#ldayluam

paige knew that this situation with azzi was wrong for a plethora of reasons. azzi was her rookie, azzi was nine years her junior, and most importantly, azzi was an absolute force of fucking nature that would knock everything paige had established off it's axis. 

she'd spent years building this life. forged security with measured, deliberate intention and her reputation was finally something she could be proud of. for the most part, she'd figured out the minefield that was public perception. nothing she let them see was ever accidental because she knew whatever she let them see was also irreversible. paige knew that with the growth of her league, came the maggots that attached themselves to whatever they could. they'd eaten away at her until all she was something less. something that appeared lifeless— felt lifeless, too. 

azzi knew what it was like, to an extent. there were clearly things that azzi didn't know. things she couldn't know this early in her career. but somehow, she stood outside of it all. unpolished and unaccounted for, completely oblivious to everything that wanted to consume her. paige was into that, she thought. she knew that what drew her in was precisely what unsettled her; the fact that azzi had no interest in doing anything but what she wanted, but still had some sort of instinct to protect the order that paige had built. 

paige couldn't erase the look on azzi's face in her apartment that morning. the remorse and embarrassment. she felt bad for not keeping good on her promise, and paige felt happy about that because now she knew azzi didn't actually want all the attention. but then paige was slapped in the face with the thought that azzi fudd demanded attention. if not for her sport, then for her personality alone. whether she wanted it or not, azzi was born to be a spectacle, and paige could already see the cracks in foundation that azzi's presence in her life might cause. it wasn't a matter of if but when. 

but still, there was something about azzi that no one could deny, not even paige. she demanded attention, but she wanted paige's. and without even realizing, paige had given it to her. she'd played 1v1, she'd talked to her outside of clubs and restaurants, she'd ordered her fucking food for her. paige had told herself to stay away. that azzi wouldn't be good for her— that she wouldn't be good for azzi. 

and yet, she'd been photographed forcing azzi into her car. 

and yet, it had taken two sentences worth of convincing from angel for paige to pop up at azzi's apartment. 

and yet, she'd sucked that whipped cream off her palm with the hope of tasting some sort of azzi residue after feeding her a strawberry. 

she didn't fully know what she was doing with azzi. she didn't fully know what was happening. but she knew somethingwas happening, and the more she lied to herself about it, the deeper in bullshit she got.

—

by the time it was time for practice, paige had pretty much come to terms with the fact that she felt something undeniable for azzi fudd. she'd thought about it that entire morning. as she got ready, as she drove, as she sat in the parking lot for ten minutes. when she actually got inside, it dawned on her that she had no fucking clue what to do with this information. 

it wasn't like she could act on them, and it wasn't like she could ignore them. so what could she do?

so then she thought about that. while she warmed up, while she practiced, while she lifted weights. 

how was she supposed to exist without being suffocated by the mere idea of azzi fudd?

she couldn't even do her job without noticing her. she was always aware of her. she caught the way her ribs expanded as she stretched. the rhythm her hair followed as it bounced every time she ran down the court. the tension in her wrist when she lifted any weight.

paige couldn't avoid her. azzi was just as inevitable as paige's feelings.

paige's favorite cold tub sat in the corner of the room. it was her favorite because it was farther way from the other ones, so no one could see how pale she got in the cold water, or hear the way her teeth chattered. it was always open for her. always just there like a punishment no one could ever get used to. 

she lowered herself into the water inch by inch. her jaw tightened as the temperature wrapped itself around her legs, then her hips, then her ribs. it always did it's job; made paige uncomfortable enough to not think about anything else. the ache settled deep into her bones as she sat perfect still, arms draped over the rim. 

paige could hear the chaos surrounding the building. it was post-practice noise— music from someone's speaker, showers running, squeaking from the wheels of the laundry bin. kk was laughing again, close enough that paige could hear the depth of it. someone was with her and paige didn't have to look to know it was azzi. 

the door opened with a metal click, and lo and behold, azzi fudd stood with her phone, a towel, and a stick of gum. kk kept walking behind her, strutting away until paige couldn't see her anymore. 

azzi didn't walk all the way into the room. she looked over all the tubs— clearly she did not want to be here. then she looked to the corner—paige's corner— and smiled. 

"you're here." she said.

paige tried not to notice the way azzi was playing with the hem of her spandex, because if she noticed it then she'd blush at the fact that azzi was nervous to be in her presence. hours before, she was literally eating out of the palm of paige's hand and now she was fidgeting as she walked to her tub. 

with all the false confidence in the world, paige nodded. "i'm here."

azzi stood over her tub, staring into the water like the heat of her gaze would warm it. she was being dramatic, obviously. the media loved to gush about how she'd been in the gym since she was three years old and paige would bet good money that azzi had been in enough cold tubs to not require an oscar winning performance of fear.

but she wanted to put on a show. she wanted to be seen. paige told herself she wouldn't bite, but…. who was she kidding? if it was azzi, paige was biting.

dramatic as ever, the rookie lifted her head and curled her face in disgust at paige. "you're sitting there like this is easy."

paige looked over herself submerged in negative temperature. apparently, she looked relatively unbothered.

she shrugged, trying not to wince as the water sloshed, slamming an icy sensation against her ribs. "i guess i got used to it."

azzi deadpanned, popping her neck forward and cutting her eyes. "you like the cold tub?"

"i didn't say that." paige tried and failed to fight off an amused smile. "i hate conditioning in general. doesn't mean i'm gonna skip it."

azzi pressed her lips together and nodded, setting her things down. then, she pulled all of her hair into a puff at the top of her head. she looked at paige before closing her eyes with a deep inhale. 

paige watched it all. paige also tried her hardest to make herself look like she wasn't watching it all.

azzi climbed in all at once, starting with a flinching toe dip, then sinking all the way in.

she squealed— literally squealed— the whole way, high-pitched and over the top.

"fuck." she crossed her arms over her chest and gripped her own shoulders. "this is inhumane."

paige felt her whole body heat up at the sight of azzi fudd in the cold tub. trembling. involuntarily flexing every muscle in her body. every tendon in her hand taut as she squeezed her shoulder, veins poking out and drawing map directly to paige's downfall. 

her brain was working against her. going haywire as it went over every other remotely possible situation where these things would be true. 

azzi's hand gripping a pillow or maybe paige's arm. 

her boxers. 

azzi's hand reaching behind her to claw at paige's boxers. she'd be mindless and bare and shaking while paige fucked her from behind. one hand pressing azzi's head into the mattress, the other wrapped around her front, sliding across her clit. doggystyle. harsh and personal. not at all gentle.

paige would be half-way up the road to bat-shit insane, tearing azzi apart just to see how many times she could put her back together. and azzi would take it. just meek and pliable, arched and drooling into the sheets. she'd cry and whine— not to stop, but because it was too good. too fast. too fucking much. 

she'd beg. paige please— i can't. 

and paige would only smile and curl her fingers into azzi's hair. yes the fuck you can.

she'd keep going, fucking her through it. through the tears and the shaking and the crack of azzi's voice when she came again. paige would love that. not the power or the roughness of it all but the surrender. the satisfaction of knowing she'd given azzi no choice but to yield. 

she blinked hard, dragging herself away from the thought and into azzi's gaze. 

what the fuck were they even talking about?

paige looked around. partly to gather her bearings, and partly to figure out what the hell she was supposed to say right now?

treatment room. cold tub. inhumane. 

right.

azzi was being over dramatic about the cold tub. not surprising whatsoever. she'd just have to get the fuck over it and sit there until her time was up.

paige folded her hands between her legs under the water and looked back to azzi, who had her eyes closed and her head pointed towards the ceiling, like she was praying for god Herself to come down from Her throne and take her out of the water. 

paige grinned without meaning to.

"you'll learn to take it, princess."

she didn't even mean it like that. at least— she didn't think she did. consciously… at least… but maybe unconsciously, she meant to say it. so she could hear the way azzi's breathing changed— the sound distinctly different from the little bursts of air she'd been releasing since she'd gotten in the tub. 

she was flustered and cute and so painfully oblivious to all the shit paige wanted to put her through. paige wanted to lean over the tub and sink her thumb into azzi's bottom lip. to push at the skin until she could feel the tops of azzi's teeth scraping against her fingerprint. 

this time, it was her timer that pulled her away from that particular train of thought. 

the siren sound sang through the treatment room, and for a moment, paige stared at the screen like she couldn't remember what she was supposed to do with it. 

she looked at azzi, who seemed confused as to why paige hadn't turned the damned alarm off. then, it clicked. 

it was time to get the fuck up out of there. 

bracing her hands on either side of the tub, paige pushed herself up and grabbed her towel, brushing it across her torso before stepping out and working on her legs. it was a useless attempt, though. she was soaking wet. 

without looking at her, paige told azzi she'd see her later on her way out. 

"later?"

paige froze, and squeezed her eyes shut. 

azzi forgot. it shouldn't have been that big of a deal. she'd agreed to the plans in passing, and—rationally thinking— paige would have let it slide. probably would have brushed it off and said something coy like i mean, we work together. i'm gonna see you again somewhere down the line.

but obviously, paige hadn't been thinking clearly. she wasn't in the mood to let shit slide. so she turned around, and cocked her head to the side. she pulled bottom lip into her mouth bit down until it was hot with blood that wasn't able to circulate. 

faking confusion, paige asked, "i told you we were gonna work on getting your place together, right?"

she was kind of proud of her ability to feign indifference. she knew that her face was neutral, that her tone was even. she knew how to pretend—how to perform. 

but the reality of the situation was paige had been looking forward to seeing azzi alone. in her empty house where she wore uconn sweats and ate fruit out of paige's hands. azzi had one chance to say the wrong thing, and paige feared her ability to perform would be out the window. 

"oh," azzi nodded "right."

paige felt the bile build in her throat.

"you don't want help?"

she prepared herself for the rejection. for azzi to tell her she'd forgotten or that she'd arranged for someone else to build the furniture, or that she wasn't in the mood for company anymore. 

"no, i do!" azzi's brows shot to the top of her head before they dropped and furrowed to the top of her nose. she pouted and looked down at the water she'd been shivering in."it's just… with everything going on, i kinda forgot."

"did you make other plans?"

"no."

"then i'll text you when i'm on my way."

azzi smiled with her mouth closed, but still the grin took over her whole face as she nodded. paige nodded too, and turned again to leave. 

but then her brain started malfunctioning again.

"and um," she planted her feet before turning and pointing with the same hand she'd been clutching her phone with. "be a good girl and stay the full fifteen, alright?"

azzi looked like she wanted to say something. her mouth was open and she hadn't blinked and paige worried she'd gone too far. that she'd crossed whatever line she thought neither of them could see.

but then she saw azzi's eyes twinkle a little bit and her smile morph into something much more dangerous. 

"yes ma'am."

paige knew in that moment that she'd been right all along. azzi was trouble, and she was beautiful and she was every bit the spoiled brat paige assumed her to be. 

what azzi didn't know, was that paige wasn't at the wheel right now. and the version of herself at hand was a version paige had long since stuffed down deep within her. azzi didn't know that paige was always watching her. she didn't know about the constant overthinking and suppressing it had taken for paige to get to where she was. 

she also didn't know that this version of paige was beginning to care less and less about the repercussions of her actions, and that the title azzi had just thrown out so casually was just one more straw on the metaphorical camels back. 

more thinking. more of paige picturing and imagining and forcing herself to be normal.

she straightened her back and made her way to the door. before she left though, she turned. 

"i'll see you later, azzi."

⇆

" i don't know why i let it go on this long."

azzi stood in the corner of her own living room, where paige stood, looking around at the boxes stacked along the walls with her hands on her hips. she seemed so disappointed, like she didn't even feel like being there to do the thing she offered to do. 

it wasn't like azzi didn't know how ridiculous it was to be twenty-three years old with her couch still in a box a month after moving in. but it was just her and she was so busy and she just didn't fucking feel like it.

but here paige was. in her space. looking around. calling her princess and telling her to be a good girl.

okay. so all of this wasn't happening at the same time. they're two separate incidents but they both exist nonetheless.

azzi didn't entirely know what was happening. paige was so push and pull. so fucking inconsistent with the way she dealt with azzi and maybe it was because azzi was a scorpio and she experienced everything on volume ten, but it was giving her whiplash.

still, something in her wanted to see how far it was going to go. she'd spent so long being practically shunned by paige that all of the sudden… 

WHAT THE FUCK WAS PAIGE EVEN DOING?

she'd spent this whole fucking time treating azzi like the plague and now… now she fed azzi strawberries, and gave her nicknames, and looked at her like she wanted to know every secret she'd ever kept.

"its not bad." paige shook her head, turning around to face azzi. 

azzi assumed she saw the look on her face and felt a deep spiritual connection to the the exhaustion that come with rookie year, and the emotionally taxing concept of having a lifelong crush on your vet, who wanted nothing to do with you but suddenly is doing weird shit. 

or maybe she just took pity on her. 

either way, paige's brows softened and her lips drew into a thin line. she took a step towards azzi and put her hand on her elbow, wrapping her fingers around the bone. 

her palm was warm, and it shot heat from elbow to her chest. she didn't know it they'd ever touched skin before, but if they had, she hadn't noticed the way she was noticing now. now, she wanted to move her hand so it was on top of paige's, and just hold her there a for a while. 

"we've been busy. 's not alot of free time to do stuff like this and when there is, you're too tired." she looked at her, waiting for an answer. "right?"

as if her brain was processing everything in slow motion, azzi felt her water line sting a little, then burn as tears began to brew. she wasn't gonna cry. she refused to. but still...

azzi had been alot of things in her life. very times had she been understood. but the way paige was rubbing circles into her skin, and boring in her her, azzi knew that this wasn't pity, or a way to make her feel better. 

she could tell paige did understand. there was just a familiarity there that could only be spotted on purpose. 

and yes— it made azzi want to cry. because she was so tired and she just needed someone to understand that. paige was giving her the gift of grace, and azzi wouldn't be shamed for appreciating it.

she nodded her head, licking the salt off her lips (because she'd cried a little anyway). "right."

"right, exactly. paige gave a gentle squeeze to her elbow, and nodded once, dramatically. "so we're just gonna take care of it."

"you don't have to—"

"i don't mind building your shit, azzi." paige squeezed her elbow a little firmer, her voice a little harder. "okay?"

heat budded in azzi's gut at the change in demeanor. she nodded again, slower this time. she was a little dizzy and really fucking warm but she'd keep it pushing because there was just so much going on and she didn't have the bandwidth to bear the moral consequences of jumping this woman's bones in the bare living room. 

"okay."

paige didn't say anything. she just looked further into azzi, face stone-still and unreadable. then, after what felt like a 10 hour telepathic interrogation, paige stepped back to where she was and turned back to the boxes. 

"alright then lets go."    

—

azzi was gonna lose her shit. 

ho. ly. fuck.

she was gonna implode. just spontaneously combust all over the now mostly furnished living room. paige was putting the lamp together, which was the final piece to the project. she hadn't even taken that long, surprisingly. it had only been four hours since she'd started, and paige had mostly worked alone. 

azzi had been too preoccupied observing, which really meant staring at paige for four hours as she did sexy handywoman shit. it wasn't even her fault. she hadn't been prepared. how could she? she hadn't anticipated the Emotional Moment she'd went through when paige had first arrived and she for shit sure hadn't anticipated the jigsaw level mental game paige had been playing because yes— azzi believed the blonde had to have been doing it on purpose. 

she started with the couch, "because it's the biggest it'll take the longest."  azzi knew the second paige took her sweater off that she was going to have to practice monk like restraint for this entire thing. 

paige was so strong. so, so, so, strong. she'd picked the humongous box up and walked it to the the center of the room she set it down like she wasn't desperate to get it out of her hands. when she stood back to her full height, a little bit of her hair had come out of it's ponytail and she was little flushed and breathless, huffing so a few strands of hair wafted around her face. 

azzi held it together the whole time. she didn't say a word, didn't make a face. she just sat at her kitchen island, watching the six foot masc lesbian put together a couch.

she paid attention every move paige made. every time she ticked her jaw, every time the vein in her bicep poked out, every time she threw her head back after lifting something heavy. and not once were the scenarios blowing through her mind visible on her face, which was always then goal when paige was involved but especially when paige was handling a drill and an allen wrench. 

when paige was done with the couch, she asked azzi where she wanted it, to which azzi replied with bullshit she thought of on the spot. " i think i'm just gonna wait for everything to be finished so i can see how it all flows together."

to which paige replied with an "okay?"

then she grabbed another box, this time the tv stand. it wasn't as big as the couch, but paige still let out a little grunt when she picked it up. 

azzi almost flinched when she heard it, she wasn't ready for the strained rasp of it. she'd heard it before, she was sure of it. just like she'd seen paige sweaty and disheveled before. she was her teammate. they shared a  locker room.

but this wasn't the locker room. this was azzi's apartment. and there was no one else but them. nothing but the dallas sun beating in through the balcony window because azzi also didn't have curtains. paige was golden here, nearly glowing under the light. sometimes her eyes caught the light just right, and her eyes burned the most beautiful blue color. azzi wanted paige in the sunlight forever. 

it wasn't loud like the locker room either. azzi heard every sound paige let out. every strained groan, every frustrated huff. she heard every time paige started breathing heavy after carrying something heavy. she heard paige drum her fingers against the tile while she read the instructions. 

azzi was experiencing paige one-one-one again and it felt like the world around her had been put in a microwave and she didn't know it she could handle it. 

but she did. she didn't pass the hell out at the sight of paige's tongue curling around her bottom lip and staying there. because she was just focused, and she wasn't looking to be mind fucked by the freak she was doing a favor for. 

at some point, paige had looked up from the heap of screws and parts and asked azzi, "you plan on helping at any point, princess?"

there was the nickname again. 

princess.

azzi had been called princess her entire collegians career. she was the people's princess. it was her whole brand. but hearing it from paige was something entirely different. 

she thought it was hallucination the first time, some fever dream conjured by a sex demon because there was no way in hell she could have heard it right. but no, paige had said it— twice, now. 

"i work best as a supervisor in situations like this." she said. 

and paige laughed— really laughed. loud from her chest with her head thrown back and crows feet cutting into her eyelids. and azzi was a hopeless idiot because she felt her stomach do a little jump. because paige was in her living room, laughing on her floor like she belonged there. 

it was offensive to herself the way her brain worked. 

by the time the tv stand was built azzi's thighs were pressed so tight together that she was getting sore. she needed paige water. 

next was the coffee table, and before she started this time, paige paused and readjusted her hair in one hand, twisting it into a loose, messy knot like she she'd done a million times at practice. azzi watched paige's forearms flex, the tendons in her hands shifting under the skin. her shirt rode up a little when she lifted her arms, revealing the hard lines of her lower stomach pointing an arrow into her sweats. 

damn.

azzi thought she was gonna die. she was going to die. there was just no reason for something as simple as paige putting her hair in a bun, to feel so obscene but there she was, mouth dry and malfunctioning.

she had to look away. or walk away. or just fling herself off the golden gate bridge and put herself out of her own misery. 

it should have just been hair and hands. it should have just been a couch and a few variants of a table. but it wasn't and azzi could feel the heat creeping from her belly to behind her ears. because there was just something about the look on paige's face. the quiet concentration. the effortless strength. the steadiness with which paige was moving. 

azzi was going crazy. 

azzi busied herself. she brought paige water, then took the trash out so she didn't have to watch her drink it. she responded to six emails and scheduled a pedicure appointment. she even cleared the storage on her phone. anything to keep her eyes away and her mind off the constant loop of paige paige paige. 

she wanted to tangle her fingers in all of that wheat colored hair, to run her thumb down the length of paige's wet tongue before tasting it as she got lost in paige's open mouth. she wanted to push paige's shirt all the way up so she could see everything. every plane of muscle, every bruise that marked her pale skin. azzi wanted it all. she wanted to feel it in her hands, to mold it into something was only hers. 

paige caught her then, glancing up from her workspace to meet azzi's gaze. and the world tilted back on to its axis a little. azzi remembered who she was. who paige was. she realized how ridiculous it was to have spent hours burning a hole into a woman who had repeatedly shown that azzi was nothing personal to her. 

so azzi blinked and steadied her mind. she leaned back in her chair and offered nothing  but a small smile. because paige couldn't know that her heart was beating like a drum, and she couldn't feel the rhythm of want coursing through her whole body. 

paige said nothing, only pushed her head up a little, a wordless nod. she just looked so fucking good.

fuck. 

obviously she'd failed the keep herself busy mission somewhere down the line, because now, paige was putting the lamp together and chewing at her bottom lip and azzi was nearly a puddle. 

"after this we should be done."

she said we like azzi had contributed in some way. 

"'s too bad." azzi sighed. "i was enjoying the show."

paige looked up with her brows raised and she pleasantly surprised look on her face. "and what show is that?"

azzi smirked, getting up from her chair and walking to where paige was fiddling with the lightbulb. "you trying to understand ikea instructions."

"fuck off." paige snorted. "here's your damn lamp." 

she sidestepped so she was in the center of the room, and pointed.

"and there's your couch and your coffee table and your side table and your tv stand." she threw her hands in the air and let them flop down, slapping the sides of her legs. "we're all done." 

azzi looked around, seeing all of her furniture built and disorganized throughout her apartment.  all of the packaging was in a pile in the corner of the room, but still, this was the most homey azzi had felt in her own home since she'd moved. 

she put a hand on her chest because it pinged a little and that couldn't be happening. "thank you, paige." she said. and she meant it. paige had spent hours doing this for her. it was like 9 p.m. and paige hadn't taken a single break. 

paige shrugged, poking out her bottom lip and shoving her hands in her pockets. "don't worry bout it."

maybe azzi wanted to repay paige in some way, or maybe she just didn't want her to leave yet. whatever the reason, when paige started picking up her things to leave, azzi stepped closer and clapped her hands.

"you hungry?"

paige froze, looking over to azzi, who was silently begging her to say yes. to stay for just a few more minutes because she was going to have to sleep on that couch alone after spending all evening in the presence of paige and she just needed a little bit more time to accept that fact. 

thankfully, paige put her phone in her pocket and nodded. "i could eat."

azzi knew her shoulders had visibly dropped with relief, but she didn't care. she could be shameless about this. 

"all i have is sandwich stuff." she said, walking towards the kitchen. "that okay?"

"a sandwich would be good right now." paige followed close behind, matching her steps to azzi's. "take it for the road."

azzi opened the fridge, getting all the things she needed before meeting paige at the island and sliding a kool-aid jammer towards her. paige took it in her hands, looked at it, then at azzi. she smiled and sighed at the same time before stabbing the package with the straw and drinking it. 

"so what did your manager say about the whole...." azzi widened her eyes because what she was talking about went without saying. 

the last time paige was here she'd rushed out to talk to her managers about the video of them leaving the restaurant. azzi hadn't checked her socials but she'd have bet good money that the rumor mill was still running and she didn't even want to know what was being said.

somehow, the air in the room had gotten thicker from the question. paige had sucked the rest of her juice down in one big gulp, and pulled the package away from her mouth, keeping the straw between her teeth. 

she chewed it a few times, passing it from one side of her mouth to the other, not looking at azzi. "that it'll die down. to stay away from you like– publicly until a new story comes."

azzi looked up from the mayo she spreading across a piece of bread. "you're not staying away from me."

paige looked up too, straight faced. she stopped chewing, letting the straw hand lazily from her lips. 

"don't want to." her voice was low, like she didn't really want azzi to hear it.

but she had, and the admission made her freeze as little pins and needles poked into every pore in her body. goosebumps took over her skin, and she felt a little floaty. 

whispered or not, paige had said it. and it was out there. and azzi didn't know what to do with that. 

"oh?" she asked, voice tight and strained. 

she looked back to the sandwich she was making, freeing herself just a little from the prison of paige's stare. 

"yeah." she said, voice still low. 

if azzi was a bigger woman she'd peek up to see the look on paige's face. she wasn't. she actually felt quite small, like she was rapidly shrinking behind the island. 

but then paige cleared her throat and slapped her palms against the counter and spoke in that loud sarcastic voice she always had with team when she was clowning them. "who else is gonna build your living room?"

azzi was thankful for the out despite the million questions booming in her head, what the hell did that mean? being the running theme. it was late and paige already looked like she was cursing herself out for saying it. she didn't seem in the mood to explain herself, and if azzi was being honest with herself.... she wasn't in the mood to have that conversation either. 

in just forty eight hours, this thing with paige had began to feel less humiliating and more confusing and it was just too much too quick. she needed a second to adjust, to make sense of it all. 

she needed to call jana and sarah and run through every possible meaning before she could actually know the real answer because they'd let her be delusional and horny without making fun of her.

"'s a good point." she nodded, folding sliced turkey along the bread. "what would i do without you?"

paige laughed a little but didn't answer the question. that was fine. it was rhetorical. but what wasn't fine, was the way she chewed the straw in her mouth as she watched azzi make her food. 

her bottom lip folded under it, the pink inside of it a sharp contrast to the yellow of the straw. her jaw worked under her skin with every bite, and azzi tried her absolute hardest to hide the fact that she was mesmerized by it.

"i think you'd start taking care of yourself eventually." paige said after enough time for azzi to forget what they'd been talking about in the first place. 

"yeah, eventually." she mindlessly agreed because that sounded like something she'd do. 

she ripped a paper towel off the roll and wrapped the sandwich. "here."

she slid it across the counter, until paige trapped it under her palm. "thank you, azzi." she said. "really. i'm gonna tear this down on my way home."

tear me down. was azzi's immediate thought. 

"you do that." she said, guiding paige to the door. when they got there, they stopped.

they stood in front of the door, nearly chest to chest. they were so close azzi had to bend her neck a little to look paige in the eye. "thank you again. you don't know how much this means to me."

the blonde didn't say anything, refusing to accept the gratitude because she was a stubborn bitch. she just looked at azzi with a terrifying amount of gentleness. like she'd do it a thousand times if she needed to.  it was too fucking much and azzi was going to literally pounce on her if she didn't get a breath that hadn't been previously breathed by paige. 

she reached for the door, unlocking it and opening it without breaking the eye contact. 

"bye, paige."

paige smiled and stepped out. right before she walked away, she tipped her chin. 

"see you later, azzi."