Actions

Work Header

Rating:
Archive Warning:
Category:
Fandom:
Relationship:
Characters:
Additional Tags:
Language:
English
Stats:
Published:
2018-09-01
Updated:
2018-11-30
Words:
33,401
Chapters:
6/10
Comments:
92
Kudos:
448
Bookmarks:
52
Hits:
10,397

your hand in mine

Chapter 6: chapter 6

Notes:

thank you for your patience, I hope it was worth the wait.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

The first time Toni asked her about Jason, they’d only really known each other a week. It kind of throws her, because there’s a lot of different stories about her brother; some of them were better than the truth, and some were worse, but everyone knew that he died and nobody really has the nerve to ask her about it anymore.

It’s a sore topic, so she lies and tells her it was an accident. The words just slip out and then she changes the conversation to something lighter.

Once they get closer, it occurs to Cheryl that her half-assed attempt to avoid facing her issues won’t stand and the more time she spends with Toni, she finds herself opening up. It’s the little things really, and she feels like she’s allowed to enjoy herself.

So when they’re tucked up inside their tent, two days into their wild adventure, and Toni is doing her best to recover from a rough bout of hiccups, she realizes life doesn’t have to be so tragic.

They’re not really talking about anything specific when Toni asks her, “So you’re not a camping person.” It’s a statement and she knows it. A spider somehow got into their sleeping bag earlier and she almost torched the tent.  

“I wasn’t really girl scouts material,”

“Aren’t you an entrepreneur by blood, Cheryl Blossom, of Blossom Maple Farms?”

It takes her a while to respond, because she’s a little enamoured by Toni’s frankly adorable attempt at mimicking a reporter. She even holds an invisible fucking microphone in her hand while she talks, which is currently held out and waiting for an answer.

“I wasn’t the true heir to that throne,”

The microphone is forgotten quickly, and Toni’s got that look on her face, like she’s preparing herself to say something stupid, so it doesn’t surprise her when she just blurts, “Are you now?”

Cheryl just nods, because it’s easier than saying she lost her best friend and she hates him for leaving her all on her own. She wishes that dreadful feeling in her chest wasn’t so normal to her.

“What if you wanted to do something else?” She speaks slowly, like she’s being careful not to overstep, but the topic almost calls for it.

“I don’t know,” she whispers, and sighs, in frustration, mostly. “Does it matter?”

“No,”

She can feel the way Toni sink down closer, with her wide brown eyes looking up so sweetly at Cheryl, “Please don’t pity me.”

“You know I don’t, Cheryl.”

It’s true, she does know that. Toni’s never looked at her like she’s weak, but it still made her stomach twist, because she just wants something normal and judgement free. And it almost doesn’t make sense that Toni cares for any reason, other than to get something from her.

There’s a weight on her chest, it sits heavy and takes her breath away. She avoids looking at Toni and keeps her eyes focused on the roof of the tent. There’s a small tear, where the fabrics split in a line, it’s small, but it’s enough to pull a cool breeze from outside.

“He was so much better than me,” Cheryl says quietly, and it takes her nearly 10 seconds to find the courage to look Toni in the eye when she whispers, “I miss him, so much.”

Toni’s hand moves over Cheryl’s thigh under the cover of the sleeping bag they share, and her fingertips rub circles in a slow, hypnotising motion.

“I’m not trying to be a bitch, Cheryl. If you don’t want to talk about this, then we won’t” and she knows Toni’s intent isn’t to hurt her, “I just...  want to know you.”

There’s a lot of things they haven’t talked about and she knows she’s desperate to ask her own questions, but it’s so new. If she says the wrong thing, it could all go away.

“A question, for a question,” Cheryl offers, rolling onto her side, she moves her arm under her head, and she closes her eyes for just a beat when the fingers on her thigh slip an inch higher.

There’s something about the way Toni leans closer and smiles, that eases the tension along her spine. She feels safe.

“Hit me,”

Cheryl blanks briefly, because Toni smirks at her like she’s a totally open book, but she knows that underneath all the pink dye, the leather jackets, and sexy fishnet tights there’s things that bother her and she’s scared to ask.

After a moment, Cheryl very carefully asks, "Are you sure?" and waits for Toni to change her mind and/or storm out, but it doesn’t happen. The other girl just nods, and smirks with one of her brows raised all confident.

“Cheryl,” and she really loves the way Toni says her name, “just ask.”

She waits a beat.

“What’s the deal with your parents?”

The look she gets from Toni is a mix of amusement, and almost disappointment, which isn’t really what she expects. It felt like a loaded question because for the most part, they go totally unmentioned around the trailer park, at least from what she’s seen.

“There’s no deal,” Toni shrugs, and sighs, “My mom died when I was really young so I don’t really remember her at all,”

Cheryl hates that her heart breaks a little, for both of them.

“And my dad is… kind of absent.” Toni admits, “He shows up when he needs money or a place to stay and then he’s gone again so, which is totally fine, I don’t need him anyway.”

Cheryl takes another heavy breath, then laughs when she realizes that they're both crying. "I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make us cry.”

“Apparently it doesn’t take much,” Toni comments and laughs again, dabbing her eyes with her fingertips.

They both giggle and Cheryl actually feels good about all of this, she considers it progress.

There's dead air in the room and Toni is just sitting there, watching her, so she blurts, “Have you ever like, fooled around with Fangs, or Sweet Pea?”

“Oh, my god!” Toni laughs, pushing lamely at Cheryl’s shoulder, “No.”

It doesn’t seem as outrageous as Toni’s suggesting, because they spend every day together and she figures at some point the thought must’ve crossed their mind.

She just looks up at her suspiciously, “You share an underwear drawer with Fangs, what was I supposed to think?” she whispers, like it’s a secret, but all she gets is an eye roll.

“I couch surf, where else can I keep my—” Toni pauses, when she flushes a cute pink that matches her hair, and it’s hard to remember she’s involved in a gang when she whispers the word “delicates,” under her breath with a breathy laugh.

Toni’s smile morphs into a smirk and she raises one brow. Her hand slides down Cheryl’s arm and lands on her waist, her fingers stroking lightly through the thin material of the shirt that she borrowed from Sweet Pea to sleep in. That was apparently becoming a thing.

“I like this,” Cheryl admits quietly, her eyes on her hand, the contrast of the tones of their skin.

“I know,”

Their eyes meet and Cheryl feels something flutter in her stomach, it’s this strange and terrifying mix of nerves and arousal. They’re moving fast and she’s so fucking okay with that.

“I don’t want to go back,” she whispers and her voice breaks in the middle of the sentence, it feels disrespectful to say, deviant even.

There’s a little tug on her hip and Toni pulls her closer, brushing the wisps of hair that fall against her face. She knows her cheeks are burning, and there’s an uncomfortable prickle of tears. Toni looks at her, and maybe it’s pity, maybe it’s something else entirely, but she’s done talking and it must be obvious because Toni leans forward so slowly and closes the distance between them.

Cheryl moans as soon as Toni’s lips are pressed against hers.

She’s been waiting for another chance, and she hasn’t stopped thinking about the next time and the time after that. Cheryl’s hit with a mixture of relief and affection when Toni turns into her a little more and melts into the kiss, bringing up a hand to Cheryl’s cheek and it sinks into her hair.

Her fingers dig against Cheryl’s scalp, and she lets out this embarrassing purr sound that she wishes she’d held in, because now Toni’s smirking against her lips like she’s so proud and it’s a little infuriating. At this point, Cheryl’s lost count of the score, but she knows as well as Toni that she’s losing.

“Toni,” Cheryl breathes out, her hand coming to rest daringly on Toni’s thigh, her fingers slip just below the hem of the tiny shorts the girl is wearing and the two of them sink down on their tiny makeshift bed.

It feels so, so good. It’s better that well— it’s just better.

Toni’s lips are soft, and gentle, and when her tongue darts out to pry Cheryl’s lips apart, there’s a voice in her head that tells her she’s never felt a kiss so right . Toni knows what she’s doing and she tries not to think about that , but she’s confident in every move she makes.

Cheryl’s hands are a little shaky, but she’s distracted and can’t be at fault for that, but she still manages to slide her fingers over Toni’s shoulder, her nails digging in just enough to pull a deep moan from her throat. Toni shifts her lower half until they’re so much closer, but it’s still not what she needs.

She presses her forehead against Toni’s and their noses rub together, which is sweet and it reminds her just how different it is, there’s no pressure. And she doesn’t feel stupid when she brushes their lips together and whispers, “you taste… amazing,” and then the moments over and Toni’s forehead drops to her neck to hide her chuckle, because they both catch onto the sounds of teasing from the other tent.

There’s obnoxious kissing noises that gradually get louder, like the boys are trying to imitate them and she almost jumps out of the tent when Sweet Pea stage whispers, “I love you,” only for Fangs to answer back with the same high pitched tone, “no, I love you .”  

She can feel the almost pained sound from Toni, who pulls her lips away from Cheryl’s throat and just shakes her head, “those assholes.”

“We heard that,” both boys yell back in sync with each other.

And she really doesn’t hate the way Toni rolls off her, but keeps an arm thrown across Cheryl’s stomach when she barks back, “I wasn’t trying to be quiet.”

“Could’ve fooled us.”

Cheryl just groans, because she can’t believe she thought Toni would ever want to get involved with those two idiots.

 

 

 

 

 

The second she steps out of the car, she feels a weight press down against her shoulders, like her body is naturally reacting to danger. Cheryl thought about following Toni back to the trailer park, but she needs space to think, to breathe. She’s too comfortable.

At some point she has to return to reality.

The drive back wasn't necessarily tense, but she wasn't exactly comfortable, either. Toni offers to take the wheel and barely says two words, which was fine because Cheryl just lets herself to drift off with her Serpent jacket balled up between her head and the door, the soothing sound of distant motorcycles lulling her to sleep.

It’s not really cold, but there’s a light breeze, so when they stop in front of Thistlehouse she slips her arms into the leather jacket and ‘forgets’ to give the jacket back. Toni didn’t ask for it, either, maybe she likes the idea of Cheryl in her clothes, or it just slips her mind.  

Once the bikes start driving away, she thinks about texting an apology, but she knows Toni won’t actually care. Cheryl just hopes she doesn’t get cold.

She doesn’t really want to talk to anyone anyway, even her, especially her, because Toni has this infuriating way of making her feel fucking indestructible and she knows the second she steps over that threshold, that just won’t be true. It makes her wonder if she’s ever actually felt comfortable at home with her family, or if she was just always good at pretending.

It’s colder inside than it is outside, like someone left all the windows open overnight. To give her mother some credit, the house might not feel like home, but it’s always warm and that was oddly comforting now that it’s gone. She can’t remember the last time she was here alone, even the maid is missing. It’s weird, sure, but she doesn’t really question it and starts to unpack and sort between her dirty laundry.  

She lets her phone charge for the first time all weekend, and a little Apple icon flashes back at her, so she knows it’s working, and she dreads switching it back on.

It’s the longest she’s ever stayed away from home without her mother knowing exactly where to find her. She ran away as a child only once, mostly because there was nowhere to go, but also because her attempt went unnoticed, or they just didn’t care. Jason was the one who found her holled up in the treehouse at the far end of their property, as a child it seemed far enough. Jason sat with her a while until he convinced her to return home, Penelope told her “it was a waste of time,” and never even spared her a second glance.

As soon as she was done fixing the mess she made, Cheryl basically collapsed in the middle of her bed and hid her face in the pillow, it doesn’t smell of Toni and she’s grateful, because she was intoxicating. Cheryl had some intent of reaching for her phone and responding to any of the messages she’s missed, but it’s not long before she falls asleep.

It’s the ass crack of dawn when she wakes up to a call from her mother. The conversation lasts under ten seconds and then she’s left scrambling for her car keys.

 

 

 

 

 

It helps that Riverdale is a relatively small town and everyone knows each other, so there’s a nurse by her side almost immediately. Their hospital is a simple facility; they don’t cater to much and you have to go out of town for any larger operations, so it’s not hard to follow directions and when she turns the final corner there’s only one room with the door closed.

She can see her mother through the glass, talking closely with a doctor, and her skinny fingers are wrapped around his wrist. It’s tasteless. Her mother-in-law lay unconscious not a foot away and she was seducing the staff.  

There’s a flicker of something in her Penelope’s eyes when she notices Cheryl, and more so the jacket weighing her down. It’s far from remorse, and it’s gone in a beat, quickly replaced with a stoic expression that almost resembled boredom.

She feels unwelcome, but this is exactly where she needs to be. She surrounds herself in the cold leather, it feels tighter than before, squeezing in all the wrong places and reminding her of exactly where she belongs. It was a last ditch effort to rebel. It felt tighter than before, but now it feels stupid and she feels out of place.

There’s a gentle symphony of machine sounds and it feels louder than it actually was, but it’s a small room and there’s so much happening that it’s claustrophobic. There’s monitors and wires all hooked up to Nana Rose. She looks small . There’s bruising along her arms and her face, it paints her skin a dark purple.  

“How did she fall?” Cheryl asks as she reaches for the covers, straightening the sheets. They’re rough to touch and she feels a wave of guilt for sleeping so comfortably.

“I’m not her keeper,” her mother says, looking ever more burdened the more time she wastes in the hospital. It’s a simple reminder of who she was dealing with. “I can’t be expected to watch over her. If she requires that level of care, she should be in a facility more attune to her needs.”

It’s a line she’s heard so many times before— except in the past, her father had always there to defend the older lady. It seems too coincidental. It seems rehearsed. Nana Rose is a frankly, old and wheelchair-bound lady, she shouldn’t be capable of falling down the stairs, she can barely move.

When the doctor arrives, she’s relieved for the additional company, and she manages to avoid the cold gaze while the middle-aged man takes centre stage. The news isn’t good, she’s still considered to be in critical condition, and given her age it could still go either way. They don’t seem optimistic.

They tell her to ‘be prepared’ and she knows it’s going to be a long few days.

She feels a strong hand on her shoulder and any comfort it may have provided vanishes when her mother says, “she’s an old woman, Cheryl. Your grandmother has lived a long life,” as if she’s already gone.

In total, she thinks it’s the longest time she’s spent in the same room as her mother, practically alone. Cheryl doesn’t look back at her and she feels her body seize up when the hand on her shoulder moves down her back, it rests on the Serpent patch.

“It’s such a shame,” the words are whispered so candid, and honest, there’s no malic in her tone and the back of her neck prickles with goose-bumps.

“It’s just a jacket,” she says, but she doesn’t even believe it herself; it’s a symbol of everything her family stand against.

She notes her mother's silence as a response.

They don’t talk anymore, because then visiting hours are over. It takes a little sweet talking to convince the nurses to let her stay, but they agree under the pretense that she stays out of the way and behaves herself and doesn’t she always?

There’s a look she gets from her mother when the older Blossom leaves, and she hears the echo of Penelope’s voice long after she’s gone, and the words, “control yourself, Cheryl,” are fixed in her mind. It’s enough to justify her reasons for staying alongside her Nana.

It's rather frustrating that the more she thinks about everything, the more confused she is. That isn't even the right word, because she’s not confused . She knows that her mother is responsible for whatever happened, and she knows she’s next.

Cheryl isn’t scared, but she also isn’t the same girl that burnt down Thornhill. That girl was just buried so deep, she doesn’t know where to find her.

 

 

 

 

 

The house feels so much bigger without Nana Rose, she’s almost become apart of the furniture and she doesn’t want to get used to the idea of living without her. It sometimes seems like their family curse went beyond the twins, and the bloodline sought out violent ends for every victim

In the next few days she spends most of her time going back and forth between school and the hospital. Cheryl had taken to sleeping in her own bed, only because her mother seemed to be watching her more carefully now and noticing her absence.

Time moves slowly and over the following week she makes a point to never ask Toni to bring her to the hospital, she wasn’t welcome, she just hopes it’s because she’s a Serpent.

One night she finds her mother hovering over Nana Rose, she’s standing so close and her head is tilt, and the look breathes compassion , for a brief moment she thinks she’s misjudged her, but then she clamps her index finger and thumb together, and there’s a tube caught in the middle.

It feels so wrong to find her so exposed, it’s like she wants to get caught.

There’s heat that boils up inside of her, a rage she never really knows how to control and when she kicks the door open the handle bounces against the wall. Her mother doesn’t flinch, until a nurse pushes past and her fingers slip.

Her heart drops when Penelope steps back, completely innocent, and nobody is any wiser. It’s an act she must have learnt from her late-husband.

Cheryl doesn’t move until her mother is out of the door. She can practically hear the words, “be careful, Cheryl,” and they mean so much more now.

As soon as she knows she’s alone, she sends one text, “ground floor, room 6.”

It’s selfish, but she gets impatient while she waits for a reply, but she half-expects Toni to have nothing better to do. Cheryl isn’t very good at doing nothing and there’s only so many times that she can re-organize a room with only the bare essentials.

She's a complete ball of nerves when her troupe of delinquents show up within the hour and she tries not to smile when she notices the cup holder balancing on the palm of Toni’s hand.

“Is that—”

“A cherry cola, for Cheryl Bombshell.”

Her heart stutters in her chest and she watches Toni’s eyes. They’re on her lips.

“We brought monopoly,” Fangs announces, with a smile so big and proud, but he gets shoved to one side when Sweet Pea blindly follows after him with at least four pillows stacked in his arms.

Her mother is so wrong about them.

“How did you get past the nurses?” She asks, because they’re not in the least bit conspicuous.

Legs smirks when he says, “I sweet talked them, obviously.”

She catches the way Toni’s eyes narrow, like there’s another story but she holds her tongue and lets him have his moment of glory. When their own eyes meet, her heart beats so fucking hard when Toni blows her the tiniest of kisses and shuffles close, until their legs are touching.

There’s still a steady beat from the monitors and she wonders if Nana Rose could hear them but she doesn’t want to go there. The doctors tried to get her to talk like she was listening, but it was too much. Cheryl will talk when she wakes up.

It doesn’t feel like family game night, the only argument they have is when the boys fight over who got the car, and Toni just snatches it up before it gets heated. There’s no life lessons on the importance of capitalism whilst they play, and honestly, she’s pretty sure Fangs is only buying the colors that “look nice” so it’s pretty laid back.

There’s also a hand drawing over her back, because Toni strong-armed both of the boys into letting them team-up, so her head is resting on Cheryl’s shoulder and every now and then she offers the odd comment.

“I’ll buy,” she says, and she’s met from groans from both Fangs and Sweet Pea. They’re loud enough that a nurse shushes them from somewhere outside of the room. They all try to fight it but a weird noise escapes Fangs while he holds back his laugh, and they fall apart.

They probably shouldn’t be laughing in such a moment, while people are hurting around them, but the reality of her tragic position made it all the more uncomfortably funny.

They manage to keep their laughter under their breaths, but Monopoly has gone forgotten, she’s pretty sure she’s won anyway. She just bought Boardwalk and already safety held Park Place in her possession.

It was game over.

They sit in a comfortable silence, and when she locks eyes with Sweet Pea, he gives her one of his annoying knowing smiles. It kind of hits her all at once that he’s the reason for all of this and she can’t be more grateful, because he’s the reason she has Toni.

She mimes, ‘thank you’.

He just winks back.

 

 

 

 



There's a knock at the door, and she already knows it's her mother, because he always knocks the same way, it patronising and it drives her crazy because it’s too loud and quick, like she’s in a rush.

She also has no idea what to do right now, because her mother is standing in the doorway and there’s a lack of emotion on her face, she’s just watching the way Toni is almost completely lay over her. She feels bile raise in her throat.

There’s no hiding. She has a pair of legs over her own, and Toni’s face is tucked into her neck in a way that screams intimacy. When she tries to sit up, she hears a quiet, “shh,” and she wants to scream because she honestly thought Toni was sleeping.

Deviant.

It takes a moment, and Toni barely has her fucking eyes open when she realizes they have an audience. Cheryl doesn't mean to smile, but she does, because Toni composes herself quickly and just stands up with that winning smile, “Hi, Mrs. Blossom.”

Her mother isn’t so easily won over.  

She looks straight past Toni when she says, “Your grandmother should be resting, it’s time your friends leave.”

There’s something about the way that Toni holds herself, it’s compelling.

“We were just... supporting, Cheryl.” Toni says and it’s weak.

“Supporting?”

Her stomach does this little lurch when her mother takes a step forward and it’s supposed to be intimidating, but it’s taken as a threat and both boys are on their feet. They’re so quick to stand in line behind Toni. She didn’t know they were listening.

"Stop."

The focus is pulled back to her, even though her stance feels weak. Maybe she’s not the girl that burnt down Thornhill, but she can still defend herself. Sweet Pea looks back at her strangely but says nothing, but he must be able to see the conflict in her eyes, because he tilts his head a little and his eyes soften.

“Let’s go,” he says, and touches Toni’s back.

She watches them leave.

 

 

 

 

 

“They’re beneath even you, Cheryl,”

The words don’t sting like they used to, because somewhere along the line, she thinks they stopped meaning as much. They haven’t even moved, so there’s still a half-played game of monopoly still scattered on the floor somewhere between them, and a jacket hangs over the back of a chair and she knows from the little tear in the elbow that it’s Sweet Pea’s.  

“They’re my friends,” she says, and that proves the wrong answer.

“Cheryl, dear god,” her mother breathes, almost spits, “you don’t honestly believe that?”

She does.

“They’re waiting for me,” and she has no way to confirm her theory, but she likes the way the older Blossom’s face twitches when she reaches for Sweet Pea’s jacket and pulls it over her shoulders. “Don’t wait up.”

She pushes past her mother and when they’re stood side by side, Penelope’s fingers circle her wrist, and she squeezes hard enough that it hurts, “think very carefully about what you do next.”

“I’m done just thinking about it.”

 

 

 

 

 

They’re loitering by her car as expected, and she feels something swirl low in her stomach when she sees that Toni’s the first one to stand. She doesn’t slow down, she just tosses her keys over to Sweet Pea and tells him, “don’t scratch it. She doesn’t even make eye contact when she takes Toni’s hand and tugs her towards the motorcycle that she’s become almost fond of.

She likes the way Toni allows her to pull them along, arms outstretched. She feels a breathy laugh when she stops a little abruptly, and Toni bumps into her back.

“Where are you taking me?”

Cheryl doesn’t answer until she has her leg over the bike, “you’re taking me home.”

 

 

 

 

 

“What about your mom?”

It's completely irrelevant and she’s a little insulted that Toni’s really thinking about her mother at this exact moment in time, while her back is pressed against her bedroom door and a pair of hands bracket either side of her head. She gets it, their clandestine rendezvous have gone undiscovered for now, simply because Toni has never stepped foot inside Thistlehouse, but the impending threat seems less important now.

“Just kiss me,” Cheryl says into Toni’s ear, her hands are on Toni’s hips and when she digs her thumb into her hip, she gets a filthy moan she hasn’t heard before.

She doesn’t have to ask again. Toni just bites her lip, and puts her hands on Cheryl’s face and kisses her gently, then a little harder until they’re pressed together.

“We could’ve done this at the trailer park,”

“No we couldn’t,” she says, like it’s a fact, because she’s not being caught fooling around by the boys again. There are so many different ways she’s thought about this playing out, and none of them involve someone else's bed, with a fucking audience.

Their eyes meet and Cheryl feels something flutter in her stomach, it’s a terrifying mix of nerves and arousal.

“You’re just…”

The only way Cheryl can think of proving to Toni that she’s serious, and not craving attention, or acting out against her mother is to tug her closer and press her lips to Toni’s. “I’m yours,” she says against her mouth and Toni moans into the kiss immediately and she feels like she’s dying.

Christ.

There’s a thigh pressing against hers, which is tame by her standards, but then Toni leans over and whispers, “I want you so bad,” and there’s hands in her hair, pulling her into a kiss that’s unlike the others. She bites down, gently, on Cheryl’s lip.

“Show me,” she says, and the words come out breathier than she intended.  

"Fuck." It's almost a grunt. Cheryl still finds it attractive. She just whimpers as Toni’s hand moves down Cheryl’s neck as they kiss and god, Cheryl’s just so aroused thinking of what else Toni can do with her tongue.

It’s not as if she wants to take control of this whole thing, not even a little but, but she feels like she needs to keep moving things along and she wants it to be balanced. Cheryl might be slightly more inexperienced in this department but she wants this to be special. Toni’s always so careful, she never oversteps and never goes too far, but that’s exactly what she needs , so she pushes on the girls shoulders and makes some space between them when she says “take my dress off.”

There’s this moment where she thinks Toni’s going to say no, but then all at once, she drops to her knees and looks up at her and fuck, if it’s not the sexiest thing she’s ever seen. She acts with her instincts, and it’s not as though she’s taking control of this whole thing, but she likes when Toni goes along with what she wants, because she wants to experience it all.

She’s pictured it all, down to the very last detail, but her imagination is nothing compared to the real hands that gather the bottom of her dress and the fingertips that run along her thighs as it’s pushed up to her hips.

There’s a pair of lips on the inside of her knee and they’re moving up with the dress. She's so overwhelmed by what's happening that she can't focus on anything, when she looks back at Toni, she’s lost her shirt and she’s just kneeling there in a black lace bra and a pair of shorts. As soon as she feels a soft breathy chuckle against her inner thigh, she loses it, and she’s pretty sure she can’t fucking breathe. Toni leaves one tortuous kiss, just below the hem of her panties, and then she’s standing again.

Her dress is balled up to her waist and she helps Toni lift it over her head, so that she doesn’t tear it and ruin an expensive dress, or something ridiculous like that. She stands still, her back rigid and she relaxes slightly when she sees Toni smile and throw the dress somewhere by their feet, and she’s left wearing only her panties.

“Should I say something charming, right now?” Toni asks, a little smirk on her lips.

“Shut up,” she says, with a mix of laughter and annoyance.

Then Toni sinks down again, and there are lips wrapping around her nipple. She grabs at Toni’s arms and arches into the touch. She almost loses her balance but it seems like Toni has that under control, and hands gather at her hips to guide her to the other side of the room.

She should say something. There should be something she can think to say. But she's still at least a little afraid that if she talks, she might think of a reason not to go through with it, and she’s never wanted anyone like this before.

Cheryl’s chest is moving as she breathes and Toni kisses the swell of skin just above her chest, and Cheryl’s hands sink into her hair. She gasps when Toni nips the skin with her teeth.

“Bed,” she whispers, it’s rough and she can hear how different her own voice sounds.

They tumble backwards and it’s sloppy, but she doesn’t care. Toni’s mouth is everywhere and it doesn’t seem like they’re coming to a stop anytime soon. They just sink into each other as Toni’s tongue darts out to pry Cheryl’s lips apart. It feels so, so good.

“Cheryl,” Toni breathes out, her hand coming to rest on Cheryl’s thigh, and the tips of her fingers play with the hem of her panties. “I just…” And then she pulls away and presses their foreheads together. It’s charming.

She giggles and it feels so stupid, but it slips out before she can stop it, because Toni eyes keep slipping to Cheryl’s chest and it’s so fucking sweet.

"This is going really fast."

Cheryl can’t really see how that's a bad thing, so she lifts her hips and wets her lips.

"Not for me.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes,”

She realizes how quickly she replies and Toni must too, because she smirks and just kisses her once more. It all feels so spectacular . There’s no doubt that she’s exactly where she’s supposed to be.

It's not like she knows how this works, other than what she's read in books and the odd late night online in-private browse. It was never with two girls, never, god and she hates that she didn’t do more research in advance, because she doesn’t know how she’s supposed to react when fingers trail over her collarbone. Toni settles a hand right over her breast, massaging gently, and Cheryl finds herself arching up to feel more of it.

She’s letting Toni do all the work, so she dares to slip her hand around the girls back, her nails running up the length of her spine. When the girl lets out a low moan, she knows she’s doing something right.

Cheryl grins when she snaps the back of Toni’s bra open, and it falls loose on her shoulders. There’s a moment where she wishes she could see them together, it had to be beautiful. “Don’t close your eyes.”

“Don’t stop.”  

"Fuck," Cheryl groans, pressing her lips firmly to Toni’s again and slips her tongue inside without warning. They only part again so Cheryl can tug Toni’s bra strap down and pull at the cup. It’s a little primitive, but she doesn’t have time to think about it, because her stomach coils hard when they make brief eye contact, and then her eyes drop and she licks her lips at the sight of Toni’s bare chest.

“Breathe, babe,” Toni chuckles, and she hears the faint sound of material hitting the floor and it just leaves her swallowing hard and trying to remember the basics, like needing oxygen.

"Oh, my god," Cheryl whines it and Toni grins down at her. "I can't believe I'm the one saying shut up and kiss me."

Toni laughs quietly and slides her fingertips down to Cheryl’s bare side, and she draws her fingers over that spot on her left side, a heart.  

Is this what love feels like?

“My heart's beating so fast,” Toni whispers, and it’s like the most endearing thing she’s ever heard. She copies her slightly, and rests her warm hand against Toni’s chest, and she can feel it. She looks up at her and she’s dumbfounded, because she’s doing that. And she doesn’t understand how.  

She wants to touch Toni everywhere. Everywhere . She doesn’t know where to start, so kissing her hungrily seems like a good plan, until it becomes the only thing they do for a good long while. Toni’s tongue works in and out of Cheryl's mouth, and dear Lord, she's the best kisser Cheryl's ever had the pleasure of kissing.

She could get off at just the feeling of Toni’s tongue in her mouth. It's fucking heaven. Cheryl could easily let this go on forever, but with the way Toni’s hips are rocking against hers, she knows she isn't going to last long.

“Holy fuck, you’re so cute, Cheryl.”

She wants to be offended, but then Toni is kissing her again, and there's a hand sliding along the waistband of her shorts, and no, she is not really in a position to start complaining.

In all honesty, she’s frankly terrified of doing something wrong. She’s never gone this far with a girl, or even gone beyond a quick secret kiss. It’s all new. So, she’s really just trying to keep her hands in the right place so things don’t get off track. It would be mortifying if she was responsible for something that caused Toni to stop .

Any sense of control she thought she had disappears when Toni hand moves down and slips right into Cheryl’s panties. She doesn’t move for a moment, like she’s waiting for Cheryl to kick her off and run out on her, but she’s done running. Really, she just wants more, so she whispers Toni’s name and that seems to work.

She gasps when Toni really touches her for the first time, long, slender fingers moving over her. A mixture of heat and arousal has Cheryl’s blood rushing down from her brain and back to her core, making her all kinds of dizzy.

"You're so wet." Toni whispers, and she’s staring as though she hadn't really believed it until now.

Cheryl can’t really form words and she’s left trying to grab onto something, anything, to keep from bucking her hips too hard.

"Just..." She swallows and Toni moves her fingers in a way that makes Cheryl’s back arch and she spreads her legs a little wider. "Yeah." And really, who needs words when you have this ?

Toni circles Cheryl’s clit and then backs off, fingers dipping lower and then sliding back up, and it becomes very hard to think of anything. It's all so gentle, but it's also the most painful sensation Cheryl’s ever experienced—being worked up like this, teased so intensely her core is throbbing. She can actually feel Toni smirking against her neck, and it would normally be frustrating if it wasn't so goddamn hot.

When she looks down and sees Toni’s hand moving beneath the cotton, she moans loudly and snaps her eyes shut, letting her head fall back against the pillows. She's almost embarrassed that it's taken her no time at all to get this close. She's also never wanted to come quite so desperately, ever.

She can smell Toni and sex, and feels hot all over, feels her stomach jump when there's pressure on her nerves again. She runs her hands through Toni’s hair to keep from doing something irrational, like using her own fingers to move the process along.

Toni isn't even really kissing her anymore, she’s idly pressing her lips down her abdomen, over her bellybutton, and towards that place where she needs Toni the most. She’s voicing none of her smaller complaints at all.

There’s a moment where she panics, because Toni is between her thighs and her fingers are hooked on either side of her panties. And then Toni is looking up at her, “I… can I take them off?”

Cheryl gets an inappropriate amount of satisfaction upon hearing the hitch in Toni’s breath and the way her voice is shaking. She waits for permission, even though she doesn’t need it and as soon as Cheryl nods, Toni pulls her panties down and off and her hips buck when Toni presses her tongue flat against the skin between Cheryl’s thighs and drags it up so slowly.

She whines like a bitch when Toni peeks up at her with this drowsy smile, eyebrows furrowed adorably as she leaves kiss after kiss against her center.

“Fuck,” her voice is rough, and she can feel how shallow her breath has gotten and when Toni flicks her tongue against her in just the right spot, Cheryl rolls her hips, chasing an orgasm that seems to be so far away.

Blunt nails scrape up and down her thighs so gently it makes Cheryl shutter and rock her hips into a steadier rhythm before chancing a glance down at her lower body, and she shivers at the sight of the Serpent staring back up at her from under her eyelashes.

It's kind of trippy how sincere Toni still manages to look as she practically digs her tongue into Cheryl, as if she's never tasted anything better, and Cheryl’s just left with her mouth hanging wide open when she traps Toni's head in between her thighs. She gasps when Toni unexpectedly adds a finger into the mix, and everything is building so fast, her stomach clenching like an unwound coil.

Cheryl comes a few seconds later, her back arching off the bed, and she allows a muffled cry to escape as her eyes blur with not only the intensity of her orgasm but with unshed tears. It spreads through her faster than when she does this for herself, but Toni strokes her through it, lazily, "Fuck."

Toni kisses her hard and Cheryl reaches up and sets her hand on the back of the girl's neck to keep her close, keep them pressed together. "That was perfect."

Cheryl can't really do anything more than hum in agreement as she tries to breathe like a normal person. The smell of sweat and sex fills the air with a thick, heady scent, but Cheryl has never felt more comfortable and sated in her life laying right here with Toni.

She somehow keeps herself from doing something embarrassing like saying thank you.

"Kiss me," Cheryl says, and Toni gives her this smile that's just too beautiful, and leans down. And then she gets a kick of excitement when she tells her, "my turn."

She half-expects a protest, but then she realizes who she's dealing with, and she actually finds herself giggling when Toni kisses her as she slings her leg over Cheryl's hips and rolls them over until they’ve flipped positions.

She's straddling Toni and looking down at her when the girl below says, “it won’t take much,” and fuck . She did that and she hasn’t really even touched her yet.

Cheryl just laughs, "You're like, weirdly sexy when you're bossy TT."

“It could also have something to do with being mostly naked.” Toni drawls out, biting back a smirk when she adds, “And I just got you off, so.”

She leans down and sets her hands above Toni’s shoulders on the mattress, she almost loses her mind when their breasts brush together. She finds it to be far more erotic than it really should be. "You're beautiful," she says before she can stop herself.

"I’m also really fucking wet, so, please touch me, Cheryl ."

The girl beneath her grits her teeth, jaw clenching rigidly as she breathes out through her nose.

"I've never done this before. I'm..." Cheryl pauses and actually looks up into Toni’s eyes and ignores the little smirk on her fucking lips. "What?"

Toni just relaxes the smirk, and Cheryl’s left watching Toni push down her shorts and reveals that the girl isn’t wearing anything underneath, and they’re kicked away somewhere in the bed. She doesn’t get a chance to think about how sexy that image is, because then her hand is pulled down and she’s guided between Toni’s legs.

There's a pleasant and warm wetness there, just like when she touches herself.

“Cheryl, please.”

She sees it as a challenge, and she does not like to lose.

Cheryl takes her time and lets herself savor the moment, fingers stroking the outer lips of Toni’s sex. She dips a finger inside, slowly and teasingly, all the way down to the knuckle and watches Toni’s reaction closely. The girl beneath her grits her teeth, jaw clenching rigidly as she breathes out through her nose and digs her nails into Cheryl’ shoulder.

They both breathe out at the same time when Cheryl pulls in and out, her fingers flexing as she takes in Toni’s thoughtful expression. She adds another finger, and then asks, "How are—is this okay?"

She’s confident she’s never experienced anything as heavenly as Toni’s face pressed against her neck and repeating her name over and over. It’s oddly empowering. And so fucking hot.

"So good," Toni murmurs, lips against Cheryl’s jaw.

She's actually inside her, fucking Toni with her fingers, and Cheryl looks on, her own restraint breaking as she works her hips down into the back of her hand and she wonders if it’s selfish.

Fisting the sheets, Toni writhes underneath her, and Cheryl watches, completely mystified at the sight of the Serpent like this—so beautiful and exposed and vulnerable. Toni’s fingernails rake down Cheryl’s back, and over her ass, squeezing hard and delightfully, kneading the flesh. She wraps her legs around Cheryl’s waist and rolls her hips with a lustful kind of need.

It's a warm night, and they're both sweating on top of her sheets. And then Toni actually mewls, and it's the sexiest noise Cheryl has ever heard in her entire life. She can't believe she's known Toni for this long and has never heard her make that sound.

Cheryl rests her forehead against Toni's, scrunching up her nose at the look of total concentration sketched across the girls face. "Are you close?" she asks breathlessly. "Please tell me you're close."

Toni nods so jerkily and Cheryl can barely tell if that's a yes or no, but she ends up getting her answer a second later when Toni’s breathing picks up, and then she lets out this gasping whimper that Cheryl knows she'll be hearing in her dreams for the rest of her life, because Toni  orgasming is perhaps the sexiest thing Cheryl has ever experienced.  She continues to slowly move her fingers in and out as she brings Toni down from her high, and then it's quiet for a long time afterwards. Her shaky arms give out on her, and she flops beside Toni with a groan of exhaustion.

Cheryl breathes out a sigh. She thrives off of having Toni in her bed like this—naked and damp and just so beautiful. Toni moves slowly but eventually rests her head against Cheryl's chest, and she finds herself shivering once again as Toni drops a light kiss to her collarbone. A set of pillowy soft lips press against hers, and Cheryl’s eyes roll back when she tastes herself on Toni's tongue.

They stay like that for a while, just comfortably engulfed in each other, skin to sticky skin, making out slowly. And god , can Toni kiss. Cheryl is so absorbed in those full lips that it takes her a moment for everything to sink in and god does it feel good to be wanted.

Cheryl smiles lazily when Toni tucks her face into Cheryl’s hair. Exhaustion seeping into her bones the longer she lays there. Toni’s breathing eventually evens out, and Cheryl slowly closes her eyes with a yawn, but then a shiver crawls up her spine at the sound of a very familiar voice in her head, whispering, “Control yourself, Cheryl.”

But she'll face that in the morning.

Notes:

so this took a while to get out. I'm currently freelancing and it's taking up a lot of my time, and I also wanted this chapter to be perfect, so I hope it's good enough. thank you so much for the lovely responses so far, I love reading comments.