egotistical

[  ACCESS  GRANTED  :  ALEXA  DEMIE  GIF  PACK  ]

" and there it is — the look. congratulations, you've still got it. " that grin of hers was contagious, an affliction even years of self-imposed isolation hadn't managed to quell. she's powerless to stop the corners of her mouth from turning up in unison, feeling herself get swept up in a wave of nostalgia as effortlessly as she'd been swept up in stella's schemes. everything looked prettier with a flashback filter, but frankie knew better than to mistake memory for reality. back then, she lived in constant fear that stella would tire of her, that if she was too mopey or high-strung or didn't match her rebellious heart beat for beat, she would find someone else. and as for stella — she hadn't known her friend was drowning until the current had already pulled her under, and by then it was too late. from the faraway look on her friend's face, she can tell her thoughts have taken a similar turn. something begins to take shape in her mind ( an explanation? an apology? ), just as soon swept away by the suddenness of stella's words.

a softer laugh escapes her, a bit bashful at the implications behind her smile and frankie's reaction to it. the next breath is a little hard to come by, a little stuck in her chest at the words that confirm her suspicions. immediately there's questions that swim forth in her eyes, though she doesn't immediately voice them. she's sitting with the weight, the not-so-new knowledge that frankie had a crush on her. how to explain the feelings she had back then? how to put into words how much of a disaster she'd been? "i knew that," she nodded, feeling slightly ashamed of having to sit with it. "back then, i mean. i..." carrying off, her voice left her for a moment before it all fell out in a rush. "i knew that you liked me." shutting her eyes, clenching them tight for a moment, stella's cheeks warm just so. pinkish hue hot on her skin, she forces herself to continue, eyes shut but prickling with tears. she forces them away before she opens them, careful. "did you know that you felt like the only stable person - stable relationship - that i had in my life back then?" she forces herself to meet frankie's gaze, swallowing down the urge to hide or flinch away. she knew that this would be hard - that coming back here, rehashing everything would be painful. but reaching out to frankie was still the easiest thing she'd done in so long.

phoebe didn't break eye contact, nor did she move a muscle. kate's pause would be a short waiting game, she was sure of it and she was always right. sure enough, it wasn't long until she watched kate move, lower herself so they were at eye level, and she had to fight back the satisfied little twitch that tried to pull at her lips that the action brought. phoebe let the lift of one of her own brows be pointed, because duh, of course it was so, that really should have been obvious. the faintest little huff left her as she wondered why kate was picking now to play this shade of coy. it wasn't like phoebe was infamous for her patience - her attitude, maybe. "i'm oh so kindly offering you a repeat. in a position of your choosing." the way she nuzzled her cheek against kate's hand wasn't shy; it couldn't be with the swell of satisfaction the touch brought. the mention of last time had the ghost of a smirk echoing across her features, and phoebe had no complaints when a few key moments resurfaced in her mind - though it wasn't like she really needed the reminder, she was angling for more for a reason, after all. "i want you to fuck me. was that not obvious?"

sometimes, when kate was feeling particularly sensitive or just plain mean, she liked to draw things out. but she was always careful to play her cards close to chest with phoebe. maybe it was a lack of trust? or rather, the knowledge that phoebe was her own beast with her own needs and her own motivations. and when kate stopped providing what she needed, phoebe would eventually move on. sometimes, on nights when she really couldn't stop the thoughts from kicking into gear, she wondered why phoebe wanted her at all. surely there were other, easier targets that phoebe could be with. most didn't present with the complications that kate carried; no husband, no age difference, no difficult personality. but maybe phoebe didn't want easy - maybe she just wanted kate - for a reason that kate didn't understand, exactly. kate was still working it out in her mind - the why's - but she didn't let it distract her from the moments she shared with phoebe like this. she simply filed away little things that she would think about later.

to be fair, sage often found herself getting caught up in saffron, too. the long blonde hair. those pink, puffy lips. the kind of hazel eyes she always seemed to get lost in halfway through a conversation. saffron had more of an effect on her than she liked admitting, which was probably why she hid so much of it behind teasing and jokes. it was easier to grin than to sit with the fact that her heart occasionally tripped over itself. her arms stayed tucked close to her sides as she continued tormenting saffron with that tiny excuse for a shirt, the thin white fabric nearly translucent where it stretched across her frame, revealing every curve and line beneath it. shifting a little closer, she reached up and gently swept a loose piece of saffron's hair back over her shoulder, her fingers lingering for only a second before retreating. she was playing with the boundary again, almost challenging. "always paying attention?" sage echoed, already giggling. "you missed, like, half of my whole theory about how the universe actually likes chaotic people." one brow arched suspiciously as she studied her. "so what part of me were you paying attention to for the last five minutes?" the question came wrapped in a smile, playful but entirely too curious. "because you seemed, like, totally zoned out the entire time."

the way sage sits, with her arms tucked nearest to her sides, just seems to highlight the way her breasts want to spill out of that tiny shirt. its distracting, and saffron knows she's embarrassingly turned on just from this; the conversation, the teasing, the way she can't stop herself from imagining wrapping her lips around sage's nipples. clearing her throat at the visual, she shifts in her seat and her eyes stray to her surroundings. they close when the other woman reaches to push a strand of hair away from her shoulders. fuck. and what is she supposed to say to that? admit that she wants sage in a way that's decidedly unfriendly? hazel orbs open after a moment and she follows the line of sage's body up to her face. she's not aware of the expression on her face; it's entirely too needy. if she were aware, she'd seal it shut. but her eyes practically beg for sage to close the distance, or for the courage to do it herself. "i'm sorry," a furrow forms in her brow, and she realizes that she does mean it - she is sorry. maybe for the wrong reasons. she sometimes thinks they're on the same page, that the teasing is just a form of foreplay. but then... well, she doesn't think that sage has ever really been this distracted by her. and that thought, more than anything else, keeps her from making a move. it hurts, in a way, but its manageable. its nothing like the taste of betrayal after her twin sister outed her, or the fact that her family no longer speaks to her. this is a manageable kind of ache. "you're my friend," and she hates how her voice wavers on that, "i should pay more attention."

okay, so maybe sage was kind of a tease. she really couldn't help herself. there was something about getting somebody flustered, watching the color climb into their cheeks that she absolutely loved. it kind of turned her on in a weird way. the tension. the teasing. at this point, sage was nearly begging saffron to touch her, she just wouldn't admit it. "seriously?" she almost sounded offended. "that was, like, the most important part." she was being dramatic, obviously. sage closed the remaining space between them, sinking onto the couch right beside them, purposefully giving saffron a better view of the thin fabric clinging to her frame. something jaunty flickered behind those doe-like eyes. her perfume to drifting between them, sweet and distracting. "why aren't you paying attention to me today?" she teased, tilting her head slightly. there was something else underneath it too. curiosity. challenge. the kind that invited trouble.

the couch cushions bounced slightly at the weight of sage sinking down onto them. her perfume was immediately distracting; it made saffron's breath catch audibly. teeth clicking together as her jaw clenched just so, a tick forming there. she wanted to tell sage that she knew what she was doing; that saffron wasn't naive. she was being teased - somewhat relentlessly. the problem was.. she liked it. more than she wanted to admit. because teasing from sage meant being the center of her attention and saffron was nothing if not a dog at her feet begging. there was another factor to consider; she had never been with anyone before, not past kissing and some uncomfortable groping from men. none of which she'd actually wanted or liked; it had felt more like a performance than anything else. it would not be like that if she did what she wanted to do and reached forward to touch sage. a soft huff of disbelieving laughter fell from her then, and she turned her head upwards, refusing to look at the woman. closing her eyes when the ceiling came into view, she could feel the warmth from the others skin just as clearly as she could feel her palms inching into little fists of restraint. "i am always paying attention to you," hazel orbs opened, cutting across the distance to pin sage with their intensity. "that's kind of the problem."

•⋅⊰∙∘☽ ☆ ☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅ ──── open to m / f / nb

saffron is positive that her ears are on fire at this point. she was trying to listen - really. it was just... swallowing harshly, she turned her gaze away from full breasts and towards safety; she found sage's eyes. and in them, she could see the quiet mirth and the knowing glint in her eyes. saffron's own narrowed in response. knowing she was being teased and doing something about that teasing were two different things. they were vastly different, in fact. she felt provoked to action - to reaction. but her reserved nature, and the quiet shame that still lingered in her bones at the attraction, wouldn't let her do anything besides stare. "i lost you when you were talking about signs from the universe..." carrying off, her hands fidgeted in front of her, her eyes dropping down to sage's tiny shirt before they flickered carefully away.

@egotistival liked for a starter! ( frankie & estella )

"who, me? you can't possibly be talking about me, frankie!" but she was, and the grin seated permanently onto stella's face said that she knew it was true. she had been a particularly bad influence; breaking and entering, the numerous amount of protests they'd been to at her behest, and the drinking. "and look where all that bad behavior got me," a stint in rehab, a father who was so disappointed in her he couldn't look at her, and a town full of regret and people she couldn't even call friends anymore. her smile dimmed just a tad, eyes shifting beneath long lashes, but she caught the blush on frankie's cheeks and something in her chest shifted, aligned and seated into place. "did you have a crush on me?" the words flew from her mouth with only a hint of hesitance. she used to wonder late at night what frankie really thought of her; if she was the same disaster to frankie that she was to others. she still wondered. somehow, this was easier than talking about what a mess she'd made of her life. about the drugs and the spiral and the want to be anyone else. "i thought," pausing, her tongue came out to wet her bottom lip, stalling because she didn't know if it was something that could be broached. "i used to think that sometimes you'd look at me like..." carrying off, it was her turn to blush and avert her eyes down to her mocktail. "well, you just never seemed to look at me like anyone else."

open to: w/nb muse: phoebe savile | 24/cis woman/bisexualsub/rich girlie who hates her family

it was tempting. everything about phoebe was, and despite herself, despite her earlier annoyance, her eyes did linger on the arch of her back and the slow crawl the other woman made towards her. kate stood there for a moment longer, gaze locked on phoebe's, hands in her pockets squeezing into gentle fists for a second before she dropped to a kneeling stance in front of the bed. here, they were eye level, and kate could make out every little micro expression that formed on phoebe's face. "is that so?" it was an idle question, a single blonde brow arching in response as an amused smirk appeared on kate's face. "and what will you do, hm? touch me? never." her hand came up to frame phoebe's face, catching on the shell of her ear as her touch became possessive. "last time it was you who was crying out my name," a soft hum left her, pleased when the memories swam forth. "what is it you want?" she knew phoebe wouldn't be shy to tell her, but kate was also aware that their dynamic, fragile as it was, was built upon kate's own dominance in the bedroom and phoebe's willingness to submit to that.