You placed a hand on her shoulder, “Abby, you’ve been studying way too much. Come have a break?”

She let out a small sound, somewhere between a grunt and a “no”, but she didn’t move or even wake. You ran your hand down her back, tucking back the loose strands that had escaped her braid.

“Hey, your exam’s not due until next week. You’ve got plenty of time. Come to bed now,” you said gently.

“No, I still have to revise…” Abby mumbled, rubbing the sleep away from her eyes— or at least trying to.

“There’s no point in studying when you’re this much sleepy.”

“I’ll be fine,” Abby insisted.

You sighed, “alrighty,” you rubbed her shoulder one last time, “I’ll be downstairs so I don’t disturb you.”

You turned, walking to the door. Abby averted her eyes from her books and looked towards you finally. Seeing you leaving the room made something in her work, and she suddenly stood up so hard, she knocked her chair down.

You, startled by the sound, jerked and turned around.

“What’s wrong—?”

“Stay,” Abby said, crossing the room in two strides. She grabbed your wrist, not too tight, but firm.

“I’m right here,” you said slowly.

“No, I mean,” Abby moved back, picking up the chair with her other hand and setting it upright. She sat down, and patted her thigh, “here.”

Your cheeks reddened, “Abby, you’re getting nowhere with your syllabus with me on your—”

“Please,” Abby said, staring up at you with her irresistible puppy eyes.

You sighed before smiling, “alright.”

You sat down on her lap, her arm instantly wrapped around your torso as she secured you with your back to her chest. She grabbed both your legs and swung your thoughts together over her legs so you were now seated comfortably sideways on her lap.

You leaned your head onto her neck, watching Abby muttering under her breath as she went over her notes again.

There was a little furrow between her brows whenever she was focused, it was something you found so adorable about the other woman.

Within a few minutes into the study session, you saw her head droop a little.

You knew she’d insist she wasn’t tired, or that she needed more revision so you didn’t ask her to sleep in. You waited and watched your girlfriend’s murmurs slow down into peaceful soft breathing. Her head drooped again, resting against your frame as she instinctively pulled you close with both arms wrapped around you now.

You smiled to yourself.

“I love you, baby,” you whispered.

Abby pulled you closer, “love you, too.”

Morning came soon before you registered it.

Somehow you woke up in bed, tucked carefully in the blankets. You blinked before rubbing the sleep out of your eyes with the heel of your palm.

“Abby?” You turned to the side and saw her laid beside you.

“Mmm,” she grabbed ahold of your waist and pulled you into her frame, back against her chest “fuck, I missed holding you like this.”

“We literally live under the same roof,” you laughed softly.

“I know,” she said with a hint of regret in her voice, “been busy with college, regardless I shouldn’t be neglecting my girl.”

You smiled despite yourself, “it’s okay, Abby, I understand.”

Abby’s hand reached down, “really, let me make it up to you, princess…”

“Abby…” you let her lay you down, her hand massaging your thighs, “you really don’t have to.”

“I know,” Abby kissed your forehead, “but I want to.”

She pulled your panties down slowly, letting it dangle from one of your legs as her hand settled on your sensitive area. She held it, rubbing slowly as if she was letting you savour the feeling before she actually started stimulating you.

Her fingers dipped inside just slightly earning a small mewl from you.

“Fuck, it’s been so long,” Abby muttered.

Your arms wrapped around her neck, “go slow, okay?”

“No promises, princess.”

You couldn’t help feeling yourself getting wetter at the thought of her overstimulating you. Her fingers entered slowly, keeping a steady pace as they worked inside you. Two fingers— yet they felt like they’d provide a challenging stretch.

Your arms tightened, “Abby…”

“Y’trust me, don’t you?”

“I do,” your grip loosened a little.

Abby’s fingers curled. You moaned, body arching to her touch.

“Now, that’s my good girl.”

You couldn’t help squirming under Abby as her fingers moved inside your wet cunt earning the filthiest sounds from you.

Your legs were quivering already and it had only been about a few seconds since Abby had started finger fucking you but you couldn’t help it. She was just so good at it. She was good at anything that involved her hands.

You grasped her tighter. “Abby, Abby…”

She moved closer to you so you could hold on comfortably as her fingers moved faster. Every stroke inside was addictive in a way that left you craving more of her to stretch you out.

Maybe it was because Abby simply happened to have big fingers. Big, calloused fingers that fucked you so deep you lost your mind.

You gripped the sheets tightly, “Abby— I’m close!”

“Cum for me, baby,” Abby leaned closer to kiss you.

You kissed her back as your legs tensed before falling apart, your liquids gushed out soaking the sheets and Abby’s hand in the process. Your mind went fuzzy for a good minute.

“That feel good, baby?” Abby asked, voice so gentle it hurt.

You nodded, “thank you, baby…”

“Don’t mention it,” Abby rubbed your sore cunt, “did so well for me, my princess.”

You kept your face buried in the crook of her neck. Abby didn’t push you away, she continued holding you. A while later, you felt her hold shifting a little.

“Breakfast?”

You giggled, “I thought you’d forget about it.”

──˚₊୨ৎ‧₊˚──

The Last Drop is free of patrons this afternoon; quiet, minus the obnoxious pop music playing from the overhead speakers.

It takes about a song and a half of your incessant staring before Sevika's focus on the loose screw in her arm relents in favor of shifting to you.

She looks up at you with tired eyes and a cocked brow— an expression you've grown very used to— awaiting your explanation for said staring.

You say nothing, still gazing, brows furrowed and lips pursed. A very serious face for someone Sevika has learned is incredibly unserious.

"Can I help you?" She finally grunts.

And at that, you sit up straight, eyes bright.

"Oh— why, yes, you can," you beam. "I'm so glad you asked."

Sevika pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs as you scoot closer. She recalls an excerpt from the pretentious parenting book she'd bought topside after taking Isha in; something about "ignoring unacceptable demands for attention so as not to reinforce the behavior."

She's gotten better at doing this with Isha. She has not gotten better at doing this with you.

"I've been thinking about something," you begin, "and I need your help… if it's cool with you."

You take on an uncharacteristically bashful expression, piquing Sevika's interest.

"Okay," she narrows her eyes. "What is it?"

"It's about… I dunno… dating?" you say, twisting one of the several rings on your fingers.

The corner of Sevika's lips quirk up into a near-imperceptible smirk.

"My love life," you continue, "the lack thereof, what I've done, what I haven't—"

"Spit it out, sweetness."

"Right," you exhale. "So… here's the thing:"

You ignore the embarrassment creeping up the back of your neck and prickling at your cheeks. It's Sevika. She knows almost everything about you, and she hasn't judged you yet— well, not including the time you bought a chai tea for, like, ten bucks at a swanky coffee shop before you knew she could make it better herself.

Still, it's Sevika. She's your best friend. And if there's anyone you want assisting you in rectifying the predicament you've found yourself in, it's her.

So, you do as she asked and spit it out.

"I've never kissed anyone."

Her grin stretches across her face in full, now.

"You serious?" She asks, brows lifting.

You roll your eyes, scoffing.

"Yes, Sev. And I'd appreciate you withholding any snarky ass comments. Not everyone has women lined up for a mile waiting to get a piece."

"Uh-oh," she purrs, leaning back against the booth and crossing her arms. "Somebody sounds jealous."

"I'm not jealous," you bite back.

Not of her, at least. Of the women you know she's been with, though..?

"Look," you huff, "I just… I need your help, okay?"

"I gathered. With what?"

Your eyes shoot up from where they were trained on a knot in the wooden table and meet her own, wide and surprised.

As it turns out, you hadn't really thought through the conversation this far. Sevika's good at reading your mind; you figured you'd just ask for "help," she'd know exactly what you meant, and the rest would be history.

The smirk she's wearing suggests she does know exactly what you mean, but that she wants to hear you say it anyway.

And your best friend is a stubborn, stubborn woman.

So you concede.

"With kissing, Sevika."

You squeeze your eyes shut, the embarrassment impossible to ignore, now.

"With kissing?"

Janna, you should have known she was going to make this impossible…

"Yes! With kissing!" You exclaim, eyes wide and hands gesturing wildly.

She stares for a moment, likely deciding whether or not the entertainment of making this more difficult for you would be worth the threat to her physical safety.

Much to your relief, she decides she'd like to stay alive today.

"Alright," she shrugs. "I'll help you."

And, just like that, she goes back to tightening the screw.

You track her movements for a moment, dumbfounded.

"That's it? You'll… you'll teach me? Just like that?"

"Why not?" She replies, not looking up from her arm. "I've spent the last couple of weeks teaching a six-year-old to 'calm her body' and sign 'I can't find my dinosaur' instead of throwing a fit. Might be nice to teach an adult something a bit more… well… adult."

"Yeah?" you ask; hopeful, relieved.

"Yeah," Sevika echoes, looking up at you with a warm smile— an expression that's far more rare than the look of exasperation she wore at the beginning of this chat.

"Okay. Then… yeah," you shyly smile, "you'll, uh… you'll teach me how to kiss, then."

"Mhm," she hums, returning her focus to the screw for good, though the soft smile doesn't leave her face.

"I've got one more request, though."

"Hm?"

"Can you please change the music to like, anything else?"

Sevika snorts. She'd quickly learned over the past few days to tune the music out the best she could.

"No can do," she shakes her head. "I promised Jinx full control over the sound system for a week as long as she'd leave explosives alone in the meantime. She's trying to get me to break and let her go back to throwing glitter-filled Molotov cocktails across the bridge. Can't have that— enforcers are already on her ass about it."

"Damn," you complain. "Sounds like she's got a bright future in psychological warfare ahead of her."

Finally, the screw in her arm is tightened. She leans back with another chuckle, puts the screwdriver down, and reaches into her pocket for a cigarillo instead.

"You're tellin' me."

──˚₊୨ৎ‧₊˚──

A few days later, you're seated on the couch in Sevika's apartment nursing a glass of wine; Sevika, a glass of whiskey.

Scratch nursing— she sits down next to you and promptly throws the whole thing back.

"Janna," you gawk. "Long day?"

"Don't get me started. Council was even bitchier than usual today, and the only peace I got between that and picking up Isha— who refused bedtime last night—"

You wince upon imagining the morning that must have created.

"was the 15-minute car ride from the office to her school."

"Damn," you shake your head, "that's rough. Do you wanna… I don't know… reschedule, or something?"

"No, no, no," Sevika quickly replies. "Not necessary. Besides…"

The shit-eating grin she gives you warns of the nonsense she's about to spout.

"I need to blow off some steam."

"Dude," you cringe, choking back a laugh, "can you please just, like… try not to be weird about this?"

"You're boring," she smirks, leaning forward to place her empty glass onto the coffee table.

"I'm absolutely not."

"You are. And, as it turns out, you've never kissed anyone, but I can only fix one of those things."

You roll your eyes, placing your own glass down and turning toward her fully.

"Alright then, smartass," you grin. "Teach me how to kiss. What do I do?"

"Well," Sevika exhales, "that depends. You ever watch porn?"

"Hello?"

"Or, like… just— anything that includes people kissing. Makin' out. You know."

You chuckle, breathless and appalled.

"Uh… I mean… sometimes?" You shrug, face already heating up.

"Okay," she nods. "Is there anything you've seen that you like? That you don't like? Some people see tongue action and get grossed out. Other people see it and wanna get in on it. So, tell me what interests you, and we'll start there."

It takes everything within you not to yank the blanket off the back of the couch and hide underneath it for the rest of your days.

But, you remind yourself once more: this is Sevika. She's seen it all, she's heard it all, and if she didn't want to hear this, she wouldn't have asked.

"Um… well… I'm not put off by tongue, for starters."

She snorts at that.

"Keep talkin'," she encourages, standing to walk to the kitchen and pour herself another drink.

You furrow your brows, parsing your brain for all of the porn and "anything that includes people kissing" you've seen and considering what you liked.

"I mean, a whole lotta tongue right off the bat is probably a bit much for me, but, like… as long as there's plenty of lead up to it, I think it's hot."

"What does 'lead up' mean to you?" She asks, sitting back down.

"Damn. You a sex therapist now, or something?"

She lifts a shoulder. "I think I could be good at that."

"You know what? True," you nod.

"Answer my question, though."

"Oh, yeah— right. Lead up…"

You consider her question as you chew on the inside of your cheek.

"I guess, like, kissing that's just on the mouth? No tongue yet. Gentle, slow… but then when there is tongue,"

Sevika's brows raise as you sit up straight to deliver your strong opinion.

"you can't just immediately go in full force. You've gotta test the waters first… like, just a little bit of—"

You freeze as the ridiculousness of French-kissing logistics dawns on you, and then, you burst into laughter.

"I'm sorry," you giggle, shaking your head, "This feels so stupid."

"It's not," Sevika asserts, watching fondly as you bury your face in your hands. "I was right there with you."

"Really?" you whine, hands falling to your lap. "'Cause it feels silly."

"It's not silly," she shakes her head, scooting closer. "I agree. Too much tongue right off the bat is a no-go. That's step one down— figuring out what you like. Second step is figuring out what your partner likes, and we seem to be in agreement, so we've got that step down, too."

"Oh, yeah? What's the third step, then?"

You're almost certain you see her eyes flicker down to your lips for just a moment.

Regardless, when her gaze meets your own, there's something in it that you haven't seen before. Something sultry. Something sure.

"You show me what you like."

Your eyes go the slightest bit wider.

"Show you? Like… the porn I watch? Or…"

"Kiss me, Y/n. Only way to learn is to try."

You go still. Your heart starts beating a little faster.

"Oh," you breathe. "Are you… Are you sure?"

"Are you?"

"Yes! Yes— I mean… yeah."

She chuckles as you grimace at your own awkward fumbling.

And then, she reaches forward. Cradles your jaw with a warm hand. Leans in until your lips are a hairsbreadth away from hers.

"Go ahead, then. Show me what you like."

It isn't smooth at first. Neither of you tries to pretend it is.

You lean forward just enough that your mouth brushes hers, pull back because you get too flustered, and then try again, firmly planting your lips to her own as you both chuckle through it all.

"Stop smiling," she mumbles into the kiss.

"You're smiling, too," you mumble back.

"No 'm not."

"I can feel-"

"Okay," she pulls back to scold you, though the smile is still present on her lips, "talk or kiss. You pick. We can't do both."

"Kiss, kiss," you giggle, reaching up to cradle her face, too. "Sorry— definitely kiss."

"Yeah?" She nods, the hand that was against your cheek now gently grasping your wrist. "You sure?"

"I'm sure," you nod back.

"Good. C'mere."

Something crackles in the air this time. You're quicker to find your footing. It's easier to settle into a rhythm.

And before you know it, you're both breathing heavy, refusing to pull away, tongues darting out to trace each other's bottom lip.

When you finally do pull away, it's only to catch your breath.

Your faces stay close. Your breath stays ragged. Your hand stays on her face, and her hand stays on your hip— though you don't even remember it landing there.

"Good?" She murmurs, grey irises glittering and pupils gone wide.

You're still breathless as you reply.

"Yeah… yeah, that was good."

"Not the kiss, doll. You. Are you good?"

"Oh," you pull back in surprise, "y-yeah. I'm… I'm really good, actually."

"Yeah?" A lazy smirk pulls at her swollen lips. "Ready to get out there and kiss some dimes?"

The fact is, she's the only person you've really thought about kissing lately, and after what just happened, you know damn well that's not changing any time soon.

But you don't mention that. You just nod, still breathless and buzzing.

"Yeah. I'm ready." ──˚₊୨ৎ‧₊˚── When Sevika swings her apartment door open for you, she's met with your defeated smile.

"What's wrong, baby?" She asks, stepping aside to let you in. "Date didn't go well?"

You shrug off your coat with a sigh and hang it on the rack as she closes the door behind you.

"It was fine. Great, actually, which is what sucks."

"Oh, shit… too much tongue too early, huh?"

You bark out a laugh, leaning against the door and letting your head fall back against the wood.

"No, no… nothing like that."

Your eyes narrow as you think.

"Something like that, actually…"

She tilts her head to the side, brows knitting together.

"Do tell."

"I just… I don't know. We kissed. It was… fine. Just fine. Which, I don't really get, because, technically, they did everything right. Didn't come on too strong or too fast. A tasteful amount of tongue."

Sevika can't help but chortle at that.

"Then what was the matter?"

You stare up at her for a moment, eyes darting across her features like you'll find the answer somewhere in them.

And then, your eyes meet hers, and you remember how her irises looked all glassy and her pupils looked all blown-out, and the answer is suddenly right in front of you.

"What are you—"

"Can I kiss you?"

You half expect her to look at you like you're crazy. Or laugh at you, maybe.

What you don't expect is for her to step forward, put her hands on your hips, and lean in.

"Yeah, doll," she whispers. "Course you can."

There's no scrambling for rhythm this time.

Your lips meet, and you melt, your arms coming up to wrap around her shoulders.

It's slow at first, just as you like it. Tender. Gentle.

And then, it's not.

Then, it's hands twisting in the fabric of each other's clothes, breaths mingling with one another's, tongues finally dancing.

"Sorry," you pull away to pant, "haven't really had my tongue in somebody else's mouth before, so it's probably not the most graceful—"

"Talk or kiss, baby," Sevika interrupts. "Talk or kiss."

──˚₊ 𝐄𝐍𝐃 ‧₊˚──