her eyes falling shut one last time.

* * *

Caitlyn wakes up the next morning to warm rays of sunlight and a splitting headache. She lets out a groan and rolls over, pulling a pillow over her head to block out the light. When she feels like she’s prepared herself enough for the brightness, she peeks out from under the pillow and is surprised to find that she is not in her bedroom. She sits up with a grunt, her stiff muscles protesting the movement.

“There’s some ibuprofen on the bedside table.”

Caitlyn blinks up to see Vi in the kitchen on the other side of the room, clad only in boxers and a black t-shirt. Vi doesn’t make eye contact with her, gesturing to the bedside table before turning back to whatever she’s cooking.

“What time is it?” Caitlyn croaks out. She reaches over and pops two of the painkillers into her mouth, chugging half the glass of water left out for her as well. The cool liquid slides down her throat, making her feel a little more human.

“Almost noon.”

“Shit,” Caitlyn breathes, grabbing her phone from the bedside table as well. She squints at it, sees the dozens of notifications from her parents, Jayce, Mel, and Viktor and decides not to bother with them for the moment, tossing her phone onto the bed.

Vi still isn’t looking at her, which makes Caitlyn feel uneasy. She decides to brave getting out of bed, swinging her feet over the side and pushing herself to stand slowly. Once she decides she is not going to throw up all over Vi’s, floor she steadily makes her way over to sit at the table.

Still focused on her task, Vi pulls out a plate and dishes out what Caitlyn can now see as scrambled eggs onto it. She butters a slice of toast and puts that on the plate, too, before sliding the plate onto the table in front of Caitlyn, passing her a fork as well. Caitlyn watches all of this silently, whispering a faint ‘thank you’ at the offered food before digging in, not having realized how hungry she was.

She eats in silence while Vi does the dishes. As soon as her plate is empty, Vi is there to clear it away and clean that, as well.

It’s all very weird. Very unlike Vi.

Caitlyn rests her chin in one hand and fixes her eyes on Vi. “So are you going to tell me what’s bothering you, or am I going to have to start guessing?”

Vi’s shoulders stiffen and her movements halt as she’s washing Caitlyn’s plate. She holds the tension there for a minute before releasing it with a long sigh. She turns off the faucet and grabs a towel to dry her hands before making her way to the table and slumping down into one of the seats, looking right at Caitlyn for the first time that morning.

“What do you remember from last night?”

Caitlyn’s brow furrows as she tries to remember. It’s harder than she expected it to be. “Um, we got there and met Powder and Ekko, then I played beer pong for a while and…” she trails off, thinking. “I think I went to the bathroom? And then a guy came up to me and… oh.”

Vi isn’t looking at her again. “Oh,” she echoes.

“Did I… do anything? While I was-”

“No, god no,” Vi says quickly, looking back up at her. “I got there before you could. Deckard, that bastard, slipped something in your drink, said that it was to get you to relax.” Vi scowled and clenched her hand into a fist on the table. “Fuck, I should have never left you alone. It was my fault, I should’ve been there to look out for you. I should’ve-”

“Hey,” Caitlyn interrupts, reaching out to touch Vi’s hand. She works on loosening Vi’s fist until the tension is gone. “You were there, okay? You were there when it mattered. That’s the important part, okay?” She squeezes Vi’s hand once and tries for a teasing grin. “It’s not like I needed a babysitter or anything.”

Vi snorts. “Obviously you did, cupcake. Next time I’m putting a monkey chain on you. Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to take drinks from strangers?”

“Violet, before last night I’d never even played beer pong. What do you think?”

Vi breathes out a laugh, albeit a shaky one, her anxiety seeming to melt away for the time being. A light blush colors her cheeks at the use of her name, but she doesn't protest it. She brings Caitlyn’s hand to her lips and presses kisses to each knuckle, Caitlyn’s heart fluttering with the gentleness of each one. The last kiss lingers, Vi holding her hand there for a moment longer. “Sorry I’m such a shit girlfriend,” she says, voice muffled by Caitlyn’s hand.

Caitlyn laughs and turns her hand so that she can cup Vi’s face instead. Vi turns her head and leaves a kiss on her palm, too.

“Oh, darling,” Caitlyn says fondly, thumb brushing across Vi’s cheekbone. “I think you’re doing better than you think.”

Chapter Text

Caitlyn can’t stop tapping her thumb.

There’s an open book in her lap, one that she’s been wanting to read for a while now, but she can’t force her eyes to focus on a single word of it. The anxiety she’s feeling is close to spilling out, rising from her chest in a slow but steady tidal wave. She resists the urge to start pacing.

Her thumb continues its tapping on the cover of her book.

Tap.

Should she?

Tap.

No, she shouldn’t.

Tap.

But she’d said-

“Cupcake, if you keep tapping like that, you’re going to wear a hole through your book.”

Vi’s mumbled words pull Caitlyn out of her thoughts. She looks over at where Vi is laying on her stomach on the other side of the bed, face smushed against one of Caitlyn’s pillows as she peers sleepily up at her. Her bare back is exposed, the sports bra and boxers she’s wearing leaving plenty of skin for Caitlyn to admire. Caitlyn herself has on the flannel Vi was wearing earlier and not much else, only pulling the shirt on to combat the chill coming from the open window of her room, Vi once again neglecting to close it after climbing through.

Caitlyn stops tapping her thumb with a muttered apology.

“You only fidget like that when you’re nervous about something,” Vi says. “Something on your mind?”

Caitlyn sniffs and lifts her chin haughtily. “I do not.”

Vi raises an eyebrow at her.

“Alright, maybe I do,” Caitlyn relents. “But I’m not nervous about anything.” Vi chuckles lowly, voice still gravelly from her nap. The sound raises goosebumps on Caitlyn’s arms, which she chooses to blame on the open window.

“Come on, cupcake,” Vi says, sliding across the bed and slinging an arm around Caitlyn’s legs. Her warmth is a welcome familiarity at this point, but Caitlyn doesn’t allow herself to sink completely into the feeling, not even when Vi pushes her flannel up slightly to nuzzle into the skin of her hip. “Tell me what you’re thinking about. Maybe I can help.”

This new side of Vi has been one that Caitlyn could have never anticipated. It’s been three days since the New Year’s Eve party, and Vi has come to see her each one of those days- a far cry from the sporadic, maybe once a week visits that Caitlyn had become accustomed to. In those three days, Vi has been… softer. More observant. Almost protective in some ways. As if she’s still trying to make up for what happened at the party, despite Caitlyn’s numerous reassurances that she was alright and that none of it was Vi’s fault.

Still, Caitlyn couldn’t say that she minded the extra attention all that much.

Vi presses a kiss to a sharp hipbone at Caitlyn’s continued silence. “Maybe I didn’t tire you out enough earlier,” she jokes, the kiss turning into a playful bite. Caitlyn can’t help but laugh and push at Vi’s forehead at the attack. “Maybe I ought to fix that. Turn off that big brain of yours.”

The hand pushing at Vi’s forehead switches to petting instead, Caitlyn’s fingers stroking through soft pink locks that are longer than they normally are. Vi closes her eyes and leans into the contact. Caitlyn continues her gentle movements for a little while, Vi’s non-threat to turn off her brain falling to the wayside in favor of maintaining the peace they’ve found.

“It’s my birthday tomorrow.”

Caitlyn admits this in a soft voice, eyes remained dutifully on sorting out a tangle in Vi’s unruly hair. Vi freezes with her face pressed against Caitlyn’s side before she pushes herself to a sitting position to look Caitlyn square in the eyes. “You’re kidding.”

“I am not,” Caitlyn hums.

The corner of Vi’s mouth quirks up. “Is that what you were so nervous to tell me?”

Caitlyn sighs and slumps down more into her pillows, hands leaving Vi’s hair in favor of drumming her fingers across the cover of her book. “Partly.” Her fingers continue their drumming, and she glances at Vi out of the corner of her eye. “You’d mentioned that the next time my parents held a party I should tell you about it… in case you might be interested in attending. If that is still the case, I should feel obligated to inform you that my birthday party is tomorrow evening. You are under no obligation to attend, of course, and I should warn you that the whole event will be incredibly over the top, and you would most likely hate every minute of it-”

“Cait.”

Vi interrupts her rambling, a playful spark in her eye. Caitlyn’s mouth snaps shut.

“Aren’t you going to ask me?” Vi asks, nudging her knee with a hand. “You know, properly.”

Caitlyn looks at Vi in surprise. Was she really interested in going? Caitlyn wasn’t even interested in going. She shakes the thought away, figuring she might as well take the opportunity presented to her.

She sits up and squares her shoulders. “Vi,” she says evenly, formally. “Would you like to come to my birthday party?”

Vi pretends to think about it, face screwed up in what Caitlyn supposes is her ‘thinking face.’ With one eye shut and her nose all scrunched up, Caitlyn concludes that the expression is more cute than thoughtful.

“I guess I could drop by,” Vi answers at last. She winks coyly. “Since you asked me so nicely and all.”

Caitlyn scoffs but feels the remaining nerves in her body dissipate. “Shut up,” she mumbles with a small grin. She moves to push weakly at Vi’s shoulder, only for Vi for intercept her hand and start pressing kisses along the inside of her wrist. Caitlyn’s heart flutters. Again with the affection. After a moment spent composing herself, Caitlyn clears her throat and lifts her chin a little. “I expect you to dress nicely to my party, you know. I don’t want you showing up looking like you’ve just rolled out of bed.”

Vi stops her assault on Caitlyn’s arm to look back up at her. “What, you don’t like this look?” she asks, gesturing down to her state of dress- of undress, really.

Caitlyn takes the opportunity to rake her eyes down Vi’s form, not for the first time appreciating the hard lines and edges that make up the muscles of Vi’s body. Broad shoulders, prominent abs, strong thighs… Caitlyn can’t help the smirk that crosses her face. “You’re mistaken, darling, I very much like this look. Just,” her eyes flit up to see the blush now coloring Vi’s cheeks, “maybe it can be more of an after-party kind of look.”

Still blushing, Vi grins and shakes her head incredulously. “You’re gonna be the death of me one of these days, you know that?” Caitlyn only laughs and pulls on Vi’s shoulders, urging her to lay down with her again. Vi complies easily, resting her head on Caitlyn’s chest and wrapping her arms around her waist while Caitlyn resumes playing with her hair.

They lay in comfortable silence like before, without Caitlyn’s tapping thumb fingers this time. She strokes through Vi’s hair, half convinced that the other girl has fallen asleep again until she hums happily when Caitlyn scratches at a spot behind her ear.

“Your hair is getting so long,” Caitlyn comments.

“You want to cut it for me, cupcake?” Vi asks. She lifts her head to look at Caitlyn. “You know, so I can look nice for your party.”

Caitlyn raises her eyebrows in surprise. “You’d trust me to do that?”

Vi shrugs. “Sure, just don’t cut off my ears or anything.”

Caitlyn smiles wide and ushers Vi off her and into her bathroom. She instructs Vi to get her hair wet before heading out of the room and down the hallway, grateful that neither of her parents are home as she gathers scissors, hair clippers, and a stool for Vi to sit on. When she returns to her room with her haul, she finds Vi standing awkwardly in the middle of the bathroom, hair drenched and still shirtless.

“Honestly Vi, you’re dripping all over the place,” Caitlyn chastises her. Vi smirks like she’s about to make a joke, but Caitlyn stops her before she gets the chance. “Don’t even.” She places the stool in front of the mirror above the sink and points at it. “Sit.”

Vi does as she’s told, plopping down on the stool and pushing a hand through her wet hair in an attempt to get it out of her face. Caitlyn comes up behind her a moment later and begins towel-drying her hair, rubbing the towel all over Vi’s head while Vi grunts in protest. When Vi’s hair is an acceptable level of damp, Caitlyn gives a firm nod and grabs her scissors.

“Is there any specific way you do this?” she asks. Vi shakes her head.

“Not really. When Powder does is she usually just-” Vi makes a cutting motion with her fingers- “chops away.”

Caitlyn narrows her eyes in concentration, focusing on the longer pieces of hair first. She raises her scissors and carefully snips a piece off, watching it flutter to the floor. Figuring this was as good as any place to start, Caitlyn starts chopping, growing more and more confident with each lock of pink hair that covers the bathroom tile.

It’s silent for a while, only the sound of Cailyn’s scissors snipping away filling the bathroom. Vi’s eyes stay focused on herself in the mirror, watching as her hair gets shorter and shorter.

“So, you said that Powder normally cuts your hair?”

Vi blinks, as if she’s surprised to hear Caitlyn’s voice. “Uh, yeah. She always liked to mess with it when we were kids- liked to braid it and cut it and all that shit. I never really minded since it made her happy. When I got out of the slammer, she just started cutting it again like she’d never stopped.”

Caitlyn keeps her attention on the back of Vi’s head. “I don’t know how you can trust your little sister with your hair like that,” she says, no judgement in her tone. “I certainly wouldn’t.” She lifts a piece of hair and snips off the end. “If I had siblings, that is.”

“Yeah, well. I guess we were kind of forced to rely on each other after our parents died.”

Caitlyn glances up at Vi’s face through the mirror, finding Vi’s eyes now trained firmly on the sink.

This was uncharted territory. So far throughout their arrangement, Vi has shown little to no willingness on opening up to Cailyn about any part of her past, and Caitlyn wants Vi to know that she can trust her, can tell her about these kinds of things.

She had to tread carefully.

“How old were you? When you lost your parents.” Caitlyn asks her question as disarming as possible, her expression carefully neutral. She continues cutting Vi’s hair.

Vi takes a moment to answer. “Twelve. Powder was eight,” she finally says, voice quiet. “Car crash.”

Caitlyn drops one hands to squeeze Vi’s shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

Vi shrugs. “It was a long time ago,” she says, tone lightening slightly. Her gaze remains anywhere but the mirror. “Vander took us in after that, gave us a place to stay, eventually became our legal guardian. It was hard, but we had it good… at least for a while.”

Caitlyn chooses to say nothing this time, wanting Vi to continue but unwilling to force her to do so.

“Things started getting hard again when I was high school,” Vi says, a distant look in her eyes. Caitlyn finds herself unable to look away. “After the accident, Powder was never quite the same. It always felt like her mind was somewhere else, somewhere far away. Junior year it started getting worse. She’d start… talking. To no one in the room. People that I couldn’t see. Talking to kids that would make fun of her at school, people she’d made up. Hell, I even heard her talking to our parents a few times.”

Vi’s throat bobs against a swallow. “And then of course I was a piece of shit and started getting into trouble around the same time, which didn’t make things easier on anyone. By the time I got locked up, I’m pretty sure Vander was glad to have at least one of us out of his hair.”

“I’m sure that’s not true,” Caitlyn says, squeezing Vi’s shoulder again. “I’m sure he never felt that way.”

Vi flashes a despondent smile. “Either way, Vander was able to get Powder the help she needed while I was away. It took a while to get used to each other again, but we’re in a good place again, I think. One that I hope lasts this time.”

A genuine smile starts to drift onto Vi’s face, which in turn makes Caitlyn smile. “Well, I thought your sister was lovely when I met her,” she says, setting down the scissors and picking up the clippers. They buzz to life in her hand, humming softly. Caitlyn’s tone turns slightly teasing. “She came off a little strong at first, but I suppose that’s a family trait.”

That earns a chuckle out of Vi. “Yeah, she can get kind of intense, but she’s pretty great. She’s so smart, too- like, scary smart. She could definitely go to some prestigious college or some shit next year if we can pay for it. But, you know, she’s honestly fine going wherever as long as they can teach her something she doesn’t already know.”

Caitlyn grins fondly at the image of Powder sitting in a large university class, bright blue hair in twin braids as she stumps her professor with questions that no one else would ever think to ask, and starts buzzing the left side of Vi’s head. When she’s fairly certain she’s gotten it all trimmed evenly, she turns off the clippers and looks in the mirror to check her handiwork, surprised to find Vi watching her carefully. Her expression is a little guarded, a little timid, as if worried she’s shared too much of herself with Caitlyn.

Which is absurd, because Caitlyn doesn’t think she’ll ever get tired of learning more about Vi. Of piecing together more of her puzzle.

“How does it look?” she asks, gesturing to Vi’s hair. Vi tears her eyes from Caitlyn’s face and looks at herself in the mirror for the first time in a while, investigating the short cut with tilts of her head.

“I think you ought to quit the student gig. Become a hairdresser instead.”

Caitlyn shushes her through a laugh and swats lightly at Vi’s shoulder, relieved to feel Vi’s easy-going energy returning. She runs her hands through Vi’s nearly dry hair just to mess it up, gently fisting it and tipping Vi’s head back so that it rests against her stomach.

Vi looks up at Caitlyn upside down. “Thank you,” she whispers, and Caitlyn knows she’s not talking about the haircut.

Caitlyn leans down and kisses Vi on the forehead. “Thank you,” she replies. “For trusting me.”

* * *

Caitlyn’s birthday party is a smaller affair than her parent’s annual Christmas party. It’s more humble, more personalized to Caitlyn’s tastes, and is typically a shorter event.

Unfortunately, these changes are slight.

The entire great room, which is essentially a ballroom in all but name, is decked to the nines, festive yet elegant decorations lining the walls and framing the windows. Unlimited drinks are provided by a handful of servers roaming the room, offering a refill as soon as they spot an emptying glass. The guests are nearly entirely comprised of associates of Caitlyn’s parents, along with the few friends that Caitlyn personally invited.

It is, all around, an odiously gaudy event.

Caitlyn’s only consolation is that she got to pick the snacks.

She’s stuffing her face with expensive cheese when Jayce finds her.

“Save some for the rest of us, won’t you?”

Caitlyn scowls and sticks another cheese cube and cracker combo in her mouth. “I have to eat something to keep the alcohol down,” she mumbles, taking a swig of the wine in her hand for good measure.

Jayce chuckles but doesn’t make any further comments, used to Caitlyn’s preferred method of coping with the events her parents throw. He grabs a cracker for himself and stands next to Caitlyn as they survey the crowd.

Most of the people in attendance truly are just friends or associates of her parents, and the few she does know she only knows because they’ve been attending her family’s parties for years. The vast majority of them are strangers, though, and she will surely spend most of her night listening to them pretend as if they’ve known her for years.

Mel saunters over to them, looking as beautiful as always in an elegant black dress with gold accents. Viktor trails behind, never one for social events but making the effort for Caitlyn nonetheless. She smiles at both of them as they approach.

“And here I thought you’d leave me alone with Jayce all night,” she jokes.

Mel laughs easily. “I’d never subject you to such torture, my dear,” she says, snatching the cracker from Jayce’s fingers despite his protests.

They chat for a bit, commenting on the décor and guests and music. Caitlyn knows to savor these precious few minutes with her friends before she’s whisked away by her mother to talk to some politician or entrepreneur or other. Jayce offers to act as a bodyguard of sorts for the evening, puffing out his chest and standing in front of Caitlyn to ward off unwanted guest interaction. Caitlyn is laughing at his antics when he sees the last person she personally requested to be here walk through the door.

When Caitlyn had told Vi to dress nicely, she had mostly been joking. After all, the worse she dressed the more Caitlyn’s parents would be rolling their eyes for the entire night. Plus, Caitlyn thought Vi looked good in just about everything she wore, no matter how casual or trashy.

When Caitlyn had told Vi to dress nicely, she never expected that Vi would clean up this well.

Vi didn’t have the elegance of Mel, or the expensive suits of Jayce, or even the simplistic charm of Viktor, but she did have a natural swagger that instantly drew Caitlyn’s eyes toward her whenever she walked into a room.

She was also hot as hell, but that was a thought that Caitlyn would keep to herself.

Vi’s newly cut hair is smoothed back, more tamed than Caitlyn has ever seen it before. She’s wearing a simple white button-down, top button undone and sleeves rolled up to expose her forearms, and a skinny black tie that hangs loose around her neck. And she’s wearing honest to God slacks- not black jeans, not sweats, slacks. And they hug her legs so well it should be illegal, and her ass looks-

“Excuse me,” Caitlyn says suddenly. She sets her wine down on the refreshment table and places a hand on Jayce’s shoulder as she slides past him, making a beeline for Vi.

Vi has this wide-eyed look on her face, jaw slightly slack as she takes in the great room. She spots Caitlyn and immediate relief fills her expression.

“When you said this thing would be over the top, you really weren’t joking, huh?” she asks, sounding equal parts amazed and disgusted.

Caitlyn goes for a casual shrug. “I tried to warn you,” she says. It’s then that she notices the box in her hand. “What’s that?”

“Oh.” Vi glances at the box as if she’d forgotten she was holding it. “Your present.” Her expression turns sheepish as she starts to rush through her words a little. “I wasn’t really sure what to get you, since you kind of already have everything, but I figured that I needed to show up with something ‘cause that’s what people do at birthday parties.”

Caitlyn bites her lip against a smile. Flustered Vi was rare, but it was always an endearing sight to behold. “Vi?” she says, interrupting Vi’s ramble. Vi snaps her mouth shut and looks at Caitlyn with wide eyes. “Are you going to let me open it?”

“Oh, yeah! Yeah, totally.” Vi hurriedly pushes the box into Caitlyn arms. “Knock yourself out.”

Caitlyn chuckles as she works on untying the ribbons holding the lid down on the box. When she lifts the lid to peek inside, she can’t help the amused snort that escapes her. “You really are pleased with my nickname, aren’t you?”

Vi ducks her head and scuffs a foot against the ground, cheeks a little red. “I thought it was fitting.”

Inside the box sits a single cupcake, chocolate with purple frosting stacked high. The frosting leans slightly to one side, drooping against its own weight. The sight makes Caitlyn smile.

“Powder helped me decorate it,” Vi admits. “So if it looks like shit you can blame her. Should taste alright, though.”

Caitlyn looks away from the cupcake and back at Vi. “It’s perfect,” she tells her, closing the lid and leaning over to give Vi a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you.”

“Happy birthday, cupcake,” Vi says, still sounding uncharacteristically shy.

Out of the corner of her eye, Caitlyn sees her parents, watching their interaction carefully, and is reminded of the reason she and Vi started this whole thing in the first place.

Control. Or was it just late onset teenage rebellion? Both, maybe?

This entire party wasn’t Caitlyn’s idea. She didn’t ask for any of this. But Vi- Vi was her choice. Vi was something that her parents couldn’t control. Vi was something that was in Caitlyn’s control.

Feeling a sudden rush of contempt, Caitlyn cups Vi’s cheek and pulls her in for a full kiss. Vi makes a noise of surprise but doesn’t object, allowing Caitlyn to deepen the kiss almost immediately. She rakes a hand through Vi’s hair, slightly mussing it from its slicked back style. When she finally pulls back from the kiss, Vi still looks surprised.

“Not that I didn’t enjoy that, but it was just a cupcake, Cait,” Vi jokes, a smirk tugging at her lips. “Nothing to get too excited about.”

Right. The cupcake. Vi’s present. She blinks. “I just- I’m just really glad you’re here,” Caitlyn says, truthfully.

Vi grins too softly. “I’m glad I’m here, too,” she says, too genuinely.

Caitlyn turns quickly away from Vi and catches the attention of a passing server, instructing them to take Vi’s present to the kitchen. She doesn’t want it getting mixed up with the rest of the presents. Then, she grabs Vi’s hand and tugs her through the crowd to where her friends are waiting.

“I wasn’t entirely certain you’d be in attendance tonight, Vi.”

Shit.

Caitlyn halts in her steps and turns to face her parents, hand tightening around Vi’s. “I told you at least a dozen times that she would be coming, Mother,” she says.

Her mother lifts her chin and inspects Vi. “I suppose you did,” she says.

Her father smiles kindly at Vi. “You look rather dashing tonight, Vi.”

Vi’s eyebrows lift in shock. “Oh, uh, thanks,” she says, somewhat awkwardly. She tugs at the front of her shirt. “You can find some surprisingly decent stuff in discount sections.”

Caitlyn’s father laughs, and Caitlyn can’t quite tell if he can tell that Vi isn’t joking.

“We were just on our way to talk with Jayce,” Caitlyn says, hoping that they get the hint and let them leave. Luck seems to be on their side when her mother nods.

“Alright, I won’t keep you,” she says. She directs her attention to Vi when she says the next part. “I expect you will both be on your best behavior tonight, yes?”

Caitlyn resists the urge to outwardly roll her eyes. “I assure you that we won’t do anything to jeopardize my birthday,” she says, already pulling on Vi’s hand to get her to move again. Her mother calls something after them as they walk away, but between the music and the people chatting around them she doesn’t catch what it is.

Vi catches up so that she’s walking beside her instead of behind. She has a grin on her face. “I’m dashing,” she says, doing a terrible impression of Caitlyn’s father.

Caitlyn laughs loudly, letting go of Vi’s hand to instead curl a hand around Vi’s arm. She squeezes and feels Vi flex her bicep in response. “Yes you are, darling.”

* * *

Caitlyn wonders if she has the power to call it quits at her own birthday party.

Survey says: no. No she does not.

She’d succumbed to her inevitable social duties after a short half hour with her friends, having been pulled away by her mother insisting that she meet someone she worked with. Vi had looked slightly panicked as she’d walked away, obviously not wanting to be left alone with the likes of Jayce and Mel, but Caitlyn had only been able to offer her a sympathetic grimace before being lost in the crowd.

Meeting with one person had turned into two, then three, and now, two hours later, Caitlyn is seriously questioning the merits of holding her breath until she passes out.

The business executive her mother is talking to – she thinks his name was Wesley? – says something that Caitlyn knows he means to be charming but falls flat, but she laughs anyway because she knows that’s what she’s supposed to do. She lets her eyes wander the room as her mother carries on the conversation easily, trying to find Vi among the mingling bodies. Last she saw her she’d been tucked away in some corner with Viktor, which Caitlyn supposes could be worse. Out of all her friends, Caitlyn always thought that Vi might tolerate Viktor the most.

“Caitlyn?”

Caitlyn’s attention snaps back to the conversation at hand. Wesley and her mother are both starting expectantly at her. “I’m sorry, I must have spaced off,” she says, tone apologetic. “It’s been a long night. What were you saying?”

Luckily, Wesley doesn’t seem entirely offended. “Quite alright,” he says. “I’m sure everyone has been lining up to talk to the birthday girl.” Caitlyn chuckles politely and resists the urge to let her eyes drift away again. “I was just asking about your intentions after you graduate.”

This question again. Caitlyn replies with her practiced response. “I already have a job lined up at the police academy starting this summer. I’ll be working as an investigator there.”

“Ah, you must have a keen eye and an attention for detail, then,” Wesley comments.

The corner of Caitlyn’s mouth quirks up. “I do,” she replies.

“Caitlyn has always been observant,” her mother supplies. “I’m convinced she started recognizing patterns far quicker than her classmates in preschool did.”

That earns a laugh from Wesley and a genuine smile from Caitlyn, though she scoffs and shakes her head out of modesty.

“And what about relationships?” Wesley asks. Damn, Caitlyn was almost starting to like him. “A young, pretty thing like yourself must have suitors beating down your door.”

Caitlyn stiffens at the compliment but tries not to let her discomfort show. “I have a girlfriend, actually,” she replies, craning her neck in hopes of spotting Vi again. “She’s around here somewhere.”

Wesley looks as if he’s going to say something, but Caitlyn’s mother jumps in before she can. “It’s nothing serious, however. You know how young people are; you have to do some searching before you find the right fit.”

Caitlyn looks at her mother in disbelief. Sure, she and Vi weren’t actually dating, but for all intents and purposes around Caitlyn’s parents they were very much a couple. “Excuse me?” is all she can manage to say.

“Oh, come now, Caitlyn,” her mother says, completely unbothered. “I know that it may be fun to date the rebel for a little while, but I’m sure soon enough you’ll grow tired of her and move onto someone more appropriate for you.” She casually plucks a piece of lint from her jacket. “Someone with aspirations. A future.”

Her mother’s words turn into white noise in Caitlyn’s ears as she continues talking, oblivious to the rage growing within Caitlyn.

She and Vi weren’t dating. Caitlyn knows that. Yet how unfair would it be to her if they actually were? If Caitlyn were allowed to think of a future with Vi; a future where they could wake up together every morning and come home to each other every night. Where Vi made her laugh over meals, watching shows, while they were tangled up between bedsheets. A world where they both desired to create a life together.

How unfair would it be for her mother to discredit all that with a wave of her hand and a claim that Caitlyn simply didn’t know what she wanted yet.

And worse yet, Caitlyn wasn’t sure where the line between what she pretended to want and what she actually wanted was anymore.

Caitlyn shoves her drink into Wesley’s hand, excusing herself between gritted teeth before she starts walking briskly away. She hears her mother call her name as she leaves, but Caitlyn doesn’t pay her any attention. Her father tries to say something as she passes by him, but she ignores him as well, eyes finally locking on to the only person she’s been thinking of all night, leaning casually against the wall near the entrance.

Vi’s grin at seeing her approach immediately turns into concern as she takes in Caitlyn’s distress. “Cait? You okay?”

Caitlyn doesn’t grace her with a response, instead grabbing her tie and using it to pull Vi close so that she can smash their lips together.

The kiss is intense from the start, Caitlyn trying to work out all the anger and confusion she’s feeling with Vi’s lips pressed against her own. Her hands cling to Vi’s shoulders, nails digging into the fabric of her shirt as her teeth bite down harshly on Vi’s lower lip. Vi grunts in pain and Caitlyn realizes she’s bitten too hard, but she can’t stop herself. Not now. Not when kissing Vi makes so much sense.

“Cupcake,” Vi tries to say, the word muffled against Caitlyn’s lips. Caitlyn just shakes her head and kisses her harder, slipping her tongue into Vi’s mouth. It takes another few moments for Vi to try again. “Caitlyn.” This time hands accompany the word, pushing at Caitlyn’s hips until she’s forced to take a step back.

Caitlyn is breathing hard as Vi holds her at arm’s length. She can feel eyes on the back of her head, people pretending like they’re not staring at the display, but she ignores them.

Vi is panting, too, but seems considerably calmer than Caitlyn feels. “Caitlyn,” she says again, gentler. Caitlyn wishes she wouldn’t be so gentle. “What happened.”

Caitlyn shakes her head. “Nothing,” she says, leaning back in to kiss at Vi’s jawline, up to her ear. “I want you,” she whispers, biting at the lobe of Vi’s ear. “Let’s just go upstairs. Forget the party. Just… just-”

She feels Vi shiver against her. “Fuck,” she breathes, hands clutching tighter at Caitlyn’s hips. For a second, Caitlyn thinks she’s going to get her way, but then Vi is pushing her back again, with more conviction than before. She looks Caitlyn right in the eye, coming to a decision. “Let’s get out of here.”

A strong hand grips her own as Vi leads them out of the room, the murmuring of the party guests echoing in Caitlyn’s ears as they walk through the halls. It becomes obvious very soon that Vi isn’t leading them to Caitlyn’s bedroom, but at this point Caitlyn is too exhausted to care. She’s just glad that she’s away from everything.

They end up in the kitchen, thankfully empty of the catering staff for the time being. Vi sits her down on a barstool and leaves her to grab something from the other end of the room. Caitlyn doesn’t pay her any attention, choosing to lean on the counter and rest her chin on her crossed arms. When Vi returns, settling onto the stool beside Caitlyn, she has a familiar box in her hands.

Caitlyn raises a questioning eyebrow.

“Might as well eat your birthday present on your birthday,” Vi says, extracting the cupcake from its box and setting it on the counter. “Even if it’s turning out to be a kind of shitty one.”

They split the cupcake at Caitlyn’s insistence. Vi tears it in half has best as she can, leaving them with two uneven pieces. She gives the bigger half to Caitlyn without a word.

“So do you want to talk about what happened?” Vi asks through a mouthful of chocolate and frosting.

Caitlyn shrugs and idly swipes some of the frosting off the top of its massive tower with a finger. “It really wasn’t a big deal,” she mumbles. “I was just overreacting. It doesn’t matter.”

“Well if it upset you then it obviously matters,” Vi counters.

Caitlyn sighs and licks her finger clean as she thinks. “Just more of the same, I suppose. My mother always thinks she understands me when she really doesn’t. Talking about how I don’t know what’s best for myself. Telling people that my relationship- our relationship isn’t serious.” Caitlyn struggles to put her thoughts into words, and Vi lets her work through them, as patient as always.

That patience only confuses and frustrates Caitlyn more. “And I know it’s ridiculous to get defensive and worked up over a relationship that isn’t even real. I know it is. But I just can’t- it’s infuriating that-” Caitlyn cuts herself off with a huff and suddenly pivots to face Vi. “You know that I appreciate you doing this for me, right? Not even because it gets a rise out of my mother, but because I feel as though I’m thinking for myself for the first time in my life. You just… you make me feel that way.” She finishes her spiel with a tentative smile. “So thank you. I consider you a great friend for that.”

Her voice catches on the word ‘friend,’ but if Vi notices she doesn’t comment.

And there’s that look again; that too soft look in Vi’s eyes that Caitlyn feels like she’s done nothing to deserve.

“What else are friends for if not to fuck you until you can’t walk and give you cupcakes on your birthday?”

And the soft look is gone, replaced by that damned troublesome smirk that Caitlyn is more used to.

Caitlyn laughs despite herself, reaching over to swat at Vi’s arm. “Must you be so crass?” she asks through breathless giggles.

Vi is laughing, too, a wicked gleam in her eye. “The mood in here was too serious. I had to ease the tension.” She takes a big bite of her cupcake, smearing purple frosting on the tip of her nose. Caitlyn smiles fondly and uses her thumb to wipe the frosting off, laughing again when Vi insists on licking it from her thumb herself.

Maybe this birthday didn’t turn out so bad after all.

Chapter Text

Mornings were famously not Vi’s favorite time of day.

More often than not, Vi worked late shifts, which meant that she needed to get all the sleep she could whenever she was able to. Early mornings were overrated, anyway, what with the light always shining in through seemingly every single window in the room, the birds chirping incessantly outside. It’s not like sunrises were even that great of a view.

The view in front of her right now, however, made Vi think that she should reconsider her viewpoints on mornings entirely.

Caitlyn putters around the room, unable to relax in bed for too long without feeling antsy. She brushes aimlessly through her hair, eyes glued to the open textbook sitting on the vanity in front of her. School had started up for her again, and Vi was quickly learning that Caitlyn was not one to slack off in her studies.

And apparently, being studious at eight o’clock in the morning did not warrant being fully dressed.

Truthfully, Vi had never been in a serious relationship before. As pathetic as it seemed, her relationship with Caitlyn was the longest standing one to date, regardless of if it was real or not. So Vi wasn’t entirely accustomed to girls wearing her clothes, but she was starting to think that it was something she could get used to.

Vi had protested with a pitiful whine – one that she would deny later – when Caitlyn had rolled out of bed earlier, entirely too cozy and content wrapped around Caitlyn’s back for her to be okay with being abandoned in such a way. But Caitlyn had only snickered and kissed her on the cheek, telling her to go back to sleep. Vi was on her way to happily doing just that when Caitlyn pulled on the boxers Vi had been wearing when she’d come over last night, along with the tank top Vi had been wearing as well.

Needless to say, Vi’s brain had short circuited, and she’s been awake ever since.

Caitlyn mutters to herself as she flips a page in her textbook, finger tapping idly as her eyes scan the words found there. Her brush is held frozen in her other hand, a forgotten task for the moment.

Not for the first time, Vi lets her gaze wonder appreciatively over Caitlyn’s figure, taking in all the little details that she’s come to know over the last few weeks. Silky hair, narrow but surprisingly sturdy shoulders, miles upon miles of legs. Vi would happily spend hours between those legs- has, in fact, had the pleasure of doing so, and would eagerly do so again.

And really, seeing those legs wearing nothing but Vi’s underwear makes the sight that much more enticing.

Caitlyn moves from the vanity, crossing the room to grab something from her backpack near the door. Vi rolls onto her back, hands crossed behind her head, as she watches her walk by. “You know, I think I’m starting to regret being your girlfriend less and less,” she says, purposefully making her voice low and suggestive.

Caitlyn shoots a teasing look over her shoulder. “Oh?” she replies, voice full of mirth. “Are you telling me that you’ve regretted it up until now?” She abandons her backpack and starts moving toward the bed with slow, sure steps. Vi gulps but tries to keep her façade of confidence up.

“One of my biggest regrets in life, actually.” Her eyes droop as they trace those damn legs. “I think I’ll be regretting this for a long time.” She licks her lips. “A long, long time.”

Caitlyn has reached the bed. “Is that right?” she asks, crawling to Vi until she’s hovering over her.

Vi’s eyes fail to stay away from the cleavage displayed in front of her. “Yep,” she says with absolutely no conviction.

“In that case, I am terribly sorry for the inconvenience I’ve put you through,” Caitlyn murmurs, leaning down to brush their noses together. “For having to put up with someone so regrettably unlikable as me.”

“Mmm, completely unlikable,” Vi intones, tilting her chin up to try and catch Caitlyn’s lips. She was close. So very close.

“Not a redeeming quality to be found.” At last, Caitlyn brings their lips together, and Vi ignores the twinge of annoyance she abruptly feels at the implication that Caitlyn could be anything other than incredible.

Because truthfully, Caitlyn was incredible, and not just because of her body, not just because the sex was good. As much as Vi hated to admit it, she also liked her personality. She’d pegged Caitlyn as just another prim rich girl with lots of money and not a lot of brain, but as they’ve hung out more and more, Vi has pleasantly learned that she was totally, completely wrong.

Caitlyn had ambition, and smarts, and a dry sense of humor that always managed to catch Vi off guard. She was always honest, always wore her heart on her sleeve- something that was terrifying to Vi in an exciting way. Her upbringing should have made her exactly the kind of person that Vi detested, but instead she was just this- this… fucking amazing girl that made Vi’s head spin even when they weren’t together.

An idea pops into her head.

“Not one,” Vi says, continuing their playful banter. She gently rolls them over so that she’s the one hovering above Caitlyn. “Definitely not your neck.” Vi slowly presses her lips to Caitlyn’s throat, grinning when she feels Caitlyn shiver beneath her. “Or your jawline.” She kisses just below Caitlyn’s jaw, and she’s rewarded with Caitlyn’s hands tightening around her back. Emboldened, Vi continues on.

“Not your ridiculously big brain.” A kiss pressed to the small scar above Caitlyn’s eyebrow. “Or your stupidly blue eyes.” Caitlyn snorts a laugh and Vi smiles. “Or your laugh.” She covers Caitlyn’s lips with her own as if to capture the sound. When she pulls away, Caitlyn’s eyes have fluttered shut. She brushes theirs noses together playfully. “None of them are redeeming qualities. So sorry to inform you.”

Caitlyn laughs again and Vi really does wish that she could lock the sound away somewhere. Keep it with her forever. She smiles wide enough for Vi to see the gap between her teeth and all Vi wants to do is kiss her. “You’re ridiculous,” Caitlyn tells her.

Vi grins. “Can you please stop studying now?”

When Caitlyn complies and kisses her again, Vi ignores the fear that creeps into her mind over just how completely fucked she is for this girl.

* * *

“I was wondering, if you’d maybe, possibly, want to- I mean, it’s not a big deal at all. But… Vander’s been asking about you, you know. So I guess you should probably meet him. Whaddaya say?”

The punching bag in front of Vi fails to respond.

Vi wrinkles her nose. “Yeah, that’s what I’d say, too.” She gives the bag one more solid hit, sending it swinging before making her way to the bathroom, unwrapping her hands as she goes. After a quick shower, which she spends rehearsing her shaky speech, she throws on a hoodie and begins the journey to the Kiramman House (Mansion? Estate?), opting to walk to give herself more time.

“Vander wants to meet you,” Vi repeats for the hundredth time as she makes her way up the obnoxiously long walkway to the front door. “And I want you to meet him, too. Because- well, because you’re important to me.”

She steels herself in front of the huge double doors that she’s admittedly used very little over the past month. After one deep breath to center herself, she raises her fist and knocks.

Why was she going through the front doors again? To be proper? To be formal? Did Caitlyn even like proper and formal?

The door swings open.

Too late now.

Tobias Kiramman blinks in surprise. “Why, Vi. I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

Shit. Vi hadn’t prepared for this.

She shuffles on her feet a little and shoves her hands in her hoodie pocket. Best get to the point. “Is, uh, Cait here?”

Tobias peeks behind himself, as if he can see the entirety of the massive house from his vantage point. “I believe she’s in class right now, actually,” he says, turning back to face Vi.

Vi feels her spirits dampen. “Oh.”

There’s a tense moment of silence between them in which neither seems to know what to say. Just as Vi is about to excuse herself and retreat with her tail between her legs, Tobias speaks up.

“You’re welcome to come in and wait for her, if you’d like,” he offers, and Vi is surprised to find a sense of genuineness in his tone, with nothing to suggest he’s only asking out of obligation. “She should be back within the hour, and I’ve just put on a new pot of tea, if you’re interested.”

Encouraged by the lack of open hostility, though still feeling slightly out of place, Vi accepts with a simple “sure.”

 Tobias leads Vi to a sitting room, one that Vi has never seen before despite all her time spent at the house. Which isn’t all that surprising, she supposes, considering she mostly confined herself to Caitlyn’s bed. The room is moderately sized, almost cozy compared to the rest of the house. A grandfather clock ticks in one corner, the loudest sound in the room apart from the sounds of Tobias stirring the tea in his cup.

Vi takes a sip of her own, trying hard not to crush the delicate teacup in her hands, and barely resists the urge to make a face.

She’s never really been a fan of tea.

The silence sits heavy between them, and the only salvageable part of this entire situation is the fact that Tobias seems just as unsure as Vi does, nervously sipping his tea as he obviously tries to remember why he invited her here in the first place.

Vi’s eyes scan the room some more, desperate for some point of interest that she can latch onto. The wall to her left displays a large family portrait, painted in lavish fashion, of course. It was obviously done a while ago, Cassandra and Tobias’s hair sporting far less streaks of gray while Caitlyn looks to be about 11 or 12 years old. Vi can’t help but smile a little at the younger Caitlyn, all dressed up in a fancy green dress and holding a rifle that matches the one in her mother’s hands. At Tobias’s feet sit two Dobermans, ears pointed up as they stare strangely poised back at Vi.

“Do you, uh, still have dogs?” Vi asks, gesturing toward the picture. Maybe this wasn’t the best conversation starter to latch onto, but she really was curious. With as big of a house as the Kiramman’s have, Vi wouldn’t be surprised if she’d never heard two dogs running around.

Tobias looks at the portrait, almost as if he’d forgotten it was there. “Not for some time, no,” he replies. “Though Caitlyn is always pushing at getting another. I think she mostly just wants a companion, really, though I suppose she has you for that, now.”

Vi can’t quite make out his tone and her lip twitches a little spitefully. “So that’s what you guys see me as, huh?” she comments dryly. “A pet for Caitlyn to run around with.”

Tobias’s eyes widen at the implication. “Oh no, not at all!” he hurries to amend, setting his teacup down. “I’m sorry it came out that way. Between the two of us, Cassandra has always had the smoother tongue. Caitlyn as well. I only meant that it’s been… nice, for Caitlyn to have someone she feels comfortable around. She never did have many friends growing up, and she’s always had the tendency to bury herself away in her work.” He chuckles a little and looks at Vi as though he’s divulging in a secret. “Another trait she shares with her mother, I’m afraid.”

The man almost looks regretful, and surprisingly Vi feels kind of bad for being so defensive. She forces herself to slouch in her seat, to relax a little. If Tobias had wanted to belittle or invalidate her by now, he would’ve. “That’s Cait for you,” she offers.

“I really am sorry for any offense you’ve taken,” Tobias says, suddenly earnest. He leans forward in his seat, fingers tapping together anxiously, and Vi can’t help but grin at the sight. So Caitlyn did get some traits from her father, after all.

“It’s alright, really,” she says, going for nonchalant. “I’m used to being referred to as scum, always have been. And not just by you guys.”

Tobias looks somewhat bothered by that and opens his mouth to reply, but before he gets the chance a new voice speaks first, coming from down the hallway. “Anyone home?”

Glancing away from Vi, still looking a little distressed, Tobias calls back. “In the parlor, Caitlyn!”

Caitlyn appears a moment later, stopping short in the doorway when she sees Vi. “Vi? What are you doing here?”

Vi holds up her nearly untouched tea. “Just having some tea with your pops,” she replies cheekily. Then she remembers why she’d come here in the first place. “And I was kind of hoping I could talk to you about something.”

“Oh.” Caitlyn still looks shocked and blinks several times in an attempt to orient herself. “Alright. Yeah, we can talk.” She turns to her dad quickly. “There’s one more book I need for a class,” she says, stepping farther into the room to hand her dad a piece of paper. “Would you mind?”

“Of course,” Tobias says, waving a hand dismissively and taking the paper from Caitlyn’s hands, as if a hundred-dollar textbooks was as easy to acquire as a pack of gum from the gas station. “I’ll go get that ordered for you right now.” He rises from his seat, squeezing Caitlyn’s shoulder as he passes by, and turns to look at Vi before leaving the room. “It’s been a pleasure, Vi. I hope you know that.”

With that he’s gone, leaving an even more confused Caitlyn behind. “What on earth was that?” she asks, bewildered.

Vi shrugs and goes to take a sip of her tea before remembering she doesn’t like tea and sets it down on the coffee table instead. “I’m just good with parents, I guess.” Her nerves find her again and she swallows, once again rehearsing her question in her head. I want you to meet my family. I want you to be more apart of my life. I want to-

“Hey, speaking of parents.” She tries to bring it up as if the thought just occurred to her. “What are you doing tonight?”

“Just homework,” Caitlyn says, sitting down in the spot her father recently vacated. She points to Vi’s cup with a questioning eyebrow and Vi gestures for her to go ahead. With a small smile of gratitude, Caitlyn takes the tea and takes a sip, fixing her eyes on Vi. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, I just…” All confidence that Vi had earlier felt abandons her, vanishing into thin air as Caitlyn waits expectantly. “You know, I was just thinking-” Shit, shit, fuck. Remember your lines. “Uh, Vander has been bugging me a lot. About meeting you. And I…” And I care about you. You’re important to me. “So, like, you should come over for dinner tonight. Just so he stops bugging me about it.”

A failure. Vi was a failure.

“Oh, wow.” Caitlyn’s eyes widen before she smiles. “I would love to.”

“Great,” Vi says quickly. She looks at her bare wrist before remembering she doesn’t own a watch. “Okay, so! I guess I’ll see you then… then.” She shoots up from her seat like a rocket, nodding probably too much at Caitlyn and attempting a charming smile before walking out the door, cursing herself the whole way home.

* * *

For how tall she was, it was almost comical how small Caitlyn looked next to Vander.

From the moment they all sit down from dinner, conversation is being made; a far cry from Vi’s first dinner with the Kirammans. Between Powder and Vander, it seems as though Caitlyn can’t get a proper bite of her stew without being asked some question.

“So, what school do you go to?” Vander.

“How tall are you?” Powder.

“And what are you studying?” Vander again.

“And Vi still likes you? Sis, your standards have definitely taken a dip.”

Vi glares at her sister for that one. “Powder,” she warns.

Luckily, Caitlyn doesn’t seem too uncomfortable with the barrage of questions, answering each with patience and the eloquence that Vi has come to expect from her. Vander warms up to her easily, giving Vi appraising looks every so often. Vi only rolls her eyes and sinks lower into her seat.

“Enough about me,” Caitlyn finally says, waving a hand in the air aimlessly. “I’d like to know more about you, sir.”

Vander straightens in his chair a little. “Sir, huh?” He glances over at Vi. “You know, I like the sound of that. I deserve some respect around here.” Powder bursts out laughing at that and begins joking with herself about saying ‘sir’ while using the poshest accent she can manage.

“I respect you,” Vi protests. She smirks the next second. “I respect you enough to eat your stew and not tell you how bland it is.”

It’s a joke, and everyone knows it because any food Vander makes is anything but bland. Caitlyn looks scandalized, though, and that look changes to confusion when Vander laughs heartily.

“If you don’t like the stew, maybe you should cook it, then,” he says. He throws some salt at Vi for good measure, which she catches easily and declines to use. Vander turns back to Caitlyn with a smile. “What d’ya wanna know?”

Caitlyn thinks for a moment. “How long have you owned The Last Drop?” she asks.

Vander slumps back in his chair with a heavy breath. “Well, there’s a question,” he rumbles. “Going on 20 years, I think? Worked there longer, though. Inherited it from the old owner after he passed away. Spruced it up a bit, and here we are.”

“Ugh, boooring,” Powder interrupts, leaning so far out of her chair that Vi fears she may fall out of it. “You should’ve asked about me, princess.”

Vi snorts into her stew. Caitlyn blinks in surprise and looks back and forth between Vander and Powder, trying to gauge Vander’s reaction. Vander smirks a little and nods his head.

“Oh, um, of course,” Caitlyn says, shifting her attention to Powder. “What do you do for fun, Powder?”

“I am so glad you asked!” Powder proclaims, straightening herself in her chair. “Well, besides being an amazing beer pong player-” she cuts herself off and ducks her head at the questioning look Vander sends her. “Oops! I mean, root beer pong player, I have many talents. I invent. I paint. I even sing a little. Allow me to show you.” Powder pulls out her phone and leans across the table, practically laying on it to show Caitlyn whatever is on her phone.

Vi watches in amusement until she hears a knock at the front door. She glances at Vander, only to see him also engrossed in what Powder is saying, and shrugs before getting up from her seat to go answer it.

The laughter from the kitchen fades away as Vi opens the door.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

Grayson grimaces at Vi’s harsh tone. “I just wanted to stop by and see if you were home.”

Vi scowls. “What, are you my parole officer now? I’m home, okay? Thanks for stopping by.” She starts shutting the door, intending to forget about the entire interaction and go back to her evening, but before she gets the chance, she hears Vander’s voice down the hallway.

“Who’s that at the door, Vi?”

Vi curses under her breath. Vander appears over her shoulder a moment later.

“Ah, Grayson. Always a pleasure to see you.”

Grayson smiles. “You as well, Vander. I was just stopping by to see how Vi is doing.”

“I’m doing fine,” Vi grumbles, but Vander ignores her.

“In that case, why don’t you come in for a minute or two? I’ve got some bland stew if you’re hungry.” Vander reaches over to ruffle Vi’s hair, and she ducks away with another scowl.

Grayson accepts the offer and is walking into the house when a sudden thought occurs to Vi. “Did you two plan this?” She turns to Vander. “You knew I’d be here tonight. Did you tell her to come over?”

Grayson looks at her in shock. “Vi, I assure you that-”

“I didn’t ask you,” Vi snaps. Her eyes turn back to Vander.

Vander sighs heavily. “I didn’t know Grayson would be stopping by tonight, kiddo, and I didn’t tell her that you’d be here. I swear.”

“Bullshit,” Vi spits out.

A new voice joins the exchange. “Is everything alri- Sheriff Grayson?”

Three pairs of eyes turn to look at Caitlyn at the end of the hall, wide blue eyes staring back. Grayson stiffens in surprise. “Miss Kiramman,” she greets. “I wasn’t expecting to find you here this evening.”

Vi huffs a laugh. “So you two know each other, then?”

Caitlyn blinks, still trying to process the situation. “Yes, well. We- I’ve worked with Grayson at the station, interning there the past three summers.”

“Oh, great,” Vi says dryly. “So you were working with her while I was still locked up. I bet she’s told you about all of her arrests, huh? About my arrest.” She can feel herself spiraling, her hands balling into fists as she lashes out with her words. The anger management courses she’s taken since being back in the real world don’t seem to helping much now.

Caitlyn looks a little desperate. “Vi, please,” she pleads, though Vi doesn’t know what she’s asking for.

“I didn’t disclose any of my past arrests with Miss Kiramman,” Grayson interjects calmly, taking a step closer to Vi. “And technically, you were not my arrest to begin with.”

“Yeah, well you sure as hell didn’t do anything to stop it,” Vi snarls, spinning on Grayson. She feels boxed in suddenly, the three taller people around her making her feel small, cornered in the cramped hallway. In her mind she hears the wailing of sirens, the slamming of cell doors. “Might as well have been you putting the fucking cuffs on me for all I care.”

“Vi, I’m sure this all just a misunderstanding,” Caitlyn says gently. She reaches out to place a hand on Vi’s shoulder and Vi flinches away from the contact. Vi doesn’t miss the flash of hurt that appears on Caitlyn’s face. If she didn’t feel like her head was going to explode, if she wasn’t hearing the clatter of batons against bars, she might even feel bad about it. Instead, she turns on Caitlyn.

“Fuck. You know, for a minute there, I could ignore the fact that you wanted to be one of them,” she says, clear animosity in her voice that she can’t help. “But here you are, taking her side over mine when you weren’t even fucking there that night.”

“Violet,” Caitlyn whispers, voice small.

“Thanks for the reminder,” Vi hisses in return. She turns to face the front door, shoving past Grayson and Vander on her way out.

There are voices calling after her as she storms out of the house, the crisp night air doing nothing to calm her breathing. Her hands are still balled into fists, and she shoves them in her jacket pockets, jaw clenched tight. Light footsteps approach quickly behind her. Expecting it to be Caitlyn, Vi whirls around to snap at her and stops short when she sees Powder standing there, looking up at her with big, worried eyes.

Vi forces herself to take a deep breath. “Not now, Powder,” she says, turning around and continuing on her way.

Powder quickly catches up to her again. “I just-”

“No.”

“-think you probably-”

“No.”

“-shouldn’t be alone right now.”

She stops walking again. Powder has the same little crease between her eyebrows that Vi gets when she’s concerned about something. Vi sighs.

“Look, I’m not gonna go beat anyone up or do anything stupid, alright?” Vi says, going for calm despite still feeling anything but. “I just need to cool off.” When Powder still doesn’t look convinced, Vi gives her shoulder a nudge. “I promise I won’t do anything to get myself in trouble. Now go back home.”

Powder pouts a little, considering it, then gives Vi’s arm a light punch before walking away. Vi watches her go for only a moment before turning and walking in the other direction.

* * *

It takes Vi all of 12 hours to pull her head out of her ass.

The next morning, after spending half the night pummeling her punching bag and the other half tossing and turning in bed, Vi drives over to the Kiramman’s, fragments of an apology speech not yet formed bouncing around in her head. Truthfully, she had no idea what she was going to say, no idea how she could explain her complete assholery from the night before. All she knew is that she needed to see Caitlyn before things got somehow worse.

Of course Vi had fucked up. Of course Vi had went and lost her temper over something so small. Of course she’d probably ruined one of the truly good things she’s had in her life.

But she wasn’t going to let this one go. Vi was going to fight for this.

She once again finds herself standing in front of large ornate doors, taking a deep breath before knocking with shaky hands.

It takes a long moment for anyone to answer, in which time Vi’s anxiety only heightens further. At last, the door opens, only to reveal the last person Vi wants to see right now.

“Vi. To what do I owe this... pleasure?”

Vi grimaces at Cassandra in an attempt of a smile.

“Is Cait here?” she asks, getting a mild sense of déjà vu.

Cassandra glances behind herself, taking in the empty entry hall with pursed lips. “I was hoping I could have a word with you, actually. Privately. Would you care to take a walk?”

Vi sighs and scratches at the back of her head impatiently. Might as well get this over with. “Sure.”

Cassandra leads them around the side of the house where the beginnings of a sprawling garden lie. “I want to make one thing very clear,” Cassandra begins, speaking with all the clarity that years serving on the city council brings someone. Vi idly wonders if she practiced this speech in her mirror. “I take the well-being of my daughter very seriously.”

Vi rolls her eyes. “If this is the part where you threaten to shoot me if I hurt her, you can save it, alright? I kind of got the message the first time we met.”

“I take the well-being of my daughter very seriously,” Cassandra repeats. Vi’s mouth snaps shut, feeling as though she’s just been reprimanded. “As such, I make it my business to assure she is taking the best possible paths in life so that she may find success.”

They’ve reached a section of elevated flower beds, arranged in a rainbow of colors all around them. The sight might be pleasant if Vi didn’t feel like her gut was trying to climb into her throat.

Cassandra stops in front of a patch of rich purple flowers. “Do you know what kind of flower these are, Vi?”

Unsure of what this has to do with Caitlyn, Vi simply shakes her head.

Cassandra gently pinches a delicate petal between two fingers. “These are violets,” she says, and Vi nearly flinches. Caitlyn wouldn’t have shared something so private with her mother… would she?

Either unaware or uncaring of Vi’s reaction, Cassandra continues, unperturbed. “Beautiful flowers, don’t you think? Terribly hard to maintain, however. They have the tendency to grow untamed, unbidden, causing possible harm to the plants around them.” She gestures to one violet that has grown strangely, crowding the other violets around it. Vi watches as Cassandra picks up a small pruner from the side of the flower bed, swallowing thickly as she holds it up to the corrupted flower.

“And in order to maintain the safety of the rest of the plants, in order to allow them to grow, you must be able to spot the liability before it’s too late.” She holds eye contact with Vi as she says the next part. “And put an end to it.”

With a snip, the flower is cut.

Cassandra plucks the flower from the flower bed, idly brushing dirt off its petals. “I’m sure you understand why certain precautions in such matters must be taken.”

Numbly, Vi feels herself nod.

All appearances of pleasantry fall from Cassandra’s face, leaving a stern visage behind. “I don’t need to tell you that I do not approve of your relationship with my daughter,” she says simply. “I believe you are not good enough for her, and I can tell that you believe so as well.”

Vi fights for something to say, for anything to reject Cassandra’s claims. Her mouth opens, useless, no words finding her, and she closes it again.

Cassandra takes a step closer, placing the severed violet in Vi’s hands. “If you truly want what’s best for Caitlyn, I trust you will take the necessary precautions.”

Without another word, Cassandra leaves her, standing in the middle of the flowers, staring at the corrupt violet in her hands.

Chapter Text

After three days of radio silence, Caitlyn starts to worry.

Okay, she actually started worrying after about one day, but after three days her stress levels have officially hit the roof.

When Vi had stormed out during dinner, Caitlyn’s first instinct was to run after her. Powder had beat her to it, though, leaving Caitlyn alone with Grayson and Vander.

“What happened between you two?” Caitlyn had asked, turning to Grayson. She respected the woman- trusted her, even, and was still certain this was all a big misunderstanding, but she also needed the full story.

Grayson had given her a conflicted look. “That isn’t for me to tell, young Kiramman. I don’t want to breach Vi’s trust more than I already have. You will have to ask her, and if she’s ready, perhaps she will tell you.”

Powder had come back after only a few minutes looking troubled. When Caitlyn had asked her what happened, she’d only told her to give Vi some space.

So against her better judgement, Caitlyn had given Vi some space. Three days of it. She’d sent her a few texts letting her know that she was sorry for what had happened, and that she was here to talk, but all of them had been left on read. The two calls she’d attempted had been sent straight to voicemail.

Which led Caitlyn to now.

It’s raining hard when Caitlyn parks her car at The Last Drop. Caitlyn ducks her head and pulls the collar of her jacket up over her neck as best she can, cursing herself for not bringing an umbrella or wearing something with a hood as she rushes inside.

The Last Drop is the same as it always is. A little slower than normal since it’s a Thursday night, but the regular patrons she’s come to recognize are still milling about. Caitlyn’s eyes immediately scan the area for any signs of Vi, brow furrowing when she realizes she’s not in her usual place behind the bar. Mylo and Claggor are there instead, looking slightly bored from the slow evening.

Caitlyn makes her way over. The boys share a look between themselves as she approaches.

“Hey, Caitlyn,” Mylo greets, casually slinging a cloth over his shoulder. “You here for a drink?”

“Is Vi here?” she asks, deciding to skip the pleasantries.

Mylo winces. “Look. I don’t know if we’re really supposed to-”

“She’s upstairs,” Claggor interjects. Mylo shoots him a confused glare and Claggor shrugs. “She deserves to know.” He looks kindly at Caitlyn. “Just… try to help however you can, alright? She’s been actin’ kinda weird the last few days.”

“Yeah, actin’ like more of a dick than usual,” Mylo mutters. Claggor cuffs him on the back of the head.

“Thank you,” Caitlyn tells Claggor sincerely. She manages a small smile before quickly making her way up the stairs to Vi’s loft. Her heart pounds in her chest, and she can’t remember feeling this nervous to be here since the first time she and Vi hooked up. Raising a tentative fist, she knocks three times on the door, and waits.

After an agonizingly long moment, the door opens. There’s obvious disappointment on Vi’s face when she sees Caitlyn, but Caitlyn tries not to read too much into it.

“It’s you,” Vi says simply.

“It’s me,” Caitlyn replies. After a beat, she asks, “Can I come in?’

Vi considers it, and for a terrible second Caitlyn thinks she’s going to be turned away, but Vi only sighs and opens the door wider before walking back into the room, leaving Caitlyn to shut the door behind herself. She stands with her back against it, quietly watching as Vi moves to stand next to a punching bag set up on one side of the room. It’s then that Caitlyn notices the wrappings around Vi’s hands, the slight sheen of sweat on Vi’s skin, the softly playing rock music that had presumably been turned down upon Caitlyn’s arrival.

“I didn’t know you were into this,” Caitlyn ventures. At Vi’s questioning eyebrow, she elaborates. “Punching bags. Boxing. That sort of thing.”

Vi rolls her right shoulder. “Yeah, well. Old prison habits, I guess.” She squares her fists up in front of her face. “Bag feels better than concrete, at least.”

Caitlyn keeps her eyes on Vi as she resumes her workout, watching as she lands blow after blow on the heavy bag. Her back muscles shift beautifully with each movement, clearly visible through Vi’s loose tank top.

Caitlyn shakes her head of the thought. She couldn’t afford to get distracted. She was here for a reason.

She waits patiently for Vi to take a break, her gaze wandering around the familiar space. Caitlyn has always like Vi’s loft. It’s homey, comfortable, unassuming- every trait that Caitlyn has come to associate with Vi. Although normally fairly tidy, the room now looks as though a mini tornado has come through it. Dishes stack high in the sink, various water bottles and empty chip bags are scattered carelessly around the couch and counters. The bed is unmade, blankets ripped out in one corner as if Vi has been tossing and turning a lot at night.

They’re not exactly comforting signs to Caitlyn.

When Vi takes a moment shake out her hands, moving to fill up a cup of water at the sink, Caitlyn pushes off the door and slowly makes her way closer. “I wanted to apologize.”

Vi doesn’t even glance her way. “For what?”

“For not taking your side the other night.” Caitlyn wraps her arms protectively around herself. “To be honest, I wasn’t aware I was taking a side at all. I was just confused, and trying to diffuse the situation, and I’m afraid I only made things worse by stepping in at all.” Vi crosses her own arms and leans back against the counter, eyes fixed on the floor. “I suppose I forget sometimes that I still don’t know you as well as I think I do… that there are parts of your past that I don’t fully understand.”

Vi snorts. “Yeah. You really don’t know me at all, cupcake.”

The familiar nickname lacks any of the typical playfulness that accompanies it. Caitlyn furrows her brow. “Well, I’d like to think I know you at least a little-”

“But you don’t!” Vi snaps, hand coming down hard on the countertop. Caitlyn’s eyes widen in shock, and she takes a half step back. Vi takes a deep breath and turns to face the counter, hands gripping the edge so tightly Caitlyn can see her forearm muscles flexing.

She still isn’t looking at Caitlyn.

When Vi speaks again, her voice is frighteningly calm. “I think we should stop.”

Caitlyn hastily nods her head. “Of course, of course. We can talk about this another time. I just wanted to make sure you were-”

“No,” Vi says firmly, interrupting her again. Her eyes squeeze shut. “I think we should stop this… whatever we are.”

A dull pain strikes through Caitlyn’s heart. “If this is because of the other night, I promise I didn’t mean to cause you harm. If you would only help me understand-”

“Has it ever occurred to you that I don’t want you to understand?” Vi straightens up and looks directly at Caitlyn for the first time since she got here. There’s something deeply troubling swirling in Vi’s gray eyes, and Caitlyn almost wishes she would look away again. “Has it ever occurred to you that I don’t want to open up to you? That I don’t want you trying to fix me?”

Caitlyn’s breath catches. “That wasn’t what I meant,” she tries.

“Well it sure fucking seemed that way,” Vi fires back. She turns away and starts pacing the middle of the room. “Look, we had a good run, but I’m done with all this. I’m tired of being the one act of rebellion that you’ll look back on in ten years from your fancy mansion and laugh at because of how stupid you were back then.”

The pain in Caitlyn’s heart spreads further. That one hurt. “You never had to agree to this,” Caitlyn retorts. “I gave you a choice. I told you what my intentions were from the start.”

“Yeah, well, apparently I made the wrong fucking choice,” Vi spits out. Her face twists and she lets out a bitter laugh. “And so did you, for that matter.”

That makes Caitlyn pause. “What do you mean?”

Vi stops her pacing, turning to face Caitlyn instead. “You wanted to know more about me? Fine. I’ll tell you the big secret, the big reveal of what I did to get locked up for four years.”

As much as Caitlyn should protest, should tell Vi that she doesn’t need to tell her anything, her natural curiosity and nerves get the better of her, sealing her mouth shut. Vi stalks slowly toward her.

“I told you I got started getting mixed up in some shit during high school, yeah? Most of that was harmless: sneaking girls home, getting into fights, letting my grades slip. Things were tough at home, with Powder’s mental state getting worse and Vander struggling to make ends meet, and I wanted – needed – to find some way to help. So I started doing odd jobs here and there. Honest ones at first, then I met some people and started making money through… other means.”

Vi was nearly upon her now, and Caitlyn truly couldn’t remember the last time she felt so uneasy with Vi this close to her- if she’s ever felt uneasy with Vi close to her. Her presence looms before her, the few inches Caitlyn has on Vi doing absolutely nothing to take away from just how small she feels in this moment.

“Pickpocketing, shoplifting, the occasional scam. Small stuff. Then I got cocky, got greedy, and decided to break into some rich asshole’s penthouse.” Vi scoffs. “The cops were on me before I could even find anything worth taking. I was still in high school but had turned 18 that month, so they tried me as an adult. The asshole who owned the penthouse had a really good lawyer, and I’d punched one or two cops while I tried to escape, which didn’t help my case at all. I got four years in prison for a botched robbery.”

Caitlyn doesn’t know what to say. She opens and closes her mouth a few times, prompting a smirk from Vi.

“Not what you were expecting, right?” Vi teases. “All the rumors make it out to be much worse- I killed someone, I blew up a building, I sold drugs, when in reality all I was really trying to do was support my baby sister.” She finally takes a step back, and Caitlyn feels herself breathe again. “Not exactly the dangerous criminal you were hoping to take back to Mom and Dad, huh?”

“That’s never what this has been about,” Caitlyn attempts weakly. Vi barks a laugh and Caitlyn shrinks into herself even more. “Okay, maybe it was about that at first, but surely you must know that it’s past that now. I… I care about you, Vi.”

Vi’s eyes are hard, and she clenches her jaw before turning away from Caitlyn again. She stands very still for a long moment; all the while Caitlyn fights for more words to say that won’t make this situation even worse.

The rain pattering against the window and roof almost drowns out Vi’s voice when she speaks again.

“You shouldn’t.”

“Vi,” Caitlyn says, the name heavy on her tongue. “Think about this. Please.”

“I have thought about this,” Vi responds, voice carefully even. “And you shouldn’t care about me when I don’t care about you.”

Thunder rumbles outside.

“You’re just saying that.” Caitlyn’s voice is hushed.

Vi shakes her head, her back still to Caitlyn. “I’m not.” Caitlyn sees the fight leave her, shoulders drooping. “This was a mistake. All of it.”

Caitlyn’s breath hitches and she feels tears start welling up in her eyes. “Violet,” she whispers.

“Do yourself a favor, cupcake,” Vi says, turning her head to look at Caitlyn out of the corner of her eye. “Go back to that big, shiny house of yours and just forget me.” Her voice is quiet but doesn’t waver. “We’re better off without each other.”

Caitlyn wills herself to say something, say anything that will change Vi’s mind. That it isn’t true, Caitlyn isn’t better without Vi in her life. That Vi is the best to have happened to Caitlyn in a long time. That Caitlyn never knew she needed someone like Vi until she was right there in front of her. But the words never find her, and Vi has made up her mind.

Vi doesn’t look back as Caitlyn slowly turns and walks to the door. Caitlyn’s hand freezes on the handle as she closes her eyes, taking a deep breath to try and compose herself before opening them again. A flash of purple catches her eye at the edge of her vision, and she looks into the trash bin by the door.

In the middle of crumpled up papers and water bottles is a violet, a little shriveled and crumpled, but still magnificently purple.

More thunder rumbles outside, louder than the last.

Caitlyn’s eyes narrow and she throws open the door.

* * *

Caitlyn’s mother smiles pleasantly as Caitlyn walks through her office door, lifting the teacup in her hand in greeting. “Ah, Caitlyn. You should try this blend. It really is delightful.”

Caitlyn storms right up to her desk and smacks the tea out of her hand. The cup shatters against the floor, tea splattering all over the rug.

Her mother has the decency to look shocked.

“What did you do to Vi?”

As quickly as the shock had appeared, it’s gone, her mother’s expression morphing back into its usual calm mask. “My dear, I haven’t the slightest idea of what you mean.” She sniffs and glances over the mess on the floor. “And was that really necessary? That teacup was a wedding gift, you know.”

“You did something to her,” Caitlyn insists. She leans over the desk, hands planted firmly on its wooden surface. Her hair, still wet from the rain, drips onto what are most likely important documents.

Her mother carefully studies her. “Am I to assume something happened between you two?”

Caitlyn’s jaw clenches and she chooses not to dignify her with an answer.

Apparently, no answer is required. “I see,” her mother says primly. “Well, these things do happen, I’m afraid. Young love and all. I am sorry to see you in pain because of it, though.”

“Yeah, right,” Caitlyn says, voice raising ever so slightly. “You were just waiting for something to go wrong. You said something to her, I know you did.”

Her mother’s lips press together. “Caitlyn, you can’t blame every misfortune in your life on me.”

“Everything in my life can be traced back to you!” Caitlyn cries. “Everything! Every good thing, every bad thing, every decision I’ve made; it all comes back to you! You told me what college to go to, what sports to play, what grades to get.”

“I’ve done that for your own good,” her mother snips back. “So that you good succeed.”

“You’ve stifled me,” Caitlyn retorts. “Do you know how much I missed out on in high school? How many kids didn’t want to be my friend because I could never go out? I’m amazed that I have friends now that tolerate me! I’ve been so concerned about what you think my entire life, and I’m tired of it. I’m tired of you influencing my every decision. Even my decision to date Vi was made based off of what you would think.” Her gaze turns into steel as she stares down her mother. “And I’m confident that Vi’s decision to end things was also because of you.”

The shock on her mother’s face is back, though she does her best to cover it up, leaning forward in her seat and calmly lacing her fingers together. “I can assure you that I did not force Vi to break up with you. That was a decision she had to make all on her own. Although I must admit it is a decision I am pleased with. You say that I’ve stifled you, but I still believe I was acting out of your best interest. You are about to graduate from university, Caitlyn. Vi was nothing more than a distraction getting in the way of that. You were far too good for her from the beginning, it’s pointless pretending otherwise.”

“You’re wrong,” Caitlyn seethes. She shakes her head, her voice becoming adamant. “You’re wrong about her. She’s better than you’ll ever know. Despite everything she’s gone through, despite everything she’s had to fight for, she has a good heart. And I was too stupid to see that until it was too late.” Caitlyn stares her mother straight in the eyes. “If anything, Vi deserves better than me.”

Sighing, her mother rubs her temples with the tips of two fingers. “What would you like me to say, Caitlyn?”

What does Caitlyn want her to say? Caitlyn wants her to show some goddamn emotion. Caitlyn wants her to tell her that she’s genuinely sorry, to cry, to yell at Caitlyn for talking to her like this. Anything but continue acting as if this conversation was merely a minor inconvenience that she could easily dismiss.

“I want you to tell me the truth,” Caitlyn says. She repeats her original question slowly. “What did you do to Vi?”

Her mother studies her for a long moment, eyes identical to Caitlyn’s flicking back and forth, before turning her gaze downward and busying herself with straightening the pens on her desk. “I merely suggested what she had already been thinking herself: that you deserve the best in this world, and that the best did not include her.”

More thunder rumbles outside, muffled by the thick walls of the office

“How could you?” Caitlyn whispers.

“Vi does not belong in our world,” her mother states plainly, meeting Caitlyn’s gaze once again. “As I said, she was a distraction. A liability. And if you were too blind to see it, I simply could not stand idly by any longer.” She lifts her chin higher ever so slightly. “At least she had the foresight to do something about it herself.”

Caitlyn stares wordlessly at her mother, tears gathering in her eyes, horrified that she could tell Vi such things. Even worse, Caitlyn couldn’t believe that Vi had listened to her. Agreed with her, even, enough to separate herself from Caitlyn completely. Had Caitlyn made her feel that way? Like she wasn’t good enough?

Soft footsteps break through the charged silence of the office. “Is… everything alright in here?”

Her father. Perfect.

Caitlyn glares hard at her mother, one angry tear rolling down her cheek. “Fuck you,” she hisses. Her mother gives an indignant “Caitlyn” in response, but Caitlyn ignores her, turning to face the door. Her father stands in the doorway, a look of utter confusion on his face. “And you.” Caitlyn takes a few steps toward him. “Did you know about this? About Vi?”

His brow furrows in concern. “I… I’m not sure what you mean.”

Caitlyn laughs humorlessly. “Typical. Why don’t you ask your wife what she’s been up to. Unless you’re too scared to.”

Without looking back at her mother, and unwilling to look at the hurt she knows has appeared on her father’s face, Caitlyn storms out of the office, down the stairs, and right back out the door. She sits in her car for a moment, futilely attempting calming breaths, before she breaks down, the rain pounding heavily on her windows doing its best to drown out her sobs.

* * *

When the door to the Talis’s home opens, Jayce takes one look at Caitlyn before pulling her into a hug. Caitlyn clings to him and cries some more, wetting the fabric of his t-shirt with tears and her damp hair from the rain. He rubs her back and doesn’t ask questions right away, letting her get it all out before ushering her inside with an arm around her shoulders.

*

“Wow.”

Caitlyn nods numbly and cups her hands securely around the mug of hot chocolate in her hands. “Yeah,” she says distantly, slouching further into her borrowed hoodie. “That about sums it up.”

The storm has slowed down outside, leaving only a light sprinkle in its place. Caitlyn pulls the blanket tighter around her shoulders.

“So what happens now?” Jayce asks carefully.

They’re sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace, the warmth of the fire slowly seeping into Caitlyn’s bones. The dull glow from the flames shines on one side of Jayce’s face, casting an orange tint over his concerned expression.

“I don’t know,” Caitlyn whispers, slumping in on herself. Her eyes stare distantly into the fire in front of them. “I just feel so angry and confused and stupid. And I’m tired. Just so tired of trying to make sense of this all.” She sets her mug down on the floor and presses the heels of her hands against her closed eyes.

“What are you feeling confused about?” Jayce questions.

Caitlyn lets her hands fall into her lap with a sigh. “I’m not even sure.” Something that Vi said during their fight nags at the back of her mind. “Maybe I’m questioning why I even started things with Vi in the first place. Maybe I really did just want something to look back on in ten years that I can laugh at. Maybe I felt like I had to.”

“Oh, come on,” Jayce says, a light tone to his voice. He reaches out to nudge Caitlyn’s shoulder. “When have you ever done something just out of obligation?”

“When it comes to my mother? All the time,” Caitlyn replies instantly. A crease appears between Jayce’s brow and his mouth snaps shut. Caitlyn twists her lips together and looks back into the fire, watching the flames dance and sway. Jayce doesn’t say anything for a while, letting her think, which Caitlyn is grateful for. Her thoughts are similar to the fire, she thinks: swirling and jumping and burning, but never quite settling.

“It’s funny,” Caitlyn murmurs after a while. “When I started all this, my goal was to upset my parents. Show them that I was capable of acting beyond their influence. I so badly wanted to hear so many of the things that my mother said to me tonight; that she didn’t approve, that she didn’t know why I was acting this way, that I was acting foolish. I thought it would feel- I don’t know. Good? Validating? But now all I feel is… empty.”

Caitlyn draws her knees up to her chest and hugs them tight. Jayce continues listening to her, ever patient, ever trying to understand like the scientist he is.

“I never wanted Vi to get hurt,” Caitlyn says, voice soft. “When I asked for her help, I didn’t think that she could be hurt. She seemed so indestructible. I was so cruel to think of her as incapable of feelings. I could have never predicted how kind and thoughtful and real she actually is, and how I have come to… to-”

“Come to care about her?”

Caitlyn looks over at Jayce in surprise. He has a knowing look on his face.

“You care about her,” Jayce restates simply with a shrug. “It’s easy to see. Frankly, Cait, you care about everyone you meet, even if they don’t deserve it. Even if Vi had turned out to be a huge asshole, you’d probably still be worried about how she’s feeling right now.” He bumps his foot against one of hers. “And honestly? That’s what’s so great about you. How much you care, how much you’re willing to give to others. It’s why none of us care that you don’t break the rules. You’ve never needed to prove anything. You’re just you. You’re not who you think you need to be, you’re not who your mother thinks you need to be, you’re just Caitlyn Kiramman, and Caitlyn Kiramman is awesome.”

Caitlyn presses her face into her knees in an attempt not to cry, only her eyes peeking out. “You’re an asshole, you know that? You’re too nice to me.”

Jayce smiles wide. “I know.”

“I don’t know how to fix all this,” Caitlyn admits in a small voice.

“I know,” Jayce says again, more somber this time. He scoots over on the floor until he’s sat next to Caitlyn and puts on arm around her, pulling her into his side. “But you know what? You don’t have to right now. For now you just need to sit here and keep warming up and finish the hot chocolate I so graciously made you.”

Caitlyn finally laughs, the feeling foreign in her throat, and shoves her hands into the pocket of Jayce’s hoodie, trying for all the world not to think about how much it smells like Jayce and not at all like Vi.

Chapter Text

One week after forcing Caitlyn out of her life, Vi’s wallowing is interrupted by her little sister.

“Morning, sis!”

Vi groans at the loud sound of her door being slammed open and pulls the blanket up over her head. She hears Powder moving around the loft, whistling jovially, which doesn’t help Vi’s pounding headache in the slightest. Neither does the next moment when the curtains are drawn open and the blanket is ripped off her, cold air and sunlight attacking Vi’s body all at once, causing her to curse and curl tighter in on herself.

“Up and at ‘em, V- oh, fuck! Would it kill you to wear a shirt to bed? Sheesh.”

Vi vaguely remembers pulling her shirt off in a fit last night and groggily grabs a pillow to cover herself with. “It wouldn’t have been a problem if you hadn’t barged in here,” she grumbles, sitting up slowly. Powder stands by the bed, back now facing Vi, hands covering her eyes for good measure.

“At this point, I think you should just expect me to barge in,” Powder retorts. Vi grumbles aimlessly in response, reaching over to retrieve her shirt from the end of the bed and pulling it on.

“What do you want, anyway?” Vi asks, standing up and making her way over to the kitchen for some water. At her movement, Powder peeks to make sure it’s safe to look, then bounces over to the kitchen to start preparing a pot of coffee.

“I’m worried about you, and I want to help,” Powder says simply. “I mean, you’ve told Vander all week that you couldn’t work because you’ve been sick.”

“I have been sick,” Vi mutters, opening a cupboard to find a clean glass. Powder hums and takes a step closer, slapping a hand against Vi’s forehead.

“You feel fine to me,” Powder decides, as if she was a doctor or something. Vi scowls and bats her hand away. “Physically, at least. Although heartsickness is still very real, I suppose.”

Vi levels her with a look. “Heartsick?” she deadpans.

Powder nods assuredly. “Heartsick,” she affirms.

Vi rolls her eyes and turns away. “I’m not heartsick.”

Powder laughs, a loud and sudden sound that makes jump. “Don’t give me that bullshit, sis. Look at you! Your hair looks even worse than usual, you stink, and you don’t look like you’ve gotten sleep in days.”

Vi pats her hair self-consciously. “And you said you were here to help?” she mutters under her breath.

“And look at this place,” Powder continues, sweeping an arm toward the room. “It looks even more like a bachelor pad than it normally does- and not in a good way.”

Vi looks around the loft, taking note of the amount of clothes, food packaging, and beer bottles strewn all about. Hm. Maybe it was a little messy. Still, Vi couldn’t acquiesce so easily. “Do you have a point with this, or did you come here just to judge my living choices?” she asks tiredly.

“You’re in a funk,” Powder declares. “And whether it’s because of that blue haired rich bitch or Grayson or whatever, we have to get you out of the funk. So you’re going out with me today.” She hands Vi a fresh cup of coffee.

Vi looks down at the coffee before looking back up at the shit-eating grin her sister is wearing. “Do I get a say in this?” she attempts weakly, already knowing what the answer is.

Powder’s smiles grows and she shakes her head. “Nope!” she chirps. “We’ll leave in half an hour. But you should shower first. You really do stink.”

She waltzes away to start tidying up the place a little, leaving Vi to stand there blinking, still waking up. Vi shakes her head and takes a sip of coffee, then pauses and plucks at her t-shirt to give it a whiff. She cringes. Yikes. Maybe Powder was right about the smell.

* * *

Vi lets Powder drag her around all day long to anywhere she sees fit. The library, the hardware store, out to lunch, then to ice cream. After their third stop, Vi begins to suspect that Powder only got her out of the house so that she could use Vi as her personal chauffeur. Regardless of her true motives, it does help Vi take her mind off certain things.

Certain things like Caitlyn. Certain things like the way Caitlyn looked when Vi told her that they’d made a mistake- that they were a mistake. Over the course of the day, Vi had hardly thought at all about the way Caitlyn’s face had crumpled, the way tears welled up in her eyes without falling, the way her voice shook as she begged Vi to reconsider.

Vi hasn’t even thought about how much she misses Caitlyn; how much she misses her gap-toothed smile, her voice, her stupid accent and stupid house. The way she would listen to Vi without judgement, without expectation.

Yeah. Vi hasn’t had time to think about any of that while Powder’s dragged her around.

“Take a left here. Vi. Vi, take a left. Vi! Left! Now!”

Vi blinks herself out of her thoughts and yanks on the wheel, making a sharp left just before she misses the turn. Powder is thrown against the passenger window with a yelp and a curse. Vi winces and glances over to make sure she’s okay.

“Sorry.”

“You better be,” Powder grumbles, pushing herself upright with a scowl. “I’ve got precious brains, you know! I don’t need them splattered all over the window.”

Vi sniffs and grips the wheel more firmly. “You should be wearing a seat belt.”

“A seat belt isn’t going to protect me when you’re the one behind the wheel,” Powder says dismissively. “My safety is predetermined by God and- oh, wait, pull into this lot. We’re here.”

Vi does so, groaning as she comes to a stop in front of a shifty-looking club. “I’m not sure I’m down for this tonight, Pow.”

“You haven’t been down for anything all day. Humor me a little,” Powder says, already opening her door.

Vi’s protest is in vain as Powder climbs out of the truck. “I’ve been doing nothing but humor you all day.”

They make their way into the club, Powder talking her way in with the help of an impressive fake ID and a smile that makes the bouncer shift uncomfortably in his spot. Powder immediately drags Vi over to the bar, elbowing people to get to the front and yelling at the bartender over the music to tell them that she’s just gone through a breakup and needs the strongest shit they’ve got. The bartender nods in understanding and gets to work.

A shot of something that simply exudes alcohol poisoning is slid her way a moment later and Vi doesn’t spare a moment to figure out what it is before throwing it back. The drink burns all the way down to her chest and Vi immediately asks for another.

“You’re paying, by the way, but I’m designated driver,” Powder informs her, shouting in her ear. “So it all evens out in the end. Let loose, sis! Go have irresponsible fun!”

Two hours later, Vi doesn’t know if she’s necessarily having fun, but she is letting loose.

Maybe a little too loose.

Her head is spinning. The room smells like sweat and alcohol and puke, and there are bodies pressed against her from all sides. One body in particular is pressed even closer than the others, grinding against Vi’s front.

A blonde – wait, no, shit, brunette, she thinks – head throws itself back onto Vi’s shoulder, the panting in her ear sounding louder than whatever shitty remix plays throughout the shitty club. Vi grips soft hips tight in her hands and latches her mouth onto a smooth neck.

The air in the stuffy room feels like it’s a hundred degrees and Vi doesn’t know how she hasn’t sweat entirely through her shirt. Her heart pounds loudly in her chest.

A minute (ten minutes? Fifteen? An hour?) later and Vi finds herself roughly pressing what’s-her-name into a dark corner, lips attached in a messy, wet kiss. Vi squeezes her eyes shut, makes no attempt to clear her head from the buzzy, sickening sensation she’s got going on inside her head right now.

The nameless brunette moans and Vi shoves a leg between her thighs, pressing until she moans again, louder than before. Vi pulls back for a moment to catch her breath, rolling her hips with the girl in front of her before leaning up to kiss her again-

Vi’s lips land on her forehead.

Vi pulls away again, blinking her eyes open in confusion. Caitlyn pants heavily, staring down at Vi with hooded eyes-

Shit, no. Not Caitlyn. Vi blinks again and Caitlyn is gone, replaced by the petite brunette looking up at Vi, hands clutching at her shoulders.

Vi jumps back as if she’s been burned, putting a foot of space between them. She grips her hair in both hands, balling her fists tightly, feeling a zing of pain pass through her, and slams her eyes shut.

The music in the club is suddenly too loud, the dim lights suddenly too bright.

When she opens her eyes again, it’s Caitlyn standing there, giving Vi that same look she does when Vi says something especially exasperating.

Another blink and Caitlyn is gone, once more replaced by what’s-her-name.

The girl stares at Vi as if she’s gone crazy.

Maybe Vi has gone crazy.

“Fuck,” Vi breathes, taking another step away. “I’m sorry, I just- fuck, sorry.” Then she’s pushing quickly through the crowd, taking deep breaths in an attempt to clear her mind of the film covering it as she searches desperately for Powder. When she finds her, talking up a storm with the bartender, all it takes is one look from Vi for her to know that their night has come to an end.

* * *

The cups fall into the sink with a loud clatter, Vi not having the patience nor fortitude to think about the possibility of glass shattering due to her carelessness. To her great surprise, they all remain intact, and Vi elects to leave them there for Claggor to clean later.

She snags a rag and cleaner from the cupboard that houses all of their cleaning supplies and heads back out to wipe down the tables she just cleared.

It’s mindless work, wiping down tables. Four squirts from the spray bottle in her hand, twenty seconds to clean off any spilled beer or water from the table, then it’s on to the next table. Vi makes her way through five before she feels her phone buzz in her pocket. She tosses her rag and cleaner onto the table in front of her and pulls the device out, unlocking it and seeing that she has a message from Powder- something about going over to Ekko’s later and she shouldn’t freak out if she doesn’t see her today.

After shooting her a quick response, Vi backs out of Powder’s texts and instinctively scrolls until she lands on her messages with Caitlyn. Against her better judgement, Vi opens the thread to stare at the same message she’s been staring at for one week and three days now.

Cupcake (Thursday 11:30 AM)
Vi, I know you probably want some space right now, but can we please talk about what happened? I’m worried about you. Call me?

She scrolls through more of their messages, an unfortunate habit she’s developed the past few days. Then she opens up her contact information, just to stare at Caitlyn’s number, imprinting the digits in her brain and subconsciously allowing herself this one act of selfishness in order to keep some part of Caitlyn with her. Her thumb hovers temptingly over the call button even despite knowing she won’t actually press it.

With a sigh, Vi moves her thumb away, staring instead at the contact picture for Caitlyn that she’d stolen off of Instagram weeks ago after Caitlyn had teased her for not having a suitable one.

“Am I interrupting?”

Vi jumps, nearly dropping her phone with the action. She fumbles, just managing to snatch it out of the air before it can land, and turns it off before spinning on the person that had unknowingly snuck up on her.

It’s one of Caitlyn’s friends- Viktor, she recalls. He was at Caitlyn’s birthday party, and Vi distinctly remembers him as being one of the only people she could stand talking to for an extended period of time that evening.

He has a polite smile on his face – more of a grimace, really – and his expression isn’t unkindly in the slightest. Vi wonders how much he knows; how much Caitlyn has told him. Judging from the lack of hostility in his body language and in his smile, Vi could guess that either he doesn’t know about her ending things with Caitlyn, or he isn’t one to hold grudges for that sort of thing in the first place.

“Um, no, not interrupting anything,” Vi says cautiously, testing the waters. “You want a drink or something?”

Viktor shakes his head. “No, that’s alright. Drinks are being ordered as we speak.” Vi peeks over his shoulder and sees Mel and Jayce, two of Caitlyn’s other friends, talking to Claggor at the bar. “I have been tasked with securing our usual table.”

Vi glances at the table she’d been in the process of cleaning and realizes that it is indeed the table that Caitlyn’s group usually occupies when they come in.

“Oh, right, of course,” Vi says, taking a step away from the table and gesturing for Viktor to sit. “Don’t let me get in your way.”

Viktor murmurs a quiet thank you and shuffles past Vi to lower himself carefully into a chair, propping his cane up on the side of the table. As he settles, Vi can’t help but glance around futilely, knowing that Caitlyn isn’t here but unable to not double check to confirm so.

“She isn’t here.”

Vi’s head whips back around to face Viktor. The knowing look on his face isn’t as annoying as it should be.

It still rubs her the wrong way, though.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Vi says, rolling her shoulder stiffly before scooping up her rag to absentmindedly clean a wet spot on the table.

Viktor is kind enough not to push the matter, humming thoughtfully. Vi busies herself with scrubbing at a particularly sticky spot on the table, not sure exactly why she’s stalling her departure, not sure why she feels the need to hang around Caitlyn’s friends any longer than she needs to.

But then she thinks about the last look she’d seen on Caitlyn’s face again, and she knows she’s only kidding herself.

“How is she?”

Viktor doesn’t seem surprised by the question, but Vi hurries to explain herself anyway, avoiding eye contact while she continues to work on the spot on the table.

“It’s just, things ended kind of weird between us. Um, not on the best terms, I guess. I just want to make sure she’s doing alright.”

“She’s… alright, I suppose,” Viktor replies after a moment of contemplation. “Busy with her studies, perhaps a little more, eh, recluse than before, but I’m certainly not one to criticize her for that.” His shoulders jerk in a short of shrug. “She hasn’t been crying while watching rom-coms and eating ice cream, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Vi isn’t sure how to feel about this information. On one hand, she’s glad that Caitlyn is well; the whole reason she’d ended things in the first place was because she wanted Caitlyn to be well, to do better than she ever could with Vi. On the other hand, to hear that Caitlyn was favoring alright felt like a punch to the gut when Vi has felt anything but okay the past week and a half.

Fucking Cassandra was actually right when she’d said that Vi wasn’t good for Caitlyn, and that alone was enough to make Vi want to jump off the nearest bridge.

“Oh,” is all Vi can think to say. She nods too aggressively. “That’s- good. That’s good. I’m glad she’s good.”

She continues to scrub at the spot on the table, though she’s pretty sure any stickiness from the surface has been removed at this point. If Viktor finds it odd that she continues to linger, he doesn’t say, which Vi is grateful for. After long pause, Viktor breaks the silence again.

“You know, Caitlyn and I may share the tendency to shut ourselves away with our work, or become obsessive in our studies, but I’ve always felt like she and I were remarkably different in most regards.” Viktor peers up at Vi. “But perhaps you and I are more similar than I had initially anticipated.”

“How so?”

Viktor’s gaze shifts over Vi’s shoulder, a faraway look in his eye, and for a second Vi thinks that he either didn’t hear her or he randomly started spacing out, but before she can wave a hand in front of his face he speaks again.

“I’ve learned the hard way how waiting to say how you feel can turn out,” he muses wistfully. Vi looks over her shoulder and sees Mel and Jayce still at the bar, sides pressed closely together and small smiles on their faces as they talk in low voices. Jayce listens to Mel speak with an adoring look in his eye, and when Vi turns back toward Viktor it’s painfully obvious who he’s been watching in the exact same way.

It reminds Vi of the way she feels when she looks at Caitlyn.

Viktor smiles, forlornly this time, and refocuses on Vi. “I would hate to see you suffer similarly.”

Vi’s eyes fall to look at the rag in her hand, bundled in a loose ball, as if it holds all the answers to the questions she doesn’t know to ask.

The rag reveals nothing, and Vi sighs.

* * *

Friday nights are, unsurprisingly, always one of the busiest nights of the week at The Last Drop.

The noise is good, the people demanding Vi’s attention for drinks, for napkins, for straws, are good. It keeps her busy, keeps her thoughts from straying.

Claggor and Mylo are both working tonight, the three of them operating like a well-oiled machine. Mylo ducks under Vi’s arm as he reaches for a cup, Vi swings around Claggor as she goes for a refill, Claggor slides by Mylo as he grabs a bottle. It’s a dance, one that Vi has down to muscle memory.

“I’ll take a jack and coke.”

Vi turns and her entire routine is thrown off instantly.

She narrows her eyes. “What, you outgrow two-dollar beer or something?”

Deckard scowls. “Just get me the drink.”

Vi rolls her eyes but starts reaching for everything she needs for the drink. When it’s made, she slides the drink roughly in his direction, hard enough to almost let it slosh over the sides of the glass. “Here. Unless you’d like a little umbrella to go with it?” She bats her eyes mockingly, and Deckard’s scowl deepens.

He takes a sip, but doesn’t leave his seat, much to Vi’s displeasure. “So where’s your arm candy at?” he questions.

“Can we not do this?” Vi snips back curtly. “I’m kind of busy at the moment.”

“Oooh, touchy, are we?” Deckard replies, eyebrows raising appraisingly. “What, did she break up with you or something?”

Vi’s jaw clenches. “Get lost, Deckard,” she attempts once more.

Deckard ignores her completely. “You know, I’m not surprised. She never really seemed like your type; that whole prissy, rich girl thing she had going on and all.” He rambles on, feeding off the frustration he can feel rolling off of Vi in steady waves. “No, no, you usually go for the girls who have even less than you, right? The ones that will sing endless praises to your name. The ones that throw themselves at you, the girls who are the easiest to fuck-”

“Deckard,” Vi warns coolly. Her hands clench into fists at her side.

Except Deckard is really on one now; determined to get under Vi’s skin in any possible way. “Although maybe Miss Prissy wasn’t so different from them after all. What was her name again? Carly? Catherine? Caitlyn?” Vi stiffens at the name and Deckard’s lips slide into a victorious smirk. “Caitlyn,” he repeats slowly. “Maybe Caitlyn was throwing herself at you, too. Was she paying you, Vi? Was Caitlyn paying you to fuck her so that she could get a taste of the wild side?”

“Fuck off,” Vi warns one last time. Her shoulder rolls back in an attempt to calm herself. “Don’t talk about her like that.”

Deckard holds up his hands in mock innocence. “What? I’m just trying to get a clearer picture here, is all. After all, if she was interested in you, who’s to say she isn’t interested in a little more of what our shitty lives have to offer? That little slut sure seemed interested at the party-”

That’s when Vi snaps.

Vi vaults over the bar top, grabbing Deckard by the throat and sending him crashing off his stool. He hits the ground with a grunt and the people around them scramble away, startled at the sudden display of violence. Deckard scrambles to find a grip around the hand clenched around his throat, trying in vain to free himself.

And that’s when Vi starts seeing red.

Her fists start flying, landing blow after blow on Deckard as he shifts and squirms to escape. She barely feels the impact of each hit, barely feels the skin around her knuckles split open, barely hears the yelling and sounds of panic around her. Deckard lands a hit or two of his own, the blood she tastes on her mouth evidence of that, but the pain in nonexistent.

She doesn’t know how long she’s there, pummeling Deckard without a thought, but all too soon she feels two pairs of hands on her arms bodily lifting her and forcing her away from Deckard. Vi kicks, fighting the whole way, cursing Deckard and everyone around her in frustration. After a moment she becomes aware of Mylo and Claggor on either side of her, holding her steady, keeping her from doing any more damage.

Vi slumps in their arms, chest heaving, and already hears the distant sound of police sirens.

* * *

The cell door opens with a creak and Vi is roughly pushed in, not bothering to turn around as the door is shut with a harsh clang. She hears a lock click and shoves her hand in her pants pocket.

She really wishes she had a jacket right now. Or, you know, any fucking brain cells.

After taking two full minutes to calm her heart rate down and slow her breathing, Vi picks her head up and takes in her surroundings.

The small holding cell has a bed, a sink, and a toilet. All three look like they’ve seen better days, but hey- still nicer than anything she had in prison before.

Footsteps slowly approach and Vi turns around to greet her first visitor.

And immediately scowls.

“This a comforting sight?” she asks sardonically. She spreads her arms out in a display. “Your favorite delinquent all locked up where you can keep an eye on her?”

Grayson sighs. “What happened, Vi?”

Vi shrugs and moves to sit on the bed, slumping against the wall. “I just got a little mad is all,” she sniffs.

“You beat that boy to a pulp,” Grayson says, a frustrating lack of judgement in her tone. “You broke his nose in three different places.”

“Probably looks better than it did before,” Vi mutters. She thumbs at the fresh cut on her lip and winces.

“This is serious, Vi,” Grayson says, brow deepening. “Do you know how it looks to have an infraction like this so soon after being released?”

“I’d imagine pretty fucking bad,” Vi remarks. “Hey, how long do you think they’ll lock me up for this time? Ten years? Fifteen? Might as well make it twenty for the hell of it.”

At Grayson’s lack of response, Vi glances up at her. She has a deeply contemplative look on her face, one that makes Vi duck her head uncomfortably.

“Why did you do it?” Grayson questions again in a quiet tone. “You haven’t shown this much aggression toward someone since your first year in Stillwater.”

An involuntary shiver runs down Vi’s spine at the mention of that name. She shrugs again in an attempt to combat it. “He was just- pissing me off,” she mumbles. “And I’ve had a bad week. So I guess it all just sort of… spilled out. Maybe I was looking for an excuse to blow up.”

Grayson hums. “Maybe it’s time to return to some anger management courses.”

“Yeah.” Vi lightly thumps the back of her head against the wall and shuts her eyes. “Maybe.”

There’s a stretch of silence and although Vi’s eyes are closed, she knows that Grayson is still standing there, waiting for something.

Vi opens her eyes just enough to peer at Grayson. “What do you want from me?” she asks tiredly. “Do you want me to apologize? Do you want me to get down on my knees and beg for mercy? Are you going to send someone to kick the shit out of me? Whatever it is I’d like to get it over with so I can get on with my night.”

Grayson looks down at her hands in an uncharacteristic show of meekness. “I know I haven’t exactly been your favorite person as of late. I’ve tried to do what I can to look out for you because Vander has been worried about you.” She pauses for a beat. “And because I know it’s what your parents would want.”

Vi turns her head to the side to avoid Grayson’s gaze, a lump forming in her throat.

“But also because I care about you, Vi,” Grayson continues. Her voice is earnest as she speaks. “And because I want you to have the life that you deserve.”

Vi swallows her emotions down and turns to face Grayson head on. “Then why didn’t you do anything the night I was arrested?”

“I did what I could do within reason,” Grayson replies, back to her usual lawful good self. “I diffused the situation, I calmed the owners down. Did you know they wanted to sue? They were determined to sue you and your family for all you were worth, but I managed to convince them that no harm had been done to them at the end of the day.” She shrugs a little. “I’m not saying I completely saved the day, but things could have been worse.”

Vi takes a second to process this new information. Although it doesn’t make her feel totally better after that night, it does fill her with some sort of relief to know that someone was there to make sure Vander and Powder were alright. She begrudgingly acknowledges the fact. “Thanks.”

“I know we’ll never truly see eye to eye, but I hope that someday, when the wounds aren’t so fresh, we might stand to be in the same room as each other,” Grayson says. A small smirk slides onto her face. “Because I’d enjoy coming over for more of Vander’s stew sometime, and I’d prefer to not receive death glares from across the table throughout dinner.”

Vi huffs an unexpected laugh. “Yeah, sure. Maybe.” Her mouth quirks ever so slightly at the corner. “Someday.”

Grayson gives a firm nod, satisfied, and turns to leave before seemingly remembering something. “Oh, and you get one phone call. To have someone come and pick you up.” She looks at Vi as if sharing an inside joke. “I haven’t told Vander, and I told the boys at the bar to keep quiet about it for the time being, until you were able to tell him yourself. If you’d like to tell him, that is.”

With that, Grayson walks down the hall, away from Vi’s cell, leaving her to consider her options. Her door is unlocked a few minutes later and she’s led to the phone provided for her call, handcuffs secure around her wrists.

Vi takes the phone off the wall and stares at the keypad, going over Vander’s number in her head. Her finger hovers over the first button and she pauses. Thinks it over again, thinks about the one person that she really wants to see right now, sees the number she’s been staring at for two weeks flashing behind her eyes.

The phone rings four times before there’s an answer. “Hello?”

Vi lets out a shaky breath. “Hey, cupcake,” she says, voice unsteady. “I have a favor to ask.”

Chapter Text

Crack.

A gunshot fills the air. The flock of birds perched on the nearby trees takes flight.

Caitlyn holds her position for a moment, rifle aimed perfectly at the target, before relaxing. She calmly begins to reload.

There’s a slight breeze in the air, not enough to affect her shot, but enough to make the hairs fallen loose from her ponytail sway a little.

It feels nice. A nice evening, all things considered.

The nicest one she’s had in two weeks, maybe.

There’s the sound of approaching footsteps on the path to Caitlyn’s right, and she glances over to see her mother cautiously entering the shooting range.

Caitlyn narrows her eyes and goes back to loading her gun.

The last two weeks had been… tense, to say the least.

After spending two days decompressing – AKA hiding – at Jayce’s house, Caitlyn had eventually made her way back to her own home. She’d purposefully timed her arrival so that her mother would be at work when she arrived, but her father had hurried to greet her as soon as she’d opened the front door. He’d apologized profusely, of course, telling Caitlyn that he was sorry for his lack of involvement in the whole situation and that he was going to try harder to talk to her mother about things, and to be there for Caitlyn when she needed him.

Caitlyn had forgiven him fairly easily, knowing that, at the end of the day, he was more oblivious than harmful, and quietly requested to be given some space for a little while. A request that, up until now, had been granted.

Her mother stops at Caitlyn’s side just as Caitlyn lines up her next shot. She peers down the barrel, takes a deep breath in, and pulls the trigger on the exhale. A new mark appears on the bullseye of her target a split second later.

“You always were an excellent shot.”

Caitlyn acknowledges her mother’s comment with a huff, already lining up another shot. Out her peripherals she sees that her mother has brought her own rifle out. Without a word, Caitlyn takes a step over, allowing her mother more room to line up her own shot.

They shoot in stilted silence for a while, her mother making the occasional comment on the weather or how they need to replace some of the targets. It becomes increasingly obvious that her mother didn’t come out here just to shoot with her daughter, and Caitlyn sends her a look as they are both taking a moment to reload.

“Why did you come out here?”

It’s the first things she’s said since her mother got out here, and her words are met with a look of surprise.

“Is it a crime for me to want to spend some quality time with my daughter?” her mother retorts.

Caitlyn’s eyes narrow further. Her mother sighs.

“Your father wanted me to apologize.” When Caitlyn scoffs and turns away, she hurries to rectify her words. “And I wanted to apologize as well. What I did was wrong. I crossed a line, and for that I am sorry.”

“But you don’t regret it, do you,” Caitlyn says, not a question. Her mother purses her lips and Caitlyn’s scowl deepens. “Unbelievable,” she mutters, stalking toward one of the side tables and setting to clean her gun, deciding she’s had enough shooting for today- not as long as her mother is here.

“Did you know that I never approved of you wanting to go into criminal justice?” her mother says suddenly from behind her. Caitlyn’s shoulders tense but she remains silent, listening as she speaks. “I thought it a waste of your talents. How could my daughter, who could easily excel in a career similar to my own or her father’s, want to spend her life chasing down petty criminals?”

“I fail to see how this is supposed to make me feel better,” Caitlyn snips sharply in reply.

“But most importantly, I was worried for you,” her mother continues. Caitlyn risks a glance over her shoulder to see a look on her mother’s face that she’s never seen before. One of quiet distress. “I was so worried about the kind of life you would lead, that you would put yourself in danger. And I also knew that the danger wouldn’t deter you in the slightest.” She says the last part with a regretful yet fond smile.

Caitlyn carefully sets her rifle down and turns around to face her mother once more. “So why didn’t you try to stop me, then, if you felt that way?”

“I saw how passionate you were about it and knew that you would do it with or without my approval,” her mother replies. An oddly shy expression crosses over her face. “And your father forbid me from intervening,” she admits sheepishly. Caitlyn can’t help but huff a laugh at that. “He told me that we can’t dictate your life forever, that you were growing to be your own person and had to make your own decisions.” She pauses before adding, “Perhaps that’s why I didn’t talk to him about Vi. I knew he would dissuade me from intervening again.”

Her mother sighs and walks over to join Caitlyn at the table, slumping back against it, posture imperfect for once. “Your father has always had the uncanny ability to see the good in others.” She glances sidelong at Caitlyn. “Something the two of you have in common”

Unsure of what to say to that, Caitlyn simply ducks her head and brushes a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

After a moment’s hesitation, her mother speaks again. “I see now how many of the rules and expectations I placed upon you all of your life have affected you, and I know it may be too late to completely make up for all I’ve done, but I want you to know that I truly thought I was doing what was best for you.” She smiles softly – maybe the softest smile Caitlyn has ever seen on her – and lifts a hand to gently tilt Caitlyn’s chin up. “Because I have always wanted you to have all the best that life could offer, my darling. Nothing else would do.”

Caitlyn blinks against the sudden tears she feels threatening to fall and reaches up to loosely grip the hand on her cheek, giving it a small squeeze.

“You’ve grown into a beautiful young woman, Caitlyn, and it’s time I let you make your own choices, decide what’s best for you.” Her mother lets her hand fall from Caitlyn’s face but keeps hold of Caitlyn’s hand. “And if you think that Vi is what’s best for you, I will do my best to not stand in the way.”

Caitlyn smiles widely and pulls her mother into a hug, one that’s a little stiff but still nice nonetheless. “Thank you,” Caitlyn whispers, tucking her chin against her mother’s shoulder.

Her mother pats her back somewhat awkwardly. “My dear, it’s I who should be thanking you for putting up with me for so long.”

Caitlyn laughs and tightens her arms one last time before letting go and stepping back. Her mother immediately fixes her posture and straightens out her clothes, not used to such shows of affection.

“I fear it may be too late to fix things with Vi,” Caitlyn admits regretfully. “But I appreciate the permission.”

“Not that you need my permission,” her mother adds quickly.

Caitlyn grins. “Not that I need your permission,” she clarifies.

Her mother smiles warmly before excusing herself, likely heading inside to tell Caitlyn’s father about the success of her apology. Caitlyn watches her go, surprisingly at ease with the entire conversation, and then turns toward her partly disassembled rifle, considering continuing her target practice when her phone starts buzzing in her pocket.

Her brow furrows when she sees an unknown number on the screen, but she answers it anyway, curious. “Hello?”

There’s a shaky exhale on the other end. “Hey, cupcake,” an all too familiar voice says, and Caitlyn’s breath catches in her throat. “I have a favor to ask.”

* * *

Caitlyn makes the 20-minute drive to the police station in 10.

She stews during the entire drive over, unable to decide if she’s concerned or furious to have learned that Vi’s been arrested. There’s mild confusion in the mix of emotions as well; Caitlyn assumed that based on the way they left things she would’ve been the last person that Vi would have called in a situation like this.

By the time she’s speaking to the officer stationed at the front desk, she still can’t decide how to she feels, thumb tapping anxiously against her leg as she’s led to the holding cells.

As soon as she sees Vi, sitting on the uncomfortable bed in her cell, face battered and bruised, all the anger in her body melts away into pure concern.

“Vi,” she says, slowly approaching the cell.

Vi lifts her head, that damned troublesome smirk on her lips at the sight of Caitlyn. “Hey, cupcake.” Her voice belies the confidence of her smirk: it’s unsteady, nervous, as if she’s been anxiously awaiting this moment.

The officer escorting Caitlyn hangs back a little, giving the illusion of privacy, and Caitlyn steps closer, wrapping her hands around the bars of the cell. “What happened? Look at you.”

Vi stands and takes careful steps across the small space until she’s within Caitlyn’s reach. Caitlyn immediately reaches up to touch Vi’s face, instinctively rubbing a thumb over the bruise on her cheek, the cut on her bottom lip. Vi takes a deep, shaky breath, just like the one that Caitlyn had heard over the phone, and closes her eyes, leaning into the contact.

“Oh, you know,” she says, peeking one eye back open to glance at Caitlyn. “Just couldn’t help knocking some heads at work.”

Caitlyn tsks and grips Vi’s chin, forcing her to look more clearly at her. She says nothing, just waits expectantly. Vi sighs.

“It was Deckard,” she reveals begrudgingly. “He was talking shit, being a dick like usual. I just wasn’t having it.”

Caitlyn sighs but lets her hand fall away from Vi’s chin, focusing her attention instead on Vi’s bruised knuckles, dried blood evidence over where they’ve split. “Well I can’t say I blame you for swinging at Deckard, but I’m not sure I can condone handling things so violently. Especially when it lands you here.”

“Hey, I was defending your honor, you know,” Vi says, puffing her chest out a little. “Someone had to put him in his place.”

Against her better judgement, Caitlyn huffs a laugh. “My hero,” she quips dryly. She glances up from Vi’s hands to see Vi carefully watching her. There are bags under her eyes that look too deep to have just been from the day’s events, and Caitlyn wonders if Vi has been having as much trouble sleeping as she has.

“Thank you for coming,” Vi says softly. She lets her head droop forward, looking at their connected hands instead of at Caitlyn. “I kind of didn’t think you would come- don’t know why you did come.” She pauses before adding, “I wouldn’t have come if I were you.”

Caitlyn’s heart contorts painfully. “I told you: I care about you, Vi.” She squeezes Vi’s hands for emphasis. “That hasn’t changed, despite everything.”

Vi raises her head and looks back at Caitlyn, and there’s that look again- the same one that she’d always given Caitlyn right before everything fell apart.

Caitlyn clears her throat and drops Vi’s hands, bringing her own hands safely back to her side of the bars where they’re away from temptation. “So, what are the charges against you? The consequences?”

Vi takes a half step away from the bars, hands burrowing into her pants pockets. “Grayson’s letting me off with a warning,” she says. Caitlyn’s eyebrows lift in surprise until Vi winces a little. “And maybe also a month of community service.”

“Well, could be worse,” Caitlyn muses. “What about Deckard? Is he pressing charges?”

“Nah,” Vi says waving a hand dismissively. “Asshole’s involved in way too much shifty business. He won’t want to risk the cops catching wind of any of it.

Caitlyn shoots a quick glance at the officer that had escorted her to the holding cells, only to see that he’s scrolling absently through his phone, likely not paying attention to their conversation in the slightest. “Lucky us, I suppose.”

The conversation comes to a stop, and Caitlyn finally allows herself to process the fact that she’s here, in front of Vi, for the first time since their falling out. She thinks about the things Vi said, the things Caitlyn didn’t say; thinks about the last two weeks and how she’s felt without Vi by her side, how empty it’s felt.

“I think-”

“I wanted to-”

They start speaking at the same time, cutting each other off with a shared chuckle. Vi gestures for Caitlyn to go first.

“I found out what my mother said to you,” she starts. Vi visibly stiffens. “About how she told you that you weren’t good enough for me, that you were distracting me from my goals. And I wanted to apologize for everything she said. You didn’t deserve any of it.” She hesitates before adding, “And you didn’t deserve the way I treated you, either.”

“Caitlyn,” Vi tries to cut in, but Caitlyn doesn’t let her.

“No, let me say it,” she insists, squeezing her eyes shut momentarily to organize the words that have been swirling in her thoughts for weeks now. “I wasn’t fair to you. From the beginning I never put your feelings into account, never thought about how this whole situation may affect you. And in the end when I finally got what I wanted – my mother’s disapproval – it didn’t feel like a victory because you were the one who suffered for it.”

She looks Vi right in the eyes. “You deserve all that’s best in this world, Violet, because you are so kind and protective and good. And I feel terribly selfish because of how much I’ve missed you, even after hurting you.”

Vi has a small smile on her face, one that she’s obviously trying to hold back. “So, what I’m hearing is, you missed me?”

Caitlyn can’t help but laugh, rolling her eyes fondly. “Really, that’s all you got from that? Yes, Vi, I missed you.”

“Good,” Vi says, smile growing. “Because I’ve missed you, too.”

Caitlyn feels her eyes shine with unshed tears. “Really?”

“Really,” Vi confirms, sobering a moment later. “And, uh, about all that stuff I said that night? I didn’t mean any of it. I want you to know me, and I do care about you. Hell, I even fucking like you.” She laughs, slightly delirious-sounding, and Caitlyn smiles at the sound. “Sometimes I feel like a little kid again, crushing on the pretty girl in class.”

Now Caitlyn laughs, too, reaching a hand up to wrap her fingers around one of the bars between them. Vi holds onto the same bar, just below Caitlyn’s hand, so that they are just barely touching.

“You weren’t a mistake,” Vi tells her, seriously and firmly. “I think you’re one of the best decisions I’ve made in a long fucking time, and I want to feel like I deserve you, even if you feel like I already do. I want to feel like I’m good enough.” She glances around at their surroundings with a wince. “Even if we’re not off to a great start.”

A surge of affection washes over Caitlyn, and she gently uncurls Vi’s hand from around the cell bar, bringing it up so that she can press her lips against her bruised and beautiful knuckles. “Well, then,” she says formally, holding the hand between her own. “I suppose there’s only one thing left to do now.”

“Get me out of this cell so I can kiss you?” Vi jokes.

“You’re infuriating,” Caitlyn says. “Would you like to date me? For real this time?”

Vi grins a large, dopey grin. “Cupcake, I thought you’d never ask,” she says. Caitlyn beams at her and squeezes her hand tighter. “But seriously, get me out of here so I can kiss you.”

“Right.”

Fifteen minutes later, they’re walking out of the police station, Caitlyn holding the door open so that Vi can slip out first.

“So, you’re like, kind of my favorite person, you know?” Vi says as they walk down the path towards Caitlyn’s car.

Caitlyn hums. “Is that because I’m your girlfriend, or because I just bailed you out of prison.”

“Definitely because you just bailed me out. I could get arrested a hundred times and you’d be able to pay me out every time. Especially since you’re gonna be a cop soon.”

“I desperately hope you’re joking.”

Vi laughs and reaches for Caitlyn’s hand, lacing their fingers together. “Yeah, I am. It would definitely piss off your parents, though.”

“Shut up,” Caitlyn says, nothing but fondness in the words.

Three months later.

Caitlyn fidgets with the tassel hanging from her cap, batting it away from her face for the umpteenth time. It swings back to knock against her nose, and Caitlyn blows it away again with an annoyed puff of air. The speaker on stage – some associate dean or whatnot – rambles on about the future and how the next step of their lives has just begun.

The sooner this ceremony is over with, the sooner Caitlyn can ditch the hat.

The day hasn’t been all bad, she supposes. Her father had taken far too many pictures that morning, enough that they were nearly late out the door, but Caitlyn couldn’t find it in herself to deny him of celebrating his only daughter’s college graduation. Her mother had watched the antics with a small smile, occasionally instructing Caitlyn to straighten her gown, or her cap, or to relax her smile “so it doesn’t look as if you’re being tortured right now.”

Vi had been less than helpful, making frequent jokes that left Caitlyn entirely unfocused and unable to pose the way she was supposed to. Still, when she’d jumped in for the last few pictures, smearing a wet kiss against Caitlyn’s cheek, Caitlyn heard her father’s camera clicking away as Caitlyn cringed away from the kiss with a laugh.

“And now, it is my pleasure to present your class of 2022 valedictorian, Jayce Talis.”

Caitlyn sits up straighter in her chair with a smile, clapping along with her classmates as Jayce struts across the stage with a smile. His broad shoulders fill out his gown nicely, the many honor cords and medals adorning the ensemble looking as though they were born to be there. He catches Caitlyn’s eye and winks, pointing at her before taking his place behind the podium to begin his speech. Caitlyn rolls her eyes with a grin and points back at him.

“He looks quite natural up there, don’t you think?” Caitlyn muses quietly, leaning closer to Mel seated next to her.

“Mm. Too natural. This will all contribute generously to his ego, I’m afraid,” she replies, eyes locked on her boyfriend as he begins his speech. Caitlyn has no doubt she’s heard it before; Jayce has been writing and revising the speech for weeks, ever since he found out he’d be this year’s valedictorian for the entire university.

Caitlyn’s mother had been horrified when she’d found out Caitlyn hadn’t applied to be valedictorian, of course. She’d given a big, long lecture about how hard Caitlyn has worked and how she deserved the title over anyone else and how she was a Kiramman for goodness’s sake. After a few days she’d come to accept the fact and let Caitlyn stand by her decision. She hadn’t even called the school and demanded for them to make Caitlyn valedictorian whether she wanted it or not, which Caitlyn considered to be great progress.

She feels her phone buzz against her leg and she digs around in the deep pocket of her gown until she finds it, pulling it out and opening it to read the message waiting for her.

Violet
your mom is glaring at you
for not paying attention to jayce’s speech
and she says stop playing with your cap

Caitlyn twists in her seat, eyes searching the large stadium for where her parents are sitting. She finds them quickly, tucked away in the “reserved for donators” section, and sure enough, her mother’s eyes are narrowed at where Mel and Caitlyn are whispering to each other. Vi sits next to her, dressed in nice (ish) shorts and a t-shirt, snapback with the letters PU – which Vi found endless amusement in – emblazoned on the front pulled snuggly over her messy pink hair.

It's still an odd sight, seeing Vi and her mother sitting beside each other without snapping at each other. Their interactions and relationship as a whole were awkward at best, their mutual desire to see Caitlyn happy seemingly the only thing they have in common. In contrast, Caitlyn’s father had been overjoyed when Caitlyn revealed that they were dating again, welcoming her a little too enthusiastically back into their home.

Since then, things have been… not perfect, but good. Definitely good.

Caitlyn smiles and sends back a reply.

Caitlyn
And I’m sure she’s glaring at me for being on my phone, now

Violet
she totally is
shit she’s glaring at me now
i’m blaming you for this

The last text comes through a minute later.

Violet
you look cute btw

Caitlyn attempts to catch Vi’s eye as Jayce starts talking about making memories and reaching dreams, only to find her girlfriend already watching her. Vi shoots her a wink and Caitlyn tries not to count down the minutes remaining in the ceremony too eagerly.

* * *

The great room in the Kiramman mansion is once again decked to the nines, tasteful streamers, balloons, and one large banner reading “Congratulations, Graduates!” decorate the hall, along with an embarrassing display featuring pictures of Caitlyn all throughout her schooling, from ages 5 to 22. Caitlyn was fairly certain that Vi had already stolen a handful of them to keep for herself.

In comparison to the over-the-top decorations, the guest list is tame, each person having been personally notified and approved of by Caitlyn in advance of the invitations being sent out. It had also been decided that it would be a combined graduation party with Jayce, Mel, and Viktor’s friends and family, but even with the amount of people that Caitlyn didn’t know, it was the least stifling event her parents had thrown maybe ever.

None of that seems important, now, not when she has Vi pressed against her, warm and wanting.

Caitlyn hums into their kiss, hands tugging on one of her own honor cords Vi has taken to wearing for the evening, pulling her girlfriend ever closer to her. They’d snuck away from the party some minutes ago, Caitlyn tugging Vi out the door with a vague excuse of needing air and led them to the gardens. One thing led to another, as it often did, and soon enough Caitlyn had found herself laying on cool grass, Vi half on top of her with their lips connecting slowly over and over again.

She can feel Vi smiling against her lips, and the feeling makes Caitlyn smile as well.

“What,” she says, rolling them over so that she’s draped across her girlfriend, “are you smiling about?” She punctuates her question with another kiss that’s meant to be short but turns long when Vi deepens it, one hand on Caitlyn’s cheek keeping her close.

“It’s just,” Vi finally says, their noses brushing together, “your mom had asked me to be on my best behavior tonight. I don’t think this is what she had in mind.”

“Should I be worried that you’re thinking about my mother while I’m on top of you?” Caitlyn asks playfully, pulling back enough to be able to look at Vi.

“Mm. You should feel very worried,” Vi says, playing along. “Threatened, even.”

“What a shame,” Caitlyn hums, tracing a finger along Vi’s eyebrow, down her nose. “I suppose we had a good run.”

“I guess I’m just into older women,” Vi muses wistfully. Caitlyn wrinkles her nose.

“This is getting weird.”

“Agreed.”

Caitlyn shakes her head as if to clear the conversation away. “Well, to go back to your original point, I think this is a perfectly acceptable way for me to spend my graduation night.” She trails a thumb along Vi’s cheekbone until it reaches her ear, then gives the piercings she finds there a light tug. “I wouldn’t want to spend it any other way.”

Vi smiles warmly and pulls Caitlyn in for another kiss, this one just as soft and slow as the ones that came before it.

“I got you a present,” Vi says when they eventually part again. Their lips brush together ever so slightly as she speaks.

Caitlyn pulls away more and raises an eyebrow at Vi. “You didn’t have to do get me anything,” she says, even as her curiosity piques.

“I know I didn’t, I still wanted to,” Vi says, already pushing herself upright. Caitlyn slides off her, shifting until they’re sitting cross-legged, facing each other.

Vi fidgets nervously with the hem of her shirt. “So, you got a tattoo for me before we were even dating,” she starts. “And that was kind of when I started realizing that you weren’t at all what I was expecting you to be.”

“And what were you expecting?” Caitlyn questions.

“Honestly? I’m not even sure. Maybe I thought you’d be kind of a bitch. The entitled, self-centered, bossy type, you know?” Vi’s lips slide into a teasing smirk. “Well, maybe I was right about the bossy part.” Caitlyn smacks her lightly on the arm for that, but Vi only laughs before continuing. “But what I discovered instead was this kind, selfless, surprisingly funny girl that I for some reason wanted to spend all my time with.”

Vi lifts one of her shoulders, the way she does when she feels vulnerable, and Caitlyn places a hand on her knee, squeezing once. Vi smiles at the gesture.

“And the tattoo didn’t make me realize all that, obviously, but that kind of felt like when all this started to feel real to me. So I figured it’s time I even the scores a bit.”

With that, Vi lifts her shirt, just enough that Caitlyn can see the brand-new cupcake tattoo on Vi’s ribs, identical to the one on Caitlyn’s.

Caitlyn covers her mouth with a hand, covering her smile. “You didn’t,” she says, despite the thrill she’s feeling. She reaches out with her other hand, the hand covering her mouth sliding to rest on her cheek instead, and lightly touches the tattoo. “You know that you’re ridiculous, right? We’ll really be one of those couples now, the ones with matching tattoos that everyone hates.”

“Do you hate it?” Vi asks, a hint of insecurity in her voice. Caitlyn hums and rubs her thumb over the cupcake, lightly gripping Vi’s side.

“Hm. Quite the opposite, actually. I’m afraid I’m too happy with it.”

A goofy grin splits Vi’s face. “Good, because it hurt like hell to get. And do you know how expensive it is to get a tattoo removed? I swear that shit costs an arm and a leg.”

Caitlyn laughs and pulls Vi in her for a kiss, which Vi immediately returns. When she pulls away, Caitlyn cups Vi’s face between her hands.

“I love you,” Caitlyn says, the words feeling right on her tongue.

“I love you, too,” Vi replies easily, her smile soft and sincere.

They move in for another kiss, only for the moment to be ruined by her mother’s voice calling from the house. “Caitlyn! Vi! We still need to open presents!”

Caitlyn leans back with a groan, falling all the way back to lay on the grass. Vi laughs and pushes herself to her feet, standing over Caitlyn with a hand extended toward her. “Come on, rebel, before your mom starts opening your goodies for you.”

“Rebel?” Caitlyn asks, nose scrunched as she allows her girlfriend to pull her up off the ground. “That’s a new one?”

Vi slips her hand into Caitlyn’s, fingers naturally slotting together. “I thought it was appropriate. I still like cupcake better, though.”

“Do I have a choice in this?” Caitlyn asks.

Vi squeezes her hand. “Always,” she tells her, and the two of them make their way back inside to the party, ready to face whatever comes next.